Given our 7 foot fence around the yard, have to rule out deer…my best guess is a raccoon scaling the fence for a snack. Probably the same one who decided that my first tomato looked too good to ripen to save for seeds and pulled the branch off. It was nice enough to leave the green ones on the fine which I have hung up on my garage where…
My daughters and I started a butterfly garden a couple of years ago, though we have seen a few butterflies pass by this was the first time we have been able to capture one on camera. This butterfly was visiting our butterfly bush, which for by many standards is basically a noxious weed. But it doesn’t need much water, makes pretty flowers, and butterflies/bees like it so seems like…
While heading to a friend’s house we came across a local fruit stand selling fresh peaches. With the great quality and low prices I couldn’t help leaving with a couple dozen peaches. By the time I made it back to the car, I knew there is no way we were going to eat this many so Maddie (my recently turned 6 year old) and I decided to make the…
Stevia is an ultra sweet sweetener that has no calories and is grown natively for ages in South America that is 300 times more sweet than other sweeteners. The good news you can grow your own in your backyard and make some in your own backyard. 1. You can start a stevia plant by seeds but you can save yourself a lot of pain and just buy one at…
Though not the best summer for tomatoes, our mild summer has been great for strawberries. Until recently I was picking about a pint a day from our modest “strawberry patch” Many became a quick snack, smoothies, and others got frozen for consumption this summer. This morning the kids wanted something special for breakfast so decided on making some homemade strawberry syrup. Homemade Strawberry Syrup Ingredients: 2 cups sliced…
This is an unfortunately record, being the latest I have gotten my first ripe tomato. In case if anyone was wondering, this was on the 1 gallon milk carton upside down garden planter.
The jalapenos are doing great, they are loaded with peppers and I already harvested some to make some jalapeno powder. The Cayenne peppers are looking good and though they are a little late, I am just waiting for them to just begin to change color before I dry them and make some cayenne powder. The bell peppers are not doing quite as well the ones above have a pretty…
Photo from Alberta Home Gardening You’re not the only one who enjoys your garden–deer, rabbits and even household pets may find your flowers or vegetables to be tasty treats. And, of course, dogs and cats may mistake your garden beds for a great place to do their business. While organic or eco-friendly pest control is a good idea for combating any type of pest, it is especially important to…
I was contacted by SoilLogic and offered a free sample of their product Moisture X-Tend. Though I could attempt to describe their product, I will let them do it in their own words… Moisture X- Tend helps water penetrate the surface of the potted soil easier and remain within the soil root zone up to 4X’s longer than untreated water. This innovative soil moisture management product helps prevent water…
Other than gardening I also enjoy cooking manly foods such as chili and BBQ rubs. One seasoning I have heard being used for both recently was jalapeno pepper powder. Not seeing any in local stores and having an abundance of jalapeno peppers in my garden I decided to attempt to make my own. 1. First picked some nice green jalapeno peppers from my garden, I chose to use…
Don’t have the space, money, and/or time to have a full size pond? May want to think about adding a small container water garden. All it takes is a sealed decorative container and you can have an attractive addition to your garden. I would also recommend the mosquito prevention techniques of creating moving water with a pump or add some goldfish to eat the mosquito larva. Via apartment therapy,…
I first saw this idea on a garden mailing list at work but given most of you are not on that, I figured I should share with the rest of you. My problem was I had a big bag of seeds and it was always a pain to dif through and find the right seeds for the time of year I was planting. My solution was to use Darice…