Oh my are the chickens everywhere in East Austin! I would wake up in the morning to their chuckles. It seems Austin has embraced the backyard chicken and celebrates it with the Funky Chicken Coop Tour in early April. The benefits of chickens: great addition to your garden ecosystem local protein no need to worry [...]
First off, why is this happening? Thoughts on La Nina, active solar storm season, and global warming all come to one’s mind. With solar storms come beautiful auroras, that were highly visible last Tues in some parts of the world (image above is Matthew Hodges‘). Now, what can one do for the garden? Well, mostly [...]
With winter comes ice, a dangerous situation for pleasant pedestrians on your walkways. All de-icers, even the “green ones,” have a salt in them. The harm that de-icers and salts do you your vegetation and the little paws of pups may not be worth it: burning your plants, building up in the soil, eventually making [...]
Just as the moon pulls on our oceans, it also effects our soil. Some may consider phases of the moon and gardening to be folklore, but we are part of a huge ecosystem. In my head that’s enough to give the moon some thought. According to Gardening By the Moon: “After the full moon, as [...]
This past week a friend of mine bought organic soil that had a gnat infestation. Not totally unheard of, but annoying none the less. Luckily, this pest does nothing to your plants, only annoys you. Not so great when you re-pot all your indoor plants and suddenly are swarmed by gnats. Gnats like these are [...]
Gardening is always full of surprises. When I moved into a new house and yard, I was desperate for compost to help the soil; and luckily some gracious friends provided. As Spring rolled through and Summer began, I noticed squash vines of some sort sprouting up everywhere, and towards harvest, I found myself with [...]
What a surprise to watch something you know you didn’t intentionally plant flower. This is my butterfly weed. I’ve admired butterfly weed at garden centers for their bright orange clusters, and now, I’ve got one! This past year I put to use some aged composted cow manure, and I believe this has been the source [...]
Summer rainy days provide a much needed cloud cover and cooling off with the added benefit of not having to water. If there’s thunder and lightning, refrain from going out with your metal tools (no need to rediscover electricity), but if it’s a nice drizzle, it can be a good day to meander and hand [...]
I am currently in love with love in mist. Last year I sowed seeds with only a few plants growing here and there in whites, pinks and blue. However this year, the reseeded plants are just plain beautiful. The white were the first to bloom, and now the puffy seed pods are forming, which are [...]
New vegetable gardener, Emily, sent me a few pictures with a note of concern about zucchini shading out her onions and beans. This will happen, and it’s time to prune. Pruning allows for air circulation, helping prevent mildew, a common issue with squash. The plant can be cut back 1/3 to it’s main vine. This [...]