Guerrilla Gardening, Part II

Well, the WORK has started on our aforementioned "Guerrilla Garden". We've decided on Halloween pumpkins and some annual and perennial flowers to avoid the pollution issues, and to keep it relatively drought tolerant and low maintenance.



And let me tell you, Texas clay (especially when situated in the middle of a median) is not a very hospitable medium. It's hard as a rock, totally void of ANY insect or worm population (we saw ONE burrowing June Bug and a grub), and full of rocks, old pieces of asphalt, and pieces of old houses... But it's coming! We worked on it for about 3 1/2 hours yesterday, and got about half of it dug, sifted, and raked. Tonight we will have to finish digging, mix in a BUNCH of compost and plant tomorrow, because we leave for our Honeymoon Thursday!

And yesterday we chicken wired the top of the chicken run (no more squirrels in the coop!) and cleaned it, planted some lantana and lavendar near the container garden to attract some pollenators, and made some homemade biscuits with MaryJane's Budget Mix, my new favorite ridiculously easy, baking mix.

Stolen!

This is my first gardening experience. My first time to lovingly tend a plant, and watch fruit grow from my ministrations. I'm sure everyone else knows the satisfaction of watching a tomato start to blush on the vine, waiting for the perfect shade of red, the perfect day to pick and eat your prize, but this is my first time. It is also my first time to go out to harvest my very first tomato off of my very first tomato plant, only to find it dinner for SOME OTHER ANIMAL.

Yes, I've been waiting to pick this particular tomato for two weeks. There are plenty more where it came from (this is my one container plant that is thriving), but this was the first! And some stupid bird came along and ruined it. So what to do with semi-ruined food? Why, the ladies of course. And so, my disappointment becomes their feast...

**note to self: I simply MUST get a better camera... close-ups just do not work with my current one!

Mmmmmmm... Scones!

Yesterday I was doing my daily blog run, and while at my favorite of all blogs, Farmgirl Fare, I happened upon one of the recipes she posted loooong ago. Somehow I mustered up the urge to bake, and so on my grocery trip to Whole Foods, I picked up the few needed ingredients and set about to make some delicious Savory Cheese & Scallion Scones! I subbed fresh from the garden chives and yummy cheddar, and it was quite a treat! Paired with a fresh and mostly local organic salad, it made for a lovely dinner (on the sofa in front of the TV because The Closer was on...)

Mmmmmm... farmgirl baking... I'll have to do this more often!

(and ps... add an egg, a slice of cheddar and a generous helping of organic cream cheese, and you've got yourself a killer breakfast sandwich!)

19 days and counting...

19 days since my last post-- that's my new personal record!!

Well, things have definitely been busy-- working 55 hours or more at the "day job" and still working on the little urban farmstead. I had a bout with squash vine borers and so am now down to two plants out of 6. It was very sad to finally realize why my plants were wilting and dying, but pretty darned gratifying to watch Camilla gobble up the villian!

(not my photo-- brought my camera and proceeded to take NO photos...)

This weekend was Wes' big birthday #28... we had a family dinner at our local greasy spoon, Barbec's (tradition dictates breakfast for dinner on Wes' birthday). And since he steadfastly REFUSES to "celebrate" his birthday, we went on a "totally un-celebratory" camping trip to New Braunfels, Texas. We mainly went to see Jerry Jeff Walker (Texas country legend) at Gruene Hall, but river tubing and camping on the Guadalupe with friends was a great bonus. We were also testing out our camping equipment, because our 10 day camping/roadtripping/going to MaryJane's Farm Fair trip is rapidly approaching, and I know next to nothing about camping.

Well, it was reasonably successful. It was beautiful Saturday and Sunday, but rained CATS and DOGS on Saturday night, and our tent only leaked a little! And we stayed mostly dry thanks to our little sleeping pads. Anyway, so we tubed on Sunday morning, got out and hauled butt to my parents' house for Father's day.

Overall things are going well, just bone tired and TOTALLY ready for our vacation in less than 2 weeks! (Although I have a feeling I'll be bone tired after that as well. Oh, well... I guess this is just life! I'll get used to it~)

Early Harvest!

So we've started! I had to clean up the basil so the tomato gets a little more light, and our most (and only) productive pepper, the Cayenne, is going NUTS! I only got two yesterday, but there's a bunch on the plant that will be ready soon!

And the crookneck squash and roma tomatoes are almost ready to go (sorry about the terrible tomato pic!)

Then, of course, there's Camilla and Piggy... I ask you, what is cuter than dirt-bathing chickens!!!! It's their favorite new pastime (and my favorite to watch). Here they are in one of their many dust bowls... under the deck.