faq - the garden and greenhouse

Before we talk gardening, I want to thank you all for your well wishes after my last post!

I am doing fabulous, (fabulously?) thank you very much, and it won't be long before I can no longer use my recovery as an excuse to get me out of various and assorted unsavory tasks.

Like getting dressed.


Basically, I've been doing a whole lotta nothing the last couple weeks, which results in a whole lotta nothing to blog about. Since a bunch of us seem to have spring fever, I thought maybe it would be a good idea to answer some of the gardening questions that I get on a fairly consistent basis.

BTW, it's snowing here. I'm trying really hard to be happy for all of you in the Midwest and East, but it's hard.

Weather jealousy is not pretty.

I am green with weather envy.

First up, the greenhouse.

Y'all love the greenhouse and many of you have asked about plans, etc.

There are no plans.

I know that's not the answer you were looking for and I am very sorry about that. We have a contractor who is able to build pretty much anything from nothing. I don't think we even gave him a sketch. We just kind of tell him what we want and he builds it.

As far as winter and the greenhouse, we have a propane heater and we keep the thermostat set a little above freezing. This is the first year our impatiens have made it through the winter, and it's so fun to have them blooming right now. It usually takes the strawberry pots a couple months to really fill in, so I love the fact that they'll be full and pretty right away in June when I set them out.

We also overwinter our geraniums and petunias and many herbs. I even managed to keep a parsley plant alive this year. Now that the days are getting longer, things are really starting to grow. I'll give almost everything one more good cutting back, and then let them go crazy between now and the first of June, which is when it's usually safe to set things outside.


We do struggle with a major aphid problem in the greenhouse, but we order ladybugs to keep it under control and they really do a great job. Plus, they're cute, and who doesn't like cute!

We also have an issue with slugs, but I'm working hard to rid the greenhouse of the slimy dudes that are straight from the pit of hell.

Slugs are the Spawn of Satan.


Moving out to the gardens. Some of you have asked for gardening advice, tips and tricks, what to plant, etc.

I don't think I can really help you out with what to plant, as that depends so much on where you live and your garden zone, your weather conditions, your soil and a million other factors, such as whether you live in the country and have the other garden Spawn of Satan known as deer that come into your garden and eat every single gorgeous rose and snarf every single delphinium bud right before they bloom.

I used to like deer. I used to think they were pretty and wonderful.

I'd better move on before I say anything more to encourage the onslaught of deer loving hate mail I feel coming my way.

Don't hate the hater.

:)


There are, however, two things that are major factors in how my gardens look.

First, I over plant.

I usually ignore spacing guidelines and never, ever thin things out. Our growing season is so short that I try to pack as much punch in as possible.

We use a drip irrigation system and the water emitters are spaced every six inches, and I plant an annual by almost every emitter.

I do have a small amount of reason when it comes to perennials though, and give them plenty of space to grow and fill in over the years.


Fertilizer is the second weapon in my gardening arsenal.

For the perennial beds, I usually sprinkle a slow release, granular fertilzer around the plants one time early in the growing season, and then we also use a compost rich mulch to dress the beds and keep the weeds under control.

I take care of my annuals in a different way.

I fertilize my annuals (herb garden, greenhouse garden, vegetable garden, pots and hanging baskets) weekly with a water soluble fertilizer. At least until about the end of August, when I start to run out of fertilizer steam.

I use Miracle Grow, which I get at Costco, and I alternate that with a bloom booster. Years ago, Costco sold its own Kirkland brand of fertilizer which had a 20-20-20 formula. I would mix that into the rotation as well. I think K-mart sells a 20-20-20, and sometimes I'll buy that and rotate it in.

Some years, I just use Miracle Grow. It all depends on just how obsessed I am with having my garden look its best.

Last year, leading up to my son's wedding, I was fertilizing things about every five days.

This year, we are taking it easy and have no big events here at the farm, so it's going to be a much more low key gardening year.

And by that I mean that I'll probably only plant 800 zinnias, instead of 1110.

Oh, one more fertilizer fact. I use a watering can, not a hose sprayer. I have never found a sprayer that evenly distributes the fertilizer, and as I'm a control freak, I like to mix my own. It's a lot more work, (last year, it took more than three hours to fertilize everything) but that's how I like to do it.

Also, petunias L.O.V.E fertilizer, so sometimes I'll add an extra between feedings feeding just for them.


I've lived in Montana for eleven years now, and it's taken years of trial and error to discover what works best for me here.

There are many, many basic plants that I just cannot get to grow well.

Cilantro and basil are two of my most wanted herbs, but I can't grow either to save my life.

Many different annuals that are gorgeous in the nursery, look like death warmed over after just a couple weeks at my house, and I have no clue why.

If you're just starting out, it might be fun to buy a wide variety of whatever catches your eye at the nursery, and see what does well in your garden.

I highly recommend a good potting soil, and make sure you take note of the sun/shade requirements for the plants you choose.

Most of my gardening know how has come from simply flying by the seat of my pants.

I am not an expert.

I am not a master gardener.

I don't know the latin name for anything.

I am not an Organic Olivia.

I have no doubt there are many other ways to get the job done, but this is what works for me.

So, there you have it! If you have any other gardening questions, feel free to ask and I'll go ahead and answer them right here in the comments.

Have a wonderful Wednesday, and if it's gorgeous and sunny where you are, please wear some flip flops just for me.

d is for drama

Generally speaking, I am not much in the drama department.

I'm pretty even keel.

I'm rational. Not prone to hysteria. Not really a "the sky is falling" kind of girl.

Generally speaking.


However.

In one particular area, I am pretty much a basket case.

That area is the medical world. I'm cool with most any doctor visit, but in all things hospital related, I am a worst case scenario freak show.


Case in point.

I had all three of my boys without any form of pain killer, and it's not because I'm a free spirited, embrace the pain, natural granola kind of girl.

It's because they make you sign a piece of paper saying that you understand that you could possibly die from your epidural.

I didn't want to die from my epidural. The very small rational part of my brain totally knew that statistically speaking, I was not going to die from an epidural, but the larger, irrational when it comes to all things hospital part of my brain didn't want to actually become one of the statistics that led the lawyers to draft the paperwork you're required to sign if you decide you are indeed going to have an epidural.

And yes, I know those statistics are somewhere in the one in a hundred kazillion range.

I would much rather just suck up the pain than take my chances, and three bouncing baby boys later, I'm still alive.

Ha! Take that, Grim Reaper.


Fast forwarding a bit, and making a long and very boring story a little bit shorter, I've had a surgery hovering over my head for the last couple years. I came close to taking the plunge several times, but when push came to shove, I always chickened out. Obviously, it wasn't life threatening, but it was quality of life threatening and last week, quality of life finally won out.

As you can see, I have cheated death once again. And this time, it was full anesthesia death that I cheated. Full anesthesia makes an epidural look like a walk in the park.

Let me know if you'd like me to buy you a lottery ticket, because I'm obviously on a roll here.


I cried before my surgery, but only for a minute. Once I got it out of my system, I was okay. I was extra, extra okay once they put the "little something to relax you" in my IV.

I got to wear the dreaded open back hospital gown during my stay, but the quality of my painkillers was such that I didn't even really care if my backside was exposed while I strolled down the hospital halls. I'm a pretty modest person, but I truly did not care even one little bit. Fortunately, my hubby cared enough for both of us and was my rear guard, as well as my IV holder and general all around fabulous care taker both in the hospital and since I've been home.

As far as the painkillers go, I now totally understand the term "take a chill pill". My pharmaceuticals left me in a warm and fuzzy state of half awareness and total not careness. I'm not gonna lie...I kind of enjoyed it. I was only on them for two and a half days, but I think it took a whole week for the fog in my brain to clear out.


Now that my head is clear, I've got a raging case of cabin fever, so I think I must be well on the road to recovery.

Unless, of course, the doctor left a scalpel inside me.

It's happened before.

I saw it on Dateline.


I had great plans to catch up on all my blog visiting and emails while I was recuperating, but the aforementioned fuzzy brain did not allow for such things. If you've sent me an email, look for a response shortly!

Just don't expect it to make much sense.

Have yourselves a wonderfully drama free Wednesday!

dream a little dream with me

I am officially smack dab in the middle of the winter doldrums.

When I look outside, this is what I see.


But this is what I want to see.


(Just for fun, I'm throwing in random pictures of my beloved bird house.)


I can't believe I'm showing you this next picture. I feel kind of mean. No one should have to see something this sad on a Friday.


Painful, yes?

If you love me even a little bit, you won't Pin this one.

If nothing else, it proves that there is some actual structure and design to the herb garden, because it's kind of hard to tell when all I usually show you are pictures like this one.


For the record, I hate brown and gray.


Also for the record, I love green.


Birdhouse alert!


Things are starting to come to life in the greenhouse. I've been waging a war against the slugs and the ladybugs are taking on the aphids.

It's all about teamwork.


It's hard to imagine that it will look like this again in just a matter of months.


Dear Princess Diana clematis,
I miss you!
Love,
Teresa


Anyone want to pull a Mary Poppins and hop into this next picture with me?

Where's Dick Van Dyke when you need him.


I posted this shot twice because it is currently my favorite photo. It makes me happy and sad at the same time.

Spring fashions are in the stores and Costco is carrying jumbo bags of fertilizer, so it can't be long now, right?

Have a wonderful weekend!

happy valentine's day!

I don't get to spend the day with my Number One Valentine, or any of my Junior Valentines, but I do get to spend it with almost every other blood relation I've got on this planet, and that's the next best thing. My parents, my sibs, my nieces, and my single solitary nephew who has yet to acknowledge that I am his favorite auntie.

He's stubborn that way, but I'm wearing him down.


We are all smack in the middle of one big, long walk down memory lane and we've been having us some fun.


I've been sleeping like a rock, camped out on an air mattress on my niece's floor. We've been having a Jane Austen movie marathon every night, as well as a puzzle assembly marathon. To top it all off, she brings me coffee in bed every morning, so there's a good chance I may never go home.


The timing of this trip couldn't be better, as I am currently on the run from the law. The clothing boutique I take pictures for needed some Valentine shots, and I feel confident that it is considered child endangerment to have a very sweet teen-age girl spend her Saturday morning laying on a cold, concrete sidewalk in temperatures that would make a polar bear cry.

If/when they catch up with me, I'm hoping the judge is a woman, as I'm planning to offer her a pair of these cute aqua shoes in exchange for a light sentence.


Have a wonderful Valentine's Day!

love baskets

Gonna have to face it I'm addicted to love.......baskets.


I first made these at Christmastime for my photography clients, and they were so much fun I decided to make them again for Valentine's day.

I gathered all my Valentine appropriate craft supplies.....


Ribbon.....


Glitter......no project is complete without the glitter.


Chipboard letters covered in the aforementioned glitter.......


Pretty, bauble-y trim......


Teeny tiny paper heart garland.....


Teeny tiny hearts glued back to back on embroidery thread.....


Teeny tiny hearts that would rather stick to you than stick to each other.

(Fair warning....making teeny tiny heart garland might make you a teeny tiny bit crazy.)


Old fashioned valentines.......


Paper bunting.

In addition to being addicted to making paper baskets, I am addicted to every and all forms of bunting.

I heart bunting.

Making mini bunting might make you a bit crazy too, but it's worth it because it's bunting.


After trying and failing to make my own cone template, I got smart and went to the party store and bought a clearance package of party hats. I traced the party hat outline onto heavy scrapbook paper and cut it out.

Cardstock weight paper is a must if you're going to fill it with anything heavier than marshmallows.

I reinforced the seams inside the cone with some tape since they'd be under a little more stress as a basket than they would be as a party hat.


Once they were embellished, I punched a very small hole on both sides for the handle.


Try as I might, my holes were never perfectly spaced so my cones either tilted a little to the front or a little to the back.

I'm pretending it adds charm, but deep down, I'm rather irritated by the tiltyness of my baskets.


I filled mine with candy kisses, as my plans for the great Valentine cookie bake-a-thon of 2012 never became a reality.


These little baskets are so stinking fun to make!

I have a feeling the Easter Bunny just may be delivering something similar this year.

And maybe Uncle Sam, too. Just picture a red, white and blue basket filled with firecrackers.

Hmmmm, Arbor Day?

April Fool's Day?

Administrative Professionals Day?

The possibilities are endless.

Make yourself an upside down party hat basket today!

lessons learned

Remember how I just got through telling you that my youngest was a very annoying reluctant model?


We've talked about this before, but it never ceases to amaze me. Add a girl to the mix, and everything changes.

Aren't they adorable?

As I've been cleaning up my computer hard drive and transferring photos off my laptop, I've come across many pics from the beginning of my photography journey. It's made me think about some of the things I've learned about photographing people over the last couple years.

Some things sunk in pretty quick. Others, not so much.

I know that quite a few of you are new owners of your first big girl camera, so I thought I'd share a few of the lessons I've learned along the way. I'm going to assume that many of you are just like me.....easily befuddled by anything even remotely technical.

Learned Lesson Number One:

Probably the most important thing that I learned right off the bat is to manually use my camera's focal points to focus on my subject's eyes. Now, I always use manual selection to choose my focal point....I never let my camera choose it for me. Every one of the photographers that I admired back when I was desperate for tips stressed just how important it is to have the eyes tack sharp, and if your subject is positioned at an angle, focus on the eye closest to you.

So, that was my number one concern when I set out to take a portrait. I learned to change my focal points without looking at my camera, and soon, I was able to to do it without even thinking about it.

That brought me to my next, somewhat quickly learned lesson.

Learned Lesson Number Two:

If your shutter speed is too slow, that tack sharp eye won't be tack sharp.

I know. Duh.

I had and still have many, many duh moments.

When I was learning to use my camera in manual mode, there were so many things to think about and keep track of. My shutter speed was often too slow for hand holding my camera, and my pictures were blurry. Not blurry enough to see on the back of my camera, but when I'd transfer them to my computer, I was very bummed. Those eyes I'd so carefully focused on were not sharp at all, and I couldn't figure out why. I finally thought to check my file information and realized my slow shutter speed was the culprit.

So, these days, the first thing I do in any location is set my aperture and ISO to ensure that my shutter speed is fast enough to handle any slight movement made by either me or my subject.

For some of you, this is probably a given. For me, it was not. Nothing was a given when I was starting out. Except maybe taking off my lens cap. Of all the variables that come along with manual photography, I at least had that one down from the start.


For me, it's easy to focus more on what I don't know. I still have so much to learn. I can visit the blogs of amazing photographers and quickly feel that I will never get to where I want to be.

So, while it's always good to be looking for that next skill to conquer, that next amazing technique to master, don't forget to occasionally take a look back and see how far you've come.

Have a fabulous Tuesday!

love crunch

You heard right.

Love Crunch.

From Costco.

Granola with dark chocolate chunks and berries. It reminds me of my long time favorite, Kashi's Cocoa Beach, which is also chocolate granola, but with coconut and almonds. Of course, I can't find Cocoa Beach anywhere around here, but I just this very minute discovered that I can order it from Amazon.

Seriously, is there anything you can't order from Amazon?

I just had to share, because anytime chocolate can be a legitimate part of breakfast, you need to tell your friends.

Happy Thursday!