Garden
Lazy Garden Tip: Golden Poppies are Super Easy to Grow
Golden poppies that blew in and made themselves comfortable Its pretty hard to find a plant that's easier to grow than one that turn up at random and proceed to takeover. Bonus points when it's not an invasive weed but a native flower you actually. Last year we had a few golden poppies blow in here from who knows where and put on a nice early spring display before disappearing again. This past rainy season (basically November to March) however, we got a lot of rain and, holy cow, more than a few golden poppies. They're everywhere this [keep reading...]
The vegetable garden is off to a great start
Basil, Peas, loose leaf lettuces, cucumbers and some ball cabbage transplanted April rolled in and we've got plants in the beds. Of the stuff we planted back in March, here's what went in the ground this weekend: Oregon Sugar Pod Peas Genovese Basil (pesto) Danish Ball Head Cabbage Loose Leaf Lettuce Mix National Pickling Cucumber The tomatoes broccoli and cauliflower aren't ready to go quite yet, but hopefully they will be in a week or so. It's warm and there's no rain in sight (at least for the next 10 days), so I went ahead and planted bush [keep reading...]
Time to Get This Garden Started
I used to take that "start indoors 4 to 6 weeks before last frost" stuff on the back of seed packets pretty seriously. It took me about 5 years and umpteen dead seedlings before I figured out, regardless of what the weather tables say about my climate zone, that "last frost" could be anywhere from mid-February to late April. So now, rather than trying to figure out when the last frost might be and working backwards, I always plant my first sets of seeds at the end of February. Spring veggies that don't mind a cold snap or two when [keep reading...]
A Rare Skink Sighting
We've no lack of reptiles here on the acre. Gopher snakes, king snakes, the occasional rattlesnake, alligator lizards and western fence lizards (aka, the "blue belly") are all common sights around here. Actually, the fence lizard is so common in summer that you'll nearly walk on a dozen just crossing the yard. What isn't a common sight though is a skink -- a western skink in this case. These guys are usually pretty shy. I've only seen a few over the years, and even then only in dark places like wet woodpiles and compost heaps. But here was this one [keep reading...]
Let’s Get Cloning
Winter is a great time to propagate plants from cuttings Salvia Pozo Blue propagated from another in my yard Mid winter is tough. If you’re anything like me, right about now you’re itching to get back outdoors, clear some garden beds and get started on planting for spring. The problem is there’s still weeks of cold, wet, frosty and unpredictable weather ahead that all but guarantee anything you try to get started will be killed off by the time warmer weather rolls around. Fortunately, while it may not be the best time to get seedlings or transplants started [keep reading...]
This Pterodactyl is trying to eat my fish
I've been doing battle with this bad boy for the past few days. The fish pond is covered and reinforced with bird netting, but that hasn't stopped him from trying multiple air and ground-based attacks. Unlike the egrets that visit and attempt fishing without a license from time to time, this guy has almost no fear. He certainly doesn't startle easily and he stands his ground even when I'm just a few feet away. Given that he's a little over 5 feet tall, he's probably used to being the big bird at the pond.
Ouch! Winter Hits Hurt
Down here in the foothills of San Diego its not unusual to see temps dip below freezing on some nights... in February. Unfortunately, during the last three weeks of autumn almost every night has dipped into the low 30's (and some nights into the 20's). Most of my subtropicals can survive a few nights of frosty weather, but not weeks of it. Pretty much everything is now fried. Fried plant gallery Now I'll just have to whack it all back, mulch and hope an early spring.
Thanksgiving dressing from the herb garden
The herb garden is about done for the year, but not so done that I can't get everything I need to season our homemade stuffing. Manged to get plenty thyme, rosemary, celery, parsley and sage. Now to dice it up and add it to the croutons I made from some leftover French bread the Mrs. made earlier this week.
Garlic sprouts in early November
About a month ago I planted some hardneck garlic for spring harvest. Here's what it looks like a month later: I planted both rows on the same day, but curiously, the garlic on the left, which is from a local grower, is already up and on its way. The garlic from Maine has yet to appear.
Jack o’ Lantern in waiting
It's Halloween, and time to haul one of the last pumpkins up to carve it into a Jack o' Lantern. This one looks pretty good. Follow-up: turns out this one was bigger than I thought. 45lbs worth of Jack o' Lantern coming up.