Here we go again

Although the gardening here has been continuous, my blogging hasn't been so steady.  I hate to be inconsistent.  I enjoy posting our little garden happenings.

I've decided I need a gardening journal.  My Florida Gardening book has notes illegibly scribbled throughout.  My handwriting has never been neat, and it's hit an all-time elementary school boy low {no offense males}.  And, those marginal margins just aren't cutting it. Every growing season brings new ideas, mistakes to amend, sketched garden layouts, and much more than the minimal white of my book pages can hold.

Here are the green beginnings of rainbow carrots.  Next post you will see two and a half months worth of growth.  It is a whole lot greener now!

Last fall my carrots, along with other root vegetables, had a difficult time growing in my garden.  I'm still unsure if that was something I did or didn't do, or maybe my soil??  This year I tried containers and the outcome is much better than last year's.  * Note for future garden journal * --  NEED many more containers for next years carrots!  I am anxious to pull these babies out of the garden and see the beautiful spectrum of colors.  I'm hoping they continue to grow as they should.  I have noticed some colors peeking through the soil beneath the carrot foliage.  Fingers are crossed here.

The children are also growing well.  Just as gardening is an ongoing experiment and learning experience, so is raising a child.  Sometimes our parental methods have to be switched up, and new strategies tried.  Each child is different.  What works for one may not work for another.  Too bad kids don't come with instructions as my seeds packets do.  I guess that is part of the fun of parenting.  When you were a child did you ever like to pick the brown paper surprise grab bag?  I did.  You just never know what you're gonna get. 

 

Last year the kale failed, and we were very disappointed.  Two years ago it was like a weed we couldn't control.  Well, I'm happy to say I'm feeling good about this years' kale.  I think last year was too warm, halting our vegetables' growth.  We've had some cooler days this time around and I think it is making all the difference. 

We harvested 16 satsumas last month!  That's right, 16.  I had to count -- because each one of those satsumas meant so much to us.  Lame, I know.  But our tree is young and gave us one lonely satsuma the previous year.  We were thrilled when these sixteen grew.  We took our time with them and enjoyed them. (Well, as much as we could with little ones jumping up and down, tugging at our clothes, while we peeled them.)

Pictures to come soon of the garden -  two and a half months in....

Summer Harvest

I experienced my first tropical storm.  I thought it was fascinating to watch the trees sway and bend as they did.  And, amazing to see how much water could dump from the sky.  How can a cloud hold so much?  It's miraculous.  I love the rain.  Unfortunately, my garden's experience wasn't as good as mine.  Beryl came through and drowned my zucchini and pumpkin.  I suppose that is gardening for you.  Or, life, for that matter.  We just can't control everything.

 But then, there are other things that are growing beautifully.  My blueberries are ripening.  The youngest member of our family tends to pick them off before the rest of us get the chance.  The harvest isn't large.  The bushes are still young.  Nonetheless, it's working!  We have blueberries!
 
The sweet 100 tomato plants, which sit in pots in my driveway, are also ripening.  They give us something to snack on when we're out with the boys, riding bikes.  Also, our yummy sweet peppers are are turning shades of orange, yellow, and red.  I keep finding orange peppers, half eaten in the yard.  Someone loves the oranges ones best.  Hmmm...  wonder who the culprit is....

Need to get away?

Here is a place we like to visit on Sunday afternoons.  It's part of the University of North Florida's campus.  It's a beautiful place.  We love to come here to "get away" and absorb ourselves in Nature.  My children eat it up.  Here there is water to dip your toes into, birds to watch, native plants to admire, and huge turtles to feed.  There is actually much more to do.  But this a typical afternoon visit for our family.

There are several trails, each unique.  Above Lake Oneida is a zip line.  My boys think they want to try it.  It had been a few months since our last visit, and when we arrived we found a newly constructed ropes course.  And, it is  HUGE.  Another thing my children think they want to try.  The organic garden is amazing.  I could spend some time there, in awe of the large healthy plants growing, and observing all of the different structures and materials used to build the garden. 

I love this idea -- the canoe full of growing things.  And look at that nice melon in the corner.  I would have to say, it is growing quite nicely.  ;-)

 Those little tadpoles are determined to get away.  But we are more determined!

I think we'll be returning soon. 

Caine's Arcade

Speaking of sprouting GOODNESS...

This is a beautiful story about one man's kindness to a little boy.  What a rippling effect his kindness has had on that boy, and all those who hear his story.  You can also go here for more on Caine's Arcade.

* sorry about the size of the player.  If you look to the bottom right corner of the player you can click on the youtube symbol to get the bigger picture. You can also go to the website listed above to see it.

Spring/Summer Garden

Here's our game plan for Spring and Summer.  In the front yard we have four large pots of sweet 100 tomatoes and I already see about three dozen baby tomatoes growing!  Florida's spring is short.  It seems that it jumps from cool to hot quickly, not much in between.  Because of this there are some things that are better planted in early March.  Tomatoes, zucchini, pumpkins... to name a few. 

We have blueberries!  Their spring green color is beginning to deepen to a pinkish-purple.  I haven't had to worry about birds yet.  I was told by an employee from the nursery we frequently visit that by having half a dozen blueberry bushes we should have enough to share with the birds.  We shall see.   Now-- if only I can keep little fingers away from them I might be able to see them mature to their deep, frosty blue.  It is hard for him to resist plucking off those little berries.

Not much success here with strawberries.  Something is eating them; most likely slugs.  I'm looking for

a natural slug repellant.  Any ideas?  I've read all kinds of things from a cup of beer [apparently slugs love it!], to sharp egg shells, sandpaper [another one too painful to cross], to sprinkling powdered ginger around the plants.

But the blueberries, sweet peas, tomatoes, zucchini, pumpkins, and herbs are thriving.

good ol' fashioned fun

We took the two oldest boys to the Clay County Fair last weekend.

I'm from the Seattle area and grew up going to the
Puyallup Fair --  a fair which continually ranks
in the top ten largest fairs in the U.S. 

It's a doozy of a fair.
If you ever get the chance you should --
"Do the Puyallup."

The sights, sounds, and smells of the Clay County Fair
made me nostalgic for my old home.  This one wasn't as large,
but definitely made for a fun evening with my family.

The riding lawn mower race was a hit with the boys.
They covered their ears the entire time,
but just couldn't walk away from the show. 

The birds were noisy, too.  ;-)

If I remember anything from that night,
please let it be the expressions the boys wore
while being whipped around the corner
in their tiny race car.
Priceless.

 They ran from ride to ride, sampling lemonade, corn dogs,
and the fair's ever popular -- funnel cake.

It was nice to leave the baby home with a babysitter.
Just the two of us and the two of them.  They loved it.
And, we loved that they loved it.

It ended with light sabers clashing in the back of the van.
I'd have to say the night was a success.

Out with the old, in with the new

I pulled everything from our two big garden beds.  It's time for new things to grow; it's time for a fresh start.

My middle son doesn't like when I pull things from the ground or when I cut branches from the trees.  He tells me enthusiastically: Mom, they want to live!! And then they will be happy!  Maybe his way of thinking makes you laugh, as it does for me, and yet, I really do admire his love for everything alive and growing.

A part of me didn't want to pull the lettuce that was forming seeds, not so much because I wanted to save the seeds for next year, more so because they're doing what they were made to do.  That plant was fulfilling the measure of its creation, making new seeds for new plants to grow. Nature confirms to me daily that God exists.

The boys love to "help" in the garden.  I am currently reading the book How do you Tuck in a Superhero?, by Rachel Balducci.  It's a woman's stories and experience of raising five sons.  And I now have proof that digging in the dirt is an inborn trait that the male species carries.  I bet you can't guess what my three boys are doing at this very minute?  Yes.  Seriously.  They are digging.