Gorgeous Greens

Since I have Rapini in my garden this year I couldn't resist this gorgeous picture of rapini with garlic and chili flakes. Gives me an idea for dinner.

Really I can't say enough good things about this plant.

SO easy to grow
So nutritious
So delicious

This photo is generously shared by onejen on flickr

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Farm or Garden? Or Both

Here's a great article from the Energy Bulletin about how important gardening may become.
A farm is a large garden (or a garden is a small farm)

I should disclose that much of my interest in growing my own food is motivated by what I have read about the problems associated with Peak Oil. Yeah, it's scary, but ignoring it doesn't make it go away.

The Energy Bulletin is a terrific source of information on all things Peak.

Big Garden Project for 2008

This is the before photo of our beautiful double wide driveway.

We decided we really didn't need this much non-permeable surface in the yard. And we do need more dirt for more plants, so...

All busted up, ready to be used for stepping stones.


This what it looked like after I turned the dirt a little, dirt that has been under cement for about 30 years. I added some straw and coffee grounds and compost. I'll seed it with fava beans, and buckwheat, as a cover crop, which I'll turn under as green manure.


And just like that, about 130 additional square feet of dirt becomes available for plants.

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A Change in the Weather

Ah, finally a string of days in the 70s. And the plants have been loving it. Tiny tomatoes have appeared on the Oregon Star and the Sungolds. Scarlet Runner Beans are reaching towards the tip top of the teepee. And the Spinach is fading, which is a reliable sign that spring is done and summer is here.

The girls turn 18 weeks old this week, so the eggs should start rolling in any day now.

Could It Really Be The Last Day of Winter?

It's only June 10th, after all.  50 degrees and showery, perfect, right?

Even native Oregonians tell me this is crazy, unusual.   Although it feels wet, we're actually below average rainfall, but the temps have been the killer, cold, cold, cold.

Disasterous for starting tomatoes, basil, cukes.  My basil starts all suffered damping off.

It's gotta warm up soon, right, right?

Tomorrow high 60s and 80 by Friday, so they say.

Somethins' gotta give.

PS  More soon on the big project for this summer.

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