Selective Taste

We have a mysterious visitor to the garden... my suspicion is that the adorable woodchucks up the hill have something to do with this. However, they seem to have very discerning taste. In fact, the following photo illustrates the only damage done since the fence went up. I believe that this used to be a Buttercrunch lettuce plant.
Last time they really liked the romaine. Maybe they just felt like a change?
The rest of our lettuces were particularly beautiful the other afternoon- I love the way the varieties are so different. Here we have:

Rouge d'Hiver Romaine and Atlas Farm Red Leaf
Black Seeded Simpson and Red Freckles Romaine
Red Riding Hood and Atlas Farm (a local farm) Red Leaf

Framed by red beets, spinach, and laundry line.

Gardening - the good, the bad and the itchy

In the good news column we have the square foot veg garden. The cold weather crops are growing visibly by the day and we just enjoyed our first spinach salad. For any who may be interested, the home-made dressing was a blend of red wine vinaigrette, honey mustard, minced garlic and fresh parsley, pepper, salt and olive oil. Delicious.

In the bad news column we have a freeze warning for tonight that may wipe out our 2010 peach crop. Our tree is pretty big and we don't have any sprinkler system or other frost deterrent, so we'll just have to keep our fingers crossed.

And the itchy? I decided to pull some weeks on our back hillside, at least around the perennials we put in earlier this spring. Imagine my delight when carpets of poison ivy started appearing under and around the taller weeds. I've never before gotten a rash, but THIS COULD BE IT!
As a public service, here are a few poison ivy tips...-Leaves of three, let it be. Leaves can be toothed or smooth, green or red.
-Urushiol is the "poison" oil - only because humans seem to be extra reactive. Animals are not affected and some even EAT poison ivy (goats, naturally)!
-Some people seem immune while some seem extra sensitive. It is not wise to push your luck.
-Wear skin protection - gloves, long sleeves, long pants- if not washed off of clothes the oil can last for years.
-If you think you touched poison ivy, washing with lots of cold water within 1/2 hour may prevent the rash. Hot water will open pores and let more oil be absorbed.
-DO NOT mow (esp with bare legs!) or burn poison ivy. Emergency room visits can result.

For more great info you can go to http://www.poison-ivy.org/ - if nothing else they have an incredibly graphic rash collection!

I think we need to get a goat.

Garden time - Row cover tutorial!

Spring is rolling along here in New England - I've calculated that we're about 5 weeks from our last frost date, so the veggie gardening is getting busy. We built 3 raised beds this year and a cold frame to give the veg an extra head start. Everything is crammed in the sunniest corner of our backyard, but I like to think that the lack of space just makes us more efficient.

The peas and spinach are already up and rocking and the broccoli that I started from seed was begging to join them, but I had a bit of a problem. I've always learned to place a cloche (protective covering) over broccoli starts to protect them from cold nights, scorching sun, and wind. I grew up using milk jug tops... a really wonderful (and eco-friendly!) idea. However, we've been drinking milk from paper cartons so I did not have a ready supply of milk jugs. What was a gardener to do?

Gardening supply companies sell little plastic cloches and I called a few coffee shops to see if I could have some jugs, but then I did a little more research and shifted my game plan entirely.

I decided to build a mini-greenhouse... basically a cloche over the whole row of broccoli! It would shield the plants from sun, wind and frost AND I had all the materials on hand.

Step 1: Green branches of equal length were bent and inserted into the garden soil to form a row of hoops over the intended planting row. Flexible PCV pipes or wire hoops could be used instead - I just didn't happen to have these.


Step 2: A length of heavy duty plastic was cut into a rectangular shape that would fit over the hoops with about 4 inches extra on each long side and enough plastic to reach the ground on the short sides. We had plastic left over from covering the wood for the winter, otherwise it is available at hardware stores. Water permeable row cover material would be great... again, I didn't have that on hand.

Step 3: I cut 2 slits through the plastic on either side of each branch about 7 inches from the ground and used twine to tie the plastic to the branch. Zip ties or twist ties would also work here. I only did one side for now since I needed to plant!


Step 4: Plant and water!
Step 5: Tie the other side of the row cover to the branches and cut some holes along the top of the cover. This will allow excess heat to escape the row so that you don't cook your baby plants.
Step 6: Cover the extra plastic on each side with a little soil. I set the ties fairly far up the branches so that I can roll up each side if we get a really hot day.
This cover should be useful for a few weeks while the broccoli gets well established and then I'll be able to pick it straight up and likely reuse it on whatever needs it next. Peppers? Eggplant? Stay tuned!

Tempting Tuesdy - Green!

We're trying a new thing today - Tuesday Temptations! I'll find some lovely items from our Etsy friends to share with the blogosphere and we can all be tempted together. Just click on the photo to go to the item's page.

This Tuesday's theme will be green for gardening, St. Patrick's Day, spring... did I mention that our daffodils are coming up? And today was partially spent tending to the blueberries... but that is for another post. On to the temptations!


1. Since we are mostly in the planning stages of gardening here in New England, how about an Eco-Friendly Garden Tools Journal from disconsolator in which to keep your musings, sketches and plans? Best of all, this journal is made from materials produced with wind power - how cool is that?

2. Farmer's Markets are starting soon as well so you'll need a nifty bag to carry home all that produce. The TomaTote from EarthCadets fits this bill perfectly with a great sassy tomato style. This tote is also made from recycled materials, including soda bottles!


3. Once we get around to actually planting, we'll need labels for those tiny seedlings. These Herb Signs from sierrametaldesign are adorable, functional, and just the right amount of funky. Use them indoors, outdoors, and year after year!


4. So let's actually plant something! How about Mammoth Long Island - a heirloom dill seed from myvictorygarden. Dill can be used in many ways - salads, veggie dishes, dips, and my favorite - with new potatoes! Use the seed heads to make delicious pickles as well!


5. Need something to put your plant in? Are you more of an indoor gardener? Then this adorable Love Bird heart shaped planter from DariellesClayArt is for you. A beautiful glaze job, drainage holes and precious details... I'm thinking this is a perfect Mother's Day gift!


6. Last but not least, we in the Northeast will be watching the clock a little longer before we can get into the garden full time. Why not watch an amazing clock? This handmade Flower Garden Ceramic Wall Clock from lurearts is just the thing.

Feel inspired? Me too! I'll prove it - see the colors I've been working with lately?
Stay tuned for a useful post about your feline friends - until then, happy St. Patty's Day!

Planning the growing season

If I haven't updated the blog as recently as we might have liked, blame the weather. It is unseasonably warm and lovely, filling my head with dreams of this summer's garden.

Since we recently moved into our home, this season is the first to start painting on the canvas of our property. While a little lawn is nice (impromptu croquet anyone?) on the whole I would rather have flowers, vegetables, fruiting shrubs, etc. Accordingly, I've been surrounding myself with gardening books, catalogs and websites to decide what should replace the ragged verge (Voles. Whole separate problem).

We have a little patch of sun (square foot vegetable garden), a patch of mostly sun next to the blueberries (raspberries, possibly semi-dwarf apple trees), a sun/shade hill (native plants, prairie plants, lilies), and an area of shade (lilies-of-the-valley, ferns, bleeding hearts). In front of the house are a few warm sunny spots where the herbs will go.

I think my most exciting experiment will be trying a few Honeyberry trees. They are native to Asia but reportedly grow well here, have elongated blueberry like fruit that ripen before strawberries, and grow well in partial shade! They grow 6-8' or 3-4' tall depending on the variety and you need more than one plant to have mature fruit... I'm think a hedge of 4 right now.

The craft show last weekend went swimmingly - met some great folks, sold a few items, and got the year started out right! Thanks to JenDederichPhotography for the great pics!

Dreaming of Spring

Yet another winter storm warning tonight and tomorrow and we're all starting to feel the winter gloom. However, spring is just around the corner and it is garden planning time. To keep motivation high, it seems like a good time to share some photos from last year's deck garden. I have to say, my Earthbox experience was a WONDERFUL one. Don't let their gimmicky sell turn you off... for a limited garden space (like our 8x10 2nd floor balcony) they really work.
Lettuces, broccoli, pearl onions, herbs, spinach... we started out small in late April.
May brought peas and salad.
By June we were in full swing, complete with 8-ball zucchini. In July we had a jungle and were eating fresh from the garden practically every day.

But in August we moved. The plants were adopted by some lucky friends... the transportation was quite amusing.Spring is almost here... and may all your gardening dreams come true!

Feeling extra crunchy today...

...in a granola and back-to-earther sort of way. Our home has officially become a vermicomposting site! I meant to get this whole thing going right after the holidays, but better late than never. I'd been reading (in various crunchy publications of course) about the joys and benefits of composting with red worms. They are easy to feed, eat the kitchen scraps that the frozen outside compost doesn't want anything to do with, and make super rich casting compost to use in the garden and potted plants.

Below follows a little story (perhaps tutorial... be tutored at your own risk) of my new worm farm.

Step 1: Preparing the home. An old plastic tub works great (and I even managed to find the lid!). Drill lots of holes to allow your worm tenants some fresh air. Don't worry... as long as they like their home they won't leave. Some folks say to drill holes in the bottom too to allow for drainage. I didn't do this yet, but if it gets too wet that's the next step.

Step 2: Prepare the bedding. I used shredded newspaper and leaves, but you could also use coir, shredded paper, etc. I then added a few cups of potting soil and compost. Not strictly necessary but good to get the worms going.

Step 3: Wet everything down. Go for a "wrung out sponge" feel.

Step 4: Get the worms! How cute is this parcel?! I ordered from Red Worms for a Green Earth because they are geographically close to me, which is better for the worms and the planet. There are lots of sources.

Step 5: Bury worms a little way into the bedding add a small amount of food waste (veggie, coffee grounds, tea bags, fruit) to get them started- eventually expect them to plow through 1/2 lb of waste per 1 lb of worms... Cover the worms with moistened newspaper or cardboard. If you have inquisitive dogs, cats, or children, put a lid on!

That's it! Sit back and feed your worms. Remember that meat, dairy, and very oily foods are not appreciated. I will keep everyone updated on how these little guys do!