I was talking to someone about my garden this evening. I told this person that I planned on letting the front of the garden go to weeds for the remainder of the summer, now that the onions and the lettuce were done. I am going to just focus on hoeing and weeding the back of the garden, where my tomatoes and the watermelon plant are growing. I also told this person I planned on planting garlic this fall. I love garlic, so I'm excited to have it ready for use in the spring!
After I finish telling this person all of this, she says that since the garden is so much work, I should just plant grass in that area of my yard and be done with it. When I told her I intended to plant my garden again next year, she made some comment about how I wasn't really serious about gardening and that I shouldn't bother.
I AM 1,000 PERCENT SERIOUS ABOUT MY GARDEN!!!!!
I have found gardening to be a great way to relieve stress. I get great joy out of using my own two hands to grown my own food. I get great satisfaction from eating the veggies from my garden.
I can't understand why this person can't just be supportive of my gardening endeavors. This is not an altogether new thing for me. When I was in 5th grade, I somehow got a packet of carrot seeds. I planted the carrot seeds at the edge of our backyard, near the creek that ran behind our house. Needless to say, the carrots did not grow. When I lived in my apartment, I grew tomatoes in a pot. I have always wanted to grow my own food (and make my own cheese, but alas I need a cow for that).
This has become a passion for me. Its a lot of work, but it is very rewarding to me. I am already trying to figure out how to cut down on the weeds for next year. I'm also trying to plan exactly what I want to plant (I'm thinking cucumbers and zucchinis in addition to the tomatoes and onions). And I'm planning on planting my basil and other fresh herbs in small pots that I can keep in the kitchen during the winter. I just love fresh basil and can't imagine going back!
The best thing about every person on this planet is that we are all individuals. I am my own person. I happen to enjoy gardening.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Itchy and Scratchy
I managed to pick up a nasty case of poison ivy. Apparently, it is growing in my front flower bed. I weeded the bed with my bare hands (dumb, I know) a week ago. I noticed these bumps, but thought nothing of it. On Thursday, the itching was unbearable and the bumps were starting to look like blisters. Having never had poison before, I consulted with a few people on my softball team and at work, who confirmed my suspicion.
The itching was terrible Thursday night. I finally sought help online. I tried just about everything, until I fell upon the best cure for the itching: a hair dryer. I turn the hair dryer on and aim it at my blisters. It produces this odd feeling of pleasure and pain, then kills the need to itch for hours at a time.
I went to the doctor on Friday, after I discovered the poison had spread to my face, neck and legs. I was given a prescription for some steriod cream and told I would have to get a shot if the cream didn't work. The doctor was not amused with my hair dryer technique and yelled at me for putting rubbing alcohol on my spots, as this will result in giving me excezma. Yum.
I'm hopeful that I've turned a corner, as the spots on my bad arm aren't nearly as bad as they were yesterday. The poison spread again to my chest, but I'm hoping that changing my towels after every shower will stop that.
Needless to say, I can't do any gardening until the poison clears up. I did tie some stakes around my tomato plants (I have 7 with tomatoes on them). I also noticed that my watermelon has little flowers on it. This apparently means that in another month or so, I will have watermelons. Yeah!
The motherload of onions are done. If anyone wants onions, please let me know. I have so many!
The itching was terrible Thursday night. I finally sought help online. I tried just about everything, until I fell upon the best cure for the itching: a hair dryer. I turn the hair dryer on and aim it at my blisters. It produces this odd feeling of pleasure and pain, then kills the need to itch for hours at a time.
I went to the doctor on Friday, after I discovered the poison had spread to my face, neck and legs. I was given a prescription for some steriod cream and told I would have to get a shot if the cream didn't work. The doctor was not amused with my hair dryer technique and yelled at me for putting rubbing alcohol on my spots, as this will result in giving me excezma. Yum.
I'm hopeful that I've turned a corner, as the spots on my bad arm aren't nearly as bad as they were yesterday. The poison spread again to my chest, but I'm hoping that changing my towels after every shower will stop that.
Needless to say, I can't do any gardening until the poison clears up. I did tie some stakes around my tomato plants (I have 7 with tomatoes on them). I also noticed that my watermelon has little flowers on it. This apparently means that in another month or so, I will have watermelons. Yeah!
The motherload of onions are done. If anyone wants onions, please let me know. I have so many!
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Localvore
I have become a localvore. For those that are not familiar with the term, a localvore is someone who tries to eat as much food as they possibly can from local sources. I have been buying all of my produce from Harner Farms, a local farmers market that has the best produce around. Its open all week and is about 5 miles from my house. The food they sell is either grown on their farm or grown regionally and brought in for sale.
Today, I purchased a basket of peaches, a basket of string beans, two tomatos and a basket of blueberries for $12. At the grocery store, I would have paid $.99 a pound for peaches that were grown, picked and shipped from Georgia. How can they still be fresh after such a long trip?
Last week, I bought blueberries and cherries. Both were bursting with flavor. I'm excited to try the peaches. They were grown at the farm and look and smell fantastic!
I was telling the nice woman at Harners that I am using the market as a way to supplement what I'm growing in my own garden. She was very interested in hearing about what is growing in my garden. That's the other nice thing about being a localvore - my dollars are supporting the farm and the friendly employees like this woman.
I wonder what I will do in the late fall/winter, when there isn't any local produce to be found. I'm thinking about freezing some of the blueberries. I may also try to buy some extra peaches and can them for use over the winter. I will have to do some research into all of this, since I'm going to find it very hard to go back!
I'm off to pick an onion from my garden for my salad. I had the first onion out of my garden last week. It was yummy - very sweet and full of flavor. I had to buy lettuce at the grocery store, since the heat and dry weather has really stunted the growth of my lettuce. I may have to look into grow a few different varieties that tolerate the heat well next year.
Have a great week and remember: go local! Support your local growers and producers!
Today, I purchased a basket of peaches, a basket of string beans, two tomatos and a basket of blueberries for $12. At the grocery store, I would have paid $.99 a pound for peaches that were grown, picked and shipped from Georgia. How can they still be fresh after such a long trip?
Last week, I bought blueberries and cherries. Both were bursting with flavor. I'm excited to try the peaches. They were grown at the farm and look and smell fantastic!
I was telling the nice woman at Harners that I am using the market as a way to supplement what I'm growing in my own garden. She was very interested in hearing about what is growing in my garden. That's the other nice thing about being a localvore - my dollars are supporting the farm and the friendly employees like this woman.
I wonder what I will do in the late fall/winter, when there isn't any local produce to be found. I'm thinking about freezing some of the blueberries. I may also try to buy some extra peaches and can them for use over the winter. I will have to do some research into all of this, since I'm going to find it very hard to go back!
I'm off to pick an onion from my garden for my salad. I had the first onion out of my garden last week. It was yummy - very sweet and full of flavor. I had to buy lettuce at the grocery store, since the heat and dry weather has really stunted the growth of my lettuce. I may have to look into grow a few different varieties that tolerate the heat well next year.
Have a great week and remember: go local! Support your local growers and producers!
Friday, July 4, 2008
So That's What That Is For....
I've been a bad blogger - sorry!
I was really stressed about my ghetto garden full of weeds. Two weeks ago, I went online and googled how to control weeds in a garden. To my surprise and delight, it recommended using your hoe to rid your garden of the pesky weeds. I'm so happy my mom bought me my hoe!
I spent 4.5 hours hoeing the garden (why does that still make me giggle? Sometimes I can be a 12 year old!). I was so pleased with the outcome - all the ghetto weeds were gone! It really made the excruciating pain I was in for the next two days worth it. I have never spent so much time on my heating pad in all the years I've had it! But, I learned my lesson. I now plan on hoeing once a week to keep the weeds under control and prevent another back breaking session.
I spent 4.5 hours hoeing the garden (why does that still make me giggle? Sometimes I can be a 12 year old!). I was so pleased with the outcome - all the ghetto weeds were gone! It really made the excruciating pain I was in for the next two days worth it. I have never spent so much time on my heating pad in all the years I've had it! But, I learned my lesson. I now plan on hoeing once a week to keep the weeds under control and prevent another back breaking session.
So, the garden is now full of onions, lettuce, chives, tomatoes (3 kinds - grape, lemon yellows and jet something or others) and a watermelon. I planted the watermelon just to see if it will actually grown in our climate. In addition to the garden, I have two pots of basil (one is courtesy of Katie, who dropped 4 plants off to me), a pot of rosemary and a pot of mixed herbs.
I feel like I've been doing so much running around this summer and that I haven't fully been able to enjoy the Oasis. I plan on logging some hours out there tomorrow, if the weather cooperates. I did want to share a picture of the custom sign I had made at Memorial Day. Its very cute!
Lastly, I was at the beach last week with my family. Thank you to Katie for watering the garden while I was away. I didn't have to stress about my plants dying! And because we're so cute, here's a photo of my entire family taken on the front of our beach house.
Happy 4th of July everyone!
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Ghetto Garden
Its been a long time since my last post. Sorry - its been a little busy up here.
I did harvest my first lettuce last week. It was yummy! Tonight, I harvested more. I will definitely be sharing with my coworkers, since I have more lettuce right now than I could ever eat. I made a grilled shrimp and asparagus salad with homemade dijon dressing. It was really good.
Its so satisfying to be eating food that I grew myself. I love that I cultivated and grew the lettuce that is now filling my stomach. I am going to plant my tomatoes and peppers this weekend so hopefully later this summer I will be able to make a complete salad from my very own garden.
I've been mulching since last week. Its a long and tedious process. I am able to fit 5 bags of mulch in my car at a time. So far I've purchased 10 bags. I have 3 more to put down this week, then I'll be heading back to Lowes for more. I definitely will be getting a load from a landscaping business next year, as it will be a lot easier and probably a lot cheaper. I'm definitely skimping on the 3 inches of mulch you are supposed to put down. Since its my first year, I'm just happy to be getting it down.
I need to spend time weeding my ghetto garden. The weeding has really gotten away from me and I'm now growing weeds and grass amongst my food! I was feeling a tad overwhelmed tonight at all of the work that needs to be done out back, but after I took a little break and calmed myself, I figured I will just have to take everything one day at a time. If my garden doesn't look perfect in the first year, so be it. As long as the food grows and I remember to water, I'll be happy.
I must run. I'm quite tired from all of the work I did tonight. I can definitely say that mowing the lawn, mulching and gardening is a great workout! I will definitely be sore tomorrow, that's for sure.
I will post pictures soon, I promise! Until then, visualize a non-ghetto garden. That's what I'm hoping to get to!
I did harvest my first lettuce last week. It was yummy! Tonight, I harvested more. I will definitely be sharing with my coworkers, since I have more lettuce right now than I could ever eat. I made a grilled shrimp and asparagus salad with homemade dijon dressing. It was really good.
Its so satisfying to be eating food that I grew myself. I love that I cultivated and grew the lettuce that is now filling my stomach. I am going to plant my tomatoes and peppers this weekend so hopefully later this summer I will be able to make a complete salad from my very own garden.
I've been mulching since last week. Its a long and tedious process. I am able to fit 5 bags of mulch in my car at a time. So far I've purchased 10 bags. I have 3 more to put down this week, then I'll be heading back to Lowes for more. I definitely will be getting a load from a landscaping business next year, as it will be a lot easier and probably a lot cheaper. I'm definitely skimping on the 3 inches of mulch you are supposed to put down. Since its my first year, I'm just happy to be getting it down.
I need to spend time weeding my ghetto garden. The weeding has really gotten away from me and I'm now growing weeds and grass amongst my food! I was feeling a tad overwhelmed tonight at all of the work that needs to be done out back, but after I took a little break and calmed myself, I figured I will just have to take everything one day at a time. If my garden doesn't look perfect in the first year, so be it. As long as the food grows and I remember to water, I'll be happy.
I must run. I'm quite tired from all of the work I did tonight. I can definitely say that mowing the lawn, mulching and gardening is a great workout! I will definitely be sore tomorrow, that's for sure.
I will post pictures soon, I promise! Until then, visualize a non-ghetto garden. That's what I'm hoping to get to!
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
We will start with the good news: my onions, lettuce and chives are growing like weeds. Some of the lettuce may actually be ready for picking. How can you tell when lettuce is ready? A few heads are huge, so I feel like I could pick some leaves off and make myself a salad. I will have to do some research online about that.
The bad news: I keep hacking my one butterfly bush with the weed wacker by accident. The first time I did it, the bush rebounded nicely (I don't hack the entire thing, just some of the low hanging branches). I'm hoping it rebounds again. And, I promise to hand trim the grass around it from now on!
The ugly: my herbs. I either planted them too early or I got a bum batch. The only herb that is growing is the rosemary. The dill, parsley and basil all bit the dust. I was consulting with a friend over the weekend who suggested that I probably put them in too early, considering we had snow when I was away and some very cold nighttime temperatures throughout the month of May. I am not defeated - the herbs I bought at the Linden Hall Garden Club's plant sale are doing great (of course someone else planted them). I will get more basil and probably some dill and will try again later.
So, this weekend is all about weeding. My garden and my flower beds really need to be weeded in the worst way. I discovered that while I was mowing tonight. Here's a tip: don't try to weed and mow at the same time. Mowing is one of those activities that requires your undivided attention!
I bought a custom made sign at the Memorial Day festival that says "Welcome to the Oasis." I can't wait to hang it! I'm going to get the flowers for the gutter along the trellis this weekend. After I have it planted, I will post an updated picture of the Oasis. It is truly fabulous!
The bad news: I keep hacking my one butterfly bush with the weed wacker by accident. The first time I did it, the bush rebounded nicely (I don't hack the entire thing, just some of the low hanging branches). I'm hoping it rebounds again. And, I promise to hand trim the grass around it from now on!
The ugly: my herbs. I either planted them too early or I got a bum batch. The only herb that is growing is the rosemary. The dill, parsley and basil all bit the dust. I was consulting with a friend over the weekend who suggested that I probably put them in too early, considering we had snow when I was away and some very cold nighttime temperatures throughout the month of May. I am not defeated - the herbs I bought at the Linden Hall Garden Club's plant sale are doing great (of course someone else planted them). I will get more basil and probably some dill and will try again later.
So, this weekend is all about weeding. My garden and my flower beds really need to be weeded in the worst way. I discovered that while I was mowing tonight. Here's a tip: don't try to weed and mow at the same time. Mowing is one of those activities that requires your undivided attention!
I bought a custom made sign at the Memorial Day festival that says "Welcome to the Oasis." I can't wait to hang it! I'm going to get the flowers for the gutter along the trellis this weekend. After I have it planted, I will post an updated picture of the Oasis. It is truly fabulous!
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Temperature Changes and Snow in May
This past week I was in Hershey for a conference. Before I left, I mowed the lawn and tended to all of my plants, veggies and herbs. I felt confident that things would be okay while I was gone, particularly since the forecast called for rain.
Imagine my shock when I woke up Monday morning and heard the temperature in State College was 35 degrees! I was so worried that my plants and herbs were stressed. I met up with our maintenance guys for lunch that day and they told me that Western Ferguson Township had snow. Snow?! in May?! Only in State College....
Thankfully, I returned home and all was well. My grass was ready to be cut and the flower beds definitely needed to be weeded, but other than that, everything seemed to have fared pretty well.
There are some new additions to the Oasis and the garden. I attended the Linden Hall Garden Club's Plant Sale before leaving town. What a hoot! The ladies bring any and every kind of plant imaginable from their homes and auction them off. Bidding starts at $.25. I made out like a bandit - for $9, I came home with a house plant (which I keep forgetting to water), two planters in cute hanging metal buckets that had peonies and other cute plants in them and a pot of herbs. I was so excited! The ladies will be selling pies at Memorial Day. I will definitely be contributing a few pies again this year as a way of saying thank you.
I also scored a new addition for the garden. Bruce, the chair of our parks and rec committee and a really great guy, stopped by and dropped off two chive plants that he dug out for me. They are great! The one is absolutely huge. I'm so excited to see them flower.
I have to say that gardening has been a huge learning experience for me. My onions were looking a little sad a few weeks ago. I mentioned this to one of my elected officials, who happens to grow the biggest onions in Boalsburg. He advised that the onions love water and hate weeds. A few days later, after some weeding, some watering and a lot of rain, the onions had perked right back up. Its nice to have some many people to lean on with my questions.
I'm off to Erie on Tuesday, back on Thursday. Here's hoping there is no snow in the forecast! I was going to put my tomatoes and peppers in this weekend, but I think I'll hold off another week to give the soil temperature time to rise. Tomatoes and peppers are really tempermental and like a warm soil (pretend I know what I'm talking about, okay?).
Have a happy Memorial Day! I will be in Boalsburg at our festival. When your town is the birthplace of Memorial Day, you really don't get the weekend to yourself. I don't mind, though, as I like to watch what happens in town. People on Main Street start sprucing up their porches and everyone seems to be throwing parties. Its nice to live in a place that takes so much pride in its heritage.
Imagine my shock when I woke up Monday morning and heard the temperature in State College was 35 degrees! I was so worried that my plants and herbs were stressed. I met up with our maintenance guys for lunch that day and they told me that Western Ferguson Township had snow. Snow?! in May?! Only in State College....
Thankfully, I returned home and all was well. My grass was ready to be cut and the flower beds definitely needed to be weeded, but other than that, everything seemed to have fared pretty well.
There are some new additions to the Oasis and the garden. I attended the Linden Hall Garden Club's Plant Sale before leaving town. What a hoot! The ladies bring any and every kind of plant imaginable from their homes and auction them off. Bidding starts at $.25. I made out like a bandit - for $9, I came home with a house plant (which I keep forgetting to water), two planters in cute hanging metal buckets that had peonies and other cute plants in them and a pot of herbs. I was so excited! The ladies will be selling pies at Memorial Day. I will definitely be contributing a few pies again this year as a way of saying thank you.
I also scored a new addition for the garden. Bruce, the chair of our parks and rec committee and a really great guy, stopped by and dropped off two chive plants that he dug out for me. They are great! The one is absolutely huge. I'm so excited to see them flower.
I have to say that gardening has been a huge learning experience for me. My onions were looking a little sad a few weeks ago. I mentioned this to one of my elected officials, who happens to grow the biggest onions in Boalsburg. He advised that the onions love water and hate weeds. A few days later, after some weeding, some watering and a lot of rain, the onions had perked right back up. Its nice to have some many people to lean on with my questions.
I'm off to Erie on Tuesday, back on Thursday. Here's hoping there is no snow in the forecast! I was going to put my tomatoes and peppers in this weekend, but I think I'll hold off another week to give the soil temperature time to rise. Tomatoes and peppers are really tempermental and like a warm soil (pretend I know what I'm talking about, okay?).
Have a happy Memorial Day! I will be in Boalsburg at our festival. When your town is the birthplace of Memorial Day, you really don't get the weekend to yourself. I don't mind, though, as I like to watch what happens in town. People on Main Street start sprucing up their porches and everyone seems to be throwing parties. Its nice to live in a place that takes so much pride in its heritage.
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