Early Garden Tricks

I like to plant early--in fact, everything I do I'm in a bit of a rush. I'm actually cutting out coffee for just that reason. Perhaps I could slow down a bit, have a little breathing time. Anyway, if you want to get a jump on spring, don't forget the coldframe. Perhaps it should be called a hotframe. What I mean is, you can put a piece of glass, an old window works well, up against a south facing wall and plant some greens or some radishes, or start something, like lettuce plants. If you block the ends with plastic, you'll get a nice little hothouse and you'll be surprised what happens. If it is against a cement foundation, the cement will heat up. You can put brick against the wall too, they will hold extra heat. Have some fun with this idea. And look at these simple instructions: Building a Garden Cold Frame

Ciao! Flower

Indoor Gardening

If you have a nice sunny window, a box of herbs for you meals is a good thing. Also, I've grown lettuce in a little greenhouse in the winter. If you have a way to keep a sun room warm enough in the night for your little plants, you could keep yourself in greens all winter. I think greens are the best vege for me. It's so easy to throw spinach in with my eggs in the morning, or for a salad at lunch and dinner. They are great in soup or just steamed. Kale is great with raisins for winter, and in the spring with garlic and green onions. Growing green onions or chives indoors is realistic. Keep your little thyme plant for seasoning, and perhaps a little oregano. Of course rosemary will usually winter over--although I've had a few plants die during colder winters. I'm thinking about cilantro as an easy indoor grow, and how about mustard. You can also just do the sprouts and have lots of nutrition easily. Sunflower sprouts, mung bean sprouts, lentil sprouts, etc. Just get a sprouting jar. I'm onto this now--can't stop me. Sprouting Made Easy

Holy moly,
Flower

Slug it Out

Yes they are back. And this friendly rain we're having that folks are saying we need, that feels good, so gentle, so refreshing, cleaning the air, etc., is making the critters appear by the hundreds from seemingly nowhere. I once stepped on a banana slug in Spokane. That's my only experience of slugs in Spokane. Too dry. Here you can find a slug trail up the utility room door, across the wall and over a chair—yes I mean inside the house. They are everywhere. Where do they come from? Cat's fur, the tiny ones the size of a button cling when the cat brushes past, on your feet, boots, shoes, flip-flops, etc. And how do you get rid of them? Beer, boards, slug-patrol in the dark with a flashlight, slug bait, and iron. Now I don't want to mess with them eating the pansies or the lettuce, so I sprinkle around the iron pellets. I have always had cats as pets and when they were outdoor cats, I didn't want to use any poison in the yard. Still no poison—organic or bust. And when living sclose to the water, poisons of any sort join the watershed immediately and end up in the sound. So organic it is. Iron. Or beer, if you into going out every day and emptying a saucer of beer and slugs. Arugh!

Today is my day to drive south and begin the cleaning out process. I am tying up a 22 year marriage. Five years ago I knew I had to do something. It has taken me five years to complete the transition. I've read some books on divorce. Long term divorces are harder to unravel and do take time. Couples have money and houses and businesses and children together. Fortunately this marriage doesn't have children. We do have cats, and I left one behind. He is a Maine Coon with a crippled paw. He wouldn't have been a good cat to move, and the ex loves him. So it's okay. My new cat Sid is playful and protective. He's a good cat.

Okay, I'll end it here and get on the road. Yes it is raining, but my prediction is that we'll have more summer. So don't despair and do look out for slugs and if you have some light plastic, cover your tomatoes to keep them dry. My neighbor hooked an umbrella to the poles supporting his tomatoes. It was a perfect solution—just open the umbrella when it rained. Save the plump juicy fruit from blight.

Peace,

Flower

Gloomy Morning

Well, I really am having trouble letting go of my almost-ex-husband. So what does that have to do with gardening? I'm not sure, but there's all that mint that has trouble letting go of the soil and water, all lush in the corner of my garden plot. It's so tenacious, the roots traveling underground, new stems coming up along the runners. In the woods around here, when a cedar tree falls, it becomes a nursery log and new trees sprout in it's composting trunk, so the new trees grow in a row. So sweet. As far as a fallen marriage goes, I guess new parts of me are being forced to grow along the fallen parts. Each part of me has to break down, turn to compost and then regrow something new. The part I'm working on now is letting someone else have him. Ooh, that bothers me. But everything is impermanent. The garden teaches me that. Plants have a short life cycle. Although I do have a Hoya that is 32 years old. I've carried it from one residence to another. Funny how things work out. Something that seems permanent, isn't.

So the garden rules summarized:

1. A plot cannot be left unattended for more that two weeks. (Oops!)

2. No weeds pulled and left in the garden.

3. Conserve water.

4. Rocks go in rock pile.

5. Weeds go in compost pile.

6. No pets and keep tabs on children.

7. Weed-free and looking neat please.

8. A plot not maintained for more than 30 days will be re-assigned.

9. Fencing within plot borders only.

Etc.

Here's the grandbaby. I'm feeling better now. Ciao!

Slow as Molasses in January

The weather, sheez. So cold yesterday, I didn't go to the garden like I'd planned. Cold and windy again this morning; however, this afternoon, warmer. I walked with my daughter before she went to work first thing. We take my grandson along the boardwalk and down around the park. The passenger train passed us by and the whistle scared him so badly, he looked like he was going to cry.

Trains go through Fairhaven all the time—it's just one of the sounds that backdrops the beautiful water, the islands, the breeze, green, green, green. And cold. Don't forget the cold.

June is frequently cold here. And if it's really a rainy spring, I usually wait and plant later, although, one could wait all summer some years. Okay, so today after a long discussion on the phone with the ex about splitting property, C and I headed to the garden. He wore his rubber boots with the frog eyes on them. He doesn't seem to like them much, but having rubber boots is a good option, especially with digging and watering and all.

So I got a pitchfork from the garden shed and haved-at the mint. He had a blue plastic trowel Mama bought him, but preferred the pitchfork. When I wouldn't trade, he threw himself on the ground, one big tantrum; again, sheez.

Once we both recovered from the tantrum, I found a tiny rake in the garden shed, and he seemed happy to have a real tool. So he raked where I'd spread the peat and I dug up mint. I got all of all the mint dug out, but did not finish turning over the entire garden. I was going to document with photos, but the battery was dead on the camera. I took a shot with the cell phone, but it didn't turn out. I did take photos the other day, so I'll include one from the nice hot sunny day we had before the cold, cold, day. Oh, and I planted lettuce. Lettuce likes it cold. It is less likely to bolt, if it's grown during the cooler months.

C did the watering, and had one more fit when the watering can ran dry. More, more, he said. So I filled it again. He watered his pant-leg as well as the beans and then pulled up all the stakes in a fit of anger when I took the watering can from him to return it to its rightful place. So I picked him up, all writhing and shouting and fastened him into his stroller. He drank some water and then he was fine.

Oh, and slow is for how the plants are growing right now. That's right. Slow because it's so cold.