Some of you may have been following along as I have updated you on my daughter, Rachele’s, journey as she joined the Navy.
For those of you who are only interested in gardening content, here is a container of violas that we saw at the Art Institute of Chicago. This will be the only gardening part of this blog post 🙂
We said “goodbye” to her in late March as she left for Great Lakes, IL for basic training. During that time, we had very limited contact spread out with a few short phone calls and a few letters.
Homesickness, discouragement were the subjects of our earlier correspondence. However, as time passed, we started to see her resolve to finish and do her best.
The date of Rachele’s graduation was circled on our calendar and we anxiously counted down the days until we could see her again.
The last test that she had to pass was her running test. She had to run 1.5 miles in 15 1/2 minutes. Rachele was seriously worried that she wouldn’t pass it because she had twisted her ankle and had shin splints. If she did not pass, then she would have to stay longer until she passed and forgo the graduation – meaning that we couldn’t come and see her. A number of sailors don’t pass.
We got a call from Rachele a few days before graduation telling us that when she was running the last test -she was determined to run as fast as she could because she didn’t want to stay in basic training any longer then she had to.
As she was running, she didn’t know that the lap counter wasn’t working correctly. So, when she had finished running, she hadn’t run 1.5 miles….she had actually run 1.75 miles under 15 1/2 minutes!
So, our trip was on and her dad and I along with our oldest daughter, Brittney, boarded a plane for Chicago.
We arrived on a Thursday afternoon and drove up to Great Lakes, which is about 40 minutes north of Chicago.
It was hard to believe that we would see our Rachele in just a few hours. We had to leave our hotel at 6:00 am, which was 4:00 on our internal Pacific time clock.
But, the adrenaline was flowing the morning of her graduation and we were up early and got to the Naval base.
Graduation ceremony
The ceiling was decorated with state flags. We could see the copper star and sun rays of the Arizona flag.
We had to arrive early for good seats, which we got. But then, we needed to wait 2 1/2 hours for the ceremony to start. Thankfully, they had muffins and hot coffee.
We knew that the ceremony was about to begin with sailors holding the state flags came in and started marching in formation.
Did I mention that it was our 27th anniversary on that day? I couldn’t think of a better way to spend it.
Graduation ceremony
Graduation ceremony
We then heard the drum corp and finally, it was time for 880 new sailors to enter…
Graduation ceremony
Among those entering was my baby, now a sailor. I was so excited to finally see her!
Graduation ceremony
Did I mention that it was quite cold that day? The low that night was 39 degrees. So, the sailors had their rain coats on until they entered. They were holding their neatly folded rain coats.
Rachele is in the last row, the 8th person from the right.
Graduation ceremony
Eighth from the left in the last row, above 🙂
The atmosphere was electric with all the families seeing their sailor. There was a young girl who was wearing a very pretty dress and had a flower in her hair as she watched her boyfriend/husband march in. She was all by herself and it was so sweet and sad to see.
Okay, you moms out there – I can tell exactly which one is my daughter from the back because “I gave birth to that behind” all those years ago, and would know it anywhere 😉
Kind of hard to explain exactly where she is in the photo above, but there are three girls in front of the blue/yellow flag. Rachele is in the middle with the curly, brown hair.
The sailors stood for 1 1/2 hours for the entire ceremony. They had to keep straight faces, no smiling. I had binoculars so I could see her easily. Her eyes kept looking up at where we were sitting.
Because fainting sometimes occurs when standing so long, they had drill sergeants-in-training walking between the rows of new sailors making sure that no one looked like they were going to faint. No one did.
After the ceremony was over, the families moved down and greeted their sailors. I can’t tell you how wonderful it was to hold Rachele in a my arms once again.
Here she is, wearing her dress whites. She had lost a lot of weight and her uniform was loose because she was fitted at the beginning of basic training.
Sailors also have their dress blues, which they wear fall through early spring.
It was a beautiful day, but cold.
My two oldest girls, together again!
Rachele was showing her dad how shiny her shoes were. She worked a long time polishing them.
It is pretty impressive how straight she stands now. Her mom (me) has terrible posture, but I blame it on my dad, who did too 😉
Rachele got ribbons for completing basic training and for marksmanship (guns).
We weren’t allowed to visit all areas of the Naval base, but Rachele pointed out where she stayed.
Rachele had liberty for the rest of the day until 8:30 pm, which meant that she was able to leave the base for the first time since she arrived in March.
She was also reunited with her telephone, which we brought. Look at how happy she is! Recruits aren’t allowed to bring their phones.
Driving with our two oldest daughters in the backseat brought back memories of us being a much smaller family before we adopted our three youngest children.
We told Rachele that we would do whatever she wanted that day.
Her first request was lunch at Chipotle, her favorite restaurant.
Then a trip to the local mall where we all went to see the latest Star Trek movie – I do love all things ‘Star Trek’.
We had a wonderful day with Rachele and returned to the base and went shopping at the NEX (Naval Exchange) for Navy souvenirs to take home with us.
We dropped off to sleep that night, exhausted, but so happy.
The next morning, the Navy put the new sailors on a bus and took them to the airport at 3:30 am. There, they would wait at the airport until their flight took off for wherever their ‘A’ school was to be. ‘A’ school is where they learn their skill that they will use in the Navy.
So, another early morning for us as we drove to the airport to visit with Rachele. Sailors weren’t allowed to leave the airport and so we had to spend our time with her there.
Thankfully, O’Hare is a huge airport with lots to see and do. We brought Rachele a set of civilian clothes (jeans, shoes and a shirt) that she would be allowed to wear at her ‘A’ school. Here, she is showing us how to ‘correctly’ fold a pair of jeans. This made me laugh because Rachele has NEVER been one to fold her clothes at home 😉
Starbucks was another treat that she enjoyed that day.
Video-chatting with her younger sisters and brother, who couldn’t come.
The yellow envelope is filled with her medical records, which she had to bring to her ‘A’ school.
One last meal with Rachele before her plane was scheduled to leave. It was at this point that we started getting a little ‘teary’.
As we waited for her plane, my oldest daughter, Brittney, asked Rachele to teach her how to salute.
At this point, I was trying to stay strong for Rachele and not focus on how few minutes that we had left together. It was too short a time.
As they announced boarding for her plane, Rachele started crying and I just lost it too (so did Brittney). We hugged her goodbye and she boarded the plane with her fellow sailor who was going to the same school.
As for my husband, Brittney and myself – we walked out of the terminal with tears streaming down our faces. I’m not sure what people thought of us, but I honestly didn’t care.
We drove Brittney to the other airport in Chicago (Midway) to catch a plane home and then my husband and I were on our own.
I must admit that I was not prepared for how sad I would be after seeing Rachele again and then having to say goodbye. But, it was very hard that night.
Rachele is going to ‘A’ school in Fort Leonard Wood which is located in the middle of Missouri. She will be there until mid September learning how to become a heavy equipment operator for the Seabees.
The good news is that Rachele is allowed to use her cell phone and we are able to talk to her everyday, which has helped a lot.
Sunday morning my husband and I drove to downtown Chicago and had a great time exploring Michigan Avenue with its architecture and gardens, which I will share with you soon.
*********************
Thank you for allowing me to share our military journey with you. Your supportive comments and emails mean so much.
My next post will be full of beautiful gardens, containers and more that we saw in Chicago.
A Beautiful Flower and a Failed Vegetable
A Tough Little Guy…
azplantladyI must confess that I am not particularly inspired to write a garden blog post.
The reason for this is that my son, Kai, has been recovering from surgery.
Hip Surgery
Kai was born with a condition known as arthrogryposis, which affects some of his joints. He was born with a dislocated left hip, which the doctors have been working on throughout the past 8 years.
Every few years, he needs to have additional surgery on his hip, which leaves him wheelchair bound for 6 – 8 weeks.
After 4 days at the hospital, we are now home. He needs a lot of care at this point, so I will try my best to find some time to write.
Kai is a remarkable boy and I am so glad that he is my son. He was abandoned by his birth parents in China when he was 2 weeks old and spent his first 2 1/2 years of life under the care of an orphanage.
You can read more about his story in a post I wrote about him called,
“The Sunshine of My Life”
The Green Spaces of Chicago
AZ Plant LadyDowntown Chicago is a very beautiful place with its architecture and the river flowing through it. However, most of my attention was focused on the green spaces.
How much can we see in 2 1/2 hours of walking?
My husband and I found ourselves with a few hours to kill before flying home after seeing our daughter’s graduation from the Naval base. So, armed with our camera and walking shoes, we set off.
We began our journey at Millenium Park, which is nestled in the heart of downtown Chicago along Michigan Avenue.
“Cloud Gate” or as most Chicagoans refer to it “The Bean” is a must see.
It looks like liquid mercury and reflects the skyline and city towers.
You can walk underneath it AND take a picture with your husband without having to ask someone else because of the reflection.
After viewing the ‘shiny bean’, we started walking along Michigan Avenue toward the Art Institute of Chicago.
I just love buildings with large lions standing in front of the entrance.
There was a huge line of people waiting to go inside once it opened. But, I must admit that I wasn’t going to waste my time going inside when I could see the pretty gardens surrounding it.
As we approached the South Garden of the Art Institute, I was surprised to learn that it was built upon a parking garage…
Staggered rows of hawthorn trees in raised beds provided a beautiful, shady oasis inviting passersby to stop and rest, read a book or even eat lunch.
Green Spaces of Chicago
Rows of ornamental alliums lined the pathway through the North Garden.
These flowers were large and so beautiful.
The North Garden was filled with beautiful perennials that had different shaped foliage and heights, which is a great way to add texture and interest to the garden.
Here is another example of two plants that have contrasting foliage. By placing them together, you highlight the differences between them showcasing their individual beauty.
This perennial plant caught my eye with its tiny blue flowers and pretty foliage.
It is called Brunnera macrophylla ‘Jack Frost’ and is a really wonderful plant that grows well in the shade. Slugs, deer and rabbits DON’T like it, which makes it a popular choice for woodland gardens. Which means that I won’t be growing it in my garden – it’s too hot with too little shade where I live).
Now, we were continuing our walk onto the Lurie Gardens.
On the way, we say a few hot dog carts selling Chicago-style hot dogs. I didn’t get one because I LOVE using ketchup on my hot dogs and didn’t want to offend anyone 😉
The Lurie Gardens were beautiful. Just look at the deep purple of the Meadow Sage.
The tulips were on their way out, but we could still see some white ones hanging on. Look at the layers of plantings above, with the different textures – I love it!
Green Spaces of Chicago
Whenever I visit new places, I like to see the different types of plants that grow there.
This interesting plant is known as ‘Prairie Smoke’. It is easy to see where it got its name.
I love blue flowers in the garden because blue is a color that is often absent in the garden.
This is Willowleaf ‘Blue Star’.
Peonies ready to bloom. One of two plants that I really wish would grow in my desert garden…but peonies need cold winters.
I liked the blue spiky flowers of Quamash.
There were docents, leading tours of the garden, which is free to all who visit.
In fact, to this point, we had not spent any money except for parking. The parks and gardens were all free.
Now, it was time to explore the streets of Chicago where I was happy to see many beautiful examples of creative container plant combinations.
Please come back to see more of our adventure in downtown Chicago where you will see my second favorite plant that I wish I could grow in my garden…
Memorial Day at the Family Farm
Double S FarmsThis past Memorial Day, my mother had the entire family (minus my daughter, Rachele, who is in the Navy) over for brunch to celebrate the beginning of summer.
As we drove up to the farm, we were greeted by the following sight…
My nephews along with my son, Kai, were selling lemonade made from the lemons from the backyard tree.
They had quite a few people buying a refreshing cup of lemonade, including my son-in-law, Jeff.
Kai and the boys were kept busy filling cups with lemonade. In addition, they also sold homemade jam made from the peach trees.
My daughter, Brittney and Lily (my granddaughter) came over too and Lily got her first taste of lemonade.
As we entered the house, we were greeted by delicious smells of eggs, sausage, fruit and cinnamon rolls.
I couldn’t wait to finish eating so that I could go outside with my mother to see what was growing in her vegetable garden.
She was most proud of her Russian gourds.
Okay, they really aren’t Russian, but my sister-in-law brought the seeds in Russia for my mother. You can buy the same gourd seed in the US.
But, we like calling them Russian gourds because it sounds more fun and exotic.
Her pattypan squash is also growing well, above. This summer squash is a lot like zucchini. My mom plans on cutting it into small pieces and adding to salads, much like you would cucumbers.
Her sunflowers provided much appreciated shade for the garden as well as seeds for the birds. My brother considered trying some of the seeds.
If you want to keep the birds from eating the seeds, you can place a paper grocery bag on top of the flowers.
Lots of zucchini were beginning to form. If you are relatively new to vegetable gardening, then zucchini is a great vegetable to get started with in the summer. They are easy to grow and there is something so satisfying when you bring a large one inside.
My 2-year old twin nephews took some time to play in the toy front end loader…
Then it was time to celebrate Kai’s birthday. He is now 11 years old.
His favorite gift was a ‘Navy’ hat from his big sister, which we bought at the Naval base after we saw our daughter graduate.
His second-favorite gift was a huge squirt gun from his grandma.
Late May is also the time that we pick peaches from the trees.
So my mother and I headed out to pick some peaches for me to take home so that I could make peach jam.
I love making peach jam and enjoying it throughout the year.
The peaches, above, were picked from my own peach tree. We planted it in January and I was quite surprised when it produced so many peaches. But, I certainly wasn’t complaining 😉
Of course, I didn’t have enough peaches from my own tree, so I used those that I picked from my mother’s trees to supplement my own.
When you pick peaches, use them the same day if possible because they are so soft and bruise so easily. I waited only one day and already had some soft spots on my peaches.
My mother taught me how to make peach jam a few summers ago. I blogged about it back then in “A Harvest Of Peaches and Jam”
***************************
I wanted to thank those of you who left such kind comments regarding my last post about my daughter Rachele’s graduation from Navy basic training.
A Proud Mama and Two Sleepless Days…
az plant lady familySome of you may have been following along as I have updated you on my daughter, Rachele’s, journey as she joined the Navy.
For those of you who are only interested in gardening content, here is a container of violas that we saw at the Art Institute of Chicago. This will be the only gardening part of this blog post 🙂
We said “goodbye” to her in late March as she left for Great Lakes, IL for basic training. During that time, we had very limited contact spread out with a few short phone calls and a few letters.
Homesickness, discouragement were the subjects of our earlier correspondence. However, as time passed, we started to see her resolve to finish and do her best.
The date of Rachele’s graduation was circled on our calendar and we anxiously counted down the days until we could see her again.
The last test that she had to pass was her running test. She had to run 1.5 miles in 15 1/2 minutes. Rachele was seriously worried that she wouldn’t pass it because she had twisted her ankle and had shin splints. If she did not pass, then she would have to stay longer until she passed and forgo the graduation – meaning that we couldn’t come and see her. A number of sailors don’t pass.
We got a call from Rachele a few days before graduation telling us that when she was running the last test -she was determined to run as fast as she could because she didn’t want to stay in basic training any longer then she had to.
As she was running, she didn’t know that the lap counter wasn’t working correctly. So, when she had finished running, she hadn’t run 1.5 miles….she had actually run 1.75 miles under 15 1/2 minutes!
So, our trip was on and her dad and I along with our oldest daughter, Brittney, boarded a plane for Chicago.
We arrived on a Thursday afternoon and drove up to Great Lakes, which is about 40 minutes north of Chicago.
It was hard to believe that we would see our Rachele in just a few hours. We had to leave our hotel at 6:00 am, which was 4:00 on our internal Pacific time clock.
But, the adrenaline was flowing the morning of her graduation and we were up early and got to the Naval base.
Graduation ceremony
The ceiling was decorated with state flags. We could see the copper star and sun rays of the Arizona flag.
We had to arrive early for good seats, which we got. But then, we needed to wait 2 1/2 hours for the ceremony to start. Thankfully, they had muffins and hot coffee.
We knew that the ceremony was about to begin with sailors holding the state flags came in and started marching in formation.
Did I mention that it was our 27th anniversary on that day? I couldn’t think of a better way to spend it.
Graduation ceremony
Graduation ceremony
We then heard the drum corp and finally, it was time for 880 new sailors to enter…
Graduation ceremony
Among those entering was my baby, now a sailor. I was so excited to finally see her!
Graduation ceremony
Did I mention that it was quite cold that day? The low that night was 39 degrees. So, the sailors had their rain coats on until they entered. They were holding their neatly folded rain coats.
Rachele is in the last row, the 8th person from the right.
Graduation ceremony
Eighth from the left in the last row, above 🙂
The atmosphere was electric with all the families seeing their sailor. There was a young girl who was wearing a very pretty dress and had a flower in her hair as she watched her boyfriend/husband march in. She was all by herself and it was so sweet and sad to see.
Okay, you moms out there – I can tell exactly which one is my daughter from the back because “I gave birth to that behind” all those years ago, and would know it anywhere 😉
Kind of hard to explain exactly where she is in the photo above, but there are three girls in front of the blue/yellow flag. Rachele is in the middle with the curly, brown hair.
The sailors stood for 1 1/2 hours for the entire ceremony. They had to keep straight faces, no smiling. I had binoculars so I could see her easily. Her eyes kept looking up at where we were sitting.
Because fainting sometimes occurs when standing so long, they had drill sergeants-in-training walking between the rows of new sailors making sure that no one looked like they were going to faint. No one did.
After the ceremony was over, the families moved down and greeted their sailors. I can’t tell you how wonderful it was to hold Rachele in a my arms once again.
Here she is, wearing her dress whites. She had lost a lot of weight and her uniform was loose because she was fitted at the beginning of basic training.
Sailors also have their dress blues, which they wear fall through early spring.
It was a beautiful day, but cold.
My two oldest girls, together again!
Rachele was showing her dad how shiny her shoes were. She worked a long time polishing them.
It is pretty impressive how straight she stands now. Her mom (me) has terrible posture, but I blame it on my dad, who did too 😉
Rachele got ribbons for completing basic training and for marksmanship (guns).
We weren’t allowed to visit all areas of the Naval base, but Rachele pointed out where she stayed.
Rachele had liberty for the rest of the day until 8:30 pm, which meant that she was able to leave the base for the first time since she arrived in March.
She was also reunited with her telephone, which we brought. Look at how happy she is! Recruits aren’t allowed to bring their phones.
Driving with our two oldest daughters in the backseat brought back memories of us being a much smaller family before we adopted our three youngest children.
We told Rachele that we would do whatever she wanted that day.
Her first request was lunch at Chipotle, her favorite restaurant.
Then a trip to the local mall where we all went to see the latest Star Trek movie – I do love all things ‘Star Trek’.
We had a wonderful day with Rachele and returned to the base and went shopping at the NEX (Naval Exchange) for Navy souvenirs to take home with us.
We dropped off to sleep that night, exhausted, but so happy.
The next morning, the Navy put the new sailors on a bus and took them to the airport at 3:30 am. There, they would wait at the airport until their flight took off for wherever their ‘A’ school was to be. ‘A’ school is where they learn their skill that they will use in the Navy.
So, another early morning for us as we drove to the airport to visit with Rachele. Sailors weren’t allowed to leave the airport and so we had to spend our time with her there.
Thankfully, O’Hare is a huge airport with lots to see and do. We brought Rachele a set of civilian clothes (jeans, shoes and a shirt) that she would be allowed to wear at her ‘A’ school. Here, she is showing us how to ‘correctly’ fold a pair of jeans. This made me laugh because Rachele has NEVER been one to fold her clothes at home 😉
Starbucks was another treat that she enjoyed that day.
Video-chatting with her younger sisters and brother, who couldn’t come.
The yellow envelope is filled with her medical records, which she had to bring to her ‘A’ school.
One last meal with Rachele before her plane was scheduled to leave. It was at this point that we started getting a little ‘teary’.
As we waited for her plane, my oldest daughter, Brittney, asked Rachele to teach her how to salute.
At this point, I was trying to stay strong for Rachele and not focus on how few minutes that we had left together. It was too short a time.
As they announced boarding for her plane, Rachele started crying and I just lost it too (so did Brittney). We hugged her goodbye and she boarded the plane with her fellow sailor who was going to the same school.
As for my husband, Brittney and myself – we walked out of the terminal with tears streaming down our faces. I’m not sure what people thought of us, but I honestly didn’t care.
We drove Brittney to the other airport in Chicago (Midway) to catch a plane home and then my husband and I were on our own.
I must admit that I was not prepared for how sad I would be after seeing Rachele again and then having to say goodbye. But, it was very hard that night.
Rachele is going to ‘A’ school in Fort Leonard Wood which is located in the middle of Missouri. She will be there until mid September learning how to become a heavy equipment operator for the Seabees.
The good news is that Rachele is allowed to use her cell phone and we are able to talk to her everyday, which has helped a lot.
Sunday morning my husband and I drove to downtown Chicago and had a great time exploring Michigan Avenue with its architecture and gardens, which I will share with you soon.
*********************
Thank you for allowing me to share our military journey with you. Your supportive comments and emails mean so much.
My next post will be full of beautiful gardens, containers and more that we saw in Chicago.
A Beautiful Flower and a Failed Vegetable
A Young Gardener and His Special Garden…
Hummingbird Gardening, Vegetable GardeningLast week, as I was frantically rushing around getting ready to fly out to Chicago to attend my daughter’s Navy graduation, I received an email from a reader of my blog, which literally stopped me in my tracks and brought a huge smile to my face.
When you blog, it is almost always a one-way conversation. I don’t often get to know if my ‘ramblings’ help or inspire others, except for when I meet some of you in person. So, this email just made my day (or should I say, my entire month).
Here is a small excerpt…
“Since moving here (from SC three years ago) my son and I have found your Pinterest Page, and Facebook page AND blog as our source when we have questions about things we have planted. Because of that my 14 year old has been mightily successful in his gardening efforts: veggie gardens, herbs and his hummingbird garden too. This mother thanks you for being willing to show not only your success but not quite so successful growth too (ie your onions.- they weren’t failures, just small). Jacob, my son, was so gleeful (as most boys [I guess] would be) when he pulled his onions this week and they were bigger than yours. (I don’t know what it is about competition and boys…. ) He is currently awaiting his corn harvest. He has planted two varieties to compare the difference- one The Golden Cross Bantam (Hybrid) and some other kind I cannot think of at the moment (silver queen or something..)”
I wrote her back and told her how much her email meant to me. And then, I wondered if she wouldn’t mind if I make her son’s garden a subject of an upcoming blog post.
Jacob is 14 years old and in addition to being a great gardener, also likes birding.
Are you ready to see Jacob’s garden?
Young gardener garden
This is the hummingbird garden. I asked Jacob, what he planted in his garden and what species of hummingbirds that he has seen visiting.
“There are many things I have added to my hummingbird garden.
Here is a list:
Dianthus
Spanish Lavender
Fern leaf Lavender
French Lavender
Columbine
Kangaroo paw (orange red in color)
Ivy Geranium (to add color to garden not specifically for hummingbirds)
May Night Salvia
East Friesland Salvia
Pink Salvia
Blue Black Salvia
Trailing Verbena
Verbena
Guara Ballerina Rose
Cardinal climber vine
Black eyed Susan vine
Rocket Snapdragons
Snapdragons
Pineapple Sage
Autumn Sage
Cinnamon Basil
Basil
Bee Balm
Aloe Blue Elf
Aloe Vera
Lantana (yellow and a new variety which is white with yellow on the outside of the flower)
A few rogue sunflowers
and a young Desert Willow sapling that I started from seed last year.
That is it so far but you never know what tomorrow will bring.
Anna’s Hummingbird
Four different species have visited my garden; Anna’s hummingbirds are year round residents, Black-chinned hummingbirds stay throughout the summer, the Rufous and Broad-tailed hummingbirds are common in migration. The hummingbird garden is situated near our kitchen window(s), I really enjoy sitting at the table watching them. Last year we actually got to enjoy watching a mama Anna Hummer feeding her babies. The house Finch and sometimes the red headed woodpecker visit too. The curved bill thrashers love to eat the bugs.”
Young gardener garden
I wanted to hear more about Jacob’s vegetable garden so I asked him what types of vegetables he likes to grow.
“Some of my favorite vegetable(s) to grow here is corn, and tomatoes The corn partly because it is something new for me to try producing. I am growing two types this year; Bantam corn and sweet corn. I will compare the two to see which harvests the most and grows better. The tomatoes have so many new varieties that I have not grown before so I am having a blast trying new tomatoes this year. I am trying the Summer Set tomato, Lemon boy, Roma, Cherry tomato, Big Beef, Early Girl, and of course the Phoenix. All have produced except the Phoenix, so far.
I also planted Okra last year. The plant generated much, but I waited till they were to big and they were bitter. I kept the plants though because the flowers were very pleasing to the eye.
Young gardener garden
White Icicle Radishes were another vegetable I had fun growing. I found a watermelon called Moon and Stars that was believed to be extinct, I am growing that also.”
As many of you may have experienced, there is one or two vegetables that you have a hard time growing. I asked Jacob, if he struggled growing any type(s) of vegetables in his garden.
“Squash seems to be the hardest for me to grow here in Arizona. I haven’t been to successful but I keep trying. I have Zucchini and crook- necked squash growing this year, hopefully I will be a little more successful.”
Young gardener garden
I have a list of vegetables that I want to try to grow for the first time in my garden. I just don’t have the room to grow everything I want 😉 I asked Jacob what was on his ‘wish list’ for his vegetable garden.
“I would love try Purple Bell Peppers. They would be fun to grow, and to eat.”
Young gardener garden
While I enjoy teaching people how to garden and sometimes ‘how not to’ – I wondered if Jacob had any gardening tips that he has picked up along the way that he would share with you.
“My gardening tips are more of an encouragement. Never be afraid to try new things even here in the desert. Some things might be successful, some may not. Don’t give up even if your things don’t produce. Try again, they may in the next year. Gardening is about succeeding and failures and learning from them.
This year my mother found some pins that she shared with me, on Pinterest., that I tried. Regrowing celery from the root, lettuce, and onions too. The celery flourished! The Romaine lettuce did well also, the yellow onion not quite as successful. It did produce an onion, just not a very large one. This was a fun gardening experiment, some I may retry once the summer heat has passed.
Praying Mantis hatched from a purchased egg case.
Something else I am doing this year is allowing the plants to go to seed in hopes that I can use the seeds for next years garden.
Gardening is about succeeding, failures, experimenting with new things, and learning from them.”
I must say, that I am very impressed with Jacob’s garden and also with how much he has learned since he started his garden.
As he stated, don’t be afraid get out in the garden and try. Of course, you will have some failures (all gardeners do – I have had my share). But, you will also have successes that make failures pale in comparison. Gardening is a huge experiment, which makes life fun and exciting.
I am so grateful to Jacob and his mom, Deb, who took the time to write to me and then to share their garden and thoughts with me.
“THANK YOU!”
A Butterfly / Hummingbird Garden Finished!
Arcadia Edible Garden Tour: Part 3
Garden Travels, Vegetable GardeningIf you have been following along with my last couple of posts (Part 1 and Part 2), then you know that I have been showing some of the highlights of this year’s Arcadia Edible Garden Tour.
Well, here is the last installment, showing some of our favorite highlights from the last few gardens we toured.
I was looking forward to visit Caroline’s garden. She blogs about growing and cooking great food at Boho Farm and Home.
The first thing you notice as you enter her back garden is that you start to feel relaxed amidst the beauty and shade.
Who wouldn’t want to spend time enjoying a beautiful summer’s day in the shade?
Galvanized tubs are all the rage for planting vegetables gardens, flower, etc. I may need to get one for my garden…
I love the wire mesh arch connecting both of these raised vegetable beds at Boho Farm. I can just imagine growing Scarlet Creeper vines up and over this arch.
The vegetable beds were full of delicious vegetables, which Caroline serves to visitors.
I like her fence, don’t you?
Her apple trees are espaliered along the fence.
Throughout the gardens at Boho Farm were artichokes mixed with ornamental plants. Artichokes are a beautiful plant, so why not combine them with the rest of your garden?
Our last stop was a home where I was inspired to create my own trellises…
This scarlet creeper vine, which are very easy to grow in the summer, is growing up a vine made up of rebar and wire mesh.
How simple would that be to make? I think my husband and I are up for it.
Rebar is the hot trend in garden art right now. I love trends that are cheap – you can’t get much cheaper then rebar.
Of course, we saw more apples growing. They won’t be ripe until mid June.
Which reminds me – it is almost time for me to haul out my canning supplies and get ready to make peach, plum and strawberry jam. You can read about my adventures in canning here, if you like.
Of course, I will also make some applesauce too using apples from my mother’s trees. My apple trees are too young to be producing apples yet. I’ll probably have to wait a few more years.
As you can see, we had a wonderful morning together and I came home with some new plants and a few new ideas for my garden.
Would you like to go on this tour next year?
The Arcadia Edible Garden Tour has been held the past 2 years in early May. Tickets sell out quickly, so start looking for them on Sweet Life Garden’s blog in early April.
Who knows…we may bump into each other next year!
Arcadia Edible Tour: Part 2
Garden Travels, Vegetable GardeningEarlier this week, I shared with you the first garden on the Arcadia Edible Tour. It was just wonderful to see the Sweet Life Garden in person.
However, we had to tear ourselves away from the first garden because there were more to see…
We stopped by Larry’s “Living the Dream Micro Farm”.
Like many of the gardens we visited, Larry had chickens.
But, what really caught my attention was his row of trash can compost bins.
Each trash can was filled with compost in a different stage. The trash cans are re-purposed by the City of Phoenix and are available to their residents for $5 a bin. Other cities offer free or inexpensive trash cans or compost bins. Check your local city’s website under waste management to see what they offer.
Larry loved talking about his composting. He primarily uses chicken manure, coffee ground and leaves. It takes approximately 2 1/2 months from start to finish according to Larry.
Larry had huge tomato plants growing, heavily laden with fruit (yes, tomatoes are technically a fruit).
After leaving Larry’s garden, my mother asked to stop by Baker’s Nursery, which is her favorite place to buy vegetables. Baker’s is the favorite nursery of locals and is located on 40th Street, South of Indian School Rd.
The problem with me going to a nursery as nice as Baker’s, is that I become like a child in a candy store.
I always come home with plants and seeds. In this case, I bought more bush beans for my garden along with some perennial flowers and Angelita Daisy.
Back on tour, we saw some great examples of vegetables being grown.
Eggplant.
Aren’t these cucumber vines impressive? The trellis is made up of rebar and wire mesh.
I think cucumber flowers are so pretty, don’t you?
I do love the bright colors of blanket flower, which attract pollinators to the vegetable garden.
I think vegetables are beautiful.
This may look like a green tomato – but it isn’t. It’s a tomatillo.
Zucchini is so impressive in the vegetable garden. They grow so quickly and get so big. I have them growing my garden too. Now, I just have to get a recipe for chocolate zucchini cake so my kids will eat it 😉
I haven’t grown strawberries in my garden, although they are my favorite fruit. I spent time in Germany as a child with my grandparents who had a huge strawberry garden and one of my favorite memories is chasing the rabbits away.
I may have to try growing some next year.
In addition to fruit and vegetables, we did see a beautiful lily pond…
And something quite unexpected…
That’s the thing with garden tours, you never know what you will see…
As you can tell, we were enjoying ourselves very much.
There was so much to see, that I still have one more post showing you some of our favorite parts of a few more gardens.
So come on back….you hear?
Arcadia Edible Garden Tour: Part 1
Arizona, Vegetable GardeningI love visiting other people’s gardens, particularly if they have fruit and vegetables growing in them. So, I was thrilled to be able to go on a tour of local ‘edible’ gardens earlier this month.
This is the second year of the Arcadia Edible Garden Tour, which is made up of a collection of residential gardens in the ‘Arcadia’ area in east Phoenix. I used to live in this area and it is one of my favorite regions of the Phoenix metro area.
Because my mother loves gardening almost as much as I do, I decided to buy her a ticket too and take her with me as a Mother’s Day gift.
Our first stop was to see Jill’s Sweet Life Garden. I made sure to visit there first because I had been following her blog and couldn’t wait to see her gardens in person.
As we entered the garden, We headed straight for the raised vegetable beds.
My mother and I love to grow leaf lettuce, so we had to see what varieties were being grown.
One of the reasons that I was excited to go on this garden tour, was to get ideas to use in my own garden.
Like, using regular wire mesh over the garden. This would be great to use as a support for shade cloth in summer or frost cloth in the winter. It is much more attractive then PVC supports.
The trellis is made of rebar and wire mesh and provides an attractive support for vining vegetables.
As many of you know, I love to grow nasturtiums alongside my vegetables. They aren’t only pretty, they help to keep bad bugs away from my veggies.
This bed had a variety of nasturtium that I was anxious to try ‘Cherry Rose Jewel’ (I found seeds at Botanical Interests). I will definitely be planting these next year.
As I was busy admiring the raised beds, my attention was drawn upward by a massive trumpet vine that was growing up a Phoenix date palm.
Talk about an unexpected support for a vine – I loved it.
I have been growing a special variety of corn in a half wine barrel.
Sweet Life Garden had cucumbers growing in a barrel with a beautiful trellis.
Baker’s Nursery had these wine barrel trellises available, but I’m not sure if they still do. You could certainly make your own.
In addition to cucumbers, sunflowers were also growing in a barrel. I may have to try this.
I love growing herbs in pots, but I think Jill’s look better then mine because of the half barrels. I think I need to get more for my garden.
Tomatoes were growing like crazy with some beautiful heirloom varieties ripening.
Wouldn’t this look beautiful on a sandwich or on a salad?
I think it is important to have seating areas scattered throughout the garden, which invites you to sit and enjoy your surroundings.
Here is another example of the wire mesh being used as a trellis.
For those of you who mourn the fact that they cannot grow leafy greens for their salad in summer – let me introduce you to Malabar spinach.
Okay, it’s not exactly a spinach but tastes great in salads and tastes like spinach when cooked.
It loves hot temperatures and needs a trellis for support. I have seeds, but will probably wait until next year to plant mine.
The seeds can be a little hard to find at your local nursery, but you can buy some through Amazon.com for under a $1 – just type in Malabar spinach in the search.
Why limit yourself to growing just vegetables?
Fruit on shrubs and trees is also fun to grow as you can see from the large peach tree, above and the espaliered apple tree, below.
I especially enjoyed seeing the peach orchard. My peaches are almost ready for picking 🙂
I have been busy picking the blackberries off of my vines and have been thinking of adding more next winter.
After seeing the berries at Sweet Life Garden, I will definitely add more to my own garden.
Did you know that there is a thornless variety? I have one thorny blackberry bush and the rest are thornless. Guess which kind I like best?
It was time to wrap up our visit because there were more gardens to visit.
Did I mention that they have chickens too?
On our way out, we enjoyed seeing a variety of products offered by Sweet Life Garden and local vendors.
I had already eaten breakfast, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying a few samples.
The three-cheese black pepper bread came home with me.
We had a great time visiting Jill, at Sweet Life Garden.
But, our adventure didn’t end there. There were more gardens to visit. I will give you the highlights of the other gardens in my next post.
**You can find information about the Arcadia Edible Garden Tour on Jill’s blog, Sweet Life Garden. Be sure to order early next spring, when tickets are available.
Arcadia Edible Tour: Part 2
What Should You Do In The Garden in May?
desert, UncategorizedDo you ever wonder what you should be doing in your garden in a particular month?
As a freelance writer, I write a few monthly gardening articles and newsletters.
So, instead of writing an entirely new blog post, here is my latest “What To Do In The Garden” article for the Southwest that I wrote for Houzz.com
(I hope you don’t think I am lazy, but I would rather not write the same thing twice 😉
Southwest Gardener’s May Checklist
The Secret to a Bountiful Vegetable Garden
Vegetable GardeningAs you know, I enjoy growing my own vegetables. Many people ask me what the secret is to a healthy vegetable garden.
Well, what if I told you that the secret ingredient is a natural fertilizer that improves your soil, is plentiful and very cheap.
Would you want to try it in your garden? Chances are that you are already familiar with this secret ingredient and farmers have been using it for centuries.
What is it?
MANURE
Secret of healthy vegetable garden, Manure along with compost are the backbone of my soil in my vegetable gardens.
Manure along with compost are the backbone of my soil in my vegetable gardens.
I blogged about using manure when creating my newest vegetable garden early last year.
I recently wrote an article “The Poop Scoop: Enrich Your Soil With Good Old Manure” for Houzz.com
I hope you enjoy it!
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The most recent update on our daughter, Rachele, who is in basic training for the Navy is that she has to pass her last running test in order to graduate.
She is quite nervous about passing because she still hasn’t recovered from her twisted ankle and also has shin splints.
I would appreciate your prayers that she will be able to pass 🙂