Category Archives: garden

Quick Garden Update

Posted on June 7, 2014 by Pamela

When I go to plant seeds I usually put them in a little dish to spread out in the garden.

I knocked over the dish onto the gravel by the door. Here are the beets trying to do what they do best.

These aren’t beets. Just a few shots of the roses. They are very neglected so I’m thrilled that they do anything.

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Garden Situation

Posted on May 20, 2014 by Pamela

Bob bought some stuff to put on the lawn to make it healthier and help with the weeds.

Wow. We call it Godzilla grass. It grows very fast, very green and very thick. He could mow it three times a week if he was so inclined. He is considering that maybe we don’t want a lawn that grows like this.

But I think the weather has helped. Lots of rain followed by lots of sun followed by lots of rain followed by lots of sun. The grass has no choice.

Future apples. The apple tree is a partner in the Godzilla theme if Godzilla meant a huge quantity rather than one huge fire-breathing out-of-control thing.

Berries are also looking very promising. The berry patch is a mess however so I need to get out there and do some work. I’ve also got sunflower volunteers everywhere and I really need to yank yank. I love them but they tend to takeover.

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This is the Garden Before Shot

Posted on April 30, 2014 by Pamela

I accidentally typo’d the title as This is the Garden Before Shit. hehe. That could mean anything. Maybe I would bring in manure this weekend.

Except I’m not. I already threw a bunch of seeds out there in my free-styling gardening way. I don’t even have a plan this year. Just the usual: beets, turnips, greens. Tomatoes will come later. I saved some tomato seeds from last year. I should have taken a photo. They were smeared on a piece of paper towel so it looked like trash. I planted a bunch in pots on the windowsill.

I think I’ll plant a zucchini this year. I’ll see if anything else sounds exciting.

I should have made some arrows. That middle section is all new. On the left there was more of that white flowery plant heavily infested with some sort of annoying invasive grass. There was no way to get rid of the grass without digging out white flowery plant. I thought about planting a rosemary there but not sure I want a bushy thing in that location. On the right was another herb, thyme? It got all woody and pitiful looking and spread out everywhere so I whacked it back. Maybe I would like rosemary there.

Remember the dahlia bulb dividing project? I gave some away. I let some shrivel into death on the shop floor. I planted a bunch everywhere. I’ve never had success out front but there’s a major sprout going right now. It’s located in heavy snail territory so we’ll see how we do. But I’m hopeful.

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Flower Photos

Posted on April 11, 2014 by Pamela

I cannot stop taking pictures of flowers. I had almost 300 in the “Spring Flowers” folder I made. I’m sure there are more in the camera. I keep telling myself to knock it off but then I look outside and they are so pretty. I deleted it down to 104. I hope I never miss any of the ones I got rid of.

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Rototiller Magic

Posted on April 6, 2014 by Pamela

This is my first time planting a cover crop. I planted clover and peas. It didn’t seem like a lot of seeds so I wasn’t sure what to expect.

The clover ended up being much more robust than I expected.

I have barely had time to open Photoshop the past 6 weeks or so. I’ve been trying to give myself little assignments so I can remember how to do things. I had a screenshot from my tax preparation and it took about 15 minutes to figure out how to highlight one area for my future reference. Super useful. (Oof.)

Right after I planted the seeds there were cats and squirrels running around so there were patches where nothing grew. Colleague also planted a cover crop and the birds ate everything. He only got weeds.

But! He rented a rototiller and came over and did the garden in exchange for dahlia bulbs, chocolate chip cookies and half the rental fee. It usually takes me a half day and ruining my back to turn over the garden. This year it took 15 minutes.

I haven’t planted anything yet. Next weekend I’ll throw some greens and whatever other seeds I have sitting around out there. Don’t look to me for pro-tips. I am a lazy gardener

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And Already the Time Changes this Weekend

Posted on March 7, 2014 by Pamela

I saw lots of daffodils around the neighborhood but this is as close as I’ve got. In a couple of days, watch out.

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These Are The Dahlias You’re Looking For

Posted on November 24, 2013 by Pamela

I think I picked the wrong photos yesterday and these are the ones I divided. I’m sure I’ll mix them up before this is all over so really they’ll be surprise bulbs.

Remember last year when I wrote about loving the last place team?

Tonight I am going to my first western conference championship. We’ve got a little hole to dig ourselves out of, but it’s not outside the realm of possibility. I will be cheering my face off, and also wearing a lot of layers.

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Bulbs Are Taking Over The World

Posted on November 23, 2013 by Pamela

Remember last time I dug dahlias? It was 2005, you might have not even known me then.

It was a terrible, terrible job and I vowed to never do it again.

But I lost my mind today. I have a few major bulb mounds out there and we’ve had a freeze. It’s been dry and a balmy 50 degrees. Come on, how bad could it be?

Urgh. What was I thinking “dry?” Sure, water is not falling from the sky but the dirt is a robust mud. I don’t know how they do it at the dahlia farm but I fought a giant mass out of the ground and then tried to break it apart. I tried to shake the dirt off.

I got them in smaller pieces and then put the hose on them.

By the end I was wet, cold, my hands muddy little icicles. My pretty shop that I busted ass to tidy this summer/fall had dirt and mud everywhere.

I only dug two plants. The pink.

And the white. If they make it through, and last time I lost a lot due to my terrible care, I will have about 100 to share. Of each. If you live near me I’ll give you some.

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The Garden is Finished

Posted on November 6, 2013 by Pamela

I thought I had a photo of the garden now which is almost all dirt except for some beets that are hanging in there. Apparently I didn’t take that photo or else I put it somewhere and can’t find it.

Note to self: next year fewer beets! It’s not that I like them any less but they seem to make my digestion unhappy so I can’t eat very many.

What the hell with the aging body and all these foods that I like but that no longer like me?

This was in the middle of clean-up stage one. I leave the sunflowers up as long as possible because the birds like them. I think this was the stage where I dug trenches and mixed all the gunk from the compost bin into the soil.

This is the moment when I think: wow, amazing look at all the compost we made from our kitchen scraps. I also think: wow, what an amazing smell. If only it were possible to skip inhaling.

This was stage 2. That stuff piled in the middle I trenched later with the last of the apples. I also dug up a woody thyme plant and some phlox that was infested with annoying grass. More room for vegetables next summer.

That box has all the green tomatoes I picked when I tore the plants out. I was being optimistic. Almost all of them ended up being rotten from the heavy rain we had at the end of September. I would have had a great late crop if not for that.

Pumpkin crop is in. I’ll get a photo this weekend.

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Too Many Squashy Things Coming From The Garden?

Posted on October 22, 2013 by Pamela

[Endless long rant about how technology has failed me and everyone is doing everything wrong, omitted.]

I am going to give you a terrific recipe for an overabundance of summer vegetables.

Yes, in late October when no one needs it. Save for later!

This is in a recipe book that my Mom has but I’m going to give you my variation because the recipe was a tad precious and even told you what shape dish to put it in.

Main ingredients are:

1-2 onions, thinly sliced
Tons of zucchini and/or squash that you’re trying to get rid of, thinly sliced. Toss with olive oil and thyme.
Tons of tomatoes that you’re trying to get rid, thinly sliced of OR 14 oz. can of fire-roasted tomatoes
7 oz. can of fire roasted green chiles
Half a loaf of cotija cheese or any cheese that turns your crank, grated or cubed or crumbled.

Cook in large lasagna type pan unless you’re making a small version. Then use small lasagna type pan.

First, saute onions in oil until limp and a little bit brown. Spread in the bottom of your dish.

Next, spread your squash product over the onions.

Next, layer your fresh tomatoes over the top. If you’re using the canned: combine with the green chiles, drain a little bit, and spread over the squash.

Finally, spread the cheese over the top. Bake at 375 for an hour to 75 minutes and let cool for a bit before you serve. I was worried because the cheese got pretty brown but it tasted amazing. Great as leftovers, too. Once you look at the recipe you can think of other variations – the original doesn’t use the green chiles and uses Parmesan. Probably a tough sell on hardcore vegetable haters, but everyone else will at least give it a try.

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