Potato Patch

We’ve finished part of the potato patch, and I think it looks pretty good, but what is really important is, of course, whether it will produce. The pictures show the potato totes that we are trying this year. So far, they are growing great. We had to make sure to put plenty of drainage holes in the bottom with all the rain this year. I even thought we could just cut out the bottom like the potato towers and then we could lift the tote right off at harvest time.  We’ll try that next year. 

The potato patch with the straw has the early reds planted in it. The little tulip fence is what I found at a garage sale for $2.00! Cute. I lined the bed with straw and started out with a layer of soil. As the potatoes grow, we will continue to fill the patch with more straw. We’ll see how the fence holds up as the potatoes grow. Remember that the paths will be completed when we are done with the backyard.

Before I insert the pictures, I want to say that these past couple of weeks I have debated  about discontinuing this blog because I have found that with my job it is much more difficult than I anticipated to finish a project, write the blog, complete house errands and tasks, as well as work. I still love getting out in the yard when I am able, but I work a lot of hours (much to my chagrin). There is a lot of pressure and stress associated with my job, a lot of tight deadlines. This blog seems to be another deadline at times. So, what I have decided to do is post when I get a project completed. It may not be every weekend like I had hoped and perhaps some weekends like this next one, it may be two projects with the long holiday weekend. It will depend upon how much work I have to bring home (hopefully none) and the weather. I started this blog to help with my need for some peace and balance in my life- to help with my tension, and give my mind something else to focus on, as well as to create a beautiful and bountiful yard. So…I have decided to relax a little, take deep breaths, just do what I can, when I can and leave it at that. I admit there is a part of me that is sad about that because I had these high expectations for what I could do (and I believe in high expectations), but I also realize they are not realistic right now, which is hard for me to accept. Knowing that my projects were to be realistic for working people, I need to let go of the fact that I’m not Super Woman.  I’m just me, in an everyday world (which is really pretty great), doing the best I can.

So…for now, this is the way it is.


Happy 4th of July to everyone! I hope it is a safe and wonderful holiday. I guess Independence Day means something a little different for me this year.

Potato patch

We moved the mound of soil back for the fenced patch.

Straw lined bed.  Bonus: The straw can be worked into

the beds at the end of the season.

The patch is about 10' long by 3' wide.

The tulip fence is just perfect for the look of the straw!  That's Stuart, our rabbit, in the backgroud.  Rabbit pellets make great manure (slow release).

Our potato totes - notice all the green coming up!

Weekend Gardening Project #5 - The Potato Patch

This weekend’s gardening project is to clean out the back of the yard and put in a potato patch. This will mean removing all the debris. It will take time because it has gotten out of control. We even have (and I am embarrassed to admit this) an old couch from the winter in the backyard. I do realize that there are all kinds of jokes that can go along with that, and I'm so glad I'm not able to see people's faces as they read that.  We did have good intentions of getting it to the dump the weekend after putting it out there, but then the rains started and really haven’t stopped. So, what was once a fairly heavy couch has now turned into a 50 pound heavier wet couch.  Every pound counts at the dump. We would have liked to have donated it, or some such thing, but quite honestly after 20 years of use, cats and a dog that used to go crazy on the back of the couch every time someone or thing, including a car 10 miles away would go by, the couch is but a shadow of its former self, so off it goes.

Unfortunately, we really don’t have a place to put our yard debris unless we carry it down two flights of stairs to outside the bottom of the cottage. 

Cottage stairs

Door to the bottom of the cottage.

The yard debris goes to the left.

This is where I should have put all the invasive plants (morning glory, buttercups, blackberries) and diseased leaves like off the roses, but hauling bucket after bucket down the stairs is not easy.  If anyone has a clever way to get things up and down stairs, I'd love to hear about it.  I told Rich we need to put in some sort of ramp system, so I can wheel stuff down there. At any rate, the back corner of the yard has now become a playground for all those invasives, and they seem to be having so much fun. You can almost hearing them laughing. There is a part of me that doesn't want to ruin their fun. They are, after all, living plants. But the reality is they will take over- even scaling the walls of the house if we let them, so out they must come.

And in there place will go potatoes.  I know some people don’t like to take up space with potatoes, since they are fairly inexpensive in the stores and all. But we like potatoes and the truth is one time I bought a bag that smelled so bad that I didn’t even want to use the potatoes. Ugh. Like bad compost. The inside of the potatoes seemed fine, but I couldn’t even wash the smell away. Now, when I go to the store, I smell the bags of potatoes. I’m sure people are wondering what in the world I’m doing, smelling a big 10# bag of potatoes. Therefore, because of the smelly potato problem, I am putting in a couple of potato patches behind the raised beds. Plus, there is something very satisfying about turning the soil and finding potato after potato. They are one of my favorites to harvest. I will be growing early reds and the standard Butte.

Materials needed: Seed potatoes, straw and soil (already bought for the raised beds), the totes and potato tower that I wrote about previously.  I will also be using the fun item I found at a garage sale for $2.00 that I wrote about in a previous posting.

Cost:
$9.00 Seed potatoes (red early & buttes)
(And my $2.00 garage sale item)

Here are the before pictures of the area:

Notice the rhubarb to the left.  At least it's loving

this cool and wet weather.  And that ever growing mound in the middle...can't you just hear it laughing and having fun!?!

Stay tuned...

Weekend Project #4 - Vegie Beds

This will be a quick posting being that the next weekend project is upon us and I don’t have this posted yet. We got the raised beds planted last weekend. I do think that if a person had two complete days to work outside that making and planting the raised beds could be completed in one weekend, but I didn’t have two days, so it stretched into two weekends.  The tidying up of the paths, etc. will happen after the rest of the backyard is done as the final touches. 

I decided to buy starts for much of the vegetable garden due to the late planting- both related to weather and time. I have rarely, if ever, started squash and cucumbers, from transplants. They grow so easily from seed, but this will give us at least a four week jump on the season, which we will need this year.

I went to the Farmers Market to buy most of my starts (that we didn’t start ourselves). I imagine anyone who is reading this is familiar with Farmers Markets by now, as they have grown tremendously in the last few years. Prices are good. Generally, there is a pretty good variety of plants and I like that I am supporting local farmers. To find local markets near you, searching the web is a good place to start, but many of the little markets may be hard to find on the web. For example, our little market is on Wednesdays and only has about three or four vendors.  The hours are usually from 10:00 – 3:00 or some other time during the middle of the day -not very convenient for working folks.  I admit I can’t often visit my own market and buy really local because I work during the day and am not near home.  Once in a while, you might find a big market that runs all day. It would be great if the hours for a Farmers Market were 11:00 – 6:00, or even 5:30. I think they would see an increase in sales from the majority of people who have to work and commute away from home. I imagine they have their reasons for the hours. I'm sure after harvesting early in the morning, the produce is fresher that time of day. So, those are my two cents on Farmers Markets. I visit the market close to my work.  Fortunately, it a pretty good one with plants, produce, goods made from the farms and some hobbyist.  Here are a couple sites that help you search for local markets.  I like the Local Harvest site. http://www.localharvest.org/   The USDA site was very slow for me.  http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/FARMERSMARKETS

Here is the plan of the beds (rather hard to read I know, but hopefully you can get an idea of them):

When deciding what to plant in the beds, I had to balance my love of cantaloupe (which can’t be preserved very well, so it’s best only to grow what you will eat fresh) with the desire to put some produce away for fall and winter. We love peppers and they freeze well, so I have planted quite a few peppers. I have planted eggplant (several varieties), cucumbers, lots of squash (zucchini, yellow summer, acorn), radishes, leeks, watermelon, broccoli, carrots and a couple of tomato plants. We’re not big tomato eaters, hard as that is to believe of gardeners, but I am trying some romas to use for sauce this year. And last, but not least…potatoes.  But the potato patch is its own project because it means going into the back recesses of the yard where we fear to tread and reclaiming the area.  Although knowing me, I will of course, leave some of the tumble strategically placed for our wildlife friends that live in our yard (like the salamander Rich saw last week under a pile of debris.) 

Materials Needed:
I already listed the materials associated with the beds. We only needed the additional vegetable plants and one bale of straw for the beds.

Project Cost:
Vegetable plants $20.00
(If I had bought just the tomatoes from a catalog, they would have cost me about $28.00 with the shipping, so I really saved. Of course, seeds would have been better still.)
     (3) Zucchini $1.50 each = $4.50
     (3) Acorn squash $1.50 each = $4.50
     (1) Leek cluster $1.50
     (1) Lemon cucumber $1.50
     (4) Roma tomatoes $2.00 each = $8.00
Flowers $13.75
     (4) Marigolds $1.00 each = $4.00
     (1) Salvia $5.50 – I love salvia because they attract bees.
     (1) Gerbera daisy $1.50 (half-price)

     (1) Dwarf spirea $2.75 (half-price)
Straw bale $5.95
Total Cost: $39.70

And now…the beds…

LOOKING EAST

BEFORE

AFTER

LOOKING WEST

BEFORE

AFTER

Next up, the potato patch.

Weekend Project Number Three - Raised Beds

Everything takes longer than I anticipate. I know it’s also because we’ve had such limited time with the rainy start to our summer. We had one nice weather day this weekend, so I tried to fit everything into that day. We went to a few garage sales. (I love garage sales. Wait until you see the darling thing I found for the garden at a sale for $2.00!  It will show up in one of my weekend projects soon.) Then, we came home and got busy on the raised beds. Something I have always struggled with is how to get it all done, enjoy different activities and still find some peace with what I am actually able to accomplished. My “to do” lists, I’ve been told, are unrealistic. I admit that I probably do need to put fewer items on them and allow more time for the ones I do have, but again, I want to get it all done because then I feel better. After all, how will I ever get it all done, if I can never get ahead? I have also been called an over-achiever. This is not something that a person who is seeking peace and balance likes to hear. By striving for more peace and balance in my life am I now channeling my over-achiever tendencies towards seeking peace and balance? Hmm. Somehow these seem contradictory. It is a quandary. Well, for now, I know that I do love what I am doing in the yard. I just need to be happy with what I do get done because I sure enjoy the process.

So, for weekend project number three, we worked to get the raised beds in. I would have liked to have gotten them all planted, but…refer to the above paragraph. So, we have the beds made and in. We found that the ground was pretty uneven, so Rich dug them out a bit to make them level. We had to do some careful situating with the bed on the east corner of the house because I put a Wolfberry (Goji) in a couple of springs ago.  It is pretty well established and has really taken off this year.  (Here is a link that tells about Wolfberry: Wolfberry wikipedia )                   

                        

Above is a link to some books about the Wolfberry.

I didn’t want to disturb its root system, so the frame of the bed had to go over it and it needed to be low enough so the soil wouldn’t cover the base of the Wolfberry too much. All in all, the beds are looking great. Here are some pictures:

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

DURING

AFTER

 You can see that I did get one bed planted. It has a variety of peppers, a couple of cantaloupe plants, broccoli and carrots. All were starts, except the carrots. I will be planting more carrots as we go because we love to juice them. We could actually have a bed just of carrots. I’m also trying an experiment this year. I have laid some green mulch on top of half the bed. I have two of the same type of pepper plants that I bought at the same time and are of the same size. I put one where the green mulch is and one in the other half of the bed. There are claims that by putting mulch down, production will be higher. We’ll see. Here is a link that tells about the mulch.  This is not where I bought mine from, but it gives a good description:  Green Mulch Here is where I bought mine from: Territorial Seed Green Mulch .

The one bed I got planted.  Note the green mulch at one end.

Here is the Wolfberry.  We lifted the frame up over the back.  The Wolfberry is about 7 feet tall now.

I will be planting the other beds next weekend. At least I will try. This proclamation using the word “try” is a step in my over-achiever recovery program. It feels like we are bombarded with wisdom from people who accomplish “great things” that you are not supposed to use the word “try.” You’re supposed to say “I will get it done.” Not try, will. Try lets you get out of it. Try lets you make excuses. Try begins the project with a questionable outcome. But that’s just the way it’s going to be. I therefore proclaim that I will try to get the all beds planted next weekend and I will try because I really want to and am excited about it and because it’s getting late for planting, but in the end, I will just do the best I can.

And to end this post...the greens have come up in the tubs already! Isn't it amazing how quick that was. Time to thin. Here are some pictures:

See you next week!

A Little Bit of Sunshine (and a whole lot of rain)

The projects got a little off-track this week.  There has been lots of rain. It was a tough week both weather and work wise. My intent was to post what the upcoming projects would be and then show the result at the end of the weekend or the beginning of the following week, but that didn't get done. I guess this is all a part of the blog, seeing what really works for me, just a regular person who can only do things at certain times.

So…we’ve had lots of rain. Sometimes I forget how the rain can affect me. I don’t usually mind the rain, which is a good thing, since I live in the rainy Northwest. At times though it can get to be a bit much, especially when it’s supposed to be vegie planting time! It was such a dark, dreary weekend, which my mood mirrored. But there was light at the end of the tunnel, or in this case at the end of the weekend. On Monday (Memorial Day) when it was supposed to rain all day, there was a clearing about midday. And then, there was sun! Bright, beautiful sun!  It sure lifted my spirits to get outside. It still makes me smile when I think of it.

I finished the garden tubs. Project two is completed.  I planted different types of greens in each one (both red and green romaine lettuce, mustard spinach, a leaf lettuce blend, summer spinach, bibb lettuce, and another blend of gourmet greens). The lawn will be edged when I work on the side yard more. That’s another project. The old strainers on the stand next to the tubs all have different greens in them as well. If I find some nasturtiums, I may add those to the strainers for a little color and some trailing down the sides.  The strainers I found for between .99 and 1.99 at the thrift store. I lined them with moss, which is definitely easy to come by here - even in my yard.  I left space in the washtubs to plant again in a couple of weeks.  That way, we'll have our greens for a longer period of time.  Here are pictures of the washtub greens project:

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

We also started our next project. This project is one of those two parters. We are building raised beds for the backyard. The backyard is one of the two places in the yard that gets sun most of the day.  The back of the house faces south.  So...of course, I will plant vegies there.  I have found that the shrub that borders the back of our property shades the backyard more than I would like, but I will sacrifice the space for privacy.  Without that hedge, I can see directly into the house behind us.  Even though the hedge has grown up nicely, at night looking out of the second floor window you can still see the eluminating blue light from the neighbor's computer, so the hedge stays.  I will write more about what we see in the neighbors yard another time.  Nothing bad, just not the best view from the window. 

Even in two parts, this project will be difficult to complete because there is a lot of to do in the backyard, so we’re just going to focus on where the raised beds will go. Then, in another project, we can continue to work on the backyard.  We need to prune the hedges, straighten the potting bench, clean up around the bunny and basically just tidy up. I want to create some privacy and make a better pathway. And, and, and...

I'll will try to stay focused on this project for now.  So, last weekend we focused on getting all the materials we need, as well as preparing the boards.  We got the wood and also had some soil delivered. It won’t be enough soil. It's never enough soil. We started by making one frame to see how difficult it would be. Not bad really. We have a picture of that one. You can see how much work there is to do in the backyard, but isn't it going to be great!  So, I guess this is kind of my intro to next weekend’s posting, too. I’m hoping to get the beds planted as well. We’ll have to see, yet again, what the weather is like.


Backyard raised vegetable beds project:
Materials needed: 10 x 8 boards, 1 x 1 boards for stabilizing, wood screws, soil, vegetables plants and seeds. I will need, but already have: cardboard for the bottom of the raised beds as needed (where the sod is), floating row cover, green mulch to warm the soil, potato towers and totes ( We’re going to try turning a couple of our old totes into potato totes. We got the idea from one of the workers at a nursery I stopped at. We’ll see what happens.) Here is a link to growing potatoes in bins:  http://www.the-organic-gardener.com/potato-bin.html .  I'll show you ours when I get them finished and as the potatoes grow.

This was a bigger investment. We really had to budget for this project. Unfortunately, as I said, we need more soil. The good thing is that it was primarily the cost to put the beds together, so that won’t have to be repeated. The yard will look so nice and tidy. Here is a site that I enjoyed looking at and will read more.  It has advice on how to plant a raised, no dig vegetable garden, as well as other gardening information:  http://www.no-dig-vegetablegarden.com/

Project Cost:
$65.00 for wood
$5.00 wood screws
$105.00 soil delivered
$19.75 plants – all bought at the local farmer markets
     (2) peppers $5.00
     (6) peppers assortment pack $4.25
     (4) eggplants $6.50
     (2) cucumbers $4.00
$8.00 (approximately) seeds – We got the seeds at a buy one, get one free sale and I had a few leftover from last year. Here is our list:
Cantaloupe, watermelon, broccoli (all started indoors), zucchini, yellow
summer squash, acorn squash (we love acorn squash), radishes, carrots, and cucumbers
Total Cost: $202.75

Now for the pictures:

Backyard looking east at the bunny hutches. The black marking sticks are the beginning outline of the where the raised beds will be.

The first bed is put in place! We will have four of them.

We will be layering on top of what you see in the bed.

This area should be transformed the next time you see it.  The weather forecast isn't great, but I'll hope for even a little bit of sunshine!

Rained Out

Rained out. Bummer. It was a disappointing weekend, but there is nothing that can be done when Mother Nature is in control. I suppose it could be looked at rather humorously if I’d let it be. Sunday went something like this:

There would be a slight break in the clouds, and I’d say, “It looks like it’s getting lighter.” I’d throw on my coat. Slam, slam out the door I’d go. I’d start weeding a tub. Here would come Rich to help get the tubs moved. Then, drip…drip…drip, drip, pour. Bother. In we’d go. It went on like that all day. “Light!” Slam, slam. Weed, weed. Drip, drip. Pour. By about 3:30, I finally gave up. I will complete the project next weekend, or maybe during the week after work if I get home in time. We have a BIG project in store for Memorial Day Weekend (Hmm. Any ideas what we're planning?), so I don’t want this one to be tagged onto that weekend too much.  At least my sunroom got cleaned, the laundry got done, and the bills got paid this weekend. That’s positive. Plus, I wrote out my plant list for what I would like in yard. I will post that on one of the pages of my blog soon. I also went hrough my seeds and got them organized, so it was a productive day, even if I didn’t get my project finished. In between showers, I did take a picture to show how far I got, but it doesn’t look great yet. It’s still pretty messy. I also need to think about what to do with all the ugly cables that are running along that side of the house. Perhaps some strategically placed shrubs are in order.

Here are the tubs so far:

Something wonderful happened this past week. The yellow rose bush is blooming. Here are some pictures. I have a couple in the house and it smells so good.

I thought I'd include a picture of one of the frogs in our pond.

That's it for now.  With a three day weekend coming up I'm planning on taking full advantage of the time.  And you know what they say...it's safe to plant your vegies by Memorial Day Weekend!  Does that give a clue about my next project? 

Tubs O'Green

We’re supposed to have rain this weekend. We had quite the storms pass through this week. High winds, heavy rain and even hail. There might be a break on Sunday, so I’m hoping that will be my project day. Before I describe my project, I wanted to share a photo that Rich took of some beautiful Evening Grosbeaks that flocked to our yard this week before the rain set in.  This is in our front yard where I will be completing a couple of projects later in the summer.

The ground is pretty saturated from all the rain, so this week’s project will focus on moving some garden tubs, getting them ready for planting and depending upon the outlook for the weather, planting some seeds. Rich started some broccoli in the house this year, so I may plant those.

I use old washtubs to plant my greens (different types of lettuce, spinach, arugula, etc.). I find this works great for me because the sprouting seeds don’t get lost amongst weeds as they have when I planted directly into the ground even when they were planted in nice neat rows. I currently move the washtubs to the back of the house in the fall and winter where they get the sun that is to the south at that time. Then, I move them back to the side of the house in the late spring and summer where they get some morning sun and afternoon shade. It seems to be perfect for our greens, as we grow some pretty much all summer. I do add some fresh amendments each year. Generally, I add a little more soil, rabbit droppings and maybe some dry, chopped straw or leaves. The side of the house is fairly sheltered, so the tubs don’t get swamped with rain water, but they seem to get just enough because I only water them in the driest part of the summer. When the tubs are at the back of the house, I have to keep them covered when we’re in for several days of rain. Otherwise, they get way too saturated.  The cover also serves to keep the plants warmer on frosty nights.

Moving the tubs is kind of a hassle, but Rich helps me lift them into the wheelbarrow and from there it’s pretty easy. They just slide out of the wheelbarrow when I get them moved around to the side of the house. This year, I plan to put raised beds in along the back of the house (another project!). They will also serve as cold frames for greens and starting plants in the spring, so the washtubs will stay on the side of the house this time. That will make it much easier.

Materials needed for this project: Soil, rabbit manure, leaves, seeds for planting, some sort of material (cardboard, newspaper, brown bags) for putting under the tubs to keep weeds down and the ground around them looking neat.

Cost: $10.00 for seeds (I have some leftover from last year, so I’m going to see if they will germinate, but I also have some new ones that I will plant as well.), $3.00 soil
Total $13.00

Location of the tubs now and what they look like:

Covered tubs for chilly days and nights.  Plus, it protected them from too much rain.

Their summer home, but this year it's becoming their year-round residence.  Notice the spinach growing in the tub behind the skeleton chairs.

Check back!  We'll hope for a few hours of dry weather!