Dangmoles, greenhouse greens, and alpine strawberries

Posted on March 14, 2010 by Sandy
Hardware cloth liner for raised beds

Hardware cloth liner for raised beds

I’ve complained about moles so much that my four-year-old son thinks the official name for a mole is “dangmole.” “Look, it’s a dangmole hole!” We’ve had problems with moles in this yard forever, so I’m not sure why it didn’t occur to me to do some basic mole prevention when we built these raised beds a few years ago.  Sure enough, I’ve been battling moles in the raised beds.  They come up from the bottom and absolutely destroyed my beet crop last year, among other annoying problems.  There are a couple of beds that are particularly mole infested, so I decided to dig them out (with some help from Derek) and line them with hardware cloth.  Hopefully this will slow the little suckers down this year.

Lettuce, spinach, and shallots in the greenhouse

Lettuce, spinach, and shallots in the greenhouse

Inside the greenhouse, the lettuce, spinach, and shallots I planted on February 14 are all doing well.  Everything in the picture above was direct sown and is now up and looking perky, except the carrots which are slower going than the spinach, lettuce, and shallots.

Alpine strawberry patch

Alpine strawberry patch

Outside, I’ve been dividing and creating new patches of alpine strawberries.  These small but tasty strawberries produce fruit for months.  The kids love walking around the yard and searching the many patches of alpine strawberries for fruit. Aside from being nice edible plants, these strawberries make good groundcovers.

Other tasks performed this weekend: Planted carrots in wine barrels, planted spring lettuce mix in a lettuce box,  planted onion seedlings and beet seeds in a raised bed, and started sunflower and basil seeds under the grow lights. Aside from a little drizzle yesterday, it really was a nice, mild weekend and the whole family had a good time outside. Cheers!
 
Sandy
 
 

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Early spring gardening and delayed gratification

Posted on March 7, 2010 by Sandy
Grapes in September

Grapes in September

One nice thing about keeping a gardening blog is that you can go back to previous posts and remember what you did and enjoyed about the year before. This is especially nice when the garden requires lots of work but isn’t really producing that much yet. Yesterday was a perfect example of the need to keep future gratification in mind while doing a, well, less than fun task.  To be clear, less than fun is a euphemism for pain in the ass. Pruning grapes growing over a 10h X 13 X 30 foot a pergola is the definition of pain in the ass.  But I did it and the grapes will be better off, and hopefully more productive, as a result.  Thanks to Hip Chick Digs for the timely grape pruning tutorial.

Shiro plum in March

Shiro plum in March

I’ll end today of a picture of the Shiro plum, in full bloom.  The sun was out yesterday and the bees were buzzing around, so hopefully the tree will be nicely pollinated.  I have to say this tree has been the easiest tree with the most reliable crops, so I imagine we’ll be able to look forward to a nice yellow plum harvest again this year.

Basket of Shiro plums

Basket of Shiro plums

Happy gardening.

Sandy

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Arrested development: Tomato seedling diagnostic help needed

Posted on March 6, 2010 by Sandy
Tomato seedlings

Tomato seedlings

Hmm.  This isn’t looking good.  I planted these tomato seedlings a little over two weeks ago. The seeds germinated pretty quickly for tomato seeds and started to grow. I kept the grow lights low so the plants wouldn’t get too leggy. For the last week or so, not much has happened.  A few of the seedlings are starting to develop secondary leaves, but most of them look completely unchanged, as they they sprouted and then just stopped developing.  Any idea what is going on?

Aside from being puzzled by my seedlings, I’m really looking forward to this weekend.  The sun is out and I’m sure I’ll spend some good time in the garden today.  I just have to figure out what to work on first. Happy Saturday.

Sandy

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Muck and other yucky stuff

Posted on February 21, 2010 by Sandy
Ryan mucking out the goat barn

Ryan mucking out the goat barn

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a teenage nephew in want of money will be willing to muck out a goat barn. Thankfully, this was the case today. Following of the “deep bedding” methodology, we don’t clean out the goat barn often.  We layer new hay on top of old and the goats seem to do quite well with this arrangement.  However, it does become necessary, at least once a year, to really clean the whole thing out.  The best solution to this problem is to find some motivated labor to tackle the job.  Once cleaned out of the barn, the muck is composted and then later use in garden beds.  Thanks Ryan!

Lily and Andrew making a lake

Lily and Andrew making a lake

Continuing on the theme of muck and yuck, Lily and Andrew made a stream, dam, and lake today. They busied themselves with this project during a period of benign parental neglect while I weeded a nearby section of the yard.  The weather was warm (60 something) and they were having fun, so it worked out all around. They were dirty by the end.  I mean really, really dirty, but they went straight into the bath with no complaints.

Blueberries, cherry tree, and rose border

Blueberries, cherry tree, and rose border

Another yuck for today. I pruned the rose bushes.  There’s nothing fun about this task and it is inevitable that I’ll draw blood at some point.  But it was necessary and at least the rose clippings provided a good distraction for the goats while Ryan was mucking the barn.  In addition to pruning the roses, I weeded two sections of the front yard:  the rose border and a planting area with the dwarf cherry tree and blueberry bushes.  The latter area also has lavender, rosemary, thyme, and alpine strawberry plants.  I’ve been dividing my alpine strawberries from around the yard (I have several patches now) and moved some over to this new planting area.  The only seeds I put in the ground today were some Eckford’s Finest sweet peas. I pre-sprouted these a few days ago, planted them with some manure, and am hoping they do really well since they are supposed to be really fragrant.  Whew! It was a busy day.

With all of the above going on, I wasn’t able to do any real food gardening today.  No matter. The weather is going to be great tomorrow and I will be taking the day off to celebrate my birthday.  I think I’ll do some pea planting.

Here’s to such a beautiful weekend!

Sandy

P.S. In my last post I mentioned that Lily has been wanting to set up an egg stand.  We set up the stand today.  She had 30 eggs to sell ($0.25 each) and she sold out within 15 minutes.  It was a big success! I see more egg stands in our future this spring and summer.

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Birds and bees and kiwi

Posted on February 20, 2010 by Sandy
Chickens, February 2010

Chickens, February 2010

After a brief winter hiatus, the chickens are now laying at normal levels again.  From our eight chickens, we’re getting 5 – 6 eggs a day, which translates into over three dozen eggs a week.  For a family of four, that is a lot of eggs.  As a result, we end up sharing a good number of the eggs.  Between relatives, neighbors, and my son’s school, it is really easy to find takers for home-grown, fresh eggs. Lily has also decided that she would like to have a weekend egg stand. She’s painted her signs and is ready to set up shop, charging $0.25 per egg.

Bee on rhodie in February

Bee on rhodie in February

Last week, I shared a photo of Andrew hand pollinating the mini peach trees in the greenhouse.  This week, I saw my first bee of the season, which looks to me like a bumblebee.  It was fun to see this little guy buzzing around. 

Speaking of bees, I have some exciting bee news.  I found a local orchard mason bee expert who is going to set up a bee colony in my orchard.  This is just what my orchard needs! I’m pretty excited to learn all about caring for orchard mason bees.

The weather was so beautiful today I stopped by a local nursery.  I had a gift certificate to use, so I just had to buy some things, right?  Well, I found a Issai kiwi vine that is self-fertile that supposedly begins fruiting early, after just a few seasons. This would be great.  I have another kiwi vine (self-fertile as well) that has been in the ground for five years already and so far nothing.  It will interested to see if the Issai starts producing before the more established vine.

With that, I’ll sign of and start thinking about what I am going to do in the garden tomorrow, which is supposed to be just as nice as today was.

Sandy

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Photo album: Greenhouse in February, 2010

Posted on February 14, 2010 by Sandy
Raised beds in the greenhouse

Raised beds in the greenhouse

I love my greenhouse.  This will be the second full year we’ve had the structure and I continue to be thankful that we have it. Although we don’t use it exactly as originally planned (we were never able to get the heat sink concept to work out quite right and we did eventually end up wiring it for electricity for emergency winter heating situations), it has definitely allowed us to extend our gardening season and garden enjoyment. Plus, it’s a great place to read on a sunny spring day. Here are a few shots of what’s going on in the greenhouse this February.

Overwintered cabbage

Overwintered cabbage

Cabbage wasn’t exactly my best crop last year.  I had insect problems and it just seemed too fussy.  But look as this beauty! Late last summer I planted a batch of cabbage that wasn’t able to make much progress before winter set in.  This lovely cabbage is one of four plants that survived the winter and now appears to be thriving.  Behind it, I have a patch of Swiss chard which overwintered nicely as well.

Celery, February 2010

Celery, February 2010

This celery was planted last spring.  I harvested it through the summer and fall, using it to flavor the tomato sauce I made last year.  I left it place all winter and recently just tidied it up a bit by cutting off the ratty parts of the plants.  It looks to me as though it is going to come back.  Another overwintering success.

Andrew pollinating peach trees

Andrew pollinating peach trees

We have two mini-dwarf peach trees growing in half wine barrels in the greenhouse.  Surprisingly, these are already in bloom.  Today I asked Andrew to make like a bee and hand pollinate the little trees.  He was extra gentle. And extra cute.

Planted today in the greenhouse:  Shallots, carrot seeds (King Midas), lettuce seeds (Merveille des Saisons), spinach seeds (Bloomsdale), Chinese cabbage seedlings, broccoli seedlings, and Brussel sprouts seedlings.

Sandy

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Seed starting chaos

Posted on February 13, 2010 by Sandy
Seed packettes

Seed packets

 I buy too many seeds. There are two reasons for this: 1. I can’t resist the plant descriptions and always buy more varieties than I really need, and 2. My seed storage is such a mess I can never stay on top of what I already have.  I have seeds shoved into plastic bags and containers based on no system whatsoever.  Whenever I need a particular type of seed, I have to hunt through the mess to find what I need.  In spite of this, I did manage to find what I needed today and was able to get the following started: 

Tomatoes 

  • Super Italian Paste (8)
  • San Marzano (8)
  • Roma (4)
  • Bloody Butcher (4)

Peppers 

  • Pepperoccini (4)
  • Italian Sweet (4)
  • King of the North (4)
  • Alma Paprika (4)

Flowers 

  • Cactus-flowered Zinnias (16)
  • African Marigold (8)
Organized seed tower

Organized seed tower

Last year I didn’t start any annual flowers under grow lights, but I decided to give it a try this year.  I love zinnias in particular and it is easy to spend $3.50 on a single nice plant.  The 16 plants I just started would cost $56 at a nursery.  Not bad for a $2 pack of seeds. 

The messy seed situation did inspire me take charge today and get things organized.  I bought a stackable organizer and sorted the seeds into groups.  Hopefully this will help me cut down on overbuying and do a better job of using up the seeds I already have. 

Happy gardening! 

Sandy

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Follow the sun: Organic fruit tree care

Posted on February 7, 2010 by Sandy
Orchard, February 2010

Orchard, February 2010

When a gardener gets a beautiful sunny day in February, it cannot be wasted. By noon on Saturday, our temperatures were hitting the sixties, the sun was out in full force, and wind was minimal. It was the absolutely perfect day to put a layer of dormant oil on my fruit trees. Now, this isn’t exactly a task I have been looking forward to, but I would have kicked myself had I not done it — today (as you can see in the picture above) the weather has already turned cloudy and damp which is not ideal for dormant oil spraying. To take one step back on this, I have been debating whether or not to use the dormant oil spray. I’ve been reading a variety of sources about organic fruit tree care and keep getting conflicting guidance. Some guides recommend nothing more than good pruning and planting around the trees with native grasses and flowers, plus mulching with organic matter, especially manure. Others recommend a few applications of dormant oil spray and then later a copper spray. This year, I decided to give these minimal spray applications a try, and yesterday was the perfect day to get started.  I still feel confused about this topic, however, so if you have more experience growing organic fruit trees I’d love to hear your opinion on this matter.

The other major initiative I am undertaking this year to bolster my orchard is to learn beekeeping and get a hive.  Even with the best fruit tree care, I won’t have much of a crop if I don’t have good pollination.  So keeping a hive in my orchard seems like a good idea.  Plus, I might be able to play a small role in helping the struggling honey bee population. To learn how to manage a hive, I will be taking the Natural Beekeeping course at 21 Acres, a local non-profit community farm focused on sustainable agriculture.

I did manage to do a little more than just the dormant spraying yesterday. I weeded the two raspberry beds and the asparagus bed.  Laura at the Modern Victory Garden had the same exact idea and made huge progress doing spring tidying tasks.  See, when a gardener gets a beautiful, sunny day in February, it cannot be wasted.

I’ll leave you with a few pictures of impending spring.

Shiro plum tree, February 2010

Shiro plum tree, February 2010

Garlic patch, February 2010

Garlic patch, February 2010

Hellebores, February 2010

Hellebores, February 2010

Rhododendron, February 2010

Rhododendron, February 2010

Sandy

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Seed starting: It’s not even February and I’m aready behind schedule

Posted on January 31, 2010 by Sandy
Chinese cabbage, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts

Chinese cabbage, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts

Laura over at The Modern Victory Garden has a wonderful seed starting schedule for Pacific Northwest gardeners to follow. I am woefully behind already. This is OK because Laura is in the thick of planting cabbages and other Brassica plants and I am not planning on planting too many of these this year.  I do believe that it is important to grow what you’ll eat and my family just won’t eat that much cabbage and kale.  Maybe I’ll plant more when the kids are older. That said, I have started a few chinese cabbage, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts plants so I will have a small planting of these this year.

Following the grow what you’ll eat philosophy, I am going to expand my orchard a bit this year.  Every fall, Raintree Nursery has a wonderful spring pre-order sale.  My giant bare-root box just arrived, including a filbert hedge, a mini-dwarf William’s Pride apple tree, and a few high bush cranberries. The filbert hedge will be the beginning of a mixed nut and berry privacy hedge that will fill in a weed blighted and underutilized area next to our driveway.  The William’s Pride was ordered so I would have an additional pollinator for my Gravenstein trees. The apples sound yummy too. The cranberries were free for ordering the other items and how could I resist having a few more?

So, this afternoon I’ll be heading outdoors, ignoring the Seattle mist, to get my bare root trees in the ground. At least the moist (but not waterlogged) soil will make for easy digging.

Oh, I learned an interesting new word today thanks to Laura at The Modern Victory Garden.  Imbolc.  Do you know what it means? What a great word and hopeful time in the garden.

Sandy

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Everything is better with butter

Posted on January 1, 2010 by Sandy
Butter fat separating from the buttermilk

Butter fat separating from the buttermilk

 Sometimes I’m both flabbergasted and humbled by all the things I don’t know how to do.  Today, I made butter for the first time.  I had never even thought about making butter before.  In our convenience world of ready-made everything, we’ve really lost touch with how things come to be.  Some of these things are actually quite simple to do yourself.  Butter certainly was. 

I decided to give butter making a try after reading an article in the February/March 2010 issue of Organic Gardening magazine. In a nutshell, butter is made by whipping cream well past the frothy whipped cream stage.  You whip it until it starts congealing and then separating.  This stage is illustrated in the photo above.  The liquid is then separated from the butter solids. The butter solids are then rinsed, with the excess liquid squeezed out.  I then mixed in a bit of salt and then that was it.  All done.  It took less than ten minutes to do. Below you can see the results.  It tasted great on the no-knead bread I’ve been making.   

Finished butter

Finished butter

While the butter making was humbling because it was so easy to do and I had no idea, it does illustrate something about myself that I am proud of: I like to learn new things. As I get older, I hope this interest in learning new things persists.  There is no reason to ever be bored.  There are so many things to learn and do.  As I look at the year ahead, I’m already thinking about what might be next and right now both knitting and beekeeping are strong contenders.  Here’s to a wonderful 2010 and to life spent learning. 

Sandy

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