we save the brains

*

thehobbit has begun the annual collecting of the brains. in more polite circles this is known as harvesting nasturtium seeds.

polite circles are dreadfully dull, if you ask me.

what is going on in your garden?

~peace.

gardening with found objects - the sequel

*

elfling needed a bit of fresh air & vitamin d, (he has a pestilence) so whilst he was staring zombie-like at a line of ants, i snapped a few more photos of treasures to share with you.

that ladder is another curbside treasure found by thehobbit. it is from an old bunk-bed! i cannot tell you how peeved he was that i wouldn't let him use this in his bedroom. for what? i asked. dunno. was his reply. i am all for using objects in creative ways, but dunno is a bit on the vague side even for me. the ladder is only a few feet tall, so i have it propped behind a potted tomato. this variety is patio. a compact plant that thrives in containers. the fruit is round, about the size of a roma, & delicious. i've grown it a few years, & highly recommend it.

this is the beginning of elfling's play area. the found object is the base. i think it is an old metal shower bench. my friend pom found it, & knew i'd like it. the top is a new galvanized bucket that manlyman's mom gave to me a few months ago. i had planned on using the bucket for parties, but elfling had other plans. i love how they fit perfectly together. i won't attach them. leaving them separate means that elfling can take the bucket down, & drag it around the yard.

i love this little picnic table. i found it many years ago, in the ivy next to a whole foods parking lot. the whole thing is freakywobbly, so thehobbit & his friends have never sat at it. in the past it was covered in pots of flowers & herbs. currently we use it in the bbq area - that's our teeny camping grill atop it.

the stool isn't used in a creative way; we sit on it. i have no idea what it's doing in the bbq area, & didn't even think to put it away before taking the photo. i'm wild like that. in which wild means lazy.

thanks for visiting my garden - see you soon!

~peace.

the great reclaiming has begun

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our backyard & farm have suffered from neglect since elfling came along. for a few months i did try to keep things in shape, but eventually i gave in. it took no time at all for the wild to take over.

i cannot be without my farm any longer. fortunately, this late start to summer allows me to get the beds cleared, & things in the ground. i'll have to start most of it with plants from the nursery, but things like lettuce, chard, etc can begin with seeds.

that photo above is the first pile of wild to be cleared. thehobbit was shown how to use the lopper, & set loose. we had to stop him, because the pile will only just fit in the green bin. i don't know if i should be pleased that he enjoyed using the lopper, or afraid.



this is another photo of the pile. behind it you see how much is left to clear on that side. i was standing behind our backyard to take this photo. let me to explain to the newbies: we have a giant yard. from the back of the house, to the back of the garage, is what we call the backyard (grass, potted plants, where we play). from there, to the back fence is what we call the farm. the beds are to one side of this, the butterfly garden buried beneath overgrowth on the other. we use the center for sprawling veggies, but will be building new beds in the spring.

here is more to be cleared. those are not lilacs, they are evil nasties, & shall be cut down as well. it is hard to see in these photos, but those nasties are 6-8 feet deep!

this photo is shameful. my beautiful farm beds are filled with weeds, plants gone to seed, & plants that have died. there are four in need of clearing & amending. behind the beds is 8 feet of nasties needing to be cleared. (the future home of my chickens, shhh.)

i thought you'd like to see what an artichoke looks like if not cut from the plant. isn't it gorgeous!? sadly, i didn't like the taste of this plant's arties; which is why it has been left to flower. it takes up too much space in the beds, so is being cut back, & moved to the front yard. my plants in front are only drought-tolerant ones, so the artie will thrive there.

that brings us to the end of my embarrassing farm tour. we have a great deal of work ahead of us, but if we stay organized & do a little bit each day, we will get there. don't feel too badly for me, i did purchase a tomato plant the other day. it's a container variety that i've had success with in the past. i cannot eat it, but the menfolk can, & i can enjoy pampering it.

the great reclaiming has begun!

i want to live vicariously through you. what are you growing right now?

~peace.

into the wilds

*

this was as far into thefarm as i could get. the weeds became too tall & thick to walk through. & dangerous! do you see that plant on the right? i have no idea what it is, but it is covered in thorns!

before you oooh & ahhh at the the lush lilac trees, i must tell you: they are not lilacs. i know! i made the same mistake when we first moved in. they are, in fact, extremely aggressive, horridly nasty plants that we were told came from australia.

they too have nasty thorns, & they spread rapidly beneath the ground. because they come from an arid region, they thrive on my foggy little hill. did we not pull them constantly, they would turn into the gigantic trees you see in the photo.

those belong to our neighbors, fortunately. we do have a mini forest of our own in need of hacking down, but not nearly as tall as those. i think our tallest nasty plant is 8ft, whilst theirs top 15.

i took the photo to show how insanely overgrown things are back there. i was actually standing in a veggie bed when i took it. the longer i stood there, the more my heart ached. they do give the illusion of lilacs. my mother loved her lilacs. they were in full bloom the week we were at their home. how sad she was not there to see.

will i think about those lilacs each time i see the forest of nasties? i'm not sure how i feel about that. i'm not sure how i feel about a great many things these days. my mind is a wild tangle of thoughts & emotions, much like the plants in the photo.

this is all so much harder than than i thought it would be.

~peace.

a new career?

*

it was not easy, but i made it in! not only did i make it; unscathed; into the farm, i managed to get close enough to the beds to cut an artichoke! & oh what a choke! isn’t she a beauty?

perhaps i’m in the wrong business. should i close theshop, & start an artichoke farm? i mean, look at what gorgeous work i don’t do. i am excellent at artichoke neglect. the proof is in the photos, people.

now i need to decide how to prepare my harvest of one. you all left such delicious ideas - thank you. i was especially intrigued by the story about serving artichokes to the nazi soldiers. my first thoughts were no! they are evil! don’t give them your beautiful artichokes! then i imagined them chewing the leaves, and swallowing the choke - ha! little victories, eh?

so when i was in the farm; beneath the giant leaves of the artichoke plant; i saw some leeks & fennel growing. they must have been from plants that went to seed last season. i love when that happens. have you tried brushing leeks with olive oil, & putting them on the grill? mmm.

i would love to know: what is growing in your garden right now?
~peace.

thursday things - 4

** leave a comment here, to win a wonky birthday bunting!**

is it thursday already? is time set to fast mode? it does seem like the days have flown on by. how is it then, that the hours of those days drag on forever? it boggles the mind. well, my mind at any rate. i'm easily boggled these days.

this week's thursday things has to do with kids. life's master mind-bogglers! here are a few of the websites that have inspired many a homeschool adventure over the years:

* kids off the couch is great fun. i love their popcorn adventures. they find local goings-on, & pair them with family-friendly movies. even if you don't live here, you can use their pairings as inspiration for your own adventures.

*kids gardening - check out their teacher's room & family room for ideas & tips for gardening with children. if you too are homeschooling; or want to dig (ha!) more deeply into things, this site is a great resource.

* dad can do simply rocks. there are so many fantastic crafts, that i never leave the making section. it's no longer a totally free site, but the dues aren't high, & you'll really get your money's worth. we used them quite a lot when doing hogwarts homeschool. (which i shall be re-opening in the spring!! that's a chat for another day.)

that's all the things i have time for today. where, on the web, do you find inspiration for family adventures?

~peace.

when manlyman is away...

... the kat shall play - thehobbit & i went thrifting this morning! there was so much from which to choose; & though i wanted it all; i was very well behaved. i only cried a teeny bit at having to leave so many treasures behind. wretched decluttering challenge.

one thing we did not leave was this fabulous $5 item:


we're going to clean the valet, & give it to manlyman for fathers' day! i'd love to paint & distress it, but i haven't the energy time. he's very difficult to buy prezzies for; so thehobbit & i were beside ourselves when we came upon it. you see, he is quite the dandy, that man of mine. he irons his work clothes each night, then hangs the outfit in the laundry room (belt & shoes set out as well). how could he not love his very own valet?

***

we also went to the local nursery to replace what the earwigs had decimated, & what never sprouted from seed. our little farm's newest inhabitants are: 2 more tomatoes, 2 cucumber, & 2 watermelon. each year i try to plant something we'd not yet attempted. this year it is watermelon; wish us luck!

& now i'm off to rest for a time. playing whilst huge with child is exhausting.

~peace.

an impatient gardener

i am an inpatient gardener. i'm inpatient in all things, but with gardening extremely so. the temperate climate in which i live allows me to plant things well before other parts of the world can. that helps some. mostly though? i want my food now, now, now!


my little hill's odd micro-climate doesn't allow for early tomatoes & cucumbers though. it's not nearly as hot as even a mile from here, & we have a heavy marine layer each morn & eve. i love the weather, but in this it frustrates me beyond belief. you should see the fantastic array of tomatoes soap gets from her farm! yes dear one & only reader - i have tomato envy.

i do have my tomatoes in the ground, but it will be quite some time before i'll have any fruit. & for some strange reason, every batch of cucumbers has failed to sprout! i may have to give in, & buy some potted ones if i'm to have any at all this summer. & oh how we do love our cukes - sigh. seriously though; have you had a lemon cucumber?

now that i think on it, none of the zucchini has sprouted either. what do you suppose could be the matter? i've never before had such difficulty starting from seed. i'll try one more time, & if i still haven't anything sprouting it will be off to the nursery for plants.

so as not to leave you thinking i've nothing lovely going on in my gardens, or in the farm: the strawberries are still delivering plump fruits every few days, the onions & leeks are doing fabulously, we've a few fennel left, & the artichoke is simply beautiful.

also beautiful is the bank of bougainvillea, with the passion vine trailing through. not to mention my little hobbity helper - the most beautiful of all the things i grow ;-)

what about you? are you an impatient gardener as well; or are you able to peacefully wait on the whim of mother nature?

~peace.

well fine then.

i have had a lovely family day, but i have to say i've felt thwarted at every turn.

first our ob; whom until this morning we were convinced walked on water; wouldn't give us an ultrasound. something about not needing one, & blah blah blah. i'm not sure if i'm quoting her correctly though, because i was busy pouting.

next i wanted to go to the getty, but they are closed mondays. then i thought we could bop around disneyland for a few hours, but our passes are blocked-out for spring break.

after taking thehobbit to the park so he could "ride his bike" (see last photo), we went to target. i had a gift card aching to be spent on frivolity. they had nothing i liked in my size! by then i was feeling like the day was out to get me, so i used the remainder on more bins for the garage. ooh & ahh.

***

since coming home manlyman has been desperately trying to hack his way through our backyard. what began as a quick mowing of the lawn area, turned into a (so far) 3 hour extravaganza.

this is a portion of newly-shorn lawn. behind the bench you can see the grass & weeds with which he's been dealing. i should have sent the hobbit back there to show how high it is, but i feared he'd never find his way out again.



i'll conclude today's babble with the subject of this last photo. this is thehobbit "riding his bike" at the park this morn. see him zoom past the camera in a blur? see the sweat flying off his brow as he pedals for all he's worth? no? that is because he spent more time playing with ladybugs than actually riding.

when asked over lunch what he felt was the best part about riding his bike he said (& this is correctly quoted) definitely playing with the ladybugs. he makes me smile, this odd child of mine. & for the record: how fantastic is that photo?! let's pretend i waited for the moment the bug would raise its wings, then snapped the photo; shall we?

ok my one & only reader i'm off to see if i can convince manlyman to put away the lawn mower, & come in for dinner. have a fabulous day - & don't let anyone thwart you!
~peace.

embracing what is

i spent months stressing that manlyman & i weren't able to tend the backyard. the farm did get attention, & the lawn section is merely slightly out of control, but the far back? it is beyond wild! it is nearly waist-high with cheeseweed in the open spaces, & the aggressive australian plant (whose name we do not know) is creating a literal forest between the giant pecan tree, & the farm.

still unable to begin tackling the wilderness; but unwilling to deal with the stress any longer; i decided to accept it. after all, if we truly aren't able to work on getting it under control, why not just appreciate the beauty, & deal with how much work it is going to be later. it's not like we can do anything about it, right?

yesterday thehobbit & i braved the far back: he to chase butterflies, & search for ladybugs, & i to breathe deeply, & look at only the beauty in the chaos. here are a few photos:

peeking out of the cheeseweed is the butterfly garden that my roots&shoots group planted a few years ago. only a few of the original plants have survived, but those that have put on quite a show.

i actually swallowed my fear of creepy crawlies waded through to get a closer look. here are two kinds of daisy (my favorite flower), & a stalk of mexican sage. isn't it beautiful?

even closer in there were more stalks of mexican sage (they are so tall, that the tips bent down nearly to the ground), & some parsley!

this wildflower is a favorite of mine. i don't know what it is, but each spring it pops up here & there in the far back. it grows to about 2ft tall, & i just cannot get over how delicate it is!

i'll show you photos of the australian forest next time.

i know our plans to extend the farm this spring shall have to wait, & i know we're going to have a ton of very hard work once we are able to get out there - but it is what it is. for now at least, i'm no longer stressing, & i'm enjoying the beauty of it all.

~peace.

** edited to add:: the evil plant is "silverleaf nightshade" about a decade ago someone on the block brought some back from australia, & planted it in his yard. over the years it took over the neighborhood. according to websites, it's only supposed to get 3ft tall, but ours can get as tall as 12ft - it's insane! thanks for the heads-up rubelin! **