going where I didn't want to go...

Today I stretched hose under the deck so I could set-up a soaker hose for a small, summer-veggie, raised bed.  I got the task done -- but it didn't look fun.

From either direction:

When you are a scaredy-cat with a big imagination -- even this is a tight space.  I seemed to make it through unscathed but then I am never really sure until a day later when the bug bites show up, or don't.

the kiwis are in ...

and aren't they cute!

(The male Artic Beauty is on the left/top and the female September Sun in on the right/bottom.)  Quite honestly, they have been abused.  Left in their pots for way too long, the September Sun was even dropped.  But they are rumored to be hardy plants and I hope they are itching for a second chance.

So look how far we have come recently.  Before:

After:

a nice, warm Mother's Day

It is not easy to gain momentum -- to go from 0 to 60 after a week of nothing -- but we did manage to get a few things done in the yard.  The one task done, from start to finish, was planting the Topsy Turvy containers.  Of course I couldn't do it as instructed, I had to make it more complicated -- though it looked like everyone else's in the end.

I found the TT a bit difficult to wrangle so I devised a way to hold the planter up, but not so far up that the kids and I couldn't get the soil in easy using string.  I found the hardest part of the whole exercise was getting the plants and the sponge into the planter without harming the plant -- but once that was done, it was all downhill.

I got a lot of help from the bigger kids.  They filled buckets with potting soil and brought them to the deck for me. 

I added some extra vermiculite to the potting mix -- worried that they might dryout too fast in the summer.

The instructions said to stop adding soil 2 inches from the top -- so I stopped at 4 and added some compost.

Then I put in a 'water spreader.' 

I thought that the water would drain slower with such a device (though that didn't seem to happen.)  Maybe it will still serve to disperse the water more evenly throughout the bag.  I am not sure at this point that it was worth the effort -- but I did it with some friend's milk jugs, a power drill, and a pair of scissors.  A fun and easy project.

And while this was the only completed project this weekend -- we got a lot farther on several more.  I did some necessary shopping for supplies, my husband got the kiwi trellises into the ground, and we got started on melon trellises and some of our watering systems.  Overall, a very productive weekend.

Off to the races

The move has been put aside and it is sunny and warm -- today is the day I will plant a whole bunch of things. 

I took the kids down to the Seattle Tilth Second Chance edible sale (missed the first chance last weekend to the maybe-move frenzy.)  They were incredibly well behaved after a rather rotten ride down (bad traffic, crying baby, mama bringing the wrong snacks and no water....)  We picked up some fish peppers and basil to replace the sad seedlings I have been growing, some Polish Linguisa tomatoes (a local favorite and we love sauce), and some white echinacea (because I am curious.) 

Right now I am plotting out what will actually make it into the raised bed garden, what will by my topsy turvey experiment (my neighbor had great luck with these last year but the more serious gardeners I follow online all seem to hate them,) what will go into self-watering containers (provided I have time to make them.)  There is a lot to do.  Wish me luck....

More odd weather

This morning we are off to a sunny start but yesterday we had a light dusting of hail (visible in the lower right corner of the first picture.)  Didn't keep spring from happening in the garden.

Moving?

Now?  Maybe.  We put a contigent offer in on a home we love -- but we have to sell our house first.  A big if.

So what about the garden?  So much work has gone into it.  I am hedging my bets.  If our house sells, I have to say goodbye and start anew -- but if it doesn't sell the garden here is the joy that takes away the disappointment.

But in the meantime I have to prioritize the hope of moving -- which seriously cuts into garden time at the height of planting season.  I had imagined myself shopping the plant sales, planting and prepping this weekend.  And that just didn't happen. 

I have to adjust.  I am pulling back my aspirations.  I will get this month's seed into the ground -- for us or for the next family that lives here.  But I don't think I will be building melon trellises -- though maybe I can sneak some seeds into the ground....  I am guessing we will know whether we are staying or going in a month -- I could always build the trellises then.

I'm back ...

and it is time to sort out what needs to get done.  I have been dreaming big this year with this veggie garden -- but most of those dreams have been on hold since my grams passed.  Thank goodness for the rain -- at least my plants have been watered! 

And my husband helped me get Mel's mix into my final raised bed last weekend.  I can't forget that.  However, planning a party for 125+ with my adoptive family group this Sunday means I won't be gaining much momentum until next week rolls around.  So what will I attack first?

• the may raised bed plantings.  My seeds are good to go but my seedlings...?  I was really enthusiastic about starting seeds indoors -- especially for basil and peppers.  But I can't say my efforts paid off.  Nothing is really growing. I think it is time to give up the ghost -- and find a way to buy those basil and pepper starts. 

• seed the patches in my wildflower garden.
• plant kiwi.  I am good to go on this one.  My trellises are made and the plants are purchased.  I just need time to set the trellises in the ground properly.
• plant melons.  This is a whole new task.  I was going to plant them in my final raised bed and then realized that the East side of my house was not going to give them the heat they need to grow.  So I have decided to move them to a sunny spot in the corner of my front yard.  I will build a "room-divider" trellis for them there.  So I need trellis supplies, building time, grounding the trellis time, and seeding -- plus rearranging what is already there.  Lots of work and it should get done asap if the melons are to have a chance.
• plant sunflower house.  How cute is that?!  Can't wait to see the kids play in August.  Unfortunately that means clearing/leveling and planting a space for it now....

I think that is it.  Maybe I can try to squeeze in the first three this weekend -- and finish them on Monday, if necessary.  Then I can dive into the melon project, then the sunflower house.  Hopefully I can get all this done by the end of the following weekend.  Then I can start tackling....

• my hanging planters.
• my watering system.
• my fruit tree espalier.
• my trellis for the small raised bed.
• my blackberry trellis.
• my worm bin.
• my snail barrier on my 2 foot tall raised bed.

And in good news -- I had my first harvest a week or so ago.  Choy sum (below) and mustard greens.  They contributed to a very tasty stirfry.  Looking forward to when the harvests are abundant.