tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17996667744559165412024-03-05T07:15:59.282-08:00Backyard and Indoor Grocery GardeningWhere the "Victory Garden" once ruled the backyards of the American People, now we have the "Backyard and Indoor Grocery Gardens" to help people feed their families with healthy nutritious and untainted produce. Info on here includes square foot gardening, containers, pests, companion, easy gardening tips, harvesting, and much much more!ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.comBlogger87125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-86090193484106673302017-10-21T10:55:00.001-07:002017-10-21T10:55:45.292-07:00Blog Author Vikki Lawrence is back!
Dear Readers:<br />
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Hi. So sorry I disappeared.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Between dealing with liver disease and breast cancer, the epic return of
my son’s epilepsy and a host of other problems, I just haven’t been able to
devote any time to my writing, and even my gardening.</div>
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Hate to say, but we are selling our little farm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just can’t do it by myself any more; not
getting help from anyone who lives here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Moving to a little apartment (hopefully by mid 2018 and hopefully with a
south-facing patio or living room). </div>
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So, although this blog is mostly dedicated to raising a
decent grocery in your back yard, the blog will move from “backyard grocery
gardening” to “backyard and indoor grocery gardening”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stick around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’ll be back to write more posts as I find a new home and start growing
my favorite fruits, veggies and herbs.</div>
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Vikki Lawrence</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-82231978090620168512012-12-13T08:44:00.001-08:002012-12-13T08:44:11.710-08:00LET'S CATCH UP: DEC 13 2012I realize it's been a while since I've written here, but so much has happened. <br /><br />My Tween has turned into a 16 year old with autism and epilepsy. He has some neurons that didn't form correctly in his brain (in utero) and some lesions and a small tumor. <br /><br />We live out in the boonies, on a tiny 2 acres. Goats: 2 girls, 1 baby girl, 1 buck and 1 wether. Chickens: about 50 ranging from 3 days old to 2 years old, bantams and standards. Chicken varieties: silkies, cuckoo marans, black australorps, red stars, eggers (standard size and bantam), and all kinds of crosses that we hatched ourselves. <br /><br />We grow as much of our food as possible but it'll be years before nut trees and some of our fruit trees bear. Loved the red raspberries and blueberries we ate this summer; we're adding even more plus yellow raspberries, purple raspberries, blackberries and currants in 2013. <br /><br />Started a goat milk cheese share program in 2012 to help pay for my kid's expenses. Going well and have gotten egg and produce customers from it too.<br /><br />We still have a LOT more to do but yes, we consider ourselves homesteaders and very much use our "backyard grocery"! Also growing veggies inside during the winter: the greens, parsley, beans and a tomato we pulled from the Summer outdoor garden are all doing well.<br /><br /><br /><br />= = = = = = =<br /><br />Check out our farm's website we just started: <a href="http://rosemary-ridge.blogspot.com/"><span style="color: #9d1961;">Rosemary Ridge</span></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-18184332264274657652010-11-21T17:56:00.000-08:002011-03-16T21:54:36.828-07:00Suspending This BlogI just don't have time to work on this blog right now.<br /><br />Hope to get it back up someday. Meanwhile, please peruse the postings here ... lots of information on how I garden and produce food for my family. Believe me, if **I** can do it, so can you! <br /><br />Thanks... and enjoy!!ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-71453225898770084562010-11-03T04:23:00.000-07:002010-11-03T04:28:28.831-07:00Indoor GardenI keep meaning to take pix of my indoor garden. Maybe next week. See, in Colorado, it gets cold in the Winter. Brrrr... very cold! (I know, duh!). So we can't continue to grow food outdoors.<br /><br />About 3 weeks ago, when the daytime weather started getting in the 50's, I brought in all of my potted plants: tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, rhubarb, blueberries, asparagus, etc. I put the pots on drainage trays (to avoid messing our carpet!) and set up plant/grow lights.<br /><br />We're still getting some great looking veggies. Yum! I even planted more seeds for cucumbers, green beans, lettuce, scallions, summer squash and carrots. Good way to get fresh organic veggies during the winter without paying high prices.<br /><br /><em>Note: since there are (hopefully) no bees indoors to pollinate, if you do this, be sure to take a q-tip and hand-pollinate your veggie flowers. Tomatoes to tomatoes. Zucchini to zucchini. Etc. I use the same q-tip over and over again, leaving right in front of the appropriate pot. That way, I won't cross pollinate.</em><br /><br />Just a thought!ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-76292566255965878212010-06-25T06:27:00.000-07:002010-06-25T06:42:46.799-07:00Need evergreen vine to hide animal penWe plan to build a second chicken and goat pen along a weird perimeter line. Since we're on the top of a hill, it will be seen for miles, so we want a little privacy, and to hide it. Most of it will be a 6' tall fence, but part of it will be a 6' tall goat house and a 4-6' tall chicken coop/house. We might even put an alpaca here. Will do sometime in early Spring 2011 so we have plenty of time to decide.<br /><br />There will be about a foot of space between the fence and the "houses". Enough space for a vine to grow but not really enough for a person to walk through. Comfortably.<br /><br />Located on the eastern plains of Colorado, it gets very windy here, and can often have negative 25 degree temperatures with huge snow drifts. Summers bring blazing heat.<br /><br />The pen will be along the south-east perimeter of the property, so will get much sun (there's really nothing on the other side except the neighbor's lawn).<br /><br />We're looking for an evergreen vine that will grow up along the fence and goat/chicken houses to hide them, plus provide a cooling effect during the summer, and help keep in warmth in the Winter. Needs to stay green year-round. It can't be poisonous just in case the critters nibble on it. Thorns would be good too, to provide our animals protection from the foxes and other predators in the area. Needs to be drought tolerant because it will be a little difficult to water.<br /><br />Suggestions?ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-60465647922285190292009-11-24T01:03:00.000-08:002009-11-24T01:03:00.565-08:00Possible Change to BlogPosted this on my other blogs, but thought I'd post it here too ...<br /><br />Keeping up with these blogs is very time consuming ... not that I mind, usually! We're getting ready to embark on an intensive homesteading adventure, and may not be able to work on blogs daily.<br /><br />So... I'm thinking about combining our blogs (cooking, gardening, homesteading, survival, storage, homeschooling, etc.) into one. I would eventually move posts to the new and combined blog.<br /><br />We have a lot of readers, and I value your opinion. Thoughts?ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-54640223361099264482009-11-23T01:57:00.000-08:002009-11-23T01:57:00.135-08:00Meandering Around...Not much to do when the indoor garden has been eaten up by beetles (except for the stevia and aloe), and we're soooo close to getting our homestead. Out looking and hoping that the one we want will be available for the price we can afford.<br /><br />Meanwhile, yes, I've bought seeds! I usually can't stand to wait, so I've placed my orders for veggies. I've made my list of herb seeds to get in December, and the fruit trees, bushes and vines I plan to order in early Spring, after we close on the property and map out where to plant what.<br /><br />Dreaming. That's what Winter is for.<br /><br />We'll have enough room for nut trees, and I've noted how many of what kind I want: heartnut, butternut, almond, pecan, walnut (English and black), chestnuts and whatever else I can find to grow in Zone 5.<br /><br />Then there's the fruit trees: apples, pears, apricots, peaches, nectarines (the Kid doesn't like the puzzy peaches!), plums. And the cherry trees AND bushes. Then there's the elderberry bushes, blueberry, and brambles of raspberry and blackberry.<br /><br />Oh my... my mouth is watering!<br /><br />So... have you started thinking about your next year's garden?ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-12373403291944173962009-11-01T05:00:00.000-08:002009-11-01T05:00:07.408-08:00To-Do-List for November and December<p><span style="color:#ff0000;">November - December:</span></p><p>Why not get started early for next year?</p><ul><li>Save seeds from your harvested plants.</li><li>Spread manure, rotted sawdust and leaves over the garden and plow them under; you'll be surprised at the difference this organic matter will make in the fertility, physical structure and water-holding capacity of the soil.</li><li>Take a soil sample to allow plenty of time to get the report back. Lime applied now will be of more benefit next year than if it is applied in the spring before planting. Always apply Dolomitic limestone in order to get both calcium and magnesium. </li><li>Save those leaves and pulled/spent vines and plants for the compost heap. </li><li>Take an "inventory." Maybe you had too much of some vegetables and not enough of others - or maybe there were some unnecessary "skips" in the supply. Perhaps some insect, disease or nematode problem got the upper hand. Make a note about favorite varieties. Start planning next year's garden now! </li><li>You're wise to order flower and vegetable seeds in December or January, while the supply is plentiful. Review the results of last year's garden and order the more successful varieties. </li><li>You may have seeds left over from last year. Check their viability by placing some in damp paper towels and observing the germination percentage. If the percentage is low, order new ones. </li><li>Before sending your seed order, draw a map of the garden area and decide the direction and length of the rows, how much row spacing is needed for each vegetable, whether or not to plant on raised beds, and other details. That way, you won't order too many seeds. This same advice applied to the flower garden. Try new cultivars, add more color, change the color scheme, layer the colors by having taller and shorter plants - don't do it the same way year after year. </li><li>Once you get your seeds, spend the rest of the cold Winter months <a href="http://backyardgrocerygardening.blogspot.com/2009/04/how-to-make-seed-tape.html">making seed tapes</a>. Be sure to label, dry well, place in bags, seal against moisture, and stack flat.</li><li>Look around for tools you do not have and hint for these for Christmas presents. </li></ul>ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-18972869430114934002009-10-28T11:55:00.000-07:002009-10-28T12:02:12.890-07:00Invasion of BeetlesI guess we brought in some beetles when we moved the outdoor potted tomatoes and cukes indoors, because SOMEBODY has chomped on everything green and it's dead.<br /><br />Lesson: don't bring outdoor pots indoors unless you're very sure there are no bugs in them!<br /><br />Task: once the current blizzard abates, I'll be moving the now-dead plants to the patio, and getting some potting soil to start over. Oh well... that's ok. <br /><br />Sidenote: I just got my order of seeds in, including those Black Aztec corn seeds, herbs, cukes, squashes, beans and more. I think once I have "clean" potting soil in clean pots, I'll start some carrots, onions, lettuce, beans and cukes. Again. Argh. But still... sounds great when I just think about the foot of snow outside my office window.<br /><br />Hmmmm..... I love winter!ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-75010348810363617812009-10-22T15:14:00.001-07:002009-10-22T15:18:44.909-07:00Corn HarvestingHere's a wonderful post from a blog I follow: <a href="http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com/2009/10/22/harvest-corn-from-beginning-to-end/">http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com/2009/10/22/harvest-corn-from-beginning-to-end/</a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit6TaCXC7cSHi07HL-N2ViINaEoEWaLsTDXNKesSPBxb_iHdZda_cRYZ0pKIgjX8gS-kJSKVAWVC4cRdUxJYRWlfkmi4xzcCZ8kJfMntMOR_2Kr41fhljrXER5kZQz7Ro3Q_Rkvv7n_iY/s1600-h/cornfield.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 170px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 113px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395552092810456114" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit6TaCXC7cSHi07HL-N2ViINaEoEWaLsTDXNKesSPBxb_iHdZda_cRYZ0pKIgjX8gS-kJSKVAWVC4cRdUxJYRWlfkmi4xzcCZ8kJfMntMOR_2Kr41fhljrXER5kZQz7Ro3Q_Rkvv7n_iY/s320/cornfield.jpg" /></a><br />We couldn't do corn this year because of our move. Very sad because it's absolutely delicious, pulling back the husks and chomping on it before even leaving the corn patch.<br /><br />I should be receiving our corn seeds for Spring.... bought Black Aztec, since it can be used both as a sweet corn, and after it dries on the stalk, as dried corn for feed and cornmeal, etc. Yum!ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-55687722890015582952009-10-19T14:58:00.000-07:002009-10-19T15:04:10.335-07:00Potatoes beget potatoes!I posted a notice on my cooking blog (<a href="http://www.survival-cooking.com/">http://www.survival-cooking.com/</a>) about a sale that Safeway is having for potatoes ... 10 pounds for just .99 cents! A regular reader commented about a post she'd made about how just one pound of potatoes can grow into 100 pounds of potatoes. Check it out at: <a href="http://preparednesspro.wordpress.com/2009/10/07/100-pounds-of-potatoes-for-a-buck">http://preparednesspro.wordpress.com/2009/10/07/100-pounds-of-potatoes-for-a-buck</a><br /><br />Since Saturday, we now have 10 bags of potatoes, each with 10 pounds. That's 100 pounds right there for ten dollars. (I actually bought 11 but gave one to mother-in-law.) As I bring out a bag of taters to cook with, I'll look through and put aside any that look like they'll sprout. We'll use the un-sprouting taters over winter. Those that sprouted or look like they'll sprout, we'll quarter, sprout and plant in the Spring. <br /><br />Good way to utilize my money, don't you think?<br /><br />Used a whopping 4 potatoes to make crockpot potato soup for dinner. Yum!ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-86867744781443377372009-10-05T14:36:00.000-07:002009-10-05T14:37:30.869-07:00Tomato HarvestEven tho we had freezing temps last week, my potted tomatoes on the back patio (which faces South) survived. Obviously, it was the heat of the building. I just harvested 1 really big tomato and 2 amish paste tomatoes. Yum!<br /><br />Wish I knew where my camera was!ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-55668865899495859862009-10-03T06:28:00.001-07:002009-10-03T06:32:17.555-07:00Indoor ContainersWe moved, and in doing so, decided which tomato plant to save by placing indoors. We had room for only one, and several smaller pots. After hubby installed two grow-lights, we also brought in (all in pots) 2 strawberries, a zucchini, a bush cucumber, a banana plant, and the aloe-vera. <br /><br />When we get a chance, we'll use some smaller pots to fill with potting soil and plant seeds for string beans, garden peas, carrots and greens. Yummy for this Winter!<br /><br />We had cold temperatures this past week, so what was remaining on our back patio froze. That's ok. I'm ready for Winter.ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-24418720662393670402009-09-18T06:23:00.000-07:002009-09-18T06:30:07.866-07:00Green Tomatoes<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjusDn0_u-51b_hEABn3X7T-s8vF__lertHzd9ruiuJjK_LjruCIB9gW3xcYckgErVQQ4zgNE8EaWlBD6xscbjrmvrWNj1amZqxqYxXxv4hKrj7hD7b4rv_pwtlShZU1vhbya16p-NRipM/s1600-h/tom-green.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 170px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 136px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382798688543581186" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjusDn0_u-51b_hEABn3X7T-s8vF__lertHzd9ruiuJjK_LjruCIB9gW3xcYckgErVQQ4zgNE8EaWlBD6xscbjrmvrWNj1amZqxqYxXxv4hKrj7hD7b4rv_pwtlShZU1vhbya16p-NRipM/s320/tom-green.jpg" /></a>Since we are hopefully leaving our current home in the next few days, I'm picking tomatoes! While I do have several ripe or almost-ripe tomatoes, I also have quite a few green tomatoes. Can't leave them behind!</div><div></div><br /><div>I had lots of green un-ripe tomatoes last year, and didn't know what to do with them, so I sliced and dehydrated them. When I wanted some nutrients with a little tartness, I crushed the dried slices into a powder and sprinkled that powder on whatever I was cooking. Good alternative to green tomato chutney or relish or something similar.</div><div> </div><div>Luckily, we planned ahead and potted most of our tomatoes. Picked a big bowl of ripe red and orange tomatoes yesterday. I'm thinking I'll freeze these. Well, after we've eaten a couple! Yum!</div>ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-74433868447417163932009-09-02T07:14:00.000-07:002009-09-02T07:14:00.526-07:00The Victory Garden show on PBSI wonder ... I love watching gardening shows, but I'm very much into growing edibles much more than non-edibles. And since the Victory Garden concept was created to provide food for people during World War II ... well, here's the entry from :<br /><br />During World War I, patriots grew "liberty gardens." In World War II, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Claude R. Wickard encouraged householders to plant vegetable gardens wherever they could find space. By 1945 there were said to be 20 million victory gardens producing about 40 percent of all American vegetables in many unused scraps of land. Such sites as the strip between a sidewalk and the street, town squares, and the land around Chicago's Cook County jail were used. The term "victory garden" derives from an English book by that title written by Richard Gardner in 1603.<br /><br />Anyway... almost every time I turn it on, the show is about shade plants or other non-edible plants. What the hell? If we want to see gardening shows about non-edibles, we'll go to a different gardening show, like P Allen Smith, but come on! Somebody from the Victory Garden pbs show needs to understand that people are having troubles feeding ourselves, and that gardening for food is increasing by leaps and bounds.<br /><br />Give us more practical information about growing our own food, especially on a very tight budget and in small spaces. Ya hear?ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-63721196416929121242009-09-01T05:03:00.000-07:002009-09-01T05:07:43.716-07:00Permaculture Crash CourseThis is a 4-minute vid I found on YouTube but it has great information. Discusses a 4-hour crash course but I don't see the link... anyone? This 4-min vid discusses birds, year-round cherry harvest, artichoke, potatoes, etc.<br /><br /><object width="445" height="364"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Xy59x-7Pv4U&hl=en&fs=1&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Xy59x-7Pv4U&hl=en&fs=1&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="445" height="364"></embed></object>ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-37107346258422406562009-09-01T05:00:00.000-07:002009-09-01T05:00:01.694-07:00To-Do-List for September and October<span style="color:#ff0000;">September - October:</span><br /><ul><li>Choose to use this mild weather to plant or transplant the following: beets, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, collards, lettuce, mustard, onions, radishes, spinach and turnips.</li><li>Plant your second planting of fall crops such as collards, turnips, cabbage, mustard and kale.</li><li>Save seeds from your favorite plants, especially tomatoes, squashes, eggplant, etc. Let some of the root veggies like carrots go to seed, and collect those.</li><li>Refurbish mulch to control weeds, and start adding leaves and other materials for the compost pile. Store your manure under cover to prevent leaching of nutrients. </li><li>Water deeply and thoroughly to prevent drought stress. Pay special attention to new transplants. </li><li>Harvest mature green peppers and tomatoes before frost gets them -- it may not come until November, but be ready. Preserve 4 for every 5 eaten fresh - or preserve them all!</li><li>Harvest herbs and dry them in a cool, dry place. </li></ul>ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-76933432275343710702009-08-06T18:35:00.000-07:002009-08-06T18:41:44.796-07:00Picked carrots and squash today!When I was watering my garden today, you know, to avoid crispy grass that may turn off a potential buyer (did I mention the contract to sell our house fell through?), I found a massive yellow straightneck squash that I'd somehow overlooked. I picked that one, and one just beside it and am so looking forward to munching them with my family this weekend.<br /><br />This afternoon we finally got a bit of rain (17 drops, I think, followed 3 hours later by 9 minutes of massive downpour). Afterwards, I checked to make sure the wind hadn't knocked over anything. While I was checking, I picked two carrots. Little orange ones. They weren't supposed to be little, but I hate waiting until they're full grown. Each was about an inch long. But very tender and sweet and yummy.<br /><br />Sigh.<br /><br />And I forgot to take a pic before the kid and I munched them down. Sorry.ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-92149749376620218312009-07-25T06:19:00.000-07:002009-07-25T06:19:00.191-07:00Companion Planting: Corn<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHMZsxpELGNSi3hhx6fo6e34vAZyJQx6hkfYsV_FlY84k_mu13-3vrxLkzysBMHFJlfkSxluCFadOWWZ17-inxE6vXS-MwDotxM9tqFkMn2r5WL8YV_Sq76W6EfAeXQteF5r6RONIM8Oo/s1600-h/3-sisters.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 199px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361124902633012434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHMZsxpELGNSi3hhx6fo6e34vAZyJQx6hkfYsV_FlY84k_mu13-3vrxLkzysBMHFJlfkSxluCFadOWWZ17-inxE6vXS-MwDotxM9tqFkMn2r5WL8YV_Sq76W6EfAeXQteF5r6RONIM8Oo/s320/3-sisters.jpg" /></a>Here's hoping you already have your corn in the ground, but if not, you can use this info when you plant it the next growing season.</div><br /><div></div><div>First, remember that corn is wind-pollinated, so plant in blocks instead of rows. I've had success with four rows of 10 each. </div><br /><div></div><div>Sweet corn likes potatoes, peas, beans, cucumbers, pumpkins and other squash. Peas and beans provide the nitrogen that corn loves and needs so much.</div><div></div><br /><div>If you plant corn with squash and beans, that's called "Three Sisters". Corn provides shade for the squash and a place for runner/pole beans to climb. Squash shades the ground to keep moisture in, plus the spikey parts of the squash help keep critters (especially raccoons) off the corn. The beans provide the nitrogen for the corn. Together, all three make a great complete-protein meal too (often called "succotash").</div><br /><div></div><div>Pumpkins and other winding winter squash work well as the "moisture-keeper", but so do melon vines and cucumbers.</div><br /><div></div><div>Consider planting sunflowers every 4 or 5 rows of corn. This strip of sunflowers will help reduce certain beetles that won't want to cross that strip.</div><br /><div></div><div>Stay away from planting tomatoes anywhere near corn - the tomato fruitworm and the corn earworm are the same and will make a hasty tasty meal out of both.</div><div> </div><div>I had a lot of earwigs in my cornpatch last year, but I read up on them and they don't eat the plants; they eat the little bugs. We pretty much left them alone, and still had at least 2 ears of corn per stalk.</div><br /><div></div><div>There are a lot of websites giving detailed information on how to plant Three Sisters. Enjoy!</div>ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-36092870615842065342009-07-23T06:08:00.000-07:002009-07-23T06:08:00.882-07:00Companion Planting: Celery<div>We grew a LOT of celery last year, especially considering my son and I don't really like celery... Hubby ate it. We didn't have the space this year to grow it, but I'll grow it again next year. I'm pre-diabetic with high blood pressure, and celery is good for a salt-reduced diet. Celery is easy to dehydrate and used in soups, or powdered to add to my special all-vegg powder.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmEY5U-Np2tm3vRs_-AXidlgjWsnkm1Qh7rmvKhr7k73y8SBEofu-lbNavQi1761UTsE1gQ1wrgnS0xFMT35p_-vk5yPURWwPCVJJx-mmmA2AG1DDqBEQ3xoTnBJqOiTjM_059lJH1sG8/s1600-h/081008-celery.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 282px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 193px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361086654031944642" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmEY5U-Np2tm3vRs_-AXidlgjWsnkm1Qh7rmvKhr7k73y8SBEofu-lbNavQi1761UTsE1gQ1wrgnS0xFMT35p_-vk5yPURWwPCVJJx-mmmA2AG1DDqBEQ3xoTnBJqOiTjM_059lJH1sG8/s320/081008-celery.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div><em>Pic to right taken Aug 10 2008 with my son holding the celery he just harvested. We grew it in that kiddie pool he's standing beside. That's our little Three Sisters (corn, squash, beans, sunflowers) patch in the background.</em></div><br /><div></div><div>Celery likes: cabbage, cauliflower, tomatoes and leeks, and kinda likes bush beans.</div><div></div><br /><div>Good idea to grow the celery in a circle so that the lacy roots can weave together and provide a great little home for earthworms. But be prepared - pull one, pull all!</div>ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-89364378410958699622009-07-22T06:02:00.000-07:002009-07-22T06:02:00.624-07:00Companion Planting: Cauliflower<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-oWOWKX1hpxHfo1ec3MtHsLg92ACPG3eY5T7NQCIyD26yj3Tbn_JEgjXOC06x586QYLgEuDaQ6Ohh7PxniPd75l0yeiN7QrR2mVyjkEz4k_p_mNaoo9kxD9nn-dYbIyaSysARLsWxFFE/s1600-h/cauliflower.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 168px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 170px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361084870425331218" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-oWOWKX1hpxHfo1ec3MtHsLg92ACPG3eY5T7NQCIyD26yj3Tbn_JEgjXOC06x586QYLgEuDaQ6Ohh7PxniPd75l0yeiN7QrR2mVyjkEz4k_p_mNaoo9kxD9nn-dYbIyaSysARLsWxFFE/s320/cauliflower.jpg" /></a>I love cauliflower but I couldn't grow it this year. Shame too because my kid likes it too. Next year, even in a container, we'll plant some yellow cauliflower - yum!<br /><div></div><br /><div>Anyhoo...</div><br /><div></div><div>Cauliflower can be bothered by the white cabbage butterfly. Plant celery near cauliflower to repel that butterfly.</div><br /><div></div><div>Don't plant cauliflower near strawberries or tomatoes - doesn't like either one of them.</div>ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-15756494233905768242009-07-21T17:53:00.000-07:002009-07-21T18:01:55.228-07:00Companion Planting: Carrots<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc1DaHHwHHkIbywGy_hWwRlGEGZaJPzcV6eIlvY9Wy02HwPxKbzf9EPd65CMay_8ZmeYF_gMX5WjkiugrSIZNJFVGixyczKya38AlxhBaAyXbm7xqcx-sF-cekfuYPJ9UKgEG2ci6SMXc/s1600-h/carrots.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 113px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 170px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361083195587375714" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc1DaHHwHHkIbywGy_hWwRlGEGZaJPzcV6eIlvY9Wy02HwPxKbzf9EPd65CMay_8ZmeYF_gMX5WjkiugrSIZNJFVGixyczKya38AlxhBaAyXbm7xqcx-sF-cekfuYPJ9UKgEG2ci6SMXc/s320/carrots.jpg" /></a>Back to discussing companion planting! Today's topic: carrots.<br /><div></div><br /><div>First, to grow sweet-tasting carrots, you need to make sure your soil has sufficient lime, potash and humus. Don't allow too much nitrogen, and make sure they are shaded by larger plants, like tomatoes.</div><div></div><br /><div>A problem is the carrot fly. Drive it away with onions, leeks, rosemary, wormwood and sage. Sometimes, black salsify (oyster plant) helps too.</div><br /><div></div><div>To accomplish this, you could interplant rows of carrots with rows onions. I used wormwood last year and our carrots grew beautifully... orange but also purple, white and red.</div><br /><div></div><div><em>Note: always store carrots far from apples so that the carrots won't develop a bitter taste.</em></div>ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-72497275867360201592009-07-09T19:24:00.000-07:002009-07-09T19:31:16.779-07:00Garden DelightsI've picked about 6 tomatoes so far ... from our "Fourth of July" tomato plant that I bought from a store. Can't remember where. Delicious fresh and red all the way through. Yum.<br /><br />We have 2 little yellow straightneck squashes that will be ready in another 3 or 4 days. And we have several 3-inch zucchini that still have another week or so.<br /><br />The parsley (flat leafed and curly) is ever so tasty! I pick a stem or so every time I'm back there watering.<br /><br />Last year we just through our corn cobs and garden trimmings refuse in a big compost heap, enclosed by three big boards. I had to cover over (to make it purty so we can sell this house!) but in the midst of the flowers that I planted to purti-fy-it, here a cluster of corn plants suddenly bursting out! I'm gonna leave them there just to see what happens. Kinda cool!<br /><br />Anyway... that's a very quick garden update. Our house goes on the market tomorrow, but we're not ready yet. We have been working very hard, and have even more hard work ahead of us very early tomorrow morning. I'll get back to reading blogs and writing on our blogs as soon as I can breathe again. Bear with me!<br /><br />VikkiThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-13731480904751910772009-06-25T06:23:00.000-07:002009-06-25T06:26:39.526-07:00Strawberry Thief UpdateI gave up. Even with all the packing and stuff to get this house ready to sell, I took a break. I dug up all of those strawberry plants, put them in a planter, and sent them with Hubby to mom-in-law on Sunday. They have planted them in her backyard and have already eaten on that survived last week's massacre.<br /><br />IF we were to stay here, I would have moved them to the back yard and made the fence (perimeter) more secure from intruders and thieves. Just a quick lock on the gate would have worked.ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1799666774455916541.post-75864747225434460952009-06-21T20:25:00.000-07:002009-06-21T20:41:07.009-07:00Strawberry Thief<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQc4g8pUTETYKTrco_Bjq7kP2Bh3U1S4x1SkRGY7uahUY1oE81Pt0Tm_lXCCUlrJe2O8zdHaZpemKPURjYmushrOQmmGfKnSb0_TaCQZCQshlWIIC8h7B0EpxbjXNtsO9C53PZJ9H7Cv4/s1600-h/strawberries-051909.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5349991403833543314" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 141px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQc4g8pUTETYKTrco_Bjq7kP2Bh3U1S4x1SkRGY7uahUY1oE81Pt0Tm_lXCCUlrJe2O8zdHaZpemKPURjYmushrOQmmGfKnSb0_TaCQZCQshlWIIC8h7B0EpxbjXNtsO9C53PZJ9H7Cv4/s320/strawberries-051909.jpg" border="0" /></a>Our local vandal has struck again. Here's what happened.</div><br /><div></div><div>In 2008 we planted several strawberry plants in our front yard, north side of our front porch. As it was the first year, we harvested only about 60-70 berries for the entire summer. When Fall came, Hubby buried them in peat moss, to keep them from freezing and to provide a more acidic atmosphere.</div><div></div><br /><div>They survived, and began to flourish, pushing up through the peat before even the end of March. We were surprised and thrilled to find strawberries growing and getting ripe last week. The above pic was taken on May 19 2009... see the beautiful white strawberry flowers?! We waited anxiously for Hubby to return home on Friday so we could pick the 20 or so, and split them among the three of us. I even checked them Thursday afternoon and found them well ripened and a beautiful red.</div><div></div><br /><div>Hubby got home Friday afternoon. After unloading the car and unpacking him, we trumped out to pick the berries, bowl in hand. Not a one! Every one had been taken. No, birds didn't get them. It was obviously a human from the way they were harvested.</div><br /><div></div><div>Here it is Sunday night and I'm still really ticked about it. I've been waiting since last Fall for homegrown fresh strawberries. Ticked really doesn't describe it.</div>ThrtnWmsFamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093255450536042527noreply@blogger.com4