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Xylem & Phloem is heading to Costa Rica! From March 2 through March 12, I will be traveling throughout the magnificent country of Costa Rica, exploring the jungle eco-systems and learning about this spectacular Central American country.
Please stay tuned for coverage of the excursion including lots of nature photography, Costa Rican gardens, and jungle and coastal plant life.
The tomato babies are well on their way into the garden. In fact, three of my strongest starts are already there! Here are the heirloom seedlings "out for recess" in the sunshine, in the process of hardening off before being set in the ground.
I know that most North Texas gardeners would think I'm insane for planting tomatoes in February, but my experience last summer convinced me that I need to get plants started as soon as possible before the heatwaves begin.
A quiet afternoon with a cup of cappuccino and a stack of gardening books. Heaven!
Just when I think I can get away with ignoring my winter crop of lettuce, the temperature climbs to the 70s and my lettuce is covered in insects! I'm pretty sure these are aphids (the kind that are brown in color) and they were very happy to destroy my Romaine and start in on my Buttercrunch.
The Romaine could not be salvaged and had to be thrown out. Though I would rather not use systemic organic pest controls in order to protect beneficial insects, I treated the remaining lettuce heads that were not as badly infested with Neem oil and strong blasts of water to knock off the aphids.
Aphids also cropped up on my Moonflower seedlings. I did another Neem treatment and some water blasts - hopefully they will be spared any damage.
Dallas Morning News: ain lilies: A magic show , In Austin's unforgiving clay, a Tex-Zen garden takes root
Rocky Mountain News: Lipstick plant applies a dash of color
Seattle Post Intelligencer: Ann's Organic Garden: Daylilies give a lot without asking much, Paper butterfly decor, Ask Marianne: Nurseries are thick with roses now
Seattle Times: Guide to contractors: Finding a good one, work tips and problem-solving , Catalogs satisfy winter garden urges
Mother Earth News: Cultivating New Farmers
Garden Rant: Top Ten Gardening Blunders
LA Times: A cup of tea is, oh, so cultivated
FW Star Telegram: Let vines creep to the rescue
Austin-American Statesman: "Weed and feed" products aren't so green, Gardener likes to tarry in her mod front yard
Sunset Magazine: Great garden paths
P. Allen Smith: Sowing Sweet Peas, 10 Steps to Great Flower Borders
Local Harvest: The CSA (R)Evolution
Rodale's Organic Gardening: Garden Design Worksheet
This is the last week to get a free soil test at Calloway's. This weekend, I took in two samples from my vegetable beds. Easy as pie. They said the results will be back in about three weeks. (I kind of feel like a parent anxiously going to Parent/Teacher Conferences. I don't want to hear anything negative about my soil, but I know it is necessary and helpful!)
Click here to learn about the process. Visit Calloways.com for more info.
I have grand aspirations for my home's landscaping. Today, I did a rough sketch of what could be done with my front yard. As I mentioned in a previous entry, I'm moving towards removing much of the water-hungry lawn in favor of a xeriscape. Here is the fruit of today's labor:
I am very, very lucky to have a rather large backyard with plenty of space for an ambitious gardener and admittedly obsessive plant collector - if I see it, I have to have it!.
My big project for this growing season will be a xeriscape/butterfly/hummingbird garden that I have recently started planning. My first step towards realizing this garden dream was ordering plants from Bluestone Perennials. Here is the list of some of the plants that will be included in my new garden:
Agastache 'Honey Bee Blue'
Echinacea purpurea
Monarda 'Raspberry Wine'
Rudbeckia 'Indian Summer'
Sedum 'Spectible Neon'
Armeria 'Joystick Lilac'
Calamagrostis 'Karl Foerster'
Carex buchananii
Miscanthus 'Morning Light'
Pennisetum 'Hammeln'
Tonight I called Representative Will Hartnett. Not exactly expecting him to pick up the telephone, I was startled when he answered his office phone at 7:15 in the evening. Mostly, I wanted to speak with him about the proposed coal-burning power plants. I expressed to him that I was concerned about everything that was going on, and I wanted to know where he stands on the issue. The one most important thing that he told me was that he plans to hold TXU to their word that the coal plants will not raise local pollution levels by even one particle. In fact, Hartnett said that he is considering drafting a bill to ensure that they live up to their promise. My experience tonight truly showed me the power of democracy. Just like my previous entry "Organics in Action", tonight was Democracy in Action!
I mentioned to him that I felt it is sad that we are forced to build more plants in order to meet rising energy demands when we should be making an effort to educate people on energy conservation. He said that the government can't mandate how people lead their lives. I don't agree with this, but it was the best answer he could give me without admitting that I was right; we do need to encourage people to conserve energy instead of just putting a band-aid on the problem by building more plants. Lesson learned tonight? CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES. You will be amazed what you can learn, and how just one phone call could influence future government action.
(This entry was written on January 6)
Just the other day, I was emphatically expressing my disdain for gambling. I'm not against gambling, and I have been known to toss a quarter or two into a slot machine or join the boys for a friendly game of late-night poker, I'm just not very keen on losing money on an unlucky hand. But after today's garden adventure, I just might be eating my words.
While checking out at Nicholson-Hardie today after a serious plant buying binge, a silver-haired woman peered into my cart and remarked, "You think those will make it?", referring to the pots of anemones in full bloom. I replied, "I consider myself a rather adventurous gardener; I'm willing to try growing anything once! What's the worst that could happen? They live or they die. I have nothing to lose -- except maybe my money!"
It was at that moment that I caught myself and realized that, though I resist gambling with a deck of cards, I have no qualms about gambling with my garden! After all, buying plants from a nursery or garden center is ALWAYS a gamble. Six dollars for a fragrant lavender plant that could be compost foder tomorrow!
So, back to today's gardening binge... I'm not sure what sparked my sudden urge to get my hands dirty this morning, but I cashed in my birthday gift checks and drove straight over to Nicholson-Hardie, my local garden shop. My only intention was to purchase seed starting supplies to get my tomato seeds to a strong start, but I ended up with a shopping cart overflowing with plants!!!
I must be crazy to plant annuals in the first week of January. And I might have made a royally bad decision to plant a shade-loving Foxtail Fern in my partly sunny front bed -- but that's the fun, isn't it? And that's the gamble that I'm willing to take! Take a peek at today's handiwork:
Last summer, I fell asleep night after night with this book on my lap. The Vegetable Gardener's Bible by Ed Smith is one of the best books written on organic vegetable gardening that I have ever been able to find. With information specific to each vegetable variety and a comprehensive overview of the organic gardening process, The VG Bible is one book that I will never stow away in a dark closet or keep further than an arm's length away. If you do one smart thing this year, buy this book. You will thank me later.
A responsible graduate student would immediately finish her homework for Operations Management class. However, a graduate student with a passion for gardening can successfully find one hundred garden tasks that must be accomplished BEFORE she finishes her Operations Management homework.
This evening, my procrastination reached such a high level that I was willing to do the most banal of garden chores instead of sitting down to study. With gusto, I grabbed my garden tools and attacked the compost pile, giving it such a good turning that I nearly threw my back out in the process
After several minutes of lifting and turning, I was overjoyed to discover what organic gardeners live for: a HUGE pile of finished compost hiding underneath a thick layer of fallen leaves. I had no idea that there was so much compost under there! Teeming with worms and microbial miracle-workers, my pile of "garden gold" smelled like a million bucks. A million bucks worth of great smelling DIRT!
Now I have even more reasons to procrastinate: my garden gold needs to be spread on every surface of my garden, helping to build up the soil and get those fertile soil juices flowing just in time for spring's arrival.
You know, so many compost "experts" make all these rules about composting. "Layer green, then brown", "turn the pile once a week", "build a bin for your compost", "cover the pile to prevent it from getting too wet". While great pieces of advice and certainly things that we should practice from time to time, my compost pile is a true testament to the great results one can achieve by being lazy. Too lazy to put your leaves into bags and set them out on the curb? No problem! Just pile them in a corner of your yard. Same with your grass clippings! Turn the pile whenever you remember, and then in a couple of months after you have almost forgotten about all the yummy organic processes that are going on in the corner, rake back some of those leaves and -- LO AND BEHOLD... HOUSTON, WE HAVE COMPOST!!!! It's not rocket science, and anyone can do it. If you rake leaves and mow the lawn (or if you have someone else do that for you), you've got compost. And more importantly, you've got loads and loads of the world's best fertilizer, mulch, and soil enhancer.
Okay, I am now done with professing my love for compost. Then again, what more do you expect from a tree-hugging, dirt worshipper.
As I keep mentioning, North Texas winters are perfect for growing greens and crops that prefer cooler temperatures. As an experiment, I threw some radish seeds in the veggie bed several weeks ago, completely neglected them, and yesterday i harvested my first batch of radishes -- in the middle of February, no less.
These radishes are Easter Egg Blend from Botanical Interests seeds. They grow in hues that range from pale purple to bright red to fuschia and pink. Very cute.
Because nothing makes me happier than eating what I've grown, I washed them off feverishly and set about preparing them for consumption. Despite the fact that Ina Garten makes radishes seem very romantic and very French in her book Barefoot in Paris, serving them with nothing more than sea salt, I discovered quickly that I am not a fan of the radish. Oh well. Not everything that comes out of the garden is going to appeal to my palate.
Here is my little radish appetizer experiment:
Can you tell that spring is just around the corner? Lots of great links this week. Check it out:
Dallas Morning News
Ruthless pruning keeps rosebushes healthy
Houseplants bring color inside
San Francisco Chronicle:Composting for the way we live today
Rocky Mountain News: Test old seeds before planting
Seattle Post-Intelligencer:
Ask Marianne: Take the living room outdoors
Good Enough To Eat: Prepare the ground now for spinach-planting time
Ann's Organic Garden: Just say nay to horse manure for mulch
Seattle Times: Lure birds to your backyard like a "BirdNote" pro
You Grow Girl: Unkillable Herb: Broadleaf Thyme
Washingon Post: A Cook's Garden: Savoring Spring's Temptations
Austin Garden Blog: Zanthan Gardens
Dallas Farmers Market Friends: Farmers Roundtable
Garden Design Magazine: A Circle of Fronds
Today's Garden Activities:
A celebration of life in the garden, Xylem & Phloem chronicles the horticulture adventures of Dallas gardener Callie Works-Leary. 
