Yes, this is my garden journal for the Garden of Weedin for May, 2010. But, it is much more than simply a planting journal or gardening record. For the Hillbilly Gardener, it is a gardener resource, to use to help in planning my garden, track my low budget gardening efforts, help me keep track of what worked and what did not. This is a garden history journal to remind the Hillbilly Gardener of the many things he saw, experienced and enjoyed in his Ozarks plateau world. It is a gardener resource to be a help planning a garden and as a reminder of all of the good reasons why the Hillbilly Gardener loves his Garden of Weedin and as a tool to help me remember that everything does not always go well. In fact, sometimes in the Garden of Weedin, some things are a downright disaster. My garden journal helps me to avoid experiencing the same disaster more than once. This IS the garden history journal of the Garden of Weedin and the Hillbilly Gardener here on the Ozarks plateau of Missouri. Perhaps my efforts here will help inspire you or help you to avoid some of my mistakes. If this can be accomplished then this garden history journal will have been successful and the Hillbilly Gardener will be happy. the "Hillbilly Gardener"
Saturday / May / 01 / 2010 - The first day of May! Where did April go? I never understood before, but time does go by faster as we age. What was a full year and seemed to drag on without end when I was a child now screams by like a NASCAR racer with brake failure! There's got to be a train wreck at the end of this ride and I'm riding in the engine! I started out riding in the Caboose and as time passed, my seat kept being moved closer and closer to the front of the train. I just hope that by the time this train wreck happens, I'm not running out in front of it leading the way! Today, momma and I hit a few yard sales before going to the greenhouse to pick up some tomato plants. I picked up a cultivator hoe to modify as I have been wanting to do for some time now. The tines were rather bent up and the handle was pretty rough - PERFECT! No - the Hillbilly Gardener has not fallen and hit his melon. How often have you wanted a cultivating tool that you could use up close, around and between plants that were to closely spaced for a conventional tool? The plan is to cut off the outside two tines, leaving only the two inner tines and creating a cultivator that is only half as wide as a conventional cultivator. Perfect for cultivating small beds. I plan on doing the same with a hoe as well. I had created one before which worked extremely well and I went and got rid of it. We'll leave it at that and go go into details. We all do dumb things from time to time. While at the greenhouse, I picked up a couple of yellow tuberous rooted Begonias (variety "Non-Stop") to finish out the two strawberry jars in front of the house. I also picked up four (4) tomato plants. While my plan was to purchase two (2) determinate and two (2) non-determinate plants, I ended up with four non-determinate plants I believe. I must check these out today because there are so many varieties available anymore that I can not possibly remember them all. I probably should have asked, but at the time it didn't really matter. The four varieties I purchased were: Elsewhere around the garden. Yes, it rained some more last nigh - 1/4 inch. The Maple seeds have finally stopped falling and there are literally BUSHELS of seeds now on the ground, the gutters are totally filled and beds are covered. I'll be pulling Maple seedlings for months! I really must take the time to jot down a few notes about the "Blue Flax" that is new for me this year. Actually, it was rescued from the nursery bed that went crazy last year during that fiasco. I have been tempted in the past to grow it but for whatever reason never did. It is an erect plant that this year is roughly 15 inches tall with a very neat, fairly even flat-topped shape. The plant has an open appearance with many straight stems rising from a central base. Atop each stem are many buds with an interesting habit of hanging down in a limp appearance that gives the plant the look of starting to wilt. As the buds get ready to bloom, they turn upwards to open into a light blue flower. Monday / April / 03 / 2010 - Aside from it being my birthday, today was interesting in that on my way home I noted two (2) different fields of hay cut for baling. Now what makes this interesting and worth noting is that this gives further evidence of what I've been noting this spring. The season is about two to three weeks early this year, maybe more. This is further evidenced by the fact that my son saw fireflies out nearly a week ago. Strange, strange, strange!! I'm not going to venture into the debate over global warming, etc. But, the last several years have been extremely strange and unnatural. For the most part, the last several years have thrown all of the rules about last frost dates, normal soil warming, etc. out the window. This gives rise to an entire area of new experimentation and learning for the gardener. The Maple seeds unusually heavy to the point of excessive, the weeds actually excelling and sprouting all winter, the extremes of temperatures, the birds nesting earlier this year, the soil getting up to planting temperature very early this year. Strange, I say. Actually, the soil was up to planting temperature for many plants about three weeks early even though the weather throughout the winter was actually below normal and wet. This year would have given rise to an entire new area of study and experimentation with planting techniques in the garden. But I chose to exercise restrain and caution this year. Perhaps, I shall choose to be a little bit bolder next year because spring has been coming earlier and earlier. Thursday / April / 06/ 2010 - I got out and planted the tomatoes this evening. There's no reason to wait for the weekend. They're calling for a slight chance of rain tomorrow, the weather is warm and beautiful this evening and the soil is right. So plant, plant, plant. I didn't put in the tomato supports at the same time like I normally would have because it was getting dark. That will be done Saturday. It is very important to put in tomato supports very early because tomatoes get to training stage quickly and the longer I wait, the harder it is to get them in and the plants tied after they get big. Many gardeners shy away from large plants or plant them incorrectly I've seen. I embrace them because I can remove the lower leaves and plant them very deep or on their sides and they will root all along the stems. This gives the plants a much larger root system and they do better. Elsewhere in the Garden of Weedin, the old roses out front are starting to bloom. I love the sweet fragrance that fills the air when a frost hasn't damaged the blooms. This year, the plants are covered with buds and the plants should be gorgeous. After they have finished blooming, I want to cut them back pretty hard so that I can put in a better support system for them. I am going to stick a lot of the cuttings for more plants. I will plant four of these around the patio for screening, the spring color and the fragrance in the the spring. The Valerian (Garden Heliotrope) is getting ready to bloom. I'm looking forward to this because the fragrance is so sweet and full. The one last red pyrethrum daisy that I salvaged last year is starting to bloom. I plan on making this one of the plants that I transfer to a large planter for the patio. Because it prefers a poorer and dryer soil, it should be a good candidate for this. Weather permitting, I need to do some fertilizing this weekend. The onions, garlic and other plants in the garden could use it. The plants I moved last fall do not require or want much fertilizer, but a little this spring will do them good to help them get better established. Back To Top Sunday / May / 09 / 2010 - Yah, it's Mother's day and it's not really very special for Mom around here today. Certainly not what I had planned. Our son is sick, we have both granddaughters and when you get the two of them together, the oldest one knows how to take the special out of a special day real quick. It's cool and damp today with rain forecast pretty much for the entire next week so I got the yard mowed. But, before I did that, I did take momma out to dinner and a long drive out around the lake. Just the two of us. Monday / May / 10 / 2010 - It rained last night and today as predicted and COLD! The high today was only around 60 degrees F. All right, maybe in one sense the temperature wasn't that actually that cold - BUT - when you consider that the last few weeks have been consistently in the mid to upper 70's and sunny, it felt quite cold. It was quite chilly, cloudy, rainy and damp all day long. Quite a departure from what we've been having and at night, it's been getting down into the 40's. It felt quite chilly and we had to run some heat in the morning to warm the house up. While not really cold enough for it, this is probably our "Blackberry Winter". Thankfully, it has not gotten cold enough to be a true Blackberry Winter because I really do not want to deal with the frosts and freezing temperatures as we've had in years past. Blackberry Winter is a time in the spring that is typically winters last hoorah and typically coincides with the blooming of the blackberries. It typically follows a period of a few weeks of quite warm weather and brings with it frosts and freezes. There was a time when it was not unusual to get a little bit of snow during a Blackberry Winter and lasted from a few days to a week or 10 days. Blackberry Winter was traditionally the signal of the end of winter and served as the signal to the Indians and early settlers that the time had come to plant beans, corn and other cold-sensitive crops. Blackberry Winter is springtime opposite of "Indian Summer" which occurs in the fall and operates in the exact opposite manner from Blackberry Winter. At one time. these "mini-seasons" were so regular and so predictable that calendars could be set by them. But with the changing of the seasons, these mini-seasons have become blurred or non-existent anymore. Today, most gardeners under the age of 50 have not experienced the true and full effect of the distinction and regularity of either a true "Blackberry Winter" or a true "Indian Summer". Nor do they realize or understand the significance of either mini-season". Tuesday / May / 11 / 2010 - We dodged a bullet again last night weather-wise. While severe weather with tornados was going through to the south and west of us, it subsided by the time it got here. We only got 3/8" of rain out of it. Last year, we got storms this time that flattened the gardens and they're looking so good this year. I got out of work this evening and it was so muggy and warm that I expect that we'll get another round of severe weather tonight. Back To Top Wednesday / May / 12 / 2010 - The usual to tell today - more rain! About 1/10th inch. I could be remembering wrong, since the memory is not what it used to be, but I do not remember such prolonged periods of continuous rain as we've had in recent years. For the last several years, we've had anywhere from two to three weeks from the end of April through the middle of May where it has rained almost continuously around here. Continuous rains where for a month to six weeks, a gardener might only get a day or two where they could get into the garden to work. It's a normal thing to gat a lot of rain in the spring o f the year here. But, in the past the rains would normally be followed by a few days of dryer weather. The rains we've been getting the past several years have been getting more and more constant and closer and closer together. This, along with everything else going on weather-wise, I can't help but cause me to believe that the seasons are changing. But, to blame it on "Global Warming" - I'm not going there yet. The most the Hillbilly Gardener is willing to say at this point is that anything that anything man is putting into the air is not supposed to be there and is not helping things and may be either increasing the effects of a natural occurrence or causing it to occur sooner than normal. And then, there is still no conclusive evidence one way or another to say that we are or are not the cause of many of our own weather related problems. Regardless, to put anything into the air that should not be there simply for our own convenience or worse, our profit, is terrible short-sightedness and the ultimate form of self-centeredness. But, such is the cost of living in a self-indulgent, self-centered and affluent nation as ours where a relatively few think of anyone but themselves and their own wants and desires. Such is the result of a "microwave" world with "instant" everything - including self-gratification. Enough of the soap box though. The climbing roses are just beginning to pass their peak and they never looked better than they did this year. While their fragrance was quite strong and sweet, it did not appear to be as heavy this year as in years past. I believe this was due to all of the rains we had and only sporadic days of warm temperatures. The rescued Pyrethrum Daisy only has a couple of blooms this year and is quite small, but the bright red petals with a yellow center are beautiful. I really look forward to digging it and placing it into a large container on the patio. Yet this causes me some concern at the same time. Containerized perennials bring with them many responsibilities that I thus far have not done well with. One of the biggest is over wintering the pots. In the past, container planting for me has been pretty much as it has been for most folks - a vehicle for the growing and display of annuals. This is rightly and understandably so, since annuals provide (on average) so much more color for than perennials. In such a circumstance, the only winter care needed is to protect the pots from freezing. But, with perennials, this all changes. Here, the pots need to, as much as possible, to be maintained at a constant temperature and watered occasionally when the soil becomes very dry. Neither of which I've done well at in the past. However, I did do some experimenting with pot protecting through the winter a couple of years ago. With the changing of circumstances, this must become a renewed effort on my part and must gain a level of increased importance in the Garden of Weedin. Thursday & Friday / May / 13 & 14 / 2010 - Thursday - 1 1/2 inch of rain. Friday - 2 1/2 inches of rain and rain and rain and rain some more. Saturday / May / 15 / 2010 - You guessed it. More rain! Where's my Arc? I think I see animals coming two by two. Will it be that that in a few weeks, we'll be wishing we had some of this rain? The stink of it is that while the desirable plants are seeking life preservers the weeds are doing the back-stroke and having a "pool party" while growing quite well. I think I even saw a squirrel yesterday with swim-fins and a snorkel going across the yard. But, we only got a quarter inch today. What happened? I know that I've seen wet springs in the past and one in particular comes to mind where, as a child, we literally "waded" the garden to pull up pea plants in order to get them picked, much like a rice paddy. But, that was one singular spring. This has been spring after spring for many years now. Now going on for more than two weeks weeks now of non-stop rains. One after the other, with only a very brief break here and there. If this were the Pacific Northwest, perhaps this would just be normal springtime weather. But this is not the Pacific Northwest and we are not accustomed to such prolonged periods of rain. Our gardening methods do not reflect long periods of springtime rains nor do we have the skills needed for such. In recent years years, our springtime weather has somewhat mimicking that of Portland. Oregon and Spokane, Washington. But, our temperatures have been a little cooler than Spokane, Washington. They seem to cope pretty well with the weather in the spring. One big difference remains though that I see could be a big challenge for us here. As a rule, we do not have the deep, well draining soils they have in the Northwest. Our soils, at least here in the Ozarks, tend to be thin and have a very high clay content. Yes, we can amend the growing zone with organic matter and help "short-term" drainage substantially. But, in periods of "long-term" rain, even that amended soil quickly becomes saturated and slow to drain and dry out. So, if our present weather pattern is to become the norm for us here in the Ozarks and the Mid-West, would it be prudent to start looking at our options for more successful gardening? For some - perhaps. I don't foresee those who garden on upland or sloped sites having to do much beyond adjust to a changing weather pattern. For the rest of us, we would do well to at least start taking more of a serious consideration of raised beds at the very least. For some, artificial drainage may even be an option to be considered. Is there any ideas in my bag of tricks to help counteract monsoon seasons? I don't know. Let me think on it. I'll get back to you. I've got some ideas rolling around in the Hillbilly Gardeners empty head for the raised beds, but the conventional beds? That's something entirely different. Any ideas I've got there would not look very aesthetically appealing from the road. In other words, they lack "curb appeal". Back To Top Sunday / May / 16 / 2010 - I woke up this morning to • • • • • • you guessed it - MORE RAIN! Now I'm getting somewhat concerned about several things. One of which is getting the yard mowed. My son made the comment this morning - "If this rain keeps up the grass is going to be higher than the posts on the patio (8 feet to the tops of them). We'll wake up one morning to the sound of Howler Monkey's in our back yard." Yes, it's getting a little high out there. But then, that would be in keeping with the "Redneck" old car that hasn't run in the last five years up on blocks also wouldn't it? Hey, maybe I could get me a couple of goats to turn loose out back. They could mow my grass for me, and fertilizer the yard all at the same time. Then when it got hot and dry and the grass stopped growing, we could invite everyone over for some BBQ! (Just watch out for the fertilizer droppings!) For the last few years, about this time, we've had rainy spells that created a lawn mowing nightmare that turned a normally one-hour task into a six-hour ordeal. I haven't been bagging my grass the last several mowings' because I didn't need the mulch and my compost bind were full. But, this next time I will need to in order to prevent a mess on the yard, even though that will take more time. I'm saving money on not having to water, but I'm spending what I save and more on some additional heat in the mornings because it's still only in the 50's when I get up and the damp air just amplifies that coolness. The good news is that we haven't had any severe weather in a couple of days. We had family down from out of town yesterday (that's a story unto itself) and she was telling of a problem she had that is all to familiar around these parts in spring anymore. She had several of her seed crops that didn't come up. I don't remember all of them she listed but, two probable causes came immediately to mind; 1) cool soil and 2) wet soil. In her case, as with so many around here anymore, I'm guessing a combination of the two. It is so very important that seeds not get planted until the soil warms up to the correct temperature because they are not going to sprout anyway and if they do sprout, they will sprout poorly. In the case of a wet soil, the seeds will rot, I'm guessing that her soil was either to cool to begin with or it may have been marginal and then the rains came and cooled it off quickly to the point that they would not sprout. Then the seeds just sit in the cool, wet ground and rot. She asked about replanting. My reply was sure. All of the seeds could easily be replanted. However; 1) crops such as lettuce are getting a little late in the year and may not fully mature or last long before hot weather hits. 2) Cucumbers will be setting fruit during the hot part of the year and it will be imperative to mulch them and keep them well watered. Other than that, take soil temperatures before you replant and don't replant before the soil gets back up to the right temperature for the given variety. Because it's getting late in the season for many crops, be prepared to mulch well and water consistently after the weather warms. If you do these things, most crops, other than early spring crops, will do just fine. But they will be later than you may have wanted. In the future, given the weather patterns we've been having, it might be wise to install a cloche over each row after it's planted in order to maintain temperature and help better control the moisture. However, in doing so, it may be necessary to water the rows occasionally even with rains. This would best and/or easiest be done with soaker hoses installed when you plant the seeds. Black plastic and/or black planters paper installed along either side of the row under the cloche will also greatly help and may actually increase the soil temperature even though it is cloudy and rainy. Just remember to install your soaker hoses underneath the film first. It quit raining this afternoon. So I got out and pulled a few weeds in the planter while they pulled easily. I also installed the new support stakes around the Joe-Pye-Weed and transplanted three marigolds to the planter by the back door for momma because these are her favorite flower. Right now we've got 1/2 inch of rain for today, but more called for tonight. Tuesday / May / 18 / 2010 - GUESS WHAT - NO RAIN TODAY!! But I walked out across the yard and we've had so much rain that water is standing in the back yard like small ponds. I pulled some green onions and radishes to eat with dinner and the onions are rotting in the bed. Cabbage worms have already invaded the cabbages and black spinach caterpillars are starting to work on the spinach. You can't spray when it's raining and floating row covers just acted like giant tarps to beat down the crops during hard rains. I need a bug-resistant rigid cover. Thursday / May / 20 / 2010 - Wednesday, May 19 we got another 2" of rain and today we had the sun peak out for a little while. But then a storm quickly moved in and dumped 3/4 inch of rain in just about 15 minutes. It was like a huge cloud moved overhead and then suddenly the bottom dropped out of the cloud kind of like a water balloon bursting. Instant flood! Back To Top Saturday / May / 22 / 2010 - Bright sunshine, no rain, water still standing in the yard in places and running across the basement floor as if to take a shortcut to the drain. A good day to go garage saleing. A few days ago we were running the heat to take the chill out of the air. Today, it's predicted to get up into the mid eighties. With all of the rain we've had the humidity will be so high that I'll need a knife to cut through it. I did get out and finally get the begonias planted in the strawberry jars for the front of the house that I've been holding. I also did start getting some the bucket loads of Maple leaves cleaned out of the pots on the patio that had collected there and were now sprouting along with the many weeds that didn't seem to mind the rain and were also sprouting. Right now the forecast is for an entire week of dry weather and temperatures in the eighties. Perhaps we can get dried out and I can quickly get caught up on the weeds that are quickly sprouting everywhere. Oh well, That's why I call it the Garden of Weedin! Sunday / May / 23 / 2010 - I got out and cleaned the patio today. Ours is a brick patio with the bricks bedded in sand. Consequently, weeds do tend to sprout in and between the bricks. In the construction of the patio, I was forced to use a lot of construction bricks as well. Normally, one would use only solid bricks, preferably of the paving type. But, these were recycled bricks used from the rehab job that was done on the garage here where the bricks were removed and replaced with siding. Now normally a builder would use all of one type of bricks, solids or building bricks with the holes in them. But the garage had both, roughly 2/3 solids and 1/3 building bricks. The patio is large enough that I had to use bricks with holes in them. I scattered them randomly throughout. This allowed additional spaces for weeds to grow. All of this led to my present dilemma. At the time, I had in mind to let the bricks weather and the moss to grow, giving it an aged and old appearance. What I didn't anticipate was the volume of weeds that would sprout in them. I suspect that many of the weeds came in with the sand that was used which was river sand. This is common sand around here and often referred to as "sharp" sand. Now, common logic would dictate that I spray the patio with a herbicide of some form, and I did spray it once last year. However, this year I have a good start of moss growing and the bricks are starting to have a good aged look. Anything I would spray on them now might damage or destroy that. So, at least for now, I just pulled the larger weeds and sliced off the others with an old hoe. It will be hot and dry soon and the weeds won't be so much of a problem. I am considering using an "pre-emergent" such as "Preen" in the future to control weeds, but not until I investigate whether or not it will damage the moss. These are the kinds of questions that every homeowner must answer BEFORE they decide to build an outdoor entertaining area. What kind of design does your home dictate? How much time are you willing to invest into the upkeep of the area? For me, it's an old "Arts and Craft's" home that dictates an aged look. Anything else would out of place. Poured concrete would stick out like a sore thumb and bricks set in mortar would never take on the look of a patio that had been there since the house was built. One must consider such things because others do. I did put down a heavy layer of rock salt in one corner where the display blocks and potted plants will be because this area will not dry out like the rest of the patio. But, this area is small and the rock salt will be washed away in a season. The clean up concluded with applying a heavy application of "Amorall" protectant to the granddaughters table and chairs and a general washing of the rest of the furniture. The general cleaning revealed that a much deeper cleaning is needed with a mildew removing cleaner for the plastic furniture and a good upholstery cleaner for the rest. The good furniture cushions could use a good weather treatment as well. If you're going to have outdoor furniture, you've got to take care of it. Otherwise, why have it? Tuesday / May / 25 / 2010 - 1/4 inch of of rain today and temperatures in the mid eighties with partial sunshine. The humidity is awful high today. Not a good day for working outside. But I wish I was, instead of being stuck inside. I would have liked to have gotten the Pyrethrum daisy dug and potted. Back To Top Saturday / May / 29 / 2010 - Well, It's Memorial Day weekend. The traditional start of summer and you could not have asked for a better day than today. Unless it was to be a little bit cooler. But, it wasn't bad. Temperatures in the mid-eighties, dry and bright sunshine. A perfect day for weeding here in the Garden of Weedin and there are plenty of those now from our "mini-monsoon" season. I went through the corner area fairly quickly got the weeds "bulked out". There will be a few to come back and pick out later, but the area in general is in good shape. While I was at it, the wheels started turning in my head about how I wanted to start pulling back and consolidating the beds. I haven't made up my mind yet, but this is the year to make the move. This place does not lend itself to large-scale gardening. It never has and I have been fighting it for many, many years. It's time I quit fighting things and started working with them instead of against those things I cannot change. I'm just not sure yet what I want to do. The Valerian (Garden Heliotrope) Got completely out of hand again this year during all of the rain and did not get staked. Now it's flopping all over the place again. It's very pretty and smells very good other than that. I did get stakes in for the Joe-Pye-Weed, but have not yet tied any of it up yet. I better start getting it tied or it will be flopping again. As I survey the beds further, part of what I am looking for are plants that I feel might do well in large pots and planters. Three Obvious ones stand out that I need to get dug - Japanese Blood grass, Chives and Feverfew. The Chives are kind of a "no-brainer" and the Blood-Grass should be as well, but when I tried it before, it failed. I do believe I was the fault on that one though. I believe the size of container and improper watering were to blame there. The Feverfew is a question though. I see no reason why it should not do well in a large container, but it has a weedy and straggly appearance that may require a lot of judicious pruning in order to keep it looking neat in appearance. Am I willing to put that king of effort into it? My track record with pots and containers is not that great. But then, I must ask why that is? I do believe it is because (at least in part) because I have always had so many large projects going that diverted my attention away from the regular maintenance that pots required, away from them. The old roses out front are about finished blooming and it is about time to cut them back as I had planned. But, once I do, I must also commit myself to some form of formal arbor. The Solomon's Seal in the front bed that I was wondering a few years back if it would even survive, is now expanding to the point that it must be dug soon and thinned. Unfortunately, I have found it difficult in the past to find homes for wild flowers, even ones with as much interest as Solomon's Seal. My son and I took on the task today of starting the task of completing the clean-up of the utility area behind the garage. It was never my intention to get quite so involved as we did, but my son brought the drive of youth to the table and it was him who carried the ball on that project. I have always tried to have one or two projects to accomplish each year. This one and the small side walkway leading from the patio to the yard were the two for main ones for this year. It was never my intention to try to do these all in one sitting, but my son is in many ways much as I was when I was young. When he gets started, it's all out until it's finished. Starting in the project, I had covered a grouping of potting soil that I had sifted out, along with a wheelbarrow full of leaves and a large tub of leaves that I had saved from last fall to use as mulch this year. Well the tarp system leaked and the tubful of leaves was full of fermenting leaf liquor. Our son got the idea to use it around all of the plants instead of wasting it. Quite foul smelling, but maybe there might be something to this. I really got me to thinking about the possibilities of duplicating this on a large scale, but with using all forms of compostable material. After all, we make compost tea don't we and we praise the virtues of that. What if I was to in essence make compost in liquid, liquor form? We'll "cogitate" (Hillbilly for think for a while) on this for a while and see if there is any significant difference in the single application of leaf liquor. Sunday / May / 30 / 2010 - Yesterday, we made great headway completing our clean-up project. This included moving the remains of the dirt pile that was left from our patio project. Most of it had been used in filling the raised beds and other projects, but a sizable pile still remained. Our new neighbor had some sizable holes in her back yard left from a very large stump that had been burned and rotted out years ago. We made an offer to help both of us out by filling them in for her with the soil that we needed to move, which she was happy to receive. The remainder of the area was cleaned up today and it really looks great now. As far as the storage aspect of the area is concerned, well I've backed away from that aspect for now for a variety of reasons. It may be that I come back to revisit this storage issue later, and probably will, also for a variety of reasons. But for now, we're utilizing the old outdoor clothesline area for storage and covering it with tarps for aesthetic reasons. It isn't going to be very handy, but perhaps we can improve on this later. I made some hard decisions today regarding my planting, beds and what I'm going to grow around here. In years past. I've tried to grow everything under the sun and I've grown a great many plants that most have never grown and will never see. But, from this point forward, my beds are going to start getting much smaller, more focused and much more low maintenance. Over the next year or two, I'm going to teach myself to take the time to enjoy what I have and what is going on around me, instead of focusing on that next big project. It's time to start focusing on all of those little things that need to be done (those little details), that have never gotten done because the projects always got in the way. It's time to start enjoying watching the world wake up in the morning with a cup of coffee on the patio, take time to do the dead-heading that never got done like it needed to be done, but makes the difference in keeping the flowers coming. It's time to practice what I and other have always preached and only grow in the garden, what the family enjoys eating. Even if this means only two or three things. Why grow 10, 15 or 20 varieties of vegetables if your family doesn't really enjoy cooking or eating them? This I have done all of my life, only to give them away. This may be fun to do, but makes no sense and is counterproductive in many ways. In the future around here, that means tomatoes, sweet corn, some green beans and two or three cucumbers. At some point perhaps there will be some potatoes, but not now. Momma didn't grow up with anything else, never learned to cook or enjoy anything else and doesn't care to. And at our age, it's unlikely she'll start now. Therefore, why spend the time growing them since I've spent my life giving most everything else away? This fall, we'll move the two raised beds to the best sun on the place and I'll concentrate on tomatoes, sweet corn, a few beans and a few cucumbers for me. Monday / May / 31 / 2010 - Memorial Day and the end of May ands with the weekend being quite full of work. May ended with many long-outstanding projects being brought to a close or well underway and decisions made that I've grappled with for a long time now. It is inevitable that everything must change. I've preached that for years now and it's time I listened to my own preaching. It's not like I'm going to stop what I love doing, but rather find a new way of doing it that is in line with my life and take time to enjoy it. I've been saying in this journal for what, two years now, that I needed to start cutting back and making a change in a new direction? I guess Hillbillies are kind of slow at some things. Whoa, wait, stop! We're not having this conversation again are we? How often have we had these conversations now anyway? What does ANY of this have to do with gardening? What does any of this have to do with this journal? What does any of this have to do with other people for that matter? It's none of their business is it? For that matter, what do I care about how I came to any of these decisions? Well, this is MY GARDEN JOURNAL and I can put what I want in it I guess. Besides, it helps me to sort out my feelings in regard to what I enjoy so much and it helps to focus on what I like most. As far as others are concerned, I have never deluded myself into believing very many ever read anyone's garden journals, especially mine. I'm not that special in the bigger scheme of life. But, perhaps, just perhaps, there might come just one person who might be going through that transitional period of life where they can't do what they once did, but they aren't ready or willing to give it up. At least not yet. It is for these and myself that I write. Somewhere out there is someone I can relate to. For the last year I have grappled with a relatively small access walk leading from the landing of the back step to the side yard so that folks didn't need to traverse across the patio and then double back in order to gain access to it. The stones are recycled concrete. Do I edge the walk and set them in concrete? Fill them with soil and plant something like moss between? Do I use gravel or something else between? Well our son made up my mind for me today. We decided upon digging small "sockets" and setting the stones in soil then filling around the stones with soil. We will then sow grass seed over and around these this fall. Until then, we will cover the area with grass clippings to keep down weeds. The area closest to the drip control basin will planted in such a manner as to help hide the basin. Our son got started setting the stones today. It was his first attempt at setting stepping stones. Dad only passed on some advice that he had learned from his experience doing it and then got out of his way to let him do it his way. He is doing a really fine job and I told him so. To anyone who may read this, let me stress most fervently. It is extremely important that you let a person know when they are doing a good job and to thank them for it. This is so vitally important, especially when that person is doing it out of the goodness of their heart. NEVER, NEVER nit-pick their work unless you want to find yourself doing all of the work yourself. Remember, they do not have to do what they are doing for you. They are doing it because they wish to do something nice for you and want to. NOT BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO! Show some appreciation for the kindness that others show you. The last of the "mess" was finished today in the "utility" area behind the garage today and outside of a couple of "loose ends", it looks great. Almost as good as the day it was first built. Perhaps, at some point in the future, I might come back and revisit some of the original ideas I had for the area in the first place to make it a true utility storage area. But, for now, it looks great and everything is at least useable. So I think I'll just let it ride for now. One thing that I've been reminded of that every gardener needs to have (where possible and permissible) is a dedicated burn area. This should be an area, old barrel or something where burnable material can be disposed of. This "utility" would also be used for diseased plant material and other plant materials that can not or should not go into the compost. This I learned some time ago, but have forgotten over the past few years. The support stakes were put in for the tomatoes today and the area cleared of weeds. Normally, it is recommended that these supports be put in at the time that the plants are planted. But, the way I support tomatoes precludes having to do this. While I was at it, I finally got around to using up the old egg shells that I have been collecting for the past year or so. I crushed these as fine as I could by hand and scattered them all around the tomatoes and worked them into the soil. As a part of my "change" I have made a decision to go away from cabbages until such time as I can grow them "worm-free" and I am convinced they will actually be used around here. Therefore, I pulled all of the cabbages, which were already riddled with worms because all of the rains destroyed all efforts to stop them. I covered the area around the tomatoes with an old bale of straw that I have had weathering all winter and placed a 3 gallon irrigation bucket next to each one. With water buckets, water goes directly around the plant roots and water soluble fertilizer can be placed directly in the bucket and not have to be premixed as well. Conclusion This brings May to an end. It has been a month filled with weather extremes. The month started out with monsoonal rains and is ending with temperatures in the upper 80's and calling for the low 90's in the next day or two. Some projects that needed to be completed and brought to a close have been completed or are very near it and some hard decisions have been made. There were some plants that I had great hope for in the garden that ended up becoming a disappointment once the rains hit and then there were the usual pest problems that all conventional control methods couldn't stop because of the rains. Dusts and sprays were useless and conventional mechanical covers became plant presses under heavy rains. Row covers placed on conventional hoops simply got pulled apart and required almost daily repair. These things I find unacceptable and do not wish to be continually "fiddling" with any control device. There must be a method that will stand up to the elements, stop the critters and yet not require brute strength to operate and use or break the bank in order to employ. Much to "cogitate" on. May did bring a new plant find in the "Blue Flax" which is new for us. No, it is not the variety grown for linen, but quite delightful non-the-less. While it has survived a winter (and me) here, I hope this cute little blue flower of more arid regions will continue to grow for us. May also brought about the realization that it is very possible for those who are physically challenged to mix many of their favorite perennials with brightly colored annuals in containers and have stunning displays on their patios without the challenges of gardening in a conventional manner. While it's getting to late in the year this year to prove this, I believe that next year I can prove this theory and write about it. May found us trying an old decorating idea put to a new use on the patio through the use concrete blocks to stage potted plants. It is not a new concept for us, but rather revisited in a new and larger way and it seems to fit well into the low-budget patio concept. Through it all I find much to look forward to and much to be disappointed in. But through it all, I find so much to look forward to, find hope for and I look forward to the next new challenge. May also provided me with some new ideas that I probably should have thought of before that may hold answers to some problems that have plagued me for years that I look forward to trying at some point in the future. Finally, coming to grips with and accepting some realities, has also allowed me to realize that it may be possible to accomplish many of the little tasks that have for so many years been left undone. I look forward to seeing if this is true. I also look forward to seeing what June has to offer. At this point, it is looking like it is going to be a hot month. But, so far this year has been anything but predictable. the "Hillbilly Gardener" Back To Top | 
