Inspiration #1: Reed Franklin

K. Reeder Franklin, a photo by Pike-uliar Gardenings on Flickr.

This weekend, I attended a memorial service for my cousin, Reed Franklin. Reed passed away this past Fall and I miss him deeply. Reed inspired me in so many ways, but I will focus on only one here. I looked up to Reed a great deal and one Summer, he worked at Sweet Briar College's Greenhouse. His boss was Sally Boley, a very kind soul. Watching Reed's intent interest and concern for growing things had a profound impact on me. I think my interest in plants began then and, like many things inspired by Reed, it has stayed with me my whole life and has been a source of constant enrichment. Without Reed, I would not be who I am today. Thank you so much, Reed.

Cherries!

IMG_2216, a photo by Pike-uliar Gardenings on Flickr.

We have gotten quite a few cherries this year. In the past, the birds were ahead of us, but this time, I outfoxed the birds. Many of the berries were quite high and so I learned why my wife kept advising me to prune and keep this guy short. Next year....next year.

Strawberry Harvest #4

IMG_2211, a photo by Pike-uliar Gardenings on Flickr.

Just when you think it's safe to go out in the garden, they drag you back in...for strawberry picking.

Good NPR story on strawberries which answers the question - why so big, red, and flavorless?...among others: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2012/05/17/152522900/the-secret-life-of-californias-world-class-strawberries .

Strawberry Harvest #3

IMG_2203, a photo by Pike-uliar Gardenings on Flickr.

When will it end? After getting all these, we found a bunch more in the back yard.

Tomato, Bent, and Buried

IMG_2204, a photo by Pike-uliar Gardenings on Flickr.

This tomato has been bent and buried as suggested by Mel Bartholomew in his book, Square Foot Gardening. I don't like everything in that book, but thought I'd try his idea for increasing tomato root mass. You dig a smal trench, then place the tomato plant in the trench on its side. Bend the top end of the plant to stick out of the ground and then fill the rest in. The part sticking out will straighten up and the buried parts will generate additional root mass thus providing the tomato with even more water and nutrition. So far, so good. I did this with only two plants so we can see if it makes any difference.

Strawberry Harvest #2

IMG_2201, a photo by Pike-uliar Gardenings on Flickr.

Yup, there's more. These ones had even fewer nibbles than the last ones. Not sure what takes the bites - slugs...rodents...birds. But they leave plenty of unchewed ones for us and most of the marks are pretty small so we just cut em out and eat. I think there are even more in the front yard.

To be honest, there are so many, I kind of lose patience with picking them. Luckily B is always eager to pick a fresh batch and seems to delight in filling up the bowl with fresh, free berries.

Top Ten Ways to Tell You are Obsessed with Compost

Loose Leaf Tea (Jasmine) Before Becoming Compost

IMG_2195, a photo by Pike-uliar Gardenings on Flickr.

10) You have 4 compost stations: current, finishing, fine browns, and rough browns. Yup...when I saw Britta's Grandma's composting set up, I thought, "that's a bit much." 4 years later, I am almost there.

9) You make eating decisions based on type of compost produced. Mmmm...that bananna/tea/coffee would taste delicious - and make great compost.

8) You make purchasing decisions based on resulting compost.

7) You require...I mean request that your wife bring home tea bags and apple cores from work.

6) You compost your own hair. Is that gross? I think not.

5) On weekends, when the crazy jogger buys a carton of eggs and eats them all raw right out of the shell and leaves them on the sidewalk, you just smile and think, "mmmm...compost."

4) When spending a weekend with friends at a beach house, you force them to compost.

3) You start switching from bag tea, to loose leaf tea because it tastes good, but really you are thinking, "mmmm...better compost."

2) You start singing songs in your head that start off, "every molecule is precious, every cell a star..." while scraping off the tiniest sliver of garlic skin and dropping it into the compost bin.

1) After being quite sick for a while, you run into a neighbour and he jokes, "wow, you looked pretty rough the other day. I thought we would just have to cover you with mulch and add you to the garden" and you say, "mmmmmm....good compost."

Strawberry Harvest #1

IMG_2190, a photo by Pike-uliar Gardenings on Flickr.

Tasty-licious.Very low strawberry miles on these guys.

Box O' Taters

IMG_2188, a photo by Pike-uliar Gardenings on Flickr.

Filled a whole box with red fingerlings from the Maine Potato Lady. There are also a few odds and ends from the ole potato drawer that were ready for action. Might even be some sweet potato that made its way in the box. It will be interesting to see what we get.

First Strawberry

IMG_2186, a photo by Pike-uliar Gardenings on Flickr.

The first strawberries are starting to come in. This one looks a little like a heart. Strawberry is pretty much the perfect plant. Doesn't need much water, plants itself - all over if you let it, tastes great, looks great. ONly downside is the little birds or bugs or whatever it is that nibbles them now and then. I pick em just a bit before they are totally ripe, when I remember, and that seems to help. But truthfully, after having these things for a few years, we have so many we can lose a few.