This week in gardening involved how to manage growing something with nothing. We’re far enough along into spring to see what has survived the winter and what hasn’t; what needs to be repaired and what can be replaced. Every year sees gardening challenges, and this year sees the ante being raised.

Water, water everywhere!
The most troubling – and potentially most expensive to fix – is the lack of a back yard spigot. Toward the end of winter, I noticed that it was just gushing water from behind the paneling of the house. The prevailing opinion seems to indicate I’ll need an actual plumber to crawl around under the house to replace pipes. As many times as I’ve been spelunking in the bowels of the house, I’m thinking I’m not qualified for major plumbing repair. So, until I have an income, that is an unusable water source. I do have a spigot on the front of the house, so I’ve rigged a couple of hoses together so I can water all my beds. This is doable and it insures I can still reach everything I need to water. Yay!

Garden expansion on the cheap.
Also, with the lack of funds, there will be no garden expansion. Instead, I am working with last year’s harvested seeds to save the expense of new ones and I’ve found some old barrels left at the side of the road perfect for veggies. I’ve shifted some of the soil from less used parts of the yard into the containers and placed them in Sunset Alley – the only place in the yard with more around 4 hours of sun – in the hopes of more sun reaching them. No expense there, so yay times two!

Not a whacky summer ahead.
I also count, among the fatalities of the winter, the loss of my weed whacker. My little rechargeable Black & Decker unit no longer will hold a charge. Not one little spark. I wouldn’t complain about the demise of an 11 year old machine save for the fact I cannot replace it in this moment. Well, at least the rechargeable mower still works. R.I.P. weed whacker.

A little green for some green.
I did spend a little money on a new rosemary plant, an additional oregano start, and some spinach babies. The winter was distressingly hard on some of my plants and herbs. I lost most of the rosemary I’ve had for years, only one of last year’s fuchsia made it – and it’s not very well, and the old oregano plant is slow in returning. The new rosemary has taken well and the oregano has already been harvested once.

And now, the food!
I’ve decided to try a different approach to the beans this year. Instead of training them up my round trellises like DNA, I’ve hooked some hemp rope from the fence to the rocks of the raised bed and planted a couple seeds right under each twine. My plan is to train the vines up the ropes to make picking the pods easier. Last year, they were so wrapped around each other I could barely see the pods in the mess of leaves and vines. I’m optimistic this will keep the pods very visible to make picking easier and allow more access to sun. I’ve reserved the other half of the bed for the nasturtium, spinach, and lettuces. The scallions, onions, and garlic I planted last year are thriving there in the moment and should still get plenty of sun under the beans. The tomatoes really didn’t do well there last year, anyway, so they are bound for the pots in Sunset Alley.

Well, even if all is not perfect in this moment, I am loved and I am capable. Hey, at the very least, I am enjoying a lovely cup of tea on the deck in the sun with a warm breeze wafting the scent of lilacs to me while the laundry dries on the line. If it’s not downtown Perfectville, at least I’m living in the same county.

Breathe deeply,
Laugh with abandon,
Love wholly,
Eat well.

MiLady Carol
www.GreenTeaLady.com
http://miladycarol.com
Dazzling jewelry that reflects sparkling personalities!

My little, green tomatoes are starting to blush and I still have some ever-bearing strawberries ripening. That means it’s time to fend off the interests of birds before they begin to target my fruit. Since I love having the birds in my yard – I’ve gone to great effort to lay out a wonderful birdfeeder buffet, birdhouses and birdbath – I needed to find a way to keep them happily eating their food and away from mine.

So, to keep the birds from the red fruit dripping from my greenery, I’ve decided to deck the garden with tinsel. I raided my Christmas decorations box and pulled out the bag of tinsel. I spent a wonderful morning tying strands of shiny silver to my plant cages where they will catch in the breeze and glitter in the sun. This has been very effective in keeping the birds at bay and it’s quite lovely to see my garden sparkle in the sun.

Note to those with squirrels: Though the birds have kept clear from the tinsel on my strawberries, the squirrels have not been so kind. I’ve not harvested a single strawberry this year despite the tinsel, the triple layer of netting and a vigilant – well, a sometimes vigilant – guard dog. The squirrels use their dexterous little fingers to find their way past the netting and grab the fruit while it’s still pink. Next year, I plan to incarcerate the strawberry planter in a cage. Poor strawberries, imprisoned for the crimes of others. Is there no justice in the world?

Breathe deeply,
Laugh with abandon,
Love wholly,
Eat well.

MiLady Carol
www.GreenTeaLady.com
http://miladycarol.com
Dazzling jewelry that reflects sparkling personalities!

So, I had concocted that recipe of garlic and detergent and doused my strawberries and roses in it for a few days. While it seemed to keep my strawberry aphids in check, the aphids on the roses weren’t responding. Perhaps they were different breeds of aphid? I’m not sure. The plants are on opposite sides of my yard and they looked similar enough, yet I’m not an expert on this topic.

Since my roses were still under siege, I walked to the local nursery and bought a bag of ladybugs. I released some on both roses and strawberries for 2 successive evenings. While I still see them around my strawberries, I don’t see any on the roses and one of my three rose bushes is still full of aphids. I think they all just left before they found the aphid-infested areas near the buds. I’ll try again tonight and keep releasing until those pesky pests are gone.

I’m open to ideas.

Breathe deeply,
Laugh with abandon,
Love wholly,
Eat well.

MiLady Carol
www.miladycarol.com
Dazzling jewelry that reflects sparkling personalities!

Technorati Profile

Marilyn, this video is per your request. I really ought to make a new one, as this was a few weeks ago. Most of my daffodils are gone and many of my tulips are fading. My veggie patch has grown, and the Lilac Corner is much changed. Perhaps I’ll take another video in the morning.

Breathe deeply,
Laugh with abandon,
Love wholly,
Eat well.

MiLady Carol
www.miladycarol.com
Dazzling jewelry that reflects sparkling personalities!

Above and beyond the seasons, there are two times of year for me. There is the time of growth and change and the time of hibernation. There are those 3-4 months where everything seems asleep and changes are barely perceptible to the eye. Then there is the rest of the year, the time of change. Every day, every hour, there is something new to see. Now that we’re well into Spring, I have renewed my habit of walking my yard. It’s an incredibly comfortable pattern that I’ve peacefully fallen into over the years.

Mornings are my time. All of Avalonne is still asleep and the house is mine. It’s quiet and peaceful within. The Garden is another thing entirely. Outside, it’s teeming with life and energy and change. I usually do the dishes and make a pot of tea then leave the quiet peace of the house to a very different kind of quiet and peace. I walk around the yard and look at everything. I want to notice all the changes that have happened since I last looked. How many new leaves does that columbine have? Are any of the seeds sprouting? The pink tulips have opened on the northern side of the yard. Is the transplanted yarrow thriving?

It’s probably my favorite time of the day.

Breathe deeply,
Laugh with abandon,
Love wholly,
Eat well.

MiLady Carol
www.miladycarol.com
Dazzling jewelry that reflects sparkling personalities!

Today, assisted by my sweet angel, Kitte, I was able to fetch my yard of organic gardening soil. They even gave me 6 little spinach starts with my purchase! Yay! We transported it home, G and I moved it from the truck to the garden bed, then I began the process of planting – a process which I finished just in time. I sowed, labeled, watered and had just stood back to admire my work when it began to hail. *laughs* Fret not. My Mom had given me her plastic gallon water jugs a few weeks ago, so I quickly cut the bottoms off and placed them over the little spinach starts to protect them from the ice. It’s all beautiful.

I must say, there is nothing quite like the thrill of working in soil. After a while, I abandoned my shovel and just shifted the earth using my hands. It’s amazingly satisfying. I am entranced by the smell and texture of it, and I am in love with how enriching it will be for my veggies.

Breathe deeply,
Laugh with abandon,
Love wholly,
Eat well.

MiLady Carol
www.miladycarol.com
Dazzling jewelry that reflects sparkling personalities!

I bought the last two bricks needed to build my raised veggie bed last night. Now, I merely need the soil. Meanwhile, the days have warmed enough for me to begin hardening my little veggie sprouts on the deck. While they were prolific when I first planted the seeds, they have been flagging, of late. I feel they really want to be out in the yard. The nights, though, are unpredictable, so I’ll just keep taking them in and out.

Breathe deeply,
Laugh with abandon,
Love wholly,
Eat well.

MiLady Carol
www.miladycarol.com
Dazzling jewelry that reflects sparkling personalities!