Twisting gardening rules daily
We’re Not Gonna Rake It! No! We’re Not Gonna Rake It!
I mean really…with the number of squirrels we have, you’d think their garden would be top of the line! Instead, I blame most of some of the mayhem and chaos around here to their improper gardening skills. Welcome to my chaotic gardening world where squirrels do most of the planting while I carry on about how it should be in a perfect world. Humor being the greatest coping mechanism known to mankind.
My spring gardening gets along well with my procrastination. I have no heat pads nor do I have space for starting anything indoors, so instead I occasionally water my one raised bed in the garden area where I’ve planted peas, chives, and wildflowers and my one container outside that has more wildflower seeds in it. Last night it rained some, so no watering necessary today.
Instead I read other garden blogs. I’m gathering a list of things I can do indoors that are kind of garden-ish. I’ve learned how to make seedling pots out of newspaper –https://youtu.be/7dlGQP81yfo?si=H2OzgO4jqOlmVczt ; I only made one and am thinking of it as garden origami. It’s on my desk full of odds and ends. Now I have reduced the constant clutter. Maybe if I make 999 more, my garden will do well this year…meanwhile, I’ve done a tiny bit of recycling and housekeeping…
I sprouted some scarlet runner beans to test viability and potted one sprout because I couldn’t stand sending them all to the compost. And I found a few inches of space on a table by a window…
I read about a rookie gardener, gardening with a friend for support. I choose to garden with a plastic lawn chair that I can drag along with me, useful when getting up after kneeling or the ultimate support – break time.
To those of you who have space to force bulbs indoors…I salute you! Now is the time most of those babies are blooming. I did this once, years ago. I may bring in a daffodil this year.
Outside, I’m starting to wrangle with my worst decision ever…oregano plants that have spread everywhere. A few plants many years ago have appeared everywhere, threatening to take over the world. I love oregano; how was I to know there were two kinds, the kind that stays in one place and the kind that rivals the squirrels in ultimate real estate takeovers. I think I must have planted Greek oregano (Origanum vulgare), which propagates by seed and by underground runners.
I should have planted it in pots. However, my time machine is currently in the shop, so I am slowly cutting it to the ground, and pruning again later in the season before it flowers. Anything not containing seeds will be composted, seeds will be burned. I will only be able to partially contain it, but this will have to do. It is even growing between the pavers on the driveway…
“Dealing with Oregano” replaces my sporadic indoor exercise program, weather permitting. I leave those decisions to the Department of Procrastination.
Indeed…
My best friend brings out the child in me. He who shall not be named brings out my inner Terminator. Online friends reveal my inner comedian. My sons draw the love and patience from my heart and soul.
The outdoors reveals my true self. Getting older and slower, weaker. More inclined to sit and listen, smell, feel, taste and imagine. More apt to let the wind plant for me than to bend or kneel.
NO, never kneel. One day I may not be able to get up; meanwhile, those knees hurt so bad.
The world is so beautiful just as it is; anything I can add is frosting on the cake.
Future wildflowers…
Or maybe a little bit of cleanup after the winter winds dropped things on the ground…
Have you noticed how pink spring can be?
Raucous red gets my blood moving again. I become a one-woman riot!
Speak up, speak out, be all sides of yourself. With graceful honesty.
Love, your garden.
Far be it from me to tell you what you can and can’t do in your garden…go for it, whatever your “it” is…
But for me, there are lines in the sand.
Garden gnomes are a hard no. Ok maybe one cute little guy peeking out from behind a bunch of plants. A gazebo would be nice. Maybe a scarecrow. But this? Maybe I got lost at Disneyland as a child, or was locked in a closet…this gives me PTSD and claustrophobia.
And this…maybe in a palace garden somewhere…
But not in my garden. I like more green, less sesame street. And spaces…
Overwatering. I will never do this because my husband turns off sprinklers when he thinks my garden has had enough. Even if the sprinkler is emitting a mist (which I try to leave on overnight once a week during August and whenever it’s dry).
As you can see, less is more in my garden when it comes to garden decorations, masses of neon colors, and floods. When is less, more in your yard and garden?
If I get my timing right…the unexpected showers can be a definite blessing. For example, it’s spring and I finally read the back of the seed packs of some native wildflowers. Oh great…”best if planted in the fall.”
Since I am planting in the spring, I kept on reading. “Plant on the surface of the soil and water daily.” Sigh…I am already feeling like a slave to my garden. Not really. A watering can does the job – easier for me than dragging a hose…
Lines from a poem written by a friend:
“we are what we are not; we are what we want to be…we are both”
This cartoon and this poem reminded me why I love C & H so much. Because I am both.
Like the weather…like my garden…like Calvin…I can be obstinate, sarcastic, hot-headed, imaginative, and egotistical.
Hobbes is rational and aware of consequences. playful, loyal, kind, and objective. So am I.
Spring weather can be both the lion and the lamb. My gardens always start with somewhat of a design but quickly lean toward chaos. The squirrels and small birds help with that.
If you’re into astrology…I, born in March, have a sun in Pisces and my rising sign is Virgo…where Saturn also resides. My astrologer friend used to say, I’m a Pisces (deep down inside) who thinks she’s a Virgo.
“If I only could bring logic and order to the world…if everything and everybody just did things my way…oh forget it, that’s too much work. Back to daydreaming…”
Spring is creeping around the corner, and if you’re finally raising your head from your winter slumber, maybe you’re aching to see green again! Whether you’re a seasoned green thumb or a newbie ready to turn that patch of soil into a paradise of produce, prepping your raised beds early gives your plants a head start. Let’s dive into the steps to wake up your garden, once it’s dry enough that you won’t destroy the soil structure. Be gentle, because earthworms are not morning people, and like to hide in the dark.
Step 1: Assess the Condition of Your Raised Beds
Winter can be rough on raised beds, so start by giving yours a once-over. Check for:
If anything looks amiss, now’s the time to repair, reinforce, or replace as needed.
Step 2: Wake Up the Soil
Winter can leave your soil compacted and nutrient-depleted. Here’s how to refresh it:
Step 3: Boost the Microbial Life
Healthy soil is teeming with beneficial microbes that help plants thrive. Encourage these tiny helpers by:
Step 4: Plan & Organize Your Planting Layout
Raised beds offer prime real estate, so be strategic about what goes where:
Step 5: Set Up Any Needed Structures
Spring weather can be unpredictable. Get ahead of the game by:
Final Step: Mulch & Water
If you haven’t mulched already, do it now, and then water lightly daily. You want to keep the bed moist but not soggy.
Get Ready to Grow!
With your raised beds refreshed and ready, you’re set for an abundant gardening season. Whether you’re growing fresh greens, root veggies, or flowers, your early prep work will pay off in healthier plants and bigger harvests. Happy gardening!
Me in the garden the other day, staring down at my “raised” bed:
It’s not clear, I know…I know…let me try to explain…
I pushed half of the soil aside with a rake, then placed small fir branches, then I stepped on them to break them up a bit and pack them in. I then shoveled some duff from under the fir trees into a wheelbarrow and dumped that in. Duff is this stuff under a couple trees, not sure what it is, maybe some sawdust from long ago logging, also what’s sluffed off of a rotten old stump, fir needles, and ?
On top of that went some half finished and finished compost along with some worms, then I pushed the soil back over the top. Then I looked at the other half and realized I was exhausted.
Yes, I’m that old and out of shape. Baby steps all over again. I decided to skip the hügelkultur on the second half of the bed, my bad.
The next day I pushed a small trellis into the middle of the bed and planted peas on one side and sweet peas on the other, without bending over. I made a shallow trench with a piece of bamboo, kinda tossed in the seeds, and pushed the soil with the back of a rake to cover.
I scattered chives seeds around the edge and onion and milkweed seeds over the rest of the bed. And called it done. Putting off watering until later…but about half an hour after I came inside, it started raining. And rained off and on for the rest of the day.
Many thanks from a weary ol’ gardener. But now I water with a watering can every day.
Pleasance (or Pleasuance) – A pleasure ground attached to a castle or mansion, usually outside the fortifications.
It didn’t take much to turn my thoughts to a different kind of inspiration…ahhh youth!…from pleasance to dalliance to romance and more…and of course it’s a rose garden.
When I was young and starting out in gardening, I was so utilitarian. Beds lined up, paths between, all the same size and shape – easy to irrigate. No romance, all practicality.
I’ve never been much of a romantic, now I look back and think, so much wasted time. I’ve lived my life backwards. Now I am more fanciful, as I slow down and smell the roses.
That’s why my main advice to gardeners is to do just that. Sit in your garden and just love it in all its pieces and possibilities. Love the soil and all that lives in it. Love all that lives upon it. Leave your intentions and goals behind for a few minutes and just love what IS. The sun and all that reaches for it. The rain and all that sucks it up through roots and into mouths. The breeze and all that flies and floats and bends.
And the ineffable spirit that connects us all.
Don’t be afraid to love.
Next in my exploration of historic/historical/hysterical garden words is mossery. Quite simply, it is a plantation of mosses. I think that describes my yard quite well. During the winter, when the weather is wet and cold, the mosses flourish. Once it warms up and dries out, the mosses die back and grass and small flowers take over. Most of my neighbors have mainly grass that isn’t green 10 months of the year.
I love the moss, so soft and green. We’re at about 50/50 now.
And in other news…other colors have arrived…
From the top: daffodils, hellebore, red flowering currants, primroses.
I just read an article about how AOC was head of a community garden in Queens NY not long after she was elected to Congress (pardon me if the exact timing on this is wrong; it doesn’t really affect the story I’m telling here) and put out a question on social media about how to approach this venture. Guess who responded? Jeremy Corbyn, the British Labour leader. He gave her some good advice too. But there’s even more fun to be had.
In 2016, Corbyn was seemingly unavailable during an important political negotiation with Virgin Trains because he was “making jam”. Once again, my imagination goes wild. How delightful to think of Corbyn and AOC sharing gardening tips…but taking respite from British politics to make jam is just so soothing right now…
Jeremy, I wouldn’t stick your fingers in that…oh the limitations of my AI dabbling…but I can’t stop.
If politicians could share a community garden, maybe world peace wouldn’t be just a pipe dream. Again, the limits of my AI talents…but what a nice thought, at any rate.
“In the spring, I have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside of 24 hours.” — Mark Twain
Oh so true. Here in the Pacific Northwest (PNW to my homies), February isn’t waiting for March to do some roaring. We just had an “atmospheric river” pass overhead. The Weather Channel, as always, was good for some entertainment. “They” said that this river passing by held the watery equivalent of 10 Mississippi Rivers, so I passed day after dark, dreary day of rain counting the rivers…10 Mississippi, 9 Mississippi, 8 Mississippi, then I lost count.
I was indeed a sissi (sic). Letting rain – at some times barely more than a mist, at other times a solid, steady rainfall – get me down.
“People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.” — Roger Hornsby
Spring training has started! I get to listen to announcers gloat over the cloudless skies and temperatures in the 80s at baseball camp in Arizona. Thanks for punctuating our gloom back here at home.
“I glanced out the window at the signs of spring. The sky was almost blue, the trees were almost budding, the sun was almost bright.” — Millard Kaufman
Yeah…thanks again for sharing, Arizonians.
“When spring came, even the false spring, there were no problems except where to be happiest. The only thing that could spoil a day was people and if you could keep from making engagements, each day had no limits. People were always the limiters of happiness except for the very few that were as good as spring itself.” ― Ernest Hemingway
Good ol’ Hemingway, you can always count on him to bring you down if you’re getting too happy. But wait! This reminds me of why spring is such a welcome relief from winter! After the assault of people over the holidays, once again we can find solitude in our gardens!
Happy spring, whenever it arrives! Happy gardening, garden planning, end of winter!