Get Down and Dirty

If you've never known anyone who is proud of their dirt, you do now. I put a lot of energy into my dirt and I am not talking about the things I've done that deserved a hand-slap, a detention or a policeman. I'm talking about the soil that nourishes the plants. It's soil plus my compost, my worm castings and various other amendments that provide nutrients and texture. Soil has its own ecosystem full of life such as: earthworms, insects, bacteria, and fungi. It is all necessary for a successful garden.

The circle of soil's starting point is hard to determine. Is it the tomato peel that's thrown into the compost pile? Or is it the compost that's thrown into the garden bed? Do you see what I mean? It goes on and on and on. It's sustainable. Imagine these pictures in a circle:

Get it? I love my dirt.

End of Summer - Start of Fall

By the end of summer, I started seeing some powdery mildew on the zucchini and cucumbers. It looked like a light gray or white substance on the leaf. 

There are several different types of powdery mildew and it can even be found on ornamentals. To prevent it, the plants need adequate space, a lot of sunlight and not too much water or moisture. This is hard to do as our daylight gets shorter and evenings cooler. I chose to just cut out the leaves on the larger-than-life zucchini plant. However, my cucumber was so covered with it and the leaves became so brittle, I pulled the whole plant out. Poof, done, it's out of the game. There are some sources that say to use a neem oil, if you're into that, but I chose to see it as a symbol of the end of summer. It's time to move on to cool season vegetables. 

Garden Goal

I am working towards a year-round garden so instead of pulling everything out and starting with four, empty beds, I planted several winter vegetables alongside the remaining summer plants. For example, I planted a row of different varieties of lettuce underneath a billowing, leafy collard plant. It will provide adequate shading during the heat of these early Fall days. I also planted broccoli and cauliflower amongst the still-producing peppers. It's a bit of a puzzle right now, an art project. I like how it looks with colors and sizes blending together. It will be interesting as the new plants grow and the old plants wither. You know I can get fussy about the visual. 

Below is a list of some of the cool season vegetables I will plant. I like to plant a few in succession so each harvest isn't ready all at the same time.

Broccoli

Cauliflower 

Chard  

Brussel Sprouts  

Bok Choy

Peas (Sugar and Snap)

Radishes

Beets

Lettuce/Salad Greens

Arugula

Spinach

Don't forget herbs for upcoming holiday cooking: Parsley, Rosemary, Tarragon, Thyme, Sage.

And don't forget spring-flowering bulbs and edible flowers such as pansies and violas. 

Here is a look at the final days of my summer garden. 

The garden at the end of the pool - fully grown-in! 

The vegetable garden entrance

 Peppers

 

Even Hotter Peppers

The Basket - Peppers, Eggplants, Tomatoes, a Lemon, Basil and Dahlias! 

As you see, I am proud of my dirt. It's how we grow. It's what builds character. It makes us who we are. 

Be proud of your dirt! 

Still wondering about that policeman?

Mixing a Little Personal With Business

My garden looks like a scene I saw in Costa Rica years ago, a jungle with oversized leaves. Or perhaps a scene from a sci-fi, like Jurassic Park where a prehistoric creature will peer out from behind the Collard Greens.  Mother Nature was busy this week. She must have known that I'd need a distraction when I returned from Boulder. Love her. She's always looking out for me.  I don't need a church to pray and express gratitude. I have my own sacred place.

One of the challenges with this time of year is what in the world to do with all the harvest? I am always looking for recipes that utilize a large amount of what I pick. A good bang for your buck recipe is Ratatouille. I was worried that the dish was too outdated to serve at a luncheon I had. Was it like walking downstairs in an old, frumpy dress? Nice, but been-there-done-that years ago? Lorin, who is an exceptionally good cook, counseled me that it was a classic and classics don't get frumpy.  I wasn't entirely convinced until she told me to top it off with some toasted pinenuts and a bit of goat cheese. Voila! That's what I needed... a little trendy to spice up my classic.  I serve this and people often tell me they don't know if they really like ratatouille and then I watch them go for more! I think some people are afraid of that many vegetables all together.

Ratatouille

4 large tomatoes (I used a variety)

8 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

1c chopped flat leaf parsley

1/2 c chopped basil leaves (I love basil, so I add more)

2 lb eggplant cut into cubes

2 large red onion, quartered and thinly sliced crosswise

3 assorted bell peppers (1-1/2 lbs) cut into 1 inch pieces

4 medium zucchini (2lb) quartered lengthwise and cut crosswise into 3/4 inch thick pieces

salt and pepper

Blanch and peel the tomatoes. Coarsely chop them and transfer to a heavy pot with garlic, parsley, basil and some olive oil. Simmer partially covered, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens. About 30 minutes. By the way, this makes an excellent quick pasta sauce as well. 

While the sauce is simmering, toss the eggplant with 1/2t salt and let sit in a colander over the sink for half an hour at least. Pat them dry before cooking.

Once the eggplant has sweat out its needless liquid,  saute the onions, eggplant, bell peppers and zucchini over medium heat until they soften - about 10-15 minutes. Epicurious suggests cooking all these vegetables separately. I do not see the reason other than to add to your dirty dishes. Just make sure to stir occasionally. But, if you're a rule follower, you can saute them separately.

Lastly, add the softened vegetables to the tomato sauce, simmer covered, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are very tender, about an hour. Cool, uncovered and serve warm or at room temperature. 

I can also tell you that the flavor is unbelievable the second day! And don't forget to top it with the pinenuts and goat cheese. No frumpy ratatouille here.

AND THE VERDICT IS...

Yes, my Green Zebra Tomato, the very one from Love Apple Farm did have mites. I bought a 3x loop just like Love Apple suggested we do and sure enough, I could see them crawling on the leaves. Not too many per leaf, but enough to see that they had taken up residency and were not going away.  There are several remedies that you can find on the Love Apple site (see my most recent posting), but I decided that I have enough tomato plants and I just want it out of the box, like a broken toy. 

Who needs Sonoma?   If you're under the impression that you can't grow grapes in your own backyard and you have to go to the wine country to witness such a feat. Think again.

I grew these Champagne grapes and they were delicious and impressive on a cheese platter. I love when something really works in the garden! 

And, P.S. I still need Sonoma, honey. Don't worry.

And another first... I harvested beets!

personalpersonalpersonalpersonalpersonalpersonal

WANNA WALK? 

The annual Bonnie Addario Walk for Lung Cancer is coming up, September 12 at 5:00pm in Golden Gate Park. If you can join me and our Team Xhale, please sign up here. We had a fabulous and meaningful time last year with a team of over thirty people. This year, the race is in honor of Jill, a student at UC Berkeley who lost her life to lung cancer and never smoked a cigarette in her life. Please help me support the efforts being made to eradicate this disease that is affecting too many people. Three of my loved ones have died from lung cancer, my father, Liane and King. Please help me help Bonnie.

AND ... SOME RAW EMOTION... ALWAYS GOOD FOR THE SOUL TO SHARE...

No one can prepare you for the awe of your newborn laying on your belly breathing simultaneously with you, no one can prepare you for the seemingly endless sleepless nights that occur, no one can prepare you for the pride you feel in the nucleus of your cells numerous times throughout their childhood, no one can prepare you for the joy you feel when you hear them laugh from the belly... you know where I am going with this... no one can prepare you for the feeling you have when you walk back in the house after you return from taking your child to college and realize that their returns to home will be temporary forever more. It's a daunting feeling that you cannot prepare for. Don't get me wrong, the happiness I have knowing that Jeffrey has transitioned with ease into his new adventure gives me the required strength to carry on, I just wasn't prepared for the range of emotions that roll in and out like the perfect wave.

Life is Good

Flying Through Life

It's August and the vegetables are peaking. I picked my first harvest of tomatoes and even made a batch of Gazpacho, which symbolizes summer garden success, in my opinion. The peppers and eggplant are producing in bulk. The zucchini is tapering off. One plant seems to be just enough. The cucumbers are a bit tricky. I planted Fanfare imagining that I would like the longer version, but they are bitter. I haven't quite mastered just when to harvest them to get an optimal taste. Perhaps my largest accomplishment is the Yellow Watermelon. I picked one yesterday and everyone was impressed at breakfast. I have three more and I am going to leave them on the vine a bit longer hoping for an even sweeter treat.

TOMATO TROUBLE

Remember my last post I mentioned that one of my tomato plants turned brown and I had to pull it out? Well, Love Apple Farm's Website features an explanation, the Tomato Russet Mite.  I haven't purchased a 3x Loop to examine the leaves, but its quite possible that my tomato plant was infested with it. Its also interesting to note that it was the only plant I purchased from Love Apple Farm.  If your tomatoes are showing signs of browning and fatigue, read Cynthia's web page and act NOW! 

TOMATO TIP

According to Pam Peirce from Golden Gate Gardening (my bible), "When you pick a tomato, try to break the stem at the natural separation point about 1/2 inch above the fruit, leaving the stem and little green cap attached." Also, store fruit out of direct sunlight at room temperature. Refrigeration ruins the flavor. I keep mine in a large bowl on the counter and admire the strong blast of red. Speaking of red... if you have to pick some tomatoes before they are fully ripened, you can force the ripening by putting them in a brown paper bag and rolling the top down pretty close to the bundle of fruit. In other words, don't leave a lot of space in the bag. You can't leave them in the bag for too long for obvious reasons, but they will ripen quicker than leaving them on the counter. Tomatoes give off ethylene gas, which is needed for ripening. The bag holds the gas near the fruit. Pam suggests wrapping each tomato with newspaper. That's too much of a process for me. Plus, the one, weekly newspaper I get, I feed to my worms. Did I just say worms? 

WORM BOX UPDATE

It never occurred to me that you may be worrying about my worms. Well, they're fine. They are enjoying the shredded newspaper, food scraps and a sprinkle of water,  I add to the box each week. There is a fair amount of worm castings, which will be my compost, already accumulating in the box. I haven't quite figured out how to completely separate them from the compost, but I will. So far, I would deem it a successful science experiment. 

GARDEN TIP

Don't forget to fertilize your flower pots. The soil loses its nutrients quickly from all the watering during these hot summer days. I add a couple tablespoons of fish emulsion to my gallon jug of water (when I remember) and I believe it makes a difference. I also add new flowers to the pots occasionally to keep things colorful and fresh looking. Yet another reason to move towards replacing everything with succulents! 

I usually don't post other peoples' photographs, but I couldn't resist this one.  Russ, a high school friend of mine is an artist, gardener, nature-admirer and all-around great guy. He often goes on hikes around his property in Ohio with his dog, Butchie and sends pictures and fabulous stories.  He sent me this picture, titled Thirsty Butterflys.

If you've been following this blog, you know that I had baby Mockingbirds who left their nest the day of my son, Jeffrey's graduation party. We've had another significant flight happen in our house although this time it wasn't created by Mother Nature. This surprise was carefully crafted by Mother Whitney. 

Happy Birthday to my darling, daring daughter! She Soared in her Sweet Sixteen at iFly, an indoor skydiving experience. Another flight...through life.

There was a quote on a sky-blue colored wall at iFly that caught my attention:

"When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always be."

- Leonardo Da Vinci

Perhaps it makes me think about Jeffrey tasting his flight as he goes off to college next week. 

I better go back to the garden and find comfort from Mother Nature and ... my Buddha, who reminds me to slow down when I glance at her standing tall against the Phormium. 

P.S. Did you like the music? 

Garden Visuals

I love visual surprises. They ignite your curiosity and create a desire for more. A garden is full of surprises that seduce all the senses, which is probably one of the reasons I like them so much. But it isn't the plants that I am talking about right now. For example, I placed this metal lizard on the edge of a vegetable box. Many people have walked through the trellis, seen the lizard and reacted with slight alarm. Its obviously not real given its size and the texture of the metal, but its just enough of a surprise that it makes the person more alert. Now I've got you. You're paying attention to my garden.

I bought this stone mask in Belize a million years ago. Its faded from the weather and the top of the head broke off. I tucked it under the foliage of this day lily as if the leaves are long hair coming out the top. Its very hidden and few people have ever seen it, but it makes me smile when a new hairstyle emerges. A fun garden visual. 

I also love putting subtle things in pots. Just a little something to make someone look twice. Kathy gave me this beautiful silver garden spoon that personalizes my garden. I was very touched by her generosity and quickly put it in one of my favorite pots!  

Guaranteed Deer Repellent

For every One Gallon of Water add:

1 egg

1/3 cup milk

1t vegetable oil

1t detergent 

Whisk together and put in a watering can or spray bottle

Spray every 4-5 days

I haven't tried this yet because I don't have a deer problem but  one of my Garden Gurus, Melinda gave it to me. Give it a try if you've got the need! 

A POSSIBLE NEW GARDENING PROJECT

I'm going to an informational meeting regarding applying to the Santa Clara County Master Gardeners Program!  This may be just the thing for me to pursue as one of my babes moves onto college. They only admit 50 people and I've heard there are several applicants. If I don't get in, I just won't talk about it anymore... wink,wink. 

GARDEN FAILURE: Perhaps this isn't the best thing to write following my possible desire to become a Master Gardener, but I imagine the Masters would appreciate honesty. Okay, here it is:  One of my tomato plants turned an unpleasant brown color. It was large and healthy otherwise, which makes me think it was not due to water. It must have been something systemic. Its the one I bought at Love Apple Farm. Of all the plants! I had to pull the whole thing out because I couldn't stand looking at it amongst all the beautiful, healthy, sea of green.   Yikes... They better let me into this program. I need help! 

GARDEN TRAVELS:

We just got back from a week at Pinecrest Lake.  Natural gardens are truly amazing because they are taken care of by Mother Nature. Her sun and her water. We take 5 mile walks around the lake during the week. This was a beautiful surprise. One of those bonus visuals I've been talking about. Someone carved a chair into this old tree stump. It was irresistible.

This is the Pinecrest Crew. We've been going there for 11 years with this same group. They are irresistible too. 

I went on a Magical Mystery Day. It was a day that two wonderful women created for an auction item to benefit The Los Gatos New Millennium Foundation. I have some beautiful pictures from that day that I plan to share on my next blog. Until then, I will leave you with a "Garden Blessing" that was posted outside the Le Potager (vegetable garden) at Maison du Lac in the Santa Cruz Mountains. 

Le Maison du Lac gate

Le Maison du Lac

Pinecrest Lake

"May your garden be a place where you can find peace. Where time stands still. Let it refresh your senses, opening you to the hum of insects, the songs of birds, the splash of water, and the sound of wind through the trees." 

And that's why I find gardens irresistible.

Happy Flower of July

Flower mania! Taken at The Bouquets to Art, de Young Museum, San Francisco

In the book, Gardening Month by Month in Northern California, Bob Tanem and Don Williamson claim that "July is the month to relax and enjoy all of your gardening efforts". I think that's true, for the most part. Everything is planted, growing and even beginning to fruit or flower. Perhaps the one thing that may not be too relaxing is all the watering. Most gardens in my area need a little extra water during these hot summer days. Especially pots, which tend to dry out more quickly due to their size. I am watering differently this summer, as I have mentioned a few times and I am beginning to see the benefit. The water in my tomato bed is turned off completely and therefore the plants rely on my once a week, very deep watering. I try to do it in the morning to avoid any mildewing.  I've noticed that the base stem is more sturdy than years past and even the growth that towers over the cages seem to be strong and upright. I will continue to track this as the fruit flourishes and let you know how my study is progressing. The rest of the plants are on a drip every other day and seem to be doing fine with a deep watering (not as much water as the tomatoes)  a couple times a week.

It's also a good idea to make sure you have a nice layer of mulch around the plants. You may notice your mulch is thinning in areas and will benefit from some replenishing. This will help keep the soil cool and moist as well as keep the weeds to a minimum. Lastly, its time for deadheading in order to keep your plants blooming. For example, my roses were amazing mid to late June and started to look parched and spent by early July. I pruned them back heavily almost taking every flower off. Beautiful Roses Made Easy, by Teri Dunn and Ciscoe Morris provides these five "compelling reasons to deadhead your roses as often as you can:

• It looks better. Plus you can make beautiful flower arrangements for inside or to take to friends.
• It conserves energy. Removing the rose before rose hips (its seed pod) form averts the tiring process of seed formation.
• It encourages re-flowering. The plant can now focus on flower production and thus, a longer blooming period.
• There will be a better show next year. The plant will have energy to generate new buds on stems, and new flowers for next season.

My roses line the edge of the back patio. They weren't planted in the best sun-spot, so they have to be tended to extra specially!  And given a little forgiveness for some of their behaviors. 

What amazes me about a rose is how it starts with this tight small bud and keep opening and opening.

I am also getting ready to fertilize again. Some say to feed a rose every six weeks. I can't maintain that schedule, but I can fertilize once in the Spring and I'll do it again shortly. Elaine, one of my Garden Gurus gave me this rose fertilizing recipe from the Mercury News. I've watched my roses get healthier each year.

Rose Fertilizer Recipe - from Livermore rosarian Dave Lowell. 

Dave says to use this recipe on established roses only; roses must have been planted at least six months.
1/2 cup 12-12-12 fertilizer
1/2 cup bone meal
1/2 cup sulfur (Ironite, soil sulfur or iron sulfur)
2 T Epsom Salts
1 shovelful chicken manure
Sprinkle the fertilizer, bone meal, sulfur and Epsom salts around eac plant, mixing into soil if possible. Top with chicken manure, then water in. 


Rose Gardening Tip: 

A node is: "The joint in a stem where a bud, branch or leaf starts to grow. The area of the stem between the nodes is the internode.  Some books call it a Bud Eye. At the beginning of the season, a bud eye is brown or reddish. Check it out. Its pretty easy to see, once you know what you're looking for. The trick is to cut about 1/4 inch from the bud eye or node. Do not cut right across the bud eye as it may not grow too well. Its always best to cut on a slant (water will run off a slant and not allow disease to enter the stem).

Its July... sit back and enjoy. And make sure to harvest your vegetables and your flowers. When I have time, I go around my yard with a basket and cut all sorts of things... not just flowers but also branches with interesting leaves. Then, I come inside, line up some clean vases and create. I don't claim to be anywhere near the florist as the people at Bouquets to Art, but its awesome to combine a bunch of things and see what you get. Much better than buying an arrangement!

Foxglove

 This is what I call Hydrangea Row.  Its spectacular right now. I fertilized them generously and have been giving them a lot of extra water on hot days. 

Fruits Of My Labor... I mean, Flowers of My Labor

Hush Little Mama, Don't You Cry...

Sometimes you can't ignore symbolic occurrences. Sometimes they are so blatant it is eerie. Using some input from readers, I learned that my birds were Mockingbirds. The thought of Mockingbirds in my garden was so sweet and fitting as I used to sing, Hush Little Baby to Jeffrey and Carly to help them fall asleep.  I paid close attention to my bird babies for days marking their growth in my mind and always curious as to when I'd find them missing while busily preparing for my son's graduation and noticing his growth and signs of strength. I beamed with pride when my baby soared across the stage preening his feathers clutching his diploma with pride dripping from his exaggerated smile.

Hush Little Mama, Don't you Cry...

The day of Jeffrey's graduation party, I was excited to share the Mockingbirds with anyone who cared or perhaps had been reading this blog. Nature's gift struck again when I discovered the babies left their nest sometime that morning. The nest was empty. Empty nest. Need I say more? The abrupt symbolism hit me over the head like a brick. You can't avoid that. Mother Nature was surely sending me an astounding message. Mother Mockingbird was okay with her babies taking off and I was to be okay with mine. Okay. I get it. Loud and clear.

It's amazing what happens if you are paying attention. Its not always easy to pay attention while traveling at the speed we all do. I am grateful that I did catch those precious moments in my garden this Spring.


Moving along...
Last night we got back from Santa Monica, the end of three weeks of non-stop adventure with family and friends which began around Jeffrey's High School graduation. I spent two hours watering the garden. It was like visiting an old friend and finding out how they've grown and what challenges they've had to face. I watered plants dead-heading where necessary, admired flowers or the beginning of fruit,  harvested my first zuchinnis, trimmed back leaves filled with aphids or eaten by snails and admired the tremendous growth that occurred all over the place. That's why I love gardening. Things are continually changing. Its always a feast for the eyes.

Gardening Notes:

- My tomatoes are large. The Yellow Pear is towering over the cage already and I am pruning it back generously this year. 

- Aphids took over a few of my Chard plants so I trimmed them way back and gave them a power wash hoping that new growth will be unaffected. 

- The grapes look fantastic. They are nearing marble size and plentiful. I am fantasizing an amazing photo opportunity this Fall. 

- My strawberries weren't watered well enough during my absences and the whole pot is dried out. It's okay. I can't expect that there won't be some death during the last three weeks. 

- The hydrangeas are out of control beautiful. They're getting close to the ones I marvel at on Long Island. 

- My mint barrel was taken over by Lemon Verbena, which obviously seeded itself from last years plants I have since pulled out. I learned this the hard way when I announced to a large party that we were going to make Mojitos with my Mint, only to find that the pot was filled with something that resembled mint, but didn't taste like it. Oops...

-The worms seem to be doing well. They are still moving around in there and that's all I can really report. So far, I don't see anything even close to a material I'd put in my garden. 

- I carefully placed the Mockingbird nest in the corner of one bed as a Memorial to my experience this Spring. The three peppers that are close to the nest were covered in bird poop. Do you suppose? 

I had to bathe them carefully to remove all the white spots on the leaves. 

Beautiful Cookbook: 

My mother-in-law bought me a gift while she was here. We were at Chateau St. Jean  (our favorite winery together) and I was admiring a cookbook. She said, "Let me buy this for you". Typically, I would never say, "Okay" as that feels like it exceeds the limits of what is appropriate. However, this time, I heard myself enthusiastically say "Okay" and I grabbed the cookbook. Its beautiful, informative and very, very fun to read. It's called,  ad hoc at home, by Thomas Keller. 

A Few Recipes:

Lots of people have favorite Pesto Recipes. This is mine. It was given to me by Tish, the woman I mentioned in an earlier blog who grew a very large garden on our property when I was growing up.
The e-mailed recipe is dated 9/27/2000.  I've used it ever since.

Pesto Dressing A La Tish

1 cup fresh basil leaves, packed

1/2 cup fresh parsley

2 cloves garlic minced

1/2 tsp each salt and sugar

2 T Pine Nuts

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

2/3 cups extra virgin olive oil

Put Basil and Parsley in cuisinart and mince well. Add minced garlic, salt, sugar, pine nuts - pulse to combine. Add vinegar and cheese - pulse to combine. Add the olive oil very slowly as the cuisinart is running so the dressing thickens. You can double this recipe easily. It keeps well in the refrigerator for a long time. I also freeze it in ice cube trays to use after basil season. Tish says, "Use it on everything!"

First off, Red Chard is such a beautiful leaf. I just harvested a bunch of it with some lemons and the first of the zucchini. I can't help but step back and admire the basket for a bit before I take everything in to wash and eat. It's the Martha Stewart in me.

The following recipe is from a gal I knew when I lived in Mill Valley. She has recently published a cookbook called, Get Naked Fast!  I've been making Diana's Favorite Green Juice Cleanse since I bought the book and I love it. So far, I haven't convinced anyone to love it as much as me, perhaps because they are afraid of drinking vegetables.  If you have a juicer and you're into experimenting, try this recipe. To me, it tastes like V-8 without the sodium. I could almost add vodka, but then I couldn't take the wrath that would follow. Not to mention, it would defeat the purpose of the drink. Diana's message is: "No Dairy, No Wheat, No Sugar, No Meat, No Caffeine and No Alcohol". I can adhere to most of that, most of the time. Okay, some of the time...

Diana's Favorite Green Juice Cleanse

3 cucumbers

2 bunches of celery

1 bunch parsley

1 bunch rainbow chard (I use my Red Chard)

3 green apples

3 lemons ( I don't put a lemon in my juicer, so I just squeeze the juice of one lemon)

2 fennel bulbs 

Do not remove any parts of the vegetable or fruit. Push all the ingredients through the juicer. This fresh juice will last 2 days in the refrigerator. (I've kept mine for three).

Makes 4 quarts

It's officially summer. Things are supposed to slow down. So far, my summer has been anything but slow. I am hoping for a change in energy soon. Until then, I will enjoy the clear blue sky that blankets everything. I love that color. Another nod to Mother Nature.
I hope she follows my baby to Colorado.

My Science Classes

Carly called me to say they'd hatched. I almost left the swim team banquet set-up to go see them, but I got ahold of myself realizing these were birds, not a grandchild. I'd be lying if I told you they were cute. They're not. Their skin is thin and covered with a mottled layer of fur. Their eyes aren't open and their bones look so brittle its shocking they can support their expanding bodies. Okay, I suppose they are cute simply because they are babies. The amazing thing is how fast they grow. After several days of worrying if they'd still be in the nest each time I go out there, I now confidently peer in and am stunned by their progress. Today, their beaks are wide and yellow and I felt a tinge of a personality emerging when one stretched it's neck and opened its beak. Meanwhile, Mother Bird is frantic wondering what I'm doing poking a black tube so close to the nest. My black tube is having a hard time catching them in action. When I go out without the camera, they are actively opening and closing their mouths like the classic picture you think of in a bird's nest. The one where the Mother Bird is feeding them and they are reaching up towards her with a wide, open mouth. By the time I come back with the camera, they seem to be sound asleep. All my clucking and whistling doesn't do anything but annoy Mother Bird, as well as myself.  My favorite part of this authentic natural exhibit is that its eye level. Its a bird's nest that is perfectly placed for our viewing. It's a science class in my garden.

See the beaks? They're those wide, flat yellow lines at the lower part of the furry head.

Mother Bird

I still don't know what kind of bird they are. I am almost afraid to find out because one of my research attempts ended up identifying them as some kind of sparrow (I didn't commit it to memory) and it said that they are a mean bird harming others in the yard and bullying them away from various food sources. Oh, no. Can my little babies be mean? I've googled (is that word in the dictionary yet?) "California native birds" and the egg coloring, light blue with black speckles. A few things came up. I need to go to the Birdwatcher and ask someone with some bird knowledge. I hope they're not the mean bird. That, and the bad crow energy out there would be troublesome all together. I want my Science Class to be happy and peaceful and safe.

Garden Tip: A yellowing leaf could be the sign of a nitrogen deficiency. If new leaves appear lighter, usually a pale green or you're seeing a true yellowing within the leaf, you may need to add some fertilizer containing Nitrogen. Nitrogen is water soluble and is absorbed rapidly, so it must be replenished regularly. The best organic sources of nitrogen are manure, bloodmeal, fish emulsion, and alfalfa or soybean meal. Compost and grass clippings are also good sources, but they can be too "hot" for the base of a plant meaning they'd actually burn the root system.
When you buy a packaged fertilizer, you will find three numbers on the label that represent the percentage by weight of each of these primary plant nutrients:

N- Nitrogen

P - Phosphorus

K - Potassium

You need to be careful not to add too much nitrogen to a plant. Usually, packaged fertilizers have instructions. It is worse to add too much fertilizer than not enough.
When I took my Sustainable Gardening course (through the Santa Clara County Master Gardeners Program), my teacher loved using alfalfa pellets (found in feed stores) as a source of nitrogen. She said they would be about a 2 in terms of their percentage by weight so its a nice, safe source. She encouraged us to sprinkle the pellets in the vegetable beds and mix them into the soil. Water breaks the pellets down quickly and they soon dissolve right into the soil. I've been doing this since she told me about it. I also sprinkle some around my roses. Lastly, my Podocarpus, an evergreen shrub that grows as a screen in front of the fence by the pool, was very pale green with some yellowing leaves. I watered a hefty amount of alfalfa into their bases and I saw a considerable change in color over some time. Some say, "proof in the pudding". I say, "proof in the Podocarpus". 

THE WORM BOX

Let's get one thing straight: I am not afraid of worms. I'm not afraid of spiders. I don't even mind snakes if I know they are there before they know I'm there. When I was little, when Spring sprung my Mom would ask us to go find worms to feed Weldon, our pet Piranha. (At one point we had six horses, six dogs, six cats, a number of rabbits, probably a gerbil or two, two Parakeets, a Sheep and a Piranha. What, you never had a Piranha?) We loved dropping worms into Weldon's tank and watching him go after them. I also liked poking a pencil eraser in there to see what he'd do. Okay, no, I didn't take that picture, but I had to show you what Weldon looked like so I found an image on-line. That was him. He loved worms, as do I now.

As I mentioned a couple weeks ago, I made this worm box with my friend, Polly and her husband, Rob. They are an awesome team of Worm Box Constructors and they were super kind to ask me to join them.

I put the box outside my kitchen near my compost pail (future blog story), added the shredded newspaper I read about and some kitchen scraps. Polly gave me a few worms from a collection she had and I was underway. I soon realized that if I was going to fully capitalize on the size of my box, my worms were going to have to do a lot of mating. So I fast-forwarded the situation by buying some worms on-line at Redworms 4 Sale.  

One day I came home to this:

I'm Chairing the Casino at Grad Night, I've got 15 people sleeping over all weekend, my son graduates on Friday night and we're having a Graduation Party on Sunday and I am dealing with this?

Have I lost my mind? Does that actually say, "Live Worms"? I admit, I was a little scared to open that box and find a wild, wiggly wad of worms.

As you read, I didn't have much time... not to mention, I had to get the worms out of the box and into a more lively environment within a reasonable amount of time, so I had to prepare my box quickly. It was like another Science Class. Ingredients: Newspaper, water, kitchen scraps, a little dirt and worms.
I started with this:

And then added this:

And topped it off with this. It wasn't a wiggly wad. They were all peacefully settled in some nice loose dirt. It was a much calmer scene than I'd envisioned it would be.

Mixed it all up, closed the top and did one of those swish, swish actions with my hands. All finished. Okay, what's next?

Cousin Judi says my blog relaxes her. Relaxed Judi? 

As I begin this very emotional week, I will keep in the back of my mind that I am now actively engaged in the lives of two more birds and 500 more worms in the world. Somehow, that may help me keep things in perspective while watching my very own little bird spread his wings across the stage and fly into this next adventure of his life. I am soon to be Mother Bird of a high school graduate. 

That's how my garden grew this week. How does your garden grow?