returning

I have been missing in action lately.  Buried under a mile long to-do list that included spreading my grandparents' ashes on the ground that used to be my grandmother's garden. 

Now I am hoping I am back, literally and figuratively -- my Grams' garden is in NJ, all the way across the country.  As I settle back in the weather is not cooperating.  We have little sun and no heat.  Today we are socked in with rain and clouds -- and not the variegated ones we are used to.  All in all, not a very inspiring day.

But I spent my morning at a Molbak's lecture on "How to Eat Your Front Yard," by Marianne Binetti (she has a new book, Edible Gardening For Washington and Oregon, that came out this spring.)  She was very engaging -- and apparently hosts European garden tours too.

I went because I was intrigued by the idea of integrating food with ornamentals -- plus I am always a sucker for a lecture that promises information specific to my climate.  She offered four steps: start with a plan, improve the soil with raised beds (or grow herbs instead), grow up, and create edible fences/borders.  The information that I took away that was particularly useful for me was:

• find garden hotspots for warm weather veggies.  Hotspots are located on the south and west sides of the house and are often near concrete (which will increase heat by holding it and releasing it overnight.)
• swiss chard will last for 2 years (while you slowly harvest the outer leaves) if planted in a raised bed that offers good drainage.  Which made me think: why am I reseeding it every 4 weeks??!
• harvest herbs between 10 am (when the leaves dry) and noon (when the essential oils start to burn off.)
• blueberries only need to be protected from birds when they are at their ripest.  She likes "tutu" tulle for the task.
• cover seeds with flat boards or tulle for three days when first planted to keep birds from eating your seeds as treats.
• red mulch has been shown to speed tomato growth (though only by 2-3 days).  You can buy red plastic mulch -- or use red plastic plates to get this effect.
• in the Pacific NW, you shouldn't pinch out the suckers that grow between branches on tomatoes.  The plants need every leaf they can get to absorb our limited sun.

Northwest Flower and Garden Show

I went down to the Seattle Flower and Garden show today.  My first visit ever.  It was a bit overwhelming -- and a major distraction.  But in a good way....

My first distraction was epimediums.  You can't eat epimediums -- but there were the bulbs being sold by Olympic Pennisula growers, and I have been thinking about underplanting the rhodies I inherited with the house with epimediums.  Suddenly, I was buying bulbs, looking for ways to engage my kids in the outdoors, marveling over uses of water, discussing bamboos....

In between, there was some good info on edibles too.  I got tips on my fruit trees, was inspired by chickens, saw a working worm bin, and picked up info on upcoming sales, workshops, and harvest festivals.  I saw Lorene Edwards Forkner speak on Ten Secrets to Great Veggie Gardens.  She had a couple good bumpersticker quotes like "eat your zipcode" and "growing isn't just for gardners, growing is for eaters."  Plus a nice handout that emphasized planting for the local climate, using organic practices, make the most of small spaces, plant successions, etc.  (I am already a convert.)  And she reminded us to start, even start small, there will always be next year.

I made up some cards for my blog before heading out to the Northwest Garden Show.  They just had my blog address on them.  Totally the wrong info (should have been name and email.)  I passed out two -- for the chance to keep in touch with others who are tackling their own veggie gardens.  Maybe it was the wrong venue -- I will have to try Seattle Tilth's Edible Plant sales -- but I thought there would somehow be an easy way to connect with more people swept up in the edible movement. 

So if you are blogging about growing food, let me know so I can check you out.