This morning, I went to the garden at work and added some organic compost and nutrients to the soil so I can plant some more zucchini and some corn tomorrow. It got too hot, though, so I called it an early day and came home. Supposed to be 105 here today. Ugh.
We grow tomatillos every year. We don't even have to plant them anymore. We have about 6 volunteer plants in the yard right now (doesn't even count the ones I've pulled out and the ones that keep popping up).
Anyway, I heard about pineapple tomatillos and per chance found some seeds for...
Here's an update on the winery garden project....
The Powers That Be are not giving me the funds for fertilizer and soil amendments. They bought cheap plants that are faltering miserably in the soil. I cannot convince them to buy me better plants or, better yet, buy a cheap greenhouse and let...
What do you mean "only" glyphosate? That's Round-Up. That'll mess up your garden in a heartbeat. We live in wine country & some of the local vineyards use Round-Up. Fortunately, the ones adjacent to our property do not use it.
Makes me wonder how much of the local wine that we consume is...
My first tiny, green San Marzano tomatoes of the season showed up in my garden last week. I can't wait to see how they do! Tried a new fertilizer this year, and my plants are going NUTS. Yay for Foxfarm!
I put the first tomatoes of the year in the ground yesterday: Whopper VFNT, Mr. Stripey, San Marzano, Heirloom Goldie, and Black Krim. Accompanied the young tomato plants with calendula, marigold, and Genovese basil.
I want to grow nasturtiums this year for the first time and just got some seeds. I'm adding a variety of edible flowers to my vegetable garden, and nasturtiums and nutritious and good in salads.
Last fall, I bought some sacks of flower bulbs at Walmart. They were like 3 for $12 or something like that. I bought a sack of hyacinth bulbs, a sack of red & yellow striped tulip bulbs, and a sack of assorted color iris bulbs. I completely forgot about them & found them in the shed the other...
We live on an alpaca ranch, where we are also ranch assistants. I can attest to the success of using alpaca manure in my garden. The biggest issue I have with it, though, is that they eat orchard grass hay & sometimes drop it on the ground in the poop piles. Sometimes, the hay contains seed...
I have great news! Two days ago, I was given official word that winery has finally decided to move forward with the garden project, and I'm going back to work next week. Score! :)
They waited so long, however, that most of what we will be growing will not be able to be started from seed...
Well, we are swimmin' in the muck out here in California now, at least where I am! My best friend has a seasonal creek on her property that is normally flowing long before now. It's *finally* got some water coming through it & looks and sounds just gorgeous.
I have successfully made and used seed tapes in the past using long strips of plain white toilet paper. As others have done, I make a light paste of unbleached flour and water and dab it on the strip with a toothpick, lay the seed on it, fold it over lengthwise, and let it dry. It does take a...
On a more positive note, I now have more time to spend working on my own garden here at the ranch. The winery will eventually move forward with the garden, just not right now. When it does happen, I will most definitely post pictures... because we ARE a picture-loving group, aren't we? :clap
Proposal was written and accepted. Got a "good job!" from the bosses. The next day, they laid off 2 of us & cut everyone else back to 15 hours a week. The garden project is on hold. I don't know why they're doing that.... they spent literally THOUSANDS of dollars building the raised beds...
I did not have enough time off work this past week to get the proposal written, but it will be completed within the next 24 hours. It's a much larger task than I ever thought possible! And I am *so* ready for this. Thank you all for your help and advice, and please, DO keep it coming. I will...
These beds are deep... 15 inches to 30 inches in various spots, but the inner bottoms have not been graded out yet. I am going to proceed with a square foot gardening method combined with companion planting for maximum yield and aesthetic value.
Oh, another question I have for y'all.
I always use oyster shell in my home garden to help control blossom end rot and add calcium to the soil. However, I have recently read somewhere that the produce from a garden that has been treated with oyster shell or egg shell cannot be considered...