It;'s Raining Cats and Dogs......

   You never know what might pop up!  We received over 4 1/2 inches of rain in the last 48 hours, and it is still raining.  Water was running over our road as we returned home last night.  Neighbors in the Pierre area are experiencing more flooding.  The sandbags are holding the rainwater, rather than letting it run off as it normally would.  However, the rain is a blessing for our crops.  It is not REALLY raining cats and dogs, not even toads.  Just growing a few toad stools.  The good news - I don't have to water the garden.  :D

Peony Pandemonium and a New Baby

    The peonies are in full bloom.  They do not last long, usually less than a month, but they are fantastic while they are in bloom.
   Many years ago, Joy Phillips gave me six Peonies that she and Cliff dug out of their yard.  These, and more in other parts of our yard, came from those plants.  I think of Joy each year when they bloom, and the beauty and joy she is still bringing into my life.

Blooms are 5 to 7 inches across.

   They make a very nice, dark green, low growing hedge the rest of the year.






   Thank you to Becky for pulling all the weeds on the rock path.  Also, thank you Ryan, for the new stone path and all the help with the building project.  Come back soon.  :D  
   As you can see in the background, there are still a few flowers and plants left to go into the ground.

    This little guy, still on the nest, and a sibling, hatched out in the back yard.  He is almost ready to fly, and mother makes a terrific racket when we go near.

Finally.....

Wow!  It has been almost a month!  I did not realize it had been so long.  Let's get caught up.  A picture is worth a thousand words, so...........The front yard on May 15th....

and May 29th.......       

The tulips were really amazing this year.                                                               

 Now the tulips are finished and the Iris are starting to bloom. - The Peonies are full of buds......          Just for fun, we have some topsy turvy tomatoes  hanging on the right.....

   The new garden is planted...

We planted potatoes and onions, red, yellow, and white, on April 15th.   Then set out cabbage plants about a week after that, then replanted several cabbage plants in the middle of May.  Little by little we added, carrots, zucchini,  cornflowers, black beans, cauliflower, cucumbers, nasturtium, acorn squash, buttercup squash, tomatoes, garlic, hot peppers, sweet peppers, broccoli, wax beans, green beans, green onions, carnations..... and of course, our little friend showed up to help.

 (\ /)
( . .)♥
c(”)(”)    Help himself, that is.  He is so tame.  The second time I planted broccoli, he did not even wait for me to get out of the garden.  He paid no attention to my loud scolding, and barely moved when I threw my garden digger at him.  

   We are planting the old garden spot to sweet corn - lots of sweet corn - and melons - and extra broccoli.

So it is almost 4:00 and starting to cool off, so time to do more planting.  Until next time........ 

Spring has Sprung

      Mother's Day, May 8, and the earliest Spring flowers have just started to bloom.  It has been a very cold, late spring.  We had snow on April 30th.

     As you can see,  the grass needs mowing, already :-)
   The iris and peony, in the background, are coming along nicely also.

       The plan is to have a long season of color in the front yard.  The tulips, daffodils, and hyacinths are the first to appear.  (The hyacinths froze this year, just as they were starting to bloom.)

     Then, as the early blooms fade, the iris, on the other side of the walk, are in bloom.  As the iris start to fade, the peony is in full bloom.

     When the tulips are completely done, I will overplant with annuals.  This year, I think I will use snapdragon and alyssum.  Last year, we had had roses there.  The year before is was four o'clocks.

     This little guy stopped by for a quick breakfast.  

(\ /)

( . .)♥
c(”)(”)    Happy gardening!

One Step at a Time

   Finally, it has stopped snowing - the sun is shining - the wind is not blowing 70 miles an hour (like it was last Saturday) - It just might be garden weather.  :D
   What shall I plant first?   Cabbage will probably go in the garden first.  The onions are about 4 inches tall.  The last time I looked they were not even peeking thru.  Yippy!    One rack of plants moved to the garage to begin the hardening off process.  I have had a few bad experiences because I did not take time for this step.  Now I know........

   Seedlings you buy have been coddled and protected from the elements. After all of this babying, plants need time to acclimate to harsh outdoor conditions. This is called hardening off.    Wind, sun and rain can wreak havoc on delicate seedlings so you need to toughen them up and harden them off. The idea is to expose your plants to the elements gradually, over the course of six to fourteen days, depending on your patience, the temperature and the fragility of your seedlings.  The process is more art than science, so modify depending on the temperature, type of plant and your temperament.

   Day One: Pick a mild day and put your seedlings outside in a protected area out of direct sun for a few hours. Less is more here, you just want to give them a taste of what is to come.

   Day two through five: Increase sun exposure gradually, while keeping plants protected from cold and wind. Keep them watered, but don’t over water.  Don't fertilize them until they are completely hardened off.

   Over the next six to ten days: Lengthen the time your plants are outside, until they can stay out all day and night. You may still need to protect your plants even after they are hardened off in the event of high winds, sudden downpours, or freezing temperatures.

   Hardening off can be a bit of a logistical nightmare. I find the easiest way to do all of this  is to put my seedlings on wagons and garden carts. Then I can simply wheel them in and out of the garage.

     So the little critters got to play outside for two hours today.  Happy gardening!

Mixing Apples with Oranges is a GOOD Idea

   Time to think about where and what to plant.  We should be able to start setting plants out in about three weeks.  Potatoes and onions are already planted.  Strawberries and herbs are growing: chives, sage, thyme, oregano and volunteer cilantro.  The garden moving project is coming along.  (See 'Bringing Dreams to Life')  Half of the plots are tilled.  We will add compost and till again the second week of May.
     So, now, who will be happy living together?

   Companion planting is not a new idea to the gardening world. There is evidence of farmers using these same techniques dating back to ancient Roman times. Many people like to plant in neat, organized  plots and rows.  By planting only one crop or separating crop by type, you are actually creating a situation that requires a dependence on pesticides or herbicides.  It is not very interesting, visually, either.
    A companion planting plan integrates natural traits into your choice of crops. If you examine a  wooded forest lot or a marsh that is still the way God created it, you will see an interrelated system that works in natural harmony within itself. There are bugs that feed the birds, small mammals that maintain a manageable level of ground growth, and larger mammals that manage the level of smaller ones; the system requires no external inputs. This is the type of environment that can be created in one's garden space, making it harmonious for the birds and the bees, while providing a peaceful retreat for family and friends to enjoy.

    Some underlying techniques in companion planting can be found in many places on the internet.  Here are a two links that I like.
    I print out the chart and keep it with my garden tools for easy reference when I am in the garden.

http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/complant.html#chart

http://www.ghorganics.com/page2.html

Have fun and don't be afraid to mix apples with oranges    =^..^=

The Miracle of Hope - and Football

   In the fall of 2008, there was an unusual high school football game played in Grapevine, Texas. The game was between Grapevine Faith Academy and the Gainesville State School. Faith is a Christian school and   Gainesville State School is located within a maximum security correction facility.
  
   Gainesville State School has 14 players. They play every game on the road. Their record was 0-8. They've only scored twice. Their 14 players are teenagers who have been convicted of crimes ranging from drugs to assault to robbery. Most had families who had disowned them. They wore outdated, used shoulder pads and helmets. Faith Academy was 7-2. They had 70 players, 11 coaches, and the latest equipment.
  
   Chris Hogan, the head coach at Faith Academy, knew the Gainesville team would have no fans and it would be no contest, so he thought, "What if half of our fans and half of our cheerleaders, for one night only, cheered for the other team?" He sent out an email to the faithful asking them to do just that. "Here’s the message I want you to send," Hogan wrote. "You’re just as valuable as any other person on the planet."

   Some folks were confused and thought he was nuts. One player said, "Coach, why are we doing this?" Hogan said, "Imagine you don’t have a home life, no one to love you, no one pulling for you. Imagine that everyone pretty much had given up on you. Now, imagine what it would feel like and mean to you for hundreds of people to suddenly believe in you."

   The idea took root. On the night of the game, imagine the surprise of those 14 players when they took the field and there was a banner the cheerleaders had made for them to crash through. The visitors’ stands were full. The cheerleaders were leading cheers for them. The fans were calling them by their names. Isaiah, the quarterback-middle linebacker said, "I never in my life thought I would hear parents cheering to tackle and hit their kid. Most of the time, when we come out, people are afraid of us. You can see it in their eyes, but these people are yelling for us. They knew our names."

   Faith won the game, and after the game the teams gathered at the 50-yard line to pray. That’s when Isaiah, the teenage convict-quarterback surprised everybody and asked if he could pray and he prayed, "Lord, I don’t know what just happened so I don’t know how or who to say thank you to, but I never knew there were so many people in the world who cared about us." On the way back to the bus, under guard, each one of the players was handed a burger, fries, a coke, candy, a Bible, and an encouraging letter from the players from Faith Academy.

   What an incredible act of Christian witness and kindness and goodness that was. Proverbs 11:17 says, "Your own soul is nourished when you are kind." Proverbs 3:27 says, "Do not withhold good when it is in your power to act." Be kind to someone this week. Be kind to every person you meet. If you feel inclined, forward this link and share this message with a friend. Perhaps it will inspire them to do an act of kindness too. And, you might be amazed at what God will do with a simple act of kindness.

The Wild Wild West

    We saw this guy run across the front yard this morning.      Unfortunately, he was moving fast, and was a long way away before David could get to his camera.        Maybe the coyote was planing on pheasant for breakfast.  (-:   Most of the snow melted yesterday, but we saw a carpet of white again this morning.  Even though I am anxious to work outside, I am thankful to have the moisture.  Many things are already growing.  When the snow melts, I will check on the potatoes, onions, lettuce, radishes.  Or should I say, when the mud dries up a little.  :-)

South Dakota State Bird - The Ring Neck Pheasnt

   Yesterday our snow was almost all gone.  This is the scene that greeted us this morning.  The forecast was 2 inches of snow, but now we have at least 5, and it is still snowing like crazy!
   This couple are out for a walk, or are they planning to build a snowman?

    If he is taking her out to breakfast, perhaps he should have called ahead. 
   They are just so beautiful.  It is wonderful to live where we see these amazing birds every day.

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A Little Help From My Friends

      This morning, I received a message from Elke Baxter.  She says,
"At our recent Master Gardener lecture it was suggested that if you plant your potatoes 2 weeks after Good Friday you miss the onslaught of Potato bugs.  Sounds like a worthy idea..."
     Thank you, Elke!  I am always interested in tips and info and like to see them posted here.  I learn something with every project that comes along.  Please, all readers of this blog, share your experiences and discoveries.
      We still have snow on the ground, so outside things are on hold.  Transplanted broccoli and alyssum yesterday.  So far, we are not seeing much difference in the test plots, between water and the hydrogen peroxide. 
     Sorry, I just could not help myself.  The potato beatles got me.

Inside Job

No outside work for the gardener today.  The front yard on April 15th. 

 It is very unusual for the snow to pile up like this.  We usually have too much wind for such a lovely scene.

Peacfull and quiet - No ducks - Perhaps we should see Snow Geese.









Breakfast on the deck?

Bringing Dreams to Life

     This past winter, we decided to move our vegetable garden.  One thing leads to another.  When we built the garage, we created a space perfect for a garden room.  And the perfect place for a kitchen garden.  It is close to the back door, which is in the kitchen.  This called for a whole new plan, and created a great gardening opportunity.  Above is the general layout, except that our space is 52 feet wide and 40 feet long, so our layout is an ellipse rather that a circle.  Thank you, Lord, for my darling draftsman, who can lay out a perfect ellipse of any size. :D
     So we are putting a decorative compost bin in the center.  This will become a bench and plants later, but we just have too many other projects in the works to do a bench now.
     We have tilled two of the eight planting areas (sections A and B above).  The first is already planted to potatoes and onions.  Because tomorrow is Good Friday, and everyone knows that potatoes must be planted then.
     I am very glad that the second planting area is done.  It covers an area that was part of an old foundation, and we had to dig out huge rocks.  Exciting to see our plans happening!

Wet Outside - How Wet Is It?

It is so wet the ducks are swimming on this hill top!  lol

 David took these pictures from our front windows this morning.  Since we live about 1/2 mile from the nearest pond, ducks are a rare site here.  But they are very welcome.




 It is Sunday, and a day of rest.  I may do a little transplanting in the greenhouse after church.  Transplanting is a very restful activity for me.  :D

Oh No You Don't - Not Again

This picture is from our front yard and was taken last April.  See those short little plants growing among the tulips and daffodils?  I don't know what they are, but last year they took over about a third of this bed.  I never could catch up with them, because it is really hard to weed when the good things are this big.  This year they were covering about half of it.  So now they are gone!!!!  Spent most of the afternoon pulling them up, and just in time.  The tulips are about 3 inches tall, and the daffodils are just starting to peek through the mulch.  Becky, you are right - a weed is anything that is growing where you don't want it!  You have no idea how often I think of that.  LOL

Spring Cleaning :D

The first spring blooms -
Started cleaning flower beds and berms in the front yard - pruning trees, cutting back dead grasses and peonies.  The grasses are about 4 inches tall.  One tiny peony stem is peeking out.  Tulips are coming up and Iris too.  I better get to work!!!  :-)

Changing Tap Water to Rain Water - Really?

Let's test it out!  Every gardner knows that rainwater just seems to give plants a wonderful lift.  Water from the hose just is not the same.  Why?  Here is the theory - When it rains,some of the water (H2O) picks up an atom from ozone (O3) and it becomes Hydrogen Peroxide (H2O2).  Now this is not a very stable combination, so when it gets to the ground, it gives up the extra oxygen atom and turns back into regular water.  The plant gets to use the oxygen, and loves it!  That is kind of abbreviated, but you get the idea.  So, we who garden can mimic this process by using a diluted solution of hygrogen peroxide on our plants.
My scientist and handsome prince, and I are experimenting.  We created identical groups of plants, and are watering one with regular water, and the other with the H2O2 mixture.  Of course, nothing is simple here.  If we are doing it, we must go all the way.  So, we are doing this with several species of tomatoes, cabbage, broccoli, several herbs, petunias, and some other stuff.  LOL  I have pictures, but since this only started yesterday, there is no visible difference in either of the test plots, so I will report back in a week, and let you know what, if anything is happening.  Now you know why boredom is just not in my vocabulary.  

Oh, and by the way, this stuff is supposed to keep mosquitoes down in the yard, kill bad bugs, and a bunch of other stuff.  Isn't it amazing how the world works.  :-)
 

A Little History - Ancient History

Reading my favorite book this morning, I discovered some interesting information about gardening!  In the second chapter it says that after God created the earth and heaven, but no plants had yet sprouted because it had not yet rained, and there was no one to cultivate the ground.  Instead a mist rose up and watered the surface of the ground.  No wonder, gardeners recommend that little seedlings be misted.  Then a little later, God planted a garden.  There were trees for beauty and trees for food, and other trees for other things.  Then, presumably after the garden had grown for a while, God put man in the garden to cultivate it and keep it.  What a great idea! Who doesn't enjoy the peace and beauty of a lovely garden.  This picture is a tiny portion of Leu Gardens in Florida, where we visited last January.  They call this the Color Garden.  When I saw this, I determined to create a Color Garden along the north side of our back yard.  We will see.  It is an ambitious project and we also have a Vegetable Garden project planned.  I do have the plants, though.  Stay tuned.  LOL

Baby's Breath and Snapdragons

Yesterday, I worked each tray of Baby's Breath, watering, replacing any plants that died an untimely death, finding then a new home in the greenhouse, in community with their own kind.  The same with Snapdragons.  Baby's Breath needs little more than water and sun from now until they are planted in their final resting place.  Snapdragons, on the other hand, need to be pinched back when they are the right size.  What is the right size?  Well, some commentators say when they have 4 to 6 leaves.  Some say when they have 4 or 5 pairs of leaves.  Hmmmm????  Mine have two or three pairs of leaves, but are too small to pinch back.  There is not enough space between the leaves to pinch anything.  And when I transplanted them, I set them in the dirt up to just under the sets of leaves.  So.....I am going to go with the second set of instructions, and let them grow a bit.  By the way, I had lots of Snapdragon seed that I collected from last year, so I planted lots.  I think every seed came up.  Thicker than hair on a dogs back!  I have transplanted them until I am running out of containers and places to put them.  Marlys, a neighbor who is a Master Gardener, says you must become a plant murderer.  OK.  Look out Snapdragons - here I come!

Garden Diary

Speaking of books - This year I am being scientific - or am I just being more disciplined?  Anyway, as I find info on the net, I have printed it, and put it in a loose leaf notebook.  So each kind of plant that I start from seed has it's own section in the book (in alphabetical order).  Then, as I do whatever with those plants, I make a note of the date, what I did, and any other info that might be pertinent.  When I need to take care of a certain kind of plant, it is good to have the info in one place for a particular species.  Also, it is fun to see how long it took for them to come up, get to transplant stage, big enough to pinch back, etc.  Also, my handsome prince likes to keep a weather diary.  So I have coerced him into also keeping a record of the high and low temps in the greenhouse for each day. :-)  I will share some of this info with you when we talk about specific kinds of plants.

Seed Personality

It is so amazing that tiny seeds can grow into an infinite variety of plants.  And each has it's own personality.  Some are so small they look like dust.  Others are as big as a very large BB.  Round, long, flat, with wings, you name it.  And their tastes are as varied as ours.  Don't misunderstand - Yes, they are living things, but they are NOT living creatures - lol.  Anyway,  some, like panseys and lettuce like it cool - 40 to 60 degrees.  Tomatoes and peppers will sulk until it gets hot.  Some like a dry climate, while others like a sauna.  Then their is the issue of light.  Some need dark to germinate.  Others must be left on top of the dirt so they can get light to germinate.  Thank goodness for the internet.  I could never remember all these idiosyncrasies, let along remember where to find the info in a book. 

Growing Things from Seed

This time of year, starting seed indoor is the only option in South Dakota.  I always get carried away and plant way too many seeds.  I wanted to plant all the seed I saved from last year, but realized that would be a terrible mistake when I had a spice bottle full of Snapdragon seed.  That would be perhaps 5000 seeds or more.