Compost trumps Mulch

FarmHer Jill making compost

I always know when spring has officially arrived.  How do I know?  Well I begin to dream about planting gardens, ordering baby chicks, and all things outdoors.  Last night I had a funny dream, I even woke up my husband to tell him about it before I forgot the major parts.  You see, I was in an old klunker pick-up on a Big City freeway somewhere out there trying to find a meeting of some sorts or another to attend. The meeting was in a large, very tall building and I needed to park in a several story parting lot.  The meeting must have been real boring because I don't remember a thing about it!  As I was leaving, I couldn't remember which level I had parked my truck on so I asked a passer-by if the level I was on, was the one that came in off the freeway.  I explained to him, that I was an ole country, farm gal and didn't know my way around the city.  He just laughed at me and looking down his nose, he said, "So what, I don't care MULCH about you finding your truck!" (acting very snooty and superior about his own gardening accomplishments) Well, I really didn't think that was a very kind answer, so I kindly informed him,  "I also use mulch in my gardens, BUT I MAKE MY OWN COMPOST."  Because every good gardener knows,
 mulch is good, but..........  compost always trumps mulch!

Garden Art

On our trip to Arizona to see family we stopped in Sedona and visited several Art Galleries.  While wandering around this beautiful, quaint town nestled among the high mountains we found these stepping stones engraved with messages written by children.

Try making some for your garden.

Here is information about making a unique birdbath using Rhubarb leaves
 from an earlier post

this post will explain in detail how easy these are to make

Make several and place strategically in your yard,
Fill with water or birdseed

Life isn't a basket of Rotten Apples

After going to the back porch, pulling open one of the dresser drawers filled with stored fruit and picking out the crispest apple in the drawer to eat, my husband came back with a grin on his face.  He told me once again one of his favorite memories of his Grandma, Deseret.  When he was young she would tell him about how she had to eat soft, rotten, mushy apples all winter.  Every few days her mother would send her down into the cellar and have her pick through the stored apples.  "Bring up the apples that are bruised, beginning to rot, and have turned mushy." her mother would direct.  " We need to save the good apples for later."
Needless to say, Grandma never ate a good, crisp apple all winter long.  By saving the good apples for later they would inevitably be turning soft and mushy before they were eaten.  I guess the moral of the story is.........saving for a rainy day is good advice, 
but don't put of living and enjoying life TODAY!

Ordering Chicks

Picture of a few of my favorite breeds:
Ameraucana, Rhode Island Red, Barred Rock, and Golden Comet

I especially like the Golden Comet, a cross between a Rhode Island Red and a Leghorn

I generally order my chicks in the fall of the year.  Late September when they arrive I put them in the smaller of my two coops.  As they grow through the winter they are kept cozy and warm in the small coop with a heat lamp hanging from the ceiling.  In the early spring  (when they have grown sufficiently enough not to be eaten by the cats) they are let loose to roam in the gardens and begin the tilling process.  As they scratch the ground, eating the weed seeds, finding the grubs that have wintered over and sometimes a mouse or two, I enjoy watching their antics as they enjoy their freedom.  However, once the gardens are planted in late June I begin penning them in the Large coop where they will spend the summer laying beautiful, nutrient rich eggs. The older hens that were living in the large coop have been sold as 2 year old layers, or put into the freezer.  I rotate the hens out every two years.  This keeps egg production high, and allows me to try new breeds.

If you are ordering chicks for the first time, research which breeds will do well in your area. I like the dual breeds best for my area.  The long cold winters are hard on the lighter breeds, frozen combs and  feet are common with the light breeds even though their egg production is better.  For the past 30 years we have raised chickens.  Sometimes up to several hundred at a time.  I raised the Golden Comet, along with my other favorite breeds, the past 5 years.  I personally really like this hen.  They handle the winter weather fine and  begin laying earlier than the other breeds (about 18-20 weeks old)  .   Their egg production is good, but the light brown eggs are a little smaller than the dual-purpose, heavier breeds.

If I were to list my favorite breeds, they would go in this order:

1. AMERACANA, because they lay gorgeous, green eggs, and I think the eggs taste better!  This breed is not real productive as a laying hen, but I love the variety of colors the hens come in!

2. RHODE ISLAND RED, a good layer, sensible, and seem to be more hardy than the other breeds.

3. GOLDEN COMETS, great egg production and are quick to mature and begin laying.

4. BARRED ROCKS, I think they are beautiful and produce eggs fairly well.  Very Hardy. Dual-purpose.

5. AUSTRALOP, lays well, but is also a good dual-purpose breed.  The beautiful dark black feathers glisten with green and purple in the sun.

6. BUFF ORPTINGTON, very friendly, docile breed, does not lay as well as the other breeds, but tastes great for Sunday Dinner.

I have ordered from several companies over the years and have found Cackle Hatchery to be the best company to order from.  Quick, friendly service, and if there has ever been a problem they are more than willing to make it right.

gathering the eggs from the straw filled laying boxes attached to the outside of the coop

What is your favorite breed of chicken to raise?

STARTING SEEDS INDOORS

                            STARTING SEEDS INDOORS

        CROP               WEEKS BEFORE

                                   SETTING OUT             

ONIONS, LEEKS                      10-12

CELERY                                     8-10

TOMATOES                              8-10 

EGGPLANTS                             6-8

PEPPERS                                   4-6

CABBAGE                                 4-6

CAULIFLOWER                        4-6

BROCCOLI                                4-6

HEAD LETTUCE                       3-4

MELONS, SQUASH &              3-4

CUCUMBERS

Note add in the recommended days listed on the seed packet for seed germination.

Gather containers to plant your seeds in. Poke holes in the bottom of the container.   Fill with moist soil.  I recommend using 1/2 purchased organic potting soil and 1/2 of your garden dirt.   Plant 2-3 seeds per pot. Place plastic wrap over containers to help keep them moist.  Setting them in a tray and placing on your refrigerator generates heat from the bottom for better germination.  When seed have sprouted and grown an inch, cut off the weakest sprouts, leaving one per container (use this method for cole crops and vine crops.    Place seedlings in a sunny south window, turning daily to prevent legginess.

  When raising tomatoes or peppers, I plant a group of seeds into a container.

                                                                     an Heirloom Tomato, PURPLE CHEROKEE

placing containers (recycled yogurt cups) in a plastic container helps keep the seeds moist enough to sprout

                              When seedlings are about 3 inches tall they are carefully removed, separated, and transplanted into  larger separate containers and placed in the sun room to await planting.  They can also be kept in an outdoor cold frame.  Just remember to vent them during the day and cover at night.

Cumber and squash plants are planted in individual containers.  A good recyclable pot is made from newspaper, paper eggs cartons, or toilet paper rolls. They do not transplant well so plant them in a container large enough for growth until you plant them in the garden.

Be sure to harden off plants before setting them in the garden.  It takes about a week.  Put them outdoors in the shade for a few hours on a mild day, and leave them longer the next day.  On day 3 move them into the sunlight for half the day, shade for the other half.  Bring them in at night.  On day 5, leave them in the sun most of the day and overnight (if there is not a threat of frost).  By the next day, leave them in the sun all day and night.  Don’t forget to water several times a day!  It only takes a short time for the plants to burn and dry out.  Transplant in the garden. Keep a careful watch over them.  Cover with a shade cloth if needed for a few days.

If I can't GROW them, I PAINT them

During the long winter days when it's too cold to be out working in the gardens, I spend much of my time in the studio painting flowers.

ideas are sketched on large drawing paper

I sit on my old, soft and comfy, vintage foot stool to paint

getting the basic shapes and shadows blocked in before I begin painting the details

sometimes I paint people

once I even painted a "self portrait"

I like to paint cows

This large painting "THE LEAD COW" framed in old red barn wood is available for sale.

It can be purchased at "Gypsy Mama's" in Fort Duchesne.

this 11x14 painting is available for $65.00

8x10 on canvas board $45.00

My original art work and signed prints can be purchased at the store, or 

contact me.   

Soil Temperatures for best results of Germination and Growth

Here are a few guidelines for determining the best time to plant your seeds.

Using a soil temperature gauge is a good indicator of when your soil has warmed sufficiently to allow your seeds to germinate.  I have noticed over the years that planting my seeds of cool season crops a week behind the volunteers ( greens, lettuce, chard, spinach, etc.)  that pop up in the spring usually results in a good germination and growth rate.

Soil Temperature Conditions for 
Vegetable Seed Germination

     35 degrees- spinach, lettuce, onion, parsnip

40 degrees- beet, cabbage, carrot, cauliflower, celery, chard,  garlic, parsley, pea ,radish, turnips

50 degrees-asparagus, corn

60 degrees-beans, cucumber, eggplant, musk melons, pepper, pumpkin, squash, watermelon

Do not plant seeds of warm weather crops until the soil is 60 degrees or warmer, usually 2 weeks after your last frost.

Satisfactory Temperatures to encourage plant growth

Arugula is one of the first volunteers to sprout in the early spring

COOL SEASON CROPS

 30 degrees-  Asparagus. Rhubarb

40-65 degrees- beet, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, chard, collard, horseradish, kale, kohlrabi, parsnips, radish, rutabaga, sorrel, spinach, turnip

45-75 degrees-artichoke, carrot, cauliflower, celeriac, celery, chicory, Chinese cabbage, endive Florence fennel, lettuce, mustard, parsley, pea, potato

45-85 degrees-  chicory, chives, garlic, leeks, onion, salsify, shallots

WARM SEASON CROPS

     60-90 degrees-  beans, lima beans, corn, cucumber, musk melon, new Zealand spinach, pumpkin, squash,

HOT SEASON CROPS

65-100 degrees-eggplant, hot pepper, okra, sweet potato, tomato, watermelon

Hot weather crops need to be grown in the Green house at the Farm in Beryl.  Cold nights and late frosts until the end of JUNE inhibit their growth.   However, I had a beautiful outdoor crop of peppers and tomatoes in Roosevelt.

Start seeds indoors for these warm weather veges

I also recommend planting seeds of  winter squash, summer squash, and cucumbers instead of buying plants.

Click here for the post

PLANTS OR SEEDS

picture proof that seeds planted at the right soil temperature will out preform transplants.

The garden is sleeping, but not me

Not much is going on around here.  It is winter time and of course the garden is sleeping.  But not me, as I have stated several times before.... I can't sleep, catching about 3 hours a night and I am ready for the adventures of a new day.  My significant other however needs his rest.  He does get up early, a little before 5:00 a.m. every day and goes off to work by 6:30.  Sometimes on the weekend (only during the winter) he sleeps a little longer unless I  drag him out of bed early on a Saturday morning to get a good start on a project...........(thanks hun for helping me with the kitchen island).  Well, the weather has been cold and it is dark until 7:00 a.m., so the other night (about 2 a.m. on a Friday night) I woke him and asked if he was going to get up at his regular 5:00 a.m. time that Saturday morning. (of course I had a long list of things to get accomplished) I went on to explain that if you break your sleep schedule it really throws you out of whack, catching a few extra hours of sleep doesn't make that much difference for the rest of the week, Blah, Blah, Blah, and I continued on to say, " it can even make you grumpy and ornery when you change your sleep cycles."  He chuckled and replied, "I'm not Grumpy, I'm SLEEPY!"  Then he paused for just a moment and added, "but most of the time I'm just Dopey..............and if you would let me sleep in.......... I'd be HAPPY!!!!!"

Well, he generally is not very funny, so of course I had to let him sleep in........ just a bit....... until 7:00...............and we still had enough time during the day to cross several projects off the list!

A few words of wisdom:

"THE EARLY BIRD CATCHES THE WORM"

first recorded in the year 1670 

by John Ray
in a book 

A Collection of English Proverbs

and this famous quote by Benjamin Franklin

"EARLY TO BED AND EARLY TO RISE

MAKES A MAN HEALTHY, WEALTHY AND WISE."

and as my Grandma used to say;

"WORK FIRST,

GET IT DONE,

PLAY LAST,

YOU'LL HAVE MORE FUN!"

Country Kitchen Island and CHALKBOARD

When we moved into our current rental 2 years ago we placed this old antique dresser in the middle of the kitchen to serve as an island.  I purchased this long ago and have dragged this old dresser from state to state over the years.  It always finds a spot in my kitchen.  In Nevada we placed a purchased counter top on it when it stood in for the old, falling apart kitchen cupboards we tore out of the old house we purchased, that was built in the early 1900's.  

When my son and husband finished building the custom cabinets, 

it became a buffet in the dining room.

I began painting it white, but something came up in the middle

 of my painting project so I only painted the top.

I especially like the two narrow middle drawers,

 they are perfect for storing knives and cutting boards

The large drawers hold baking sheets, muffin tins etc.  

They measure 53" long and are over 9 inches deep.

When we first moved it in as an island I wanted to put a chalkboard on the back and a thick hardwood butcher block on the top, but it sat unfinished until a few weeks ago.  A hardwood top was just to pricey to construct, so an inexpensive pine top from the local home improvement worked great.

I applied vegetable oil on the pine top to season the wood.  I will continue applying several more coats giving it a food safe protective barrier that will help prevent food stains.  

before

Attaching the pine top with screws to keep it secure.

I painted a large piece of Masonite board with chalkboard paint and nailed it to the back.  Apply several coats of paint for the best results.

Using an extra large picture frame (purchased years ago at a thrift store), we cut it to size framing the chalkboard.  I specifically chose this one from my stash of frames because it had a indentation on the outer edge.  

The bottom piece was not put on as it was in the original frame.  Instead I turned it over and used the indentation as a holder for the chalk and eraser.

Old vintage wall plant hangers are attached to the side to hold fresh fruits and veges.

This weekend I will be painting the dresser to match the kitchen cabinets.

It will match the existing "cactus green" color.