HELLO AGAIN-2009

Hi to everyone!
I have not posted since last November, but I am really excited to start blogging again! While It has been many months, it is really fun to realize that there has been a lot of progress made on our front yard project! It is also so energizing to have the weather warm up and the plants growing! For my first post of the year, I will show you the finished front wall.




If you look closely, you can see a one of two new trees at the entrance and a mailbox slot with our house address on it.

The trees are Chinese eastern redbuds-Cercis chinensis 'Avondale' – Zones 4-10. The Avondale is a cold hardy, compact, spring blooming ornamental tree that grows about 10-15' tall, making it perfect for small garden spaces.

The mail can be deposited in the slot and will be retrieved on the other side-see picture below...

I think I will antique the mail door and put a knob on it to open it easier....not right away.

The next step is to create a walkway. We are well on our way...we have dug the area, laid the forms and poured the concrete. And as you may have noticed in the picture above, we are going to create the walkway out of tumbled Connecticut Bluestone. Hopefully that will give the front a softer look.

The clematis are still blooming along with the amaryllis and fox glove...Life is GOOD!

Happy Gardening,

The Part-time Gardener:)

Time out!

Earlier this month, my husband and I took a well-deserved vacation in Maui. There we were able to spend most of our time just enjoying the tropical paradise and our time together. We slept, snorkeled, read, boogie-boarded, swam, visited a Lavender Farm and ate well.

My best dinner was at a place called, "Sea Watch" at the golf course in Wailea. There we ate our most delicious dinner, while watching a beautiful sunset over the water. It just does not get any better!

Happy Gardening,

Part-time Gardener:)

Garden Wall-Foundation

The WALL has started. The first step was deciding what we wanted..... and then came the WORK! The first step was marking out where the final wall would reside. Then the hole was dug with a trencher and a pick and shovel when necessary. Then the gravel and rebar were placed in the hole. After that was done, the concrete was poured.

We got our concrete from a local building supply company already mixed and in the truck. This was a great time saving step, but we needed more concrete than we estimated. Since we needed more, we went back to pick up another yard and was hit with extra fines since they do not stop the clock over. Beware!

I do not think this wall is going anywhere after seeing what it is being built on!!! The trench was two wall thicknesses wide and deeper than I expected. about 16 inches. The mason believes in starting the wall a brick or two below grade so that the foundation will never be seen. This will help me be able to plant close to the wall. The next step will have visible results!


Happy Gardening,

Part-time Gardener:)

Surprise Blooms

Last week I started to research what to do with the Amaryllis bulbs I planted in my raised bed last January. Should I take them out and refrigerate them or leave them in the ground? Later that day I was walking by my raised bed, I looked over and saw that that one of the Amaryllises was blooming! Not at all what I expected! I hope the others follow suit.
That day I also found my potted Angel Trumpet plant with blooms. This was a fun surprise, but not as unexpected as the blooming Amaryllis. I originally bought the Angel Trumpet in bloom in October, but in the past years the Angel Trumpet I had in the ground would bloom in mid to late summer. As the weather is starting to get colder, I moved the Angel trumpet inside to protect it.

Happy Gardening!

Part-time Gardener:)

Oatmeal Cookie Recipe

My friend and co-worker told me she had put a link to my blog from her thriving blog regarding a recipe I had given her. Hearing that, I decided to post another recipe that others at work have inquired about recently. They had wanted a recipe for a treat that was not too unhealthy. I gave them this recipe for Oatmeal Cookies, since it is one of the healthiest ones I have and my family loves these cookies. While I have modified this recipe to try to make it a little healthier, it is a version of the recipe that my mother and grandmother used to make.

Claudia’s Oatmeal Drop Cookies
2 cups sifted White Whole Wheat Flour (King Arthur)
1 cup sugar
1/8-1/4 cup flax
½ t. baking powder
½ t. baking soda
½ t. salt
1 to 1½ t. cinnamon
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup raisins
1¼ cup canola oil
2 eggs, large
½ cup milk mixed with 1 T molasses

1. Sift together first 8 ingredients.
2. Add rolled oats and raisins and mix thoroughly.
3. Add in order: salad oil, eggs, milk. Mix after each addition.
4. Drop on ungreased baking sheet.
5. Bake at 375°F for 10-12 minutes (I bake at 325°F in convection oven for 13 min).
Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

Happy Baking!
Part-time Gardener:)

Decision on the Front Yard

Searching for a design for a new front yard was not a quick task. We thought we had found the answer when we came across a neighbor who had built a lovely 6 foot wall in front of her beautiful garden. Stepping past the wall felt like you had just entered another world-very calm and private. Then we found out that the city would not allow us to build a wall higher than 48 inches. She was able to build her 6 foot wall because the small court that her property is on is actually considered a private driveway. Oh well.

We finally decided that what would make my husband happy is a brick wall similar to the one pictured above. I wasn't so sure we needed a 4 foot brick wall, but believe it will add some instant charm to the front view of the house. The bricks will be a different color than the lovely used bricks pictured, and will hopefully resemble the bricks on our house. Our wall will be 4 feet from the sidewalk and the height will be 4 ft, as dictated by the city. We talked to the owners of the house pictured above to find out that their wall is about 80 years old! We hope the wall will make it easy to create an attractive drought-tolerant garden in the front yard. The best news is that we are moving forward fast, which means I may be able to plant some trees next month!! Stay-tuned---I will be posting updates!

Part-time Gardener:)

Road Trip

Earlier this year my husband, daughter (23 years old) and I ventured up to the Russian River Valley to check out some of the vineyards. Our favorite winery turned out to be the Hop Kiln Winery in Healdsberg. Not that we checked all of them out, but this one caught our attention because of it's history. While the property had been a workiing ranch since the mid 1800's, it was in 1905 that the Walters family built the kiln to process hops. The hops industry declined in the 1950's, and the kiln and barn became a winery in 1975. I enjoyed the feel of the building while tasting their great wines. It would be fun to attend a wedding there! Below is a picture of the Hop Kiln Winery:

End of the Hydrangea Season

As the summer winds down, the Hydrangea blooms are ripe for drying. I am not always successful, but have found that I must not pick these beautiful blooms too early or they will not become the wonderful dried flowers I so love. The time to pick the Hydrangea blooms changes a bit every year. I cut the blooms in mid September to early October when the blooms start to look a bit old. I find that picking these blooms late in the season, removing their leaves and putting them in a vase with a little water works well. I just let the water dry up, allowing the blooms to slowly dry out, leaving a wonderful dried flower!
Happy Gardening,
The Part-time Gardener:)

ROADSIDE TREASURE

On the way home from surfing, my daughter saw a table on the side of the road with a "FREE" sign. The car pulled over and these are a few of the treasures she found. They are three wine glasses with hand painted images of three fun party girls! We are now thinking about doing a little more painting to make a set.

My husband also found a great treasure...a BBQ light better that the one I just bought for him for Father's Day.

It is fun to see that one person's trash can really be another person's treasure:)

It was a great ending for a day without the perfect wave.

Happy Gardening,
Part-time Gardener

The "BEFORE" Pictures

I have been gone from blogging for quite awhile...first I got a terrible summer cold that lasted for about a week and then I needed to catch up!!! I am so glad to be back to my old self!

As my last blog was the "Summer Garden Tour 2008," I thought I would present a few photos of what my backyard looked like as we worked on it.

The first thing we did was to have a fellow build us a new garage and had the part of the driveway in front of the garage poured. The next step was tearing down the old garage that was placed pretty much in the middle of our property. We contacted many recycling organizations and placed ads looking for people who wanted a two car garage. By the time we were ready to tear it down, we had found someone who would take our wood if we disassembled the garage. We found out the following week that we should have waited a little longer... a man asked if he could have our garage as it was so he could split it and move it on to his property. Although the way we did it was more work, at least the wood got reused. Below is a picture of part of our group tearing down the garage and then a picture of the yard without the garage.

We then put in the sprinklers, rock wall, brick patio, brick edging of the lawn and the lawn itself.



Once most of the yard was in place, we were able to decide on the type and size of the fence we wanted to separate the patio from the driveway.

We still need to landscape a few more areas, but do not feel that it is all that urgent! Someday it will all be done!

We did a lot of work to create the backyard we wanted, but it sure was a lot of fun!

Happy Gardening,

Part-time Gardener

Summer Garden Tour

This backyard garden has been through a big transformation. Where the current brick patio is, there was once a garage. We are still working on the details, but find the yard very relaxing. Although these pictures were taken after the first blooms of summer were removed, here is a tour of my backyard garden. I hope you find something of interest in my yard that you can use in yours...

Thanks for putting on the tour!

Happy Gardening,

Part-time Gardener

Tip on Astramerias

While talking with our wonderful landscape designer, she told me about a great way to dead-head my Astramerias. Instead of the time consuming job of cutting each spent blossom, you just pull the stock out from the ground. I went out this morning to try it and it is, as she said, very quick!! Now I just hope that the flowers come back as quick. I do love their flowers.
Happy Gardening,

Part-time Gardener

Congratulations!!

Congratulations to Nancy at http://mycraftylittlepage.blogspot.com/, Irma at http://irmasrosecottage.blogspot.com/, erica e at http://playincypress.blogspot.com/, Donna at http://chiggerlaneshop.blogspot.com/ and Cindy at http://romantichome.blogspot.com/
who will be sent a package of Hollyhock and Clematis seeds! Please send me the address where I can send your new seeds. It was so exciting to find out that so many people want to start these plants from seeds. True gardeners, every one of you!

I have just started another six-pack of Persian Cucumbers, since all but two plants were destroyed by the snails/slugs in my first six-pack. Hopefully I will outsmart the snails this time! I am also delighted to report that the melon seeds I planted last week have sprouted. These seeds were collected and dried from some melons I bought at a small grocery chain last summer. I hope they produce the same wonderful melons we enjoyed last year!
Happy Gardening,
Part-time Gardener

Decisions, Decisions...

I am having a hard time deciding what to put in our front yard. Since our house has brick on one side, is all brick too much? Should rock be added to the mix? Would plants used in place of a wall be more street friendly? I've added the photo-shopped pictures I have so far. For the rest, use your imagination and HELP ME DECIDE!
RESULTS: Fairly even distribution among the pictures displayed! Thanks for voting!

Tomato Time! (Part 1)

If you look carefully you can see the tomato plant coming out of the bottom of this plant hanger! I had seen the containers for planting tomatoes upside down while looking on the web for tomato cages and decided I needed to try this. Not wanting to wait for an order to be delivered, I bought this planter at the local Wal-Mart store after dinner and finished planting before dark. The picture above was taken the next morning around 8 am. As you can see, the tomato plant had already started growing up!! That was about three weeks ago and this is what it looks like now... much bigger and with flowers...

To plant a tomato upside-down:

Items needed: 1) a small tomato plant in a 4 inch or less container, 2) a hanging planter with a coco mat liner, and 3) some potting mix.

Directions:

1) Cut a hole in the coco mat liner at the bottom of the planter in the middle (optional: reinforce the cut hole with duct tape),

2) Put the tomato plant on a flat surface

3) Turn the planter over the tomato plant,

4) Guide the plant through the hole,

5) Turn planter right-side up, remove tomato plant container, fill in with potting soil, hang and water. All done!!!

Second Annual Cottage Giveaway-Seeds

My friend told me that Kim from The Twice Remembered Cottage ~ One Woman's Cottage Life is having the Second Annual Cottage Charm Giveaway. Being new at blogging, I decided it would be a great way to have peope find out about my blog! I have put together some packets of seeds I collected last autum that I will send to you if you leave a comment and I draw your name from my raffle. I have made packets of 20 Pink Lemonaide Hollyhock seeds each that I will send to the 5 winners (the 5 names I draw). I will also send a package of Clematis seeds that I have never tried to grow. Everyone can enter by leaving a comment, but I can only send these seeds in the U.S. The drawing will be on Saturday, May 31st. You have until then to leave a comment and if you don't have a blog, please make sure you include your email address. Even if you've never left a comment before, you can still enter!

Confused with Asparagus

I am a little perplexed about the growth of my asparagus. I planted Purple Passion Asparagus and Jersey Knight Asparagus. Both seem to produce less than expected the first year. My first question is, "Will there be more shoots over the years?" I dug a hole about 12 inches deep, placed the asparagus with the tip up and the roots spread and covered with 6 inches of soil. Hopefully that was the correct way, since I also read that you should just lay the plants on their side... I was going to cover them with the remaining 6 inches of soil, but did not want to discourage the rest of the shoots. The next question is, "If the snails/slugs eat the tops of these plants, do they have any chance of surviving?"

Natives Plant Tour/Plant Sale in October

On May 4th, my husband and I went on a wonderful self-guided tour called "Bring Back the Natives Garden Tour(TM)." We had gone to the web site, http://www.bringingbackthenatives.net/, to view the open gardens and their plant lists. Taking the plant lists with us really helped us figure out what native plants we liked and which ones also fell on our list of drought tolerant plants provided by Santa Clara County. It was fantastic to see what others have done. Take a look at the gardens #15 and #17!!

On April 28th, we had attended a wonderful plant sale at Foothill College. I strongly recommend everyone attend their next sale (see below for info.)...Great plants at unbelievable prices:) ..too good to miss!
From the Website: Foothill's Environmental Horticulture & Design Program will hold its inventory sale Oct. 20 and 21 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the horticulture facilities that are adjacent to Parking Lot 4 at Foothill College in Los Altos Hills. Items are offered on a first-come, first-served basis. Admission is free; parking is $2. Items for sale include bamboo, succulents, cacti, grasses, tropicals, orchids, ornamental and fruit trees, shrubs, perennials and more. Price range for most items are $1.50 to $35. Payment must be cash or check. Credit cars are not accepted. Bring bags or boxes to transport purchased items. Sale proceeds are tax-deductible and benefit Foothill's Environmental Horticulture Program.

Good-bye Front Yard ( or what did we do?)

We started!!! Without any plans, we decided to level the yard. Our research told us that the cheapest and easiest way to do this was by renting a bobcat and a 5-yard dump truck. It took all day, but 3 dump loads later, our debris and dirt were gone. What was left was repairing all the sprinkler heads and the valve cover box. Looking at it afterwards, I heard myself say, “What did we do?”

On the brighter side, having any high-powered car or large equipment brought all the male neighbors outside to check it out!! I got a kick out of riding so high in the dump truck, but watching my husband’s smiling face in the bobcat, you would say it wasn't all work.

The Front Yard Project

Our front yard project started when the largest tree in our yard died and needed to be removed. It was our beloved olive tree, probably the largest olive tree I have ever seen. This tree was good for producing a lot of olives, for wrapping with xmas lights and for experienced tree climbers. We had a Tree Removal Service remove the tree, but elected to remove the stump ourselves. Did I mention that my husband and I are do-it-yourself-ers? Well, removing the 5-foot-wide stump may have been better left to the professionals! It wasn’t until the second stump grinder stayed at our house for 3 hours did that stump give up. If it hadn’t worked, we would have opted to let it decay naturally…it almost won. Now that the stump is sawdust (see picture above), we have decided to take the water-wise approach and landscape with drought tolerant plants--no lawn. There is actually a program in Santa Clara County that will rebate you $1.50 per square foot to plant selected drought tolerant plants. I had the paperwork done and have been qualified to participate. Next, I took my yard measurements to a local nursery to have their landscape architect design the yard with some input from us. I hope that for the small price of $150, which is credited back to you to buy plants and materials at their store, I will be given a great garden design and the names of the plants to plant. I cannot wait to see what they suggest!

Apple Tree Fence

Many years ago, I saw a picture of a place in France where they had a field surrounded by an apple tree fence. I always wanted one and finally, about 3 years ago, I put in the one you see above. This fence separates the lawn area from a small fruit orchard. The fence is composed of three Fuji apple trees growing laterally on two copper wires. One day, the wire and posts will be removed and the apple trees will form a living fence without them. What other fence will give you a crop of apples every fall?

Cherry Tree Espalier

Our latest project is a planting of cherry trees that will be used to break up the large expanse of fence outside the kitchen window. Since we only have about 16 inches of soil on the side of our driveway, we wanted the trees to only grow on a designated plane so that they would provide beauty and fruit without imposing on the driveway. We planted 5 cherry trees about 6 feet apart, about 8 inches from the fence. Since these trees were “whips,” they fit in the space fairly easily. Then we screwed 3/16 x 6 inch Lag Thread Screw Eyes into the posts every 12 inches starting about 26 inches high. Then we put wire through the Screw Eyes and twisted it at the end to hold the wire taught. The cherry trees are now fastened to the wire with twist ties so that they grow straight. They are planted in the following order: Bing, Rainier, Bing, Rainier and Bing. We still need to create the wire framework for the last tree. Add that to the list! Hopefully, there will be a lot of cherries in our future!!

Happy Gardening,

The Part-Time Gardener:)

2007 Blooms

Hi to those of you who have stumbled on to my site!

I have just started this blog with the help of my friend who has a blog on Romantic homes http://www.romantichome.blogspot.com/. Since I did not plan on doing this today, I do not have any current pictures of my garden, so I have displayed the one I took last year of my raised bed in the backyard. This year the seeds from these plants have rooted and are ready to grow. Since they will bloom the second year, I have started transplanting them to a prime setting for next year. This is the first time I have ever started planning ahead of time with annuals. We will see if I did it right next year!
Hope to add to my blog tomorrow!
Part-time Gardner