tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-71040926163160266742024-03-19T01:07:30.505-04:00A Gardening JournalOrganic gardening in suburbia...Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.comBlogger30125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-31124758123143832132010-03-09T00:20:00.000-05:002010-03-09T00:20:09.216-05:00Absence makes the heart grow fonder?? Please?So.... it has been for.ev.er. since I updated this blog. Seriously. I didn't even look at the date of the last post, but I know it's ridiculously long ago. Life has been crazy this winter and spring. I am hoping to be better about updating things, but honestly, I'm not making any promises. My small business has taken off some, plus I took on a major volunteer role at our church, plus being on both girls school boards next year plus those little things like, oh, spending time with my family.<br />
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Today was a GORGEOUS day here in Cincinnati (I believe we hit 60 degrees and there was SUN!) so I started on garden prep and planting. I ordered a bunch of seeds from Johnny's seeds for this year, and I sat on the back patio and started some tomatoes, peppers and eggplants. It will be a while before they see actual daylight again, but it was so exciting to get them started and think of all the delicious eggplant parmigiana we'll have this summer.<br />
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This is the first time I've attempted any of these plants from seed, so I hope it goes well. One of the seeds I started, which isn't shown, are the Black Cherry tomato seeds that I saved from last year. I'm hoping they germinate, as I'm afraid they may have fermented a bit too long in the process. We'll see.<br />
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Less than 2 weeks to spring, and I am seriously ready for it.Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-50482962213390672472009-08-15T16:41:00.007-04:002009-08-15T17:20:20.620-04:00I'm Back!I can't believe it's been 5 weeks since I last posted something. July and August have been just crazy for us. What has been going on since I last wrote? Let me get you up to date...<div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivabhlLh40VeT8te_QA1OwBShAsRj5LwF1V2-vSklTnRGjCYgTGKY9pvXSrzwuNz5L6un27iJ2LPxHi9g-r4V58eoTdYBtBr1v8nRQVc5YrdIPGKnen0ljSenglpkzwNyVN5je9DkXxbs/s320/IMG_2200.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370302094498897650" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The 'Mammoth' sunflower - not quite as tall as I'd hoped, but it still met Kate's requirement of "taller than Daddy".</div><div><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDZKctEybkWytyXih0MpvlV-Q_XCR6tmJ6BtxHvNA9G1dYADPJx2Dc0pPwJr_hotrqZAJUKZ_Nf9XJrEbFoliT1MdUV8EoHdWb50yu0Q_88jGQ4OxFwAfDTstSV3WRXJcfGtbNdlPv8vA/s320/IMG_2201.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370302091847295202" /><div style="text-align: center;">Volunteer sunflowers that sprouted from the birdseed - I love the branching one.</div><div><br /></div><div>I have harvested all the white onions. The green onions are still going strong and the leeks are about ready to be pulled sometime in the next week or two. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyAUDwaJElOaEbWG76EWFPTCyBFGEFP9YPLuwr9aHLALCRiWOjo0kwShGVsWlTVKq22PSbbM47ENPFca5O2H7HePznwcmgRTMKPRUwoJV5PU0JgYmC6TXJKr2B4fYFqQjrBrMgaC-a1FY/s320/IMG_2199.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370301964141838882" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">'Pandora' leek</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>Today I harvested my first eggplant - an Ichiban. There are 3 more that will be ready in the next week or so. The Black Beauty in the garden I have been having trouble with the flowers not setting into fruit, but the one at the street has two TINY green eggplants on it now. I think the one in the garden finally has an eggplant also. Next year, I think I am going to go back to the Black Magic, as it seemed to do better than the Black Beauties this year.</div><div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Nzl37DyRszrRJ4p1ZpbbLOcfCpuycl6vMYoWzNlplSN-pXTBHj1BMZN7tGTiMRvz86zp3ELeHdm-zIRcpTZnhvJuck6VmOG6RybXqb7jiGmD290jqnqBa1EYOUKlnihk5lO6_5Q0MFA/s320/IMG_2198.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370301956886861058" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Ichiban eggplant, just before I picked it</div><div><br /></div><div>Carrots are still growing along - I'll harvest them once the first frost comes, so they have a ways to go.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>Peppers - the jalapenos are producing a bunch, they'll probably kick into "high gear" in the next couple of weeks. The Lady Bells are much slower - I have one big green fruit on one plant, and lots of flowers on the rest. Hoping it turns red before the end of the month. Bell peppers never seem to do real well for me - it's always a race to frost time before they really start ripening and turning red (I do NOT care for green bells peppers, try as I might. They have to be red, yellow or orange so they get sweet).</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>Tomatoes - where to start. I made my first (small) batch of tomato sauce on Thursday. The Amish Pastes are really starting to produce, as are the San Marzanos. I've gotten 3-4 Purple Cherokees, and have 2 more that will be ripe in the next few days. Mr. Stripey I am still waiting on - there are 3-4 green fruits on the plant. Then there are the unidentified volunteer plants, which turned out to be... 2 Romas, 3 Celebrities (I think?) and 1 yellow pear cherry (I forget what this one was called - I planted it last year). I really, really love the Amish Pastes. I have not had any blossom end rot issues with them like I did with the Romas the past two years. I have some cracking, but since they're pastes and I use them for sauce, it doesn't really bother me.</div><div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGJN5iGYDTRXSjxLoj2_vPQBYwBE6fnh0lBUxVl8tHizPwC87c_GLThbezKmcCEtJiwNi_A6NR5eeHUFXTDVzpVLnRBDCDRnyoH6h05DTLevF3OByqNLWU8wjVHj-LJA5mFsr3KRAJTNI/s320/IMG_2196.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370301951502353650" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Amish Pastes</div><div><br /></div><div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA1yincwv77Vx1LoBRHMQ1aC_r9BiMNHxnKX-k7Jef9Jdlfb_r2zcatJDGLMuW5INNx9A5oJVXyat39eTYtG527ID69DsN-zqcVeKtWtyTQYifOEvz37O9ZqUBNOAW73A_IZu4ooq1XPk/s320/IMG_2195.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370301946697136018" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">San Marzanos up close</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br /></div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAXLT8iVXJtJjSNC9X1akK9uEAOI3dR_eAOkJSj6qTc-_G054wuHoGkqm-wuvEgYEdbCLwDFc5e1RCRvAqCPlnpiN_OAu0VBqZAvn-hh6MT0kTFq-wjx4qs1wQyqU5eLxzEEd3H2UjHZY/s320/IMG_2194.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370301941465411138" /><div style="text-align: center;">Purple Cherokee up close</div><div><br /></div><div>Potatoes - all of them have been harvested, and I started a second pot that I plan on pulling in the garage for the first few frosts. I thought I'd see how a 2nd crop does. I'm not out anything, because I used potatoes from the first harvest. As far as the laundry basket experiment - I don't think I'll do it again. Hilling them in the basket was a royal pain, and they didn't grow through the sides all that much. Next time I will just stick to large pots.</div><div><br /></div><div>Fall crops - I just planted the following recently for fall harvest - lettuce (rouge d'hiver, iceberg and little gem romaine) and peas (both shell and snow). Hopefully the peas germinate better than they did in the spring. We'll see. I've not grown fall peas before.</div><div><br /></div><div>I also have a head of garlic I got at the farmer's market that I am saving because I WILL be planting garlic this fall, I swear. I have intended to plant garlic the past 2 or 3 falls and it hasn't happened. This year, it will.</div><div><br /></div><div>I also got a promise of some "Eight Ball" zucchini seeds for next year from a wonderful vendor at our local farmer's market. He buys them by the ounce, but since I have such limited space he said he'd be happy to give me enough seeds for 2 or 3 hills. They're a bush style zucchini, and are really cool because they're round. I think they'll be very fun to grow next year.</div></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-19751282085749639752009-07-09T18:26:00.005-04:002009-07-09T18:44:48.922-04:00Potato Time!I have my first homegrown potatoes! While we were gone for a long weekend, I neglected to have a neighbor water my potato pots, and one of them succumbed to lack of water and kicked the bucket. So I kicked the pot (over) and got almost 3 lbs of potatoes out of it! YAY! I am really looking forward to homemade baked potato salad this weekend for a BBQ with friends. Yum. The other two pots are sketchy at this point as to whether they'll recover - I'm going to give them a week or so and see if they recover. If not, I might harvest and restart with them also.<div><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvHmCd_dutMaIeHWO_YP27JNaDP7WCoZxtgdcHwk4IGd0QdGFwPwDF0vu9gAEp6MryMNGPm3bDC5JqsC15xSVwBvmMsAI7Fc__y_AYc0BLKqZe9i3siNVzViieLvXyre01iZFtAwgMuh4/s320/IMG_1992.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356594078480977538" /><div><div style="text-align: center; "><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">I haven't posted in a while as things have been pretty busy - here's a few pictures of the girls from the past few weeks...</div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWtfPM3hRvFB78op19s6y7dkOwuvoDNOaLhR_PKJRUfNDhadVzXNkbS1hjZv5FtQ9VdZi-llpZpBBpjgB6ZNPa28BiGNdrDgfo0BnYrdG1rvBLmvM6mRS0K3tpo_4KT9qw-lekGypu690/s320/IMG_1962.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356594076040217714" /><div style="text-align: center;">Kate at the Fort Wayne, IN Children's Zoo, nose-to-nose with a sea lion. It stayed right by her for about 2 minutes - it was very cool! This was the highlight of the trip to Grandma & Grandpa's for the 4th of July!<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiadcLls18wWAklhsvFVOEWa8BxwpwZehrXiSRgV8U5BhV83FNqD8L7z6VtmdpJOZ0P8OcflnJwe1PLZJYrtASKBYWleAwRTSM6xloglIjXxVBaDUg3raU0DlFfWoyz2iWX5uCBcWMX9o4/s320/IMG_1902.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356594070368985666" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Claire in the dishwasher - what is it with toddlers and dishwashers?!?</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgucezbt4f-Lo1qIsXwJ6awAS8IgTKQPRUz1kUzCGFtie3PQAS_iYSpNS-fRF_Bc9HdpvKy3fbFsHBvMetbrzWQY2wv3JKq5yHGoXnQ9I60AODY4-LjCQVt6xa_YpvHhFvPz0T0nrD-ekU/s320/IMG_1876.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356594063086116402" /><div style="text-align: center;">Claire in the box some fabric came in - who needs toys when you've got a good box to play in?</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div></div></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-49733468723110086662009-06-30T21:05:00.008-04:002009-06-30T21:35:57.171-04:00Day lilies and Death Day...<div>The past week or so sure slipped away from me fast! I can't believe how long it's been since I've posted. This is a tough time of year for me in the garden, it's so darn hot and there's not a lot going on at this point. The peas are all done and pulled, the lettuce is all pulled, I've picked one little tomato (though there are a lot of green ones right now), I've picked and pulled 2 of the 4 cauliflower, and the onions are getting large enough I could probably pull them any time now.<div><br /></div><div>The big highlight of the past week has come not in the vegetables but in the ornamental garden - day lilies are blooming! The Stella d'Oros have come and gone a while ago, but the rest of them started blooming in the last week. I have lots of 'My Sweet Rose' blooming, and my favorite day lily of all, 'Golden Illusions'. It's a beautiful golden yellow color with a large flower with ruffled edges. Of course it is the slowest at multiplying, but the clump will get big enough to divide eventually - maybe in the next couple of years. What's your favorite day lily? Is there a "must-have" I should look at getting down the road? There is a master gardener in Cincinnati that is know for his day lilies - he has probably pushing 200 varieties in his yard, and he hosts an open house every year. My mom and I went back when Kate was about 18 months - he had a little play house for kids and a large electric train set. It's perfect. I don't forsee my yard becoming a regional draw for day lilies, but I do love them!</div><div><br /></div></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKJZpftxlehXpHQpm-T-cqiTLt-N7L4WSEGPWo09sxuWkO-3g5WIgLr6VXPMarRB7ToY-079TDFXOCAW7R6gfnSeLNGTCDtJ5zJicf8wLQwTkja2nuVU1vhDLJj5ylc5_S4B-fQtAKY0I/s1600-h/IMG_1884.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKJZpftxlehXpHQpm-T-cqiTLt-N7L4WSEGPWo09sxuWkO-3g5WIgLr6VXPMarRB7ToY-079TDFXOCAW7R6gfnSeLNGTCDtJ5zJicf8wLQwTkja2nuVU1vhDLJj5ylc5_S4B-fQtAKY0I/s320/IMG_1884.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5353297927999920738" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">My Sweet Rose</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCBvRLvsInyJQxN-t3AaUYlAZC3-b1LycMVGzRcZ7-8lNkdsjytnMhUyGOAIrrPcIY9qpNp50y6Gq7ijmyjC6diG3j1xSRtdsWZ3Tb3kZYRHQpzfd97SHjJUnOiOirvJN_E3P3vD4DMLg/s1600-h/IMG_1885.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCBvRLvsInyJQxN-t3AaUYlAZC3-b1LycMVGzRcZ7-8lNkdsjytnMhUyGOAIrrPcIY9qpNp50y6Gq7ijmyjC6diG3j1xSRtdsWZ3Tb3kZYRHQpzfd97SHjJUnOiOirvJN_E3P3vD4DMLg/s320/IMG_1885.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5353297924341318642" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Golden Illusions</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I also was super excited yesterday (the first day of weather in the low 80s in over a week) to go out to the garden and find a bloom on one of the eggplants! It's a standard Black Beauty, which I love because they're so reliable and usually are the first to produce. I also have an Ichiban, which has a bud but no flower yet. And the random tomato that sprouted out the drain hole of a pot that I put compost in has a tiny tomato on it. I left the plant go, mostly to see what would happen. It's growing out of the drainage hole of a cheap 1 gallon pot I got with some perennial I bought long ago. With nothing but water when I remember, it's produced a tomato. And people say they can't grow things!</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnEeLjCec38g4qVC5zTyFSH_CD8kdm86HHbe5qtpaYIRXNnIWiniccvfrgYJVSiDaryGl9i1atfqnx1jHkPA3pz1nOMIDQcMGxaRNgupUorZW0I5TS0AajI7-Te_-dBtiC0WaTFNne4hs/s1600-h/IMG_1887.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnEeLjCec38g4qVC5zTyFSH_CD8kdm86HHbe5qtpaYIRXNnIWiniccvfrgYJVSiDaryGl9i1atfqnx1jHkPA3pz1nOMIDQcMGxaRNgupUorZW0I5TS0AajI7-Te_-dBtiC0WaTFNne4hs/s320/IMG_1887.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5353297921200998850" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Black Beauty Eggplant</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyZmhcBAvIvKAmw_yhXipHFoidir4W_Pjzvk-zV64g0blttdkvmm4lt0NJTXj-EyNHitCTPgwnH4YxP1oSXV5JOh8uPFiqu8NJOJUFH-cghVtdq4-t0Tv9IQOmM5-OhBt0dBkCOkcpwJg/s1600-h/IMG_1889.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyZmhcBAvIvKAmw_yhXipHFoidir4W_Pjzvk-zV64g0blttdkvmm4lt0NJTXj-EyNHitCTPgwnH4YxP1oSXV5JOh8uPFiqu8NJOJUFH-cghVtdq4-t0Tv9IQOmM5-OhBt0dBkCOkcpwJg/s320/IMG_1889.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5353297916896944818" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">The tiny tomato on the plant growing out of the drainhole...</div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div>Finally, there are two things I want to share - first is in honor of "Garden Blogger's Death Day" over at <a href="http://gardeningwithoutskills.blogspot.com/">Gardening without Skills</a> - my pathetic blueberry has finally kicked the bucket entirely. It's all brown and shriveled and very much dead. I attempted to amend the soil in it's pot to make it more acidic, and I thought I followed the directions on the elemental sulfur VERY closely, but the blueberry definitely did not appreciate it. I am really sad about it, as I don't want to start over from scratch and wait another 2 years for blueberries! :( I don't have a picture and it's already dark out so I'm not sure one I took now would do the dreadful looking thing justice.</div><div><br /></div><div>Lastly, our crazy neighbors. When we bought our house 4+ years ago, it was our first house and therefore we didn't think much about neighbors. Well, we got the crazies. I take that back - they're very nice for the most part, they just have no business living in a suburban housing development. The siding blew off a large part of their house in a big windstorm we had in February and they are just now getting it fixed. And they are using vinyl siding that looks like fake cedar shakes. But I suppose it is better than the half-missing siding they had before. And their 4 ft deep temporary-type backyard pool sprung a leak, which drained entirely into our yard, and then the empty pool blew over against our fence in another strong wind we had last week. Plus in the winter they have 4 golf carts and a 4-wheeler living on their back patio - and no, they don't golf. We had new friends over one night last month and someone asked if there was a golf course near us. Mark and I burst out laughing. Again, they are very nice, but they need to move somewhere with some acreage so that this is not right in the middle of regular suburbia. Though the neighborhood would have much less to talk about if they left!</div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNydO2dgL9dkb_qTXxe3WB1lLLOUYOEdAXKN5A9caxoDhgva_AbTA8g2zfZ6-6l81IVOI6sqzQJ-qQdzxMSfZM0J6C-iSHuehyphenhyphenN59QMd-zt-HhFbmiUF_L3Y2T_Jkw1NH6PsFT2Sa9O4g/s1600-h/IMG_1891.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNydO2dgL9dkb_qTXxe3WB1lLLOUYOEdAXKN5A9caxoDhgva_AbTA8g2zfZ6-6l81IVOI6sqzQJ-qQdzxMSfZM0J6C-iSHuehyphenhyphenN59QMd-zt-HhFbmiUF_L3Y2T_Jkw1NH6PsFT2Sa9O4g/s320/IMG_1891.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5353297909932929858" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Our neighbors backyard - down to 2 golf carts, the 4 wheeler, and the half-missing siding. Also not the dying/dead spot of grass where the pool was blown over for a week. Good times. :)</div><div><br /></div></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-17313074139181679152009-06-20T14:38:00.004-04:002009-06-20T15:17:01.786-04:00And the heat goes on... plus a recipe<div>Today is the 2nd day of 90 degree heat - blech. I am, without a doubt, NOT a heat-loving person. I went out at 2:00 today to take a couple of photos and fill up the kiddie pool, and the 10 minutes I was outside was enough for me, ideally for the whole week (the lowest temp in the 5 day forecast is 87). This is when gardening gets tough for me. I want no part of pulling weeds in the mid-day heat during naptime, and I don't want to get up at 6:30 AM to do it before the girls get up. Thankfully (or not so thankfully from a humidity standpoint) we've had quite a bit of rain, so things in the garden are withstanding the heat fairly well.<div><br /></div><div>One thing did make my trek out into the heat this afternoon worth it - my first tomato is ripening! I have 4 "known" varieties of tomatoes in the garden, and about 5-6 "unknown" volunteer plants that germinated from stuff thrown in the compost bin (I obviously don't maintain a hot pile). The 4 kinds that I know are growing are San Marzano, Amish Paste, Cherokee Purple and Mr. Stripey. All are heirlooms, so I'm planning to save seed for next year. The San Marzano is going to have the first ripe tomato. Actually, it's the only one with a tomato at all right now. Everything else is just blossoms. I am actually very excited about the San Marzanos. As a lover of basically all Italian food (I studied for a summer in Italy in college, which got me totally hooked) the San Marzano is the quintessential Italian paste tomato. I am looking forward to much homemade marinara sauce this summer and fall, between the San Marzanos and the Amish Pastes. I have not had a lot of luck with regular Romas the past 2 years - they got blossom end rot really bad - much worse than any of the other plants I had, so I decided to see if either of these do better.</div></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlArj-JQOrlK-20ZmIb1vG0oBvxycUDZLQqkmuVBHUzAyhf-0Gvsuim5187txNwsLq4BZ2MXd9U2DwyMI4GKFzx0H0N-FLxM30zNMB4d3scQQTDaMC9udYPSo25Cbr9MkX_jCxinmJwWY/s1600-h/IMG_1854.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlArj-JQOrlK-20ZmIb1vG0oBvxycUDZLQqkmuVBHUzAyhf-0Gvsuim5187txNwsLq4BZ2MXd9U2DwyMI4GKFzx0H0N-FLxM30zNMB4d3scQQTDaMC9udYPSo25Cbr9MkX_jCxinmJwWY/s320/IMG_1854.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5349489089565183794" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis5w29PrRsQEqlo8Ku_mfQhq5ddIgKRwImN0jNP6tIeWjy1FrRJM3Gcbw8o-7Io-YncdDFLliEVSU5mK3QpbUu8yn0_VshK95llLiUFk_zzGipcLvM0zN5YooQhs4mV8tx3jLbnJNPFkU/s1600-h/IMG_1856.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis5w29PrRsQEqlo8Ku_mfQhq5ddIgKRwImN0jNP6tIeWjy1FrRJM3Gcbw8o-7Io-YncdDFLliEVSU5mK3QpbUu8yn0_VshK95llLiUFk_zzGipcLvM0zN5YooQhs4mV8tx3jLbnJNPFkU/s320/IMG_1856.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5349489083644841842" /></a><br /><div><div>I also visited the West Chester Farmers Market this morning. I bought a small bunch of red onions from the Gravel Knoll Farm booth, but there wasn't a lot of produce at this point that I haven't grown myself, with the exception of beets, which are not my favorite. I did buy some absolutely delicious lemon curd from the lady that sell homemade frozen scone dough - I have been eating some slowly with just a spoon this afternoon. I basically love all things lemon. It tastes a lot like the custard part of a lemon meringue pie. (Insert a Homer Simpson-esque gutteral Mmmmmm.... here). I also got some homemade raspberry jam, and an organic, pasture-raised skirt steak for fajitas. (Another Mmmmm....) Kate and Claire came with me today, and happily got snow cones - they even had a lemonade flavor which was colorless (a big plus as I knew Claire would end up wearing as much as she ate). They also have an awesome scavenger hunt program for kids, where there is a "clue" each week that the kids have to search the different tents to find. When they find the clue, they tell the person working the booth and they get a wooden nickel. They save up the wooden nickles and at the last 2 markets of the year in October they can spend them on kid stuff. Kate was so excited to find the clue.</div><div><br /></div><div>On a final note, in honor of the first tomato, I'll leave you with a simple, tasty, healthy recipe involving fresh tomatoes. This is a staple recipe from my friends Jill & Brad.</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; ">Corn & Black Bean Salsa</span></div><div>2 cans black beans, rinsed & drained</div><div>1 can hominy or yellow corn, drained (if using fresh, blanch quickly to soften just a tad)</div><div>2 - 3 medium tomatoes diced (you can use diced from a can, rinsed & drained if it's not tomato season yet)</div><div>1/2 large red onion, finely diced</div><div>1/2 c chopped fresh cilantro (or more to taste)</div><div>3 T olive oil</div><div>3 T lime juice</div><div>1 1/2 tsp cumin</div><div><br /></div><div>Combine in a medium to large bowl and chill for 2 hours for flavors to meld. Serve with tortilla chips, or even just with a spoon! The picture below is minus cilantro, which I hadn't trekked out to pick yet.</div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis2k8BBKYcOfl-8qDTpXHPhpUAhZTwsWQ-KBgeGMoHVdcRKrGB8EJ6U4B7ZyRXLmJplSGORoqk0nFv4xce4LeE-Z6pASbT0TZSCNyYhOCmyxpo0-oTfV0U-bDdBnVlCKMQxdmsxVQPjvw/s1600-h/IMG_1863.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis2k8BBKYcOfl-8qDTpXHPhpUAhZTwsWQ-KBgeGMoHVdcRKrGB8EJ6U4B7ZyRXLmJplSGORoqk0nFv4xce4LeE-Z6pASbT0TZSCNyYhOCmyxpo0-oTfV0U-bDdBnVlCKMQxdmsxVQPjvw/s320/IMG_1863.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5349489083306271954" /></a><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-91967950963573183042009-06-16T08:45:00.007-04:002009-06-16T09:14:57.127-04:00Strawberries, Roses and Mud puddles<div>Wow, this past week snuck away from me! We got quite a bit of rain over the past week or so, and I haven't been in the garden too much. I spent a lot of time sewing orders, which I really needed to do. On Friday, I stopped at Varnau's, my favorite local nursery, and all their plants were 50% off (they're only open from mid-April to mid-July, so they're starting to clearance things already). They had a few strawberry plants left that were only $1.50 each, and I couldn't resist. I have wanted strawberries ever since we moved into the house 4 years ago. They mostly had Junebearing, but I did find one everbearing (literally one plant). I bought the June bearing "AllStar" and the everbearing "Ozark beauty". Hopefully next year I will have a handful of yummy strawberries to eat. I am not sure where I am going to put the AllStar, since I believe they send out a lot of runners being a junebearning. The Ozark Beauty I am going to put in a pot - I just have to get a pot to put it in. I also got a beautiful scented leaf geranium for $2 - I have a different variety in a container on the patio, and I love them. Their foliage is always so interesting.</div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUYO70K3ey610BBqhplRdWPAKh14pseaSKapvBn5Ebg-G-ugnzgsXv7MK2z_AcVx7LEJeVRDNLCkeYYJDEzwmFa0_N5Utwp4D8jF3MF0sBE3S_qlXUPdrtltVpAZ8dWUnUY4EVe19P8Q4/s1600-h/IMG_1802.jpg" style="text-decoration: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /></span><img style="text-decoration: underline;display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px; " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUYO70K3ey610BBqhplRdWPAKh14pseaSKapvBn5Ebg-G-ugnzgsXv7MK2z_AcVx7LEJeVRDNLCkeYYJDEzwmFa0_N5Utwp4D8jF3MF0sBE3S_qlXUPdrtltVpAZ8dWUnUY4EVe19P8Q4/s320/IMG_1802.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347911595109465922" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">These are the strawberries, obviously...<br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEb7vk_Bq_hYuXcjIdyKgLIK2Jsm5ZBxYCqswAnr0ZswTQ6fM_PsWpPGYpChEO_M67QlDSkuVpr0ksJ_LwFD1yEUBdDNbJP6hG4ud06vsvJGctQmW8fbYKfKVpjH4FB0fNVibYbP03X6Y/s1600-h/IMG_1804.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEb7vk_Bq_hYuXcjIdyKgLIK2Jsm5ZBxYCqswAnr0ZswTQ6fM_PsWpPGYpChEO_M67QlDSkuVpr0ksJ_LwFD1yEUBdDNbJP6hG4ud06vsvJGctQmW8fbYKfKVpjH4FB0fNVibYbP03X6Y/s320/IMG_1804.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347911453040603538" /></a>The cool scented leaf geranium leaves. I'll have to post a picture of the leaves of my other plant later - they're very different.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I also am excited to see the knockout rose that I transplanted earlier this year finally having new growth. It was by our front stoop, and it tended to take over the flower bed and part of the front walk if not regularly pruned. It's a red one and it was growing gangbusters. This year, I dug it out and moved it to the other side of the driveway in front of the rain barrel. I also pruned it back to about 12"-18" from the ground when I did so, so that it was more manageable to move. It's been a big group of sticks for a month since I did this, while it tried to recover from the shock. It finally is. I was not really worried about it, as this is the hardiest plant I've had. People say roses are tricky and need special care. Not this one! My hope is that it will grow and next year camouflage the rain barrel somewhat in the summer. The barrel is functional, but it's not pretty. However, I have had about 4-5 people in the neighborhood ask me about where I got it, how I made it, etc over the past year, so I'm kind of glad it's visible from the street. I know of one other house in the development that made one of their own after asking me about mine.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTnZh2w9N1-NfeWvR-OaFQJk0-Y1HM7b_xe8QsdSDmYMZcES598ESUj-ssouyYB2KHl2vSGMYXKjYOdqYCOC8Ned82jawWGoIZI-Hw-1L_0X089kYPVZDPe4NzgkTBFolta23yWvTGLU4/s1600-h/IMG_1806.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTnZh2w9N1-NfeWvR-OaFQJk0-Y1HM7b_xe8QsdSDmYMZcES598ESUj-ssouyYB2KHl2vSGMYXKjYOdqYCOC8Ned82jawWGoIZI-Hw-1L_0X089kYPVZDPe4NzgkTBFolta23yWvTGLU4/s320/IMG_1806.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347911448875231202" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div><br /></div><div>I also have to share some photos from Sunday. We had a torrential downpour (which of course started while I was driving home from Costco - it's about 3-4 miles away and it took me about 15 minutes to get home - roads were like rivers). My rain gauge is broken I discovered, but the news said rain was falling at the rate of 5 inches an hour, and that doesn't surprise me. I can't remember when I'd seen rain that hard last longer than about 10 minutes - my guess is it was about 30-45 minutes of serious downpour. Our backyard slopes to the middle slightly, and we had a river running through our backyard. When the rain let up, Kate really wanted to go splash in the puddles, and of course Claire had to join her. Who needs a pool?!?!</div></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgogPM7Hbtqd6tz2BeyOjI7GeU7sbTBC8LbQWleJr3afrj20JCfsNOyT4Ft4G68pmQpDvklDAHxAzBMAFzlqgjSPVrrXYyY8tmS9rBZQJ1tuw1MOweHMdPBOo7QCwV1hHqUN06HVaMIZsE/s1600-h/IMG_1808.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgogPM7Hbtqd6tz2BeyOjI7GeU7sbTBC8LbQWleJr3afrj20JCfsNOyT4Ft4G68pmQpDvklDAHxAzBMAFzlqgjSPVrrXYyY8tmS9rBZQJ1tuw1MOweHMdPBOo7QCwV1hHqUN06HVaMIZsE/s320/IMG_1808.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347911444133950098" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaUYh3h0106qGtrgj-VwzubFbs35Wo5bCEbLDspn-fIlOt2JhMa-L1crTFk9wRjcnaYIW2Y45TU2b9ipVOCXTk1sph74lBzdYrGAg1pR2Solvas5IHriTgXaGOp2nQ00Swdg3cjsFD7-8/s1600-h/IMG_1816.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaUYh3h0106qGtrgj-VwzubFbs35Wo5bCEbLDspn-fIlOt2JhMa-L1crTFk9wRjcnaYIW2Y45TU2b9ipVOCXTk1sph74lBzdYrGAg1pR2Solvas5IHriTgXaGOp2nQ00Swdg3cjsFD7-8/s320/IMG_1816.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347911439505902434" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV-FToRoyWzCiEZ-_2hUMYiNdc_G6j_PRZcg7zSm8qYgKAvqVyTzvqY6IOtMfQD_Sxpv92VCyyp3cRNZt106StJFRQWNNtWrCRg27E_Ci41H4BIgaNX06mk2Kt_pjkYLr3E0-BwtqdxdI/s1600-h/IMG_1821.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV-FToRoyWzCiEZ-_2hUMYiNdc_G6j_PRZcg7zSm8qYgKAvqVyTzvqY6IOtMfQD_Sxpv92VCyyp3cRNZt106StJFRQWNNtWrCRg27E_Ci41H4BIgaNX06mk2Kt_pjkYLr3E0-BwtqdxdI/s320/IMG_1821.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347911439014942066" /></a><br /></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-39738890259145230762009-06-10T22:32:00.007-04:002009-06-10T23:00:49.313-04:00What I do when I'm not gardening....<div>It rained today, which is great for 2 reasons. First, everything needed the rain, and I now have full rain barrels again. Secondly, I needed to NOT be in the garden for a day (actually, for a couple of days). I have my own business making items for moms & children predominantly, called The Daisy Chain Boutique (that's kind of garden related), and I am getting behind on some orders because I am spending too much time in the garden. Seeing as how the garden doesn't really bring in income in the same sense the business does, I need a day (or two) of some poor gardening weather to help me refocus. I just thought I'd show some photos of what I do when I'm not gardening, for those who are interested. If you absolutely love what you see and want to check out my Etsy site (which sorely needs to be updated) you can do so <a href="http://www.atthedaisychain.etsy.com/">here- www.atthedaisychain.etsy.com</a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I am rather addicted to crafting - I rubber stamp, scrapbook, make candles, sew, make hair bows, and I know I'm forgetting some things. I also really want to learn to quilt, knit and make baskets, but I've kind of forbidden myself from picking up and new crafting hobbies. Though I do have a friend who crochets cool animals (amigurumis) and we keep saying we're going to get together... I might not be able to resist learning crochet. Just don't tell my husband. :)</div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_PJFgnDB2q25IZLt_0Ma9dCrNZ9BAB3U-BZMpAdAGR2oC417HSa88h66B8dgDvKaY0RgHaNeiQLklDLM_opSJxQxjGUFkR-aNuf8tlvv9KApQavYtKr3al9MrO0w89rLb6OAGYbBLloY/s1600-h/IMG_0669.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 302px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_PJFgnDB2q25IZLt_0Ma9dCrNZ9BAB3U-BZMpAdAGR2oC417HSa88h66B8dgDvKaY0RgHaNeiQLklDLM_opSJxQxjGUFkR-aNuf8tlvv9KApQavYtKr3al9MrO0w89rLb6OAGYbBLloY/s320/IMG_0669.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345896338236147730" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">This is a display of hair bows I did for a craft fair last fall. The problem with craft shows is inventory - I still have a bunch of these bows left, especially the single color ones.</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2_ZVVcsB53bGlPYnGwxjJyOr8Phr8au2xQPDLEQ5_Q0qd4FyX_38dN1hVai6dxt3RIxuwG-Bj_XaMqgNShQCs1zLOGmtQarpQszq5WpHcJSju4wg7leZIFoYvBjcpWWfno2hOltQxZjI/s1600-h/IMG_0668.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 281px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2_ZVVcsB53bGlPYnGwxjJyOr8Phr8au2xQPDLEQ5_Q0qd4FyX_38dN1hVai6dxt3RIxuwG-Bj_XaMqgNShQCs1zLOGmtQarpQszq5WpHcJSju4wg7leZIFoYvBjcpWWfno2hOltQxZjI/s320/IMG_0668.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345896119504293746" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Some of the "pillowcase dresses" - they are originally designed to be made from a pillowcase. They're fun and fairly easy to make. The purple Tinkerbell one in the bottom right corner is probably my top seller.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCbY3br5HuKiWyq5gBHj2-C3amPAEA4RqLVpZGiLKh22iYQiF2mtMfwPVIO2s3vpeVF9D3Q2K_cWJhh33qpBapv_CfjhYo3XXReltRYbMNMi2pu91Qi4qcUlTcWR1-TxtCs3uYH7z_wLA/s1600-h/IMG_1127.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCbY3br5HuKiWyq5gBHj2-C3amPAEA4RqLVpZGiLKh22iYQiF2mtMfwPVIO2s3vpeVF9D3Q2K_cWJhh33qpBapv_CfjhYo3XXReltRYbMNMi2pu91Qi4qcUlTcWR1-TxtCs3uYH7z_wLA/s320/IMG_1127.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345896117445568914" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">This is a fun large purse/diaper bag I made. I've made a couple of them. They're not so quick, but they're cute. Debating if I should sell these, as they're rather labor intensive and I'm not sure people would be willing to pay as much as I'd need to charge to make a profit (probably in the $40-$50 range) I also have a yellow daisy/flower one and a 4th of July one.</div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuOeJJhoQkUtbvyqsn4LZRlnWFVffMqIH8W80t__M7Ndj517hsxY1w8xLsqfmyJGVz6G1HQQzma2lIxReytA3eA8aM7x2y3K__i2u-fxtChLxDiHOd-mJ6BZQVkE0EycjCfq2stx6CyY8/s1600-h/IMG_0687.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuOeJJhoQkUtbvyqsn4LZRlnWFVffMqIH8W80t__M7Ndj517hsxY1w8xLsqfmyJGVz6G1HQQzma2lIxReytA3eA8aM7x2y3K__i2u-fxtChLxDiHOd-mJ6BZQVkE0EycjCfq2stx6CyY8/s320/IMG_0687.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345896113708338258" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">A nursing/breastfeeding cover. This is one of the best inventions ever. And really easy to make with very basic sewing skills. Buy why sew - buy one of my reasonably priced, hand made covers instead. They make great shower gifts! Yes, this is a shameless plug. :)</div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzuGPc9kFg5w8Wc7fs6WOVG1a3wKNvt2cDYzxnbEfnsNjoDg5Vl6steNhVifFrbx9qGTRGUD_w8jHz6zNz9p0ynkpWYTerd2JHPlNpRFYBi-KMhyXImMhRWQ2i8XiRC6XctqSXCX7IZw8/s1600-h/IMG_0504.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 256px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzuGPc9kFg5w8Wc7fs6WOVG1a3wKNvt2cDYzxnbEfnsNjoDg5Vl6steNhVifFrbx9qGTRGUD_w8jHz6zNz9p0ynkpWYTerd2JHPlNpRFYBi-KMhyXImMhRWQ2i8XiRC6XctqSXCX7IZw8/s320/IMG_0504.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345895793606950978" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Kate modeling on of the aforementioned pillowcase dresses (as a tunic top) at the Van Wert Co Fair last year.</div></div><div><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQO3rCoO8v3BtMe9CdZjcOuQsXiKyIP7az1Hl6ZFut4Wie8F18QAXJ_nxpJKDCs7GxE2R3dYoZq-TKKV1YYLFtMZhZeZCnoabSY1V9IygwO4gpJI4_-mT1d8u2lnSpTFDkxLuJtOcYr2o/s1600-h/IMG_0683.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQO3rCoO8v3BtMe9CdZjcOuQsXiKyIP7az1Hl6ZFut4Wie8F18QAXJ_nxpJKDCs7GxE2R3dYoZq-TKKV1YYLFtMZhZeZCnoabSY1V9IygwO4gpJI4_-mT1d8u2lnSpTFDkxLuJtOcYr2o/s320/IMG_0683.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345895785558057522" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Cute ladybug hair clips. I also do bumblebees.</div><div><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUV7yiSPnd1DTSC-EtAinq1OQFzvl531r6lVXoYBt8xpACSlRw1c8N16YoGjEwWC3NaomoUmr_jpqr2FLqxenXhqJtLR8aSVQQnKW2TZ47ftEPlVk3YVlYFCt7VDAz_J5vjC22zBp8vJc/s1600-h/IMG_0532.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUV7yiSPnd1DTSC-EtAinq1OQFzvl531r6lVXoYBt8xpACSlRw1c8N16YoGjEwWC3NaomoUmr_jpqr2FLqxenXhqJtLR8aSVQQnKW2TZ47ftEPlVk3YVlYFCt7VDAz_J5vjC22zBp8vJc/s320/IMG_0532.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345895779335645954" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Another great bow, best for preschoolers and up as it's a large bow and overwhelms smaller heads. All 6 major Disney Princesses and Tinkerbell available (as are other themes).</div><div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8tTy3OnmCVVLKrNHknJfl4M9NHZZSUsddhYoJA_hgWQnz6HBxkFBLqWeILkAQOvOY8SI66Nh-OpRuSF3TfIe3zugGm26RnUyol1DAmdQVJc9G3JlTQA3abg1lVdrz_9u_41GQ5A7SDKY/s1600-h/IMG_0541.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8tTy3OnmCVVLKrNHknJfl4M9NHZZSUsddhYoJA_hgWQnz6HBxkFBLqWeILkAQOvOY8SI66Nh-OpRuSF3TfIe3zugGm26RnUyol1DAmdQVJc9G3JlTQA3abg1lVdrz_9u_41GQ5A7SDKY/s320/IMG_0541.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345895781635305458" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">A "pouch-style" baby sling. This is me and Claire last fall when she was about 8 months. This is another absolutely brilliant invention. I do coordinating slings and covers. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-58779873387156358302009-06-09T19:38:00.005-04:002009-06-09T20:38:45.641-04:00Cauliflower, compost and water fights<div>After dinner most nights our family heads out to the backyard. The girls play and we work on things in the backyard. Tonight I needed to water everything, especially the rest of the new raised bed that I finally planted on Sunday, and the potatoes. It seems like I <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; ">always</span> have to water the potatoes. As I was watering, I noticed that the cauliflower is forming heads on 3 of the 4 plants. I'm really glad that it seems to be doing well, as last year my cauliflower left a lot to be desired. Actually, it was downright pathetic. Of course I failed to save the plant tag or write down the information about what cauliflower I planted this year, and it's doing really well. Go figure. The leaves definitely have some damage - not sure what from as I've never actually seen anything on them, but the heads are looking good. No spindly, tiny, oddly purple-streaked heads this year. The one problem is that it is taking so long for the cauliflower to form heads, and the eggplants I put relatively close to them are having to compete quite hard for sun and water. I thought the cauliflower would be out by now. I was wrong. Thankfully I am used to being wrong (see the crazy pea trellis picture in my last post for further proof).<br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgE7KDSSA2V9EKqNR2WXDd2m0Z_VE2w4abx0gnLBL7KuP3himJxp-NcCgwfbKqkVe8oxSNPCZvnO9Cx9JRayLw20WlJzaYHETy4eY6yuwIOs8WVa6WPADGDTYhuzhXEE2fyI-SPtaaEcI/s1600-h/IMG_1789.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgE7KDSSA2V9EKqNR2WXDd2m0Z_VE2w4abx0gnLBL7KuP3himJxp-NcCgwfbKqkVe8oxSNPCZvnO9Cx9JRayLw20WlJzaYHETy4eY6yuwIOs8WVa6WPADGDTYhuzhXEE2fyI-SPtaaEcI/s320/IMG_1789.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345489218091274306" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">The aforementioned mystery variety of cauliflower.<br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8BeOEcHUyK5gubPT7PPRQQnaiHMmWB3YNBHLr7-q-ui0cKY4TONAQVgEL5hW3gg2KsWWP7dL3NIvMJt51U5xLR6QwMz_AudWMmzsN6sz68jJ1xnQE6ezUnRVc5aHp9t4qcfuQlmd2AVY/s1600-h/IMG_1790.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8BeOEcHUyK5gubPT7PPRQQnaiHMmWB3YNBHLr7-q-ui0cKY4TONAQVgEL5hW3gg2KsWWP7dL3NIvMJt51U5xLR6QwMz_AudWMmzsN6sz68jJ1xnQE6ezUnRVc5aHp9t4qcfuQlmd2AVY/s320/IMG_1790.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345489215617636450" /></a>The garden area, complete with the new raised bed and wood chips (chipped Japanese honeysuckle - yay!) And Claire (heading over to play in the hose also).</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I also worked until dark last night hauling compost. I emptied the compost bin, or so I thought, earlier this year, about April or so. I am really lazy with compost. I don't analyze it, I just dump stuff in the bin (it's mostly "greens"- kitchen and yard scraps). I turn it infrequently and begrudgingly. I have 2 large bins made of wire fencing that are about 4-5 ft in diameter. One of these is new and one I've had for about 4 years. The older one is around the south side yard near the air conditioner, and since we finally have a gate in the back fence, I want to move it back there - closer to the garden and not visible from the front yard. So I am gradually starting to move the stuff out of it into the back bin. In digging through things, I found an entire trug tub worth of mostly finished stuff in the bottom. I was thrilled, as I still have a small area of the new raised bed to fill, and I want to put a bunch around the eggplant in front, as it is lagging significantly behind those in the garden. My ribcage and stomach muscles are extremely sore today, and I think it's from pulling the stupid tub all the way around the house and into the backyard.<br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqnJwQ12wggKeqO_O03CuN2j__fc7-dIu3ya-fG8Mu6apkt9AKy6Sqtwf3ckln2566YzdAtDWRDT-3EB1EAsTFgfxPkrhSxlWdomH17a3klHdGs8rLq6ox3pjiKKm29meMfWuHDmu1Vr4/s1600-h/IMG_1786.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqnJwQ12wggKeqO_O03CuN2j__fc7-dIu3ya-fG8Mu6apkt9AKy6Sqtwf3ckln2566YzdAtDWRDT-3EB1EAsTFgfxPkrhSxlWdomH17a3klHdGs8rLq6ox3pjiKKm29meMfWuHDmu1Vr4/s320/IMG_1786.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345489211224927922" /></a>The compost I pulled out of the bin last night, minus what I already put around the onions which were peaking out of the dirt too much. My stupid ribcage is sore just looking at this picture. That tub holds a lot. Why oh why did I not use the wheelbarrow??</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div><br /></div><div>Finally, I have to show some pictures of the fun we had this evening. When I was done watering, before I put the hose away, Kate was thirsty from playing soccer in the backyard with Daddy, and wanted a drink from the hose. I was pulling weeds in the garden, and somehow missed the next few minutes, but a drink from the hose somehow degenerated rather quickly into Kate chasing Daddy around the yard trying to spray him with the hose and giggling so hard she could hardly catch her breath. Then she decided to spray me, which was no big deal except for the small detail that I had the camera around my neck which is not cheap and not waterproof. It came out unscathed, we all came out wet (Claire from playing in the water in the baby pool) and throughly happy. </div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfAuEHb2gyuHpFQKvNdapwe8mC1ObHDEnhde3WuCvLyCu9l1KRvtLWee7q0_AEI9DjVxDaS2pemFqlTUYcmPx9xzSdsOzfmQQvpNaHF9ihMvhHba4XPJuFUZ2wmpCKQk-rF4C0W5_H7qw/s1600-h/IMG_1796.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfAuEHb2gyuHpFQKvNdapwe8mC1ObHDEnhde3WuCvLyCu9l1KRvtLWee7q0_AEI9DjVxDaS2pemFqlTUYcmPx9xzSdsOzfmQQvpNaHF9ihMvhHba4XPJuFUZ2wmpCKQk-rF4C0W5_H7qw/s320/IMG_1796.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345489205214154770" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinjIF7vUGqRkPF1dslyIog4fpHLhSy2ZEbsCcKVL7HW_vMlTWXLywExgMQ-9WFUHk9-NJvHkaK4VGqbnbnjQQ_bM-72FUdOC6o4Q2yD9A4yMhN7LBXPgwbHNhDBcl7qqQvKyPOyacr6AI/s1600-h/IMG_1799.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 213px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinjIF7vUGqRkPF1dslyIog4fpHLhSy2ZEbsCcKVL7HW_vMlTWXLywExgMQ-9WFUHk9-NJvHkaK4VGqbnbnjQQ_bM-72FUdOC6o4Q2yD9A4yMhN7LBXPgwbHNhDBcl7qqQvKyPOyacr6AI/s320/IMG_1799.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345489206611946418" /></a><br /><br /></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-57881853486853544392009-06-07T21:43:00.005-04:002009-06-07T22:18:33.127-04:00The Joyful Reluctance of PeasI belong to a philanthropic, educational organization for women that I love from the bottom of my heart. Our Ohio state convention was this weekend, about an hour from where I live. My mom and I got to go for the weekend and my wonderful husband took care of the girls for two and a half days while I was gone. It was great. I came home today and went out to the garden, because Mark had not thought to water while I was gone (which I am not remotely complaining about, as he did a wonderful job taking care of the girls and even cleaned the kitchen and things before I got home!). As I was out watering, I noticed... peas! (As if this is a surprise from the title of my post.)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhda1j-Y8T7oDQshhfj3-wS_0a0Oj4vO3Amyg2xvhw-WpSiwB77xhUo5b3zFfeW9trPAJAKpfsCWzHvtjcKO1jivHR1gnY6JN60QBGbrOc6ooiVkR-Klz26KsPDFxowlaBRKC0wMc2ZQx4/s1600-h/IMG_1728.jpg"></a><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>Let me start out by saying that I generally do not like peas. I tolerate snow peas in stir fry, but that is about it. Apparently I loved them as a toddler (my mom always tells the story of me saying "But Mom, I <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">need</span> peas!" when she would not give me any more for dinner. Since then, my love affair with peas has waned dramatically. However, since I believe everything is better when grown fresh, and especially when it is the fruit of your own labor, I planted peas this year so that I could give them another shot. Regular peas that you shell and eat. So when I saw the peas tonight, I was torn between the joy of harvest and the realization that it is peas. But I pulled a pod off the vine and shelled and ate it raw, right next to the garden. And I didn't die. Or choke. Or turn green and swell up into a green ball, a la Violet Beauregaurd from Charlie & the Chocolate Factory. In fact, it wasn't that bad. Mind you, it wasn't necessarily good, but it wasn't as bad as I expected. So I am now soliciting recipes for fresh shelled peas. Send me something that will make me fall in love with the pea. It's one of those foods (like rosemary and cucumbers) that I really <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">want</span> to like, but try as I might I just don't. </div><div><br /></div><div>Kate and Mark are not vegetable people at all, so kid and husband friendly recipes are also welcome. Kate did try one in the yard (which is absolutely wonderful simply because she was willing to try it), however she bit the pea in half, made faces as she swallowed the half in her mouth and threw the other half into the yard. (Perhaps if it were doused in ranch dressing... In the fall we may do sugar snap so we can dip them in ranch dressing. Mark hates ranch dressing though, so that does not help there...)</div><div><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsqW14vYAcosPbf9f73dTzVaK8wFdYauL33Sn5xWR7Gnzi8KJt2H6WacBw1bpmY0FwYpr3j6V6d4kW7udDI6WiOH5OcyqBut0x-w9OYyid8yO2C7qQ1RgcgMESAgr4mHCf4ZaQ_INXdzE/s320/IMG_1778.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344772397915893138" /><div style="text-align: center;">This is Claire in the swing while I was pea-picking. That is the remnants of a delicious vanilla milkshake from United Dairy Farmers. That is not peas. I will gladly accept any suggestions of how to make peas taste like a delicious UDF milkshake. Gladly.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><img style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px; " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhda1j-Y8T7oDQshhfj3-wS_0a0Oj4vO3Amyg2xvhw-WpSiwB77xhUo5b3zFfeW9trPAJAKpfsCWzHvtjcKO1jivHR1gnY6JN60QBGbrOc6ooiVkR-Klz26KsPDFxowlaBRKC0wMc2ZQx4/s320/IMG_1728.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344767406477128978" /><div><div style="text-align: center;">This is my crazy makeshift pea trellis. I can't remember if I showed this before. I originally just turned tomato cages upside-down for the peas to grow up. They were not tall enough. This is probably obvious to everyone but me. I then rigged up the craziest looking trellis extension out of bamboo poles, twine and the existing tomato cages and plastic garden fence. It works. But it certainly isn't pretty.</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); text-decoration: underline;"><br /></span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_qshzjyxEcMWIHK9IyywuPXWIwrU3gOddQ3EfnAoA_2dDyn4tDb5gqmwNCJTZ_wDTiw4W2gexRHPv5Ur3dUY4XFASdZ1lJN0Ejy-KywwzxjoEjcZoDxigBmwtHhv3cBR_psH78ToJapA/s1600-h/IMG_1774.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_qshzjyxEcMWIHK9IyywuPXWIwrU3gOddQ3EfnAoA_2dDyn4tDb5gqmwNCJTZ_wDTiw4W2gexRHPv5Ur3dUY4XFASdZ1lJN0Ejy-KywwzxjoEjcZoDxigBmwtHhv3cBR_psH78ToJapA/s320/IMG_1774.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344767403250937586" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">The peas. "Early Perfection". The "early" part must be a misnomer. It couldn't be that I planted them late.... No way that would happen with 2 small children...</div><div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZVyk16DZAp5XDm8doSsAGgTnshOwhh-Lmk-4b-DZKGSsfbxVdnCQuh-atQgdEj9M72djxyYX6vzJYNC1q-1Nym0bTUld3R6MxNdpylGAc2LKMeOQHoWdH1xIpfKD7sEJF8u3_wH6TyIE/s1600-h/IMG_1773.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZVyk16DZAp5XDm8doSsAGgTnshOwhh-Lmk-4b-DZKGSsfbxVdnCQuh-atQgdEj9M72djxyYX6vzJYNC1q-1Nym0bTUld3R6MxNdpylGAc2LKMeOQHoWdH1xIpfKD7sEJF8u3_wH6TyIE/s320/IMG_1773.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344767398448502770" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">A close up of the peas I am trying to love. I really am.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div></div></div></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-19809394777774689352009-06-03T13:37:00.009-04:002009-06-03T14:26:07.642-04:00Another Trip to the Discovery Garden<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">I know I've posted <a href="http://agardeningjournal.blogspot.com/2009/05/almost-gardening.html">before</a> about the </span><a href="http://www.discoverygarden.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Highfield Discovery Garden</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> at the Glenwood Gardens Metropark. We went again today. In the rain. Again. I love going on rainy or almost rainy days because there is hardly anyone there. I thought I'd post some pictures for those of you not familiar with the Discovery Garden so you can see why I love it so much (almost more than the kids).</span><br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMWoi7pCkJhH-amJVjQyuld23WhIKdX2SKtkheksYqN1Pic3c5j0iNNAR-Deqz2iJK8K5tj6h3c2UROalO5rYAeQF1UJoPBzzTpi2y0ookOsxZbrZIoQmVaRbKL2DF4nd_ZtWTRuEOMKs/s1600-h/IMG_1741.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMWoi7pCkJhH-amJVjQyuld23WhIKdX2SKtkheksYqN1Pic3c5j0iNNAR-Deqz2iJK8K5tj6h3c2UROalO5rYAeQF1UJoPBzzTpi2y0ookOsxZbrZIoQmVaRbKL2DF4nd_ZtWTRuEOMKs/s320/IMG_1741.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343164295799508434" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">This is their garden area - it's all square ft gardening in raised beds that are near "eye-height" for young children. It's awesome. They are made into these funky shapes so you can walk on paths in between the beds. They grow all kinds of things from carrots and lettuce and tomatoes to things most kids have never seen before like kohlrabi. They give all the harvest away to visitors to the garden (which are often urban kids who don't garden). To the right, just out of the picture, is a cottage house that houses their bunny, Lulu. Kate ADORES Lulu.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIzMC7EXwMegXru8doOaeCbvcJn_qxB7uoXKMiI3MXHjhoJbqKTCWQu_IZQ-uRf_0tE81JCLRyRD5Qz-AbWnUGFQq7rXz1cUZ88TT1kR40jBPaUPg6GuIIdJxmFaFfjr14IPf_dyG7enw/s1600-h/IMG_1743.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIzMC7EXwMegXru8doOaeCbvcJn_qxB7uoXKMiI3MXHjhoJbqKTCWQu_IZQ-uRf_0tE81JCLRyRD5Qz-AbWnUGFQq7rXz1cUZ88TT1kR40jBPaUPg6GuIIdJxmFaFfjr14IPf_dyG7enw/s320/IMG_1743.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343164293498912690" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">This is Kate checking out some marigolds growing underneath the cabbage leaves. This week's "lesson" was on planting and kids that visit get to plant marigold seeds in peat pellets in a dixie cup. Kate was happy to plant Claire's. Claire kept trying to eat the peat out of her cup. <br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh7gymTXkfxc9L3w1GFRormhxgekSQSqrUvqiTXwX3AnbPB6AJXxOY9hNBORqRFB6za1AqpMtpiMqKZkOx0npEq_UhSndnAROiiS-q_uYN8KDz9Eeb0q9Ee0JF1jnqNYWarR1VdEl3DSA/s1600-h/IMG_1769.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh7gymTXkfxc9L3w1GFRormhxgekSQSqrUvqiTXwX3AnbPB6AJXxOY9hNBORqRFB6za1AqpMtpiMqKZkOx0npEq_UhSndnAROiiS-q_uYN8KDz9Eeb0q9Ee0JF1jnqNYWarR1VdEl3DSA/s320/IMG_1769.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343164074042176898" /></a><div>Claire checking out the ambient music speaker in the middle of the raised garden beds. That's garlic growing behind her head. To the right may be collard greens, I can't remember for sure.</div><div><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_xC7Aw9UbZDsOl1BxIaqBIGL0-XcjtQDtKms-UZhwPAF55ZGn9zpHZmG14MUZSGvIFTyq4UXicfNS_XI_g4jKuZ0PRrw621I5J3hjtF3dthOTkbhjoya2UQMpxJdOtuI6t6TBTFB9wQw/s1600-h/IMG_1757.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_xC7Aw9UbZDsOl1BxIaqBIGL0-XcjtQDtKms-UZhwPAF55ZGn9zpHZmG14MUZSGvIFTyq4UXicfNS_XI_g4jKuZ0PRrw621I5J3hjtF3dthOTkbhjoya2UQMpxJdOtuI6t6TBTFB9wQw/s320/IMG_1757.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343164070095604066" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">The "Cottage House" that houses the lesson area, and Lulu. They teach kids about composting (I want their bins, they're so much nicer than mine). You can see the garden beds in the back.</div><div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmO2XD6V0Ez-2Hu72bxiuZKV3SBQQe_c-cAuuii8mw2zWBvKMtaTXyclMdI_18fSnp8zAnCIZLN-jNe5k7cBjRtyRBHUaQRue6RFm4HoD6Mzw2_NrAcnzTIQ_Q6xT425z3VdE1u0hOv6E/s1600-h/IMG_1758.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmO2XD6V0Ez-2Hu72bxiuZKV3SBQQe_c-cAuuii8mw2zWBvKMtaTXyclMdI_18fSnp8zAnCIZLN-jNe5k7cBjRtyRBHUaQRue6RFm4HoD6Mzw2_NrAcnzTIQ_Q6xT425z3VdE1u0hOv6E/s320/IMG_1758.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343164066749763170" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">The fun whimsical "tea party house" as Kate calls it. <br /></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9rfVIL1sVxiQWE2mFQ87pOGL8jE4xk_MIvzjJOcU4bSL0N6kgG33ZG4bbnB9G22fHFTCAeLccAlk0CLInAo_ut4LDKfYPyx_xX9BET0KyJHF-PTZdPrnhm1Z8ybPbxP23TdHzO-XZVu0/s1600-h/IMG_1759.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9rfVIL1sVxiQWE2mFQ87pOGL8jE4xk_MIvzjJOcU4bSL0N6kgG33ZG4bbnB9G22fHFTCAeLccAlk0CLInAo_ut4LDKfYPyx_xX9BET0KyJHF-PTZdPrnhm1Z8ybPbxP23TdHzO-XZVu0/s320/IMG_1759.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343164064233033586" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Inside the tea party house, getting ready to have a tea party. Or play restaurant.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzO19O7VNVPNIueuydT8AjoaAVyzUonElIF5Gd-XtrGIfv2tw2nVxpNE01sVSHsQwfUJ42KdKkHG5B_T0Ng7EVuw9-uNHZ2svCyqQDNUFrOVzYq1PKAeBgbwLiwkj8aerfCX5U-_zrvYk/s1600-h/IMG_1754.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzO19O7VNVPNIueuydT8AjoaAVyzUonElIF5Gd-XtrGIfv2tw2nVxpNE01sVSHsQwfUJ42KdKkHG5B_T0Ng7EVuw9-uNHZ2svCyqQDNUFrOVzYq1PKAeBgbwLiwkj8aerfCX5U-_zrvYk/s320/IMG_1754.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343162346581371026" /></a>Their pump and rain barrel. The dark area under the rain barrel is covered in rubber mulch, and I think there is a large drain under it, as the pump and the "rain feature" use recycled water for the most part. Though the kids like to water the plants with water from the pump. A lot of watering the plants. The plants in this area need to be tolerant of overly wet conditions, I'm sure. The rain feature is cool because kids can push a button and the fake cloud over the roof area "rains" and then the rain goes down the gutter and into the rain barrel.</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJpftZFPoycEVVb2MUDMd7QhpqPIK2ylm9U0ZY-YYy8X0oaVME66orZwGaEdOWnkPTpewEIFBzgYoUGTnQcyX2mpqnkZckakC9K3qf0BmhJ5tNZ_wXK58Nk_zAY8EA8TDTA4BjDxxTSAw/s1600-h/IMG_1767.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJpftZFPoycEVVb2MUDMd7QhpqPIK2ylm9U0ZY-YYy8X0oaVME66orZwGaEdOWnkPTpewEIFBzgYoUGTnQcyX2mpqnkZckakC9K3qf0BmhJ5tNZ_wXK58Nk_zAY8EA8TDTA4BjDxxTSAw/s320/IMG_1767.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343162345236484354" /></a>The train area - they have about 3-4 electric trains that run around multiple tracks in this area, and a little walk-through path just for kids (the overhead bridges at either end of the path make it extremely hard for adults to walk in to the middle of the trains). There is also a station house with buttons the kids can push to make train sounds.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnH-4wtAIv2KCRNbe9m0nt8DsKv52fX7Z8I_U3PXCfF0l7QfF4KyleI5D-Trp8B33Djgnq8bOw-OkgIxLZFiIO4dI7b_85EUnsfx_HEwPqVCvsbfHAPbTZUKpOb2Ye6p4zKzVPORffySE/s1600-h/IMG_1768.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnH-4wtAIv2KCRNbe9m0nt8DsKv52fX7Z8I_U3PXCfF0l7QfF4KyleI5D-Trp8B33Djgnq8bOw-OkgIxLZFiIO4dI7b_85EUnsfx_HEwPqVCvsbfHAPbTZUKpOb2Ye6p4zKzVPORffySE/s320/IMG_1768.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343162337359660210" /></a>One of the frogs we saw in the pond today - it was a cool overcast day and they were all over the banks. On 90 degree days they are almost impossible to find.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN3qCwDfmZtmiFQl01GQJFpsj7efPhkDtdiPhqgc0Nr6MS3AxOs6s9P_ByFVS06aEg0uRRT9FDGy9ZGMM_7pJjQ08cXkzUzh0ZppVj-Cz20PYT5DND69FCVFgsp86eCOpOcyCHeaZ8B-Y/s1600-h/IMG_1770.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN3qCwDfmZtmiFQl01GQJFpsj7efPhkDtdiPhqgc0Nr6MS3AxOs6s9P_ByFVS06aEg0uRRT9FDGy9ZGMM_7pJjQ08cXkzUzh0ZppVj-Cz20PYT5DND69FCVFgsp86eCOpOcyCHeaZ8B-Y/s320/IMG_1770.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343162334984440658" /></a>The new feature for this year, the Fairy Garden. Kate loves to stare at the garden and try to find every little fairy in it.<br /><div><br /></div><div>Apart from this, I haven't done much in the garden the past couple of days. The second planting of beans is beginning to sprout, and I got the rest of the new raised bed filled. Now I just need to get the peppers and tomatoes in it. And I desperately need to get out and weed. However, I have been spending so much time in the garden recently I am in danger of falling behind on the orders I have to sew for my business. So since it's drizzly today, I will be in the basement with Kate (who is watching Barbie Princess & the Pauper - ugh) sewing up a storm. Hopefully I will emerge at the end of Claire's nap with two almost totally finished pillowcase dresses.</div></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-37188895577383352442009-05-31T20:57:00.004-04:002009-05-31T23:27:29.020-04:00The *#%@&^ HoneysuckleYou may remember that several weeks ago (May 12th, to be exact) I mentioned cutting down a bunch of honeysuckle at the back of our property. Well, we are finally getting it chipped up, which I'm really glad for. I was less than thrilled, however, to see the stumps with numerous new shoots that are about a foot high. A foot. In three weeks! That's more growth than my sunflowers! Is there any wonder why this stuff is invasive?!?! So my task this week once we get the rest of the branches chipped is to start the tedious job of digging out the stumps. "Yay - I mean boo!" (If there are any fans of the <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">NewsRadio </span>TV show out there, can you tell me who said that quote?) Unless someone has a better organic method of getting rid of it? The only methods I have seen involve an add for some honeysuckle remover gadget, which I can't justify buying, or painting the freshly cut stumps with Roundup, which is hardly organic. More ideas welcome. Pretty please!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdh8mJLyVfwN5uq6YyNWBOHPNcwu55W8VbYPDr90CaynNHKka4Ljpr5fFyiQp1BElrHgU5iGCXRb4E6rLED95G_7h0qKCzzJhT6Vj0d1kiTk6lnifr106wa-e8G1-xhFlWu6yEvleEHo0/s1600-h/IMG_1733.jpg"></a><div><br /></div><div>**I also solicited ideas from friends on my facebook account, and after doing so feel the need to clarify the fact that burning the honeysuckle and any forms of fire are out of the question, due to the honeysuckle's proximity to the wooden stockade fence which does not belong to us but rather to the property behind ours. I would like to stay out of court and avoid criminal charges. Thank you. <br /><div><br /></div><div><img style="text-decoration: underline;display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px; " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdh8mJLyVfwN5uq6YyNWBOHPNcwu55W8VbYPDr90CaynNHKka4Ljpr5fFyiQp1BElrHgU5iGCXRb4E6rLED95G_7h0qKCzzJhT6Vj0d1kiTk6lnifr106wa-e8G1-xhFlWu6yEvleEHo0/s320/IMG_1733.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342158422252590530" /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSCanwD4jCG-8_-gT6aMhXSW7wbqi7ef0GLIuBlyXStaRZavlf6ITxzZjs6rHpd8W9Tm1jF2E7_qXuxxIFy-eMvjlGif6CoNz41dzejQGYjUhfShgG4IGByIt-YOJBF7qvxZn5TXHVQNU/s1600-h/IMG_1732.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSCanwD4jCG-8_-gT6aMhXSW7wbqi7ef0GLIuBlyXStaRZavlf6ITxzZjs6rHpd8W9Tm1jF2E7_qXuxxIFy-eMvjlGif6CoNz41dzejQGYjUhfShgG4IGByIt-YOJBF7qvxZn5TXHVQNU/s320/IMG_1732.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342158414165634082" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I am extremely happy by all the wood chips though, which are providing a mow-free walkway around the gardens (Mark is also very happy about not having to use the string trimmer against the raised beds any more). I put down a layer of newspaper (2 layers thick) under most of the chips and then about 3 inches of chips, which should keep the weeds and sod from growing through. Depending on how many wood chips we actually end up with, it may be thicker in the end.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiqylWQDpkXWw56o-zAXG2blrw1aW1fTpLPTCD-u4maBHDdEFlXtVmFGGrfoNVKIVIwYMcEkKR4qndLKwF3M_pbXzXUkdCoUgnFBJExHHjdnrwFfqmUC-xG0yxwcmGikdwvVsQseTGMfQ/s1600-h/IMG_1734.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiqylWQDpkXWw56o-zAXG2blrw1aW1fTpLPTCD-u4maBHDdEFlXtVmFGGrfoNVKIVIwYMcEkKR4qndLKwF3M_pbXzXUkdCoUgnFBJExHHjdnrwFfqmUC-xG0yxwcmGikdwvVsQseTGMfQ/s320/IMG_1734.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342158410106608450" /></a><div><br /></div></div></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-12718588471076924642009-05-30T15:29:00.004-04:002009-05-30T15:56:25.641-04:00A Gate!I am so happy I can hardly stand it. I now have a gate in the back part of our fence!!! For some reason, whatever previous owners of our house that built the fence in the backyard did not put a gate in the back of it. The fence ended just before a small hill covered with honeysuckle, etc but our property line went partially up the hill. Well, the commercial property behind our house sold several years ago now part of that hill is gone and there is a large stockade fence separating us from the "professional offices" that were built behind us. Well, the part of our property between the stockade fence and our fence has been totally useless to us before this, because we had basically no way to access it. We've been saying we were going to put a gate in our fence since we moved in over 4 years ago. It's now finally finished! Plus, Mark is off to borrow a wood chipper and hopefully by this evening we'll have all the honeysuckle I cut down a month or so ago chipped up before the day is done (or at least before the weekend is done). I am planning to move both compost bins to the area behind the fence, and once we get all the honeysuckle stumps out I'll see what things look like and go from there...<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx2Gnz8qT3MP2JrGeT3SnjZiU2UlI84-pD9AEN3RcdisRblqjWUK6cRm09vJV5gUde1KQgHeuWwPsbHxMGn_Fl-3xWaMaMLueZmQQS_Un7Izw5CJnIc7CWTsXjuxwar6ES5YEC_BSh8Wg/s1600-h/IMG_1728.jpg" style="text-decoration: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /></span></a></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgExsgHHNQzpxPKYNyKfHJlMIDFtvIKTVHu3RwHOVnRetg-cQ0ggyVBWFNATkR8k5i1TpoxLymWyaxFL3-MmGSuCNdz-l83TDJ6ClflydGK-wf8aUvdJpht_tbNLnamLd89NY9GsRW3-4w/s1600-h/IMG_1727.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgExsgHHNQzpxPKYNyKfHJlMIDFtvIKTVHu3RwHOVnRetg-cQ0ggyVBWFNATkR8k5i1TpoxLymWyaxFL3-MmGSuCNdz-l83TDJ6ClflydGK-wf8aUvdJpht_tbNLnamLd89NY9GsRW3-4w/s320/IMG_1727.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5341707149640202418" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">My new back gate! Yay! (All the brown brush is the honeysuckle I cut down a month or so ago, and will be gone by the end of this weekend thanks to a wood chipper we're borrowing.)<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWA8h1xi925KbBnnthRLBbx6y2A32TuO1GIAAVhOobSKkauM99UYgnpfHcQhVxkzPwCi_jLb0zz3RIc0rpiZw7DHuzyHv2WBAdkFOIMwjHrcoHzvritpLHXL__k6-ba62jNd2dosjNAi8/s1600-h/IMG_1730.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWA8h1xi925KbBnnthRLBbx6y2A32TuO1GIAAVhOobSKkauM99UYgnpfHcQhVxkzPwCi_jLb0zz3RIc0rpiZw7DHuzyHv2WBAdkFOIMwjHrcoHzvritpLHXL__k6-ba62jNd2dosjNAi8/s320/IMG_1730.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5341707148050964114" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">The current view from my kitchen window</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE0J7mT-Sehx9IKgoyg5PNLUyvDiowDoT3p4dh8VUQtYz8l5RPIjGH0HU8096alorB_2y1J_Z7iDKOD3jwcDisaPOt-hFfwZDZevDWlM9Z0UwywmiPs2M0z21YIHdFyqpGDGtz3AxoUjE/s1600-h/Berm+and+site+photos+002.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE0J7mT-Sehx9IKgoyg5PNLUyvDiowDoT3p4dh8VUQtYz8l5RPIjGH0HU8096alorB_2y1J_Z7iDKOD3jwcDisaPOt-hFfwZDZevDWlM9Z0UwywmiPs2M0z21YIHdFyqpGDGtz3AxoUjE/s320/Berm+and+site+photos+002.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5341707142611316354" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">The view from my kitchen window in Fall 2006. Pre-commercial development. However, there is a billboard visible on the left side, so it's not like we were in pristine wilderness, but I still miss it....<br /></div><br /></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-65313643805021950292009-05-28T20:54:00.004-04:002009-05-28T21:03:11.119-04:00More 2009 PlantsHere's an update of some things I have put in the garden in the past few weeks. I will try to get some photos of everything tomorrow afternoon:<br /><br />Carrots: Danvers Half Long<br />Leeks: Pandora<br />Bush Beans: Blue Lake<br />Tomaotes: Amish Paste (3), San Marzano (1), Cherokee Purple (1), Mr. Stripey (1), unknown volunteer plants that germinated from the compost (5)<br />Peppers: Jalapeno, Red Beauty<br />Eggplants: Black Beauty, Ichiban<br />Cilantro<br />English Thyme<br />Basil: Genovese<br />Califlower: unknown variety (I didn't record it, and I'm kicking myself for it) - this was planted at the first update, but for some reason I didn't remember to list it.<br /><br />I am also considering growing a squash if I can get a trellis for it built and grow it vertically. They had spaghetti squash at Varnau's last night, and I really like spaghetti squash, so I may try it.Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-45147522437952013892009-05-27T15:42:00.003-04:002009-05-27T16:12:30.768-04:00The Feed BarnAfter playgroup this morning with the girls at Sharon Woods Metropark, I realized two things:<br /><div><ol><li>I am out of eggs<br /></li><li>I will be going right past <a href="http://www.thefeedbarn.com">The Feed Barn at Gravel Knoll Farms</a>, which sells eggs from their organically raised chickens<br /></li></ol></div><div>So I thankfully remembered this on the way home, instead of once we were already home like I usually do, and stopped to get a dozen eggs. I hadn't been to The Feed Barn in a couple of months (since I bought my seed potatoes there) and I had forgotten how much I love it. Linda, one of the owners of Gravel Knoll Farms, which is also one of our local CSAs (community supported agriculture), was working and when she opened the egg carton to check on the eggs, she determined that they were "kind of small" (they didn't look that small to me) and so she took 50 cents off the dozen. You don't get that kind of service at the grocery store! I am now officially vowing to buy the majority of my eggs there, rather than the grocery store. They're $3 a dozen, which for organic, cage-free eggs is cheaper than the grocery store. Plus, you get spontaneous discounts occasionally like I did today, and you're supporting community agriculture and organic practices.</div><div><br /></div><div>Plus, Linda and her husband Jim are the "founders" of the <a href="http://westchestersfarmersmarket.com/">West Chester Farmer's Market</a>, which I also love. There are going to be a lot of booths this year, which is great (28 according to the website). Plus, it is going to be set up right in the Square at Union Center, in the road in front of another awesome business <a href="http://www.thelearningkitchen.com">The Learning Kitchen </a>(a great place to learn some cooking skills for those veggies you're growing). Hopefully some new people stumble into TLK and discover it - I discovered it last year when I poked my head in on the way back to my car from the farmer's market. They have a homemade noodles and a pastry skills class, both of which I am dying to have come around on the calendar again so I can take them!<br /></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-68778556504957153182009-05-26T16:47:00.005-04:002009-05-26T17:19:06.271-04:00Organic Gardening meets Industrial Farming<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4wh-oqLFuA68ff__z_kVsdAclH_HP0w4SatAOf0c8uQV8f0ng632rE7C01nZnhtMN3XRFEgHq2RFkSs-oVrwZOST8R0Jb00wQHgwQzeYDkZSpm6ZRWQXpmss-Tts4X2yMpaf9oswCjRQ/s1600-h/IMG_1700.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4wh-oqLFuA68ff__z_kVsdAclH_HP0w4SatAOf0c8uQV8f0ng632rE7C01nZnhtMN3XRFEgHq2RFkSs-oVrwZOST8R0Jb00wQHgwQzeYDkZSpm6ZRWQXpmss-Tts4X2yMpaf9oswCjRQ/s320/IMG_1700.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340243805153980738" /></a>I almost forgot to post about this. This weekend we went to my in-laws for the long weekend. My father-in-law is a farmer, of the industrial type. He has farmed and worked in a factory since graduating from high school (which was pushing 40 years ago). I have a lot of respect for him, despite the fact our agricultural views are often opposing. It is interesting knowing someone who is so involved in the industrial farming system. For many farmers, like my father-in-law, it is the only thing they know; the only thing anyone they know knows. To him, the idea of "Round-Up Ready" beans is simply a way to get more yield and therefore more income. <img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC6b-IBJKoy9tu0nge5R69QMzPrLwD0kOmWFc7ylyfxsRQOBIUrxqZ53X1qW0ZW1u1VII5BGijUlVZ4db6PLCZQaE4mmu9PVXjrCL_QqAn3azO0R_tcwagAHsEiDLeLmmwvpwCeDjglMs/s320/IMG_1670.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340243803309577218" />"An Omnivore's Dilemma" had an interesting section on how backwards the economics of industrial farming are... prices drop, so the only thing farmers can do is produce more, which simply drives prices down more, etc. The system is so messed up, and the farmers know it too, but are pretty much helpless to do anything about it. <div><br /></div><div>He farms about 500 acres or less, his neighbors farm almost 2,000 - hence the reason he also works in the factory and they don't. My maternal grandfather was also a farmer, and he farmed 240 acres, and supported his family on it. That is completely laughable in industrial farming in this day in age, even with the fact that my grandfather owned the land.</div><div><div><br /></div><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYC4dcHCvlDeSOJ0_LF3KSbowSVwJvrN0P5GI-KjVujRRLvkfZsx5BhAZWw6WFZwzftxU9V-GwUP3Ahf9wnUImGUYlfQ3vws5HVl362aQQex4JTMdAbe6JbM7-Nui4FPVuW2ldTu9M5eM/s320/IMG_1676.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340243804235491090" /><div>Kate loves riding the little yard tractor with Grandpa when we visit, and since he was still planting this weekend due to all the rain earlier in the month, she actually got to go in the big field tractor with him. They were both in heaven. It is really hard to tell who was more excited about it, Kate or Grandpa! He loves it that Kate thinks it is fun to do farming things with him.</div><br /></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-37679358088133513442009-05-26T16:04:00.004-04:002009-05-26T16:17:53.009-04:00Potato Update & MoreI got two bird feeders for Mother's Day, and love seeing the birds out often. Kate absolutely loves it, and is learning bird names quickly. Her favorites are the goldfinches, like the one I caught this morning on the feeder. I need to get a telephoto lens for my camera very badly, as I can't zoom in much more than this without things getting blurry. Though this was taken through my closed kitchen window, so it's not too bad!<br /><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEk1inFAHoBWKzq3aKBDpmopMeZYjWIrwm00_k1te_WHjReWRZl62DB2Y5YiUzu5Nrd6pSqLlXTjWWd3IzJVRSETNTFAI9razSA_JCchRkB2u-_6JCTRKtDiDi2uS01f-Mmr9x9y_ijrw/s320/IMG_1709.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340226952837541282" />The thing my husband dislikes the most about the sunflower feeder. All the seedlings in the grass underneath. I think it's funny.<br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpK1xJ-yQneQJz8ee8BRQCLggpON2ydcrpdnr05y8rRgZm__VDplh9Uekjx-wOuzKQeuN33FCob-lMYyy3pW6IKqtSLEnhC0teIMwd7RUiFKgN75hH04VgT74wuUDTJ17zgdPDdar1W2I/s320/IMG_1714.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340226950765802690" />People think you need special skills to be a gardener, and that it is hard to grow things. This always makes me laugh for the most part. The seedlings in the grass above are an example of why this makes me laugh. Here's another one. This is a potted zebra grass (which died, because I didn't get it planted quick enough after it came) and out of one of the bottom drainage holes of the pot is growing a tomato. It sprouted from a seed that must have been in my compost bin. And it has grown this far, out of a drainage hole in a pot, which absolutely no special treatment, as I didn't even know it was there until last night. I don't know what kind of tomato it is, but I'm thinking it may be a lemon drop cherry from last year. If I can get it out of there, I may try planting it and see what I get. It will probably be the same as the 5 other volunteer plants I saved from other areas of the garden that sprouted from the compost.<div><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidKDAQa8hm0xAK04EXQgVzbDKe4xWTE9Dua-hpQqxJN43F6o3J1DvAjxIzJrKsFk9mvZ6jPTgId44qMdIIQUg6biuh8ZcCbvnjewrPghdX1mnLWg5_G4F96TqCqKF-i8hNUlObBiA0Otk/s320/IMG_1713.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340226945627026306" /><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Here's an update and some photos of the potatoes. They are coming along fine, it appears. All I can see is the leaves, obviously, but I filled up the baskets with more dirt last night, and probably should have done it at least a week ago. The leaves are going strong, and one of them even has a flower bud on it. I figure that's a good sign. The shoots are starting to grow through the sides of the basket too, which Kate thinks is fun.</div><div><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8H-16whHloeGpc4RtpabYHFe4yvqY4S-s3ZEmhzyS7YgwPzNa2v4Q3jMH5cq6uYdb3JGZjl-McS1V8ZdOqsMO4iOHCAduMKBBxFknZc_zwBg7dapXUG0pwMu0FXbBYGmB02SH89q5t6Y/s320/IMG_1711.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340226683413209634" /><div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIyFnaKZrETa9WMDhh3u4ch_cEjzbxkwkQZtq3FTm-n8G4s_9isi7ZD_0-mrXo39eso_MndAYzdYJcwks_FABdmKnp42b1j0waOELQ0Sf9ssYkstKvO43ejpvp-3Q0aRIEXrVquB-kUaQ/s320/IMG_1710.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340226675624444146" /></div><div><br /><div><br /></div></div></div></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-31759620696594603162009-05-22T21:08:00.005-04:002009-05-26T17:19:41.636-04:00Almost Gardening<div>I had an "almost gardening" day today, and it was almost perfect. We had a beautiful low 80 degree day today, and this morning I took the girls to the <a href="http://www.discoverygarden.org/">Highfield Discovery Garden</a> at Glenwood Gardens which is part of the Hamilton County Park system. We have a membership to the Discovery Garden and it's such an awesome place for kids. The program today was about vegetables, and Kate, my 4 and half year old, did me proud and could identify all the vegetables the staff member held up, including cauliflower, eggplant and a radish. I was impressed. They have awesome raised beds there that they do square foot gardening in, and Kate was even willing to take a bite of spinach (which she spit out and said yuck, but it she was willing!)<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGDPBGCHeI2FPx4Pn5buJXcmUnUvRgMl8TO7XTpZleDoSdIsLO9RoiAgwlFGvRDLXr4WiSNnxW06z1BeiTc8P4vlrK2QqS-WGzcUn2UJjUt_b7LBySH3ZLSTAtpWsrhMoRb4e-T7R7KHM/s1600-h/IMG_1666_2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGDPBGCHeI2FPx4Pn5buJXcmUnUvRgMl8TO7XTpZleDoSdIsLO9RoiAgwlFGvRDLXr4WiSNnxW06z1BeiTc8P4vlrK2QqS-WGzcUn2UJjUt_b7LBySH3ZLSTAtpWsrhMoRb4e-T7R7KHM/s320/IMG_1666_2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338825356639647330" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIaviG1CcuOOCsQTDDqDYftM0CuLZdR0KPoHFQ_Tfxfec1V8-PQUzwzBhfpTcah5gEI9l7s67yF6sv6FdU4M2A-3Uy6nE2za3Z5Lh4Te9lJ6fpRPfQsSN6VB-2JEV9RN5uhBVVeVMR5jg/s1600-h/IMG_1615_2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIaviG1CcuOOCsQTDDqDYftM0CuLZdR0KPoHFQ_Tfxfec1V8-PQUzwzBhfpTcah5gEI9l7s67yF6sv6FdU4M2A-3Uy6nE2za3Z5Lh4Te9lJ6fpRPfQsSN6VB-2JEV9RN5uhBVVeVMR5jg/s320/IMG_1615_2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338825359148732354" /></a><br /><div>After nap this afternoon, the girls had fun playing in water in the backyard. I filled up some buckets that they played in on the patio, and then we busted out the Dora sprinkler, which we put next to the garden in the hopes of some of the water hitting a few of the plants. They had an absolute blast, and Kate taught Claire, my 15 month old, how to drink from the sprinkler once she turned the water pressure down. Precious, precious photo op! </div><div><br /></div><div>Then at dinner Kate said she was willing to try a piece of lettuce "with dip" (ranch dressing). She ate the whole piece, then she ate a small salad, heavy on the dressing, with croutons which are a favorite of hers. Plus, she tried a bite of my cheeseburger, which is also a first. We finished the evening off with a trip to the "ice cream store". What an absolutely wonderful day of "almost gardening".</div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-16852587461079679512009-05-14T14:20:00.002-04:002009-05-14T14:33:03.393-04:00Hope for the Blueberry?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL6D3KMl2kUdk8MwL8fh9BnDNbnB5dEFELWF-ZgeawT28ogu9_J_kib3bmK_4McGAN7TtuHrO6YZQmHhA73u8ZV5TL3aE0HcggmZ8HMtcII0yU1iCnNuNgVyQy0ngIN1UFHhE4MknyN5U/s1600-h/IMG_1507.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL6D3KMl2kUdk8MwL8fh9BnDNbnB5dEFELWF-ZgeawT28ogu9_J_kib3bmK_4McGAN7TtuHrO6YZQmHhA73u8ZV5TL3aE0HcggmZ8HMtcII0yU1iCnNuNgVyQy0ngIN1UFHhE4MknyN5U/s320/IMG_1507.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335749348233585842" /></a><br />After a rough start this year where I was threatening drastic measures with my blueberry plant (like throwing it out), the little guy has decided to flower and I'm hopeful of actually getting some blueberries this summer! Last month I complained about my pathetic blueberry bush, and here it is a few weeks later and there are a couple of very tiny blueberries growing on it (though it still looks pretty pathetic). So now I am thinking that I lost track of when I got the bush, and this may actually be it's third summer and not it's fourth, which would be right on track for producing blueberries from what I've read. <div><br /></div><div>I am also thinking that I need to start filling the raised bed I'm going to put it in now and start working on adjusting the pH of the soil now - our soil definitely alkaline, and the blueberries ideally want a soil between 4.0 and 5.0 - Yikes that's a lot of adjusting, which I have never officially done before. And I now want a 2nd variety of blueberry, but don't ask me where I'm going to put it! Hopefully they don't have to be right next to each other.</div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-91768758276372574432009-05-13T15:15:00.004-04:002009-05-13T15:52:47.711-04:00Soil TestI am finally going to get a soil test. I know I should have done this as soon as we moved in 4 years ago, but better late than never. I know our soil is pretty tough to work with from a gardening standpoint, but this way I know exactly how challenging it is. It's pretty obvious that our soil is heavy clay (even Kate knows when I am digging up a new bed to throw the "yellow dirt" into the wheelbarrow so I can dump it in the back), and I am fairly certain it's on the alkaline side. I bought a cheap one today at Varnau's ($2.99) just because I was curious about how it worked.<img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgkfM9FjgKgYG3Ye87CbftRS5CRlLxtDO4EpApo6Jnim0XC_1QDASJrYeXETtK4As5r3rMGv21ujOusrtzz3smp-dY0QNAKfVQsTdXUvyfgyUXoM6hJhUeKerX7fDoahnN-dpVw7k-14k/s320/IMG_1502.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335398805771578482" /><div><br /></div><div>I'm kind of excited to get the test done, and of course it is raining today so I can't dig the samples. I'm going to have the two raised beds tested (I'm debating if I want to pay to have them tested separately or just test them together), and the lawn area (which honestly I don't really care about, but I know Mark would like it to look nicer and I really don't want him to have ChemLawn or something like that come).</div><div><br /></div><div>I'll let you know the results when it comes back in. One thing that I think is kind of ridiculous is that the Butler County OSU Extension office doesn't offer soil testing - the website has info about how to get a soil test from Michigan State University. It just seems odd that as rural as parts of Butler County are, they don't have a local connection to soil tests, or even a soil testing lab at Ohio State! So I guess I will be putting some dirt in a bag and mailing it to MSU with a check to have it analyzed. If you're interested in a soil test, the info from the county extension can be found <a href="http://butler.osu.edu/horticulture/soil-sampling">here</a>. A standard pH, P, Ca, K, Mg test is $12, and an organic matter test is another $5 (these are 2009 rates - if you are reading this and it's no longer 2009, these prices may not be accurate - Google MSU soil testing lab for info on current prices). So I'm getting both tests for the garden soil and just the standard test for the lawn. It will cost $29 for everything, but it will be well worth it I think. If you are elsewhere in the country, contact your local extension office for soil testing, I have heard some offer it free or at a very reduced rate!</div><div><br /></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-47533735843865904392009-05-12T13:30:00.013-04:002009-05-13T20:48:37.689-04:00New Things<img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPzmTbnvvqCaP41EF5cC8O6Zp3XvaWSsGmufeMotS3LiW7XGhikaYSI5qsJRY5eVdNzU4975na6iaM3nO82rmq1kRvLq1211N1kATm3hqezhotq9cFEwIZxA9fnKKLEFcpI9aUwjV_wRU/s320/IMG_1499.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334999291273680562" />I've gotten a bunch of new things and wanted to share them. First, the additional raised bed is built - 4'x12', which combined with the existing 6'x12' raised bed brings the total square footage of the raised beds to 120 sq ft, plus the other space I use and the pots, I probably have pushing 150 sq ft of gardening space now, which is pretty good considering the small size of the yard and the fact that I want to keep the swing set and space for the girls to play as they grow up. Here is a photo of the new raised bed (about 1/3 full of dirt) and the old bed behind it. <img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHQwMYWG7oF1toeuU_WV8bpKgK5bpJP0z5z5WPPXJKmnPSWeQ1pnSPsYp-meQSEU0ZyB0HnErvy_FJ1h04Ho_whXSAfmZMtfSSdTnas0CNatv2BSUOJ8L1UuWEGXUXwl8YHsoS84aUvmM/s320/IMG_1498.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335000732794322674" /> You can also note the absence of honeysuckle against the stockade fence, which is down and awaiting the arrival of a chipper.<div><br /><div><div><br /></div><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUFTF4XTo6EyZTCyZvUa2_CwVraUL1lfdZ5IgufsRbU8YXxaYkuwfmuVdUGMDhAIj2D8nwg9Rfek-lPEOkfqpmlaJiK9lmjmjAZUl7PF0qjH-_w5MFYFq5vjdBU4AMbyGvHyGdttiRSvo/s320/IMG_1497.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335000177745911170" /><div>The second new thing(s) I recently received were 2 bird feeders from my mom, a hanging sunflower feeder and a hanging finch feeder. They have been out for 2 days and already we have a lot of birds using them. We've had lots of mourning doves and sparrows (which Kate has declared "mommy birds" and "baby birds" respectively, due to their difference in size), and a few goldfinches. </div><div><br /></div><div>I also got quite a few new things at Target today. I really like Target. I found plant markers in the dollar bin today (if only they weren't made in China - sigh) and got 3 packs, plus a 2 hr watering timer, which will be WONDERFUL for when I'm running the soaker hoses because I am really bad at getting distracted and forgetting to turn them off. I also got 2 bottles of the liquid Terracycle fertilizer there for the tomato seedlings and sunflowers we recently planted. I love Terracycle not only because it's an organic fertilizer, but because they package it in recycled plastic soda bottles and recycled plastic milk jugs. I also got Kate a new pair of rain/mud boots (she picked the dinosaur ones which are really cool), plus a new pair of gardening gloves for her as she lost the last pair she had, and a new watering can because her other two were really cheap and broke so quick. </div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKI8m215qHtGlovDBETz7zwFY3UexwrLeOl43VNrwh0oRWuKfhkIGk9YibJCTZYAp-v8M5BPCaAf8wJz3iy3_mNwywLUw6_hDFYAR8SjWqtj-sesfprWdMZn4VT7AMqS_UDn39fiZvmPs/s320/IMG_1492.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335001186370023858" /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>The last "new thing" I have is about the worst case of poison ivy I've ever had. We had a fairly significant poison ivy vine growing up the back fence post behind the garden beds, and late last week I decided to pull it out, as nothing else seemed to be killing it (I even borrowed my neighbors Round Up, I'm sad to say, and it didn't kill it). I wore long pants, long sleeves, gloves, socks, boots, etc, and thought I was super duper careful, but I still managed to get a fairly good sized patch on the inside of my lower right arm, some on my neck, a bit that has just developed on the inside of my upper left arm and I believe some on the outside of my nose. Grrr. It has been a couple of itchy, itchy days. I have been using hydrocortisone and Benadryl a bunch and trying very hard not to scratch. However, I figure it's better that I have it than one of the girls getting it accidentally and being this itchy. That would really not be fun.</div><div><br /></div><div>Finally, here are a couple more potato pictures - I can't believe how much they are growing!</div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-6t_O-Bi49WPvqHcF8kS8X1fjfMGwnqPsXKihWVNqWTwRJRWQe9cRxHEzbeL1cY5fVI7GF1dB0M-X9qNcAguRvYK2cDXyeUMsjqgajob11zxOB27PCAQo2T2jwebavApDxtCC0fCL6Uo/s320/IMG_1495.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335002821012461554" /><div><br /></div><div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp7vheCjRPdZIMlRvQWqqMH5eEZBCe8U8e_G1spDQKsMmTapuRgEs133uSO-R6-OF-ZVhSYq9S0Y6_AtpLGzBXUIFtqOS40fx6yk0cpPMVRKPq14vTbBcAz80_x9gc2uk93xdPD2yppSA/s320/IMG_1494.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335001867848033218" /></div></div></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-46977602225480721602009-05-07T09:13:00.006-04:002009-05-13T20:49:01.515-04:00Another Potato UpdateHere's another update on the potatoes. They are growing strong, or at least they are with leaf production. It is time to "hill" them for the first time this afternoon (I'd do it now, but I suppose I need to go to the grocery store and make sure my 1 yr old has something to drink this afternoon, because I'm out of milk and apple juice and many other things... oh, how I hate going to the grocery store with the kids. But I digress...) Here are some pictures of the growth since the last post. A top view of each of the baskets, a side view of one of them, and a view of the pot. I'll post "after" pictures of the hilling later today.<br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMLNa4oQbKS13PXiF2aC-HZkY6OEedbswSyIZ2JDXjFQOi-UExGD5mOSRKKHPBRRvF0cUcMDMLlbzH0T_pNrOsH8jOGUzLNHorcLCHFfJgmnGRNoULS1c8rZr_ucQqlWhTl4v7-o9fwok/s320/IMG_1457.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333071119167154866" /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUvb_au2A55EEdzCk4z_Z81bdxNiSgdYqeyPmi3hBFV8fiKhsO3PxD8R9eTxQ2fFHcISb5clTK3sIAUoomnylX-tn-yRXnmUzzM2wyBpeShbVtb2yHs1_4hcABNSLv9AK7WkChYRbdGfo/s320/IMG_1456.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333071113914102738" /><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX-OHU6-18qrls2fOpPZBGttorP0CvZ1WS1-FhcvwMJtYftVyHbtBk6VbewTs30ri1NZLyw-XJtiLMuVPG8Ro53oEWNGchfBqkwz3y-wFDcZ9mOTd87Ebcbj_dM_kABiT4f779riYr57s/s320/IMG_1455.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333071113833324114" /><div><br /><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUhoukJVuM_rI4NwWUeVmAlMbKHnO4HnoDvuRsjiH9_TxELVwpGmUNPMnb4QkjcdHRnvAWQdHRLDMW1wMu48D9Cmwbm4wEiKt3rNvkQta8FRlMaxxyj7bj-w2fGKuDwKfI1SNqMQMgT7k/s320/IMG_1454.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333070701286273778" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-18837632316942832902009-05-05T11:50:00.003-04:002009-05-05T12:01:55.459-04:00Marvin's Organic GardensThere is one of the few certified organic nurseries in the entire Midwest about 20 minutes from my house (on Rt 42, between Mason & Lebanon - <a href="http://www.marvinsorganicgardens.com">Marvins Organic Gardens</a>), and I have been meaning to go for over a year. I had a meeting up in Lebanon yesterday morning and thought that was a good excuse to stop on my way home and see what they have. It wasn't quite what I expected, but it was a nice place. They had a lot of your standard annuals grown from non-organic seed, but they had a LOT of vegetables, several unique varieties, and all grown themselves from organic seed. They also had organic fertilizer, though I had to search a bit to find the liquid seaweed I had been searching for. The suprise bonus - it was an unmarked sale of 25% off. Very nice. I picked up a 4-pack of leeks (but I looked closely and 3 of the cells actually have 2 leeks in them), and 1 heirloom purple Cherokee striped tomato plant and 1 San Marzano Italian paste tomato plant. I haven't bought any tomatoes yet this year (or peppers) so I thought it was totally allowed. I have a couple jalapenos, a couple of red, orange or yellow bell peppers and a few amish paste tomatoes to buy yet, and then I think I'll have everything I am planting in the garden this year. They had Amish Paste at Marvin's, but at $2.95 a plant I couldn't justify them, since the ones at Jungle Jims are about $1.49 a 4-pack! Jungle Jim's are probably not organic seed, but I'm still supporting an individual vs. a mega-corporation, so I'll buy from Jungle Jims. Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-61662344323048963682009-05-03T20:59:00.002-04:002009-05-03T21:19:01.997-04:00First Harvest!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijBDBQOPV0cbLvxLlH67k6OCq5jTFKMSntj_lQfUH7iybkg_RxRfzfygJmuJEJVJ24qV26ltX5cjJnXpD_RqxIuKz5WapWABpWeA-3H-Mx6QSPw2pjbGn5MtF9voFoMO50td2YbJvbL0w/s1600-h/IMG_1448_2.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijBDBQOPV0cbLvxLlH67k6OCq5jTFKMSntj_lQfUH7iybkg_RxRfzfygJmuJEJVJ24qV26ltX5cjJnXpD_RqxIuKz5WapWABpWeA-3H-Mx6QSPw2pjbGn5MtF9voFoMO50td2YbJvbL0w/s320/IMG_1448_2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5331772007051476178" /></a><br />The first harvest of 2009 is sitting on my kitchen counter. Yay! It's actually the thinnings from the row of spinach and the pot of baby red mix lettuce, but I'm calling it a harvest because I do plan to wash it and then eat it. I'm trying to keep a running total on the right of the pounds of food harvested from the garden and the dollar amount that it's worth. Some blogs I've seen have fancy widgets for this, but I can't find one and have no idea how to create one, so you won't find one here.<div><br /></div><div>The rest of the weekend was spent on important but much less exciting gardening tasks. I chopped down almost all of the rampant honeysuckle behind the back fence, which did not take as long as I expected - a couple of hours was it. Now comes the exciting part of digging up the roots and dealing with the brush. Luckily it's all small stuff (2" diameter or less) so I think we can get a chipper from a friend and chip it into mulch. Mark and my dad started tackling a gate in the back fence today also, so we can actually access the space behind the fence, since at least 5 ft of it is our property. I plan on "claiming" everything up to the stockade fence for us though, since the commercial development behind us sure isn't going to be landscaping our side of the fence!</div><div><br /></div><div>I also dug up the front flower bed by the house this weekend and removed the hydrangea that was not so happy (which I am just giving away because I'm tired of "babying" it for little result), and dug out the moonbeam coreopsis that was spreading through the bed. I'm going to give some of that away also. I have a crepe myrtle in the corner of the bed that will stay, as will the boxwoods along the house, but I'm kind of starting over with the rest of the bed. The perennials were all kind of thrown in the summer we moved in just to have something in the bed, and now I'm hoping to actually have some order to the bed. </div><div><br /></div><div>A final fun gardening thing for today was to plant the large pot on the front walk full of the annuals for this year - I think I ended up with a green sweet potato vine, a purple heart, a osteopernim, a zonal geranium (Kate's pick) a gerbera daisy and a lantana. Plus, Kate and I started some sunflower seeds today. I'm really excited for one of the varieties - it's called "Mammoth" and gets up to 12 ft tall. Kate is excited because they'll be "taller than Daddy".</div><div><br /></div><div>I also found 8 volunteer tomato plants coming up in the garden which I transplanted into little pots and will move into the new raised bed once it's done. Hopefully they're not all cherry tomatoes, but we'll see!</div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-81176244772276809502009-04-30T14:22:00.008-04:002009-05-01T08:35:37.208-04:002009 Seeds/PlantsA list of things I have planted so far this season:<div><ul><li>Peas: Dark Seeded Early Perfection</li><li>Spinach: Avon Hybrid</li><li>Lettuce: Black Seeded Simpson, Baby Red Mix, "Little Gem" Romaine</li><li>Onions: Texas Sweet (from sets), Evergreen Bunching</li><li>Cilantro (seedlings still - not outside yet)</li><li>Eggplant: Black Beauty (also have Ichiban - not in the ground yet)</li><li>Potatoes: Kennebec, Red Pontiac, unknown "red seed potato"</li></ul><div>Of the lettuces, the Baby Red Mix (from Burpee) seems to be the farthest along, and all were planted at the same time. The peas did not germinate well at all, I'm not sure if it's the variety or just peas in general, as I did read several things about how to encourage peas to germinate this spring, and I tried none of the methods. Go figure. </div><div><br /></div><div>I'll be planting cilantro throughout the year, as it bolts (goes to seed) so quickly and there's really no way to prevent it. I plant a few seeds every few weeks through about August so that I have some all summer long.</div><div><br /></div><div>Last night I planted the first of the 3 eggplant plants I bought yesterday at Jungle Jims (they were only $.99 a plant - half the price of Home Depot and a quarter of the price of Varnau's), at the flower bed right by the mailbox (photo below - it's the little plant on the left side of the mailbox closest to the street). I often plant vegetables among my flowers, and I think eggplants have quite interesting leaves, and the thick stems and spines on eggplants mean that it would be difficult for someone to walk by and pick one like they might a tomato. I think it will add some nice interest to the front bed. I'm really excited to plant the Ichiban eggplant this year, which is a Japanese variety that makes a longer, skinnier eggplant. That will go in the actual garden in a week or so.</div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitDHu8YfkZbs2iqVH2nF2c9opRBgUeeeFCGxev-N1efQlAzPjOwjRhqxlCmtpi52psM60tHZLPp3QmICEoBr6z_ZVOcavROx0hBZa_3G1mb0d5QQIGB2cRPljeGZK1GOGo_9nMfaRwjao/s400/IMG_1399_2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330557470501684450" /></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7104092616316026674.post-71060449338256753462009-04-28T13:14:00.008-04:002009-05-13T20:49:18.994-04:00Potato Update<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizn_VUC7OUvDuOIXDR72vqtKznZuNxDGxxvu2wirArqWOZMzBvCm48ZlbzQFTMBOZeys8CR-EpYuYHBwOTQobWoI39yzKABQmzNvRVA8hbXjzTD9HGxe-NoIkrXm-YxZTgAOHfrC5-JHc/s1600-h/IMG_1396.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizn_VUC7OUvDuOIXDR72vqtKznZuNxDGxxvu2wirArqWOZMzBvCm48ZlbzQFTMBOZeys8CR-EpYuYHBwOTQobWoI39yzKABQmzNvRVA8hbXjzTD9HGxe-NoIkrXm-YxZTgAOHfrC5-JHc/s320/IMG_1396.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5329795458650637554" border="0" /></a><br />The potatoes have sprouted! Yay! I was so excited yesterday when I looked in the potato basket and saw little leaves poking out. It looks like the potato experiment is working. Both baskets have sprouts, though not every piece of potato we planted has sprouted yet. One basket has one piece that has sprouted and the leaves are developing quite nicely. The other basket has two pieces that have sprouted, but they are both just breaking the surface. I am ridiculously excited that the potatoes are growing, as it's a first. I was just talking to one of the other moms at Kate's preschool about it when I dropped her off today, and told her that <img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinpCkZTNVvzmEAdJUaRygxDOohMaNgCVo6i2euSbPThTkv_zKQWIlhgq6UN49Y3C8NJlkBffOmLkrX55NXEAfA38Er4KxEkP127wWgnIN80WeD4y3ZDknhB6H3an9oA9KvqbRIpx-BqrA/s320/IMG_1398.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5329795581133133682" border="0" />yes we are actually growing potatoes in a laundry basket! Also the already started potatoes I put in the patio pot have grown a lot as well - it's amazing how much bigger they are just 10 days after planting them in the big pot. I almost wish fall would hurry up and arrive so I could harvest some homegrown potatoes. Almost.<div><br /><div><div><br /></div><div>Our lettuce is growing quite well - it's about time to do some thinning and have some yummy salad of "baby greens" with the plants I pull. We have spinach, green leaf, romaine and red leaf - I wrote all the exact cultivars down but I don't have them handy. The cauliflower has also grown significantly in the past week and half or so, and the green onions have sprouted. I have 6 measly pea plants (I planted about 20-25 seeds and only 6 germinated), but I had heard that peas don't always germinate well.</div><div><br /></div><div>I am hoping after the warmth of the past week it will be approaching time to plant tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, beans, etc, in the next couple of weeks.</div></div></div>Alyssahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17402376721058875993noreply@blogger.com2