Butterfly Junction

sanderson wrote: It's so manageable!

It’s perfect!  Baby steps, my friend!

Scorpio Rising wrote:

sanderson wrote: It's so manageable!

It’s perfect!  Baby steps, my friend!

Thanks, Scorpio. It feels soooo good to get my hands dirty again.

countrynaturals wrote:

Scorpio Rising wrote:

sanderson wrote: It's so manageable!

It’s perfect!  Baby steps, my friend!

Thanks, Scorpio. It feels soooo good to get my hands dirty again.

Absolutely!

Expanding a little more -- found a quart container of chives from the old "Rescue Garden," that miraculously survived the fire. I gave Bob a sample to taste and he signed off on it, so I brought it over, cleaned it up, and put it on the kitchen balcony. I trimmed it down and harvested some to put in cottage cheese. I also planted the bottom of a sweet onion in another container. I'm starting to feel like a real gardener again.

Good!!

Woke up to 30+ turkeys in the front yard. They flew up on the garage roof, then across to the house. They came across to the kitchen window, then jumped down -- right over our heads. WOW! I couldn't get a good pic, but this one isn't bad. It was really fun to watch.

That must have been a noisy event!! Thanks for sharing.

You may get an unusual number of critters this winter since so much of the surrounding area was scorched.

sanderson wrote:That must have been a noisy event!!  Thanks for sharing.

You may get an unusual number of critters this winter since so much of the surrounding area was scorched.  

You're right -- I didn't think of that. We're happy to feed and shelter all who need it.

The turkeys are huge and not at all bothered by people. One of our 10 lb cats tried to attack one the 50 lb turkeys. The turkey basically laughed at him.

Checked on the Salad Bar this morning for the first time in months. Katie has been dumping the rabbit waste in there, so the "soil" level is finally rising. It should be perfect by spring. (It was down over 2' from the last 2 years.)

Also, I didn't get the raking finished, but we're having a week of perfect weather, so I'll get another chance in a couple of days.

I went looking for the jicama harvest, but it didn't happen. I'll never plant that again. (Didn't know the leaves are poison, either.)

I found the last of the kohlrabi I planted last year. We ate it raw and it was a real treat -- sweet, crunchy, AWESOME! My only complaint is that it takes so long and only produces 1 "fruit." Then I realized that it produces best in the "off" season. I can plant the seeds in Jiffy Pellets in the fall, then, as I pull up the spent summer crops, I can replace them with the kohlrabi seedlings. That space normally stays empty all winter, so I'll be turning "wasted" space into "productive" space. YEE HAH! Life is Good!

Suz, Winter for us is for kohlrabi, kale, Swiss chard, radishes, some lettuces, bok choy, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and peas.

2019 looks to be a "back to nature" year. We finally hiked the land behind our daughter's house, which will probably go to our granddaughter, eventually. Katie and I fell in love with it and got excited about clearing it out for hiking trails and "points of interest." That project will probably take the rest of our lives (mine at least) and definitely eat into our gardening time, so my posts may be more about "square foot brush clearing" than "square foor gardening" this year. I'll post some "before" pics, later.

countrynaturals wrote:2019 looks to be a "back to nature" year. We finally hiked the land behind our daughter's house, which will probably go to our granddaughter, eventually. Katie and I fell in love with it and got excited about clearing it out for hiking trails and "points of interest." That project will probably take the rest of our lives (mine at least) and definitely eat into our gardening time, so my posts may be more about "square foot brush clearing" than "square foor gardening" this year. I'll post some "before" pics, later.

Just got back from a nice hike back there. It's really gonna be a fun project.

When we bought the house and fenced the back, Bob put in a frame for a gate. He had no way of knowing we'd ever own that back piece, but here we are. Just beyond the frame is a flat area that overlooks the ravine. It would be perfect for a picnic area, so after we clear a path to that spot, we'll start clearing around there.


There's a beautiful, seasonal creek down from the overlook, so clearing a path down to that will be our next phase. After that, we'll make a path back to our new place. Whew!

Beautiful!

Needless to say, I still think about Sienna.

donnainzone5 wrote:Beautiful!

Needless to say, I still think about Sienna.

I know. She was so sweet and beautiful.

We did have a kitty go on our hike with us, today. That's Columbus, at Katie's feet. This  was taken on the way down toward the creek bed. Columbus went the whole way down, back, and over to our house. Then he went back home with Katie.


I can't wait to go back outside and play. Last year was exhausting and scary. Hopefully, this year will be fun and productive.

I forgot to get my "garden shot" this year, and I think I got bit while hiking the back lot. Now, all I want to do is plan, plant, and play outside. Since it's 30 degrees and raining out (why isn't it snow?), all I can do is sit here and daydream.

The front of our property has a circular drive around an "island" that's about 50' in diameter. It has water to it and a little shade. That's where I'll start my garden therapy. Here's the "before" shot.


With careful planning, I think I can do everything there -- flowers, veggies, and herbs. LET THE GAMES BEGIN!

I can't wait to see photos of your in-progress garden dreams!

I'm so excited for you, Suz!

sanderson wrote:I'm so excited for you, Suz!

Right now I'm overwhelmed. I know I want the focal point to be an arbor in the middle for the passion vine, since we can bring starts from the other house, but that's as far as inspiration carries me. I'm going to order milkweed seeds today, so I can get them started.

The good news is that we don't have chickens over here, so I don't have to fence anything in. My challenge will be to make it pretty and low maintenance. I'm pouring over garden design web sites and seed catalogs right now.

countrynaturals wrote:

The good news is that we don't have chickens over here, so I don't have to fence anything in.  

When will I ever learn to never brag about anything? I just walked around that island, moving rocks and trimming trees.  What I found were several piles of deer poop. At first I thought: "Yee-hah! Fertilizer!" Then reality set in. Everything I put into the ground over there will become an overnight snack for the deer. So now what do I do?

Although some people would say not to, why not add the deer poop to your compost bin?

Secondly, they've given you a sound clue of where not to plant anything they might want to eat.

Turns out the only plants the deer won't eat are bulbs, so that's what my island garden will have to be -- those, rocks, yard art, etc. We're having our second batch of daffodils right now. We had the little white ones in January. Now we have the big yellow ones.

Pretty!

Finished cleaning up the bamboo destruction from the snowstorm. Put my shirt in the dirt! The good news is that I'll have plenty of plant stakes and grid markers for the coming season.

Bamboo?