Showing posts with label Gardening. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gardening. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 4, 2024

Life is Grand


Just dropping in to say hello to everyone and give the blog a little holiday upgrade. Here's us with our grandbabies on the day of giving & thanks. Life is going by so fast. The weather is chilly in the morning and night, delightful during the day. The gardens still growing strong, were currently building a hoop greenhouse to protect during the winter months. Rain is expected today and on and off this week.

Home Depot had a massive Poinsettia sale on black Friday 2 for $ 2.50 so I had to get a cart full. We originally just went there for greenhouse material but I'm not going to pass up a plant sale. Tis the season to be Holly.

I transplanted the poinsettias to bigger pots I spray painted in a beautiful sage green. This is the porch decor so far, still need to get the outdoor Christmas decor from the shed. Still working on setting up Christmas / Yule in the house.


I spy Strega Nona's little helper! My grandson is almost 2 so this year we can craft and create together on a different level. And yes, we have made many pots of spaghetti and have feed others in the village. I hope your holiday celebrations and traditions are in the making and bring you extreme comfort and joy.


Saturday, September 14, 2024

The False Fall


Such trickery Mother Nature has played on us recently. The morning air was crisp and clean with a crystal clear view of twinkling stars, and at night the windows were left open to let in the breeze. Daytime chores outdoors were enjoyable without the prickly sweat and humidity that usually lingers. Two days ago for two days it was indeed Fall. Oh such a precious prelude.... I can't wait.

The garden has been getting constant herb trimmings to use in cooking, drying, and medicine making. A first batch of fire cider has been started. I will strain in a month and then add the honey then. Colds are already making there way around, and being brought into the home.

Into the jars they go. I recycle all the glass jars I come across and have quite a cabinet full. Such a pretty view of trees from my kitchen window. I usually see birds, squirrels, rats, and crows outside this window as I work. The animals love eating the dogfood from the bowls I put there for the dogs. I'm keeping the cider in the pantry in a cool dry dark space to percolate. 

In hopes and dreams for the cool crop season, I purchased seeds on Amazon. Almost everything needs to be grown in pots with brought in soil. Some girls get flowers, I'm kept happy with buckets of dirt and rescue plants. This garden has really come a long way from its humble beginnings.

Today I was busy filling these buckets with soil. I layered the bottom half with sticks and compost items then the rest with soil , think I've heard it called lasagna layering.  Here I'm growing turnips, radish, spinach, mustard greens, collards, kale, brussels sprouts and broccoli. Another section will have a salad bed and carrots.

The herb spiral has gotten yet another trim of oregano, sage, mint, chocolate mint, and pineapple mint. I personally love to put chocolate mint in my hibiscus tea its refreshing. The herbs dry pretty quickly once brought in the kitchen and hung to dry, then jarred up for the Apothecary.

This boneset just popped up and started growing out of nowhere. I was going to collect some and then heard a buzzing by my head as I walked by. The tiny flowers are so fragrant and the bees were having a ball collecting pollen and floating about, I think I'll wait a few days till they had there fill , till I harvest a bit.

Newman Abracadaver resides in the patch keeping an eye on the garden happenings and creatures. I had high hopes for a pumpkin patch this year. A part of the front of the yard was sectioned off with a frame made from one of our old pools from when we first moved here. First I dropped pumpkin seeds in straight soil, that didn't work its mostly sand. I'm growing Marigolds in the plastic pumpkin buckets.

The pack of seeds came with a pumpkin packet. I dropped buckets ground level and filled them with soil, in hopes they would grow up and out the buckets and spread. Vine borers have already taken a few plants out by living in the stems of the vine. Let's see how the need seeded packets does.

The grandson helping with the garden chores chatting it up with Newman. He seems to like Halloween and spooky decor by his reactions in the store when we go through the holiday isles. This guy is happiest exploring outdoors and being a little helper. It's amazing to immerse into toddlerhood again.

This preciosa right her is our granddaughter. She already interacts with her personality, and we cant wait to watch her grow into her own person of wonder. Time fly's by so fast, I feel like I just graduated high school, and started my own family, but that was really a span of 26-25 years ago. Now here I am, still raising my family and helping tend to the branches which are the richest fruits.

Monday, December 4, 2023

December Garden Notitas

Sweet Potato Vines

  
Loofas

 
Tomato & Railroad Vine

Zinnia

Bok Choy

Zucchini & Lettuce 

Carrots & Basil Pots

Snapdragon & Lavender 

Mustard Greens & Kale

Bell Peppers 

Lupine

 Today was a beautiful spring like day in the garden. Although it is December the garden is still green and flourishing. Just thought I'd share a few plants and blooms. We are still getting a few migrating monarchs, and the bees are buzzing about. The garden is my therapy, and I realized this as I haven't been there for a few days. As I opened the gate and strolled myself and the Bambino ( Strega Nona's little apprentice) into the radiant fragrant space we tend to together, the real world and it's troubles released of my shoulders. The sun warmed our bodies and souls.

Monday, July 17, 2023

Creating Under the Cancer New Moon

Sage & Rosemary Smudges

Ponderosa Pine Besom w/ Galveston Shell

Cempazuchitl _ Marigold

Common Sunflower

Marigold & Sunflower Oil Infusion


The Garden in late Spring


Todays energy had me gathering and creating. The garden has been very abundant in herbs and flora. The vegetables are currently under attack by a rabbit, caterpillars, and moles. Not much has been posted this year about "Strega Nona's Garden", because I have been busy being Strega Nona, Mom, Wife, and keeper of the grounds. I do consider myself blessed I get these precious moments and memories. {L} has graduated high school with her cosmetology license, and doing an amazing job at being a new Mom. I have one kid left in school, can you believe it? {M} is in Jr High when school starts up again. The older son & daughter are adults and have been on their own for a few years. Time sure does fly by, the memories remain full of nostalga and heartache as parenthood changes in stages and ages. Everything must grow, and with these hands I still create. 






Friday, January 27, 2023

Let The Gardening Commence



2nd Yr. Asparagus 
Planting 3 Varieties of Onion

Last weekend I got back into the swing of working on the garden. There is plenty of green that survived during the winter such as chives, herbs, and plants in pots. The asparagus was harvested twice so far. The busy work was putting seeds in trays and pots for transplants in a few weeks. The weather is cold mornings , warm daylight, then back to chilly winter nights. The garden is getting an expansion. The Hubby is relocating the existing post and extending it to the trees in the back. It's crazy to think that the extra space I'm gaining is the size of our old garden at Casa Sol Y Luna. Every thing is bigger in Texas 😉 The extra space will allow for more pots, flowers, greenhouse, tomatoes, and I'm putting our wooden picnic table in there. As every year I strive to become more self sufficient with our own food harvest so fingers crossed this is a successful year of bounty and beauty. 
Green Blessings🌱

Friday, July 8, 2022

Summertime Simmer








We are simmering back into the daily routine of summertime days. Coming off the tail wind of a summer road trip back home to Cali. Future travel photos ahead. This morning's early chores included topping of the herbs for bushier growth. The garden needs to be reseeded due to lack of watering while away and rabbits entering the garden and enjoying our crops. Skirting the storage shed is a must, thats how they are entering under. There are so many home improvement projects which we will gladly do for we are staying in Texas for a long haul.

 

I've switched to a vegan diet ( more on that later) and chopped mixed fruit salads are so cooling in this heat. The compost is a beautiful mix in itself. Just catching up here on this space. I was gifted a new computer and I'm learning the ease of operation on it. So far so good. I'm at that stage where all my electronics have hit that planned opulence. Remember the movie The Brave Little Toaster?










Thursday, January 6, 2022

Forever 21 Twice & January's Intro

Hello January, welcome 2022 and winter... sort of. The last day of 2021 was spend shopping for essentials due to the fact everything federal including Aldi's grocery would be closed on New Years Day. Stayed up to watch the ball drop, which glitched on tv at count down time but was brought in with fireworks and gunfire from the the neighbors promptly at midnight. Then off to bed we were 20 minutes later. The next day was an early morning yard work day prepping for the cold snap that would arrive the next day. We were sweating in shorts and tank tops while covering pipes and weather proofing the garden. Still experiencing spring days with cold snap nights. But I'm not complaining, these days in the yard are glorious.

My new outdoor boots I received for Christmas from my Renaissance man. Will be rocking them when it actually gets colder, they are super fuzzy and fur lined all the way down.

Lets all have a laugh at the tiny greenhouse I purchased on amazon for my plants pictured in the back. Realizing it was not adequate for all plant coverage, the husband quickly propped up an old shade tent and covered it with tarp.  

The kitchen always has something green growing on. Garlic bulbs were sprouting so I transplanted to soil and will transplant again later. I'm thinking of experimenting with growing sprouts and microgreens while outdoor grows are limited.

The second day of the year brought about me being forever 21 twice. This is also when Winter arrived with it's 38 Degrees for the high. Cozy inside with family, cake, and gifts was how I spent it. {L} made my cake and decorated in pink and gold around the house. Can you see in my eyes the manifesting for the year.

We don't take down the Christmas tree until after my birthday because it then becomes a birthday tree. The night was spent cozied up catching up to the drama of The Sweet Magnolia's in book 6 of the series and drinking some bubbly lemonade tea (still sober). Cheers to the New Year all my blogging friends! I truly deeply appeciate you sticking around with me for another year and many adventures.

Wednesday, December 29, 2021

Walking A Non Winter Wonderland

Texas is full blown into  spring/fall combo so to say. All week is 82 degrees across the board. Our garden is filled with pollinators first food such as dandelions, henbit, and other hodgepodge of edible lawn. I wore shorts and a tank top today and its the very end of December! In California I would never, but were not there Toto ... Apparently winter will officially arrive on my birthday in the New Year. I received some amazing outdoor work boots that are fur lined and rubber bottomed from my Renaissance Man that I cant wait to wear. A quick greenhouse amazon purchase was made so I won't lose my plants to overnight freeze points. It doesn't stay cold here to long unless the snow fluke happens again like last year....yikes! Here's some garden photos taken after fresh rain on our 80 degree days.










The last whispers of 2021 are breezing through, please 2022 be good to the world.