The Garden for Eatin'--for Practical Vegetable Gardening

Christmas Time at Florida's Disney World-Living with the Land

2011-12-19T13:00:00.001-05:00

What a beautiful time of year and especially nice weather in Florida. We took advantage of it when we visited Walt Disney World, Orlando, FL last week. I had gardeners in mind when we took the boat tour through the Living with the Land attraction in Epcot, one of the worlds at Disney. Disney also includes the Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios.

Living with the Land is an amazing inside look at experimental farming in deserts and aquaculture. Talk about intensive gardening, small space gardening, and thinking out of the box. Sweet potatoes and pumpkin plants not grown in the ground, but supported in the air. Plants in PVC piping swirled into growing stations that can stack many levels. We saw vanilla and stevia plants and many unusual varieties. The greenhouses grow crops native to many cultures and the produce is used in the Epcot restaurants.

The World Showcase at Epcot has many nations offering delicious native dishes. You can take advantage of those places, but if you are on a budget, go to the cafeteria-style restaurant in the same building as Living with the Land for a delicious meal. Especially a great place to treat the kids and adults to a sit-down, air-conditioned time for eating and relaxing.

I took a lot of photos inside the growing chambers, but it is a bit difficult to do so while riding along in a boat. I hope you enjoy looking at the photos and that some day, you too will get the opportunity to take the tour.

Inside the greenhouse

Pumpkins

Bananas

Enormous lemons bigger than grapefruit

Sweet potatoes

Varieties of lettuce

Strawberries

Unusual growing method, eh?

Cucumbers

Irrigating Your Garden

2011-12-06T20:50:00.001-05:00

Greetings from Florida. We found our garden in good shape when we arrived this fall. My DH couldn't wait to get the plants he started in Michigan into the ground. They were packed in the back of the truck at least four days...no water either. They seem to be okay, no worse for the travel. Of course the sun and warm weather perks up everyone...even plants!

The first thing after planting the lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, he rigged up his irrigation system through out the garden.You can see from the pictures he uses pvc pipe and spaghetti style tubes. Each plant has a tube to water it. With one flick of the faucet, the garden gets watered. No more hanging onto a hose. It's fast and easy.

As you can see, this is a raised garden. I like the look of it with the deep green metal sides. We have two 6' x 10' planters with ten inch sides and a walkway between them.

Garden Tip: Our neighbor across the street decided to irrigate his garden like this too. He found window spline from the aluminum retail store makes a great tube to use.

To read more about this garden, click on the raised garden label in the list at the right.

Harvest Festival Fun

2011-10-28T00:30:00.000-04:00

On a beautiful October evening, our small town celebrated fall with the Harvest Festival. Just look at these glowing trees in the Veteran's Park.

What's a festival without a parade. Since we are a large agricultural area, farm equipment and farming was spotlighted in the parade...even the festival farm family rode a float.

The farmer's market set up in the park was a popular spot along with kettle korn and apple cider and donut vendors. Gorgeous mums and delicious veggies on display for sale.

Grand Rapids has the Artprize, but we have Hay Bale art. Every one of these creations were made with hay bales. So much fun to tour the over 40 entries for the art contest. Very talented hay bale artists!!

End-of-Season Gardening Tips

2011-10-25T13:36:00.000-04:00

The garden has been put to bed for the winter.

End-of-season gardening, a sad time for gardeners. The plants have been pulled. Perhaps some carrots and beets are still in the ground able to stay safe until the big freeze occurs. Be sure to pull them when the weatherman calls for freezing temperatures so the vegetables do not freeze, then rot in the ground. Allow them to dry after pulling in order to store them for the winter stews and soups.

Because we leave for Florida in the fall, my DH cleans out everything. He roto-tilled the garden in order to break up the soil and planted winter rye. The rye comes up, then in the spring, he turns it under to give more nutrients to the soil.

In the photo you can see the strawberry bed which will winter over. These are June bearing strawberries. The snow cover will keep them warm in the winter. I know that sounds impossible, but snow is a good insulator for the plants.

For more end-of-season garden tips, read another article previously posted here.

Now is the time to finish up your garden journal. Make notes while you have next year's plan swirling in your head. Before you know it, you'll be planting seed and digging in your garden next spring.

Vegetables in Our September Garden This Fall

2011-09-21T11:48:00.002-04:00

Fall gardens can still produce good eatin' for your family. Just because the weather is cooler, does not mean you have to give up on gardening until spring. Today I share a picture tour of our fall garden. (The last post tells you what we pulled out of the garden. This one tells you what is still growing and producing for us.)

Please note, since the last post, we have no more sweet corn or zucchini.

The strawberry plants are in the garden. Click on the previous post for information and photos of our new strawberry bed.

Now join me as we check out what delicious veggies we DO have!!

We have been very pleased with the Kentucky Wonder pole beans. Yes, they grew very tall and my DH had to add more concrete re-enforcement wire to make an eight foot support for them.

Pole beans are long, thin, and tender. Not what I imagined. A happy surprise for me.

Cabbage, cauliflower, and broccoli are all good growers in cool weather.

Garden Tip: Sprinkle one teaspoon of ammonium sulphate (21-0-0) around the base of these plants after they have been growing in the garden for four-five weeks in order to promote growth. (The numbers indicate the amount of Nitrogen-Phosphorus-Potassium in the material.)

Broccoli is tasty again in the cool weather and no worry about finding the green worms on the plants with cold temperatures.

We are already digging up the sweet potatoes, but leaving some to grow larger.

Tomatoes are flourishing on the vines. We have fantastic crops of these versatile red fruits.

We also have cauliflower, peppers, beets, carrots, sugar snap peas, and onions in the garden.

I hope you are enjoying some good eatin' from your garden this fall.

Vegetable Garden September Update

2011-09-18T00:30:00.000-04:00

Clearing out the garden...end of season

Middle of September and the vegetable gardening season is near its end. Here is an update on what we have removed from our garden. You can see from the photo, there are large empty spaces now.

We have pulled out:

27 pole bean plants, the first planting

8 foot row of jade green beans

8 foot row of yellow wax pencil pod beans

8 foot row of purple beans

My DH reports we harvested approximately 50 pounds of beans from these rows. We are currently harvesting the next planting of pole beans.

We saved five large pumpkins for our grandkids. The punkins, not the kids, each weighed about 25 lbs.

Pumpkins and butternut squash harvested and area now planted in new strawberry bed (see previous post on 9/15/11)

One lonesome zucchini left

Pulled muskmelon and watermelon plants

Last planting of corn

Removed four plantings of sweet corn. There were four eight foot rows in each planting. We planted Northern Extra Sweet..each planting got sweeter! We ended up with short ears of corn due to the dry weather. Still tasted good.

Dug all potatoes--Red Pontiac, Yukon, German Butterball, and Fingerlings (which grew the best and our first year to try them)

13 Avalon butternut squash

Next posting I'll tell what is left in our September garden!!

Transplanting Strawberry Plants--New Strawberry Bed

2011-09-15T13:57:00.000-04:00

This year's strawberry bed

Thinking spring already. My DH is planning for a new strawberry bed next year. He has already transplanted the runners of strawberry plants into the new bed on the west side of the garden. This section of the garden stays wet in the spring and it is a struggle to till, so it is a good place to keep strawberries. The east bed produced very well this June, but time for a change. This area is tillable and will allow my hubby to plant an early spring crop in the soil.

My DH suggests starting a new bed every three to four years. There are 225 plants of the June bearing All Stars variety in this new location. We like the June bearing fruit better than the ever bearing varieties. June is a high production crop and tastier, or so we think.

Healthy plants which are connected to the mother plant and ready for transplanting. We call them runners.

This photo shows the small plants that are called runners from the large mother plants. My DH digs them up carefully to re-plant in the new bed.

Garden Tip: When transplanting, do not bury the heart of the plant and be sure the roots are healthy.

The new strawberry bed

We have a straw path down the center of the bed so it is easy to reach all the plants for picking the fruit. The old bed spread runners into the moist straw allowing a great place for the runners to thrive.

Stay tuned for the results next June. Lip smacking, juicy strawberries. Mmmmm.....

Fall is Here in Michigan..Time for Pumpkins and Squash

2011-09-10T16:30:00.000-04:00

Our pumpkin vines got the powdery mildew early this year and began dying off sooner than usual. My DH picked the pumpkins although not completely orange. But as you can see from the photo, the pumpkins are getting orange.

Notice the two outer pumpkins lying on their sides. They do not have bottoms. Our kindergarten grandson brought it home from school last spring, so we planted it in the garden. These football shaped "pumpkins" are the result. We do not know the variety, but it certainly does not make good jack-o-lantern "punkins"!

If you look closely at the pumpkin on the left, you will see how my DH carved our granddaughter's name in it early in the season. As the pumpkin grows, the name stretches larger. It turned out very well this year.

Here is a close-up of Aubrey's pumpkin

Last year we had way too many pumpkins, so my DH removed some to allow the fruit to get the nutrients and grow bigger. Well, we just barely had five for our five grandkids. Guess he won't get so culling happy next year. Whew!

County Fair Time

2011-09-06T16:14:00.000-04:00

Did anyone enter their veggies into your county fair this year? We didn't, but we still went to see the animals and the veggies. Outstanding entries this year. So many unusual projects and amazing photos seemed to appear this year.

The fair is a wonderful place for kids to showcase their talents and to learn about showmanship. The lessons learned here will be with them for a lifetime.

One of the monster trucks at the fair.

Artists painted doors and they were auctioned off for charity.

I love this chicken.. Really striking colors. Doesn't show up too well here.

This girl was so proud of her chicken and allowed us to pet it. I'd never heard of petting a chicken!!

Horse barn

Of course I HAD to add this photo of the veggies. Lookin' good.

Saving Seeds

2011-08-21T22:23:00.000-04:00

Saving seeds is an old tradition handed down from our earliest forefathers to preserve the best seeds for generations. Saved seeds are the strongest ones from the best plants in your garden..perhaps the biggest, the tastiest, the healthiest, the prettiest...I don't know about that one!

This practice can save you money since you need not purchase the seed packs. And you have experience with growing this vegetable in your own garden..a track record of sorts, so you know what to expect from it next year, especially if you keep a garden journal.

We love picking off the seed pods and showing our grandchildren all the seeds packed in there. Their eyes open wide with wonder. Even I am in amazement that a little seed can produce abundant food for us. Seeds truly are a miracle you can watch in progress.

For information about seed saving go to Urban Farm Online article or pick up their latest magazine issue of Urban Farm .

Growing Tomatoes

2011-08-13T16:41:00.003-04:00

Dearborn, Michigan--I snapped a picture of this painting hanging in the Henry Ford Museum Michigan Room which houses snacks and lunch.

Tomatoes? We've got 'em! Don't you know those cherry tomatoes produce abundantly? Pop them in your mouth for a surprising burst of flavor. My DH snaps them off the vines for a snack as he waters the garden.

We have Early Girl, Champion, Crista, and Roma tomato plants. And they are all producing now for an outrageous harvest of red fruit (or is it a vegetable? LOL the perennial question)

My DH loves sliced tomatoes covered in sugar. He can also eat them like an apple fresh picked from the vine. I prefer a tomato on a sandwich or in a salad.

So far no signs of blight or fungus. Keep your fingers crossed.

Gardening tip: To prevent fungus, do not overwater plants. It's best to water in the mornings so the air dries the leaves during the day.

If you have problems with your tomato crop click on the Tomato Problem Solver, find the picture with your tomato problem and learn how to deal with it.

Recipe--Zucchini Casserole

2011-08-07T11:11:00.005-04:00

Aha! another recipe to use up your zucchini. This is from my sister-in-law Maragaret.

ZUCCHINICASSEROLE--Margaret

Line9 x 13 pan with 1 pkg crescent roll dough

Saute for 10 mins

4c. thin sliced zucchini

1c. chopped onions

1/2c butter

Mixand add to saute vegs.

2Tbls. parsley flakes

1/4tsp basil

1/2tsp oregano

1/2tsp salt

1/4tsp pepper

1/2tsp garlic

2c shredded mozzarella or munster pizza cheese

2eggs beaten

Bake@ 375 for 18-20 mins.

Raccoon Raid the Garden

2011-07-28T15:17:00.001-04:00

No, don't you dare say, "Oh how cute, a little raccoon." Raccoons are not cute. Not after they raided our sweet corn two nights ago. They ransacked the ready-to-eat ears of corn gorging themselves on at least 15 -20. My DH was shocked. We have never had raccoon in our garden, although we are now getting reports of the critters in other folks' gardens this season. We even have an electric fence adjusted to stop rabbits that didn't seem to phase these hungry pests.

Deer, chipmunks, and bunny rabbits are not cute anymore either. LOL...not when they are varmints in our garden and stealing and ruining our food.

There are some suggestions in a post on Critters Keep Away to help control varmints in your garden. Raccoon wasn't even on my radar at the time I wrote it. I ask in that post from two years ago, how do you keep the critters out of your garden and I am asking again today--"What can we do?"

I would truly appreciate your input on this.

Zucchini Time Again

2011-07-24T00:02:00.000-04:00

Zucchini time again

Run for the hills. It's zucchini time again. This is the time of year your neighbors will run for the hills to escape your "kindness and generosity" giving them tons of zucchini...

Whether it's in a stir fry, fritter, or cake, zucchini takes on the flavor of the dishes you prepare. Oh yes, it does. We fooled my friend's husband who hates zucchini by making him a mock apple pie from zucchini slices. Of course flavored with the cinnamon, sugar, butter, and surrouned by a rich tasty crust, he thought he was eating the "best apple pie" he ever tasted. We had to tell him it was zucchini because we burst out laughing when he made that declaration.

Zucchini is a versatile veggie and good for you too.

Not All Beans are Green

2011-07-19T00:48:00.000-04:00

Here are green beans, plus purple and yellow beans in the green bowl. Peas in the yellow bowl.

Green beans. But not all beans are green. We enjoy growing the yellow and purple beans too. Purple? Yes! They are tender and tasty. When they are cooked, they turn green. The kids love to see this. Try them next year if you haven't already.

Bean plants picked clean

This year we have not had the normal bean production. It may be due to the long, wet cool spring we experienced. But I'm happy we have a mess today.

Easy Recipe: We cook up a pot of beans with bacon end pieces, onions, and potatoes (new potatoes if you have some). Sometimes we use ham or sausage instead of bacon. Mighty good summer eatin'.

Sweet Corn is Ready!

2011-07-16T11:31:00.003-04:00

July 16, 2011--first pick of the season

Mmmm...sweet corn is ready. One of the best times of the gardening year, I think. We've watched over the corn all this time waiting and waiting for the first picking. Today, July 16, 2011, is the day! This is all yellow corn, Northern Extra Sweet. One of the tastiest we think. My mouth is watering just thinking about what's going to be on the menu tonight....

Three plantings of corn

This photo shows how my DH spaces the corn harvest. He has three plantings here.

Tip: Be sure to check the back of the corn seed package to find out how many days it will take for corn to be ready to eat...then figure out your timing for the next planting and the next, depending on your growing season.

Garden Fun for Kids--Square Cucumbers

2011-07-12T15:53:00.000-04:00

I was strolling through the garden one morning when I glanced over at the cucumber patch.

I spotted something strange in among the cucumbers and vines.

Upon closer examination, I discovered it was a wooden box.

I knew my grandsons and DH had been up to their fun experiments in the garden. They built several boxes to house cucumbers. As the cukes grow, they take on the shape of a box, so we can have square cucumbers.

After a week, the boys picked the cukes from the vine and removed the boxes. Sure enough, no more cukes rolling off the table!!

Flower Garden Tour

2011-07-08T13:19:00.001-04:00

Our church sponsors a garden tour every summer. Knowing you all love vegetable gardening, I imagine you also like flowers. I wish these photos could truly represent the beauty when standing in these gardens and yardscapes. Here are a few of the sites you will see if you take the tour on Sat, July 9. 2011 from 9 am-3pm. Tickets available for the tour and the salad luncheon at the church, Fremont UMC, Butterfield Rd, Fremont, Michigan.

Founding Fathers were Gardeners Too

2011-07-04T18:00:00.001-04:00

Our founding fathers,Washington, Adams, Jefferson, and Madison operated farms and believed agriculture was the noblest occupation and important for the foundation of democracy. They were passionate about gardening and all things plants. Even while building a new nation, their interests in horticulture continued.

Founding Gardeners reveals these men as farmers and plant lovers. History and gardening combined in one interesting book.

Keeping Garden Records

2011-06-22T02:31:00.000-04:00

This is the drawing of our garden from Plangarden.

My husband has always been a garden record keeper on all the seeds and plants he buysfor the garden. This year he discovered the Plangarden software. It allows himto keep track of when he starts seeds indoors, transplants, and harvests. Thisinformation is very handy for next year’s planning of the garden. The drawinghe originally made of the garden has undergone much tweaking and re-vamping. Itis a continuous process throughout the season. I hope you can read the drawing as it looks today. If you have a question about our garden, please ask in the comments section.

For information on Plangarden,click on the photo on the right side of the page.

Watering Your Garden

2011-06-18T00:31:00.012-04:00

With all the storms and floods this season, we can hardlyimagine a dry time. But you know there will be times when the plants needthorough watering this year by you, the gardeners. Here are a few tips on thebest watering practices.

When planning your garden, be sure a water source is nearby. You do not want to fill then drag buckets of water around the garden.

Morning is the best time of day to water. This gives the leaves time to dry. Wet leaves are prone to disease. It also allows some extra strength for the plants to endure the heat of the sun and dry air during the day. Do not water during the middle of the day because water will evaporate. If you have to water in the evening, then do it as early as possible.

Water the soil around the plant instead of spraying fromabove. Water on the leaves can lead to a perfect habitat for fungal disease.( Earlyand late blight is a definite possibility in some areas of the countryexperiencing so much water from the storms and flooding this spring. ( See mypost on late blight.).

Water deeply rather than watering a little bit each time..When watering the soil thoroughly the roots will grow deeper into the soiloffering a good anchor and opportunity for slurping up the nutrients. You willnot have to water as often. If you have a container garden, be sure to alwayscheck before watering by sticking your finger into the soil. It should be moistat least up to your first knuckle.

Notice the white PVC pipes. Spaghetti-like tubes radiate from the pipe and directed toward a plant for direct watering.

If you have a large garden, you may already have added awatering system such as drip irrigation. The water flows through a pipe with holes or soaker hose and directly seeps around the plants. Simply turn on the faucet andlet the water run. No more holding onto the end of the hose. Go have your icedtea in the shade, come back, and the watering will be done!

Savoring Strawberries

2011-06-15T13:30:00.000-04:00

Today my DH brought in twelve pounds of beautiful, ripe June bearing strawberries from our patch on the east end of the garden. Our grandsons are here today, so we quickly dispatched about 10 lbs in hungry tummies! No, not really. The 10-year old said that was the best breakfast he ever had…angel food cake and strawberries.

Gardening Tip: To save your berries from hungry birds, place netting over the plants.

The bounty from this morning's harvest--3 pails of strawberries, lettuce, and first cabbage.

In the poll on why you garden many of you voted for the enjoyment. Gardeners receive many blessings from gardening…the wonder of a growing plant, the fun of digging in the dirt, the nurturing, and finally the product. But I think sharing your fruit or vegetable with friends and neighbors is a worthwhile reward too. Seeing our grandsons’ faces light up with that first, delightful bite of strawberries is worth all the labor in the garden.

FREE Recipe Collection for You

2011-06-03T09:15:00.000-04:00

Hello Gardeners!

I am so excited to offer you this FREE collection of recipes from The Garden of Eatin' blog and a few new ones too. You know how I bring you recipes to try during the season, so I decided to put them together in this collection. I also included some of my own photos to accompany the recipes.

You may be wondering who is Gloria Hart? You'll have to email me for the e-book collection to find out!
Please email me at janetglaser@yahoo.com and I will send you the collection. Or you can go to Ginger Simpson's Dishin' It Out blog to meet Gloria who has all the info on this collection. J Q Rose is my pen name. Have fun with this post!

I hope these recipes will make a great addition to your family meals.

If you have a favorite recipe, please send it in. I can use it on the blog and it may be included in next year's collection.

Thanks so much for reading this garden blog. The recipe collection is my appreciation gift to you. Please leave a comment or question at any time.

Potato Plants are Taking Off in the Garden

2011-06-02T11:16:00.052-04:00

I was amazed when my DH showed me the difference between the potato plants he still had in a pack and the potatoes in the garden. Just look at this!

Compare the size of the potato plants in the garden and those in the pack!

Both of these plants were started from seed on April 24. The seedlings were planted in the garden on May 22. Just look at what that great soil and space did to grow these potato plants to this size. This is an excellent lesson on the importance of your plants having room to grow, isn't it?

This also demonstrates how garden soil really makes a top performing plant. This is one of my pet peeves..gardeners who plant beautiful plants taking care to water and weed, but do not worry about what kind of soil is available for the roots. Adding amendments to your soil with manure and compost can make such a difference in your gardening success.

Our potato patch this year has four varieties....good ole Red Pontiac, Austrian fingerlings (a new one for us), Yukon Gold, and German Butter. I love the golden potatoes because when you prepare it for dinner, it looks like you have a LOT of butter on the potato when you really don't. Mmm..so good.

Can't wait to dig those taters!

Today's Spring Garden May 23, 2011

2011-05-23T14:47:00.053-04:00

Spring gardens..so full of hope and delight to watch the new plants sprout and grow.

There's a"spring" in my DH step these days. So far....no evidence of varmints in the garden. He strung up an electric fence to keep creatures out of the garden, so it must be working. He's a very happy man!

He should be. Look at how beautiful the plants are right now. (not to mention the lilac bush at the east end of the garden.) The lush strawberry bed is blooming right at the foot of the bush.

We are eating lettuce from our garden now in delicious fresh salads of romaine and deer tongue varieties. These plants were started in Florida and brought back to Michigan. We discovered this winter in Florida how well they tolerate cold temps.

The broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower plants are looking great too.

I am amazed at how tall the corn is already. Of course, we cheated and started the plants in the greenhouse to give them a headstart. One more planting still in the greenhouse, then the third and fourth plantings will be seeds planted directly into the garden because the soil should be warm in a couple of weeks to germinate the seeds.

Without the greenhouse we couldn't have the advanced plants we do now. We have suffered some cold weather, but the little plants were kept safe and warm in the greenhouse. Check out the greenhouse on the right side of the page.

New Gardeners Take Note: The weather forecaster is your best friend. Always keep your eye out for frost/freeze warnings so you can take action to prevent damage to all your hard work.

I know many of you folks farther south are enjoying your gardens already. Our friends in Florida are winding up their gardening until cool weather arrives in the fall. So though we are all in varying stages of growing season, we all understand the joy of gardening.

As I write this, I think of those people who have lost their homes, gardens, businesses, and livelihood due to the horrendous tornadoes and flooding this spring. They are in my thoughts and prayers.

Recipe--Grilled Asparagus

2011-05-18T05:00:00.000-04:00

Spring time is asparagus time in Michigan. We don't have asparagus in our garden mostly because we are in the middle of asparagus growing farms. Just had the first fresh asparagus from a local farm this weekend. And I must say, it was deeelicious. Here's the recipe the farmer suggested we try--

Grilled Asparagus

Roll asparagus spears in olive oil. Place on the heated grill. Salt and pepper. Turn after 3 minutes. Depending on thickness of spears, keep turning and check until cooked to your preference.

Another recipe from the farmer is to toss raw asparagus in Italian dressing or lemon juice/olive oil dressing on a medium hot barbecue grill for about 15 minutes. Closing the lid takes less cooking time. Roll the spears around like hot dogs.

Look for my FREE Garden of Eatin' Recipe Collection in an e-book coming soon!

Plant a Row for the Hungry

2011-05-11T10:53:00.000-04:00

I know you are getting geared up to get that garden planted. This year, you may want to plant a row for your family plus plant a row for the hungry. When you have extra produce, instead of letting it go to waste, pick the veggies and give them to your local food pantry. By planting an extra tomato plant or zucchini or an extra row of beans, you will be assured to have more than enough food for your family and can share the extra with those in need.

Tip Sheets for Vegetable Gardens

2011-05-09T00:06:00.000-04:00

The Michigan Cooperative Extension Service offers all kinds of information for the home gardener. Click on the MSU website for tip sheets from getting started in gardening to help with growing veggies from asparagus to zucchini. Michigan gardens are in zones 4 and 5, so anyone in those zones could enjoy this excellent information.

Each state has their own extension service. Click on the website of the USDA to find your local extension office.

Treat Mom to a Garden Basket for Mother's Day

2011-05-06T11:17:00.003-04:00

Here are a few ideas for the Mom who loves to garden. Purchase these ready-made items or put together your own concoction of things she needs to grow a lovely vegetable or flower garden. Some ideas are garden gloves, seeds, gardening book, gift certificate to her favorite garden center, and perhaps a bottle of pain reliever to help her sore, aching back. Hmmm...how about a certificate from YOU to help plant and/or weed the garden??

Where is Spring?

2011-05-03T16:12:00.015-04:00

Spring attraction!

Still waiting for spring in Michigan, but while we are waiting my DH has added new compost to the garden, transplanted wandering strawberry plants from outside the bed back into the proper location. I see little green sprouts brave enough to show themselves in all the cold weather. Frosty night possible again tonight. Be strong, little plants!! Brrrrrrrrrrr...Onions started in FL and transplanted in MI are not coming up. Too wet and cold he thinks.

I took time to study the poll on why do you garden located on the right side of the page...100% voted for personal satisfaction. I think that is an excellent reason to garden. How satisfying it is to bring a little seed or plant to mature into a delicious morsel to share with the family. I still can't get over this miracle even after gardening for so many years.

Check out the poll and see how the voting turned out whether you participated or not. It is eye-opening to me. I bet there are other reasons to garden. Leave a comment if you have another one.

Plant Seeds on Toilet Paper

2011-05-02T16:34:00.005-04:00

I know it sounds ridiculous to say to plant seeds on toilet paper, but---That is exactly what my DH has been doing this year. He tried newspaper last year, first gluing them to the news, then burying them in the ground. The paper was too thick. So, ingenious person that he is, he tried toilet paper and has had great success. To save you time, your back, and remove the possibility of spilling those tiny seeds out of the packet, try this method.

This is our first attempt at making a garden tip video. We would like feedback on it if you are willing to comment. Enjoy.

Buying Seeds for the Garden

2011-04-27T00:22:00.002-04:00

Miracles of seeds...a tiny plant pushes through the soil.

We made our annual spring trip to DeBruyn Seeds in Zeeland, Michigan to buy the seeds for our garden. We like DeBruyn because he has a huge variety of seeds in bulk. Picking out seeds here is like going to a candy store for kids. So many delights.

I have included the seed varieties we are planting in the garden this year. Do you have a favorite place to buy seeds? What seed varieties do you favor for your garden? Leave your answer in the comment section. Thank you.

SEED VARIETY

BASIL LARGE LEAF

BEAN JADE

BEAN POLE KENTUCKY BLUE

BEAN PURPLE

BEAN YELLOW CARSON

BEETS RUBY QUEEN

BROCCOLI PACKMAN

CABBAGE EARLY GOLDEN ACRE

CABBAGE EARLY WAKEFIELD

CABBAGE RED

CAULIFLOWER SELF BLANCHE

CORN SWEET N. XTRA SWEET

INOCULANT

KOHLRABI

LETTUCE BUTTERCRUNCH

LETTUCE PARIS ISLAND ROMAINE

MUSKMELON ATHENA

ONION WHITE

ONION PLANTS WHITE

ONION SWEET DELITE

OREGANO

PEAS OREGAN GIANT

PEAS SUGAR DADDY

POTATO AUSTREIAN CRESENT

PUMPKIN HOWDIN FIELD

RADISH RED CHERRY

SPINACH TYEE

SQUASH BUTTERNUT AVALON HYB

TOMATO SWEET 100

WATERMELON SEEDLESS

WHITE ONION SETS

YELLOW ONION SETS

ZUCCHINI BUSH

ZUCCHINI YELLOW PROLIFIC STRAIT

Time for the Greenhouse

2011-04-25T00:02:00.002-04:00

Spring in Michigan..My DH put the greenhouse up. He is roarin' to get out and garden, but do you see those snowflakes falling in this picture? Oh yes, the snow fell even harder later on Tuesday/Wednesday.

Snow, snow, go away. We want to garden, dig, and play.

The bathroom is now the official growing/holding chamber till the plants are moved to the greenhouse. These are the plants my DH started in FL and yes, we hauled them all the way home in the back of our pick-up truck. They don't look any worse for wear, but really need a good dose of sunlight.

Check out the video to the right of the page on how my DH builds his greenhouse. If you have questions, please ask in the comments.

Happy Easter, Happy Spring

2011-04-24T01:34:00.003-04:00

Happy Easter, Happy Spring

Wishing you Easter blessings, sunshine, love and joy this spring season and all year!

Video--How to Start a Vegetable Garden from Howcast

2011-04-23T00:05:00.001-04:00

This video has lots of quick information if you are beginning vegetable gardener or an experienced one. I learned to leave the top of a fence unsupported so a varmint can't climb it due to his weight. Interesting. Hmm...what about digging under it?

Hope you enjoy this entertaining video. Have questions? Please ask.

Earth Day 2011 is April 22

2011-04-22T12:05:00.001-04:00

I believe gardeners have a kinship with the earth and want to do all we can to sustain it. Earth Day was founded by Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson on April 22, 1970 as a teach-in. This is considered to be the beginning of the conservation movement. The day is observed to create awareness about the destruction of our natural environment and a call to take action to care for our air, water, and vegetation. Many groups emphasize the need for re-cycling and promote community events for recycling.

The Nature Conservancy is promoting a Picnic for the Planet on Earth Day. Join thousands of people around the world by choosing healthy foods for your outdoor picnic.

Heading North

2011-04-12T22:38:00.000-04:00

We leave tomorrow for the northern regions. We've had a wonderful time in Florida this winter and a very successful growing season. Check out my previous posts on this garden.

I love Florida in the winter. It is a great place to be to escape the snow and blizzards of the north country. But I am so ready to return home for kisses and hugs. Emails, Facebook and phone calls, not into texting yet, will never replace the actual touch, smell, and loving embrace of my family.
My DH has the back of the blue Dodge truck, named Big Blue, packed with eight flats of vegetable plants..all cold tolerant e.g. cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and more...all ready to share with his brother and our grandson for their gardens.

Spring is such an exciting, hopeful time. Go out and enjoy!

Garden Publisher: Timber Press

2011-04-10T01:26:00.001-04:00

If you need a book on gardening, ornamental and edible horticulture, sustainabiltiy and more, Timber Press probably has a book on that topic. Located in the Pacific northwest, this publishing house covers a lot of information for gardeners in all four corners of the US, Canada, and the UK.

The gorgeous photography in the books of this premier gardening publisher is breathtaking. Check the page where the subjects of the books are listed. I am sure you will find one book out of the 431 published books that will interest you. The categories help you decide which one or more to choose on a topic.

Happy Reading!

A Visit to a Florida Hydro Vegetable Farm

2011-04-07T15:40:00.000-04:00

We visited the Hydro Harvest Farm in Ruskin, Florida, recently. It is an amazing sight to see this unique growing operation on one acre producing veggies that would normally take six acres. The plants are grown in styrofoam containers stacked six high on a pole and watered through a piping system over the top. Enough water has to be delivered to each stack in order to flow through the top container all the way to the bottom. Of course it is all automated, so no standing around with a hose in the farmer's hand all day. The plants are grown in a mixture of vermiculite and perlite, no dirt..soil.

Hydro Harvest Farm sells the home-grown vegetables in their farm market. The prices are understandably a little higher than in grocery stores, but are called organic. People seem to want to buy the products because this is the fifth year for the growing operation whose season is from October-June in Florida.

You're invited to check out my attempt at entertaining you with this movie I made of our visit. Enjoy.

Starting Seeds? Here's a Unique Idea...

2011-04-03T12:04:00.001-04:00

Little miracles inside these seeds.

It's that time again. Start those seeds for your garden.

My fellow blogging friend, Celia Leaman, and avid gardener shares her unique idea for starting her seeds-Wishing to start some seeds, and lacking a dedicated bottom heater, I had the brilliant idea of sowing the seeds in trays, placing them in a shallow box lid and encasing the whole thing in a large polythene bag which I slid into one side of our large king bed. My husband being away, I kept them there for a day or two, the heater turned on low. I slept in the other side! So warm and cosy, those seeds germinated in no time!

Celia's idea for sprouting seeds is very creative. Check out this previous post on how my DH sprouted seeds too.

Do you have a tip on germinating your seeds? Please let us know your secret...

Celia and I post blogs at Women Etcetera and you can too. It is a group dedicated to women over 50. The blogs are inspirational, poignant, funny, thoughtful, and sometimes controversial. Come join us. Learn more about this wonderful group of women whose "diverse pasts have brought us to this point--our mutual desires, wisdom to share, and hope for the future bring us together." Check out this site. You may want to sign up to join a local group in your area or to blog along with us.

April Fool's Day

2011-04-01T05:11:00.026-04:00

http://www/I bet you thought you were going to read a blog about gardening. Not today--it's April Fool's Day so I am tricking you into discovering another part of my life. I am an author writing as J. Q. Rose. My mystery/light horror e-book, Sunshine Boulevard was released March 1. Go to the J. Q. Rose website to find out more about me and the e-book.

E-books are the newest technology and are turning the publishing world upside down. There are so many positives for e-books--saving trees, no return fees, cheaper than print books, storage space not necessary (Kindle holds 1000 titles), and some day kids won't have to haul heavy books in their back packs. I love my kindle. You don't need a special e-reader or phone, etc to read an e-book. Just download it to your computer and read it there.

So, did I fool you?

Rain Rain Don't Go Away

2011-03-29T13:25:00.000-04:00

One of the delicious salads we enjoyed from our Florida garden this winter.

Yesterday, Monday March 28, the Heavens opened and forgot to close. It rained all day long and not just sprinkles here. Downpours. All day. Three inches of rain! The retention pond behind our house was full to the brim. I have never seen that and this is our fifth winter in this location.

Of course, being Florida in the winter time, we really needed a good soaking. I'm just not sure how much actually soaks in when it comes down so hard and heavy.

Soon my DH will begin tearing out the garden as we will be moving back north. He will need to prepare this one for summer. Funny how we have to adjust our thinking from northern gardening to southern gardening and back again. He is living his dream of gardening twelve months out of the year.

I must say this has been a good winter garden. We have enjoyed cabbage, broccoli, lettuce, onions, radishes, and a large harvest of the sweetest peas we've ever had.--yes, including the northern peas.

When we return to the north country in April my DH starts all over again. He already has seeds started for the northern garden. Stay tuned....

Why Do You Garden?

2011-03-25T06:25:00.003-04:00

I imagine the number 1 answer to the question, "Why do you garden?" would be because you like fresh vegetables! There is nothing sweeter than a sweet pea from your own garden or a stir fry of veggies you harvested from your garden plot.

In this day and age, I'm sure saving money is an answer high on the list. We really DO save a substantial amount of money and we have the records to prove it.

The emphasis on going green and sustainable farming has driven many families to gardening. Maybe you don't realize it, but gardening is good for your health both physically and emotionally. Weeding, roto-tilling, planting, and harvesting gives your body a work out. And no gym fees to pay!

I like to think the just good fun and satisfaction is a strong force in deciding to put our sweat and time into a garden plot.

From my other posts, you probably realize I believe a gardener is a dreamer, an optimist, and a hard worker. So personality also comes in to whether a person gardens or not.

There is a poll on the right side of the page. Please vote for a reason why you garden. If you don't see your choice, please put it in a comment. This is definitely an unscientific poll, but it will be an interesting one! Thank you.

Vegetable Garden with Four Season Planning

2011-03-22T13:02:00.000-04:00

I know you are dreaming and planning your garden whether just in your head, on paper, or on the computer with the Plan Garden site. (click on the photo of the woman gardener to learn more about Plangarden.)

A garden needs to be organized. Here are a few things to remember during your planning stage.

1. Determine the size and location, preferably with 6-8 hours of sun a day with water nearby for watering the plants. The Plangarden helps you determine how much space you have for each vegetable crop. It is so easy to buy too many seeds or plants for the space you have available. Planning helps you in this category.

2. Decide which way to plant the rows in your garden.

3. Remember to save room for a path or paths through the garden in order to water, fertilize, weed, etc.

4. Select areas for planting for the seasons. It is best to plant those veggies you will harvest in spring in a group. For example, plant lettuce, peas, green onions, radishes together for spring harvesting. In another section plant beans, cucumbers, eggplant, peppers, squash, and tomatoes for summer harvest, and broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, spinach, lettuce or cool weather crops for fall gathering.

5. To efficiently use the garden area, it is possible to "double-crop" the section. When the spring plants are depleted, re-plant the section with another group of plants for late summer or fall harvest time. See how grouping the seasonal plants together allows this extra perk?

6. Another advantage of planting with the season of harvest in mind helps you clear out a section to re-plant or to clean up for the winter. So instead of planting the cole crops like cabbage and broccoli which like the cold weather on the opposite ends of the garden, plant them with the fall harvest crops like pumpkins and winter squash.

7. You may live in an area where it is possible to keep root crops such as parsnips and turnips in the ground longer for a winter crop. Be sure to keep these vegetables planted in the same area so you can clean up and prepare the rest of the garden for winter.

Think first about the harvest times for your vegetables and group them accordingly in your garden. With some pre-planning, you can eat fresh all year.

Vegetable Garden View--Florida Garden

2011-03-15T19:56:00.000-04:00

Close up of beets, cabbages, lettuce in our Florida garden

Here are the latest photos of our Florida vegetable garden. We have an abundance of lettuces, beets, and cabbage shown here.

Notice the tall broccoli spear in the foreground of the photo. I thought my DH had really missed cutting this sprout, but he tells me he is letting it go to seed so he can collect the seeds for planting up north.

It has been a very cool winter in Florida. But this garden seems to have come through pretty well for us. We were amazed at how the lettuce leaves would actually freeze practically pure ice, then when the day warmed up, the lettuce would come back crispy. My DH placed pine needles under the lettuce plants. It really kept them much cleaner, no sand or dirt to speak of on the leaves when harvested.

One of the wonderful perks of having a garden--the joy of sharing the produce with friends.

EarthBoxes--a Boxful of Veggies

2011-03-13T15:01:00.002-04:00

Pennsylvania farmer Blake Whisenant developed this easy-to-use, easy-to-grow system capable of growing veggies in a small, self contained garden box, the Earthbox. Marketing the box since 1994, Whisenant's idea has been adapted by handy gardeners for their special circumstances.

According to Leigh Spann, News Channel 8, Tampa, FL, a water reservoir at the bottom of the box keeps the soil damp. There is no watering from the top so there is less evaporation.

If you are getting anxious to get your plants outdoors, but the weather isn't cooperating, plant them in the box to give them a headstart on the growing season.

If you have no area for gardening, but want fresh vegetables out your kitchen door, the Earthbox could be the answer for you.

Book Review: Eating Local: The Cookbook Inspired by America's Farmers

2011-03-11T18:28:00.000-05:00

Eating Local: The Cookbook Inspired by America's Farmers by Janet Fletcher certainly applies to the vegetable gardener gathering their fresh produce right from their kitchen garden outside the back door. This beautiful book packed with 150 recipes and profiles of 10 farm families offering shares of food to consumers is filled with ideas for people who want to cook fresh food for their families. Luckily the recipes include familiar and unfamiliar vegetables to help the cook learn how to prepare various new dishes.
Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is a community coming together to support the local farmer by purchasing shares of food and sometimes volunteering to work for the farmer in growing, harvesting, and delivering the produce. The shares include seasonal produce such as herbs and fresh vegetables during the local growing season. This idea dates back to the 1880's but has had a re-birth with the interest in purchasing local and organic food at farmers' markets and local farms.

I recommend Eating Local: The Cookbook Inspired by America's Farmers for you, my dear readers, because the variety of veggies are amazing and the recipes will be fun to prepare and to test for your family's taste.

Plangarden--a Tool for Vegetable Gardeners

2011-03-08T15:01:00.001-05:00

This is the time of year to get your vegetable garden planned out. You have time to think about it and play with ideas. I know you have been drooling over seed catalogs and ordering seeds..LOL..With Plan Garden you can play with how you want to set up your garden. Instead of graph paper and pencil, you can use beautiful graphics and measurements to design the exact garden you want. Perhaps you are wondering how much more room you need if you add more pumpkins or tomato plants this year. It's easy to figure it out with this tool before you have to start preparing your extra plot.

Not only does Plangarden help design your garden, it provides a journal/blog to keep track of your progress and the ability share your garden online for others to see. My DH is having a blast, once he learned the program through the tutorials. He is designing all kinds of gardens with so many possibilities.

If you are interested in this fun program available on the web, no need to download to your computer, click on the picture below or at the right side of the screen. Let me know how it works for you.

Time for Fun

2011-03-02T14:31:00.001-05:00

A real spider web at Disney World, Florida.

An early morning at Disney with the sunlight at just the right angle and this delicate spider web sparkled. I had to take a picture of this masterpiece of engineering. Compare this work to the Disney Park I believe the wonder of this web wins hands down.

We had a wonderful time with our daughter and her family. Disney was certainly a man of vision. There is no other business like it. They know how to merchandise and promote their items and to offer a magical stay there. It is fun to live in fantasy for a few days, but good to get home to the real world too.

Cinderella's castle at Disney World, Florida

Seed Starting

2011-02-28T19:50:00.001-05:00

In this photo my DH placed the seeds on a wet paper towel and set them in a warm place to sprout.

Time to check the backs of your seed packages for seed starting time. Read the instructions on the back of each seed packet so will be able to transplant a strong healthy plant in the garden this spring.

Check my previous post on seed germination for helpful information for giving your seeds a good start. There are so many containers to use and methods of transplanting.

A video by Peaceful Valley is interesting, but definitely not the only way to start seeds. Watch it and you may find some interesting tips and of course feed your urge to get out the seeds and go...LOL..Be patient, you Northerners. You don't want to get too anxious and have the seeds indoors growing too large to transplant this spring. Yep, we've been there and done that!! Have fun!

Online Vegetable Garden Planner

2011-02-13T06:35:00.001-05:00

Skippy's Vegetable Garden blog has a lot of helpful information on vegetable gardening in Massachusetts. One of her tools is an Online Vegetable Planner. Just put in the date of your last spring frost, and the calendar figures out when to sew your seeds and direct plant them in the ground. This is a great guide for planning a fantastic garden this year.

Get Ready for Spring

2011-02-12T07:18:00.001-05:00

Can you get ready for spring now? Yes! I know you are antsy to get the spring weather here so you can get in the garden and dig. To help you take the edge off that frustration with the weather, here is a list of things you can do now to get ready for spring. Hope this helps!!

Dare We Think About Spring?

2011-02-11T09:15:00.000-05:00

I know you folks in the North country are not seeing signs of spring buried under all the snow...What a tough winter. (Of course my son-in-law loves it since he picks up extra cash with his snow plowing service.)

In Florida we have had a ton of rain, but the yards are beginning to green up....the weeds are loving it. We still are not reaching the normal average high temps, but low 60's are acceptable. Still cool nights in the 30' and 40's.

My DH started white, red and yellow onions. He planted them in the garden and will dig them up to take north with us for our Michigan garden. He also started green, red, purple, yellow and chocolate pepper plants in packs. (If only we could grow chocolate in our garden!!)

Although the weather may not look like spring will come, it will! Have you been looking at seed catalogues and drawing out your new and improved garden for the winter?? Time to plan and dream.

Cold Resistant Crops in the Florida Garden

2011-01-27T10:23:00.000-05:00

Sorry I haven't posted much on the Florida garden lately. That's because the cold, freezing nights are taking a toll on the garden. We have definitely learned to grow ONLY cold resistant crops. All the beans were bit, but we did manage to get twelve Jade green beans before they were completely done in. No beans next year.

We are amazed at how well the lettuce holds up. Of course my DH covers the garden on those cold nights. Usually Florida doesn't have the hard freezes lasting five hours or more. But not true this year! The lettuces have taken the freeze and actually are growing very well and producing tasty greens. We have romaine, Mighty Joe, Devil's Tongue, and a red bibb that are providing delicious salads for us.

Onions and radishes are producing. The beets are not growing very fast as you can imagine, but big enough to pull and eat. We have also enjoyed cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli...all cole crops and hardy in cold temps.

Our winter garden is not a bust this year, but we have learned only cold resistant crops are suitable for Florida winter gardens in our area.

Time to Plan Your Garden

2010-12-26T11:21:00.000-05:00

These long winter days are the perfect time to plan your garden. Time to dream about the possibilities of your spring plantings and summer and fall harvests. You will leaf through all kinds of seed catalogs, check out vegetable gardening books, and click on gardening websites to get new and fresh ideas and crop information. Dave's Garden has helpful information in a guide to gardening by mail, mail order gardening, garden books, and catalogs.

Dream on. Gardener's know that the next garden will be the best garden they ever planted!

Frosty Florida

2010-12-21T11:54:00.000-05:00

We've had several nights of frost and freezing temperatures. The blankets, sheets, and towels have been put to good use and are doing their job of keeping our veggies from freezing. I am amazed at the resilience of the lettuce and those young pea plants. We have had hard freezes which the weatherman defines as more than 3 hours of temps between 27 and 32 degrees. (Just a note: plastic should not be used to protect plants from freezing temperatures.)

We have given up planting tomatoes and peppers in our Florida garden. This winter is the prime reason. Oh yes, we are trying beans, green, yellow, purple, this year. Believe me they are covered with the thickest blanket we have and so far only some leaves are damaged. I still see blossoms on the stems. Of course we have a lot of winter to go here.

We are about 40 miles north of Tampa, not exactly a tropical climate here compared to southern Florida and the Keys. But we do enjoy not scooping snow, driving on ice, or blasts of blizzards. So I will refrain from whining about the freezing temps anymore and rejoice in the fact that we have beat Mother Nature's cold temps---so far.

Freezing Temperatures in Florida

2010-12-13T13:35:00.001-05:00

Brrrrr----------freezing temperatures and winter storms are all over the country this week. Even here in sunny Florida. (I am sure the Florida Chamber of Commerce doesn't want this word to get out..LOL) The next several nights are going to be in the 20's...a hard freeze warning for our area.

Our vegetable plants are cold hardy, but we have covered our cold weather garden. With these kinds of temperatures and for so many hours each night, we don't want to take a chance on losing the plants.

Tonight my DH has rigged up a tent over the garden and added a lamp under the covers to help generate heat. We hope this will keep away the chills.

I'll update you for the results later.

Season's Greetings

2010-12-01T13:02:00.000-05:00

Season's Greetings to One and All!

I never imagined that our home-grown cabbage and a pot of red poinsettias would be sitting on the table together as we enter the holiday season in December. My husband's dream has been to garden twelve months out of the year. This year I can say he has done that! The veggies in the bowl are from our Florida garden--spinach, cabbage, lettuces, kohlrabi, and broccoli. What a delight to have our own vegetables in the winter. Not only does it save money on the grocery bill, but it also provides fresh, healthy meals for us.

I am trying more recipes again and will give you a report on the results. I am planning to take the recipes from the blog, add some more favorites, and put them in a free recipe book to share with readers. Now if only I can figure out how to do that!! It will be in ebook format so you can print whichever recipe you want to try and there will be no postage to pay to get it to you. Do you have a favorite garden vegetable recipe you would like to share with the readers? You are welcome to send it along to include in the ebook.

Wishing for you all the true gifts of the season--hope, joy, love, and peace.

Thanksgiving Dinner 2010

2010-11-26T14:21:00.000-05:00

We thoroughly enjoyed ourThanksgiving dinner 2010 with our neighbors and their family. We traveled to Lake Tarpon, Anderson Park, near Tarpon Springs, FL on a gorgeous warm day. This was a Chamber of Commerce day because Florida's sun was shining, the air a comfy 82 degrees, and the flora and fauna were in high display.

Lucky are we there are so many great cooks in this family for they brought a variety of tasty dishes. Of course, I shared the bounty from our garden--three kinds of lettuces, green onions, and radishes in a salad full of veggies, raisins, cheese. We had smoked turkey, roast turkey, ham, and smoked venison and lots of pies. Deeee-licious!

Friendly, curious ducks swam by on several occasions while a couple of small alligators lounged in the waters. I think they had their eyes on the pet dogs on shore, not the turkey feast, but too lazy to come close.
It was a delightful, memorable day. Thank you Bartons!

Radishes, Lettuce, Onions, Oh My!

2010-11-19T08:26:00.000-05:00

Super salad with fresh grown veggies from our garden...radishes, lettuce, onions, and spinach. I added craisins and slivered almonds too. A refreshing lunch on this warm day in Florida. The lettuces are growing healthy, strong and lots of it. No rabbit problems lately...Hooray!

Toilet Paper and Beet Seeds

2010-11-09T14:11:00.000-05:00

Yes, this is Scott's toilet paper with beet seeds glued to it.

My ever resourceful DH is using toilet paper to plant beet seeds. He mixes flour and water in the cap of a gallon milk jug, lays out the TP on the table, dips the beet seed into the flour glue with tweezers and then sets the seed in a row. After they are glued on, he gently folds the paper over, digs a trench in the garden soil, and places the strip into the ground and covers.

This method of planting beets is certainly easier on the back and knees. He also plants radish seed this way now too. He experimented this summer in our Michigan garden using newspaper, but the little roots couldn't get through the newspaper. The TP is perfect for the roots to establish themselves.

My DH also mentioned that after the seed sprouts, remove extra sprouts in order to make a nice size beet.

Florida Garden Update Fall 2010

2010-10-29T14:17:00.000-04:00

I am happy to report that our Florida garden is growing very well. The plants that were a snack for the bunny are continuing to grow and look very healthy. Hmmm. maybe rabbit saliva is good for plants??

The garden consists of three raised beds each measuring 6' x 10'. In the foreground are the hardy, cold crops of Winner, Golden Acre, and Charmant cabbage, Gypsy broccoli, Snow Crown cauliflower, Early Vienna kohlrabi. My DH planted Red Derby lettuce and Romaine, Ruby Queen beets, and spinach.

In the background is a bed of plants which are not so cold hardy and can be covered when the frosts come this winter. And yes, nights get cold north of Tampa in December and January. Last year was a disaster. You can see the green, red, and purple bean plants looking so healthy now. The Crista tomato plants are taking a set back, so keep your fingers crossed. My DH also planted German radishes.

He reports that about half the garden is planted.

The weather has been very warm for a week into the 90's during the day and only cooling off to the low 70's at night. This is unusual weather for this time of year and has broken records for the high temps. Maybe that's why everything is looking good and popping up quickly.

Here we go again planting with high hopes for a successful growing and harvesting season.

Planting the Florida Winter Garden 2010-2011

2010-10-17T14:20:00.001-04:00

I have missed posting to this blog because we were on the road to Florida where we spend the winter. Endeavoring to keep my DH's dream of gardening twelve months of the year, he again started the plants for the FL garden while we were in Michigan this fall.

Cabbage, broccoli, lettuce plants ready for planting in FL Garden. Cover crop of perennial rye growing in the MI garden in the background.

The day after we arrived in FL, my DH put the plants in the ground. The soil in the garden is so improved after all the horse manure he dumped in before we left this spring. This is the third season for our FL garden. He brought the electric fence along to string around the garden after laboring on the small plot.

They snatched the heart of the Romaine lettuce right out of it.

Just as the rabbits in Michigan loved his plants, so it goes with the Florida rabbits. Not even the electrified fence stopped the hungry bunnies from eating the delicious broccoli and Romaine lettuce plants.

Rabbits munched on the broccoli plant.

DH added a fence, but again the bunnies got over or under the fence and around the electric fence to get their evening meal. He is going to raise the wire and try cayenne pepper to stave off the attack.

Do you, dear readers have any suggestions? Keep your fingers crossed...

Community Gardens

2010-10-03T16:56:00.002-04:00

More and more people are discovering the pleasure of gardening because of the opportunity to grow vegetables in a community garden. Gardeners enjoy harvesting, preparing, eating or preserving the fruits of their labor. Many gardens are planted to help feed the hungry. Often, low income people work the gardens too with the help of the experienced gardeners. It is fitting that we can share our knowledge and skills with others, because in this land of plenty, there is no excuse for people to have to go hungry or to be unhealthy.

The cost of fresh vegetables at the grocery store are out of the reach for those who are low-income or on a fixed income. Poverty can lead to obesity because moms can feed their families cheaply with the fast food value meal. If community gardens are established, they can provide healthy vegetables inexpensively when those income folks are taught how to garden and raise their own food.

I would like to share an article with you about the difference made in a community that operates a community garden. In this example folks pay $5. to become a member, then they work at the garden, and receive the delicious vegetables wrought from their labor.

Is anyone involved in such a community garden? How did you start it? What is your source of funds? Are you having success or failure? Are you interested in establishing a community garden? With just that small bit of hope and vision, great things can and DO happen.

2010-09-29T15:46:00.001-04:00

It's the end of the season for vegetable gardening and about time to button up the garden until spring. We still have some green tomatoes which we will pick, then wrap in newspapers to ripen. Broccoli and cabbage and lettuce will be good because they can stand the frost.

I wrote an article on End of Season Vegetable Gardening Tips for Life 123. I have no idea why it is formatted with capital letters starting each word...Not my formatting. Click here to read it. I hope it helps you put your garden to bed for the year.

Happy Fall Season

2010-09-22T10:46:00.000-04:00

This fall centerpiece is made of a pumpkin from our garden and pumpkins-on-a-stick grown from seeds our daughter collected last year from an arrangement at her workplace. We don't know the official name of the small pumpkin-like fruit, so we call them pumpkins-on-a-stick

Tonight at 11:09 pm is the official time Fall arrives. Of course Mother Nature doesn't always go according to our calendar...yesterday was 81 degrees in Michigan...more summerlike than fall...and another 80 degree is forecast for tomorrow.

Fall brings mixed feelings to gardeners...a sense of loss for food production, but a sense of joy that the work and responsibility for tending a garden is coming to an end. If the harvest has been preserved through canning or freezing, then winter days offer the opportunity to continue enjoying the fruits of the labor.

Wishing you all happy Fall season!

Plant Rye in Your Garden

2010-09-15T09:02:00.000-04:00

My DH planted rye last week in the garden. It will winter over and grow again in the spring. He will turn it under next spring to add nitrogen to the soil. Rye is such a fast grower. Plant it and it seems it pops up green in a couple of days. Try and plant it when you hear a shower is forecast so you won't have to water it in the ground.

A reliable weather man/woman is a gardener's best friend. Not only do they help you know when to water or not water, but also to alert you to when the first frost and killing frost will occur so that you can get your veggies in before losing them to the cold.

Rye in the foreground, broccoli on left and strawberry plants for next spring.

Rye. tomato plants, sunflowers weighed down with seeds

Pumpkins look lonesome in this corner of the garden.

Potato and Watermelon Harvesting with Grandpa

2010-08-31T11:00:00.001-04:00

You know how much work it is to dig up potatoes, then bend over to pick up the harvest. My DH has solved the problem and made it a lot of fun...Get the grandkids to do the work! Below are photos from harvesting the yellow German and Yukon potatoes and Red Pontiacs. The total on the potato yield is 125 pounds, a record for us. The potatoes are a good size and well-formed thanks to the new compost he has put on the garden the last couple years. Soil really does make a difference!

The watermelons are a favorite of our family. This year they were exceptionally nice and sweet. They ranged in size from 14 lbs - 25 lbs. What a refreshing treat on these hot summer days.

Very proud of his find.

Grandpa let each child pick out his watermelon in the summer, then carved their names in each one. The name became bigger as the watermelon grew.

It's more fun to get on your knees and pick up the dirty potatoes.

Lots of delicious watermelons for seed spittin'....

Fresh Sweet Corn Time is Over for Us

2010-08-23T09:19:00.000-04:00

My DH picked all the ears of sweet corn from our patch and pulled up the stalks. The garden looks so different without those stately plantings of tall corn with waving tassels. We froze the last 60 ears. We were pleased with our harvest of tasty corn this year.

If you want to try something different this year when freezing your corn, click here for a recipe.

The powdery mildew is on our squash leaves and cukes. Cukes are about done.

Sad time to see the garden in the end of the season, but already my DH is making plans for next year's garden. New varieties, size adjustments, rotation of crops. I love the gardener's never ending hope for a better garden next year.

Slimy Slugs Update

2010-08-15T08:50:00.000-04:00

Yes, we are still battling slugs, those voracious creatures that look like shell-less snails. Read my post Grudge Against Slugs, June 15.

In that post I reported that my DH sprayed the veggies with a mixture of water and ammonia receiving slight victory. It didn't last.

Last week my brother-in-law was here for a visit. Although he tried to drink all the beer he bought in the 24 case pack while here, he couldn't. I understand that after being cooled, beer is no good if it warms up and then re-cooled. So he left it for us....we, who are not beer drinkers...However, we discovered the slugs love, love, love it!

Ted put it out in the garden and immediately attracted herds of slugs. He is elated with the results.
We will definitely use this weapon next year for battling these disgusting pests.

County Fair Time

2010-08-10T14:10:00.000-04:00

The excitement in the air, the buzz in the fair goers, the delicious aroma of kettle corn and elephant ears...It must be county fair time!

Celebrating their 55th year, there are over 8000 exhibits at our 2010 Newaygo County Fair this year including FFA, 4-H, open youth and adult classes. In 1955 there were 800 exhibits and it was held on the high school grounds. The bus garage was the exhibit hall and the animals were housed in tents located on the football field. They have come a long way from the first fair with ups and downs along the way.

Of course this year I would call it an excellent year because our grandson, Corbin, entered vegetables into the fair. The state does not contribute to the fairs anymore so there are no paid premiums for entries, but it doesn't seem to matter. Kids and adults like earning their ribbons. I am proud to say Corbin won several blue ribbons on his veggies.

Picking out the veggies for the fair

Every year I am amazed at the talent on display in the exhibit barn. I also am thankful that there are volunteers, parents, family, and friends who take the time to work with these kids. A BIG thank you to all who make the County Fair a huge success!

Recipe: Freezing Sweet Corn

2010-08-03T13:45:00.000-04:00

Hooray! It's finally that time of year when sweet corn grows abundantly. If you can't eat all your harvest right now, freeze sweet corn for a taste of the garden in the winter. This year has been a fantastic growing season for us. We grew Northern Extra Sweet and How Sweet It Is. Both varieties are filling out the cob well and I can't decide which one I like better.

My girlfriend gave me the following recipe to add to your bags of corn before you freeze them.

FREEZING SWEET CORN ADD-IN

9 c. Corn (I blanch the corn for about 4-6 minutes, cool, and cut kernels off the cob.)

3 c. water

1/4 c. sugar

1 T. salt

Mix the water, sugar and salt together. Add a small amount to each bag, then freeze.

When cooking, dump the contents of the bag into a microwaveable bowl. Depending on your microwave and amount in the bowl, cook for about 3 minutes.

Deliciously sweet, sweet corn!

Tomato Bonanza

2010-07-30T17:11:00.001-04:00

Last year, tomatoes were hit by the blight, but this year we have had a perfect growing season producing a bonanza of tomatoes. Pictured above are the Crista tomato which came from our garden. We are pleased with this meaty tomato and selected it because of its disease resistance.

Brief History

Tomatoes were discovered in the Aztec culture about 500 BC. The Spanish explorers brought the plant which produced small yellowish tomatoes back to Europe where it became popular. In the 1590's the British believed it to be a poisonous fruit as it was a member of the poisonous nightshade family. But with the mingling of cultures, especially Italian, the tomato became a popular item on tables. Now tomatoes are developed for cooking, canning, shipping, fresh sliced, salads, etc. Next year you may want to try this new variety.

I hope you have plenty of tomatoes peeking out from your vines. What variety/varieties of tomatoes do you grow? What is your favorite and why?

Corbin's Cabbage

2010-07-22T16:35:00.001-04:00

Corbin deciding how to go about cutting the behemoth cabbage.

Today is the day Corbin cut his cabbage. On July 5 I posted about the cabbage growing contest sponsored by our local high school FFA (Future Farmers of America) and Bonnie plants. He (and all of the family) have been watching this cabbage take over the garden. It dwarfed our cabbages. Needless to say we were all excited to see the final product.

I have had readers interested in his project, so here is a photo of the nearly fourteen pound cabbage with its proud grower. Even if it doesn't win the contest, it was a lot of fun this summer with our grandson.

Recipe--Roasted Vegetable Sauce and Rigatoni

2010-07-18T15:34:00.002-04:00

It's that time of year when the garden produces quicker than you can pick. If you are enjoying a bonanza of produce, use this recipe to help you use all those zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes, and peppers in one large dish. This is easy especially if you can talk your DH into helping chop up the veggies. Enjoy!!

ROASTED VEGETABLE SAUCE WITH RIGATONI

3 c. zucchini, cut into 1-inch pieces

3 c. eggplant, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 med sweet onion, peeled, diced into 1-inch pieces

3 c. freshly sliced mushrooms

2 c. red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces (I used green and banana peppers as that is what is in our garden)

1/4 c. freshly chopped basil

1 T. fresh thyme leaves or 1 tsp dried

3 T. olive or walnut oil

2 T. balsamic vinegar

6 med red ripe tomatoes, washed, cored, and left whole

12 oz. rigatoni, cooked according to package directions

1/4 c. walnuts, toasted and chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

2 c. tomato sauce or favorite pasta sauce, optional

3/4 c. crumbled feta cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a large shallow sheet pan or jelly roll pan with parchment paper or use non-stick pan. (I used a pan covered with foil, then sprayed with cooking oil.) In a VERY large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. Sprinkle with the oil and vinegar and toss well to coat vegetables. Spread veggies on prepared pan. Place the tomatoes on a separate pan.

Bake the vegetables and tomatoes for 30 to 40 minutes, turning vegetables every 10 minutes or so to promote even cooking. After 30 minutes cut through the tomatoes with a sharp knife and fork to chop them up and add them to the pan with the other vegetables. Meanwhile, drain the cooked pasta and transfer to a warm serving dish. Toss with the roasted veggies and walnuts.

Serve garnished with crumbled feta cheese. (I used mozzarella and parmesan cheese and let my guests add the cheese to their serving.) If you would like more sauce, add the 2 cups pasta sauce. Makes 6 generous servings. (to me it looked like enough for 12 people!! especially if used as a side dish.)

This recipe is found in Carole Sutphen's inventive cookbook, There Must Be 50 Ways to Fix Your Zucchini (with apologies to Paul Simon).

Carole put this recipe book together with all proceeds going to the Fremont United Methodist Women's mission projects.

Cucumbers and Zucchini Galore

2010-07-16T15:26:00.000-04:00

The cucumbers and zucchini ramped up production big time this week. The hot humid weather and good rains have contributed to making a monster! In the last two days, my DH has picked 24 cucumbers. The zucchini, as usual this time of year, are turning from darling little green veggies to enormous baseball bat size in a matter of hours it seems...LOL.
I believe it is about time to celebrate the annual "Leave-Your-Zucchini-on-the-Neighbors'-Back-Porch Weekend."

Deer, Deer, Go Away

2010-07-10T17:29:00.001-04:00

At this moment, deer are not beautiful or graceful anymore to me. They are destroying our garden. They are as pest-like as having a colony of rats in the neighborhood. We started the garden with a small fence to keep out the rabbits this year as they were a problem in previous years. The rabbits have not appeared, so we thought all was going great until this infestation of deer began feasting on the garden. As the weeks wore on the height of the fence grew. Nothing helped. I guess our veggies are delicious.

Last week, DH put up deer fence netting seven feet tall attached to steel posts. The next morning, the netting was in shreds. These hungry creatures just went right through it. Not only do they eat the lettuce, strip the leaves from the scarlet runner beans, chomp on pepper plants, etc, they leave their droppings in the garden. (I don't know if you can say poop on the web...)

The next day Ted put up a fence of three feet of welded wire with four feet of chicken wire on top. I dislike the look of the fence as seen below in the picture, but that seemed to stop them finally. However they are now munching on our flowers. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr....

Fremont FFA Partners with Bonnie Plants Cabbage Contest

2010-07-05T14:29:00.001-04:00

The Fremont FFA (Future Farmers of America) of Fremont High School, Fremont, MI is partnering with Bonnie Plants and their "Bonnies Crazy Cabbage" program to supply third grade students across the state with an O. S. Cross cabbage plant. Students will be responsible for growing the plant throughout the summer. In August students from West Michigan will send their applications to the Fremont FFA and then the FFA will select third grade class winners and send the apps onto Bonnie Plants. One student from Michigan will be chosen to receive a $1000 scholarship from Bonnie Plants.

Needless to say our grandson, Corbin, is all gung-ho to grow the biggest cabbage and win this contest. Little did we know that this small cabbage plant in May would grow to be this monster in the garden. It makes the rest of the cabbages look like miniatures and it isn't done growing yet!

The literature that came with the contest states that the Giant Cabbage can grow to 40 pounds or larger. It is named O. S. Cross which stands for Oversized! Corbin is very proud of his cabbage, especially that it dwarfs the rest of the cabbages in the garden.

He will cut the cabbage in order to show it in the Newaygo County Fair Aug 7 and hopefully win a ribbon. Only size matters I guess since nothing is said about tasting the monster. I'll be anxious to test the flavor. Keep your fingers crossed for good weather and no pests!

Tree Take Down

2010-07-01T10:47:00.000-04:00

Ths morning my DH helped our neighbor take down a huge old tree that bordered our properties. The older neighbor gentleman was afraid a storm would take it down and cause damage. It needed to come down, but it is sad to see any tree chopped down. It did shade our garden on the east side and towered over a lovely lilac bush. Now with it gone, the garden is opened up to a lot more sunlight.

One of the major considerations when planting a garden is the availability of sunshine. Most garden vegetables like a lot of sun..at least eight hours a day. Always check the seed packages or information with your plants to find out the optimal placement in the garden to produce your finest veggies.

The garden is filling in with healthy plants. We are getting broccoli, cauliflower, cukes, zucchini now. Strawberries are done now.

As you can see, most of our garden is in a lot of sun. Next year even more sun on our strawberry beds after this tree take down. We will see the results next spring. It is exciting to get into this time of year when gardeners can reap the rewards of their labor.

Tomato Cages

2010-06-24T14:53:00.001-04:00

Tomato cages are used to cage tomato plants...Getting the plant off the ground and supporting it is the purpose for these cages so that the tomato will ripen beautifully instead of rotting on the ground. Indeterminate plants grow all over the place, so this caging helps to keep them in one spot as well as produce beautiful fruit. These supportive structures sometimes need to be staked in case of high winds.

We take 4' x 6' sheets of concrete re-enforcement wire and bend it into a circle to make the cage. The cost for this cage is about $5.00 and can be used again every year.

It's Summertime

2010-06-21T21:59:00.001-04:00

There's nothing better to cool you off in the summer time than a delicious, cold watermelon.

The first day of summer and I picked our first cucumber. It's a refreshing treat on a warm day.

For supper tonight we had cole slaw and chef salad and cauliflower with cheese sauce all compliments of our veggie garden. I hope you are enjoying the fruits of your labor. My DH said he planted the seed for the cauliflower on March 4 never realizing he'd be enjoying it on his plate the first day of summer.

Cheese Sauce for Veggies

2 T. margarine melted in pan

Stir in 2 T. flour

Whisk in a cup of milk over medium heat and let it thicken for about a minute.

Add about 1 cup of grated cheddar cheese to your taste and let it melt. Sprinkle on salt and pepper if you wish.

If you want to make a cheesy dish real fast, just throw on a slice of American cheese (I usually get the slices made with 2% milk.) Place the dish in the microwave for 20-30 seconds to melt over the veggie. Sometimes the cheese melts as soon as it is placed on the hot vegetables.

Enjoy!

Update on Noah's Garden

2010-06-19T21:38:00.001-04:00

Noah, in white shirt, cousin Corbin, and Grandpa had a weeding party the other day weeding Noah's Garden.

Noah is carefully clearing Every weed from his garden. See that concentration?

This has been quite a learning experience for our almost ten year old grandson. This year he is gardening in his own garden, not Grandpa's, and he lives about thirty minutes from us. Grandpa is not there all the time, so Noah is in charge. He learned a good lesson this summer. He watered the garden and shut off the nozzle, but forgot to turn the water off at the outdoor faucet. After the hose which was filled with water baked in the hot summer sun, it exploded. I am sure he will never forget to turn that faucet off again!!

Click here to see the spring planting photos of Noah's garden.

Alert: Entry Registrations for Your County Fair are Due Now

2010-06-18T20:28:00.001-04:00

If you or your child plans to enter veggies,flowers, or projects in the county fair, you must sign up by July 1 in Michigan. Our county fair is Aug. 7, but registration is done at least a month ahead of the actual fair. Check with your fair to see when the deadline is...Our grandson Corbin's cabbage is "ginormous", heads above ours...okay, yes the pun is intended.

See ya at the Fair!

A Grudge Against Slugs

2010-06-15T12:36:00.000-04:00

Yeewwwwww----there is nothing more disconcerting than cleaning a beautiful head of Might Joe lettuce and discovering slugs....Slugs, imagine a snail without its shell, are a problem for us this year. These slimy creatures which could star in a B Hollywood horror movie are voracious eaters and leave a trail of slime on the plants as they eat through your garden at night.

They love moist habitat, so if overwatering or rains occur, be prepared to battle the nasty invaders.

There are many home gardeners methods of ridding the garden of slugs. The simplest is to hunt them down and squish them or take a salt shaker to the garden in the night. Shaking salt on them will cause the slug to dry out, but don't over do it since salt is deadly for growing plants.

We also have the drinkers solution to killing plants. Placing a saucer of beer near the infested area will draw the slugs for party time, but when they decide to crawl in for a sip, they will drown in the beer. Be sure the saucer is deep enough that the slimy creature can't crawl out after imbibing. Spreading coffee grounds is a much touted method of killing slugs, however, we have not used them. From research on the Internet it appears that it is more of a wive's tale that coffee grounds actually kill, but may be a deterrent. Most of the information does not give credence to the use of coffee grounds.

My DH mixed up a combination of one part ammonia to nine parts water and sprayed only in the areas where he found slugs in our lettuces. He said the varmints aren't so evident now, but it could be that the areas are drier now.

Do you have any ideas on killing these disgusting creatures? We would all be much obliged to hear your method. Thanks.

Our Vegetable Garden on Memorial Day 2010

2010-05-31T14:27:00.003-04:00

We remember those who have died in the service of our country.

God bless their families on this day of remembrance.

Alright! It's a Garden!

2010-05-24T14:37:00.001-04:00

Our empty plot is filling up fast and now it is a garden. At last we are getting some nice rain, warm sunshine, mild nights. Here are a few shots of the garden. This year my DH planted the rows going north and south. I really like the layout of the plan this spring.

We are cutting the lettuce for delicious fresh salads, pulling the onions too. Rhubarb is a spring treat.

Broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage plants are looking healthy.

Yes, he set out the tomato plants BEFORE Memorial Day--a risky thing to do in Michigan. If the threat of frost is in the forecast, we have 5 gallon buckets to protect these babies.

Please Note: The weather man is your friend. Gardeners should check the weather every day and be prepared to take action when needed whether it is for rain, drought, freezing temperatures, winds, etc. Make Mother Nature your partner in growing veggies.

Square Foot Gardening

2010-05-21T13:42:00.002-04:00

I am intrigued by the idea of square foot gardening. Mel Bartholomew, the creator and author of Square Foot Gardening, questioned why gardens had to be in rows separated by pathways. The answer was to be able to reach the rows to plant seeds and veggie plants, to weed, fertilize, dress, etc. Gardens laid out in rows and paths have been the accepted method of gardening forever. But what about the folks who have limited space?

Many urban dwellers have relied on container gardening with tomatoes, peppers, etc growing in pots on their patios.Square foot gardening allows these folks the opportunity to grow compact gardens making healthy and satisfying use of their property.

Bartholomew's plan is to build a 3x3 foot or 4x4 foot square made of 2x6 lumber, essentially a raised bed. Mark off the square into one foot sections. Fill this box with good soil mix...and you know what a champion I am of having great soil for a successful garden. Begin by planting in one square foot section one broccoli plant, or one cauliflower plant, or 16 radishes, etc. After the cool crops are harvested plant the summer crops, one tomato plant, one pepper plant, etc, per one square foot. Cucumbers, squash and other crops are grown on upright trellises or wires. This is known as vertical gardening. Fall cold crops follow as the summer crops are harvested.

Families build several 4x4 boxes for their garden in as much space as available. They may have a 4x4 area of tomatoes only or plant four tomatoes in four of the sixteen squares and other crops in the remaining. The gardener can plan and choose whatever works for him/her.

Wouldn't it be amazing to have only one zucchini plant so that you won't have to make a midnight run to sneak the extra zucchini onto your neighbor's porches? This plan allows you to grow the amount of food your family can eat and grow only what the family likes.

Square foot gardening is compact gardening. It brings all the benefits of growing your own veggies, as well as using the land in a responsible, helpful, sustainable way of living.

For more information check out the Square Foot Gardening website.

Recipe--Chicken and Asparagus Stir-Fry

2010-05-15T10:05:00.001-04:00

Asparagus season is here. We live near the Asparagus Capitol of the World, Shelby, Michigan. In fact if you are "green spear-ited", love to eat asparagus, and want asparagus recipes, attend the National Asparagus Festival 2010 on June 11-13 in Shelby, MI. It's a hometown celebration of everything asparagus--food, parades, kids activities and more. Check out my lens on West Michigan for more information on the area.

Asparagus is not only tasty, but it is so good for you. Enjoy this variation of a stir fry I found on cooks.com. If you have not tried making a stir fry, click on this video then scroll down for some instruction.

Chicken and Asparagus Stir Fry

1 lb. boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
1 egg white, slightly beaten

1 lb. fresh asparagus, cut into 1 inch pieces
3 T. soy sauce
1 T. cornstarch
1/4 c. water
2 tsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 T. minced garlic
1 T. minced fresh ginger ( I must admit I had to use dry ground ginger)
1/4 c. chicken broth
1/2 c. chopped green onion, onion, scallions
1/2 c. almonds or cashews

3 c. cooked brown rice

Combine chicken pieces with beaten egg white. Set aside.

Combine soy sauce, cornstarch, water, EVOO, and stir well. (If you let this mixture set too long, mix again as the cornstarch gets solid.)

Using a wok or large skillet, heat 1 T. vegetable oil. Add garlic and ginger and stir-fry 2 minutes. (If using ground ginger or garlic, skip this step and sprinkle on asparagus the last minute of stir frying.) Add asparagus and stir fry a couple of minutes or till crisp-tender. Remove asparagus and wipe pan.

Heat remaining tablespoon of vegetable oil. Add chicken and stir-fry until opaque. Add asparagus, red pepper, onions and nuts. Stir sauce and add to pan. Cook until mixture thickens (which is quick).

Serve over rice. Makes four delicious servings.

Click here then scroll down for another recipe for stir fry.

Old Farmer's Almanac Information for Month of May

2010-05-10T20:07:00.002-04:00

The Old Farmer's Almanac has been around forever and is packed with information for gardeners. This link provides ideas for improving your gardens for the month of May. The publication makes a great Christmas gift...Of course you can jump online to read many articles.

My Husband's Report on the Garden

2010-05-08T11:44:00.003-04:00

A view of the garden. Strawberry plants in the far right with rhubarb behind them.

Cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli plants in foreground.

Lettuce plants growing with a cover of straw under them to keep the soil from the leaves. Easier to clean up after picking.

My DH wrote an email to our gardening friend in Florida detailing the progress of our northern garden. Here is his very complete report....

THEY ARE CALLING FOR SNOW SHOWERS AND TOMORROW NIGHT POSSIBLE FROST. WENT OUT THIS AM AND COVERED THE STRAWBERRIES. THEY ARE ABOUT 50% IN BLOOM. IF FROST HITS THEM, THEY WILL NOT SET BERRIES SO HOPEFULLY I HAVE THEM COVERED ENOUGH.

RADISH, BEETS, CARROTS, ONION, PEAS, A LITTLE CORN AND POTATOES ARE UP. THE CABBAGE AND CAULIFLOWER I STARTED IN FLORIDA IS DOING GREAT. THEY ARE ABOUT A FOOT TALL.

LETTUCE IS DOING GREAT. I HAVE PUT STRAW AROUND THE BOTTOM OF LETTUCE AND IT KEEPS THE DIRT OFF THE LEAVES. WE SHOULD START CUTTING IT BY MID MAY.

I HAVE ALL THE OTHER PLANTS IN THE GREENHOUSE UNDER HEATERS. HATE TO SEE MY ELECTRIC BILL. -- CUCUMBERS, PICKLES, MUSKMELON, WATERMELON, KOHLRABI, PUMPKINS. MORE CABBAGE. CAULIFLOWER, BROCCOLI ANOTHER TYPE OF SWEET CORN. MY OTHER LETTUCE WILL BE READY TO SET OUT IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS.

THE TOMATO PLANTS I STARTED IN FLORIDA ARE ABOUT 16" TALL NOW. I HAVE ABOUT 100 SEED POTATOES STARTED IN THE GRENHOUSE AND 50 GREEN BEAN AND 50 YELLOW BEANS COMING UP IN THE GREENHOUSE.

I HAVE 1# RED ONION SETS, 1# WHITE ONION SETS PLANTED. THEYARE ABOUT 4" TALL FOR GREEN EATING. 60 RED CANDY ONIONS, 60 YELLOW CANDY ONIONS, 35 BIG DADDY ONIONS, 50 WALLA WALLA ONIONS FOR GROWING ON FOR SLICING. HAVE ABOUT THAT MANY LEFT TO PLANT A LITTLE LATER.

Yes, he is into growing onions. It was a pleasure to have onions and potatoes all winter.

This is a very complete report on our progress on the garden in West Michigan. Please leave comments lettting us know your location and an update on your garden. Thanks.

Noah's Garden

2010-05-05T13:09:00.002-04:00

Our grandson, Noah, is determined to raise vegetables in his garden. Noah's Garden had its birth last summer in July after the family moved to their new home. This spring Grandpa and Noah have plans for this new and improved plot of mostly sandy ground near Lake Michigan.

Grandpa brought a pick up full of compost to amend the soil. Noah, and little brother, Ethan, were excited to see the good soil and wanted to help shovel it out of the back of the truck. But Grandpa only had one shovel.

After spreading the soil around, the gardeners planted radish and carrot seed. In the photo they are planting onion sets.

Noah and his cousin Corbin have been good workers in our garden.The boys have been bitten by the gardening bug after helping Grandpa in his garden the last few years. Gardening is a terrific outlet for all that boyish/girlish energy. It is work, but so satisfying to sit at the table and enjoy eating the rewards with family.

Growing Potatoes in a Bag

2010-04-30T15:52:00.003-04:00

Growing potatoes in a bag is not something I have ever tried, but my friend, Jan, in New Orleans, LA took photos of her potatoes planted in a bag. She places soil in the bottom first, then as the green plant grows she covers it with more straw. When the potatoes are ready, she just splits the bag and there are the potatoes, no digging! She is going to try kitchen bags next year because these bags were too large for her plants and needed huge holes for drainage.

Are you adventurous enough to try this?

Visit Jan's sites for lots of tips on gardening and ponds

Spring Gardening is Here!

2010-04-23T16:12:00.000-04:00

Lettuce ready to go in the garden.

Tomato plants transplanted into 4 inch pots. Whenever these freezing nights moderate, the tomato plants will find a home in the garden. We use gallon milk jugs to protect tender plants from cold weather.

Garden is ready. We added lots of horse manure last fall. The ground worked up beautifully. The straw is pushed away from the strawberry plants and rhubarb.

Rhubarb plants are near the strawberry plants. Both are looking healthy.

Recipe--Home-made Granola Cereal

2010-04-19T09:40:00.001-04:00

My neighbor gave me this easy-to-prepare granola cereal recipe this winter and now I am addicted to it! No, I don't grow any of the ingredients in our garden, but it is such an easy, good-for-you recipe. I thought you all would like to have it before you get into the canning, freezing craziness when your gardens produce all those great veggies and fruits.

Enjoy!

GRANOLA RECIPE--Thanks, Cathy!

8 c. old fashioned oats

½ c. + 1 T olive oil

1 T vanilla

½ c. + 1 T honey

1 tsp cinnamon (optional)

½ c. each almonds, walnuts, pecans

½ c. each raisins, cranberries, dried fruit

325 degree oven

Combine oats, oil, vanilla, honey, and cinnamon. Spread in single layer on baking sheet.

Bake 30 minutes turning and stirring every 10 minutes. Add nuts after first 10 minutes.

Remove from oven. Cool. Stir in dried fruits. Store in air tight container.

Yield 11 cups

Getting the Garden Ready for Summer....Florida Style

2010-04-10T14:29:00.002-04:00

This photo features our new raised bed garden. You can see where my hubby and our neighbor filled up the new raised area with horse manure and topsoil. (We are still eating the lettuce you see in front, so that will get covered when we pull it up before we head North.) They screwed down a dark mesh weed barrier fabric over the top of the soil hoping to keep weeds away while we are gone for the summer as well as to "cook" the soil, sterilizing it.

As you may gather, the soil in our backyard is sandy. Our hope is that with this raised bed of good, rich, sterilized soil, we will be able to grow fantastic vegetables next winter. (This was the coldest winter FL has experienced in 15 years. Not a good growing year.)

We will be heading North next week hauling all the little plants my DH has started for our northern garden. If you remember those tiny sprouts pictures in previous blogs, they are ready to transplant now. And again we start the next season of vegetable gardening...my husband's desire to garden 12 months out of the year. And so it goes.

How to Make Your Own Rain Barrel

2010-04-06T14:40:00.000-04:00

Rain barrels are effective ways of gathering rain water from the gutters on your roof. You can use this rain water to fill a watering can or to irrigate your garden by attaching a hose or soaker hose. According to the Southwest Florida Water Conservation District, a 1/2" rainfall will fill a 50-55 gallon rain barrel.

Rain barrels cut down on the use of water from your municipal or well systems resulting in you saving some cash. I knew that would get your attention.

Make your own rain barrel by following these steps.

Find a 55 gallon food grade plastic barrel with a lid. Check on Craigslist or food manufacturing companies for these barrels. You may pick them up for free just so the company or supplier can get rid of them. If purchased, expect to pay about $10. each. You do not want a barrel that contained chemicals. Be sure to get a dark color because light or clear barrels will allow light to grow pipe-clogging algae.

Locate the barrel near your garden, flower beds, or containers.

You will need:

1. Four cement blocks stacked in two layers for a platform. Blocks are 8"x8"x16" each making a 16" square surface to support the weight of a full barrel of water. This sturdy platform raises the barrel off the ground allowing space fill a container or to attach a hose to the spigot.

2. 1/2" male spigot

3. 1/2" flat spade bit or wood bit

4. 1" male PVC adaptor

5. 1" street PVC elbow

6. 2 to 3 feet of 1" PVC pipe

7. Metal or wood sabre saw blade

The downspout will enter the rain barrel through the lid, so trace the outside of the downspout on the lid closest to the outside of the barrel, then cut with the sabre saw. Snip the downspout so that it will be about 3-4 inches inside the barrel. Before you begin the next steps, take time to flush out the barrel by partially filling it with water and then dumping it out through the downspout hole washing out any material/debris collected in the bottom. You may disinfect with a solution of bleach and water if you wish. Be sure to rinse thoroughly.

For the overflow pipe, drill a hole large enough to thread the male adaptor into it two inches from the top of the barrel. Place the street elbow facing down into the adaptor. Place the pipe inside the adaptor.

Drill a hole two inches from the bottom of the barrel for the spigot. This will not allow debris settled on the bottom to enter and clog the spigot. Caulk the threads to seal the opening. Wait 24 hours to allow caulking to dry.

Place a screen in the gutter before the outlet to catch leaves and debris. Even with all the precautions to keep debris out of the water, it is a good idea to dump out and wash out the barrel once in awhile to keep the over flow pipe and spigot clear and free running.

For the finishing touch, the artist in the family, can paint some garden designs, flowers, butterflies, bees, etc. to decorate if you wish.

Build Your Own Greenhouse

2010-03-31T09:50:00.001-04:00

If you have the desire to start your seedlings early and store your plants in a warm, safe place until transplanting in your garden, you may want to build your own greenhouse. Check out the slide show of the greenhouse my DH built last spring.at the right hand side of this page. The beautiful thing about this structure is that it is portable and it can be taken down and stored when you need it no longer. Ours is stored in the garage waiting for the moment when we can put it up again for this spring. If you would like more information on materials, etc, please leave a comment and I will get back to you.

A cold frame and a tent house are smaller projects and allow the opportunity to get your plants growing. For information on cold frames check my previous post. For information on tent houses and step-by-step instructions on how to build one, check out the March 19 post at quiltbeagardens for great images and explanation.

Build Your Own Cold Frames

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Cold frames are easy and affordable structures to kickstart your seedlings and plants. The minute the warm weather arrives, the frost date passes, you will be ready to get a jump on the growing season by planting strong plants in your vegetable garden.

Location, location, location. Choose a sunny area with good drainage. Placing the cold frame near a building or wind break will shelter the plants from cold spring winds. Oh yes, I know how those lovely spring breezes can change into strong cold, injuring/killing winds. A water source should be close enough that you can easily run a hose to the frames for watering the plants.
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Go to your Habitat for Humanity warehouse, Good Will, your uncle's garage, or wherever you can pick up some used windows. These make excellent tops for cold frames. You can set the glass panes on top of cement blocks making sure you have a way to weight them down to weather the winds. You can also build a "frame" of wood to set the window on. The wood frame allows you to add hinges to the window and attach it to the frame so you can prop open the window allowing air to circulate through the plants.

My DH suggested using 4-6 mm vinyl stapled to a frame if you cannot locate windows. Check the nurseries and lumber companies for the vinyl.

CAUTION: On a sunny day, you must take the cover off the plants or they will bake in the cold frame box. Prop the window up with a stick, but CAUTION that the wind doesn't blow the window over and break it.

Cold frames are an inexpensive way to get a head start on your garden by hardening off the plants--acclimating them for outdoor planting. After the weather turns warm, the cold frame can be taken apart and put away until you need it next year. Best of all, when you get that itch to play in the dirt and start those seeds, you can get to it earlier by protecting the tender seedlings and plants in the cold frame.

Sprouting Seeds--Awesome!

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I love this photo of the tiny sprouted seeds in the container. My DH needs tweezers to handle the delicate miracles. Some day these seeds will mature into Christa tomato plants and Red Derby bibb lettuce plants, then develop the fruit that we can eat and enjoy.

It takes patience and care from you, the gardener, and rains and sunshine from Heaven. I am beginning to understand the gardeners who do this year after year. The awe and wonder of this mysterious seed producing food is always thrilling and satisfying for the body and the soul.

For more information on starting seeds for your garden, check out my post on planting seeds for your garden.

More Lettuce!

2010-03-12T10:23:00.005-05:00

Lettuce varieties pictured here are Deer's Tongue, Speckled, and Victoria. The cool (I should say cold) temperatures this winter in Florida produced tasty salads for us.

My DH has already started the seed for planting these same varieties in our Michigan garden. To the right is the FL garden with the lettuce growing in it. Before we leave, we will fill the garden with horse manure and topsoil for a raised garden next year.