Garden Diary
The smell of freshly dug soil is perfume to a gardener.
We have on average 170 days here between the last frost and our first frost. The last spring frost date here is generally May 20th.
If you’ve been following me on Instagram lately you’d know that one of my main goals for this spring was to relocate the Potager ( kitchen garden) to the southeast side of our property.
We are currently in the hungry gap of spring and had to wait until the weather cooperated to make the move. This year has been a little different weather-wise. It was an extremely cold winter for us and we've been inundated with many storms with high winds.
If you think moving the Potager sounds like a bit of work - it was!
Thank goodness for a happy hubby who was willing to help with a little food bribery.
The hubby and I relocated our raised beds and we filled them with compost and organic matter. Hubby tilled a portion of soil and then looked at me with sweat dripping from his brow and said, "It's big enough!" I said, "It's not!" But in the end, he won-reminding me that food bribery only gets me so far when it just an image in his mind and not displayed in front of him. Unfortunately, he doesn't get the same enjoyment of digging in the dirt that I do. And, I was too exhausted to tackle the tilling myself but vowed to soon.
In surveying our freshly tilled soil, we stood and watched as birds swarmed into our patch to gobble up worms. We scolded them for this and then we returned and raked out the grassy dirt clods and scattered them in the section of our property that we need to be built up.
After this, we laid down on the lawn furniture and took a brief water break. It's at this point, and with the urging of an Instagram friend, that I decided to create my garden diary, a mixture of tales from my kitchen garden, as well as my flower beds.
I expect that I will have my, planting schedule, productivity, happy surprises, mentions of rainfall and weather in general, pests and wildlife visits, things I pick up at garage sales, garden gifts received, time spent in gardens with family and pets, my wish list, and notations on winning plants and losers.
Soon after, I began the process by drawing out a plan, measuring the sections and making sure to include squares for raised beds, rectangles for the section tilled, dots for direct sows, small circles for plants, larger circles for plants that needed room to spread out, rectangles with designs for any trellises and triangles for tomato cages.
When I was done on paper, I called Mom to tell her what I was up to and to whine that I couldn't find my favorite rainboots at the moment and couldn't fit every plant I wanted in my newly expanded Potager. Mom reminded me the boots will turn up when I least need them and that I don't like weeding anyway.
Yes! I have a lovely mom who tells it like it is.
Later that night I went ahead and started planting things. The hubby came out to see what I was up to and he brought along our dog Buddy who sniffed around checking out my progress.
JUNE 2019
If you’ve been following me on Instagram lately you’d know that one of my main goals for this spring was to relocate the Potager ( kitchen garden) to the southeast side of our property.
We are currently in the hungry gap of spring and had to wait until the weather cooperated to make the move. This year has been a little different weather-wise. It was an extremely cold winter for us and we've been inundated with many storms with high winds.
If you think moving the Potager sounds like a bit of work - it was!
Thank goodness for a happy hubby who was willing to help with a little food bribery.
The hubby and I relocated our raised beds and we filled them with compost and organic matter. Hubby tilled a portion of soil and then looked at me with sweat dripping from his brow and said, "It's big enough!" I said, "It's not!" But in the end, he won-reminding me that food bribery only gets me so far when it just an image in his mind and not displayed in front of him. Unfortunately, he doesn't get the same enjoyment of digging in the dirt that I do. And, I was too exhausted to tackle the tilling myself but vowed to soon.
In surveying our freshly tilled soil, we stood and watched as birds swarmed into our patch to gobble up worms. We scolded them for this and then we returned and raked out the grassy dirt clods and scattered them in the section of our property that we need to be built up.
After this, we laid down on the lawn furniture and took a brief water break. It's at this point, and with the urging of an Instagram friend, that I decided to create my garden diary, a mixture of tales from my kitchen garden, as well as my flower beds.
I expect that I will have my, planting schedule, productivity, happy surprises, mentions of rainfall and weather in general, pests and wildlife visits, things I pick up at garage sales, garden gifts received, time spent in gardens with family and pets, my wish list, and notations on winning plants and losers.
Soon after, I began the process by drawing out a plan, measuring the sections and making sure to include squares for raised beds, rectangles for the section tilled, dots for direct sows, small circles for plants, larger circles for plants that needed room to spread out, rectangles with designs for any trellises and triangles for tomato cages.
When I was done on paper, I called Mom to tell her what I was up to and to whine that I couldn't find my favorite rainboots at the moment and couldn't fit every plant I wanted in my newly expanded Potager. Mom reminded me the boots will turn up when I least need them and that I don't like weeding anyway.
Yes! I have a lovely mom who tells it like it is.
Later that night I went ahead and started planting things. The hubby came out to see what I was up to and he brought along our dog Buddy who sniffed around checking out my progress.So what plants were added to the Potager?
Lettuces, cabbages, celery, Brussel sprouts, squashes, strawberry's, radishes, cucumbers, onions, beans, corn, okra, eggplant, potatoes, culinary herbs and a variety of peppers and tomatoes and some pollinator plants. We typically use our kitchen garden and eat fresh, pickled, fermented. We can, bottle and freeze items too.
I ought to mention by this time the only thing we've harvested this spring is a bucket full of these onions some of which I ate with a dusting of salt and the rest I cut up into small chunks and stuck in the freezer.
We also had been eating chives. I like to chew them raw and we also dice them and use them to flavor our meats or hang them up to dry for later
The hubby and I had a few days off this week. It stormed one day and the next we found ourselves busy putting up a 2-foot poultry fence around a potager. This is not something we had originally planned but it seemed necessary as the neighbor's dogs were coming over to visit as well as the squirrels and bunnies.
Hubby thought he'd have some fun with me and when I went out to take a photo of the Okra I found that he'd put this scarecrow in our potager.
The scarecrow was sitting in a box of things to be mended because he's missing a hat and straw no doubt ripped off by a storm.
We have a row of Okra in the potager. You can just see the leaf top on one of the plants in the photo at the top of this page.
Okra is something I enjoy eating but had not attempted growing before.
I was talking with my Aunt who lives in Alabama and she told me that when they lived up here they had a rather large kitchen garden and were able to successfully grow Okra. So, since she was able to grow it here, I thought I would give it a try.
While most veggies survived the visit of dogs and wildlife, I found something had nibbled off all of the leaves one of our Okra plants. Time will tell if we're successful with Okra or not.
It's already raining today. I did, however, get out in the Potager and potted some lemon balm.
Years ago, I brought some home and it nearly took over so now I keep it contained to a section in the backyard. I transplant it into containers and move it about or bring them inside. I potted the lemon balm and nasturtiums and moved them to the Potager.
I transplanted the eggplants and cucumbers into the soil and planted the burgundy bean seeds as well. Cosmos seeds were spread in nooks and crannies where I don't recall planting anything else.
We looked around but didn't find damage to anything other than one Okra plant. We noticed the celery was looking a little yellow so I dug some coffee grounds into the soil in their general vicinity. Cherry pits were spotted- evidence that birds have been over the potager.
Today I also spotted our first Easter Lily bloom along the East side of our house. Strange how Easter Lillies are never in bloom here on Easter.
Did I mention I saw a bunny in the field watching me as I worked?
The hubby and I were walking to the Potager when we noticed movement. We watched as a rabbit paused and then sat and ate some clover, while carefully examining our fence, as if to say, " Am I too early for the salad bar?"
We think it's likely there must have been a neighborhood party that we were not invited to.
The rabbit then made his way to the other side of the fence. He sat up on his hind legs and motioned, wiping his eyes, and 2 other rabbits appeared and they all began chasing each other around.
We watched stunned as they ate clover and seemed to be plotting ways to sneak into the garden which reminds me of a book The Tale of Peter Rabbit by one of my favorite authors Beatrix Potter who also wrote The Tale of Tom Kitten and The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck among others. These are
enchanting stories so if you haven't read them- do!
It's said that the presence of a dog in the yard may keep rabbits away but that is not the case here. We have 4 dogs that frequent the yard and they have not deterred rabbits.
We are not trappers so we think we will go with sound deterrents next.
Now back to the Potager. All the rabbits seem to be eyeing the lettuce which needs to be picked out.
We were happy to see the garden survived yesterday's downpour and that there is no standing water. YEAH!
Today, we moved in a few containers of sweet peppers and strawberries. The yellow marigolds have opened fully and look stunning and some the beans have popped up through the ground.
The chives in the old clay pot are done flowering. I cut these back monthly and as I'd mentioned I have been using off these a while. Chives have the best flavor and I can't past this without grabbing a few flowerheads to pop into my mouth.
From there, we made our way back across and to the other side of our property.
I was tickled to see that a grapevine we thought we'd lost a few years back has also reappeared behind our shed.
We have some potted cucumbers in our Potager.
We left on a mission in search of a section of our compost bin that come up missing in the microburst- we have yet to find it.
The week, prior to relocating the Potager we visited the Hosta and Lily beds. They were leafed out and blooming as well and the hardy geranium in the perennial flower bed. We'd put in a few roses where the birdbath was and put a few climbers along the back porch. We relocated the birdbath to over in front of our Magnolia and we moved a few of the statues around
I was thankful to get a few photos while the Peony and Iris were blooming. Storms in our area brought the blooms down but not before I took a photo of our newest peony bloom.
Did I mention my location is known for their Peony's and every year we hold a festival celebrating this?
The robins returned again this year to nest in the same location as last year- along the back porch spouting and it's good to see the young Robins flying around. The sparrows nested again in the forsythia and the Cardinals behind the house in the neighbor's tree.
I carried the hose out to water knocking over my red coleus plant in the process. I decided to just relocate the coleus to the Potager to add a pop of color and when it blooms it will draw the pollinators.
I was most pleased to see there is a beautiful bloom on our eggplant.
It seems the community garden frequently adds a new attraction and this year they added this flower pot and mounted above it is 3 kaleidoscopes.
Planted in the pot are a variety of small, colorful flowers, so when you look through the kaleidoscope you see a lovely display of changing colorful formations.
We made sure to check all of them out and gushed about the one to the south that focuses on the reds and oranges.
Lettuces, cabbages, celery, Brussel sprouts, squashes, strawberry's, radishes, cucumbers, onions, beans, corn, okra, eggplant, potatoes, culinary herbs and a variety of peppers and tomatoes and some pollinator plants. We typically use our kitchen garden and eat fresh, pickled, fermented. We can, bottle and freeze items too.
I ought to mention by this time the only thing we've harvested this spring is a bucket full of these onions some of which I ate with a dusting of salt and the rest I cut up into small chunks and stuck in the freezer.
We also had been eating chives. I like to chew them raw and we also dice them and use them to flavor our meats or hang them up to dry for later
June 15, 2019
The hubby and I had a few days off this week. It stormed one day and the next we found ourselves busy putting up a 2-foot poultry fence around a potager. This is not something we had originally planned but it seemed necessary as the neighbor's dogs were coming over to visit as well as the squirrels and bunnies.
Hubby thought he'd have some fun with me and when I went out to take a photo of the Okra I found that he'd put this scarecrow in our potager.
The scarecrow was sitting in a box of things to be mended because he's missing a hat and straw no doubt ripped off by a storm.
We have a row of Okra in the potager. You can just see the leaf top on one of the plants in the photo at the top of this page.
Okra is something I enjoy eating but had not attempted growing before.
I was talking with my Aunt who lives in Alabama and she told me that when they lived up here they had a rather large kitchen garden and were able to successfully grow Okra. So, since she was able to grow it here, I thought I would give it a try.
While most veggies survived the visit of dogs and wildlife, I found something had nibbled off all of the leaves one of our Okra plants. Time will tell if we're successful with Okra or not.
It's already raining today. I did, however, get out in the Potager and potted some lemon balm.Years ago, I brought some home and it nearly took over so now I keep it contained to a section in the backyard. I transplant it into containers and move it about or bring them inside. I potted the lemon balm and nasturtiums and moved them to the Potager.
I transplanted the eggplants and cucumbers into the soil and planted the burgundy bean seeds as well. Cosmos seeds were spread in nooks and crannies where I don't recall planting anything else.
We looked around but didn't find damage to anything other than one Okra plant. We noticed the celery was looking a little yellow so I dug some coffee grounds into the soil in their general vicinity. Cherry pits were spotted- evidence that birds have been over the potager.Today I also spotted our first Easter Lily bloom along the East side of our house. Strange how Easter Lillies are never in bloom here on Easter.
Did I mention I saw a bunny in the field watching me as I worked?
June 16, 2019
The hubby and I were walking to the Potager when we noticed movement. We watched as a rabbit paused and then sat and ate some clover, while carefully examining our fence, as if to say, " Am I too early for the salad bar?"
We think it's likely there must have been a neighborhood party that we were not invited to.
The rabbit then made his way to the other side of the fence. He sat up on his hind legs and motioned, wiping his eyes, and 2 other rabbits appeared and they all began chasing each other around.
We watched stunned as they ate clover and seemed to be plotting ways to sneak into the garden which reminds me of a book The Tale of Peter Rabbit by one of my favorite authors Beatrix Potter who also wrote The Tale of Tom Kitten and The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck among others. These are
enchanting stories so if you haven't read them- do!
It's said that the presence of a dog in the yard may keep rabbits away but that is not the case here. We have 4 dogs that frequent the yard and they have not deterred rabbits.
We are not trappers so we think we will go with sound deterrents next.
Now back to the Potager. All the rabbits seem to be eyeing the lettuce which needs to be picked out.
We were happy to see the garden survived yesterday's downpour and that there is no standing water. YEAH!
Today, we moved in a few containers of sweet peppers and strawberries. The yellow marigolds have opened fully and look stunning and some the beans have popped up through the ground.
The chives in the old clay pot are done flowering. I cut these back monthly and as I'd mentioned I have been using off these a while. Chives have the best flavor and I can't past this without grabbing a few flowerheads to pop into my mouth.
From there, we made our way back across and to the other side of our property.
I was tickled to see that a grapevine we thought we'd lost a few years back has also reappeared behind our shed.
We have some potted cucumbers in our Potager.
We left on a mission in search of a section of our compost bin that come up missing in the microburst- we have yet to find it.
The week, prior to relocating the Potager we visited the Hosta and Lily beds. They were leafed out and blooming as well and the hardy geranium in the perennial flower bed. We'd put in a few roses where the birdbath was and put a few climbers along the back porch. We relocated the birdbath to over in front of our Magnolia and we moved a few of the statues around
I was thankful to get a few photos while the Peony and Iris were blooming. Storms in our area brought the blooms down but not before I took a photo of our newest peony bloom.
Did I mention my location is known for their Peony's and every year we hold a festival celebrating this?
The robins returned again this year to nest in the same location as last year- along the back porch spouting and it's good to see the young Robins flying around. The sparrows nested again in the forsythia and the Cardinals behind the house in the neighbor's tree.
June 18th
I made my way to the Potager and hubby came out and greeted me. We looked around and seen the Okra stalk that was nibbled on has grown some but there are no signs of leafing. A few beans ( Blue Lake Bush) have poked up through the ground and there is more evidence of birds. We found some cherries laying in the garden.
I carried the hose out to water knocking over my red coleus plant in the process. I decided to just relocate the coleus to the Potager to add a pop of color and when it blooms it will draw the pollinators.
I was most pleased to see there is a beautiful bloom on our eggplant.
June 19th
Today it's a sunny 64 degrees. The hubby and I went outside early morning and took a leisurely stroll around the potager.
We spotted this yellow cherry ( Sun Sugar Tomato) that was ripe for the picking.
Interestingly these in-determinant hybrid tomatoes mature early and are the first to ripen in our Potager. They turn from yellow to orange. I was told the key to growing them well is using good organic matter.
This and 2 other tomato plants were kindly gifted to us by our neighbor soon after we'd split a Hosta and gave him a section. He has wonderful neighborly manners and always greets us when he sees us and sometimes pops over to see what we're up to in the garden.
Don't you just love neighbors like that?
I had my SLR with me earlier this morning and snapped this photo of the eggplant
bloom I mentioned yesterday. Unfortunately, it was humid outside and it was cold inside where I had the camera stored so condensation formed on the lens and the purple bloom is washed out.
Well, anyway it's pleasing to view and the shade puts me in mind of the balloon flowers that grandma always had in her flower bed.
I miss my Grandma's! One always talked about farming and the vegetable garden and the other talked about her flowers and the wildlife that visited them.
The husband and I were discussing that soon spring will soon be over. It’s been a whirlwind and a scary one at that what with the microburst we had here.
While I'm thinking about spring, I want to point out that my Mom amazes me. A lot of women in my family have a green thumb and her's might be the greenest of them all. Mom and I went out for breakfast and spent the morning walking through a community garden. I think she knew most of the plants in it.
It seems the community garden frequently adds a new attraction and this year they added this flower pot and mounted above it is 3 kaleidoscopes.
Planted in the pot are a variety of small, colorful flowers, so when you look through the kaleidoscope you see a lovely display of changing colorful formations.
We made sure to check all of them out and gushed about the one to the south that focuses on the reds and oranges.
Honestly, we had a marvelous time there and could have spent the better part of the morning just gazing at the designs reflected in the kaleidoscopes.
Happy gardening, Lori
It has been a soggy spring and has rained all night - a sound that typically lulls me to sleep.
Yes! I'm one of those people that you put in the passager seat of a vehicle during a rain shower and soon they drift off to sleep during your conversation. I'm also one of those people that takes great comfort in sleeping in a tent with rain softly coming down around her.
But this is not a night for sleep!
Why?
Because traffic in our area has been diverted by a major highway being closed down. Therefore, all night, traffic is moving through.
Since I'm awake I decided to write about upcoming events. My husband states we're going to hit some garage sales in our area once they open in a few hours. That is fine where I am concerned as I'm always looking for something for the garden.
But that got me to thinking about traffic and transportation in general.
In the United States, most food is transported by truck. Transportation is the farm-to-table food chain link. So, if you have room - why not grow your own food? Why not help yourself out?
I live in a small community and there are 11 homes on our block and while many of my neighbors enjoy gardening there are only 3 homes that grow their own produce. I just want you to be aware that you don’t need to have a large space to grow your own greens.
Greens are generally the easiest crop for the home gardener to grow and prepare.
Toss lettuce, dried cranberries, feta cheese, apple and walnuts in container
We stopped at a barn sale and I notice there were steps along the north side leading up to the hayloft. This is the first time I'd ever seen this. Grandpa's old barn and all the other barns I've been in always had a ladder we'd climb to get into the hayloft. While steps are practical and probably a lot safer, they sure took up a lot of space.
This barn did not appear to be in use. Other than a stack of hay near the entrance and the garage sale items on the barn floor, it appeared to have been cleaned out. It was kinda odd to not see hay stacked in the hayloft as I always had as a kid or to find evidence that animals had been there.
We left there and headed to the next sale, where we did find a few garden items. We purchased 2 trellises that are about 3 feet tall and a wrought iron plant stand that will hold 3 pots with the center one being higher up off the ground
We went through a heavy downpour and decided to delay our return home. We ventured to yet another town and had a nice sit-down meal and stopped at a store and purchased some plant stretch tie and green jute twine.
We thought we might stop at one of our favorite garden centers for annuals for the plant stand but when we got there, there was a large sign out front that stated CLOSED. A smaller sign indicated there were no spring plants available and they would reopen again in August for the mum sale. I expect we'll return in August.
When we left there the rain had subsided so we traveled back home and got into another downpour along the way.
We ran the trellises to the Potager and came inside the house soaking wet. We dried off and spent time playing with the dogs and then I caught up on the latest on social media.
I find on rainy days I spend more time watching youtube videos of people in their gardens wishing it was dry enough I could be in mine.
Happy Summer Solstice everyone! I took this image above as it's just west of our Potager at 6:45am 6/21/19. It looks to be a beautiful day!
Here is a closer look at our bush and it smells wonderful! If you click on the image and look in the lower left you will see a mosquito has landed on it.
Today, in the Potager Juliet looked in need of some help from the stretch tape we purchased yesterday so I helped her out.
We did get to a few sales today. I picked up a decent set of garden tools. These are sturdier than the ones I have and they have the grip handles I appreciate.
We also bought a small folding ladder which we're using for cucumbers to climb.
I left there and returned home to pick up a plant to take over to Moms. I'd got her flowering vine while in Berne.
Mom has a variety of colorful lilies along the east side of her house. Her favorite are these orange-red ones. They are in full bloom and make a striking appearance against the white siding on her house.
We left there and stopped at another sale and purchased a decorative planter. It's made of wood fence pickets and shaped like a watering can. Later, I potted up some of the Celosia and placed it there in the planter.
On the way back home, we saw a sign for another sale and ended up with some bamboo canes, protective netting and we added to our tool collection with another chopping hoe, pruning saw and a heavy 3 tine cultivator.
We'd did some weeding last night and returned inside when it was just too hot to work anymore. We'd vowed to work on it again tonight when the sun goes down.
In 2019, we intermingled herbs, flowers, and fruits with vegetables.
Our most abundant crops were tomatoes followed by zucchini. We were able to preserve tomatoes and freeze bags of zucchini which allow us to have chili and salsa, and muffins and bread throughout the winter.
We plan to begin tilling soon as we need to remove some weeds and a few roots from the soil and will add amendments like organic chicken manure. We typically buy an organic product that is dehydrated and granulated and provides Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium.
This is how the garden looked when we started last spring.
and come summer our worn-out scarecrow was replaced with a garden ant and we were picking a daily harvest.
While the garden produced an abundance of fruits and vegetables, it was not without struggle. You can see more about the highs and lows here.
Best Investment of 2019
We found the best investment of 2019 was the cheap Rolled Wire Galvanized Chicken Wire Garden fencing which we'd purchased at a yard sale for a few bucks. The fencing surrounds our kitchen garden and kept out the rabbits.
2020 A NEW YEAR
We have many months where we are unable to work in the garden due to our frigid weather conditions.
"Every gardener knows that under the cloak of winter lies a miracle." Barbara Winkler
April 30, 2020
“In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.”―
April 30, 2020, I woke and made my way out to the kitchen garden. It's slightly over 40 degrees and the lilac to the west of the garden fence is filled with buds. It had rained and this is what the soil looked like.
I began the kitchen garden tasks I let go last year. I pulled out the remaining tomato plants and gathered the corn stalks. I moved clay pots, bricks, and brush out of the garden. To my surprise, I did find one strawberry plant in a container and one kale that wintered over.
May 1st, 2020
May 2, 2020
I woke and it was a welcoming 51 degrees. I made myself a cup of tea and saw the sunrise while listening to the birds sing. I watched A Garden Experience Growing Organic which shows a year in the life of a garden community. I was intrigued to see the different ways people go about planting and my favorite part of the show was when a man spoke of utilizing brown beans his family had been growing for over 100 years.
I can't wait to garden again! My husband returned from work and surprised me with a flat of plants he purchased while on his lunch break. This included Eggplant, Beefmaster Tomato, Crimson Sweet Watermelon, Sugaretti Winter Squash, Straight Eight Cucumber, and Sweet Yellow Pepper.
Our last frost date typically occurs later this month so I snapped a picture outside while on the porch. The plants are currently sitting on the platform under our kitchen window.
May 4, 2020
Today, it was down in the 40s again. In the morning, I relocated a few terracotta pots that were in the garden to the old bench that sits outback. This is how it look last year when I had potted some plants. What do you put in your terracotta pots?
Today, we sowed Bush Green Beans ( Blue Lake), Royal Burgundy ( Bush -Stringless), and Straightneck Early Squash seeds into modules. The trays are currently sitting under the kitchen windows.
May 8, 2020
We have not planted out yet. We had the day off work and the weather has been cool with frost warnings so we opted to do some shopping for seed. We ended up getting some Swiss Chard Heirloom Variety, Cherokee Wax Yellow Bushy Beans, Radish ( French Breakfast), Basil ( Genovese), Cilantro, and Zinnias and African Daisy's in mixed colors. We came home and I put some in modules and set them on the counter under the window until I decided where to move them to.
May 9, 2020
My husband reminded me I have a small greenhouse I could put some of our starts in.
May 11, 2020
May 13, 2020
It got up into the 60s today and I did some spring cleaning. Some of the seedlings I put into modules have popped up through the soil so I've moved them to the back porch as they will get a great amount of sun there.
May 14, 2020
May 15, 2020
May 16, 2020
May 17 - May 20th
May 21
We just started to tackle the clean up of the flower beds a project that was delayed because of all the rain. Here's what they looked like a few years back. This is not an ideal area of the property as the neighbors large walnut tree hang over top the back portion of the garden and there are many plants that we have tried over the years that have not survived there.
We still have iris and peonies. The sedums have grown and I've started to divide them up. We have a rose and trailing geranium and some lilies. We have honeysuckle vine that we keep cutting back as it tends to move towards our peony.
On the opposite side along with the garage we have the hosta bed which is bombarded with tiger lilies that are beginning to take over and it also contains one wild raspberry bush that goes wild.
May 23
It's a beautiful sunny day. I arrived home from work and took some photos of the African Daisies growing in the kitchen garden. I loved their vivid color patterns.
I also received a lovely pink vein petunina and it's currently sitting on the table as I'm trying to decide where to place it.
May 26
I was over to Mom's this week to walk around her yard and see what she already has growing and flowering. Her purple iris is in full bloom and her yellow iris has opened and her varieties of Columbine(Aquilegia) look amazing.
I came home and plant some carrot seed in the kitchen garden.
May 27th
May 28, 2020
This morning I woke to the sounds of rain and songbirds. Buddy (one of our dogs) and I took a walk to view the kitchen garden. It doesn't look like much now but give it a month and it will be look much fuller.
The husband splurged and went and purchased some composted manure. He returned home and we applied the composted manure to the kitchen garden, rose beds as well as the bed underneath our flagpole.
We always enjoy the spring Peonies that bloom in our backyard. Here's one I photographed this morning just beginning to open.
As it's been raining much of the day, we hopped in the car and went to the local store and purchased some petunias in shades of pinks and reds to plant in the bed under the flagpole. It stopped raining shortly after we arrived back home. We got the petunia's planted.
In the early evening, we took a drive around and ended up in the country. We bought some cabbage plants and black cherry tomatoes off a flatbed utilizing the honor system. It took us a while to find the lockbox as it was hanging in amongst some hanging baskets. We came home and I planted them then sat with the hubby on the glider and looked over the garden. The peas are just beginning to climb.
The chives I placed in the clay pot are in full bloom. They are surrounded by African Daisy, French Marigolds, and some salvia. All add some color to the kitchen garden.
May 30, 2020
We got up early and spent some time in the backyard listening to the songbirds. Then we got around and went out in search of a few things. While out, we purchased some flower seeds and a new flag as ours was faded and had a rip along a seam.
May 31, 2020
This month has gone by quickly. The fruit and vegetables are thirsty and growing. I have not seen butterflies yet in the garden but the bees are busy moving from one flower to another.
I do not use herbicides, pesticides, or slug pellets in the garden. Instead, I grow as organically as possible and rotate my crops to help aid in disease prevention.
Currently, the compost I create and purchase is used to amend the soil. I have been contemplating doing no-dig garden as I appreciate the idea of protecting life in the soil and would need to locate enough compost to make this work.
It seems we learn a lot from gardening. Mostly the importance of being patient. Each day seems to be different and we learn from the disappointments.
This year, we laid netting across the raised beds as we had issues last year with white butterflies invading the cabbage and Brussels Sprouts. The netting is tucked around the frame and pinned to the ground with bricks. We check a few times daily to make sure nothing is caught and we've left enough extra to allow for expansion as the plants grow larger.
I potted some gladiola corms I purchased at a charity sale.
June 1, 2020
I came home from work and watered the garden. Eight hours later, it poured down rain. My peonies have many blooms that are now drooping.
June 2nd, 2020
I love growing lettuces and will soon be cutting them back. I called Mom today to see if she was going to want any. Her answer was " YES".
While out walking, I scratched some coffee grounds into some of the flower beds. Hopefully, this will help deter the squirrels that are abundant here.
June 4, 2020
Rose is a rose was written by Gertrude Stein. It appeared in the 1922 book Geography and Plays was part of the 1913 poem "Sacred Emily".
Here, is a photo of a low growing bushy shrub rose that grows along our back steps. It has dense green and glossy leaves and bears brilliant pink blooms that smell amazing.
While I was busy staining our raised beds, the hubby went out and brought back home some mulch. We added it to the kitchen garden, rose beds, petunia bed, and inpatients beds. Then we took a break in the back yard and watched our songbirds.
All plants seem to be growing well and many have flowers.
We took a break for a bit. We'd been busy today with mowing the yard and trimming the Forsythia and other bushes around our property.
When we were done with trimming the bushes, we tackled the two small preforms ponds and the waterfall we have. They were in dire need of being cleaned out. And, my husband had found another pump at a sale and wanted to try it out.
I wish the area looked like it did a few years back but the lilies went everywhere and the Hosta did not last in the sun. The sedum that I had replaced the Hosta with grew large and was impeding the view. So, I relocated the sedum too. In place of hosta, I planted tall grasses like those to the left of the waterfall, and while they are able to survive the sun, they are not as pleasing to my eye.
Regardless, the area serves it's purpose which is to attract wildlife. We turned on the waterfall and the fountain and shortly thereafter we saw swallowtails, monarchs, and a variety of songbirds.
June 19, 2020
We took a road trip yesterday and stopped at a Greenhouse. We purchased some pepper plants and a couple of cukes and waving petunias for the window boxes. We came home and I planted these.
June 20,2020
Last year the white cabbage white got into the cabbage and Brussels Sprouts and pretty much decimated them. So this spring we covered them with some loose netting that was spread across the top. The bed's needed space that allowed for more growth as the kale is getting taller and the cabbage is spreading out.
So, this morning, my brother came over and helped me install some lath strips. We secured the side to the east and west with a strip secured with screws to the raised bed. The back netting we secured with staples to the lath and the front we allowed to drape and secured at the bottom with some bricks that can easily be removed for quick access.
Today, we took a drive and purchased more Cleome, lilac this time, and some blanket flowers for the kitchen garden. These, help to attract pollinators. We also got some red petunias for a couple of the hanging baskets in our back yard.
We took a drive to view the Isaac Ludwig Mill, a working water-powered saw and gristmill, and check out some used book stores in the area.
Harvested these from our garden this evening.
Royal Burgundy, Yellow Wax, and Blue Lake Bush green beans.
I planted some blanket flowers, zinnias, marigolds and cosmos and transplanted some of our sedums into the kitchen garden.
February 26, 2021
June 20th
It has been a soggy spring and has rained all night - a sound that typically lulls me to sleep.
Yes! I'm one of those people that you put in the passager seat of a vehicle during a rain shower and soon they drift off to sleep during your conversation. I'm also one of those people that takes great comfort in sleeping in a tent with rain softly coming down around her.
But this is not a night for sleep!
Why?
Because traffic in our area has been diverted by a major highway being closed down. Therefore, all night, traffic is moving through.
Since I'm awake I decided to write about upcoming events. My husband states we're going to hit some garage sales in our area once they open in a few hours. That is fine where I am concerned as I'm always looking for something for the garden.
But that got me to thinking about traffic and transportation in general.
In the United States, most food is transported by truck. Transportation is the farm-to-table food chain link. So, if you have room - why not grow your own food? Why not help yourself out?
I live in a small community and there are 11 homes on our block and while many of my neighbors enjoy gardening there are only 3 homes that grow their own produce. I just want you to be aware that you don’t need to have a large space to grow your own greens.
Greens are generally the easiest crop for the home gardener to grow and prepare.
- Prepare Site by loosening the soil or you can drop some dirt in a small box like I did here.
- Plant Seeds. Greens can be sown in the ground as soon as it can be worked in early spring. Plant seeds 1/2" deep.
- Cultivate Greens. When seedlings sprout, thin plants to one every 8". I call this picking out.
- Harvest Greens.
Here are two of my favorite ways to use our garden lettuce.
Toss lettuce, dried cranberries, feta cheese, apple and walnuts in container
- In a separate container mix vinegar, honey, mustard, and pepper ( optional) until well blended.
- Gradually add the mixture to the tossed items.
I also like lettuce mixed with light mayo, tomato and a small pinch of sugar.
As anticipated, it rained all day so we did not spend much time in the garden. Instead, we traveled to some community garage sales.
We stopped at a barn sale and I notice there were steps along the north side leading up to the hayloft. This is the first time I'd ever seen this. Grandpa's old barn and all the other barns I've been in always had a ladder we'd climb to get into the hayloft. While steps are practical and probably a lot safer, they sure took up a lot of space.
This barn did not appear to be in use. Other than a stack of hay near the entrance and the garage sale items on the barn floor, it appeared to have been cleaned out. It was kinda odd to not see hay stacked in the hayloft as I always had as a kid or to find evidence that animals had been there.
We left there and headed to the next sale, where we did find a few garden items. We purchased 2 trellises that are about 3 feet tall and a wrought iron plant stand that will hold 3 pots with the center one being higher up off the ground
We went through a heavy downpour and decided to delay our return home. We ventured to yet another town and had a nice sit-down meal and stopped at a store and purchased some plant stretch tie and green jute twine.
We thought we might stop at one of our favorite garden centers for annuals for the plant stand but when we got there, there was a large sign out front that stated CLOSED. A smaller sign indicated there were no spring plants available and they would reopen again in August for the mum sale. I expect we'll return in August.
When we left there the rain had subsided so we traveled back home and got into another downpour along the way.
We ran the trellises to the Potager and came inside the house soaking wet. We dried off and spent time playing with the dogs and then I caught up on the latest on social media.
I find on rainy days I spend more time watching youtube videos of people in their gardens wishing it was dry enough I could be in mine.
June 21st
Happy Summer Solstice everyone! I took this image above as it's just west of our Potager at 6:45am 6/21/19. It looks to be a beautiful day!
Here is a closer look at our bush and it smells wonderful! If you click on the image and look in the lower left you will see a mosquito has landed on it.
Today, in the Potager Juliet looked in need of some help from the stretch tape we purchased yesterday so I helped her out.
and this Black Krim appears to be doing better.
We did get to a few sales today. I picked up a decent set of garden tools. These are sturdier than the ones I have and they have the grip handles I appreciate.
We also bought a small folding ladder which we're using for cucumbers to climb.
We decided since we were in Indiana to travel to Berne and search for some plant sales.
Oddly enough, we met a lady there from our home town. She said she'd hadn't had any time yet this year to get her garden in so she was buying up vegetables. She asked us questions about a few things she was picking out. I gather she usually limited herself mostly to tomatoes because she mentioned her children like homemade spaghetti and pizza sauce so she cans these items.
I told her we like those and also like to create our own salsa then a bunch of us women there got into a discussion about how our husbands like their salsa spicier and hotter than we do.
From there we checked out The Muensterberg Plaza and Clock Tower. It's a replica of Switzerland’s Zytglogge tower. And then we drove over to Geneva to check out the Limberlost. Much of it is underwater and there were many people sandbagging and those that weren't appeared to be pumping out water.
Oddly enough, we met a lady there from our home town. She said she'd hadn't had any time yet this year to get her garden in so she was buying up vegetables. She asked us questions about a few things she was picking out. I gather she usually limited herself mostly to tomatoes because she mentioned her children like homemade spaghetti and pizza sauce so she cans these items.
I told her we like those and also like to create our own salsa then a bunch of us women there got into a discussion about how our husbands like their salsa spicier and hotter than we do.
From there we checked out The Muensterberg Plaza and Clock Tower. It's a replica of Switzerland’s Zytglogge tower. And then we drove over to Geneva to check out the Limberlost. Much of it is underwater and there were many people sandbagging and those that weren't appeared to be pumping out water.
We returned home and unloaded our vegetables and herbs. I did pick up a few pollinators plants too like this speedwell and some tickseed which I place in terracotta pots and sit in the raised beds. The only flower seed I spread over the ground currently is cosmos because around here is an annual.
After some quick instructions from the hubby, I was able to run the tiller and expanded another 3 feet by 30-feet section so I could plant what we got today. Running this tiller is something I wanted to tackle. I'd run a larger one many years ago and figured I could handle this even though I'm not a spring chicken anymore.
Did I mention the worst part wasn't the tilling or raking it was pulling out all the stakes to move the poultry fencing and then pound the stakes back in and reconnect the fencing to it?
When I was done the hubby came out and he helped me move some pavers into the potager and we talked about putting some seating there so I'd have a place to rest.
On my way back to the house, I spotted my neighbor outside so went over for a quick visit. This is the same neighbor who gave us the tomatoes in exchange for a clump of hosta. They have a small kitchen garden behind the house with tomatoes and rhubarb and have black mulch down for weed suppression as well as to keep the soil moist.
The back of the bed has beebalm and the front has some wildflowers coming up from seed. In between are the tomatoes set closely together in cages and a few sunflowers interspersed. The Rhubarb is growing in buckets.
I left there and returned home to pick up a plant to take over to Moms. I'd got her flowering vine while in Berne.
Mom has a variety of colorful lilies along the east side of her house. Her favorite are these orange-red ones. They are in full bloom and make a striking appearance against the white siding on her house.
I left Mom's and returned home and the hubby and I ended our night with a community concert in our park.
As you can imagine, today, was a wonderful way to welcome the Summer Solstice!
Happy gardening, Lori
June22nd
One of the things I hadn't gotten around to yet was documenting exactly what I had purchased for the Potager this year. But that was about to change. I grabbed my journal and headed off to document the different plant variety's.
So do you keep a record of what is growing?
In addition to writing down what plants were in the garden, I wanted to test out some of the tools I bought yesterday. Tools are often expensive so I go the cheaper route and look for them and other garden items at garage sales- like this ladder I got yesterday.
I've been toying with the idea of having the two cukes grow up over it but am realizing it will be ok to start but I'm going to need something taller and stronger.
June 23rd
Meet today's garden helper, Monroe. He's on the lookout for bunnies which seem to congregate in the area.
Around here, it's been raining a lot and that can be very daunting when day after day is overcast and dreary but the last few days have been dry.
It's currently a beautiful sunny 61 degrees here so I went out this morning and watered the garden.
The tomatoes typically do best with a morning watering and it aids in disease prevention which helps when you're like me and love plucking a juicy tomato off the vine and popping it in your mouth. ( This is Juliet before I used the tape on her.)
There are many articles written about the importance of eating colorfully and I grow different plant varieties because I like the color selections as well as the taste.
I also like texture in the garden and enjoy watching the growth process of kale, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts. Of course, it'll be a while before the cabbages form heads, but I need to keep them as pest free as possible and I've seen some evidence of pests eating through my leaves.
I'll soon be making a trip to the store for some more Neem oil. Neem oil disrupts the life cycle of those pests that chew on plants. It's has a garlic/sulfur smell and taste bitter which helps repel the bugs and worms. While there I might get a beer for the slugs. I have many Hosta plants and they are a magnet for slugs.
Moving over to look at the pollinating plants, the Speedwell is drawing a lot of bees and more blooms are appearing.
Leaving the Potager, I make my way across the lawn to check out the roses. They will soon be blooming.
June 26th
Ever notice how gardens and plants bring people together?
It's been a few days since I posted and the hubby and I were out to the Potager and a neighbor across the way saw us and yelled over to see how's it was going.
It's going well actually. A pleasant 78-degrees Fahrenheit and there are new things happening in the garden.
We watered in well and observed the leaves are growing back on the Okra stalk that had been nibbled on. The Sun Sugar Tomatoes now have many fruits and some that are ripe for the picking. The cucumbers are climbing as are the sugar sprint and Lincoln peas. Tomato plants are sprawling or growing taller. The burgundy beans got a slow start thanks to me but they look promising.
I've told many of you that I truly appreciate color in the garden and the All Blue Potato plant and ruby perfection cabbages are looking good but I'll likely need to get some netting to cover them and keep the cabbage butterfly away.
If you garden long enough you'll surely have some disappointment and this spring mine has been the celery. An I don't blame it. No, I blame myself. Celery plants usually like partial shade at the hottest part of the day and our Potager is in the Southeast and resides in full sun. I may have to rethink growing it next year as our plan to expand still stands.
The corn which my hubby insisted upon is beginning to take off. Speaking of corn, most farmers I know are not putting out a corn crop this year as they just haven't had an opportunity to get in the field. Unfortunately for many, the realization is some acres won't get planted as they are past their planting window. Instead, I find they are keeping busy raking out their drainage ditches.
If this sounds like you, I feel for you and am keeping you in my thoughts and hoping things soon lookup.
Happy Gardening, Lori
June 27th
I was sitting here on our porch and thinking the weather sure has taken a striking turn around. We were concerned about flooding last week and this week we're concerned with how dry it is.
No kidding! We're experiencing temperatures in the 90s and large cracks have formed in the ground with no rain in sight.
The sun has been shining every day which means more time in the garden and more watering to our fruit and veggies in the Potager.
I got this plant marker set and have yet to use them.
The hubby and I got up early morning. Once we had the dogs fed and walked we went on an expedition for garage sale garden items. Today, we ended up with two 4 foot tomato cages and a birdcage with a removable bottom.
The cages are being used as supports for some cucumbers which had outgrown the ladder we'd had there. The ladder has been relocated to another part of the Potager.
When we returned home, I walked over to Mom's and she and I took a walk around her flower beds. We began at her back door where I was admiring the color of her geraniums. Many she has grown from starts off others and they rest in container pots as she houses them inside during our cold winter months.
Walking around we noticed how early the Hosta and Sedum are. They typically bloom in August but many are about ready to open and some are blooming now.
We are hopeful for a rain shower as we are concerned things will soon shrivel up and would like everything to remain lush and green. With the thought of rain in mind, I got myself a pair of beautiful gloss black welly rubber boots.
We did get to the store and got some organic chicken manure and came home and did some weeding this evening and planted some well established King Authur Peppers and Thai and Large Leaf Italian Basil
Happy Gardening, Lori
June 28th
Today, it is a hot one! We have 96 degrees temperatures which we're informed is cool compared to France who is experiencing an all-time high.
The hubby and I got up early and drove to a plant sale in another town. A lady was having the sale in her back garden and the well-labeled stock was things she'd grown.
I talked with the lady about plants and eventually asked if she had any pollinators like tickseed or speedwell and she stated."No, I don't have those but you can have this tray of Celosia". How terribly kind she was! The only thing she asked in return was that I stop back and visit her garden again.
The hubby and I got up early and drove to a plant sale in another town. A lady was having the sale in her back garden and the well-labeled stock was things she'd grown.
I talked with the lady about plants and eventually asked if she had any pollinators like tickseed or speedwell and she stated."No, I don't have those but you can have this tray of Celosia". How terribly kind she was! The only thing she asked in return was that I stop back and visit her garden again.
We left there and stopped at another sale and purchased a decorative planter. It's made of wood fence pickets and shaped like a watering can. Later, I potted up some of the Celosia and placed it there in the planter.
On the way back home, we saw a sign for another sale and ended up with some bamboo canes, protective netting and we added to our tool collection with another chopping hoe, pruning saw and a heavy 3 tine cultivator.
We'd did some weeding last night and returned inside when it was just too hot to work anymore. We'd vowed to work on it again tonight when the sun goes down.
I don't know about you but I miss 70 degree days.
Happy Gardening, Lori
Today is another hot one!
I just came in from the garden a while ago where I was admiring this tomato growing there.
I'd started weeding with the new chopping hoe last night but came in to complete a call and never got back out to it. So, I went out this morning to finish the job.
I finished doing the weeding and got out the bamboo landscape stakes I'd gotten yesterday and made some teepees. I'm using these for the pea supports as the peas were beginning to vine onto the chicken wire fence and I thought with it being so hot here it might burn them.
An advantage of trellising peas is that it makes for an easier harvest since the pods hang down from the plant and it will aid in protecting them from slugs.
When I was done making the supports, I watched as some wasps worked in our garden beds. Wasps are beneficial as the seek out aphids, caterpillars, flies, and other pests. I returned inside when the wasps were staying closer to my vicinity than I'd like.
On my return to the house, I found a bunny under the hosta on the east side of our porch so at least he found a spot that is shaded. My plan is to rest comfortably inside in the air conditioning with our dogs during the heat of the day.
This weekend the weather forecasters are anticipating thunderstorms in the area. The tomato plants are growing larger. I'm hopeful we'll get some steady rain to help them out. Today, I noticed all but one of the Easter Lillies has dropped it's bloom.
June 30th
July 5th
This video was made to show you how quickly our garden has grown in just 20 days time. Truth is I love our kitchen garden! I come out here often to view its progress and to see what is growing and what we might harvest to eat.
If you've read the diary you know we got a late start due to the weather. We relocated the garden to the east side of our property and then I expanded it to create room for more plants.
At this time, I have only harvested, onions, chives, and a few small tomatoes so my hope is soon there will be a lot of picking to do.
July 6th
Using the image above that I took at Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge, I walked around the garden and picked up some bricks and stacked them adding some pines cones, wood, and broken terra cotta pots to make a bug house.
During the process, I had the pleasant experience of finding a toad in the garden. He's a keeper and I just hope he gets to all the slugs and other plant destroying insects.
Our neighbor stopped by to tell me how great our kitchen garden looks. Being that it is surrounded by chicken wire and not an enclosed fence it is easily viewable. It was nice to hear those words as a lot of effort goes into gardening but the payback is numerous.
July 8th
Today's garden helper was my husband. We went out early to water and the forecast is for another hot, dry spell. I don't know what is growing in your garden but this week it looks like many of our plants have tripled in size - especially the zucchini. I like zucchini baked and fried. I also like to shred it and make zucchini bread. I had zucchini bread this week but it was not my recipe - though it was very good. Our beans are starting to come along and the celery is no longer the sickly yellow. I added some organic chicken manure and that seemed to help them green up.
June 29th
Today is another hot one!
I just came in from the garden a while ago where I was admiring this tomato growing there.
I'd started weeding with the new chopping hoe last night but came in to complete a call and never got back out to it. So, I went out this morning to finish the job.
I finished doing the weeding and got out the bamboo landscape stakes I'd gotten yesterday and made some teepees. I'm using these for the pea supports as the peas were beginning to vine onto the chicken wire fence and I thought with it being so hot here it might burn them.
An advantage of trellising peas is that it makes for an easier harvest since the pods hang down from the plant and it will aid in protecting them from slugs.
When I was done making the supports, I watched as some wasps worked in our garden beds. Wasps are beneficial as the seek out aphids, caterpillars, flies, and other pests. I returned inside when the wasps were staying closer to my vicinity than I'd like.
On my return to the house, I found a bunny under the hosta on the east side of our porch so at least he found a spot that is shaded. My plan is to rest comfortably inside in the air conditioning with our dogs during the heat of the day.
This weekend the weather forecasters are anticipating thunderstorms in the area. The tomato plants are growing larger. I'm hopeful we'll get some steady rain to help them out. Today, I noticed all but one of the Easter Lillies has dropped it's bloom.
June 30th
The month of June has just flown by. Today, we have 88-degree temperatures which are cool compared to last week but I'll take the 70's any day as it's much easier to weed then.
I was out to look at the lily bed and found this lovely pollinator above on one of the Stella D'oro daylilies.
Did you know the Lily is ranked as the fourth most popular flower across the globe?
The Trumpet Lilies have all dropped their blooms but we have an abundance of Tiger Lilies (Lilium lancifolium/Lilium tigrinum) with fiery orange flowers covered with spots. My mother in law gave me a clump of these nearly 25 years ago. They propagate by tuberous roots and spread like crazy.
From the lily bed, I walked across the property to the kitchen garden.
I've been thinking about the importance of protecting our plants as they mature and have been considering a covering or cage for our fruits and Brassicas. We only put out a few strawberries plants and they fruited and something got to their fruit before we did. Also, we've noticed some holes in our cabbages. I figure we can use tulle as a quick fix.
Considering all, I'm pleased with the crops there. We got a late start due to the weather and we've moved quickly and planted things closely. In that, I recognize that we haven't given ourselves a lot of room to walk about on the grassy path. I guess we tried to make the most out of the space we allotted but will need to consider the layout better next year.
Happy Gardening, Lori
After a dry spell and a week of temperatures in the 90's, we received some much-needed rain so I decided to take a photo of one of our garden beds. This holds our cabbages, celery, Thai basil, and a few of our squashes and there are a few beans and tomatoes popping up in the bed.
and it was a welcome surprise to see that we have an eggplant already fruiting.
I busied myself with staking all the eggplants and then walked over and looked at some red tomatoes.
JULY 2019
July 4th
After a dry spell and a week of temperatures in the 90's, we received some much-needed rain so I decided to take a photo of one of our garden beds. This holds our cabbages, celery, Thai basil, and a few of our squashes and there are a few beans and tomatoes popping up in the bed.
and it was a welcome surprise to see that we have an eggplant already fruiting.
I busied myself with staking all the eggplants and then walked over and looked at some red tomatoes.
Almost all of the tomatoes are in cages and look to be doing well this year. We have a few tomatoes that popped up here and there so they are not large enough yet to need a cage.
We companion plant the tomatoes with the large leaves, Italian Basil and we grow Thai Basil in terracotta pots. It produces a beautiful flower and is a great attractor of bees.
Happy gardening on July 4th.
We companion plant the tomatoes with the large leaves, Italian Basil and we grow Thai Basil in terracotta pots. It produces a beautiful flower and is a great attractor of bees.
Happy gardening on July 4th.
July 5th
This video was made to show you how quickly our garden has grown in just 20 days time. Truth is I love our kitchen garden! I come out here often to view its progress and to see what is growing and what we might harvest to eat.
If you've read the diary you know we got a late start due to the weather. We relocated the garden to the east side of our property and then I expanded it to create room for more plants.
At this time, I have only harvested, onions, chives, and a few small tomatoes so my hope is soon there will be a lot of picking to do.
Today, I was in the garden before 6 am. I appreciate the solitude and there is a peacefulness in being surrounded by plants, songbirds, and dragonflies.
I harvested another Juliet Tomato which was good. I like Juliet as it is smaller than a Roma and similar in shape. I appreciate that it does not crack and offers a sweet taste. It's not at the top of my list for flavor but it is a happy addition to my garden as it produces fruit early and abundantly.
I moved over to finish setting up some bamboo stakes and bricks to redirect the watermelon. This year I'm trying my hand at growing a yellow skin hybrid which is now flowering.
As you can see from the video the garden is becoming more difficult to walk through now. I have beans, squash, basil and marigolds between the rows and scattered cosmos seed everywhere so it is coming up too.
My husband brought me home a selection of garden magazines to look through so I know what I will be doing tonight.
Happy Gardening, Lori
July 6th
Using the image above that I took at Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge, I walked around the garden and picked up some bricks and stacked them adding some pines cones, wood, and broken terra cotta pots to make a bug house.
During the process, I had the pleasant experience of finding a toad in the garden. He's a keeper and I just hope he gets to all the slugs and other plant destroying insects.
Our neighbor stopped by to tell me how great our kitchen garden looks. Being that it is surrounded by chicken wire and not an enclosed fence it is easily viewable. It was nice to hear those words as a lot of effort goes into gardening but the payback is numerous.
July 8th
Today's garden helper was my husband. We went out early to water and the forecast is for another hot, dry spell. I don't know what is growing in your garden but this week it looks like many of our plants have tripled in size - especially the zucchini. I like zucchini baked and fried. I also like to shred it and make zucchini bread. I had zucchini bread this week but it was not my recipe - though it was very good. Our beans are starting to come along and the celery is no longer the sickly yellow. I added some organic chicken manure and that seemed to help them green up.
July10th
It's a hot one today at 92 degrees with 53% humidity. I had another beautiful Wednesday luncheon with my Mother and got the opportunity to check out her bean bed which seems to be producing abundantly.
This made me miss our kitchen garden so when I got home I took a quick video of our brassica beds and tomatoes.
While taking the video I found a few small zucchini are forming on the plants that seemed to have tripled in size in the last week.
After this, I sat and watched while a spider crawled across the top of the bug hotel. Spiders eat beetles, flies, mosquitoes, moths, and other insects so they live in our garden too.
I grabbed the small wicker basket and harvested the items above to sautee today.
Ingredients:
- coat pan with olive oil then add
- 1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 2 green bell peppers, seeded and sliced
- 2 small Sun Sugar Tomatoes chopped
- Salt and ground pepper, to taste
- top with 1 Tbs. fresh basil chopped
- dash of lemon juice
- dash of sugar
July 11th
The hubby and I had the day off so we picked up a picnic ant for the garden. The ant is taking the place of the scarecrow that is in dire need of a makeover.
We relocated some of our potted plants to the garden. This cucumber is growing well.
- We also got a new garden fork and another garden rake.
- And even though I like the ant, today's happy find was this praying mantis.
- July 12th
I love terra-cotta as it is porous and allows plants roots to breathe. This morning, I purchased some more terra-cotta pots. We use them in the garden as well as on our porches. I have celosia in these pots and planted white impatiens in the ones I purchased today.
When I was done, I brought Monroe and Motley out onto the porch with me. This was when I realized it was past time to give them their summer cuts. One by one the grooming process was done. So, they are a lot cooler than in this photo.
I often see images depicting porch life on different social media pages and amongst these, I notice many people gathering together. However, if you look at our porch at any given time you will find there are often more plants and animals than people gathered there.
pickling salt
cucumbers
onions
peppers
set in the fridge covered for 2 hours- then remove and place in a colander and rinse off well with cold water
Separately, in a pan; combine the ingredients below
2 and 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 and 1/4 cup of water
1 cup sugar ( you can substitute Splenda )
1 Tblsp yellow mustard seeds
1 tsp celery seeds
3/4 tsp ground peppercorns
3/4 tsp turmeric
7 whole cloves
bring this mixture to a simmer and added cucumber mixture that was rinsed- allow to simmer until the side of the pan starts to lightly bubble. allow to cool some and then pour into sterilized glass jars. when cool enough set in the fridge. these keep for a few weeks.
Anyway, it is an enjoyable place to kick up your feet and relax- read that is if you don't mind being surrounded by plants and having a dog or four encroaching on you.
July 14th
Lucky and I walked to the garden today and I harvested our first cuke of the summer show here in this breadbasket.
I love cukes as there are so many ways to prepare them.
My favorites are pickled and as an ingredient in bread.
July 16th
Well here is today's harvest minus a few tomatoes which my husband ate before he snapped this photo of me holding the basket.
People often ask what do I do with our cucumbers - some I give away and some I use at home.
Today, I made a couple of jars of refrigerator pickles with onions and peppers.
Today, I made a couple of jars of refrigerator pickles with onions and peppers.
pickling salt
cucumbers
onions
peppers
set in the fridge covered for 2 hours- then remove and place in a colander and rinse off well with cold water
Separately, in a pan; combine the ingredients below
2 and 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 and 1/4 cup of water
1 cup sugar ( you can substitute Splenda )
1 Tblsp yellow mustard seeds
1 tsp celery seeds
3/4 tsp ground peppercorns
3/4 tsp turmeric
7 whole cloves
bring this mixture to a simmer and added cucumber mixture that was rinsed- allow to simmer until the side of the pan starts to lightly bubble. allow to cool some and then pour into sterilized glass jars. when cool enough set in the fridge. these keep for a few weeks.
July 18th
Today, we went out to the garden and found a few more items to bring inside.
We'd received inches of rain recently and with all the weight of tomatoes and the rain, the cages had started to pull loose from the ground. A few of the vines looked to have received some damage. We are hopeful they will make a recovery!
Luckily, we had some extra stakes in the garage so we placed these inside the cages to help prevent them further toppling.
Other than that, I spent the day inside finishing up the book Decoding Dylan so I could write my review.
July 24th
within 30 minutes of us is a rather large Amish community and we often go to this area to purchase seeds and kitchen garden plants. And this year we got some Faerie Watermelon plants. Faerie is a non-traditional (hybrid) watermelon that has a light yellow rind with thin stripes and pink-red flesh. It is very sweet.
July 28th
We are enjoying our garden!
Most mornings we go out and are greeted by a variety of fruits and vegetables ready for harvest. Many times these are peeled and breaded and go together in a pan or baking dish and become our next meal.
Above, we have a photo of one of our meals. It is zucchini and eggplant that is peeled and sliced and dipped in egg and then battered with a mixture of cornmeal, grated parmesan cheese, oregano, and basil and pan-fried in light oil with a few green and orange peppers. It is an easy meal.
If you are searching for wedding gifts ideas, I will tell you that I often use cermaic knives to slice up our vegetables. I also frequently use our kitchen aid food processor (a gift from Mom shown above) and vintage Hobart Kitchen Aid mixer. Ours is the K45 Avacado gifted to me by my Aunt.
August 2019 - October 2019
The kitchen garden was a huge success this year.
I was not sure that we were going to be able to tackle relocating the potager. It was difficult work to say the least. But it worked out well.
The best thing is we had plenty to eat. We carried in baskets every day and canned and froze for the colder months we have here.
Best of all we were able to share with family, neighbors and take some to work and share with colleagues.
Mom said she had a good year too with her grapevine producing
October 2019- November 2019
When the weather around here gets cooler and we can no longer work in our own garden, we head out to check out some of our favorite stores for canned items.
Garden Revisit 2019
In 2019, we intermingled herbs, flowers, and fruits with vegetables.
Our most abundant crops were tomatoes followed by zucchini. We were able to preserve tomatoes and freeze bags of zucchini which allow us to have chili and salsa, and muffins and bread throughout the winter.
We plan to begin tilling soon as we need to remove some weeds and a few roots from the soil and will add amendments like organic chicken manure. We typically buy an organic product that is dehydrated and granulated and provides Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium.
This is how the garden looked when we started last spring.
and come summer our worn-out scarecrow was replaced with a garden ant and we were picking a daily harvest.
While the garden produced an abundance of fruits and vegetables, it was not without struggle. You can see more about the highs and lows here.
Best Investment of 2019
We found the best investment of 2019 was the cheap Rolled Wire Galvanized Chicken Wire Garden fencing which we'd purchased at a yard sale for a few bucks. The fencing surrounds our kitchen garden and kept out the rabbits.
2020 A NEW YEAR
We have many months where we are unable to work in the garden due to our frigid weather conditions.
"Every gardener knows that under the cloak of winter lies a miracle." Barbara Winkler
April 30, 2020
“In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.”―
April 30, 2020, I woke and made my way out to the kitchen garden. It's slightly over 40 degrees and the lilac to the west of the garden fence is filled with buds. It had rained and this is what the soil looked like.
I began the kitchen garden tasks I let go last year. I pulled out the remaining tomato plants and gathered the corn stalks. I moved clay pots, bricks, and brush out of the garden. To my surprise, I did find one strawberry plant in a container and one kale that wintered over.
May 1st, 2020
We have onions up behind the shed. It's a beautiful, sunny, and productive day and it reached a high of 71 degrees. I watched a little of Homesteadonomics and 1st episode of My Dream Farm and my husband and I started to get the kitchen garden ready. While the husband did some tilling, I worked in the raised beds. We took a break in between jobs and my husband contacted some nearby nurseries to see how they are handling spring. We were informed some gardens have radishes, potatoes, lettuces up already. We cleaned up and took a drive around our community.
May 2, 2020
I woke and it was a welcoming 51 degrees. I made myself a cup of tea and saw the sunrise while listening to the birds sing. I watched A Garden Experience Growing Organic which shows a year in the life of a garden community. I was intrigued to see the different ways people go about planting and my favorite part of the show was when a man spoke of utilizing brown beans his family had been growing for over 100 years.
I can't wait to garden again! My husband returned from work and surprised me with a flat of plants he purchased while on his lunch break. This included Eggplant, Beefmaster Tomato, Crimson Sweet Watermelon, Sugaretti Winter Squash, Straight Eight Cucumber, and Sweet Yellow Pepper.
Our last frost date typically occurs later this month so I snapped a picture outside while on the porch. The plants are currently sitting on the platform under our kitchen window.
May 4, 2020
Today, it was down in the 40s again. In the morning, I relocated a few terracotta pots that were in the garden to the old bench that sits outback. This is how it look last year when I had potted some plants. What do you put in your terracotta pots?
May 7, 2020
It's been in the 30s here so planting out will still be a while off. I've been watching British gardening shows on youtube as they normally are able to plant out earlier than us. In addition to old episodes of Gardeners' World, I've been checking out Charles Dowding, Lavendar and Leeks, and Huw Richards. As I am running low on chives I also watched a segment on Herbs with P. Allen Smith.
Today, we sowed Bush Green Beans ( Blue Lake), Royal Burgundy ( Bush -Stringless), and Straightneck Early Squash seeds into modules. The trays are currently sitting under the kitchen windows.
May 8, 2020
We have not planted out yet. We had the day off work and the weather has been cool with frost warnings so we opted to do some shopping for seed. We ended up getting some Swiss Chard Heirloom Variety, Cherokee Wax Yellow Bushy Beans, Radish ( French Breakfast), Basil ( Genovese), Cilantro, and Zinnias and African Daisy's in mixed colors. We came home and I put some in modules and set them on the counter under the window until I decided where to move them to.
May 9, 2020
My husband reminded me I have a small greenhouse I could put some of our starts in.
It took me only a few minutes to put the greenhouse together and it houses some of our seedlings. These type pf greenhouses have not held up well when I have placed them outside so I have them sitting in the kitchen for now.
May 11, 2020
We are still under frost warnings and have not put anything out yet. The neighbors currently have 5-gallon buckets in various colors covering their plants while my mother tells me she has sheets covering hers. I worked but wanted my garden fix so I sat down and watched Lovely Greens on Youtube. Even though the climate on the Isle of Man is different than it is here, I do appreciate Tanya's videos. I like that she recently promoted Growing a Rapid Response Victory Garden and Making Ollas and Using Rasberry Cane for Garden Edging is among my favorite videos.
May 13, 2020
It got up into the 60s today and I did some spring cleaning. Some of the seedlings I put into modules have popped up through the soil so I've moved them to the back porch as they will get a great amount of sun there.
May 14, 2020
We started planting out today, prior to the afternoon storm.
We have lettuces, kale, cabbage, tomatoes, squash, radish, peppers, and rhubarb in the ground. We also did some shopping and got daisies, sage, and clemone, geraniums, and got some Mandevilla for Mom. It's raining again today.
May 15, 2020
We found a squirrel in the garden so husband redid a section of our fencing today. It rained much of the day.
May 16, 2020
I dropped off a fushia plant at Mom's and came home and put on my pink and white polka dot wellies and planted out some beans, eggplant, sweet corn, and watermelon this morning. Added some flowering plants, sage, African daisies, and cleome to the garden.
May 17 - May 20th
We have not gotten in the garden as it has been pouring daily. We have had 6.9 inches of rain this month and much of it fell in the past few days. As such, we've had have standing water in the Northside yard. The kitchen garden sits on higher ground and was spared. When not away at work, I have been getting my gardening fix watching others sowing on BBC.
May 21
I was up early checking out some measurements in the garden. I needed to divide up my sedums in the flower garden and move some into the kitchen garden to attract more pollinators. After doing that, we went out and purchased a black beauty zucchini and some trays of french marigolds and came home and planted them in the kitchen garden. It stopped raining and we were also able to get some of the west side weeding done and bushed trimmed. We went out again and got some butternut and acorn squash and came home and planted it. I have to admit I love Zucchini and Squash as they don't need much encouragement and soon they are scrambling across the ground.
We just started to tackle the clean up of the flower beds a project that was delayed because of all the rain. Here's what they looked like a few years back. This is not an ideal area of the property as the neighbors large walnut tree hang over top the back portion of the garden and there are many plants that we have tried over the years that have not survived there.
We still have iris and peonies. The sedums have grown and I've started to divide them up. We have a rose and trailing geranium and some lilies. We have honeysuckle vine that we keep cutting back as it tends to move towards our peony.
On the opposite side along with the garage we have the hosta bed which is bombarded with tiger lilies that are beginning to take over and it also contains one wild raspberry bush that goes wild.
May 23
We covered the raised beds this morning with netting as we have cabbages there.
May 24
It's a beautiful sunny day. I arrived home from work and took some photos of the African Daisies growing in the kitchen garden. I loved their vivid color patterns.
Then, I planted out some white, pink, and lipstick impatiens in front of our porch. I love these inpatients! We have a partially shaded spot to the north and they flourish there. They grow to be around 10 inches tall and spread about afoot.
I also received a lovely pink vein petunina and it's currently sitting on the table as I'm trying to decide where to place it.
May 26
It's a beautiful warm day. I've been working in the rose bed. The peonies outback have gotten so big this year they are hanging over top of the sedum. One can never have too much sedum. But the sedum may need to be relocated.
I was over to Mom's this week to walk around her yard and see what she already has growing and flowering. Her purple iris is in full bloom and her yellow iris has opened and her varieties of Columbine(Aquilegia) look amazing.
I came home and plant some carrot seed in the kitchen garden.
May 27th
We were out to the kitchen garden and there are large cracks in it a sure sign it needed some watering. It appeared some of the store-bought plants have some mite damage. We will have to contemplate what we are going to do about that. The chives are growing well and taste good. The lettuce, radishs, beets, cabbage look pretty decent. They are all under the netting we put on a few days back. We did pick up some seed packets yesterday and will scatter more flower seed about the kitchen garden. The corn and beans are growing but nothing is impressive yet. We concentrated efforts on the other side of the property. One of our peonies is just beginning to open and we have been trying to catching up on some weeding over there. We also have a few small garden ponds that are surrounded by lilies and grasses that need some taming.
May 28, 2020
This morning I woke to the sounds of rain and songbirds. Buddy (one of our dogs) and I took a walk to view the kitchen garden. It doesn't look like much now but give it a month and it will be look much fuller.
The husband splurged and went and purchased some composted manure. He returned home and we applied the composted manure to the kitchen garden, rose beds as well as the bed underneath our flagpole.
May 29, 2020
We always enjoy the spring Peonies that bloom in our backyard. Here's one I photographed this morning just beginning to open.
As it's been raining much of the day, we hopped in the car and went to the local store and purchased some petunias in shades of pinks and reds to plant in the bed under the flagpole. It stopped raining shortly after we arrived back home. We got the petunia's planted.
In the early evening, we took a drive around and ended up in the country. We bought some cabbage plants and black cherry tomatoes off a flatbed utilizing the honor system. It took us a while to find the lockbox as it was hanging in amongst some hanging baskets. We came home and I planted them then sat with the hubby on the glider and looked over the garden. The peas are just beginning to climb.
The chives I placed in the clay pot are in full bloom. They are surrounded by African Daisy, French Marigolds, and some salvia. All add some color to the kitchen garden.
May 30, 2020
We got up early and spent some time in the backyard listening to the songbirds. Then we got around and went out in search of a few things. While out, we purchased some flower seeds and a new flag as ours was faded and had a rip along a seam.
We ran the flag up the pole and took this photo and then I worked to cut back the forsythia and lilac. I planted some sweet peas along the porch. We also relocated our garden bench to the patio along with t he garage
May 31, 2020
This month has gone by quickly. The fruit and vegetables are thirsty and growing. I have not seen butterflies yet in the garden but the bees are busy moving from one flower to another.
I do not use herbicides, pesticides, or slug pellets in the garden. Instead, I grow as organically as possible and rotate my crops to help aid in disease prevention.
Currently, the compost I create and purchase is used to amend the soil. I have been contemplating doing no-dig garden as I appreciate the idea of protecting life in the soil and would need to locate enough compost to make this work.
It seems we learn a lot from gardening. Mostly the importance of being patient. Each day seems to be different and we learn from the disappointments.
This year, we laid netting across the raised beds as we had issues last year with white butterflies invading the cabbage and Brussels Sprouts. The netting is tucked around the frame and pinned to the ground with bricks. We check a few times daily to make sure nothing is caught and we've left enough extra to allow for expansion as the plants grow larger.
I potted some gladiola corms I purchased at a charity sale.
June 1, 2020
I came home from work and watered the garden. Eight hours later, it poured down rain. My peonies have many blooms that are now drooping.
June 2nd, 2020
I love growing lettuces and will soon be cutting them back. I called Mom today to see if she was going to want any. Her answer was " YES".
While out walking, I scratched some coffee grounds into some of the flower beds. Hopefully, this will help deter the squirrels that are abundant here.
June 4, 2020
Rose is a rose was written by Gertrude Stein. It appeared in the 1922 book Geography and Plays was part of the 1913 poem "Sacred Emily".
Here, is a photo of a low growing bushy shrub rose that grows along our back steps. It has dense green and glossy leaves and bears brilliant pink blooms that smell amazing.
While I was busy staining our raised beds, the hubby went out and brought back home some mulch. We added it to the kitchen garden, rose beds, petunia bed, and inpatients beds. Then we took a break in the back yard and watched our songbirds.
June 11, 2020
We are watering the garden daily. I do deep watering and make use of the lawn sprinkler in the early morning.
All plants seem to be growing well and many have flowers.
We have been harvesting lettuces, radishes, and onions from the garden. We have seen a rabbit sitting outside the fence but no evidence of any critters in the garden.
We took a break for a bit. We'd been busy today with mowing the yard and trimming the Forsythia and other bushes around our property.
When we were done with trimming the bushes, we tackled the two small preforms ponds and the waterfall we have. They were in dire need of being cleaned out. And, my husband had found another pump at a sale and wanted to try it out.
I wish the area looked like it did a few years back but the lilies went everywhere and the Hosta did not last in the sun. The sedum that I had replaced the Hosta with grew large and was impeding the view. So, I relocated the sedum too. In place of hosta, I planted tall grasses like those to the left of the waterfall, and while they are able to survive the sun, they are not as pleasing to my eye.
Regardless, the area serves it's purpose which is to attract wildlife. We turned on the waterfall and the fountain and shortly thereafter we saw swallowtails, monarchs, and a variety of songbirds.
June 19, 2020
We took a road trip yesterday and stopped at a Greenhouse. We purchased some pepper plants and a couple of cukes and waving petunias for the window boxes. We came home and I planted these.
June 20,2020
It seems I'm watering every day. I'm growing kale, lettuces, strawberries, beets, radishes, and cabbages in the raised beds. We have been harvesting the lettuces, radishes, and beets and sharing with neighbors.
Last year the white cabbage white got into the cabbage and Brussels Sprouts and pretty much decimated them. So this spring we covered them with some loose netting that was spread across the top. The bed's needed space that allowed for more growth as the kale is getting taller and the cabbage is spreading out.
So, this morning, my brother came over and helped me install some lath strips. We secured the side to the east and west with a strip secured with screws to the raised bed. The back netting we secured with staples to the lath and the front we allowed to drape and secured at the bottom with some bricks that can easily be removed for quick access.
June 23rd
Today, we took a drive and purchased more Cleome, lilac this time, and some blanket flowers for the kitchen garden. These, help to attract pollinators. We also got some red petunias for a couple of the hanging baskets in our back yard.
June 24th
Nearby, I spotted this striking floral arrangement of black petunias and pink geraniums.
July 9th- Bean Harvest
Harvested these from our garden this evening.
Royal Burgundy, Yellow Wax, and Blue Lake Bush green beans.
July 10th
Picked our first solid head of cabbage today from our kitchen garden. I plan to use it for grandma's coleslaw recipe and set aside some to fry.
July was a terribly busy time at work so most of my time was spent there and I did not get in the garden to do much.
August 4th
In July we had record hot temperatures. In August it was apparent we needed rain and were not getting it.
August 22nd Attracting Pollinators
I planted some blanket flowers, zinnias, marigolds and cosmos and transplanted some of our sedums into the kitchen garden.
August 27th Butternut Squash
August 28th Freezing items
September 2020 - November 2020
We have some of the most beautiful fall colors here and make sure to frequent our favorite parks and preserves.
December 2020- February 2021
We live in USDA Hardiness zone 5-6 and the winter months here are usually cold and snow-covered. Here's a view out the south window. We spend these months inside eating what we have preserved and planning for our spring garden.
February 26, 2021
Today, we started some seed indoors. We had the trays and purchased bags of organic loose seed starting formula. It is fluffy and light and holds moisture.
We also have a few herbs like sweet basil and oregano that we like to start in compressed pellets (coconut husk fibers). These pellet fibers expand when wet. The amount of water you add depends on the size of the pellets. If you do not feel it is moist enough you add more water.
Once we have planted the seed, we cover it and then cover the trays with plastic wrap. The trays are placed in direct sun that comes from a south window. We also have a light above them to help them grow.
2021
In 2021 we expanded the garden some and laid a path of wood rounds. Here you can see we had a lot of volunteers some up.
My brother came over one day and helped me install some netting around the raised beds to try and keep out the cabbage white butterflies that devour the brasiccas.
Our plan is to move the Kitchen garden in the spring of 2022
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