The Need to Build.....

My parents just gave me 2 used skylights from their house in Florida. Good sized too. About
1 1/2ft x 4ft. So, I'm going to try to build a couple projects. First, I'm going to try to build a solar oven, then a cold frame. It should be interesting and fun!

Who's There?????

I went out this morning to find a few of the seedlings in my straw bales MIA! I've seen a doe in the yard a few times. Could be her. But there are also rabbits, chipmunks....you name it. So, I have to restart some seeds and go again!

What's Up With the Bales.....?

I decided to take some close up pictures of the straw bales happenings, since I put in another transplant this morning.

Bottom left are my Adirondack Blue potatoes. They have really begun to sprout already. If you remember from the last post, the potatoes were placed under flakes of straw, not in the bales themselves. I did not dig up the ground (as you can see). I also put in Yukon Golds. They are not sprouting as of yet, however the russets are. Neither are pictured, but done the same as the blues.

Bottom right is the opening in a straw bale that I made for today's transplant, which is a Big Max pumpkin. I started the seed indoors, and the seedling can be seen top right. Top left is the same little guy after it was placed in the straw bale. (This is the seedling I discussed in the last writing. It was started on May 27, and the picture above was how it looked 7 days later.)

In researching straw bale gardening, I found that some people actually cut sections out of the bale for planting. However the bales were loose enough to be able to just separate by hand. I had to put a little effort into it....not much, but I think it was still easier than cutting.

Oh, another fun thing for the day. I picked my first strawberries of the season. VERY sweet!

Rain, Seedlings and Vines

We had a decent rain last night, and dodged a hail bullet. The garden love the rain, and the straw bale seedlings came through fine.

I put in a second grape vine today. I have to do a bit of research, as these are the first grapes I've put in. Usually I just munch the wild grapes (which are yummy!). I'll be using the vines as a natural fence for the end of the garden.

I rigged up a small windowsill greenhouse for a giant pumpkin seed. I planted it on the 27th of May, and today, June 3rd, the seedling has sprouted and is about 1 1/2 - 2" tall. No fertilizer either. I don't think I've ever had something sprout so fast!

Straw Bale

I put some of my seedlings in straw this year. This will be the first time I have tried this, so we'll see how it goes. I wasn't able to season the bales as much as needed before I planted, so whether or not this will hinder success, I don't know.

I planted potatoes under straw flakes (top right). No burying necessary. Friends of mine swear by this method, so I'm giving it a shot.

Alongside the bales are my horseradish and strawberries. The 4th of July tomato plant shows signs of our lack of rain...until today!

House Guests

Sorry...this is a dark picture. But I have some visitors this week. "Mom" and "Dad" went away for a few days, and left the kids at my house, as they are having to be bottle fed.

Little cuties!

Garden Is....IN! For the most part......

Last week, with the assistance of a friend, the garden went in. Various types of tomato, including heirlooms, peas, limas, artichokes (first try), various squash, pumpkins, broccoli (if someone will stop nibbling on it), moon and stars melon, potatoes (including Yukon gold and Adarondack blue) and more.

The herb garden (not pictured) is a work in progress, and I will probably be adding to it for the next few years.

A few pictures of the garden in progress. Watch in the next day or so for more on the straw bales. Part of the garden is in them, as an experiment.

It doesn't look like much now, but hopefully it won't take long. The horseradish is huge, however, and the 4th of July tomato plants have little fruits already.