The Frugal Gardener

As a rule, I am a very frugal (sometimes ridiculously so according to friends and family!) That same trait carries over to my garden.

If something comes up on its own, I either leave it or move it to a more suitable area. In order to do this, I've had to become aware of how plants look when they first emerge.

The result is that I get lots of free plants. I have noticed when they sprout on their own, the plants are much hardier. I delight in these small surprises!

Dill growing just outside the raised bed

Amaranth (I think)

Squash or pumpkin? Guess I'll find out soon

 

Borage

 

Tomatillo

Transplanted tomato plants that came up next to the peppers

Purslane everywhere

Ornamental pumpkin transplanted from compost pile

Ornamental pumpkin

Various squash and pumpkins growing in my compost pile

Mystery squash from compost pile

Pumpkin from compost pile



Zucchini from compost pile

Marigolds coming up from dropped seed heads

Fennel growing next to the original plant

 

 

 

Spring Garden....Barely!

It has been a very unusual spring in Texas. Here at home we have had over 10 inches of rain in May! Because of the rain (and a 4-week ear infection) part of my garden was planted in April and is coming along well and part of it was just planted on May 10th! Since I garden for pleasure, I have decided enjoy whatever I get this year! Next year will be another chance at an early garden.

Some of my garden was planted, part of it wintered over from last year, and here and there are plants that came up on their own! They are special surprises that will be revealed in their own time!




Flame acanthus, unknown squash or pumpkin, thyme

Various squash getting a late start

Rock rose

Pumpkins! (Note the unexpected pumpkin patch in the background. 
These came up in the compost pile!)

Sage and basil (the wintered-over arugula has gone to seed in the background)

Tomatillos and cucumber

A swallowtail caterpillar! I remove them from the fennel and place them on the dill that comes up year after year in this spot.

2nd season of fennel that wintered over, tomatoes and borage in the background

Beans and artichokes

Various peppers



Tomatoes



I enjoy going out to my garden several times during the day. It is my happy place!



Beeladee: Hive Inspection 5/2/15

Rainy weather, sickness, and being busy at school have delayed my latest hive inspection. This delay made me nervous since I wasn't too comfortable with what I saw during my last inspection (Beeladee: Spring Inspection 4/14/15) I took advantage of the beautiful weather today to open my hive.

I usually move bars from right to left and begin a detailed inspection as I replace them. As I started sliding empty bars and entered into the comb area, I was a bit alarmed. The comb was nearly empty of bees! As I continued to pry and slide the bars across, removing propolis and allowing it to drop to the bottom of the hive to be reused, I saw more and more bees. They were docile and appeared quite young, with unfrayed wings.

I finished sliding the bars apart and moved to the far right to begin my inspection. I gradually began to see some pupae, more larvae and some capped brood. There was increasing evidence of a strong queen and I decided that my hive had requeened itself! I did not see the new queen herself but felt confident of her presence. While I took notes, I smoked and moved the bars back in place with the feeling that the hive was recovering well.

Although there was pollen and syrup, there was no capped honey, which probably contributed to the calmness of the bees. I gave the hive some of last fall's comb from the freezer to give them a boost. I also moved some of the old dark comb toward the far left and culled out a couple of bars of old comb. I moved the newer comb to the right and dispersed the partially built out bars throughout the hive.

As I finished up my notes, took a couple of parting pictures and closed up, I felt that this hive was once again on the right track. I will wait a couple of weeks before inspecting again.



This is comb from last fall. It fell during an inspection. Since it was uncapped, we could not eat it. I put it in the freezer to replace in the hive as needed. I lay comb, pollen patties, etc. on an old cutting board that spans the hive body. This helps keep these food supplies from attracting ants and robber bees.

Beeladee: Spring Inspection 4/14/15

I went into my hive in March for a quick inspection. The hive was still full of bees, but the queen was laying in a very spotty pattern. The brood was spread over several combs instead of in a tight cluster. I also noticed several dark combs that needed to be culled out.

I went back in for a more complete inspection on April 14th. I saw larvae, capped brood and a few pupae, although they were quite sparse. I did not find the queen, but saw there were several very young larvae, so she had to be present.

During the past two inspections I noticed empty queen cells. Each time I crushed them so in future inspections, I could distinguish whether there were new queen cells or the same ones I had already noted. I am hoping the hive will requeen itself. I would think that most any queen would be better than the one that is there!

Both times I inspected I noticed one very small black beetle. I panicked thinking it might be small hive beetles. After reading up on this, I think the beetles I found were much too small to be small hive beetles. I will keep a close watch for more in future inspections.

I also saw a wax moth larva in the last inspection. This is a sign I need to get that old, dark wax out, as that is what the wax moths are after.

During the last inspection I spread the new comb throughout the hive and started moving the dark comb to the back. I will wait until all the brood are hatched, then remove the dark comb. 

I will need to open the hive at least once a week for the next few weeks until I see evidence of a stable queen. If the hive will not requeen itself, then I will order a new queen. I would prefer a wild queen for genetic diversity. My last two queens have come from swarming and natural requeening.

For a description of my note taking process see Beeladee: Hive Inspection 5/3/14

Photo by Bethany Henderson

Spending the Night with Darla

Darla was one of my best friends when I was in elementary school. She lived down the street within easy walking distance. Even though we were both from the other side of the tracks, literally, we lived very different lives. I was an only child living with my parents and grandmother, and she was the youngest of a large family, most of whom had grown up and left home. We spend countless hours together. My favorite times were when she would ask me to spend the night!

I don't remember spending the night in the summer, although I must have. What I remember was the winter. Once it was time to go to bed, we'd both put on our flannel nightgowns and take turns standing in front of the Dearborn gas heater. If you lifted the bottom of your gown slightly, it would fill with warm air and billow out! We took turns savoring the warmth, each shivering as soon as we backed away for the other to have a turn.

Once we finished the heater ritual, we would trot off to bed. Since Darla's mom was a quilter, there were several quilts on Darla's bed. I was not used to sleeping under quilts so they felt very heavy to me. Sometimes they seemed so heavy that it was hard to move! To get warm, I would pull my knees and legs up into my gown and put my face under the covers until I just had to come up for cold, fresh air.

After stories and giggles (and maybe a scolding or two) we'd fall asleep. Since Darla had a gas heater in her house, the air was moist. Condensation would form on the windows. If the night was cold enough, we'd wake to intricate frost patterns and ice on the inside of the windows!

In the morning we'd jump out of bed and run to the heater again, gowns billowing each in her turn! Mrs. Chapman always cooked up a hearty breakfast with eggs and biscuits! We would hurriedly eat and start our day of play.

I have lots of memories of fun with Darla such as using an axe head to hack down a poor little cedar tree to use for Christmas, putting empty cans in the street and then admiring them once a car drove over and flattened them, getting chased by cows in the field behind Darla's house, and walking barefoot all over the neighborhood until we developed thick callouses on our feet! But something about the sensory experiences of spending the night makes it stand out in my memory. What a blessing to be able to relive small moments in our lives time and time again! The details may become clouded but the feelings and sensations remain. I often remember these nights hunkering down under the blankets with Darla when our Texas weather turns icy! Sweet nostalgia!

One of Mrs. Chapman's quilts given to me for my birthday!

Winter Garden: "To everything there is a season..."

For most gardeners, Spring holds their interest with all its excitement and disappointment. I too enjoy spring, but as time goes on, I think my favorite garden season is winter!

As I work my winter garden, my mind and body are able to relax. There is no pressure to water daily, no hurry to weed. Everything slows down....rests.

.

Onions:
I usually plant onions around the perimeter of my garden. Their location is often forgotten, and they don't receive enough water and die back. In winter, they spring up again to continue their growth. What a nice surprise!
 



Dividing Onions
 

As I harvest my dividing onions in the fall, I replant several to start the process over again. These onions can go on forever!




Arugula

Arugula loves winter. I can go out daily and cut a big handful. It is wonderful in salads and on sandwiches!




Sage:
The sage changes little with the seasons. It was a gift from a former student named Sage! I do think of him often as I work in my garden. It also affords an opportunity to share organic sage with friends and neighbors as I will never use this much sage! 

 





Celery:
The celery has surprised me with its constancy. It slowly marches on, summer and winter, producing new stems. 




Fennel:
I enjoy the plants that survive, even thrive, during the winter. Dill comes up here and there. The fennel can grow without the constant threat of swallowtail caterpillars!  

Hand Screening Compost:
On weekends I get out and turn the soil, carefully screening it by hand to preserve the earthworms and hibernating frogs. I add rich compost to prepare for spring growth.
 

As I dig, turn, screen, harvest, plant, I find that I draw from this time of rest. I slow down and relax. My body, mind and heart are renewed. This is truly my favorite gardening season!


Ecclesiastes 3

3 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

² A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
³ A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
⁴ A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
⁵ A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
⁶ A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
⁷ A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
⁸ A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

They Come in Threes!

I've always heard "bad news come in threes"! That means the problems that lead to the bad news must "come in threes" also. When problems come your way, you can respond with anger and frustration or learn a lesson and laugh at yourself!

EVENT NUMBER 1. I received a much-appreciated gift: a reservation to attend the "dress rehearsal" for a local restaurant that was about to open! Not eating out often, I looked forward to this event with much anticipation! The day arrived and my husband and oldest daughter met me at the restaurant.

Our waiter was obviously new to the profession. He was being shadowed by a more experienced waiter who advised him when needed. The new waiter was trying hard to do a good job, but you could tell he was quite nervous. As we were finishing our appetizer, he arrived with drink refills. He held the wobbly tray high, shifting the heavy, full glasses around while he tried to take off the refill of root beer. Well....I'm sure you've guessed by now....the entire tray tipped, the root beer came crashing down onto the top of my husbands glass of water, breaking the glass, and sending root beer and water all over the table and my husband!

Four or five employees, including the manager, rushed over and began sopping up the mess. Our poor waiter stood with a rag in hand looking like he was trying to decide if he should dry my husband off! He wisely chose to just hand over the towel.

When our table was cleaned and my husband adequately dried, our meal continued. We enjoyed the rest of our evening and got a gift card and good story to boot!

EVENT NUMBER 2.  We had come to the restaurant in separate cars. As I traveled down hill towards home, I passed a waiting county sheriff! I was tired and not particularly paying attention to the speed my car had picked up. I looked down at my speedometer as I passed the sheriff.....bad news! He pulled out behind me and just followed me for a minute. Could it be that he hadn't noticed my speed? No, he was just politely waiting until we approached a safe place to turn off! On came the lights and I turned down a side street, out of traffic.

As the officer took my license, he asked if there was a reason for my speed and I told him that I was not paying attention as I coasted down the hill. He then asked if I had insurance and I told him I did. I reached for the paper, opened it to hand it to him, and noticed the date had expired!!! Informing him of this, he assured me he would check when he ran my license.

I sat in the car, swatting mosquitoes, and lamenting my decision to not monitor my speed and not download a current insurance card!! I certainly didn't want a ticket, but I was at fault!

The officer returned with my insurance and license. As I accepted them, he asked if I had noticed that BOTH my registration and inspection were past due!!! I was flabbergasted! In disgust at my own neglect, I threw my hands up to my head and stared in disbelief....how could so many things be wrong at one traffic stop!

He asked how quickly I could get my car inspected and I replied, "right away"! I gratefully accepted his warning and started again toward home! I guess the reason for his grace was that I have not been ticketed since the early 80s or even stopped for anything since the late 90s! I really do try to obey traffic laws!

EVENT NUMBER 3. The next day I was determined to get my car inspected. Working later than planned, I had to skedaddle to try to find an open shop.

I hoped to go to the 10-Minute Inspection Stop but as I approached I noticed all the doors were down...it was closed! I figured that would be the case for them all and I started home in frustration that I had stayed at work too long!

Right down the road I spotted an oil-change business that had an inspection emblem posted. It was open! I quickly entered the turn lane and pulled in. The employee who came out assured me there was time for my inspection before closing and I pulled around to the back, leaving the car for the air-conditioned waiting room.

As I was the only customer there, I busied myself playing a game, watching TV, and chatting with the manager. I played more games, watched more TV, and exhausted all common topics with the manager. He and I began looking toward the far bay where the inspection was taking place. The manager told me he would go help the man with the inspection to hurry it along.

Curiously I went outside two check on the two of them. The manager told me that the man inspecting my car had entered the wrong date and was doing the wrong emissions test on my car. He said they would have to start over!

Finally, a good hour and a half after I arrived, my inspection was complete! As I paid, I told the manager that I would now think of this shop as the "WAY MORE THAN 10-MINUTE" inspection station! He gave me an uneasy smile. Unlike the restaurant owner, he offered no gift card!

I mused over the last two days in somewhat disbelief. I could either be very annoyed or slightly amused. I chose to be amused....and to write a blog post!