Thanks Giving

After a Thanksgiving meal that "can't be beat", I was unabashedly asking every one at the dinner to join in reading this blog. To a person, they were asking how in the world I could  blog about a garden in the winter. I have to admit, I am looking forward to trying to blog about gardening as a way to get through the cold dark months to come. I honestly don't know how gardeners in places like Minnesota do it. At least here in jersey, we occasionally get weather like today: sunny,mild,and in the 60's..Warm enough for the beach! Which is where I was today,after a visit to the garden,of course.(you knew I would get there eventually, right?)  The row covers are making my greens very, very happy. The mulch pile is warm...a very good sign. Every time I get to walk out back with bare feet,breath fresh air, and touch living plants I am so very thankful!

My plans for tomorrow include a hunt for a blueberry bush or two to plant while the ground is still soft. And the hunt is on for some new posts (free) to support the expanded (free) fencing. Next blog: gardening for busy people. Happy gardening & happy Thanksgiving!

Leaf blowers and other anoying things

Another day of good weather today,so out to the garden I go. The greens under the row cover are now micro green size, but I am holding out for them to grow bigger. I also collected shredded leaves by the bag full from my neighbor. So here is my dilemma: can I complain about the whine of leaf blowers all over the neighborhood on the weekends while at the same time reaping the benefits by confiscating the leaves? Hmmm.

Photos plus: Spring in fall!

The weather the past few days has been unbelievable ideal! It seems that the day after I prepared for frost, we got days of mild weather: highs of almost 75 on some of the days! Sunshine, a fresh breeze, and lovely warmth! Not that I'm complaining, mind you, OR implying that I have the power to change the weather by gardening. Although,if I could....never mind!   I'm still waiting on some labor to expand the garden...right now the new areas is grass/weeds, and is frankly too much work to turn over by hand. So I'm hoping for a rototiller with a guy or two behind it to do the hard work for me (you know who you are!). A REAL gardener would insist on double digging to create the new raised rows. If you don't know what double digging is, suffice it to say its a nightmare of back,shoulder,& knee pain disguising itself as worthy gardening practice. Not for me,folks!
On another previous subject, the row covers are working like a charm. Here are some photos of the covers and the plants under 'em. Enjoy!

  

Season extender!

So riffing off the blog "wizbang" (see link for row covers), I made my own row cover system. I used 10 foot pieces of 1/2 inch pvc pipe which I cut in half with a small hack saw. Then, I got 24 inch long  pieces of 2 inch pipe, and cut those in thirds (result,,,8 inch long pieces). Then, I drilled a hole through both ends of the five foot pieces about 2 inches from the edges, and one hole through the 8 inch pieces about 2 inches in also. I pounded one 8 inch piece into the ground on the left hand side of the row, and then one on the right. I placed a five foot piece inside the 8 inch piece, and placed a thin bolt through the holes, then fastened with a nut to prevent the bolt from slipping out. I bent the pipe over to the other side ,and bolted it,too. Since I couldn't figure out how to drill the holes in the long pieces so that when they bent the holes lined up, I sometimes had to turn the smaller pieces in the earth to match the holes up. So some of the bolts face different ways. But they work anyhow. I then covered the resulting hoops with "frost cloth," and clipped it to the hoops with plastic vices I bought at the big box store for 7 dollars. They were different sizes, but worked anyhow! Total cost  for a row three feet wide and about 15 feet long,  including the saw and enough left over to do another row, 35 dollars ( or 17.50 per row). These should last a few seasons at least,but let's see if the kale, spinach, and lettuces pay me back in harvest!