seed starting update

So far this year, the seeds i've planted are starting their lives in much better conditions than last year - last year I started all my plants in the same forest dirt but outdoors, in march - april. my problems last year were the soil drying out in the heat of the day and slugs killing baby plants with one bite - especially pumpkin and sunflowers. i'm starting earlier this year and indoors at this point. I set up a basic light purchased at lowes for $20, its a shop light about 8" x 4" which just so happens to be great for growing plants. I had my snailflower growing under it during this winter. snailflower is a vine that has extremely fragrant flowers, looking like this:



my tomatoes should have a much longer growing season this year as I'm already starting them and it's still february, and under this light they're growing quickly, threat-free. I also have the seedlings of my dalias, zinnias and holy basil happy. in a couple days I am transferring the seeds from their 0.5" diameter starter containers to individual small containers about 3-4" in diameter. I'll give them a little longer indoors, then move them outdoors and start another batch indoors. mid march to late april I will also start batches of other seeds outdoors. (I have a huge collection of plastic containers I start plants and cuttings with)

Here in California, 30 minutes from the ocean, the biggest threat to young plants is snails and slugs (and yes, drying out). last year slugs did quite a number on my garden, this year to compensate I'll start more seeds and try to stay on top of maintenance (that means manual removal). I can't bring myself to lay out bait or beer to kill them, it's against my principles. I don't need this garden, I have no intention of killing life to have it, even if they are just slugs and snails.

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it's rained a whole lot the past few months. we won't have a drought year! :) it's really great but it's causing some tree casualties. an old, about 80 years old, willow tree crashed down outside my workplace yesterday. I watched it happen and it made me really sad, as I see woodpeckers and other birds like chickadees use the tree for food and rest. the owners of the property will remove all of the willow and not let him re-sprout, but i'll let the willow itself live on; i took a few branches before I left. willow is among the easiest of trees to grow from cutting. I stuck the branches in a few pots of dirt and in mostly shade. that is nearly all i'll have to do, I will water a few times when it stops raining. in less than a month the willow will be on its way to rooting its pots :)

are you growing a vegetable / food garden this year? i cannot think of better (inexpensive) way to help ourselves become more self sustaining and help yourself live more locally.

visit rareseeds.com for inexpensive yet high quality non-gmo heirloom seeds. i have been a supporter of this company (baker creek) for many years, and was quite surprised when they suddenly opened a seed store in my hometown of petaluma. still i placed my order for this year over the internet, as they have cheap ($3.00) shipping fees and i find it easier to pick out exactly what i want online than in the store. i am soaking pea seeds right now, for a couple days, then i will plant them in soil. i'm also growing lots of flowers, but those aren't so important to my life as us learning the basics of growing our own gardens (for our own health and prevention of disease)

in a few weeks i am starting seeds for my basil, tomatos, pumpkins and potatos. the problem for me, is finding enough space in containers and the ground to grow all that i want to. last year i had a wonderful pumpkin, and a somewhat sad tomato yeild. great basil though! this year i want more.

lve

have not updated in almost a year. how time goes. i have shiitake mushroom growing right now. my hazey cat is very happy. life is sweet, precious, lets not take it for granted, even with all the evil, there is so much to love. i have ideas and things i'd like to share..hopefully next growing season.

yellowdaze

its summer in the mountains. when its sunny here, its very hot. the evenings smell VERY sweet from the forest air, it might be the birch polypore mycelium... since we live below a mountain full of birches & i've heard others talk about the very-sweet birch polypore scent. we haven't had that many sunny days yet, but we've had enough so that i have green tomatoes, & i don't feel deprived of sun.



i am growing... so you might see these plants pictured below:
herbs~ hundreds of lavenders (over 10 different varieties), sage varieties (i forget all the name types, but there are some special ones, like jerusalem sage), oregano, chives, apple mint, spearmint, morrocan mint, egyptian mint, chocolate mint, basil mint, basil, cilantro, catnip, allspice, lemon balm, lemon catnip, thymes (lots of varieties), camphor basil,ground ivy,&anise hyssop(i forgot this name temporarily& that was bothersome)

+ roses, lilacs, buddlias(aka butterfly bush & i have hundreds), tomatoes, squashes, peas, nasturtium, broccoli, carrot, fragrant lily(its flower is intoxicating, like sweet vanilla, as are the pinks), pinks (3 varieties including a very vanilla white pink), kale varieties, aloe (recovering..), hydrangeas, fushia(just 1, a cutting from my moms that i grew up with), sunflowers, strawberries (i ate the first 2 ripe strawberries yesterday)...not pictured: pots i'll photograph later, + my indoor garden.

peach-orange hazel likes to nap underneath my butterfly bushes. the kitties that aren't hazel are the once-stray kitties that found us last fall. ava is the calico, mountain is the long haired. we also have another cat named mossy who is mountains brother, but he still hides all the time...

now i have little plant containers to wake up & visit each morning. happy cuttings of lavender cottons, rosemaries, mexican sages, wisteras, 1 lilac, lavender from here & a rose from daves house. i'm keeping them in full shade right now. in a week i will put them in the sun for a couple hours a day.

over a week ago i took cuttings from the two lavender varieties that grow here- those are already doing fine in the sunshine. same with a catnip cutting though the leaves curl if he is in the sun all day, so i don't do full sun for the catnip yet. when i drove down here i took with me one of the cuttings that i took from the curry plant which grows at the fragrance garden. the curry does fine in full sun, he has for the past week, and even has tiny new leaves that are coming out the sides of his old branches. thats quick! spring is a great time for cuttings..

some how every thing is beautiful ..



when you cut up vanilla pods & infuse them in oil for a few weeks, you create an incredibly lovely scent as well as a fixative- fixatives make perfume blends last longer. i cut a few nettles from willow creek near bodega bay & i made soup of them, now i plan to get more. the nettles tasted really good, i can't describe the flavor.. i know the nutritional profile is very good. i always cook my soup on very low heat. adding a bit of vinegar to my soups really helps the flavors. when i visit the forget-me-knot grove outside i hear the bees (always so busy making honey) & birds.. & i have my kitty on his leash. he is very pleasing.