Starting the fall garden

This morning I am dragging out the seeds from last year because it is time to start my fall garden.

Last season, (in the spring) I had great success with my seed starting and I am ready to pull out the grow lights and heating pads and start collards, broccoli, cabbage, kale, spinach and more--mostly greens.

The thing I learned to give my seeds a jump-start was to make sure they have heat until they sprout and then light until they are large enough to take outside.

Last season I started things in little peat pots and this works quite well and in the beginning stages may be even easier than growing them in potting soil.

But they are kind of hard to extract from those little peat pots. You don't have to do it, but I think the plant grows better when you do.

Here are some collards from last year. If I can grow them from seeds, I plan to have all we can eat and more.

I hope I am good at starting fall seeds. Wish me luck.

My look-alike chair

 Last week my new IKEA catalog arrived--first at my Mother's and then at my house. When she received hers I scanned though and put it down but when it arrived at my house I really gave it a good look. I love all their space-saving ideas and the magazine makes me want to clean out shelves and buy storage items.

One thing I really loved was the little chair in the center of page 183. I have been searching yard sales for a chair to put in my bathroom to sit in while drying my hair--a primping chair. It is very important to me to get one but I didn't want to 1. Spend much money on it or 2. Take too much time and money fixing it up. 

I have looked for about 6 months at yard sales and thrift stores but never found the right chair. The IKEA chair I liked was $99 and I didn't want to pay that much for my chair but I thought at the time I had better save my money because I was never going to find a suitable chair.

Last week I was out of town and shopping with my daughter-in-law--a great sale shopper of all kinds--especially yard sales. I have never gone to a yard sale out of town but she thought it might be fun so we looked up yard sales on angieslist.com and went by a few. I was quite disappointed. They really didn't have anything for me. Sometimes yard sales are like that and just aren't worth the gas it takes to get to them.

After yard sales, we decided  to stop by thrift stores. Not too much at the first couple of thrift stores but we stopped by a store called Picker's Paradise which was OK. Things were a little pricey but the stuff was interesting. I walked out to the furniture section of their store since it was a 25 percent off day--which btw had no air conditioning and found the chair below. I thought it was a nice version of the IKEA chair

I couldn't find a price tag anywhere and I thought it really looked similar to the IKEA chair. When I asked, the price was $9.99 and 25 percent off. I tried not to seem too pleased, I just nodded and said OK--but I was thinking about what kind of cushion I could get for my new chair and whether or not I should paint it a bright color.

I really love it. I have washed it off--once with just soap and then with a soapy bleach solution and I will be looking for a nice cushion. this week. Meanwhile, I will be enjoying my new chair and I am so happy that I have saved $91.50! I love it!

Healthy back to school lunches

It's hard to believe that is time for school already and after all the school shopping and buying of supplies (which incidentally are on sale right now) it's also time to start thinking about school lunches. For most kids that is easy but for kids with allergies it can be a real challenge.

A website and blog that may be helpful to kids with this problem is keeleymcguire.com and keeleymcguire.blogspot.com. This is a website with some great ideas.

Instead of complaining about allergies and bemoaning the fact that an allergic kid must eat differently, she has come up wit ideas that make eating differently very cool.

She has taken the plastic lunch container and filled it full of good ideas and nutritious meals. It is hard to believe the variety of colors and shapes she has packed into these little containers.

I believe she also shares ideas to get kids involved with the preparation and planning of these meals, too.

So instead of wishing things could be different, check out these ideas. You might just find you can even get your kid excited about eating his or her vegetables--an intriguing idea isn't it?

Hills & Dales and Heritage Gardening

I am a big fan of Hills & Dales Estate in LaGrange, Georgia. I have visited there on more than one occasion and I must say I really love it. It's not just that it is a majestic, historical site. It is the fascinating story of one property with two houses, two families and one magnificent garden that is almost 200 years old--and it's still delighting visitors. 

Of course the gardens are beautiful and the house is something to see, too--yet the story of the families is an equally beautiful one. I would advise anyone to go and visit . That is why when I received this press release about the estate and its heritage plants, I thought it would be a good idea to help get out the word that Carleton Wood, the Hills & Dales director would be in our county at the Backyard Gardener's Association Meeting on Tuesday, August 13 at 7:00pm. The meeting will take place at the Coweta County Extension Office.

See the press release below:

“What’s Old is New Again:  Great Heritage Plants for Your Garden”

Mr. Carleton Wood, Director of Hills & Dales Estate in LaGrange, Georgia will be the guest speaker at the Backyard Association (BYA) meeting scheduled for August 13, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. at the Coweta County Extension Office.

Old gardens and cemeteries frequently contain old-fashioned plants that have gone out of style and been forgotten.  Many have been replaced by modern hybrids and recently developed cultivars that everybody grows.  During this talk Mr. Wood will share a wide variety of unique heritage garden plants that deserve a place in your garden.  You'll leave with a list of plants that have stood the test of time and are sure to brighten your garden, add seasonal interest and bring you years of enjoyment.  We'll touch on flowering shrubs, perennials, flowering trees and perhaps even a few bulbs and annuals.

The Backyard Association, sponsored by Coweta County Master Gardener Extension Volunteers (MGEVs), is a free seminar held on the second Tuesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. at the Coweta County Extension Office located at 255 Pine Road in Newnan.  Please call the Extension Office at (770) 254-2620 for reservations and to register for door prizes.

If you want to see more, please browse some previous blog posts about Hills and Dales Estate in LaGrange when I visited with the Crossroads Garden Club. Better yet, go for a visit. It is one of the best tours in our vicinity.

My marathon weekend

Last weekend my daughter and I spent our entire weekend marathon-cooking.

We cooked from mid-day Friday till bedtime.

The next morning we woke up at the crack of dawn--well maybe I am exaggerating a little, but we cooked from early Saturday morning until about 9:45 pm when we just couldn't do any more. Above are some of our more successful attempts at making pancakes and muffins on Saturday.

We spent at least half a day on Sunday trying to wrap things up and I came home with a list of things to finish. I am sure my poor mixer was glad for the rest!

We messed up SO many dishes, measuring cups, spoons, bowls and we came up with some very good recipes and plenty of not so good things that had to be trashed.

For example, the above photo shows an attempt at hamburger buns. I know they look a bit like cauliflowers gone bad and after a taste test, were declared a failure.

This pie looks like of pretty. The crust was way too heavy but the berries were good. After a couple of tries we made the recipe worse so my assignment is to bake a better pie crust.

We did make a successful banana bread. This one was a keeper.

We are not trying to win a cooking award, we are trying to finish a cookbook and right now I have the utmost respect for every cookbook author out there!

Our book will feature gluten-free recipes with a southern flair and right now I can't wait until it is completed. I have tasted and trashed more food than I thought was possible and we have some great recipes and some that aren't quite there yet. I know that if we continue to plug away at it we will have something we will be proud to be a part of--at least that is my hope.

Gerald Johnson, Master Gardener/iris and daylily grower

Gerald Johnson and his wife Dianna visited Crossroads Garden Club last Monday and talked about his passion for gardening, and gave us useful tips to successfully grow bearded irises and beautiful daylilies. Gardening wasn't always a passion for Johnson. Having been "raised" on a farm, he vowed that when he grew up and left the farm, he would never return.

Thankfully, that didn't last for Johnson because he has become a landscaper and a  Master Gardener with Cobb County. More recently, Johnson moved to Carroll County where he continues run his landscape business, along with both an iris farm and a daylily farm. He also has become a hybridizer of daylilies and should soon be selling his own varieties of daylilies, maybe some in the color of your favorite sports team.

Johnson began by telling use some helpful facts about irises. He is not only an expert, but is the past president of the Georgia Iris Society and has over 30,000 varieties of bearded irises.

Johnson's tips:

Never mulch irises. They need dry feet (or roots) or they could rot. Mulching holds the water in.

They don't like to be crowded, so don't hesitate to dig some up and move them when they grow too closely together.

Irises are sun lovers. They need plenty of sunlight, especially for the next next growing season. That doesn't mean they won't grow under hardwoods. Hardwoods lose their leaves and allow sun during the time buds are forming--which can be enough sun to successfully grow irises.

Irises Must have the proper fertilizer which is 6-12-12. Irises don't need a fertilizer high in nitrogen.

Fertilize them 60 days prior to blooming which is the end of March.

Correct fertilization will directly effect the size of the bloom.

The best time to move irises is July through October.

For companion planting Johnson suggest finding plants that won't crowd the irises and don't need too much watering.

Groundhogs and armadillos can dug up and destroy irises. Johnson had photos to prove this and suggested a large dog to keep similar pests from digging up iris roots.

Johnson has both a spring and fall sale for his irises and daylilies on his Carroll County farm.

Johnson is also a daylily hybridizer. He expects his first named varieties to be offered for sale this fall.

One popular attribute of daylillies are ruffles.

Johnson will be naming many of his new daylily varieties after sports teams because of the colors. One similar to the daylily above will be Tennessee Cheerleader.

Daylilies are easy to grow but are loved by both rabbits and deer. In fact, the flowers can also be eaten by humans and are good on salads. Johnson hasn't found too many ways to protect his daylilies from non-human predators.

Besides color, Johnson grows daylilies with enormous showy blooms.

Johnson was a great speaker and we appreciated him for his humor and obvious knowledge.

The next day after hearing Johnson's iris tips I removed all the newly placed pine straw from around my crowded iris bed. I am also looking for some 6-12-12 and i am thinking about where I need to move a few of my irises.

Photos courtesy of Dianna and Gerald Johnson.

Charlotte's popcorn

You might know Charlotte Nelson as the "Straw Bale Lady." I know I have mentioned her enough. Besides being a great person and true friend,she is a person who has creative ideas that inspire me.

The photo above is just one example. Charlotte wondered if Orville Redenbacher popcorn (which is incidentally very good) would actually grow if the seeds were planted. The answer is a resounding YES! However, Charlotte found out a few more facts about the popular corn product than just that it will sprout and grow.

First it is way taller than she expected and each giant stalk is growing and producing beautiful ears of popcorn. The biggest surprise is the fluffy, fuzzy, bright pink silks topping each ear. Such a pretty and bright color!

If you ever wondered why this is great popcorn--it's because it begins with a great product.

I am glad to know this but I am happier because Charlotte has shown me that I don't just need to look at the seed store to find seeds. Sometimes, a great product or idea might just be on my kitchen shelf and if I like it, why wouldn't I just try growing it myself? If I did, I might just have some great popcorn--always on my kitchen shelf.

I'm looking forward to Charlotte's next great idea. If it's as good as the popcorn idea, I am already excited about it!