NC State Bird on my Porch

Shhh. They're nesting.

This basket last year held a beautiful fern, but I got slack and the ferns all died. I hadn't taken them down all winter. When spring came, Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal found one and set up a home. They have 4 little babies - and my cats want 'em!

Digging Up Dirt

I went to my parents' house yesterday and made a raised bed for their tomatoes. Oh, they're going to be crowded. In a 6'x2' planter, I put 3 tomatoes, 2 sweet basel and 1 green bell pepper. I hope the stands support and hold the Topsy Turvey tomatoes I hung. I think I'm going to have to go back and fasten them to the side of the tool shanty. One good wind and I think those Topsy Turvey hangers will land in China!

My mom always wants her tomatoes where she can pick them, which means the soil never gets a break. She had difficulty understanding why she needed to rotate space. So, I dug up the dirt where her 'maters typically are, mixed in some fresh soil, covered all that with newspaper and a little mulch - and then started adding new dirt. I included some lime, Black Cow manure, sand and vegetable garden soil. Not the ideal situation. Needs clay to hold the water. But my dad likes to water the plants, so I know they'll stay moist. I really should have taken some dirt from my garden, but didn't have time to dig some up and strain the weed roots out.

2009 - Up and Running!

We've had a lot of rain this year, so getting the ground prepared has been delayed. I didn't think I could get a tractor in my garden, but my neighbor, Bill Kenan - a long-time gardener - proved me wrong. Here he is turning the soil. Now this particular area hadn't really seen daylight in 3 years. It had been under black plastic. My thought was to till the entire garden, amend and cover this year with mulch.

Instead, I'm using the area seen in this photo for my garden and have planted Ambrosia cantaloupes to run over the rest of it. That area is where I've had my tomatoes for the past 4 years. I'm letting it rest with a lot of leaves and kitchen garbage so it will be ready for a larger crop of tomatoes next year.

And besides, there are only so many hours in a day. I can't tend to all of it. Weeds kill me. Shouldn't it be the other way around?