The Waiting...ugh...

So we discovered in a past weekend that although I am capable of laying down pavers...I will never have a side job doing this job. Thankfully, mine are holding up quite nicely so far and I have not had to fill in with more sand...I think I did O-K (even if they are HORRIBLY uneven).

This past weekend we had the most amazing Oregon weekend yet this year with 75-80+ degrees both days. The Farmer's Almanac stated that Saturday was not a good day to plant...so I waited, like a good little girl and did my planting on Sunday which was supposedly an ideal day to plant. I am not sure what they know that the rest of us don't but I have heard great things about their ability to predict these things...so I listened. As soon as I was able on Sunday though...I planted corn, green beans, snow peas, radishes, and carrots straight into the garden. I figure, being this is attempt #2 at truly gardening, I will continue to test my abilities to start from seeds.  My starts are still looking quite nice in my window, inside.  I am encouraged by their growth...they all seem very happy so far.  I am hoping this continues for a bit longer so I can get them into the garden soon.

My son's view garden is doing very well also. The pictures of the roots aren't great due to glare from the plastic but you can see what has grown above ground and they are doing very well.

I also threw a ton of steer manure (already composted and ready for garden) into the garden to supplement the soil. It seems there is some dark underground source that sucks the soil from your garden each year......I always wondered what the need for compost was. (Okay, not really...I know it all compacts and continues to compost and yadda yadda.)  I am considering building a composting bin later in the year to try my hand at composting. It seems like a LOT of work...and I am concerned I don't have enough time in the day for all of these projects that I need to keep up with. I will continue to ponder that idea though. I rather like the idea of food scraps being in the compost bin and not in my trash can.

Since I wasn't allowed to plant on Saturday I made some hummingbird food and filled my bird feeders. I also set up my vertical "walls" in the garden for when the starts come out so they have something to grow on. I have decided, after reading some more on vertical gardening, that I will need to create about 4 more vertical walls for all of my vine type plants. According to readings it is easier to garden this way, the plant yields more crop, and you deal with less pests. I would be happy with 2 out of 3 of those! Sadly, I forgot to take a picture of those...I will do so once I get the next 3 or 4 in and you can then see the whole set up.

So, I also started some strawberry seeds because Lowe's had the cutest little strawberry garden set thingy for super cheap and it matched my herb garden thingy in my kitchen window and I just couldn't resist. *sigh*  So I have now added strawberries to the list of fruit and veggies.

And to round it ALLLLLLL out, because I am pretty certain I have some sort of addiction issue now, we bought a peach plum tree (it was a fundraiser for the kid's baseball team...how could I not) that we will be planting out front. I am super excited about it actually. We have a spot in the front that I had yet to figure out how to landscape it properly and the tree was the perfect starting point. As soon as I realized I wanted it there, the rest all seemed to suddenly make sense.

So here is the list of our eatable plants around the house this year:
Peach Plum tree
Apple trees (2)
Cherry tree (although it doesn't produce fruit we can get to...it is about 40 tall)
Corn
Green beans
Snow peas
Radishes
Carrots
Strawberries
Lettuce
Cucumbers
Tomatoes
Watermelon
Lemon Basil
Mint
Parsley
Chives
Saffron
Sweet Squash (holding for a later planting)

and some volunteer blackberry...because I live in Oregon and the stuff is EVERYWHERE whether you want it or not.

I will likely grab some starts from the garden center later this spring of peppers since they didn't work out last year. I still really want to see if I can get them to work this year though. I may even grab some spicy peppers so I can make salsa with just my garden stuff.

I am still quite in shock that my garden can handle it all...but it seems I built it just the right size to handle my insanity! :)  So until next time....

YAY for Spring!!

So last weekend was a beautiful gardening weekend here in "sunny" Oregon. We had perfect weather for being out and about and playing in the dirt. I finally had some time to put work on some projects. I decided this year to really try my hand at some flowers since I had bought flower boxes at an end of the summer garage sale. I painted hem to match the trim of the house and filled them with clematis and other things...honestly, I have no idea what is in them...they are pretty, that is all I care about. I also cleaned up all my other planters and put in some new perennials so that hopefully, if I can keep them somewhat alive this year...they will come back all on their own next spring. *fingers crossed*  All I can hope is that as the growing season continues, they will grow and flower and fill the front area beautifully.  Again *fingers crossed*

While at dinner on Saturday evening I got to talking with a local bartender who is also a gardener and I told him I was attempting my second year of growing. We started talking about pests and I told him my greatest issue last year were the slugs. OH those disgusting slimy things. Sadly...although you can kill them with salt...you will also kill any plants that may be close by. This wonderful bartender informed me that you can use copper as a type of barrier. Much like salt, the copper reacts to their slim and they refuse to go near it. SO, DUH...I purchased a TON of copper tape!! Do I look crazy!? I lined the tops of the planters in the front and I lined my garden beds out back. This year...I will have control!!! I also laid pavers in the garden to help ease the growth of weeds and my tracking of mud through the house.

So there it is, my full gardening weekend. When the rain subsides again for another weekend day, I hope to plant a few select seeds, corn, radishes, carrots in hopes of getting them started. I may even see if I can get the beans started a little early so I can do 2 crops. I will also be putting up the wire mesh walls that the beans and tomatoes will grow up this year. Stay tuned!! :)