bristle at criticism

Dug up the potatoes today. Got about 30 lbs. from the 6x6 bed. The harvest is a mixture of Reds, Inca Blues, Yukon Golds, and California Whites. Stirred up the soil, leveled it, and covered it with black plastic to keep the neighbor's cats out--they think it is their litter box. I discovered this also helps the soil to compost over the winter .

Picked two Early Girl tomatoes that had split from all the rain we have been having, and a small container of Cherry tomatoes. I am trying to keep them on the vine as long as I can.

fight back

So far this season I have eaten 7 Cherry Tomatoes from the garden. Many more are nearly ripe. Rain is forecast for the next 2 days-- I don't think the rain will be a problem as far as splitting fruit goes.

exploring parallel dimensions

I finally harvested the worm castings from my worm bin today. The drain holes were plugged so it was too wet inside the bin and it had an unpleasant odor. Properly working worm bins should have no odor. I cleaned the bin and unplugged the drains but still chose to use a different bin to transfer the worms to. I am sort of worried that I may have taken too long to do the harvesting and there is some worm loss of life. We will see. I have the harvested castings spread out on a piece of plastic so they will dry in the sun. Once they are dry I will screen them then use the castings to top dress around my Tomato plants.

I also turned the compost and dumped about 5 gallons of worm tea onto it.

meaningful avenues of expression

Sun breaks today but still cold and windy. It seems that it has been raining forever. I just went outside and saw my first pea sprout of the year.

Two days ago I was able to get out and clean flower beds around my Peonies, Hostas, Bleeding Hearts, and in my shade garden. There are still beds to clean though--I wonder how many times each year I fill the dumpster with pine needles that drop from my neighbor's Lob Lolly Pine. They make good mulch during the winter but are still a pain to constantly deal with.

My neighbor whose foreclosed house was sold at auction on Friday was here to retrieve the last of her belongings. She gave me two GIANT--about 2 ft. long--C clamps that were in her potting shed. Yesterday I sprayed WD40 on them and got them working smoothly--not sure what I will ever use them for. She also gave me a brass captains bell, the lock from her gate, and a wooden barrel full of soil that I will add to the new potato bed.

Then I put up a new hook for my bird feeder and filled it up for the House Sparrows. Finally I repaired a broken wind chime and put it back up. Now I am procrastinating about getting back out there and picking up the piles of Pine needles and Rhododendron leaves that I raked up.

quite an enormous task

Rain, rain, rain, gray skies, snow, and more rain. Tomorrow I plan to start my beans and my squash so they get a leg up before I put them into the ground. I purchased a small seed starting tray with peat pellets and a clear plastic lid for this task.

just take the day off

I cut out the sod, tilled the soil, installed the pavers for the walls, and filled the new bed with compost--ready for potatoes when the moon is right. I used the sod to fill in a long narrow strip next to the garage. Next I put the post with the two Shepperd's Hooks into the ground and hung the Fuchsias up. The view from the kitchen window has been brightened nicely and the look of the front yard has really changed. I envision it gradually being turned to food growing space. Lastly I used some cheap top soil I bought to fill in the hole where I removed a Rose a few weeks back--the Rose is now living in a LARGE pot and doing well. Lightning is forecast for tomorrow.

prioritizing your tasks

Today--well yesterday really as it is 1:23 AM--I laid out an area in the front yard where I plan to make a new raised bed. I am going to use six of the large pavers I salvaged from my neighbor's yard set on edge for the walls. It is only 30" x 60" but eventually I plan for the entire front yard to be used for growing food. Potatoes are destined to be the first crop grown there.