After last year’s record cold spring, the pleasant string of weekends has our garden insanely full of flowers, bees, and birds looking to make nests.
With no car, but a busy urban homestead, we find a way to get more efficiency out of our bicycle.
Rubus spectabilis in bloom; yes it can be a spreading thug, but the hummingbirds love it and it’s a great addition to our hedgerow.
When the garden outside seems grim and the weather unforgivingly bleak, there’s always bulbs to be forced.
Now that we’re heading into our fifth year with our garden, there are so many unexpected pleasures through all the season. This morning as I was checking up on the chickens, I was struck by the pattern of this rotting hosta foliage.
When we put in our garden, I asked my knowledgable friend Niko for a list of suggestions. Near the top of her list was Amelanchier grandiflora, or Serviceberry. It’s now at the top of mine.
When our neighbor heard of the Night of the Marauding Raccoons, she offered us one of her chickens as they’d bought too many in the spring, when the chicks are irresistible and tiny. Beatrice is a Buff Brahma, a large breed known for being gentle, good egg-layers with distinctive feathers on their feet.
The knobby, bumpy quince is the last of the fruit to be harvested and a sure sign that Autumn has arrived.
The cyclamen have started blooming! While it doesn’t feel like winter, it’s a sure sign that winter is on it’s way.
With the fall rains coming, we finally dug up the rest of the potatoes. These Yellow Finns are delicious and I’m a convert to giving a bit of space in the garden to potatoes as they’re so much better than anything in the store.
Why even bother growing a garden? There is plenty to eat in the parking strips, in the empty lots, and alleys. You just need to know what to look for.
