Existential Gardener

In the Field: Weekend Rambles (Part 1)

     During the week so much of our focus is on our own garden, but on the weekend we tend to venture out and explore what other urban gardeners are up to, what's yummy at the farmer's markets, or just walk around area communities to see what they are doing to beautify their spaces.  So last weekend, I took my camera along hoping to get a few beautiful pictures. 

     This idea has now blossomed into what we hope will be a weekly feature here at the Existential Gardener.  At some point each week, we plan to share some pictures of flower and vegetable gardens from some of the great places we're visiting here on the East Coast. 

     This first picture was taken in the Shepherd University garden project.  Several years ago a student group decided to beautify the empty space between two buildings.  The students have assembled some beautiful perennials that take turns blooming throughout the spring and summer.

Another from the same garden project.  It is a rather shady spot and they've made good use of mixing in a variety of ferns.

The final picture is of a dogwood taken in front of a small church located on the campus.  I just couldn't resist getting some close-ups.

Cover Crops Make Weeding and Pests Rare

   

Have you ever visited a commercial farm?  If you have, you probably noticed many rows of green plants with lots of bare dirt between them.  Weeds and insects (other than pollinating honey bees) are verboten and chemically eradicated.  Additionally, after a heavy rain, a good bit of that soil is washed off, leaving the field a little less fertile.
     Loads of fertilizer must then be applied to the soil along with more herbicides to keep out unauthorized weeds, and pesticides to keep ravenous Sabre-toothed pests at bay.  But nature always finds a way, and there are new strains of chemically resistant weeds and pests.  In some parts of the Midwest, farmers are resorting to hand weeding these new super weeds.
     From a bug's or weed's eye view a farm or garden is a quick stop market.  Pests have rows of grouped foods waiting for them, with few natural predators to hinder their feeding frenzy.  Weeds have a lovely clear patch of ground with abundant sunshine and little real competition between rows.  This is where cover crops, or beneficial weeds come in.  Instead of herbicides, gardeners can make the weeds work for a living.
     Cover crops protect soil between the rows, and can enrich the soil while choking out weeds.  Cover crops with long tap roots can assist in bringing deep soil nutrients to the surface where they are available to the main crop, reducing the need for chemical fertilizers.  They can also attract and shelter predatory insects that will eat your pests.  If planted concurrently, the cover crop can confuse pests, reducing the losses from hungry bugs.  In some cases, the cover crop can actually be even more appetizing to the pest than the main crop.  There are many crops that can be used as cover crops:  rye grass, rye grain, buckwheat, alfalfa, and (our favorite) clover.
     Dutch White Clover is a self re-seeding perennial.  If you've observed it in your yard you will know that it forms dense mats that choke out weeds (and grass) and needs little mowing.  The roots contain nitrogen fixing bacteria (read free fertilizer) and go deep to bring up nutrients, while allowing the soil to hold more water.  This moisture assistance is particularly helpful during a drought.  The flowers attract honey bees to aid in pollination and predatory insects for natural pest control.  If you have larger furry pests, many (like rabbits) prefer the clover to the crop.  For those who are adamant about eating as much as possible from the garden.  the dried flowers make tea and the leaves contain 10% protein, and are edible after 10 minutes of boiling.  However, it's not the tastiest concoction. Moreover, if anyone has sprayed a neighboring garden with any sort of chemical, I wouldn't recommend it.
     So as planting begins consider abandoning those pristine bare rows for mats of green.  Your back and garden will thank you.

Spring Ramblings in the Garden in Pictures

Fortunately, yesterday was that kind of perfect spring day that I remember from my childhood.  It was just warm enough to bare your arms, but still had a reasonable chill.  So my camera and I took a walk and found the flowers had put on their best for St. George's Day.

The first picture is the narcissus that my grandfather planted about thirty years ago.  There was a gentle breeze and the showy little things were flirting about.

I couldn't pass up a close-up.  It's no wonder they are named after a mythological character who couldn't stop looking at himself.

The wild violets have taken over in a shady spot in the corner of the garden.  To me they are like a free gift that I didn't know I needed but I surely can't do without.

 
The only pink so far in this bed, this little tuplip seemed like a strumpet surrounded by the narcissus.

These are the pansies I planted last year.  At the beginning of March they looked like miniature versions and now they have mounded up and are giving us false hope that they are here to stay.

Even when the vinca doesn't have flowers, I love the shade of green that the leaves have. 

More ramblings to come.  Today, I head to the country to try to catch spring there before the summer heat pushes her along.

10 Rainy Day Activities for Gardeners

The last few weeks have had several rainy days, and even sunny days have still been too wet to do too much in the way of major gardening.  After a long winter, all I really want to do is play in the dirt.  I spent the winter looking at seed catalogs, and although that it is still diverting, I am ready for more.  Here are 10 ways I found to get through the rainy spring days.

1.  Plan your garden layout.
     If you can't get into the garden, you might as well make a detailed schematic of where everything will go.  Such planning will also let you explore companion planting.  You will save yourself a great deal of time when you actually get into the garden.

2.  Go to nurseries.
     It has been my experience that nurseries aren't very busy on rainy days.  Most people aren't thinking about gardening during a downpour.  This downtime allows me to get more personalized attention from the nursery owner and get some great tips for local gardeners.  Bring your garden layout.  The owners and employees will be more than happy to help you revise and make additions to your design.

3.  Analyze last year's crop usage.
     Did you use what you planted?  Still have five bags of zucchini in your freezer?  Did you run out of something canned or frozen sooner than you though you would?  Take the time now to really look at what produce you consume versus what produce you wish you would consume.  Otherwise, your garden isn't going to help much with your grocery bill.

4.  Repair and sharpen your tools.
     One of my biggest pet peeves with my husband is that when we go to start a project, he usually has to do some tool repair first and then half the day is wasted.  Use the rainy days to prevent this from happening to you.  If you have a reel mower (and you should), go ahead and get those blades sharpened.  Check your garden shears,  Make sure nothing is rusted or broken.

5.  Build structures you might otherwise be tempted to buy.
     Even though it's raining, you can still be in your workshop or shed.  If you have planned out your garden, you probably already know if you need raised beds, trellises, etc.  You might not be able to completely assemble these structures, but your major cuts can already be done and half the work could be out of the way.  By not waiting until you need the structure, you can also take advantage of reusing found materials.  Old oak pallets can be cut apart and the boards used for raised beds and potato boxes.  This deconstruction can be time consuming, but will save you a great deal of money.

6.  Plan your pest attack.
     Make a list of last year's villains and research organic methods to control the problem.  If you are adamant about using insecticides, read the list of ingredients and look into the effects these have on humans and pets.  You might change your mind on using them.

7.  Plan to attract good insects.
     Build blue orchard mason bee houses; decide which bee and butterfly loving plants you will use.  Look into ordering some beneficial insects as natural predators to the invasive ones.

8.  Read gardening blogs, trade papers, and magazines.
     You will find more information than you know what to do with, and you will surely discover methods to improve your garden and save you money.

9.  Get seedlings started.
     This one is pretty obvious.  Check your seed packets for how many weeks ahead you need to start each type of seed.  Don't buy seed starter kits.  A search of the web will result in many different instructions on how to make seed starters from newspaper.  Just make sure you don't use the comics or the magazine inserts.  The ink can be toxic when it breaks down.

10.  Figure out one way to make you gardening practices greener.
     We all are trying to be friendlier to the Earth.  Decide this year to give up at least one ecologically unsound practice.  If you already are nearly perfect in that respect, give yourself a pat on the back and help convince others to join the fight for the Earth.

The Chicken Decision

   The hubby and I have seriously been thinking about buying some chickens and/or ducks lately.  We spend the weekends pondering where to put them and how to effectively maintain them.  I have read the blogs of some very insightful individuals who Twitter daily about the benefits of having your own fowl.  And just when I am actually about to hop in the car and go pick up some fluffy protein providers, I make the mistake of mentioning my afternoon trip to a relative or friend.  They smile kindly and then say, "Don't you know that chickens are really dirty?"  or "I had a friend who had chickens/ducks and they now have an incurable lung disease."  The mother in me then panics.  How could I, a responsible parent, bring such a monster into our yard.  But is this the truth or some urban legend about urban fowl?
     A quick search of the internet found no human diseases associated with chickens expect the common salmonella.  Now I'm not saying that it doesn't exist since I didn't do extensive research in a medical library first, but there does not appear to be a lung disease connected with exposure to chickens.  Proper cautions with chickens will certainly prevent salmonella.  Not letting the children play with the chickens seems a good rule even if disease wasn't an issue.  Moreover, I don't plan on gathering the eggs and then going to make dinner without a thorough handwashing.  Please feel free to comment if you have found a disease I've overlooked.
     I guess now the only roadblock is our subdivision.  One of our neighbors cannot stand clothes lines.  I'm certain that he'll call the proper authorities immediately once he hears the gentle clucking of a chicken.  Our property is not within the city limits, and we have no home owners association.  However, the county is a little hesitant to give me a straight answer on whether I can have chickens or not.  I would be the first in the neighborhood to have the little cluckers, but not the first to have farm animals.  Another neighbor has goats.  I think they smell a chicken poop storm brewing and want to stay out of it as long as they can.  We'll keep you posted.

Cuttings and Transplants are Rewarding with Patience

    My grandfather's yard was filled with a collection of flowers and bushes he had acquired from friends and relatives throughout his life.  Although he supplemented with nursery plants at times, he preferred to take cuttings, separated bulbs, and saved seeds.  He rarely consulted a garden book.  He seemed to instinctively know how to use location and structures to create ideal conditions and proper shelter for his transplants.  In the spring, we would walk the yard (which was more a small, urban park), and he would tell me where all of the flowers, shrubs, and trees came from.  Naturally, I wanted my own yard to reflect that same idea, that connectedness through cultivation over the decades.
     Unfortunately, my experience with cuttings has been more similar to an episode of ER.  The patient arrives somewhat in shock, and I thrust him into the ground as quickly as possible in the nearest open location in my yard.  The usual result it that for a few days, my neighbors think that I have simply stuck a stick in the ground to mark something.  Then, in a miraculous turn of events, it will start to green up right before the first frost.  Last year, my mega store grapes and blueberries were a total flop, and no amount of coddling would save them.  Yet, the Rose of Sharon that I put in a pot and forgot over the previous winter, rallied all summer and now is a full fledged mini-tree.
     A few weeks ago I joyfully received my Nanking Bush Cherry cuttings in the mail.  Wrapped in wet newspaper, I placed them in our basement to await the proper time to plant them.  On Sunday, my husband and I sat down and carefully read the instructions that came with them.  We followed them to the letter, and right now the small sticks are fighting the blustery day in our backyard.  Although we have had great success with my garden, cuttings have always seemed like magic.  But success with cuttings has less to do with the right spell and more to do with time, patience, location, and attention.
     My uncle told me that I need to find the hole before I get the cutting.  Sounds like common sense once someone finally said it out loud.  I've usually dug my cutting up and am walking around the yard trying to find space for it first.  The faster one gets the transplant into the ground, the less stress on the transplant.  And if you can find a location that is similar to the one the transplant is used to, even better.
     Another thing to consider when transplanting is the time of year.  Most successful transplanting takes place in the spring or fall, before flowering shrubs begin to put out flowers, or when they have become dormant.  This timing allows the cutting to concentrate on putting out important root systems, rather than splitting its time between making flowers and making roots.  Additionally, getting cuttings to root in the summer puts additional stress on the tree or shrub because of limited water.   Spring transplanting allows the cutting to get acquainted with its new surroundings in a moderate temperature.
       Finally, even if one has followed the above, special attention must be paid to the cutting the entire first summer.  I believe that is why so many of my cuttings have been brought back from near death experiences.  The cutting will need extra water and perhaps extra support from a small post.  Even if it looks like it's dead, don't dig it up and throw it away.  Let it stay for awhile, it may yet come back.
     If you have never tried cuttings, I encourage you to look in to it.  It's an excellent way to keep memories from past homes, trips, and relatives to enjoy every year.  The best thing about cuttings is that if you fail, you can always get another and try again.  They are, after all, free, and rarely hurt the donating plant.  Another method (and the one we usually use) is transplanting volunteers, those little trees that appear next to lilacs, forsythia, etc.  It helps keep the bush at a manageable size and helps us create a beautiful, scented hedge in the summer.  So explore your surroundings and talk to your neighbors and try some cuttings and transplants of your own.