***FALL*** Ahhhh.

Well, my fall garden is planted and little tiny things are starting to pop up. I've never had a fall garden. This summer was so incredibly hot and unproductive that I don't really feel like I did much gardening. So I'm pretty excited! I've planted kohlrabi, beets, tatsoi, arugula, radishes and mustard greens! Healthy stuff! The weather is perfect so we've been outside a bunch. I made my fall trip out to Henry's Plant Farm to get some perennials and see Homer and the succulents and peacocks. I love it out there. Especially on a gorgeous day. Been cooking quite a bit. Below are photos of my latest favorite thing: Brussels sprout and caramelized lemon pizza. YUM.

Shoveling

This week was a doozie. Wednesday night I unloaded a truck full of (really heavy) soil into the wheel barrow, up the hill and into the raised beds. Chris hurt his back so I was on my own and I have to say, I'm pretty proud of my hard work. Thursday night was another night of unloading but this time something a little lighter. Mulch.

I had to get a running start to get it over the stairs and up the hill.

Ahhh. Only 3 more to go...

We went with straw paths this year instead of mulch and I'm not so sure that I like it. I suppose it will look better when everything is green and lush.

Unloading gig #2.

Taters all nestled down in their trenches. They get covered up a little and then as they grow you mound the dirt on top.

Radishes!

The peonies are shooting up fast!

And so it begins...

Well, I think it's safe to say that Spring is finally here. I know because the grackles have arrived. They are so obnoxious and they bully all of my other sweet little birds. Last year I actually had to take down the bird feeder because they were hogging all of the bird seed. I think they will be here for a month or so and then fly on their way. But they always come back through in the Fall.

Chris and I are busily getting the garden prepared for planting. Chris is outside right now building me some fancy raised beds for the lower garden. I'm so excited! I'm feeling like this is going to be a great gardening year!

Everything is beginning to bud.

My lemon balm peeking through.

We are tearing down the old reed fence and replacing it with fancy new wood fencing.

It's so nice that we have a truck now so we have no problem hauling loads of compost, mulch and soil.

Upper garden layered with compost. Now we just need to till it under.

Seeds in the Sunlight

I have no idea what I'm doing when it comes to starting seeds indoors. Luckily I know a lot of experienced gardeners and I have some really great reference books. The past two years (my first two years of gardening) I have only direct seeded into the garden. However, this is slightly limiting because there are many types of plants that like to be put in the ground while it's still cold outside. So this year I will add to my garden selection kale, fennel, cabbage and leeks. They are supposed to be planted indoors in flats and placed in direct sunlight or under a grow light 4-6 weeks before the last frost. They will go into the garden just before the last frost because they like a little chilly weather.

I also found my gardening journal tucked away in my office. In most gardening books they express how helpful it is to keep track of what goes on in your yard year after year. This is so you don't make the same mistake twice. I didn't enter anything in it last year, which is not very helpful, so this year I'm picking it back up. Here are a few entries from my first year gardening...

These are two of my favorite reference books.

Here they are! All ready to get to growin'!

The heat is on.

The heat is on, my friends. It's been so hot and humid lately. Everyday I get home from work, jump into my yard work clothes and go straight outside. I water, weed, harvest and sweat like crazy. There are plenty of tomatoes and peppers but they are still green. The okra is producing so fast I don't know what to do with it all. I must find time to pickle some. The cucumber vines are trellised and it's a wall of huge leaves and prickly vines. This makes it hard to find the cucumbers. They are so camouflaged that I've found a few after it's become too late, swollen and yellow. I've pulled up all of the potatoes and carrots. It's so satisfying to get my hands dirty and discover what's been growing under there all of this time. Ahh, the joys of gardening!

Clematis

First okra harvest.

Fingerling potatoes.

Butterfly bush with daisies and echinacea in the background

Our dove eggs finally hatched!

You can barely see them but there are two sweet little doves in there!

Tuberoses (about to bloom) are the most delicious smelling flowers ever.

Swallowtail butterfly caterpillar. Apparently they love dill.

This stripped plant is what my dill looked like after they ravaged it. They can have all they want!

Crazy carrot harvest! Any ideas for what to make with them?

The biggest Dragon carrot that I pulled. Sadly, it went in the compost because I imagined that it wouldn't taste good, but I had to show you how big they can get!

Those vampires won't be coming around here!

Holy cow, there is just so much to say. Chris and I went to Colorado for a week and the garden went crazy. We had wonderful house guests (thank you Kristin and Eric!) who took care of our yard and our kitty and it rained a TON! Everything is so abundant and beautiful, it's just breathtaking. I harvested the most gigantic bundle of basil tonight. I spent 2 hours in the kitchen, with my food processor whirling away, making 2 quarts of pesto. I'll probably give a little away and Chris will eat the rest, because he LOVES it. I love to freeze pesto in little packets for fresh summer meals in the middle of winter. We are rethinking the lower garden for next year. Maybe we will combine both gardens and fence them in with something a little more permanent. We are so overwhelmed with ideas of new projects--the gardens, the deck area that I want to be more like an outside room, the storage room that I want to turn into a guest room. The possibilities are endless. It's great to be back home and at work where I love the people, the atmosphere and the meaning behind all that I do. Check out what the Merc is up to these days. It's so cool how involved in the community we are.

My insane basil harvest!

Vampires won't be coming around here!

Two kinds of cukes!

Basil mania!

Two kinds of okra!

Cosmos and tomatoes!

Echinacea!

Basil and nasturtium.

Prepping basil for pesto.

Ready for some whirling!

The finished product.

And finally, our newest family member, a dove who has made a nest in the same fern as our finch family. There is one egg. Maybe she will come back next year too.