Surprise Garden

Well, spring is here and this past weekend brought 80 degree weather to SE Washington! 

It also lured me into my garden. 

Look what was there to greet me:

Last year's Parsley wintered over!

 Along with the chives and a few perennials.

There were also many, many bugs. Some were unwanted, like the aphids and wasps. 

Ugh!
While the tulips are certainly bright and sunny,
the aphid infestation makes me want to gag and leaves my skin crawling!
They were all over my roses too. Pruning was a nightmare. 

The ladybugs have been ordered and should arrive this week. 

(Lady bugs will be a first for me, wish me luck)

 Some bugs are VERY wanted. 

Can you see the Praying Mantis egg on the fence? 

I get one every year, and it is always fun to discover each year's nest.  

This year, it didn't take too long to put in the garden. I'm trying to go a bit more low-maintenance (i.e.: cheaper!) by using more perennials. More up front cost, but lasting results. So I dug up bulbs last fall, added a few additional ones to my collection this spring, and put them all in the ground. Along with moving a few herb shrubs and planting a few veggie seeds the garden is already in good shape. I even have salad greens sprouting! Mmm, mmm, good.

I do have a few more things to get, but I am thrilled with how easy it was to get the garden set this year. Still to come: I'm going to try ordering a Bay Leaf tree and try it in my garden (anyone have any suggestions on how to help it winter over?). I'll be picking up some chamomile and echinacea for some planters and I'm still debating a tomato plant this year. The growing tomatoes for canning didn't go as I expected last year, but the idea of fresh summer salsa is sure appealing (any suggestions on varieties?).

Oh, and BIG bonus share. I found a cheap, eco-friendly weed killer! In the past I have just gone the old fashioned route and pulled them out by hand...but with my sensitive skin and grass allergies, this has always been a challenge for me (I'm talking rash-city--yukka!). I recently read that plain ol' white vinegar will safely kill the weeds. I tried it out this weekend and am quite pleased with the results. The weeds are drying up. However, I do have some "burn" marks in my lawn, apparently the vinegar will kill all plant life. But hey, grass comes back with a vengeance this time of year!

Any surprises in your garden?

A Little Birdie Told Me

A while back I had seen a few birds lurking around my garden. A finch here, a humming bird there. So naturally I had to encourage these cutie pies. I bought feeders and my husband erected a stand. Lo and behold, we have frequent guests now!

A pretty little finch.

The feisty humming bird.

Two in one shot!

Can you spot both of them eating?

First Fruits!

We've been able to eat from the garden!

 

Salad greens

 Arugula

 My "helper" took the stems

A few meager peas. They'll be good in today's lunch though!

There's also been a few radishes. But I already ate them! Whoops.

Lemon Balm

I have a TON of lemon balm in my garden right now. And my basil is slow in coming.

I wondered if I could make pesto with the lemon balm. 

Lo and behold--I can! 

It made for a wonderfully fresh sauce with a soft lemon flavor.

Lemon balm and soy nuts (my substitute for the pine variety) in food processor. 

You could even grate a bit of cheese in there as well. 

Secure lid and turn on food processor, add olive oil through spout.

Toss with pasta of choice (spaghetti here) and top with Parmesan cheese. 

I found a great recipe for lemon balm cookies. I'll be sure to share that one soon! 

Maybe I'll have a whole Lemon Balm series.

A Quick Project

Because of this...

"But Mom, what's wrong with a hole in the middle of the yard?"

We put in this...

I'm going to love all my plants staying in the ground. His jury is still out...

"No fair!"

A dog can always dream...

I'll get back to cooking soon.

Grow, Garden, Grow

sugar peas

radishes just peeking through the dirt

A tomato plant.

Salad greens.

green peppers and lemon balm

herbs and geraniums

happy daisies

flowers, chives, tomatoes and salad greens behind potted rosemary

green beans and Spanish lavender

fuscia, and the chicken wire fence (no dogs allowed!)

At this point, the garden is virtually complete! So excited to watch everything grow and fill in. That dirt patch left by lawn removal will sure to yield some yummy herbs and veggies for the summer!

Happy Thoughts

Currently, my delightful moment each day is noticing the progress of my seedlings: they are so stinking cute, I can hardly stand it! It looks like it might be time to re-pot as we're not quite done with  freezing temperatures at night.

And on a personal note, I'm rather proud of myself for growing these lil' guys with my reputed "black thumb" for indoor growing.

Green beans and tomatoes

peppers and peas

Garden Expansion

Last summer, I had a small herb garden just off my patio. This year we decided to expand. The thought process went something like this: That little patch of grass in the corner is a pain to mow, maybe we should pull up the grass and expand the garden. I have been thinking about canning my own tomato sauce...

So I took a few days of my spring break and tore up the easy to care for grass. I also brought in top soil and mulch to cover the sand that I found underneath (What am I getting myself into!?!?). As it is still too early to plant much of anything, I only put seeds for salad greens in the ground. But I do have some tomatoes, green beans and peppers starting in my window sill.

The one extra trick--outsmarting my dog! He likes to dig in the oh-so-ever-enticing mud. Hopefully covering it in chicken wire and borrowed bricks from the garden wall will do the trick!

By the way...did I mention I'm not much of a gardener, and in fact one of those pesky allergies I mention in my intro would be to dirt (What am I getting myself into!?!?)

Before: lovely, low-maintenance grass

After: Note the old garden in back left
corner & my little "helper."