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Showing posts from April, 2010

A grey day... bright thoughts of summer gardens....

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Thoughts are forming for this years garden. I have the layout done. The main garden will have the wall of Cosmos. The top will have the big marigolds, doing white this year. Then the Roma Tomatoes and Basil, next row will be a Variety of peppers, then eggplants. We now hit the center of the garden, A tall TP with a vine flower running up, just haven't decided on the color, orange or purple, I am into white this year!, each side will be green and yellow bush beans, then the pea sticks with a couple types of snow peas, and sweet peas. The next is sectioned out to four spots, chives, onions, carrots and dill. Last row will be two types of cukes and zucchini. Then the two barrels and in between those will be the Shepard's hook with two hanging strawberry's. One barrel herbs, the other blueberries. And I have threee long containers with curly, and flat leaf parsley, nasturtium's ring those, and lettuce will be started in the third. Pots will be filled with annuals and herbs

The edge of madness...just kidding!!!

Life is always waiting for me every morning! Mud season, with no mud... We need rain so bad!!!!  Yesterday the Gourd wall got put up, ,my upstairs neighbor . Brian drilled it up good!!! It looks really nice, that will be the centerpiece of the garden. It sits on an angle, and will be really easy to get the look I want. Finally got the fan on he seedlings, all my cosmos seedlings bit the dust, a few will survive, but they look like shit. Everything else did really good. I have four big pumpkin plants growing on the kitchen island! Soon they will be taking off over the side, by the time I get them outside, they will be covering my kitchen! Planted two long narrow planters with curly and Italian parsley, and I put a ring of nasturtiums around the outer rim.Since we are supposed to get rain within the next fer days I am going to get all my containers out and let the rain start to clean them up. Next week compost comes, hopefully the next few days the tiller will get here. Now I am getting

You can teach an old dog new tricks.

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I have been taxing my brain to follow directions for new knit blocks.  Took several rip outs but I did manage to finally get the Five Rib Braid to work out, so following cable instructions ...no problem ,as long as the rows are repeated with an easy way to remember where I am(Brain is not working right at all). So that that pattern turnedout really nice . I am having a problem with textured stitches, I think I knit to tight , so when the pattern calls for a MS,p3tog,  I have a hell of a time, and just don't want to fight with a whole block to do a Bramble Stitch. I will continue to try, maybe with practice I will get better at it. The Gansey Patterns where a breeze, Humber Star turned out really nice, Full Diamonds worked out nice. I really have to watch colors , some patterns look better in certain shades and textures. Mastered all the Moss Stitch patterns,Chevron,Mock Cable, and the pattern that is the easiest,yet screws me up in the middle of the block- Basketweave. It is like t

Another Beautiful Day

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Another beautiful day today. The sun was out full force all day. Moved the old chairs and table into the garden. After yesterday not much to do,. Tomorow, the gourd wall will get built. I am still wishing for rain, it is dry, especially with the wind.And I have to do something with the flower bed under the window. I think I will re-rock most of it, throw in viola's(some are coming up now).And in the back I will do the cosmp's and coneflowers again. Just leave it a little wild looking. I am going to mix rows and squares in the garden. And a wall of Cosmo's. Anchor the garden with tall sunflowers. And in the center divide the garden with totems of zucchini. That will give the main garden it's structure. And the gourd wall will give it to the end of the garden, the other side has a wall of sunflowers against the shed. Almost a feeling of enclosure, and the lily garden is getting bigger, so that will narrow the path into the back yard. I can't believe how well this gar

The Magic is Back!!!

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The magic shovel was hard at work today! One less thing to worry about in the gardens, they are all cleaned up. Get the till in here next week, then the beginning of May the compost will be delivered. The seedlings sre growing like crazy, every day I have to higher the lights. By next week I should be able to start feeding them a light fertilizer. So far things are going well. I might get out the saw tomorow, and build the gourd ladder. I think I have enough wood, I just have to get some nails. Get those at the store tomorow, it is also grocery day for the week.Yuck!!! But it has to get done. This is the last month of the personal chef gig. I don't cook alot come summer, and it is not getting me to eat any better, just get sick more from trying what I make. And when you have to cook every nite, it starts to get a bit boring, especially when you are limited to someone else's taste. But it has been fun. I would not mind it if it rained tomorow! Just got the BBC series the Youn

One More Time...

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I think I have finally gotten everything cleaned up now. This page was looking pretty UGLY. I have been working happily this morning, ever since 7 a.m. things have gotten crossed off the daily list. I should go outside for awhile, but it is cold. My hands are frozen in the house. All the seedlings have sprouted in the greenhouse. And they are looking healthy, which makes me very happy. Putting the extra effort in hanging the lites has helped a great deal. And I have the fertilizer sitting on the floor, just waiting for the true set of leaves to appear. Do it right this year, and I have the fan ready to start circulating air. I think the garden will be jam packed and beautiful this year. I am going to splurge on a patio set, just a small cafe table with a couple of chairs.And some lighting would be nice. I need to find an area for the hanging strawberries and blueberry barrel. I just need to get back there now and partition everything off. I have everything ready to go back and do it,

Construction-Coming Soon!!!!

I have messed up my poor blog! Working on a overhaul this afternoon!!!!!

A short Note

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The greenhouse is full of seedlings. The first step has been accomplished succesfully. Now keep them healthy and alive. See if I can remember what I planted without looking at the list.... Cayenne peppers, Banana , and Big red peppers. Lots of Basil, and I mean alot of basil. Cosmo's, marigolds, pumpkins, solar babies, several herbs, eggplants, two types. I can't remember what else is growing, Four shelves loaded with cells of plants.... Makes me happy! Chilly outside this morning. Longing for a long warm summer, with very little wind. Dreaming..... Time to get things going for the day, phone calls, no appointments today, well I have one, but it is getting cancelled, don't feel like deeling with every problem today. Get things ready for when the back pay check arrives. ALL my bills will be paid, a nice garden fund, and life will start calming down and flowing the way it should, the way I want it too. My needs will be taken care of, and a bit of spare change to throw aroun

How good it is....

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Another BEAUTIFUL day outside! I know we need rain really bad, but this spring has been incredible so far. It makes you really want to get that garden going, but I know a cold snap is still out their somewhere. It would be unbelievable to have the garden in and growing by the middle of May! But I do not have that much trust in Mother Nature , she could decide to play a number of dirty tricks as soon as I put plants and seeds in the ground. I have so many plants in containers, having to haul everything in at night is just stupid. So, it is now the waiting game. The compost will be deliveredthe second week of May. 7 yards will refill all the beds and barrels, enough for the containers. I am still in a quandry over how to plant that big urn. I found a yellow color scheme that was really fluid. But it was all yellow, now I am thinking, blueberries. I can fit two plants in it. No, it is made for flowers, I will get a barrel for the blueberries. Those will be with the hanging strawberries.
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I have already lost one post today, try for number two. Went shopping with Mom today, bad move on my part, the stores where crowded. More people than I want to see in one place. And I really didn't need much, and what I did need I forgot to get, and instead of getting the metal rings in the stationary department, I wandered through groceries, and ended up staring at fresh pumpernickle hoagie rolls, so it is Ruebens for dinner tonight. I love them, and they hate me, but such is life, I will suffer the consequences. Anyway... I needed the rings for the neastest orginazation tip for garden stuff. I like to save all my plant info's. You punch a hole in the plastic stick, make sure you don't hit any pertinent info, and you just hang them from the ring all together. I have a set of rings for each garden, and I need more rings to put in the garden Journals, I have the coolest book markers for them, Macrame' little hangers, I used to make them for key chains, you can always fi