The First of Three LONG Days!

Tonight was the first link in our Memorial Day Marathon (MDM). My daughter had her last day performance at school. That ate up our morning. The afternoon we spent running around doing menial tasks that needed to be done, but had NOTHING to do with our MDM. About 7ish we caught our stride and began the weekend from hell.

For Mother's Day this year, we bought my mom a cedar raised bed garden. She has MS but loves to garden. My husband found a raised bed square foot garden on legs. It is the perfect height for people in wheel chairs. Although she isn't in one yet, she uses her walker that has a seat to do most things. Gardening is no exception. This evening, hub and I built her garden bed and she asked us to Tung Oil it as she wishes for it not to naturally grey. It looks GREAT!

I also was able to plant my three tiered planter. OK, so one errand we ran today was to the garden center for the flowers for my planter. I opted this year for a wide variety of colors..... orange, yellow and red are my main colors, however, I mixed in some purple, white and a few pinks. Sounds strange, but I really like how they came together.

I had a few extra plants left, so I dug out the cowboy boots I found last year at the good will. They were half priced and I had to have them. Last February, hub and I went to New Mexico for a vacation.... just the two of us. I fell in love with the southwestern look. When I came home, I went searching for some cowboy boots to serve as planters. Lo and behold I FOUND THEM!!! I planted ornamental peppers in them last year, but this year I added some vibrant flowers. The juxtaposition of the color against the grey boot is GORGEOUS!

Before the sun fully setted, I managed to pull weeds from an area of my yard that I don't think I've EVER touched in the 3 years we have lived here. In that area I sprinkled some wild flower seeds as well as planted a few rows of sunflowers. I hope they sprout and grow! I also was able to get some carrots into my garden. More, much more, to do in the next few days! Stay tuned!

The Yard is ALIVE!

It has been a hectic few weeks without hubby dearest. My gardening has fallen to the wayside in attempt to catch up on the 1 million other things that need to be done to keep this household afloat. That being said, the garden/yard doesn't wait for anyone!

Two days ago I was running into the house to avoid the rain when I noticed growing outside my front door were what I thought to be button mushrooms. I know some mushrooms are poisionous, so I came in and looked them up on the internet. To my dismay, they are poisionous but look REALLY cool anyway. I was hoping they'd be another thing I could harvest from the yard, but alas... NO!

My Lilac bushes have seen the worst of winter. My largest one on the back corner of my house had been crushed by the snow. The trunk is lying across my yard and the roots are mostly upheaved, however that little sucker is still blooming. Lilacs are my FAVORITE flower and I am having a hard time deciding what to do with this bush. The Hippie in me wants to somehow tie it back up, but the realist in me says, there is NO WAY you can lift that heavy bush and put it back. But it is still alive after all that..... and I think I need to figure out a way to have it stay!

My Quince tree is blooming and I am hoping for a nice harvest this fall!

The spring bulbs are all but gone. The last of my tulips are falling to the ground. Daffodils gone, Hyacinths, gone, crocuses, way gone.... but this makes way for the new plants. I have a beautiful showing of plumage from Irises. Even if they never bloom, the leaves are BEAUTIFUL! I believe I planted some lillies in the fall, as these seem to be sprouting up all over. And my faithful hostas are popping up everywhere. SUMMER IS ALMOST HERE!!!!!

AHHHH, the garden..... well that is coming along nicely. I have one plant of brussel sprouts growing (these are my FAVORITE veggie aside from potatos), several types of lettuce, a pak choi, broccoli raab, scallions and my garlic. I have an EXTREMELY hardy plant of oregano that lasted outside thru the winter. I also received as a gift 5 strawberry plants and a raspberry plant from my friend Aimee. I have those in, however I think only two of the strawberry plants are gonna make it. I hope they all do, but three aren't looking so hot. I guess we'll see. I started plants inside, including a bunch of different tomatoes, basil, hot peppers (hub's favorite), dill, etc. But my newest adventure is the watermelons I started. I think I have about 7 or 8 that sprouted and I am gonna give Aimee a few...... I'm a bit nervous about growing these as I hear they need lots of love. But WHAT THE HELL!

New Garden Bed Achieved!

Today was one of those days that if I could start it all over again, I would. I had a million things keeping me from getting out into my garden beginning with the last day of work being done on my basement, followed by needing to meet up with a friend for Easter candy, followed by a trip to the garden center where my kids and husband realized they were hungry, followed by a stop at a local restaurant. FINALLY, we got back home somewhere around 5:30 p.m. and began our garden.

Earlier in the day, we snapped together our brand new Vermont Cedar raised bed garden. My husband found this link and he said he couldn't buy the wood for the asking price which also included shipping. ( http://www.gardenraisedbeds.com/ ) One thing I am disappointed in is that the 4x8 ends up measuring somewhere about 39 inches x 87 inches because of the mortise and tendon joints. This means I have about a quarter of a square which runs down one short side and down one long side. I've reserved this spot for carrots since you can pack them in to a small space. Aside from the size being a bit off for square foot gardening, the construction is nice, the wood is great, and the shipping was fast. Not to mention the price was also very, very good.

At the garden center, we bought peat moss, manure and vermiculite. All three in equal parts is "Mel's Mix". I was hesitant on using the vermiculite as it is a form of asbestos, but last year I didn't and my garden soil is crap this year. So sticking with the "rules" I caved and got it.

The guy at the garden center also talked me into a few fertilizers. One ironically is epsom salt. I've used this for years as a soak in the tub and once as a "gall bladder cleanse" (NOT RECOMMENDED!). But apparently this "salt" is also good for plants. I also bought Monty's Joy Juice and Osmocote. All three together supposedly make you an excellent gardener. And hell, let's be real. I NEED THAT!

When we got home with all of our miracle working gardening "tools" at 5:30 p.m. we began dumping the peat, vermiculite and manure all together. We stirred it by hand and even had the kids helping until they smelled the manure. Matt and the kids drilled some screws into the frame so I could use string and make my squares. Lastly, I planted spring crops. Lettuce, Scallions, Leeks, Spinach, Brussel Sprouts, etc.

My husband says if this fails, I should give up as a gardener. I hate to admit he is right, but he is. Honestly, if I kill these plants, I may just give up all together. But then, maybe not..... digging in the dirt is addictive!