Pop!

Hello Beans.

Feel free to spread out a bit.

Try not to get eaten.

The Land's Blooming

Iris. I transplanted this one when I replanted the bed 2-3 years ago. This is the first time it's blooming.

Peas bustin' out all over. I took several shots of the tomatoes (Wayahead, Powers Heirloom, Black Krim, Aunt Ruby's German Green) but none of them made the tiny, unopened blossoms easy to see so I chose not to include them.

Strawberries. We did just plant these this year though so I' m trying to convince Dean that we should cut off the flowers and allow the plants to get better settled. It's a hard argument. He understandably wants strawberries, now! We've come to a comprimise where we'll remove all but one blossom at a time. Hopefully that will give the plants enough energy to put into growth but give Dean and the boys some fun this year.

Dirty me. We were piling leaves on the potatoes and planting some strawberries that got trampled.

I Covet...

Isn't that cute? I can just imagine a trip to the farmer's market and the library with a 4 year old in tow. I wouldn't even have to hold back on the number of books I checked out. The 'bucket' comes with an insert with 2 seat belts.

Keeping Up

Just trying to keep up lately. I can hardly believe its in the middle of June. Dean and I take the dog for a walk and I often am surprised at what's blooming right now.

Here's some replacement lettuce waiting its turn.

Leftover pots from Spring planting are still sitting outside.

And Dean's worm farm has been making lots of great fertilizer for my bucket tomatoes. They look as strong and healthy as their raised garden brethren.

This is an interesting undertaking and sometimes I wish I was documenting it better. Wetness is a factor; the worms can drown. Sometimes I think we put too much food in. It's a very hit or miss proposition. Maybe I'll yield a post to Dean so he can explain more about it. Hopefully we'll have learned enough to keep them alive through the winter.

Leaping Backward through May

One problem with my yard...having enough sunlight. One of our solutions is growing things in 5 gallon buckets on the back deck or on the small path at the south wall of the garage. Last year it was potatoes. This year we have tomato overflow and 1 bell pepper. I hope I remember to water them.

It still amazes me how much corn looks like grass (I believe it belongs to the grass family). I swear I've lived in corn and dairy country all my life but I guess I've never been this close to one so early in the season. I hope the dog doesn't eat it. He likes the tall grass.

And the squash nod and stretch. I hope that hose is not too close. L. planted all the hardy squash for me. This is my first year using the drip hoses. It's my investment for the year. Last year all the squash, cucumbers, and pumpkin died of powdery mildew. They were so far away I just splashed them as best I could. I just love how you can just point hoses to the sky and thumb it just right. Apparently veggies don't find that quite as fun.

Cucumbers look a little uncertain.

Here's Dean's new bed. Strawberries. I never thought I had enough sun for them but a friend gave me this cool box. We'll just have to wait and see.

As we leap back into the present I think I miss May 23rd. It was so bright and sunny. Right now it's in the 40s and rainy. I think I'll take a day off, bake some banana bread, throw in some Steve Earle and read Michael Perry's new book Coop. Highly recommended.

Time Travel

Time travel: I don't mean the kind with a flashing sleigh-like ship with an elegant Victorian handle. Maybe more like the '90s tv series. A series of leaps through the last few weeks, starting with today and working backward.

This is one of my workspaces. Look well, I will probably never show it to you again. The important thing in this picture is the empty mayo container with BEANS written over manila tape. This is the theme of today's program.

These are not beans. These are peas...in a potato bed. However, I did plant a few green beans here in the empty spaces so it does fit the theme. Plus I'm really proud of this weird sticks and string set up. I've fixed it twice when the dog trounced it. I probably need to get over this pride issue and buy something sturdy but I think of this as a kind of found art project.

The old bean bed. It's overhung with cedar, oak, and maple. I feel sorry for it really. So far beans are the only things which will grow there. I've tried onions, potatoes, cucumber, melon, peppers, and basil. This is the original garden bed that came with the house. I'm not quite sure what they were thinking when they put it there.

Today for garden therapy day I planted edamame (soy beans for fresh eating), Vermont Cranberry beans (hard shell), and a few yellow bush beans. I mixed a few Empress bush beans in with the tomatoes (on the left) and peas (on the right).

Tomorrow I'll work on posting the 3 sisters garden L. and I planted last week. We'll do a little time hopping, so be patient with me.

Okay, the photos's not that pretty but...

My bread (multigrain levain..repeat that a dozen times, it rolls off the tongue so nicely). My lettuce. Okay, the chicken isn't mine. I have enough problems with the city without adding chickens to the mix.

It was a busy weekend. More when I find the little camera. Until then listen to some Jayhawks wait for the sun to come out again.