A Week at the Mountain Cottage Pt. 2

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Last time, I shared a few things Mr. DIY and I worked on at our mountain cottage on our "vacation" in May. Our time there is always a working vacation, working on a project, planting something in the garden, and maintenance. 

We always love looking at the view from the porch. 

In addition to the staining the cedar posts, railings and  grape arbor, Mr. DIY installed a retractable, nearly invisible screen door. Our old one had deteriorated and had to be replaced. Mr. DIY and I had a retractable screen when we lived in Long Beach, California and it was the one item in our move to North Carolina that never made it. Never knew what happened to it.

 

Mr. DIY found the retractable screen at The Home Depot, but Amazon also has a similar screen. 

The only thing that could be better about the one we purchased is the handle where you close it is tricky when you're inside, especially if you're only using one hand. The handle should be larger/more curved (cuplike) so you can pull it into the channel to close.

Of course, there's always tending to the garden in the Spring. I was excited to see so many on our largest blueberry bush. We came back a few weeks later and the birds had eaten all of them! 

I see a bird netting cage in Mr. DIY's future. 

I did some digging around on youtube about bird netting and the consensus was that tulle (as in bridal tulle) was better, kept bugs out and was easier to use than actual bird netting. This is what I ordered. 

The birds (or critters) also ate all of our clusters of grapes. 

I bought these for next year...

Hopefully the critters will leave some apples  for us.

Our garden was a bit larger this year. Mr. DIY planted potatoes, several heirloom tomato plants (+ a few volunteers  came up from last year), 1 zucchini, 1 yellow squash and 2 watermelon plants in the back on the right.

Note to self: give watermelon 10 times more room than you think! I think we had the vines under control until the end of July. We came back after a couple of weeks and watermelon vines were everywhere and a watermelon was growing through the closest tomato fence and another one was hanging in a tomato plant.  

The first watermelon we picked wasn't ripe enough. We looked up on Youtube when to harvest a good watermelon ...thumping, a creamy yellow spot where it sits on the ground and a dried up tendril near the fruit. The 2nd was overripe and by the time Mr. DIY brought it home, it had sloshed up in the car and was all water. So the tendril couldn't be totally dried up. 

We hoped the 2nd and third watermelons were good and they were delicious! The large watermelon on the left was too heavy for me to carry! This past weekend, Mr. DIY brought home 2 more gigantic watermelon and (seeded) and 2 seedless. We sent our daughter home with one. There are still several more watermelon growing at our mountain cottage. It's a good thing I love watermelon!

That's about all we have for now. Next time, I'll share more photos of the grape arbor. 

Thanks for stopping by. 

Pam

square paver marks my sweet Buddy's grave. 

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Get Ready To Plant ~ Spring Is Almost Here!

Are you ready???

Spring is almost here! 

I know for some of you still buried under 2 feet of snow, that Spring seems a long way off, but it's only 25 days away and will be here before you know it.

Winter may linger awhile for some, but it's still coming.

Now is the time to start planting your cool season seeds, if you're in the South and it's time to plan your garden if you're further up North. 
Just a little note for those planting outside now before your frost date: Be sure to watch the weather report and cover your seedlings if it's going to be in the low 30's or below.

I've already purchased seed potatoes and planted some broccoli plants. 

For those of you who don't know, broccoli is a cool season veggie and will live through a little bit of snow when planted in the Fall. 

This weekend I will be planting my cool season veggies, which include some snow peas (my favorite), lettuce, and yes, more broccoli!

The past Spring and Fall, turnips did very well in our garden, but you know what? I don't really like them, so I won't be planting them this Spring. They are a cool season veggie, as well.

I never really liked broccoli until I grew it in our garden. 

Home grown broccoli is good with a little butter on it. 

It's really difficult to go back to eating store bought broccoli after growing it in your own garden.

Herbs are pretty easy to grow and some are gorgeous enough to put in your flower beds. Just make sure you don't spray the area with pesticides or chemical fertilizers. 

This is oregano and is a perennial in most climates, so it will come back year after year.  Most herbs should be planted after the frost date, so be sure to look up when your's is before planting. You can also buy plants from your local store.

I plan my garden every year and rotate my plants to the next bed the following year. This is from a few years ago. 

You can always grow veggies in planters or even 5 gallon buckets and put them on a sunny patio or deck if you don't have garden space. Last year I planted green beans in some wood planter boxes that Mr. diy Design Fanatic made for me. 

In addition to growing veggies, I can't wait for our yard to be in full bloom like this again!

What are you planning on growing this year?

Happy Planting!

Pam

You can see 5 things I've learned about gardening HERE

What's Happening In The Garden

How's the weather in your neck of the woods?

Summer has definitely arrived here in the South. 

Don't know about you, but the humidity makes me melt and really takes all of my energy away. 

I thank God for air conditioning.

I am not sure how women made it through all those hot and humid summers before ac. 

I've mentioned before that I never really sweat before moving to Charlotte. 

Seriously...even after exercising.

 Even in Palm Springs when it was 100 degrees. 

 (the desert, by the way, was one of my favorite places to go, but it had to be 90 degrees or it was too cold)

The first summer we were here in Charlotte was the first time I really sweat...
I felt something on the top of my head and

thought something was wrong with me.

Would love to know how all you Southern ladies stay cool when you have to go outside. Please tell me because I have to go out every couple of days to tend my garden.

Guess Summer would be a great time to catch up on indoor projects... redecorate a bedroom, paint our master bath, organize something...


Back to the garden: 

Went out just a few days ago and picked about 5 pounds of turnips. Look at these beauties! 

I haven't ever tasted a turnip before and have no idea what to do with them...I'm leaving that up to Mr. Fanatic. If you have a tasty recipe, please let me know.

I only planted one 5 foot row of turnips and they did well. Not sure about the beets next to them, we'll see when I pull them up next week.

I wasn't sure how the turnips were growing, until we came back from vacation and some were popping up out of the soil. Just like radishes, turnips pop up when they're ready to be picked.

To store turnips, cut most of the tops off and put in a plastic bag in a cool place. I put mine in a Ziplock type plastic bag and don't "zip" it all the way.

The main heads of the broccoli were cut of a few weeks ago, but now the side shoots are producing little crowns. It's difficult to go back to store bought broccoli once you've grown your own.

I saved one of the broccoli plants planted  last fall and let it go to seed. The plant stopped producing crowns last February or March and the seeds are finally ready to pick. Since the plants were from heirloom, open pollinated seeds and not hybrid, I can use the seeds and plant them next fall or Spring. One plant produces thousands of seeds.

You remember my planter box project don't you? The beans I planted in them are all the way past the top of the poles now. It's the first year growing beans for us. Can't wait to see how they produce.

The tomato plants are having a tough time. We've had soooooooooooo much rain the past several days, lots of humidity, which is bad for tomatoes. Just ordered some organic fungicide to help them out. Hope it works because Mr. Fanatic wants lots of tomatoes so he can make and can salsa.

The garlic plants are starting to fall over, which means they are almost ready. Still not sure what to do with all that kale. The small leaves aren't bad in salads.

The zucchini plants are getting big and the cucumbers on the trellis are beginning to flower....cucumbers not too far behind. 

A few flowers are blooming in the garden, as well. Big echinacea  pink double delight are popping up near the basement patio.

The gardenias are blooming too and their fragrance wafts throughout the backyard close to the house.

So excited that one a few of my hydrangea bushes are blooming and one plant has actually doubled in size. I even have several flowers on two of the four plants! (for those of you who missed it: I planted these hydrangeas several years ago and they just never grew any larger. This year I transplanted them and they are doing better. )

I love the flowers on these blue/green Hosta. 

The first flower just bloomed on the Lantana.

Coreopsis are bright and cheerful. 

Crimson Pirate Day Lily are blooming profusely. 

 Now you are up to date as to our garden in June. 

Would love to know how you keep cool during the summer and what's blooming in your garden. 

Pam 
joining 
Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday

Grow Tomatoes In 5 Gallon Buckets

I started seeds indoors several months ago, but they were really slow growing, so I went out and bought a few larger plants so we could have tomatoes sooner.  I put the small tomato plants outside in larger containers and they have grown up pretty well. 

Problem is....I ran out of space. I only have one 4 x 8 raised bed in our North garden set aside for tomatoes and 6 tomato plants are already planted in them . 

So, what to do...what to do.

Choice one is to give the extra plants away.

Uh, in my neighborhood, that's not going to happen. 

Seems vegetable gardens are, uh, not too popular.

Choice two is to just throw them away...but I just couldn't do that.

Choice three
Plant them in 5 gallon buckets.

To do this you just need to

1:  drill 4 holes in the bottom of each bucket.

2: add good soil. I used 1/3 compost and  2/3rds dirt

3: add some crushed egg shells and a little Epsom salt to the hole where you plant the tomato.

Plain plastic buckets are NOT going to cut it  if you live in a neighborhood with an HOA and I don't want to look like, well, that I'm growing tomatoes in buckets.

I just happen to have some burlap, so I cut a piece and wrapped it around the bucket and safety pinned the back. 

Optional: 

4: wrap your plastic bucket in burlap



Doesn't it look better than a plain white plastic bucket?

I think so!

Lastly: 

Add a stake or tomato cage to the plastic bucket to hold up the plant when it gets big.

If all goes well, we'll get a few juicy tomatoes out of this experiment. That is, if the squirrels, deer and other critters don't get them first.

Have you ever grown tomatoes in 5 gallon buckets?

Please share!

If you'd like to see how we built some great looking planter boxes, you can see them HERE.

Pam

Fall Veggie Garden

I am so enjoying these cooler days, aren't you?

 We've had a couple of warm days, but the nights and mornings have cooled off to the point where you could wear long sleeves or a light jacket. My Fall veggie garden is all planted, except for another row of potatoes and I'm not sure if I'll get to planting those. 

The tomato plants are producing another round of good sized fruit and I've just harvested the first of the radishes I planted a few weeks ago.

The peppers are doing beautifully now. The sweet peppers didn't set at all while the weather was super hot. These hot peppers always had peppers growing on them, though. Not sure what I'm going to do with these since none of us like to eat them. I thought the seeds were yellow sweet peppers. Surprise!

They actually turn a pretty shade of red if they stay on the plant long enough.

The green peppers are about half way done.

I planted snap peas last month, as well and they are already starting to flower.

The marigolds did really well in the hot weather we had this summer. They have taken over the raised bed with the tomatoes and peppers. Look at all the buds that will be blooming soon. Now you know what to plant if you have hot summers!

The hot weather was really brutal on the lettuce I planted in the shade a couple of months ago. It didn't even grow large enough to harvest.

The romaine lettuce I planted about 3 weeks ago is finally doing well. Looks like this batch is going to make it. We had a little hot spell last week and some torrential rain last night, but fortunately I covered them with a wood frame with black screen. The little seedlings behind were just planted last week and are already coming up. Had I not covered them with a screen last night, they would have all been washed away in the downpour last night. See, I've learned a thing or two!

This particular kind of Romaine did really well in early Spring and it tasted great!

It's called "Cos" Romaine. It's crunchy and tasty, too.

I planted some broccoli plants, but am having a little trouble with those getting nibbled on in the middle of the night. Hope I get a few heads from the garden. I also planted carrots which are about 6 inches tall. 

A whole bunch of cucumber seeds came up in the compost pile, so I planted them. We'll see if they can produce any cucumbers before the first frost in November. It's a race against time.

Well, now you're up to date on the Fall veggie garden. Anyone else planting any veggies this Fall? If you're new to gardening, you can always plant some lettuce in a container. Lettuce is an easy cool season veggie and looks pretty as it grows.

I almost forgot that I will be planting some garlic in October! Better get some asap.

Hope you have a great weekend!

Pam

Five Things I've Learned About Gardening

  I've always loved digging in the dirt for as long as I can remember. When I lived in Southern California I used to go out in the evening  and dig in the dirt.
I can remember the warm brown dirt in my hands and thinking how I love the feel of it!
I don't quite have a love affair with the dirt I currently have. The thick red clay dirt  we have has a lot of rocks and is hard to garden in.

The first thing I've learned about gardening is that having good dirt is so important, otherwise, nothing is going to grow. One of the first things you MUST do when you start a garden is to assess your soil and amend it as needed. What you need to amend the soil with will depend on what type of soil you have.

The second thing I've learned about gardening is that you need a good book or two to help you along. You can't do this yourself.
Get a great book for your area. When I was in SoCal, Sunset had the best books. Here in the South, it's The Southern Living Garden Book.

I studied Southern Living's gardening book when I was planning my flower garden more than 10 years ago.
For vegetable gardening, I recommend The Self Sufficient gardener. There are a bunch more, and it's helpful to have more than one book.


The third thing I've learned about gardening is to make a plan for your whole garden even if you aren't going to plant your garden all at once. If you're doing it yourself, start small. Take a small section of your yard and fill it in with plants that will do well in that location. That's how we did our yard. First we did the front beds closest to the house, then the side yard, etc. It took several years to do our whole landscaped garden, but it was an enjoyable process.

I made this landscape plan myself when we first moved in.

The fourth thing I've learned about gardening is to plant shrubs and flowers that grow well in your part of the country. Also, if a plant calls for full sun, then don't plant it in the shade and if it likes shade, don't plant it in the sun. Sounds simple enough! Following this rule will make your life so much easier.

The fifth thing I've learned about gardening is no matter how well you plan, amend and water, some plants just won't make it. Or, you'll plant two plants that are exactly the same, and plant them at the same time, and one will do well and the other will be tiny. I've  planted 5 of the exact same shrub, prepared the soil the exact same way and watered them the same amount, only to have one of them keel over after a year. Don't blame yourself if this happens, just go get another plant to fill in. That's just the way it is.

Two zucchini plants, planted the same way, the same day, with the same soil prep. The one on the left is large and the one on the right is so small you can barely see it.

There are so many other lessons I've learned about gardening in my more than two decades of digging in the dirt, but I still consider myself a novice. There is so much more to learn!

Fall is the best time to plant a landscape in our area because plants and shrubs don't have enough time for roots to establish before Summer if planted in the Spring. So if you live in an area with a hot summer, now's the time to quickly plan out what you want to plant in the Fall. It will be here before you know it!

Don't know about you, but I'm glad that the HOT weather has passed and is a little bit cooler. I've started planting some things for our Fall veggie garden. So far I've planted snap peas, lettuce, radishes and carrots. Everything has popped up and started to grow. I will also plant some broccoli and try some potatoes. This will be my first Fall garden and I'm excited that my seeds have already started to sprout!

Anyone else planting a Fall veggie garden?

Any tips?

Pam

Joining:

Jennifer Rizzo for her Fabulously Creative Friday Link Party