Re: California - What are you doing this month?

**sanderson** 11/2/2017, 3:59 pm

Last year was brutal with grasshoppers. This year I think I've seen maybe 4 or 5, so maybe next year will be better for you.

**trolleydriver** 11/2/2017, 5:55 pm

sanderson wrote:I haven't worked in the garden since I had the face treatment. However, today I got out there after the sun moved behind the neighbor's trees. Both totes of sweet potatoes split so I harvested them. They were so crowded that they were showing on the top of the Mel's Mix. This is the best I have done. Gee, I wonder if I keep learning from this Forum? I sauteed a few root runts and extra starts from the winter garden for a veggie dinner. PS: The plate is a smaller salad plate.

I've also been canning the frozen summer tomatoes. 22 pints of tomatoes and 3 cups of tomato sauce.

This photo was taken around Oct 18 and shows the mass of sweet potato vines and the 9 tomato plants along the fence. I have since removed 4 plants on the right end and discovered real tomatoes on the fifth one. I already pulled the markers but they are pleated so probably Mortgage Lifter. On the remaining 4 plants, I have been pruning, leaving only clusters that have a chance to ripen by the end of November or early December.

All of the winter starts are planted and covered with bridal tulle. One bed left for sowing carrot, lettuce and radish seeds and then it will also be covered.

That's about it. Oh, I ordered the soft neck Susanville, an "improved selection of California Early"garlic, from Territorial, so I have those to plant. They will have a 2'x4' bed with an overhead PVC frame, that they can stay in until ready for harvest. In the past I have had to pull them too soon to make room for summer starts. Also, there is a valve for the driplines so I won't be over watering. Last winter, we had so much rain that they rotted. They will have a tulle cover and a plastic rain coat if needed.

Look at you sanderson, with that amazing garden and harvest. way to go

**sanderson** 11/2/2017, 8:19 pm

Garden after sweet potato harvest and some tomato plants cut down: California - What are you doing this month? - Page 9 Garden11

countrynaturals 11/5/2017, 5:10 pm

Everything I wanted to save is inside under lights. Tomorrow (no rain) I will check and see if there's anything else left outside that needs to be salvaged.

I also need to take stock and see if I need to plant any more seeds this year. I will also go through all of my old seeds and see what I can find for microgreens.

I'd like to rake more leaves, move more chips, and do some more work on the compost heap, but the 10-day says nothing will be dry enough out there anytime soon. Rolling Eyes

Today I'm re-organizing and cleaning up my indoor garden supplies and seeds. I may get out to the deck for some sweeping and straightening, but that can wait until tomorrow if I poop out too soon. Razz

countrynaturals 11/7/2017, 2:51 pm

Perfect gardening day! I hauled 4 more buckets of leaves for my new sfg. I'll add plenty of rabbit poo over the winter, so this bed should be ready for anything next spring. sunny

**Scorpio Rising** 11/7/2017, 9:45 pm

sanderson wrote: Garden after sweet potato harvest and some tomato plants cut down:

Love it!

countrynaturals 11/19/2017, 3:00 pm

Raked up the compost heap. California - What are you doing this month? - Page 9 43549

Now I'm moving chips and cleaning out vines for the compost. If that doesn't put my shirt in the dirt, I'll rake leaves. sawing logs

**sanderson** 11/21/2017, 1:58 pm

I haven't been writing much on the Forum. We have been deep cleaning and going through boxes and bags of stuff pulled out of 4 bedroom that we had painted. I've also done 17 loads of laundry of bedding, towels, quilts and extra blankets that were clean except for lots of dust and micro paint over-spray. Yep, we are hosting Thanksgiving after 3 years of driving up to Sacramento.

A few nights ago, we had a real down pour, 1/2" in 1 hour. Now, I know it doesn't sound like much to those in Florida, hurricane/storm states, but it dumped 0.4 " in the first 30 minutes. The weather has been nice and nights still above 40*F. I have some beautiful Mortgage Lifter tomatoes that I am hoping will start blushing. The winter garden is growing nicely in the Table Top beds and doesn't require any work except to ensure the bridal tulle remains tight.

That's all for now. A new day of deep cleaning.

countrynaturals 11/21/2017, 6:31 pm

sanderson wrote:
That's all for now. A new day of deep cleaning.

You go, Girlfriend! okay

**sanderson** 11/22/2017, 2:55 am

I forgot to mention that I finally got the garlic planted in one of the 2'x4' rolling beds. I planted. carefully covered with straw and then realized I forgot to put the drip lines in before I spaced for planting. Dummy.

Okay, I gotta share two of the results of all the hard work. These rooms have been basically storage rooms for a couple of years, totally unusable. We made hard decisions for donations, garbage, recycle, and what to keep and where. Deep cleaning, even the silk plants were washed in the shower! Razz

The walls are light brown, NOT pink, though they look it in the photos. Ken made the Grandfather clock. California - What are you doing this month? - Page 9 Thanks10

California - What are you doing this month? - Page 9 Thanks10

California - What are you doing this month? - Page 9 Thanks11

**AtlantaMarie** 11/22/2017, 8:22 am

WOW! That looks gorgeous, Sanderson!!!

And as a woodworker, I love the job Ken did on that clock..... SO pretty.....

**trolleydriver** 11/22/2017, 11:04 am

AtlantaMarie wrote:WOW! That looks gorgeous, Sanderson!!!

And as a woodworker, I love the job Ken did on that clock..... SO pretty.....

+1

yolos 11/22/2017, 3:19 pm

sanderson wrote:I forgot to mention that I finally got the garlic planted in one of the 2'x4' rolling beds. I planted. carefully covered with straw and then realized I forgot to put the drip lines in before I spaced for planting. Dummy.

Okay, I gotta share two of the results of all the hard work. These rooms have been basically storage rooms for a couple of years, totally unusable. We made hard decisions for donations, garbage, recycle, and what to keep and where. Deep cleaning, even the silk plants were washed in the shower! The walls are light brown, NOT pink, though they look it in the photos. Ken made the Grandfather clock.

Looks real nice BUT I see some unfinished business. Pictures on the floor to the left of the beautiful clock. Tut Tut.

**sanderson** 11/22/2017, 5:30 pm

Well! At least you can't see the pictures hiding behind the (2) easy chairs to the left. Wink

Mother had a lot of fine/collectible pictures and it was so hard to decide what to put up and what to consider putting up and what to dispose.

Five (5) years ago, this was the condition of the living room and dining room AFTER 2 large estate sales, gifting to the kids and 1 year of eBay selling antiques, collectibles, primitives and 200 sets of china. Everything left in my Mother's house was brought to our house when her house sold. Mind you, this was 5 years ago and we since had gotten the 2 rooms close to what is shown now. Two (2) years ago we had the 4 bedrooms and 2 baths painted and some stuff was still in these rooms until 2 days ago.

Five years ago: California - What are you doing this month? - Page 9 100_5310

California - What are you doing this month? - Page 9 100_5310

California - What are you doing this month? - Page 9 100_5311

California - What are you doing this month? - Page 9 100_5312

BeetlesPerSqFt 11/23/2017, 7:53 am

That's an amazing transformation! Deep cleaning is hard work, but for me at least, those hard decisions you mentioned would be harder. praise

I hope that you and your guests/family enjoy the re-purposed rooms and have a great Thanksgiving! And then,I'd say you absolutely deserve a rest, whether the pictures are on the walls or not.

**trolleydriver** 11/23/2017, 8:49 am

BeetlesPerSqFt wrote: That's an amazing transformation! Deep cleaning is hard work, but for me at least, those hard decisions you mentioned would be harder.

I hope that you and your guests/family enjoy the re-purposed rooms and have a great Thanksgiving! And then,I'd say you absolutely deserve a rest, whether the pictures are on the walls or not.

+1

**sanderson** 11/27/2017, 3:37 pm

Made it through Thanksgiving! Weather was great, seeing the kids was great, food, meh. I can't believe that after years of cooking, this turkey was undercooked! All the side dishes were hot and I started cutting the turkey and it was half raw! I hacked off some pieces and microwaved as the side dishes were cooling. tongue

Here's my little helper, Inara, my daughter's dog. She recently had pups and lost a lot of hair. Three women and a dog made the kitchen a bit crowded. Razz

California - What are you doing this month? - Page 9 Img_9911

This is Monday and the last dishes related to Thanksgiving and making bone broth are washing in the dishwasher. The house is still organized and clean (just don't look in the computer/storage room). It rained 0.25" last night and the air is clean today. The windows were washed last Wednesday and it's enjoyable looking out at the garden, sky and clouds. As I feel less guilty, I'm off to take a nice nap. Later folks.

**trolleydriver** 11/27/2017, 4:08 pm

sanderson wrote:Made it through Thanksgiving! Weather was great, seeing the kids was great, food, meh. I can't believe that after years of cooking, this turkey was undercooked! All the side dishes were hot and I started cutting the turkey and it was half raw! I hacked off some pieces and microwaved as the side dishes were cooling. Here's my little helper, Inara, my daughter's dog. She recently had pups and lost a lot of hair. Three women and a dog made the kitchen a bit crowded.

This is Monday and the last dishes related to Thanksgiving and making bone broth are washing in the dishwasher. The house is still organized and clean (just don't look in the computer/storage room). It rained 0.25" last night and the air is clean today. The windows were washed last Wednesday and it's enjoyable looking out at the garden, sky and clouds. As I feel less guilty, I'm off to take a nice nap. Later folks.

Lookin' good sanderson. Glad you had a really nice family time.

Better the turkey was under-cooked rather than overcooked which reminds me of:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Spmqbs8YCW8

**sanderson** 11/27/2017, 4:14 pm

That movie is still hysterical! Razz

**sanderson** 11/27/2017, 4:19 pm

I finally managed to catch the back neighbor's yard service a few minutes ago. They always blow off the large patio towards the good neighbor fence between us and dog hair, dirt and other minutia comes flying over getting every thing dirty on my side. They also blow off the sidewalk towards us. Weed seeds, leaves and dirt come flying over. I watched as they did it nicely in the other directions. bounce

happy dance

**trolleydriver** 11/27/2017, 4:22 pm

sanderson wrote:That movie is still hysterical!

I try to watch it every year. I've adopted cousin Eddie's "It's goooood" remark when we have something that tastes good, especially something from the SFG.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbbrpQTzmWI

**trolleydriver** 11/27/2017, 4:23 pm

sanderson wrote:I finally managed to catch the back neighbor's yard service a few minutes ago. They always blow off the large patio towards the good neighbor fence between us and dog hair, dirt and other minutia comes flying over getting every thing dirty on my side. They also blow off the sidewalk towards us. Weed seeds, leaves and dirt come flying over. I watched as they did it nicely in the other directions. happy dance

**sanderson** 11/30/2017, 3:28 pm

I may actually escape the kitchen today. Very Happy

Tuesday I made sauerkraut and Wednesday canned some of the yams and tomato sauce from the last of the frozen tomatoes. Canning takes planning, cleaning, counter and stove space and food prep. The canner is too heavy for me to lift with my back. But, after every jar has pinged and everything is washed and the counters clean, it gives such a sense of accomplishment.

The weather is still good, the winter plants still growing and the garlic is up! Still haven't seeded the lettuces, carrots and radishes. I just caught a mocking bird looking for red wigglers in an exposed bed. hiddenID

If he would just smooth back the Mix after he was done. A fat squirrel has been caught twice on the fence in the vicinity of the remaining tomato plants. It's probably time to pull them out but the Sun Golds are still fully ripening and the Mortgage Lifters are just starting to blush.

Time to figure out what outdoor Christmas lights to put up this year. My husband using a ladder makes me nervous. What a Face

**sanderson** 12/1/2017, 5:44 pm

This article was on MSN today. This was the landslide that forced us to drive the more inland highway 101 between Pismo and Carmel. I can't imagine being the big equipment driver trying to scoop one load of dirt at a time, and hoping the hill doesn't dump a few tons of slide material on top of me. Shocked

https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/engineers-still-battling-to-reopen-california-highway-1/ar-BBFYuxu#image=BBFYuxu_1|1

**Scorpio Rising** 12/1/2017, 8:30 pm

Well that’s scary!!! Engineers...gotta have ‘em! I love you

Your veggies sound amazing, sanderson. I can’t wait to get mine going in a few months! I have learned so much, and am sooo glad I have taken detailed notes!

I hope I got my garlic started in time; I had a big case of the Procrastinations this fall....got it in the deep box last weekend. It has been 40-50s days and 30s at night. The MM is not frozen at all. Hopefully it gets hold. bounce

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