Saturday, June 27, 2009

Weeds

Ok...how many of you can relate to this:) lol

I work 40 hours a week, outside of the home (1 hour commute), 2 small children, hobby farm & a husband that works nights.Well, with this busy schedule and all the rain that we are experiencing here in upstate NY, my garden is getting overgrown with weeds. I found that without the hot days to kill my weeds after I till....they just grow right back.

I have looked through the Internet and researched all kinds of organic/green weed prevention methods, and I have decided to try the mulching theory this year. I have taken pictures of what my garden looks like now and I will keep you posted on my efforts.

It will be interesting to see a couple different things:
1.) How well the garden stays weeded
2.) How the mulch (i.e. grass clippings) helps with water retention
3.) How well the mulch tills into the garden and assists with fertilization/quality of earth for next years planting.

Stay tuned for your updates!

I'll try to make them weekly...if not more frequent:) Wish me luck!!

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Composting Containers

I have been doing much research lately on the art of composting & the benefits that it provides the environment & most importantly...my garden.

I thought getting started would involve having an ugly & smelly compost container in my house...or be walking out to the garden after every meal or after every snack. But, I don't. There are many different kind of compost containers on the market today that sit right on your kitchen counter, by the back door, or where ever you want to store them & they are esthetically pleasing.

Once these little container are full...you walk them down to your compost bin. It's really as simple as that!
For more information on compost containers, visit http://www.naturesway2grow.com/. Not only do they sell amazing composting equipment, but they sell books & give great helpful hints on getting started.

Monday, June 15, 2009

How to Make a Compost

How to make a compost:

When making your own compost there are some basics that you should follow. I have added some common composting items below, to make composting easy!

ADD:
Egg Shells
Waste
Newspapers
Vegetable Scraps
Yard waste (lawn clippings, leaves)
Manure (vegetarian animals)
Coffee Grounds

NEVER ADD:
Meat or animal products (bones, fish, eggs, butter, yogurt etc.)
Coal Ash
Weeds or weed seeds
Colored paper
Pet droppings
Synthetic chemicals

For more information on how to make compost or composting supplies, check out http://www.naturesway2gow.com/! They have many books and supplies....all a great discount prices!

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Garden Scarecrow

The scarecrow has been the guardian of gardens for hundreds of years. The theory is that a scarecrow will scare off birds and other animals that may want to eat your seeds and plants in ones garden.

With this in mind, and needing a project to do with the kids, my husband gathered some of my children's old clothes and a hay bale from the barn and made our own "Justin" and "Elizabeth" scarecrows:) It was great fun!

Supplies you will need if you want to do this project:
  • Old clothes
  • Hay
  • Marker
  • Wooden stake
  • Rope or Staples
  • Straw Hat (optional)

It takes only a little bit of time, the kids had a blast, and my garden is now well protected!

Sunday, June 7, 2009

Wacky Weather

A week ago today we had the most "wacky" weather I have seen for the end of May in quite awhile. I took this picture at the begining of the storm...it got worse.

Sunday May 31st started out a little chilly at 52 degrees, but sunny and warm enough for my husband and I to get out and plant the remainder of our garden (pumpkins, corn and cucumbers), while my 2 children were taking their naps. My husband and I were laughing, as in the distance we could see that the nearby town of Canton was getting "pounded" with a massive storm. As I turned my back to continue to work on the garden I could feel the air temperature dropping...rapidly. My husband shouts..."LOOK". Coming across the field was an amazing sight. A wall of white! We grabbed seeds, plants and anything else we could carry and by the time we reached the back screened in porch we were getting pelted by sleet and the air temperature was down to 34 degrees. We watched in amazement as the weather turned from sleet to hail (size of marbles) to snow (the size of quarters). Within 5-10 minutes our garden was covered in a blanket of snow! Lucky for us this cold did not last and the rain came with warmer air temperatures (50's) and our garden, I think (tomatoes are still iffy), is ok!

Now, if the temperature had stayed cold we would have had to run out and hose off the plants and cover them with sheets, plastic, or I've even used our sap buckets...but mother nature did her job and rained on them for me.

Keep your fingers crossed for me:)

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Time to Plant the Garden!

This past weekend we decided it was time to plant our vegetable garden. The family garden is 60'X90' and contains all kinds of yummy vegetables like corn, peas, beans, broccoli, onions, garlic, carrots, 2 different kinds of peppers, 4 kinds of lettuce, 24 tomato plants, zucchini & pumpkins.

It's quite the undertaking, but everyone in the family gets to have a green thumb! The kids love to strap on their gardening aprons, gather their tools & get their hands dirty! With their own special tools they work extra hard at planting our garden and weeding our other gardens!

If you don't have any tools for the kids, or are looking for a nice gardening tool set for yourself, you might want to check out www.naturesway2grow.com and see what they have to offer.