Big Green Acres

Care For A Tour?

06/12/2013

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Showing off my peaches. There are a few more on this tree, but not many.

Showing off my apples, too. These are all there are...THIS year.

This is a cherry tomato, loaded with blooms.

Look who showed up to the WRONG tomato plant. He is bird food now.

This shows my poor old beans, and my newly emerging re-planting. You can also see that there is netting surrounding them now. THAT is to keep out birds OR rabbits. At least until they are not so much of a delicacy.

I have 'hit' the ants with another round of how I kill them.

Small jar with lid. 1/4 sugar, 1/4 borax, almost fill with water. THIS time, I added the rind of one lemon, zested into the jar. Shake well. I them pour in another jar lid and place by the ant holes. Pretty soon...no ants. Hopefully, now I will be able to get some beans.

Looking close, you can see all the blooms on my cucumber plants. All I can see are pickles...YUM!

I have a bunch more cucumbers coming up over here. Some are straight eights, others are pickling. I also want some lemon cucumbers.

Here is a Volunteer tomato. Let's see what we get.

My dill looks like it is FINALLY making a showing. I was hoping for more. Maybe I can get some more started.

I have to say...it sure is shaping up nice around here.

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My Poor Green Beans

06/10/2013

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My poor green beans! SOMETHING is eating off all the leaves. Ants? Maybe...but it could be birds. So...today I am going to re-poison the ants, and put netting over the top of this row. I have already re-planted the green beans and they are starting to come up. Which means I need to get this done today. I don't want to lose them, too!

Zucchini and cucumbers are doing well. I picked my first three squash this morning. Two zucchini and one yellow squash.

Don't they look pretty, peaking through the foliage?

My circle is looking nice these days also. I just love gardening.

Yesterday I wanted to get my watering set up. I have been working on the soil. Then the 'boxes'. Now it is the water. I have been watering "by hand"...so to speak. Which makes it hard to pull weeds, or repair a broken "damn". I don't have a hand controlled sprayer, either. What I DO have...is a Y-connector for the garden hoses. I have it on the end of the garden hose I was dragging around to water...which makes it able to shut-off at the exit-end. I then attach it to the soaker hoses, one at a time, to see how the water fills up the beds. Is the whole bed getting the water it needs? Are there any leaks? Then I adjusted the hoses till I was happy with the coverage.

So...the watering lines are about ready. I STILL have to figure out how to attach the lines to the water source. But it is getting closer to being ready.

This is my seed starting mix. I am about to start some more cucumbers. I like the Lemon cucumbers for eating. I might even start some San Marsano tomatoes. They are an Italian Roma of sorts. Good for sauce and salsa...I hope.

Anyway...back to the yard!

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Fresh Tilled Dirt

06/05/2013

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This is the East Wing Garden. There is a green garden hose in the middle because I have been watering. It needs a little water to make it easier to till. I also am putting up new fencing and gates to match the West Wing Garden. The other fence was inadequate to keep the dogs out.

I love this machine. It was one of the first tools I bought when I moved back in this house. A wonderful friend serviced this for me so he could use it. Lucky me!

I can use it for many tasks. Like digging holes. I just pick up on the handle and bury the front end. Then I can 'move' the soft dirt out with my hands or whatever. I can also pull down on the handle and only let it take the first two inches of dirt or so. THAT is good for cutting weeds. Not to mention turning over dirt for planting.

The Lad was home so I asked him to photograph the procedure.

I was told when I bought this tiller that it would be harder to use than a rear-tine tiller. I bought it because it had big tines and a big motor AND it was $300. The same size, rear-tine cost over $700. I figured I would learn how to use it for $400. That was ten years ago.

Turns out that it is very similar to use as one of those big buffers they use in the hospitals to wax floors. I was 18 years old when I was trained to use one of those.

It is a little like wrestling alligators. You can FEEL the power and KNOW it is a fine line between maneuvering IT, and it SLAMMING you. Or DRAGGING you. Or tearing something up.

I love GOOD tools. Always have. Not really a Girl-thing, is it?

The Lad thought this would show the power. It sure makes short work of turning this for planting. Maybe...30 minutes. Maybe.

We were also teaching Trouble Dog to stay out of the way. He just LOVES The Lad.

See MY happy face?! I have been waiting all year to get this dirt turned.

This dirt looks beautiful. All nice and fluffy.

It is much trickier to till the boxes. The tines can catch the wood and lurch itself out. VERY jarring to me.

Also...fresh tilled dirt smells good!

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My Garden

05/29/2013

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This is what the moon looked like Saturday morning when I took the dogs outside so they could do dog things. I had to run back in the house and get my camera. The light at the bottom is someones yard light. I thought the orb was a spectacular color.

My onions seem to be progressing nicely.

Upon closer inspection, I see I have a few peas coming up. Really...just a few.

Look! I have blooms! A promise for the future. I love tomatoes.

Pickling cucumbers, zucchini, and yellow squash are growing here.

I have been picking away at the chores in this garden. Farmer J came over today and helped me change out the fence in the top left corner. What a good friend.

This is what it looks like now. New fence and posts, all neat in a row. All boarded up around the edges to help keep the water where it will do the most good. As you can see, the other rows are about ready, too.

I also took the beds I made for the East wind garden and put them in here. I want to put ground cloth in the bottom so the crab grass can't grow through...or at least will slow it down a little.

What I really wanted to show you is that little yellow bloom. Your name is pickling cucumber!

This one is zucchini! My bread is so yummy! I can hardly wait!

This is what it looks like today. I am trying to get the water lines laid.

Late last week I trimmed up the oleander bushes. I still have three to trim. I have been thinking I could dig these up and replace them with pomegranates. Much better use of water...in my opinion.

I filled in this tree well with compost and manure. I want to do this to all the trees. They would be so pleased.

As you can see, I keep busy. I have lots of plans to get this place looking good again.

Only a lot better!

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Gratitude!

05/09/2013

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I have about half of this garden planted. This row has all the peppers and some tomato plants. Look along the wood. I put the 'name tags' by each plant for easy identification.

This row is all tomatoes. Beefsteak, cherry, celebrity, Black Krim, and Roma tomatoes. I have been having trouble with the Roma's. I have planted them twice and will need to plant again, I fear. Rabbits I think.

This row is ALL green beans...Blue Lake, bush beans. The whole row.

I planted the pickling cucumber seedlings along the fence so they can climb. The plants in front are zucchini. Not sure how this will work, but we are going to find out. Either way...I like both plants if one is to take over. Pickles and zucchini bread.

This is one of my apples. It survived the transplant. Yeah!

I also have peaches. Two trees. I see peach cobbler in my future.

You can see that my Circle is really looking nice. Sorry about the fence. I have been spending a lot of time out here lately. I have been doing a lot of praying.

Several months ago, I went in to the Dr for a check up. It started with my eye exam, then a bunch of blood tests and such, which turned into a colonoscopy, with a couple of polyps removed, and I FINALLY got the biopsy report...NO CANCER! I am so relieved!

Now...I felt like all was fine...but I NEEDED to hear it from the Dr. I try to take good care of myself so I won't get cancer, just to be clear.

The Lad's Dad passed from cancer 10 years ago this month. Which made these last 2 months hard on both of us. I am so grateful that this turned out well.

I am also 'flying solo'. I have parted ways with Farmer J, on a romantic level, but we are still friends. Who knows, but for now, friends is good.

As you can see...it has been a whirlwind of BS around here lately. I try not to use this to whine on, so I just didn't post much. I guess I felt like a duck on water...all calm and floaty on the top, and paddling like crazy under the water.

I know life can change in an instant, good or bad. But as the Lad's Dad used to say..."Who's to say what is good or bad?"

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My Future

04/24/2013

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I purchased these plants at the hardware store this weekend. Future meals. Future pickles. Future hot pepper relish.

I wanted to start all these from seed. I felt it was a waste of time since I had no fence around my garden.

You see...timing is very important. The garden needs to be ready to plant before you start the seeds so when the plants are ready they can get planted right away. Otherwise the plants get 'leggy' and don't do as well.

If you don't have a fence (at least around here) you might as well not plant, either. So...now my fence is up, my dirt is turned.

Next is water...if you are going to be using a auto-water system (like I am trying to do this year).

I also had two apple trees to move from my garden to their place next to the peach trees.

The apple trees were taking up valuable real estate in my garden. Not only by the shade, but by the crab grass stealing space. I want this to be a no crab grass zone.

So...I painstakingly chop a piece of dirt, and shake out the roots. If you till it under, you just spread it around. If I had a sieve to pass the dirt through, it would be better. This will do.

These rows are ready to plant. The black pipes are there to divert the water across paths. I don't like watering things that don't need water.

These rows have since been raked out better, and I damned them up at the ends so the water doesn't run away.

Eventually, when I get all the crab grass dug out, dirt turned over, rows boarded up all the way to the ends...I will move the soaker hoses to accommodate them. I have more hoses to complete this task.

But for now...I just keep plugging away at it.

I have also planted some flowers around my circle...besides my roses.

Speaking of my roses...They sure look pretty this year. They are finally starting to recover from YEARS of rabbits feasting on them. I do wish you could smell them. They are all smelling great, too.

Remember the tarragon? That bush behind the gas can? I had that whacked off at the ground. It has sure made a come-back!

I just love Spring!

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As Usual

04/04/2013

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I have been plodding away at getting this area fenced off. This is a gate that I made out of PVC pipe and zip-ties.

It even has a hinge. The bricks are there to discourage anyone from trying to squeeze under.

Yesterday I completed this other gate. It is bigger in case I need a bigger opening to get equipment in. Trouble Dog was not happy that he can no longer have free reign over my garden. I, on the other hand, am completely happy. It now means I am ready to plant.

This row has been turned over and has edges that will help keep the water in the rows and not in the walkways. I have started to 'cut' the edge of the next row with the shovel so I can place edges there, too. If you don't step on the rows, there will be less disease transferred from your shoes to the plants.

This gets a row...where the dark stuff is..(manure).

This row is mostly ready. I may put retaining boards on this row. Then there is one more row up against the West fence. Five rows across. I think they are about 45 feet long.

Once I get this garden planted, I will start work on other areas to plant.

I just can't seem to stop myself.

As usual.

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I Love Spring!

03/28/2013

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This garden row is about ready to plant. Raked out to have a trench to hold water.

My peach trees are in bloom.

I hope lots of blossoms makes lots of peaches. Or just a few really good peaches...this year.

See the hint of green in the lawn?

I just love Spring!

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Fence First

03/23/2013

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Wednesday was the first day of Spring. I took this Lady Bug as a good sign that it was here.-

Also...these peach blossoms are another sign.

Not to mention my Tarragon.

I have one bed almost ready to plant.

This picture shows we have changed out the old fence and poles for new ones. I really like how nice it looks.

Plus...Trouble Dog, here, can't jump this fence.

Alas, it is not quite done yet. The poles are in and so is PART of the fence. I have another roll of fence to put up and some gates to make. Then I can start planting.

This year I am hoping to get an automatic watering system in.

Let's just worry about the fence first.

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So Simple

03/09/2013

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Today was my day off...sort of. So I went to town to do a little shopping and get out of the house. So...I did my hair and put on some make-up. I then thought that I have new glasses and friends from far away had been asking for pictures. So I asked The Lad if he would help me out.