The Gardening Greenhorn

Oh, Hello!

2011-07-31T21:54:00.000-07:00

You may have thought I forgot about this blog... actually, I haven't. I have had some good intentions for the past few months to update this old thing... but it just kept getting away from me. I have started a new adventure with some friends called SewnClever. You should check us out here... and perhaps "like" us on Facebook.
Anywho... This little garden blog could really be updated to some sort of small farm blog. Let me lay down what we've added. We have 10 chickens at the moment. Unfortunately, this number fluctuates due to the fact that my dogs aren't chicken lovers... especially my Boston Terrier... he's more of a chicken killer! sniff sniff.... We also have 2 wonderful goats!! Penny is a Nubian and Nigel is a Nigerian Dwarf! They are so amazing and lovable! In all honesty, I think Penny believes she is more of a lap dog than a goat. For a time, she was trying to get into the house to be with us, she follows me constantly when I'm outside and she occasionally tries to get me to hold her.
Baby Nigel being bottle-fed

Mis Penny Lane

All the amazing blue & brown eggs we get daily

Penny loves to relax in the hammock!
Well, on to the garden, I guess. We have some wonderful things growing right now!! Truly delicious! Our grape vines are giving us grapes, we have watermelon growing like crazy, squash, corn, carrots, english cucumber, tomatoes out the wazoo!! I guess picture tell a better story in the garden. Here are a few... more to come tomorrow... or the next day. Until then, adieu & go get your hands dirty in the yard!

Just a Little Somethin'

2010-11-13T07:09:00.000-08:00

Not much to report on the garden front... I've been on hiatus in the garden since Africa.... that's a month! Yikes!! It definitely took me a little while to get back into my groove. So, pretty soon.. I'll get to work... sometime...

On a side note, I have been spending a lot of time sewing for Patchwork. Patchwork is an indie arts & crafts show put on by Delilah Snell, owner of the Road Less Traveled and Nicole Stevenson from Random Nicole. There are two show (Long Beach & Santa Ana) at the end of this month. You will find so many creative vendors and inspiring craft people here... you will not be sorry! I hope you can make it to one of the shows... I will be a vendor at the Long Beach show on Nov. 21. Check it out at PatchworkShow.com

Undone...

2010-09-27T14:58:00.000-07:00

I have learned a lesson in finishing what you start. As our chicks were getting larger and having finished their coop, they were beginning to spend the day outside. We would bring the dogs inside and leave the chicks in their coop because the fence to the chicken coop was yet to be finished. Well, yesterday while we were gone with dogs gate wasn't latched all the way and they broke into the coop and... I'll spare you the details. I was quite emotional last night.

Well, this morning oddly enough a random chicken dropped by our backyard and it looks like she has decided to stay. Our fence is up now, so she should be safe. We also got some replacement chicks. I was quite attached to my girls, but the new ones will help me move on. We picked up a barred rock (Genevieve), buff orpington (Coco), austerlorp (Poppy), silver laced wyandotte (Sunflower). We transfered the names of the deceased to their replacement counterparts, except Sydney had decided to name our visiting guest Chloe and name the

Wyandotte and new name. We have two americanas on order due in a week (Madeline & Olivia). We are starting the whole process over again... chicks in the bathroom for 2 months... fun!

Other than that... a little garden update.

Tomatoes are growing like crazy! I have my first eggplant coming in nicely. I also have planted micro greens. My first time, but they are super easy!! We also planted some banana tree transplants that have taken well. And we will have 2 storybook pumpkins in time for Halloween.

Chicks!

2010-08-27T21:26:00.000-07:00

So, I know I've been a terrible blogger... just leaving you hanging with all the promises of chickens. Well, good news! Chicks are here!!! I have having a hard time being motivated to finish the chicken coop with the crazy heat we've been having... finally summer showed up! I figured though, what better way to motivate myself to finish the coop, than to just get the chicks? Besides, they can't really stay out in the coop until they are 2 months anyways.

We have had a few chicks for a week and just picked up a few more today. I think the 6 we have will complete our coop for now. However, the pig at the feed store was tugging at mine and Damin's heart strings. Last week when I was there, I almost left with a 2 week old goat! She cried for me every time I left her side! Next spring we may seriously see a goat or pig.

Here are our little babies. Allow me to introduce them....

2 Ameraucanas (Madeline & Olivia) They lay blue & green tinted eggs!

Buff Orpington (Coco)

Australorp (Poppy)

Plymouth Rock (Genevieve)

Wyandotte (Chloe) I believe she is a golden laced Wyandotte

I will post better pictures of the girls this weekend (I hope)

Chili Peppers!!!!

2010-07-16T09:14:00.000-07:00

I was very excited to see how well my chili plant was doing. It has produce more chili peppers than I expected. I have chili relleno planned for dinner tomorrow night.

A note on the chicken coop update. I haven't done my full post on the chicken coop yet because it's not done :(

I was expecting to have it all set up by now, but since the onset of this heat... forget it!! I considered working on it at 8:30 last night to avoid the heat, but didn't really want to work in the dark. It will be done soon though... maybe :)

A Long Overdue Update

2010-07-08T21:06:00.000-07:00

I have been dying to update lately, but could not find the time. I know that sounds sad, since it would only take me 15 minutes to update, but I have been busy. Mostly busy with the chicken coop project, but that's a post for tomorrow... or whenever I get another 15 minutes.

But for now, I wanted to update on some of the fun thing going down in the garden. I have always had wonderful luck with my basil. It always grows with ease and has this yummy little spice to it. I recently picked a bunch and made some delicious pesto. Also, I have some great little bell peppers that are ready. I also have some rad little peppers that are almost ready for chile relleno. I'm not sure the name of the chili, but I know that's what they can be used for :)

My tomato plant is growing a lot, but no little tomatoes yet...

Ahhhh... Here is a beautiful sight!

My grape vines are looking so gorgeous! I have a ton a grapes as you can see below. It's so awesome... sometimes I'll be working out in the yard and it will get really quiet and I'll stop and think to myself, "Where are the girls and why are they so quiet?" And then of course, I find them eating the ripe grapes they find. They just sit there and search for the ones that are ready.

These ones above are their favorite bunch to munch off of.

Here is my first little lonely blackberry. The bush is small, but it's showing me grace. I really have neglected it.

Our apple tree has a lot of apples coming in. This is one of my favorite trees in the yard. In the summer when Sydney turned two, she would eat an apple from this tree everyday while I worked in the yard. I'm looking forward to making an apple pie soon!

And lastly in my update... The girls got to pick some carrots from the garden. Not as big as carrots I've grown in the past, but they're still carrots. There's nothing like seeing your kids face as they pull out the carrots from the ground, like "Holy Cow!!! That was under the dirt!!"

More pictures to come soon as the corn is getting taller, more strawberries are ripening, and my first potato plants are coming up! And... another teaser for the chicken coop update.

Ups & Downs

2010-06-17T11:41:00.000-07:00

Would you rather hear the good news or the bad news first??

Okay then bad news first... I'm a pumpkin killer :( My lonely little pumpkin has died. I was trying to guide the new vines for my pumpkin to follow and I knocked little baby and it shot off the vine. I'm so bummed because it was one of the storybook pumpkins... Hopefully my vine will forgive me and make me a new pumpkin. Fingers crossed...

On the upside, my basil is going very well and I picked a nice bunch today and am going to make pesto for lunch today! Super yum!

This and That

2010-06-13T20:58:00.000-07:00

I found the answer to one mystery in my garden... what is eating my bean plants??? The culprit... slugs. I found some shiny tracks one some leaves this morning... Now I will take them down! Next, to find out who is eating my cucumbers. But for now I have started some new cumcumbers indoors. Fingers crossed!

Also, the Armstrong Garden Center in Foothill Ranch is closing and I picked up some good finds for cheap. I got organic eggplant, habanero peppers, chocolate mint, chamomile, melon, and a bunch of organic seeds. Plus soil was 30% off so I grabbed a few bags. Definitely not enough to fill my boxes, but enough to finish filling my existing boxes and my box for potatoes. Pictures to follow, especially some pictures of my grape vines that are looking amazing, thanks to some hand-me-down arches.

Plus, a little side note... I'm going to be acquiring some chickens in the next month or so and have drawn up plans for my chicken coop. I think beyond my means all the time, and the chicken coop was no exception. I try to keep it humble and cost efficient, but there are still basics that I need and there is no way around not spending any money... with that being said, I am looking for any chicken related items that may be in need of a good home. If you come across any, please let me know. I have checked craigslist, but I also need tall posts for a shaded area I want to build for the coop... something for vines to grow on. Any suggestions of cheap, or even better, FREE finds, please let me know.

What's Eating you???

2010-06-08T17:36:00.000-07:00

That's the mystery right now... what's eating my baby plants?? I can't get my poor cucumbers to grow for the life of me because of some little bug. I've replanted 3 times!!! I tried covering the little sprouts with a tent and the bug has the magical power to get through it. And that's not the only plant it finds tasty because some of my beans are being eaten as well. Any suggestions on how to save my babies??

2010-06-01T23:14:00.000-07:00

Spent the weekend shoveling some free mulch! Gotta love free!!

I think it makes it look so much better... I know you're thinking...

"Michele, it looks the same! You still haven't filled your stinking boxes yet!"

I'm trying to get there. Finances are holding me back, but I'm hoping that I can get my soil soon. And let me remind you how insane and barren my garden looked before the renovation.

Also, that little retro fridge in the corner of the garden is going to house some plants as well... when I get there. It was mine and Damin's refrigerator from when we first got married... awwww!

Super stoked on corn, squash & beans!!

I've never grown beans before and have no idea what I'm doing...

I'm stoked at the prospect of picking my own beans... I am married to a Mexican!

And my little baby pumpkin...

2010-05-16T16:40:00.000-07:00

Boxes were built this weekend... unfortunately that was it. I just need to get my soil and plant my seeds. It's coming together!!

My goal: visit my backyard instead of the market.

On a side note... I woke up and looked out my window this morning and saw some birds getting down in the bird bath. I was so stoked to see this since I didn't birds would really use this in my backyard with the dogs on patrol. But sure enough... they were getting fresh & clean.

In Progress...

2010-05-14T14:55:00.000-07:00

Garden renovation is in full effect everyone. I have one new box built and two more are going to be built and filled this weekend (cross your fingers). I have a new fence and a little succulent garden in front of it. It's starting to look good.

And I'm super stoked that my super talented husband did this awesome graffiti piece in the garden for me.

Garden Renovation

2010-04-14T19:14:00.000-07:00

Well, my garden make-over is starting and it's looking really good so far. Weeds are out, new fence is up, I put our old refrigerator in the corner to grow some shade plants in, and most important of all... I've started my veggie seeds. I've got quite of bit of work ahead, but it doesn't seem like too much work ahead of me. This weekend I'm going to try to get 2 (or hopefully 3) boxes built and filled with soil. Also, in about 2 weeks we have chickens moving in... 3 to start and hopefully a few more later.

Here are some updated pictures and now that I'm getting somewhere, I promise more faithful posts and pictures...

Happy Gardening!!

Starting some new seeds...

Renovate!!

2010-02-16T10:25:00.000-08:00

So I am a horrible blogger. I have such a hard time keeping my posts current, but I guess if I had a lavish garden growing, it would be easier to write something. However, I do have a garden update. I'm on major renovate mode. I'm trying to get everything ready for spring planting. I will have some new pictures soon of everything going down. And not far off are chickens!! I will be more faithful in posting with all the changes.... keep an eye out.

Sorry I Lag

2009-12-11T09:33:00.000-08:00

I've been so busy with sewing bags, homeschooling, and fun crafts that I haven't been a very faithful blogger. But in my defense... there really isn't much going on in the garden :( Here is a list of what's happening...

I got a little strawberry transplant that seems to be doing well. We'll see in the summer - yum! Several zucchini plants are sprouting up. My fennel is out of control... doing so well. Don't really know what do with fennel, so if you do... send me a recipe or I'll give you some. I have a sweet pea thief in my yard. My sweet peas were so rad and then one day they were off the trellis and all the sweet peas were gone :( I was bummed because that plants has such sweet memories with it. When I was first starting my garden Sydney used to stand and eat all my sweet peas while I worked in the garden. It was like a babysitter. My tomato plants are still the

same size they've been for the past 2 months. Not sure why they won't grow or what to do to help them, but I would love insight. My cucumbers were doing great and then took a turn for the worst and I dug them up. I did get a few jumbo cucumbers from the vine though. Last on the list are my peppers. I have already had some yummy sweet bell peppers and my plant is on round two. I have another pepper plant that I thought were hot peppers, but after picking them and smelling them... and Damin tasting them... they are sweet as well.

Like I said, I've been on a major craft kick lately. I might throw up a few pictures of things I've been making lately... a princess skirt, a Pippy Longstocking style smock/ dress, a fabric "Merry Christmas" sign, a few ornaments... there is so much I want to do right now, with no where near enough time.

Until next time...

(which will probably be another month, at least)

Ants SUCK!!!!!!

2009-10-05T15:45:00.000-07:00

I couldn't even think of a better title than that... that just sums it up!! I went out to water today and left the hose on longer than normal and next thing I know I was flooding the ant colony that lives in my garden. I didn't know they were so numerous... there is no way of accurately describing how many ants are in my garden! I have all the ants in Santa Ana in my backyard!!!! That is an understatement! It's ridiculous!!!! So now, I am on a serious hunt for natural ways of getting rid of these ants. Aaaaagggggghhhhh! These pictures are just when they started coming out... this isn't the worst of it!

Snack Sacks

2009-09-28T21:38:00.000-07:00

Hey all...

I've been sewing reusable snack sacks and am starting to sell them. If you are interested or know anyone interested, please let me know or let them know about me :) If I can get my butt in gear, I'll be in a store in the next few months.

Finally...

2009-09-28T12:23:00.001-07:00

Some new pictures of what's going down in the garden.

We had some delicious watermelon and I made pesto with all the basil that is growing. If you like basil, let me know and I'll get some to you. I did a fancy trick with my lettuce. After I cut off the bottom of the Romaine lettuce, I planted the bottom in the garden and a new head of lettuce is growing from the middle of it. Pretty cool trick if you don't want to wait for seeds. We have also had some really cute storybook pumpkins come up... just using those for decoration though. And finally... my tomatoes and beets are growing. So excited! I have a bunch of new things coming in for fall... zucchini, cucumber, carrots, cilantro, kale, lettuce, spinach. But, for some reason, I can never get corn to do well... any suggestions?

Keep On, Keeping On

2009-07-23T13:20:00.001-07:00

Even though my garden is still looking rather shabby, I do have some good stuff going down... I have a TON of grapes coming in. My watermelon vines are looking good however there is only one watermelon :) Corn is coming up, along with peas, onion, chili peppers and pumpkins. We just planted some carrots, beets, spinach and tomato. Along with that, my garden beautification process is starting to pick up steam... hopefully soon it will be like the garden in my mind...

Slow Rollin'

2009-06-05T15:19:00.000-07:00

I am off to a seriously slow start this season. I think I've been more focused on giving my garden a facelift instead of focusing on the plants. Still hoping to get to the facelift, but I think the crazy weeds still randomly looming throughout the garden lessen my motivation. I do have quite a few watermelon vines coming up; along with corn, basil, sweet peas, tomato, and kale. I need to devote some time next week... for sure.

As far as my worms go... they're just eating the junk I gave them.... doing what worms do. Still not sure if I am doing 100% correct, but kind of cool none the less... and Sydney likes having worms under the sink :)

Also, a big "thank you" to Matt Jensen for my beautiful heading he created for me!

I Got Worms...

2009-05-20T13:04:00.000-07:00

I'm going to attempt vermicomposting under my sink. Vermicomposting is throwing your old veggie & fruit peels and scraps in a box with worms and letting them go to town. After they are done there is super wonderful plant food left behind. I'm a little nervous getting started because I don't know if it will smell or attract unwanted pests, but from what I'm reading, if I do this correctly I won't have those problems. I'm getting it all set up today, so I'll report back and let you know how it's going.

Wilted

2009-04-22T20:17:00.000-07:00

Being the genius that I am, I planted my baby sprouting plants right before our mini heat wave last weekend. It doesn't really look like anything made it through, except for the watermelon. Speaking of watermelon, I have watermelon coming up all over the place in the box it was growing in last year. I'm assuming that since I didn't clear out the old watermelon vines until recently, that the old vine dropped seeds in the box and planted for me this season. So thoughtful!

Well, hopefully something is salvageable out there, or I may need to replant all me seeds. I do see a little hint of cilantro that might make it and one baby corn that may pull through. Our trees are looking pretty good... apricots, figs, and apples are starting to show up. So stoked for apricots!!

P.S. My mixture of sugar and borax to get rid of ants worked really well!!!

I Love Hoes!

2009-04-06T08:49:00.000-07:00

I spent a little time this weekend getting down and dirty with my ho. The garden is on it's way to looking better than last year. It's some serious work though getting the big think weeds out of the hard ground. I'm trying to get these out so I can plant clover between my stepping stones and hopefully keeps new weeds at bay. I was able to get my watermelon and corn in their box this weekend, but was brought to a stand still when I found that one of the other boxes has an ant problem. So bummed on that, trying a combination of sugar and borax sprinkled around to get them outta here. If you have a tried and true method, please let me know. Other than that I have a ton of ladybugs... on a ladybug side note... last season I kept throwing out some gross little red and black bugs only to find out the other day they are ladybug larvae! Like I stated in the beginning, this is a learning process for me :)

Ladybug Larvae

Here is what the garden is looking like currently. It still looks ghetto and crazy, but you should have seen it Friday... weeds shoulder high- no joke! I'm hoping to add a few more boxes soon.

Start Your Engines!!!!

2009-03-25T17:00:00.001-07:00

Sydney helped me start some vegetable seeds a few days ago. We started them in toilet paper rolls and then will plant them when they start sprouting. That is what we did last year and it worked pretty well. You can plant the toilet paper roll with it, it just composts in the soil. Hopefully I can beautify the rest of my garden soon and we'll be rolling. Here's what seeds we started... cilantro, lettuce, beets, corn, peppers, watermelon, broccoli, and carrots. I need to start the rest of my herbs, but since I use cilantro so much, I got that started right away.

Spring has sprung!!! Viva la garden!!!

Here I come...

2009-03-09T17:09:00.000-07:00

So I actually got out there for a short period of time last week. I pulled some weeds out and left over remnants of past vegetable plants... random onions, shriveled tomatoes, half-eaten carrots. The boxes are ready, but there were a few bugs hanging out waiting for the new crop. I need to figure out how to clear them out. The rest of the garden area is a total jungle though. I'm dreading clearing it out, but am hoping I can enlist Damin's help as part of my birthday present :)

I've also been saving toilet paper rolls so I can start my seeds soon. Sydney loved this last year... helping me fill the rolls with soil, seeds, and water.

I'm getting back into it... I'll keep you posted.

Getting the Itch...

2008-11-10T07:09:00.000-08:00

Hopefully sometime in the near future I will get around to cleaning out the old remnants of the past garden and get down to business. I think I've only been in a close proximity to my garden maybe 3 times since Ginger has been born... but from the looks of it my tomato plant is living on. We'll see what happens.

Irradiating

2008-09-18T14:31:00.000-07:00

So, as much as I need a break from gardening, I am really eager to get back to setting up my garden again because of a new process the government has approved. Irradiating is a new process where food companies will use radiation to rid certain vegetables of bacteria, such as E. coli. By using the radiation, majority of the nutrients in the vegetables will be eliminated. Along, with that, who knows what eating radioactive produce will do to our bodies, especially the bodies of our children. So, the way around buying produce that has been through "chemo-therapy" is to buy Organic (or grow your own). Organic produce will not go through the irradiation process. If you think this is an important issue, you can click on this link to tell the government to shove it. :) http://ga3.org/campaign/Irrad_SpLet

Hiatus

2008-09-01T19:01:00.000-07:00

Since Ginger is due soon and I don't have a whole lot doing well right now... I have decided to let the garden take a break. I'm going to clear out most of it this week and just leave my tomato plant, pumpkins, watermelon, 1 zucchini, and the basil. I'll start fresh for spring planting and hopefully will have a few new tricks to help me do better. I do have to say that I am pleased with how my first try at gardening went. We had broccoli, carrots, onions, zucchini, kale, sweet peas, cilantro, basil, rosemary, and spearmint. I think we will have some really nice pumpkins just in time for halloween.

Check back in spring!!!

Under Attack!!!

2008-08-25T07:21:00.000-07:00

So the garden is under siege! I have ants coming in for breakfast, lunch & dinner and every snack in between. I started out with a combination of sugar and borax around the edge of my garden so I'm going to see how that works. I have an mix to make with essential oils, but I think since Ginger is due in less than a month, I'm kind of letting the garden do it's thing :( However, I'm sad because the ants found my corn and I was so excited because my corn was doing so awesome. I tried to clean them out really well, but time will tell who won.

I also have a problem with my squash. I have the white powdery mold (or whatever it is) on the leaves of some of my squash plants. I need to do something about this asap or I'm going to have to remove all of my squash. I found a mix to make to spray on the leaves, but again have been too lazy to do anything. When I was at Whole Foods I found a spray for the leaves, but when I saw it was $13, I didn't really want to buy it. I figured my own was cheaper. Well now being hugely pregnant and just getting sick, I'm wishing I would have got the stinkin' spray. So hopefully, everything survives and I get out there to water everything before it dies.

Finally...

2008-07-21T20:10:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures...

The first baby pumpkin

The pumpkins

I'm going to see if they grow up the trellis

Sweet peas, onions, tomatoes, kale, lettuce, carrots, beets

Spearmint, basil, rosemary, corn (waiting for the bell peppers, broccoli & cilantro to show up)

Corn

Squash

Zucchini

more squash

The first baby watermelon

Watermelon

Attack of the Sweet Pea Monster

2008-07-17T08:50:00.000-07:00

While I was watering my garden the other day, the sweet pea monster struck!!! She ate all of the sweet peas off the vine in a matter of 10 minutes. The only evidence that she was there besides the lack of a single sweet pea left on the vine, was the sprinkle of sweet pea casings on the ground that she shelled the peas from. She does love her veggies :)

Squash

2008-06-17T07:00:00.000-07:00

I have some beautiful summer squash, watermelon and pumpkin plants coming up. They are doing so well and look so much better than the rest of my garden. I'm wondering if it's the location of the box? They have morning shade and my other boxes have full sun all day. I'm thinking maybe I should put up something to create a little bit of shade for the rest of the garden. I've got beets, tomatoes, new sweet peas, new corn and lettuce coming up too. I had to replant my corn after Presley ate it:( I am having a heck of a time getting my bell peppers to take off. They start to break through the soil and then die off. I've replanted them 3 times. Any advice??

New Stuff

2008-05-16T11:42:00.001-07:00

So, for Mother's Day I got what I wanted.... Damin built me a new box. It's just a small one 1'x7'. I'm going to plant watermelon and some squash in it. I read somewhere that you can get watermelon to grow up a trellis and it's not too heavy. I like the idea that it's up off the ground saving some space (not like I don't have space to spare). So, we'll see how that goes. I'm going to plant them today when Damin gets home from work. And I'll take a picture too... Although I have to say that a picture a few weeks back would have been great when my peas were doing wonderful and before I picked a lot of my carrots... but at least you can see how it's coming along.

P.S. Presley loves the garden too. She thinks the sweet peas are delicious and was part of the demise of my plant, but also thinks the carrots are great too:)

Broccoli Help

2008-05-14T07:55:00.001-07:00

Can anyone offer me help with thinning my broccoli??

Getting Back Into It

2008-05-09T11:27:00.000-07:00

So, after we have been able to eat some of our hard work, I planted some more seeds yesterday. I know, there is no method to my madness in regards to following the rules of gardening... I just plant when I feel like it and hope it grows. I'm going to call it "Wishful Gardening." I think a lot of beginners garden this way, I just feel comfortable admitting it. So what I planted was beets, zucchini, more onions, Roma tomatoes, basil... and I think that's it for now. I really need to figure out what to do with my two broccoli plants. They are getting huge and out of control. I need to look up how to thin them.

I'm hoping for Mother's Day, Damin will fund a renovation of the rest of the garden since it was overtaken by weeds, or help me clear them so I can plant my watermelon & pumpkins (which I know I'm late starting). If I was smart I would start the seeds inside today to get them going.

And, as I always promise, I'll post a picture soon. I think I might actually do that today, or at least try to take the picture today.

Happy Spring Everyone!!!

The Harvest

2008-05-05T18:19:00.000-07:00

So we've been picking our crop lately, we have amazing sweet peas and Sydney loves the broccoli. We just picked a bunch of carrots today. Our corn is coming up really well, but my peppers are taking forever to do anything. They seem to be the same size for the past month. I recently planted kale & romaine lettuce. We're going to plant some pumpkins, which I should have already planted, but oh well. I have some regular pumpkin seeds to plant, but I also saved some seeds last year from a white pumpkin I had and from a bright orange pumpkin. I saved the seeds correctly :) I'm super motivated to get out there and spruce up my garden and clear all the dying weeds, but I can barely water the garden and pick what's ripe without Sydney trying to dig up a baby plant. I'll get there.

Well, here is a picture of Sydney with her harvest of carrots.

I'm A Loser

2008-04-02T17:57:00.000-07:00

So again it's been forever since the last time I've posted anything. I've been meaning to post a picture of my backyard that looks like the Amazon. It is so rundown with weeds shoulder high, that I've had a hard time motivating myself. But, lately some of my plants really took off. I think the warmer temperature helped a lot. We've been able to enjoy cilantro, broccoli, and just today Sydney and I enjoyed sweet peas while we watered the garden. They were so delicious! There is something so exciting about eating something you grew yourself.
I also had a little bit of help in my garden the past week. The wonderful Brady Moreno helped moved some stones into the garden and it really made it look great. There is still a long way to go, but I'm getting there. I still have a ton of weeds that I need to clean out around the garden area, move my compost to a new location and fix my fence... but it will get done (hopefully). Being pregnant makes it just a tad more difficult, not to mention Sydney... who just tried to dig up our brand new sweet pepper plant that finally made an appearance last week.
Well, I'll get my butt in gear and post some pictures soon. I love how my sweet peas are looking. Plus, I'll post a picture of the attack of the monster weeds :)
Ciao for now!

What Can I Say?

2008-01-22T09:03:00.000-08:00

I'm so lazy. I've been a terrible gardener lately. I've been trying to get out there and keep an eye on everything, but I have had such trouble with little Miss Busy Body. She thinks the boxes are sandboxes to play in, which makes it so hard to keep her out. And when she is playing in the rest of the yard while I'm doing something, she is always up to no-good. She's a lot faster now and it makes it harder for me to get to her in time when things go south. Also, with all the rain we had recently, I have some insane weeds growing around my garden and need to get out there and strike them down before they overtake the garden. It's all probably no big deal and I'm just a complainer, but boy oh boy it' hard to get things down out there.

An update...

2007-12-27T16:14:00.000-08:00

Ok, so it's been over a month since I've posted anything. The Christmas season really kept me busy this year, along with a little elf named Sydney. Here's a quickie update of what happening in the garden...
Peas are coming up nicely and carrots and corn are looking good too! Broccoli is struggling a bit, but hopefully I can get it back to a good spot. I'm going to be planting some new seeds next week (I hope). That's all for now... Sydney is throwing a tantrum :)

Ready to Grow...

2007-11-16T14:14:00.000-08:00

Well, today I finished my boxes (that I made by myself). I used a miter saw for the first time :) Anyways, depending on the festivities this weekend, Sydney & I might get some seeds in the ground. Come, Monday, I'm going to put some stones around the boxes as a pathway and I need to plant some mint & thyme around the edges of the boxes because some ants already found their way to the boxes, even with nothing in them. I despise ants!
On another note... I learned a new lesson about composting this week. **Don't put any seeds in your compost** Yep, I must have missed that when I was reading about composting. I through some pinto beans that didn't make it to the pot in the compost pile and now I have some little beans sprouting up. It kind of worries me because I have thrown a few other seeds in there. Only time will tell how much I threw in. It is kind of funny though seeing beans sprouting up in the middle of the compost.

I thought I might post this picture too... I got really excite about building stuff today and put up a ghetto railing to keep Sydney from jumping :)

My Back Hurts

2007-11-12T19:41:00.000-08:00

So... the past few days I've been building boxes for my garden. I lugged Sydney to Home Depot with me. I love that they will cut the wood for you :) Almost had a melt down last Tuesday while trying to build my boxes. Came out with a fresh attitude on Wednesday and busted out 1/2 of my box. Then finished building the boxes on Saturday. I am proud to say that I made my boxes myself.
Well, today I filled my boxes with dirt... or should I say "Mel's Mix." I got the boook Square Foot Gardening and have made my boxes (2 4'x4' boxes, one 6" tall and the other 1' tall) and have been following the directions in the book. According to the book if I fill the boxes with Mel's Mix (1/3 peat moss, 1/3 vermiculite, 1/3 blended compost) the soil will always be in ideal condition. The combination will keep from becoming hard and compacted, let water flow to the roots freely, and not need to be amended later on.

Let me tell you though, that getting 24 cubic feet of dirt and mixing it together on a tarp and then shoveling it into the boxes with a 15 month old dirt eater is no easy feat. Hopefully tomorrow I will divide my boxes up and get ready to plant some seeds. I also need to make something for the end of the tall box to support my peas & corn. I think I'm going to plant my seeds I started indoors too. I can't wait to start getting a crop. Come January, I am planning on building 2 more boxes, so I can have a continual crop.

Here are some pictures from our day in the yard.

And the Winner is...

2007-11-08T08:15:00.000-08:00

Broccoli!!! It is my first seed to sprout!
I've started building my boxes and am hoping that by the weekends end, my garden should be set up. But, don't hold your breath... I do have Sydney, the dirt-eater :)

Trying to Make a Decision

2007-11-03T20:50:00.001-07:00

So, when I first decided to start my garden, I originally wanted to make above ground boxes to garden in and make it look all beautiful. Then, Damin suggested that I make rows and dig trenches, so it would be easier for me to water. I figured since I don't have sprinklers in my garden area, that I should probably take his advice. So, that has been my plan for the past few weeks, but every time I would go out to the future garden area, I would feel very overwhelmed because of all of the rocks and weeds presently there.
Then, a few days ago my friend Ryan suggested a book to me when he left a comment for a previous post. The book he recommended is called Square Foot Gardening. I haven't looked at the book yet, except by checking it out on Amazon.com, and it is now taking me back to my original idea. Basically from my understanding you build a box that is 4 feet by 4 feet and create 1 foot by 1 foot areas inside each box to plant an individual plant. It is supposed to save you space and time. So, now I am once again considering building boxes to plant my veggies in. I have read that if you plant in boxes to buy certain types of wood and what type of soil to fill the boxes with.
I am going to go to the library on Monday and check out this book... I think it will be right up my alley. I especially like this idea because not only do I want an organic veggie garden that will produce delicious produce for my family, is easy to maintain in respect to weeds (there should be no weeds since I will be adding new dirt to the boxes), gives me more yield for my space, and helps me have a continual harvest... I am also desiring a garden that is aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Being the neat-freak I am, I want it to be neat and organized. I can have a stone pathway between my boxes lined with clover!
If anyone has any suggestions or has a preference of method, please let me know. I need to make my decision very soon because I have seeds to plant. I think I made my decision a long time ago and am now back on track.

Worms

2007-11-02T13:12:00.000-07:00

I was turning my compost and saw that I have the biggest, juiciest worms I've ever seen!!! They were gorgeous!

Seeds

2007-11-01T21:41:00.000-07:00

We started some seeds today in toilet paper rolls... onions, sweet peppers, broccoli, rosemary, basil, and spearmint. The rest of my seeds I'm going to plant directly in the ground. So I better get crackin with getting the garden ready. I am starting two of each of the seeds and then in two weeks I am going to start another two sets and two weeks after that another two sets... so I'll have a continual crop.

Here are some pictures of Sydney helping me put the seeds in the seed starting mix. She was so helpful at first filling her own toilet paper roll, but then caught eye of the seed packets and was on the attack.

Helpful Hands

Seed Starting

2007-11-01T14:02:00.001-07:00

Sydney & I are going to start some seeds today. I've been saving toilet paper rolls so we can start them inside and then I will be planting them straight into the ground in a few weeks. The toilet paper rolls breaks down in the dirt and help protect the seedling.
I'm having a heck of time getting the rocks out of my garden area. Hopefully within the next few days it will be rid of rocks so I can get down and dirty (not that clearing out rocks has kept me clean).
I also bought some delicious worms to add to my compost. It's really starting to look good.
On a side note... I really am enjoying having a blog and reading comments.

The Gardening Journey... Part 1

2007-10-29T14:14:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I'm not a blogger nor am I a gardener, but I am going to try my hand at both. I have recently decided to start an organic veggie garden in my backyard (if you have been to my house, you know I have the space- but all of that space is quite overwhelming for a beginning gardener)... so I have set aside a small area to begin with. I figured since this is going to be a new adventure for me I would chronicle my journey as a virgin gardener on my quest to grow some delicious veggies for my family with ... you guessed it... a blog.

Anyways... I am just getting started and am going to be posting pictures, thoughts, struggles (which will probably be quite a few), and probably soliciting any help from anyone who can keep me floating. Luckily, I have a friend who is a horticulture buff, who has pledged to help me (she is actually coming over tomorrow to get me started on the right foot). She has a wonderful green thumb, where I have the equivilent of a green pinky toe nail. I have been reading some books though, which have already taught me a bit about the soil and starting seeds.
If this garden works out for me, my next step is to turn our backyard shed into a chicken coop and have my own chickens... fresh eggs anyone??
I hope you enjoy reading about my gardening adventures... and I wounldn't mind any feedback or encouragement.
Your gardening adventurist,
Michele

Here is what I'm starting with...

A lot of rocks & a lot of weeds & grass...
My compost... yummy! I am so surprised at how many kitchen scraps we have. I have a small bucket that I fill daily with veggie peels, egg shells, coffee grounds, ect. I'm actually thinking about starting a vermicomposter (worm composting) too!

The Gardening Greenhorn

2007-10-29T14:06:00.000-07:00

Well, I took the advice of my friend who recently took up residence in NYC, Matt Jensen, to create my own blog about my gardening, instead of posting it all in a blog on MySpace. So, if you read my first gardening MySpace blog, you will know I'm new to this whole "blogging" thing...so bear with me as I find my way.