Fall clean-up time

Ahhh....
it's 10.26 and it's a balmy 60 out w/ sunshine, so it's time to take care of some of the fall clean-up:
-cut back the day-lilies (compost them)
-still trying to get rid of the creeping charlie...now it's time to rip-out-the-lawn and plant new grass seed w/ new t-soil...just 'excavating' the c-c today...will need to make a run to get bags of seed and soil
-pick the last of the red t's and possibly pick the green ones as well...Tommy says frost over the w/e--ugh! not worth 'tarping' the veggies one last time
-pick the left-over onions and green/yellow/red peppers
-transplant the hot pepper for winter in the house---have had this plant for 3 years now
-compost the balcony flowers into the side yard compost pile...it's getting bigger now!
-added leaves from the mow yesterday to the compost
-adding t'plants if we pull them out today
-still leaving the canna out even though my bro/200 miles south pulled his over the w/e--still blooms on mine and my grass is green--his is brown...love the tundra in '07
loads of fun!!
love the fall!!!!

10.19 and 10.24

still picking lots of red t's!!!
picked a std basket full on the 19th and took to the P's...
when we rerturned from vacation in Mo...picked another pretty full basket on 10.24

--and there are still a basket or so of green on the vine!!

as well as lots of basil left from the 4 small plants this year--great harvest...lots of pesto--what else can be made w/ it...freeze the leaves?

as well a lots of late green/yellow/red peppers and a few onions we missed picking in Sept.

great year for the v-garden!! thank you J!

wow--heat continues

it's Oct 6 and it's in the mid 80's and HOT!! which is fine by me...the tomato feast continues....just picked about a 1/2 basked w/ L and some hot peppers for pico...love it.
we picked a bunch a few weeks back that weighted 12 lbs!!! I figure we've had over 100 lbs this season and lot of good ones...not mal-formed.
this hotness will continue till Monday...excellent! then we get rain and cool weather.
gotta take stock in the fall garden needs;
-rip out more creeping charlie and plant new seed w/ new topsoil
-get mulch for the garden
-plant bulbs
-keep compost going w/ leaves etc
-nice year in the garden

Fruits of the garden

Pico de Gallo...(from Rachel Ray show)
3-4 plum or vine-ripened tomatoes, seeded and chopped (from my garden)
1 small white onion, diced (from my garden)
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped (hot peppers from my garden)
1-2 tablespoons cilantro, roughly chopped (sadly not from my garden...but it will be next year)
1 lime, zest and juice (uh, I don't live in FL...)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
preparation
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl, season with salt and pepper and let sit for 15-20 minutes to let the flavors combine. Serve with your favorite tortilla chips.
Yields 4 servings
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C made it today for Grant's b;day gathering...it had the perfect 'hotness' and we all loved it...it will be a Mueller-summer staple from now on.

Other items made this summer:
Insalata Caprese
Basil/pesto for cold pasta
Tomato/cucumber salad

dub-L-E

took a beating last night from the heavy rain storms...ugh!

decided to prop up the one leaf since it has signs of a new leaf peeling off from it...hope it bounces back.

Early August notes...

Wed. saw the 1st bloom from the 17 planted canna--it's always the one closest to the front stairs

Thurs. - picked more that 4 dozen tomatoes...ealy girl, plums and cherry...nice haul!

Weeding, pruning, harvesting

I love this time of the summer...there is always something to do in the yard and garden. This past w/e I pruned, weeded a bit, watered and enjoyed some harvesting...

Now I beginning to dream of the fall planting season...catching up on the items I wish I planted in the spring.

Hot Sat. 7.28...

Well, getting a bit tired of the non-arrow wood viburnum in my back yard...I think it's mulberry mixed in...I attacked the weed in three or four waves...it was so hot that I attacked, cut, pruned and then took a break inside and it felt good to rid the one arrow wood of the bad-boy! Cut it up into small pieces so it can become part of compost pile soon...will let it 'rot' in the garbage can a while and then pile-it...ahhhh...that felt good--that, and ridding some of the yard of large weeds....ugh--so many this year and I actually am being proactive to get them out of here...full time battle.

The weed/feed on the garden did not seem to do much in the veg-garden...more weeds are back...maybe they are jumping from the nearby grass--which is pretty sad...someday that side yard will have no grass--yippee!

picking tomatoes and viewing the ee's

These pix were taken last weekend...

weed/feed

I've never done any post planting fertilizing of the garden, veg or flower...but this year I'm trying the standard weed/feed mostly in the veg garden and some in the EE-garden area...we'll see if I can notice any change in weed growth or accelerated growth in the plants.

I'd started a lazy mans compost pile near the garden...thinking I'd do a layered type pile...today, I finally turned it over/raked it out...such great dark soil!!! yep, we have compost liftoff now on both sides of the house...good stuff.

A Good Week...

Well, early in the week, there was lots of rain! The lawn looks like hell, but the garden is more important...

big news in the veg-garden! -lots of red cherry, some red plum and maybe a red early girl--rockin' red in mind-July...will need to pick them this p.m. when Lauren wakes-up.

bigger news---there are new 'horn' sprouts from the EE/beast...looks like more leaves are on the way...

onions are going fast...C is using them in green and potato salads etc...what to plant there after they are gone?...a late summer crop of?????

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and today I officially started the 2nd compost pile w/ food scraps, yard waste etc...can't wait to use this stuff in the garden.

tomato picking was slightly plentiful...pic to be posted soon of my little helper doing the picking...she does know to pick the reds and oranges--not the greens...but she thinks all the greens will be red soon...an optimist. We had the just picked tomatoes for dinner...absolutely nothing like fresh tomatoes!!

Timely Review of Isaiah

"See, I am doing something new! Now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?" (Is 43:19)

As I spent substantial time this morning putting up today's post and pictures, I casually wondered how I came across the blog tag line above from Isaiah...well, watching the Sunday evening PBS show 30 Good Minutes--a repeat, I think I know how. I must have seen this episode/show back in the spring and liked it's message...if that's not how it came to be, then it just fits. The guest speaker spoke of this exact scripture reading...WOW! It spoke of hope and His way to give us what we need when we need it...this all blends well with my new efforts of gardening this year. I truly have ratcheted up the gardening bug in me...planting new things in new places and transplanting plants in new spots...do you not perceive it--are you not aware...this show got me good. They spoke of "suffering and hope..." --'How do you think, though, the promise in Isaiah speaks to families whose child has died or to someone who has lost a spouse or a loved one? How do those words speak to someone who is at the bottom, where they really believe that their worst possible reality has come to be?'-WOW...it all comes together in just 30 good minutes today! Thank you Lord for giving me the gift of Awareness and providing the hope along with providing me with what I need along my spiritual journey.

Mid-Summer Update

Well, I've not kept a precise log of my gardening activities since late April, but here is a good summary and more pix have been added to the photo log...

May...

Veg garden:
18 tomatoes
6 peppers, red, yellow, green -(wow--lots of weeds in the pepper garden--better get to that!)
2 basil pots
one hot pepper from the winter

Flowers:
-new hosta and EE/beast garden
-17 orange canna
-balcony trays (pix soon)
-front and back/C-tree annuals (pix soon)
-transplanted the last remaining Edelweiss (pic soon)
-for the 1st time that I can recall, I cut flowers from the garden to bring inside...duh! peonies, roses, hydrangea from my new Endless and MB's, Lady's Mantle, Day Lilies...etc.
-transplanted cones are doing well!

June/July--watering & weeding
late June--harvested the 1st onions
7.14--spotted the 1st redish tomato

Wow...2 months!

Well, I've been too darn busy in the garden to blog/post about the garden...

I've promised myself that I will post an update this week to bring it up to speed.

puttering...

Ouch again...still aching from the shovel work...

Sat

1. bought 18 tomato plants (6 varieties)

2. bought 2 basil pots (4-6 plants)

3. bought some red beats (new to the veg garden-we'll see how it goes)

4. planted 17 canna from last years 2-canna...4 from winter/save and the rest from the basement/save

5. dug up more of the burning bush area...anticipating one of these plantings there...

purple or pink or both...

6. bought a yellow rose bush for the back to replace last years mother's day bush that is not looking good

Mowing

Tonight I mowed the back yard for the 1st time this season...it was set on the highest setting and was higher than the mower in some isolated spots...I knew I was close to low on gas and none in the can...and it ran dry just as I was mowing the long stuff at on the north side of the garage...perfect!
I think I mowed the front on Wed. last week...not a fan of mowing before May 1...did I mention that. I've always loved to mow...so so many yards and $$ as a kid--who does that today? no-one! The smell of fresh cut grass is pleasing to the nose--even w/ alergies!
Well, the season has begun ... more mows ahead.........

5/4-5/5 w/e

Ouch! is all I can say...I'm way out of shape...hurting legs, back etc. today from the puttering I did around the yard--moved around so much, that it's as if I did not get much done:

- laid some new sod from Charlies yard to mine...near the driveway/street and front lawn areas and threw down some seed
-dug up some (1/3?) of the burning bush area for future ground cover
-relocated the start of the lasagna soil to the fence line...what to plant there? elephant-ear?
-relocated some patriot hosta from the north/front garage to the south side/front to make room for the canna install...Lauren helped with that--digging in the dust and watering the new relo
-watered the onions, not soo good looking :(, but who knows what to expect--1st try here

-reviewed some of Charlies relo of his garden, prepping for construction...lots of work there--ouch again.

w/ all the moaning, it still feels good to get dirty and back to the garden ... He was there, but He now needs to send the rain.

Maintenance

I've rarely tried to do much weed control in the grass, but this year I'm taking action. With the new herbie I got from a friend, I've sprayed the front/side yards...getting the dandelions and creeping charlie...they are everywhere...the yard looked hill-billy-ish! Let's hope it works...

Lots of pix

Today I walked around the yard/garden and took lots of pix...see this link.

This link will remain on the side bar links as well.

Finally

As the chilly north tundra winds mellowed over the w/e (70's and 80's here), I was able to get our and plant a slew of onions in the garden! I bought them a while back, walla-walla and ?...1st attempt at this veggie...hope it's a good crop.

Then, as if on cue, the warmth turns to April showers today and it's good by me!

With the 2-3 days of 70's, the backyard crab is starting to pop leaves and then very quickly overnight last night, the pink flowers are almost here.

tempered blooms

Tempered blooms have been popping since Monday or so from the rhododendrons...purple--will snap a pic of that...
Also, over the w/e the north side hosta are popping up...not the patriot ones though.

putzing around on 4.15

Well, it was sunny, but a bit cold in the shade, but still an opportunity to get something done.
So, I:
1. raked out the violet/Lily of the Valley bed---never been done? lots of junk!
2. transplanted/moved some peonies flowers to that same bed from the fence area-new plants coming soon
3. trimmed some of the back bushes
4. prunned the roses
5. stuck the yellow daffodils in a pot in front
6. turned over some soil in an area near the fireplace...place for herbs? onions?

4.14.07--still itching

It's still not spring-like here! But I need to get going...so here's me list and things to do.

-remove the castor bean roots--done today
-relocate some of the hosta on the north side of the house to make room for the new garbage cans...1/2 done today...will wait for dryer soil conditions
-prep the new fence garden area...manure run failed to solidify...will try plan b
-prep areas under burning bushes for ivy
-review back corner for weeds and new items...needs help
-start seeds of peppers and tomatoes w/ Lauren
-let L plant the tulips, onions from last weeks purchase--maybe in better soil/weather tomorrow

--C spoke to Charlie this week about the cicada issue and new trees...should not be an issue--but will keep close tabs on the two new ones in my yard

Itching I tell ya -- ITCHING!!!

I can believe how flippin' cold it is on Holy Saturday...4/7/07---no sun, windy and about 30 degrees!!! Ahhhhhh.....I'm so itching to get my hands into some dirt.

So, to get my fix, I'm trying some new 'early-spring' plants--this will force me to expand my gardening skills well beyond my usual tomatoes, basil and assorted annuals.

So, not being much of shopper...I make the best of a cold Saturday in April...heading to Binny's for an Easter (& personal) beer run and then to the nursery--spending about $50 at each...well spent $$$.

At Binny's, I of course am sticking to my no-American-main-stream beers for the year and maybe for life! I bought the best of the best:

Spaten (De)
Fischer Amber (Fr)
Czechvar (Cz)
Pilsner Urquell (Cz)
Stella Artois (Be)

I ask the staff about the small 11.2 oz bottle of Westmalle (Be) --wanting to know if they have the larger (24 oz?) bottle that I received from Marius this week...they do sell it, but it sells out fast. The small bottle is $5.50! This stuff is like liquid gold...better be good! It's chilling as we speak...I'm thinking it will be good. Better get myself on the preferred list when that large bottle comes in...my beer tastes just got more expensive--& I've not even tried this one...but you can not go wrong w/ anything from Europe.

All right, back to gardening. Arriving at Pesche's Nursery, I quickly notice that I'm about the only shopper...personal service from the staff...all good! I know that I'm limited to some basic early-spring items, so I pick up some short sprouts of pink & lavender tulips and some yellow daffodils.

After seeing the beautiful blue hydrangeas at Church this morning, I ask the guy about them and he says he has some but that the endless summer should be coming in the next week or so...he gives me some advice on obtaining the blue color--acidic soil, but says that's not so good for the soil...well, I want BLUE, so on my next visit to Pesche's, I will pick up a plant to two and get the fixin's for acidic soil.

Got to get something into the veggie garden as well...so I ask the staff about some of the onions sprouts for sale and get some good info on the candy and walla-walla items--he notes that he's just updated the Garden Rx site about how to grow big onions!

Well, that's it for today...a bit of beer and garden shopping. If the sun is out tomorrow, it may be time to get some of the plants in the ground. Cold-spring--won't get me down!!!

PS: I bought some potting mix, thinking I'll seed-start some hot-peppers, and try tomatoes as well...we'll see how that goes.

Inspiring words...Psalm 65

6 You answer us with awesome deeds of justice, O God our savior, The hope of all the ends of the earth and of far distant islands.
7 You are robed in power, you set up the mountains by your might.
8 You still the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples.
9 Distant peoples stand in awe of your marvels; east and west you make resound with joy.
10 You visit the earth and water it, make it abundantly fertile. God's stream is filled with water; with it you supply the world with grain. Thus do you prepare the earth:
11 you drench plowed furrows, and level their ridges. With showers you keep the ground soft, blessing its young sprouts.
12 You adorn the year with your bounty; your paths drip with fruitful rain.
13 The untilled meadows also drip; the hills are robed with joy.
14 The pastures are clothed with flocks, the valleys blanketed with grain; they cheer and sing for joy.

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As part of my OYB reading, this was a reading a few weeks ago...nice timing near the start of spring.

Canna Inspection time

My brother happens to be in town and is the canna-king...tons in his yard.

A few years ago, he gave me some tubers and they came up in my limited sun side yard. I dug them up for the winter, stored them in the garage (insulated) and they did not do well.

Last year, w/ Paul in town, I bought some orange canna at a local nursey and planted them on either side of my garage door...they did well...lots of afternoon sun. I dug up the many sprouts/tubers and stored them in the basement...we looked at them today and Paul thinks they seem okay --will sprout...they have some new life on them now.

I also took a sprout/tuber w/ a leaf on it and planted it in a 6" pot and put it in the masterbath for the winter...some western indirect sun. It has made it! and has some new spouts...I will plant it back in the front of the garage...

I am so anxious to get them in the ground. Paul waits (200 miles south of me) until at least mid-April...

Start of the 2007 season

These pix here at at this link were taken last w/e (03.25.07) throughout the yard...spring has sprung--yahooooo!

There are so many areas of the yard that need 'help'...need some new natural life...that's the goal of '07...get some new items into the empty spots of the yard.

Cant'wait!!

Day lilies popping up