Tomato Woes July 9, 2009

This little fig tree was planted last year.

Short, compact plant, would probably make a good container plant too.

Quick insert by me, 07/09/09: when I posted this, I made up a new tomatoE, the Black Krim. Don’t know WHERE that came from! Also, the GREEN Striped German is not Green. ….on top of that, I totally embarrassed myself by spelling tomato with a TOE……

I planted 5 different types of tomatoes this year, all from Peas&Harmony Nursery, a local Sacramento nursery.

We have:

Black Krim Plum, Homestead 24, Green Striped German, Green Zebra, Pineapple.

The Homestead 24, Black Krim Plum,  and Green Zebra are doing quite well. We’ve already harvested a few Black Krim Plum. They are good, but not my favorite for eating off the plant. They will be better for salad or sides with Mozzarella. The Homestead 24 are big, but still green. This plant is bushy, and more compact than the others, it is interesting to see the difference in growth!

The Green Striped German and Pineapple have yet to grow an actual tomato. Both suffer “Blossom Drop”. After researching, I found that it can happen from not enough water (which is regulated now by the watering system), or heat. We did have a few days of over 100 degrees, and that could be the cause. Maybe these varieties are not as adjusted to our very hot days? I thought tomatoes thrive in the heat, but it seems that 4 hours or more over 85 degrees can cause them heat stress, or the the very cool temperatures at night can cause the drop also.

It has been fairly cool for July in the past week, only 80-90, and I have been playing “Matchmaker” by polinating the few blossoms left with a paintbrush , so hopefully I will see some fruit set soon!

The Zuchini are FINALLy taking off, and we harvested our first cucumber. It seems all our cucumbers are regular, the Armenians did not grow.

My Brown Turkey Fig tree that I planted last year is doing great. It has a ton of figs for such a small tree, yet they are all green still. I was told they may fall off, and that the tree would not produce edible figs until next year….we will see .

Blackberry bramble July 5, 2009

The blackberries were callling us!

Back to the spot where we discovered the vast wild grapes and blackberries last week, this time equipped with bags, and long pants. What I did not reckon with is the pain that gigantic thorns can inflict! I remember reading many stories in the history archives of the kids picking berries around these parts…..maybe the thorns weren’t so big then?

I must say, though I do appreciate the blackberry farm that has the thornless bushes for us to descend on every year, I had a great time foraging with the kids. We felt the “spirit” of those that were here before us , or maybe it was just one of the hobos that appreciate these beautiful, isolate parts of the city too….my dog was on watch the whole time we were exploring, and after “sniffing” out a path, promptly barked, turned around, and nudged us nonceremoniously in the butt to go the other way several times.

I now appreciate the labor of berry picking even more. I look like I got into a street fight with a mongrel cat, and after a few hours our bounty was just enough for 4 large bowls of wild blackberries (they are much smaller than the cultivated ones!) with joghurt.

Long pants and a big stick, ’cause the best berries are the hardest to get.

A magic portal into FairyLand??

On the way to the blackberries, so much to see…..

Grape tendril…looks like it is running :)

ooo…that berry was tart…

Rex takes his job very serious…

Relaxing by the river after a few hours of berry hunting….

Nature Explorers & Mystery Plant June 26, 2009

Today my two boys and I went to “explore” a park entry that we keep driving by…and we found paradise . I am always amazed at little spots of country right here, smack in the city….

We found wild dill, what seems to be mullein, dandelion, chicory, wild grapes, blackberries (not very ripe yet, but we are going back with buckets next week), and four gigantic railroad nails..

This has inspired me to purchase a field guide of California wild herbs and flowers, please pass on any recommendations.

I am not sure what this is…

Behind Benjamin, you can see the stalks of wild dill

Benjamin and his loyal tracker, Rex

This plant was growing in between the blackberries

Zen harvest after a Full Moon June 12, 2009

After the last “harvest” of chamomile, which I hung to dry, I learned that though hanging the bushels in my kitchen smells wonderful, it is not the best way to process the dry plant. Once they are dry, the chamomile heads are very brittle, and I lost many of them when removing them from the stem.

So, this time I am cutting the heads off and drying them in my makeshift drying rack, aka, the little rack your baby plants come in. I may have to lay a piece of screen in there though, since the plants will shrink a bit.

BTW, this chamomile grows wild in my garden, and spreads on it’s own. I believe it is “German Chamomile” (no pun intended), and when you cut it, it keeps coming back with new flowers. It is appreciating the new watering system, I am amazed what a little bit of consistant watering can do!!

There is something strangely “zen” about cutting off chamomile heads, LOL!! The calming scent and the savage action…..

My assistant, cutting the heads off our chamomile for drying.

My makeshift rack, with catcher at the bottom :).

Summer bounties. Unfortunately, not from our garden…u June 9, 2009

I wish those first tomatoes were already ripe!

We make the rounds each morning, talking to our little tomatoe buds, smiling at our first figs, counting our bunches of grapes, and hoping the peppers and zuchinnis are so tiny because they are saving up for an amazing growth spurt!

Today, I made my second batch of strawberry jam with honey. The first batch was a bit runny, live and learn. I did not do the “spoon test”, I am such a rookie. The second batch is gelled .

Taken from “Putting it up with honey”:

6cups of strawberries, 2 cups of honey, 1/4 cup of lemon juice, 1 pkg of pectin.

Mash berries, mix in pectin, bring to a boil. Add honey and lemon. Boil for at least 5 minutes. TEST. Fill into hot jars, process for 15 minutes.

I also tried canning apricots today. Need to work on that……My cherries are still cooling, will report when they are done.

I processed my first harvest of Lemonbalm today. I dried it hanging, and it dried well. It smells delicious, so calming….:).

Here are some new snaps from the garden:

Tendergreen cucumber, growing with the chamomille (Peas&Harmony)

Tendergreen cucumber, growing with the chamomille (Peas&Harmony)

Grow, little tomatoes, GROW!

My first Echinacea blooms :)..

The Kiwi Killer…whatever is under the Kiwi, he wants it.

The Kiwi is trying to get established.

First harvest of Lemonbalm is ready to be processed…Tea, anyone?

It’s almost done…… May 30, 2009

So we have finally finished the pergola that is supposed to hold the Kiwi once they start growing . They are having a slow start, especially since Rex has dug them up several times.

soon to be covered in succulent Kiwis!

"tame" version, weeds were already pulled.

We are growing food!!! May 16, 2009

It has been a few weeks since the adventure of our “new” double high boxes began.

I figured out that the reason my plants weren’t thriving, aside from the fact that I did not water them consistantly, was because we have hardpan. The hardpan starts about 1.5 ft down, so there is not much room for root growth. I built the boxes up one level, dug everything up, and filled the them with an even amount of soil and compost.

I planted the first tomato plants on 4/12/09. All these plants are from a local Sacramento nursery, Peas  & Harmony. Not only local, but run by two mamas, and organic. What a better way to support a family biz?

I planted Striped German, Homestead 24, Pineapple, Green Zebra.

Today, they are still alive . You see, what grows in my garden is ALMOST guaranteed to survive anywhere.

Here is the bed today:

As you can see, I have installed a drip system. Another bonus of working with Peas & Harmony, Julie, one of the owners, came out and showed me how to install that little wonder! I bought a starter kit from Raindrip, but clearly those directions are not sufficient. Also, we made some adjustments, I bought an additional timer, and also some extra spouts and pieces that were not included. One note to all you creative gardeners ( I plant things as I see them, and where they might fit), PLANT IN STRAIGHT LINES!!  Yes, I know it is hard, but it is much harder installing drip in ziggy lines. I made a note to myself, and the second box is going to be planted straight.

I added some basil for pesto, and to keep the hornworms away. Also, experimenting with chives (in the corner). I planted Nasturtium seeds along the edge of the bed. They need quite a bit of water, so they do well with the tomatoes. They are also said to keep pests away, and are a companion plant. Plus, the flowers are so pretty to look at and eat . If  you soak the seeds before planting, they emerge after only a few days.

Hello World! March 6, 2009

Oprah didn’t do it, so I am!

As all things in my life, this blog was a spontaneous decision to chronicle our journey to self-sufficiency and more “green-ness”. Like many families now, we are struggling in this economy. Unfortunately,  the media does not show you how to save “green”, and most stores do not offer coupons for veggies, fruit, and bulk beans . So I have created  this space to share and spread the love!

Welcome, and bare with me as I navigate!