Our Indoor Greenhouse for seedlings.

We upgraded the lighting in a mini indoor greenhouse we built about a month ago.  We had one T5 full spectrum.  We added two more today.  This will give our seedlings all of the light they need to be great plants.  Our indoor greenhouse is made of a steel utility shelf, wrapped in mylar bubble wrap.  Sy was at Pet Smart and they had just received a shipment of fish and the mylar wrap was used to protect them during shipping.  Sy asked if she could have some and they gave her the whole box.  We still have enough to wrap another utility shelf.  We used the years of accumulated unused masking and duct tape we had, to hold it together.

We currently have carrots, spinach, lemon bergamot, pansies, and creeping thyme.  The carrots and spinach plants are going to planted in large pots so we can have fresh indoor grown spinach until the spring crop is seeded outside and comes up.  We are going to try growing our carrots in large pots as well.  we will cut the bottom out of the coconut fiber seed cups, and plant the in a large pot.  The lemon bergamot is a useful herb to have in the garden.  The pansies are edible self seeding flowers that we hope to have as a permanent self sustaining crop in our garden.    The creeping thyme is a blooming ground cover that is xeric and tolerant of being walked upon.  Our plan is to replace the grass in the pathways  and in our sacred circle with the creeping thyme.

We both have garden fever right now and are ready to plant.  It won't be long.

W.U.F. Update 06.09.09

The garden is doing well. We got quite a bit accomplished with Carols help today. The weeding is nearly caught up. I got the remaining tomato seedlings planted today. We now have 35 tomato plants of two varieties in the ground. I also got the long Island Cheese Squash planted. I also finally got the Atlantic Giant pumpkin seeds in the ground. I have wanted to grow a giant pumpkin for years but have never gotten it done. Maybe this is the year. We now also have four or five potato plants poking up out of their mounds of straw.

The corn is about 10 inches high. The onions and garlic are both doing well. The broccoli is producing new heads. The cherry tomatoes have fruit on them. We have harvested approximately five pounds of spinach already with no signs of letting up. I got the pole peas tied up yesterday. Next year I will have the infrastructure in place so I can grow them taller. They laid on the ground for too long and now they have bent stalks. All of the squash are doing well, and we expect to have more squash than we know what to do with soon.

All four of the mints are doing well. We are going to try and make some orange mint vodka and some pineapple mint vodka. We are experimenting with some horehound mint cough syrup with good results so far. The spicy oregano, and the rosemary are doing well. The bronze fennel can be harvested anytime.

We have had blueberries and strawberries. The raspberries are doing well, and we have harvested the rhubarb a couple of times. The rhubarb is ready to harvest again. I can't wait until it is time to get Colorado Western Slope Peaches and make peach rhubarb cobbler.

We also planted marigolds, dianthus, and lobelia between the stones and the mugo pines around the sacred circle. We mulched it with straw. The next step will be to get the grass out of the circle and replace it with creeping thyme.

I will get pics up in the morning. I wanted to do it tonight but ran out of daylight. More to come soon.--Jeremy

Random Thoughts by Syona 3.29.09

 Aloha!  It's only a few days 'til April, and the Vernal Meteorological Schizophrenia is upon us.  We just had a blizzard roll through here not 4 days ago, and the snow's already almost gone.  Windy and almost-warm, with a side of breeze.  

    Our weeds are sooo grateful for the snow.  Gosh.  While I do enjoy seeing my slice of winter-seared heaven turning green, all the greenery seems to be dandelions and tumbleweeds.  We just may try turning our hand at making some dandelion wine again this year.  The poor Chem-Lawn guy had fits driving past our yard a couple years ago, as our lawn was a lush sea of yellow; nothing but dandelions.  He finally knocks on the door, kindly offering his services, since our lawn was truly run over with these weeds.  Giving him my best "big, innocent b

lue eyes" act, he recieved an earnest, "Well, no, we're cultivating them."  When he (understandably) looked confused, I smiled brightly, "You can't make dandelion wine without the dandelions!"  He literally strangled out an incoherent reply, galloped back to his truck, and never returned again.  There's probably a prayer for me stuck to the side of some Chem-Lawn Gods shrine somewhere.  Poor guy.  

    We've got some creeping thyme seed.  This year, our Circle is finally going to be finished.  This project (our Sacred Circle, complete with altar) has been in progress for nearly five years.  The Quarter and Cross-Quarter stones, when installed, were the first real change we made to our yard, our first "footprint," so to speak.  After such a long gestation, to finally see our first project coming near to fruition is thrilling.  We'll of course post pics along the way to keep ya'll up to date.

    Our peas are coming up.  Yay.  The berries are accused of making leaf, but so far we only have one suspect.  Inquiries are being made.  The chives all got their first haircut of the season, a brutal hack job committed by yours truly.  (Well, what did you expect - I never was good at cutting my own hair.)  Their shaggy manes lopped off the morning of the blizza

rd, Jeremy was concerned they'd be thrown into shock.  I however, was totally dismissive of his concerns.  "They're chives," I sniffed.  Well, it's now 4 days later, and these herbs have grown at least 2 inches.  2 of those 4 days, they were buried under 4 inches of snow.  Yeah, I'm real concerned for their tender lives.  They'll probably outlive the cockroaches.  (Jeremy is reading this as I write it, and grumbled.)

    I planted 3 new strawberries not a week before the blizzard, without hardening them off first.  Oops.  The enthusiasm of the rookie - they were in the ground a full day before I even thought about the hardening of our store-bought plants.  They are, fortunately, doing beautifully.  Jeremy is, as I write, reluctantly uncovering my new rosemary in the front yard.  In his words, "it's quite lovely."  Joy.

    My bathroom is the brightest and warmest room of the house.  So now my countertops are covered with seedling trays.  I can't tell you how giddy I am.  My formerly spa

cious and tidy sanctuary is now more organic than some of the yards in my neighborhood.  A

t least I enjoy the scent of moist, fecund earth.  

   Well, as usual, my conversation has nosedived into potty humor.  I'll let you go for now.  Talk at ya some more later.  

Sy;)