Spent the weekend playing garden girl. Dirt betwwen the toes. Dirty nails and knees. Sweaty arm pits. Didn't even clean up for the trip to Hibbs. Figured I looked the part.

I'm looking forward to some cooler weather. We have a small bed we threw a couple bags of pooh down in to. Get it ready to plant. Gonna try broccoli and brussell sprouts. Some peppers. Got some spinach, lettuce and swiss chard. We'll see what happens.

The Orchid bug has hit me. I'm now "collecting" them wherever I can. They love the punk trees we have. Just poke'em in there and they seem to take off. The orchid society folks would cringe at my methods. As would most any society folks. I'm not the most learned gardener. I even recycle my soil! I've heard this isn't a highly recommended practice. I do check it for bugs before I reuse it. It works for me.

I am also starting to collect some cactus. Whatever! Along the same line as the bromilead thing. Thought I didn't care for them. Still trying not to use the "H" word.

The grill master is at work. Ribeyes. Yum Yum. I love red meat! Sorry if that offends anyone. I must go man the Fry-daddy.

Beauty and Versitility

I grow them because they are so happy and bright. I started last year with two varieties. I saved the heads to gather the seeds to plant this year. I laid the heads outside to dry. Don't do this! I am one who learns better by making the mistake myself. The next day after returning from work I went to check the drying process and you guessed it. They were gone. I figure the squirrels had a nice little picnic. I'm assuming it was squirrels as they were of the Mammoth variety. I did manage to harvest some seeds and they are coming along nicely.

As a food source these guys have been prepared the same way as an artichoke, the closed buds were considered a delicacy by the Europeans. Their seeds have been crushed, used for baking and roasting. We buy 20 lb. bags of the things for our backyard guests. Highly nutritious. They contain linoleic acid and vitamin E. The polyunsaturated fatty acid content is higher than olive oil. Containing vitamin A and D it makes an excellent antioxidant.

Ever noticed how their little heads follow the sun? Well, Greek mythology talks of Clytie and Apollo. Supposodly Clytie loved Apollo. They were tight for a while then Apollo was off to greener pastures. Clytie sat day after day turning her head to watch Apollo move across the sky in his chariot. O.K girls. A pathetic picture, but can you relate? Anyways the gods finally took pity on the poor fool and turned her into a flower.

Another Vocabulary Lesson

I have decided to try not to use the words "I hate" or "never". I used to think I hated bromeliads. That I would never want them included in my landscape. My first opinion was formed as my arms were torn to shreds clearing out overgrown beds. My loathing of the vicious things lasted quite a while.
My boss is the head of the local bromeliad society. We are quizzed regularly on the 300,000,000 million kazillion species. I have grasped one or two and after that, all I hear is BLAH, BLAH, BLAH. We had to be bribed by our employer (dinner and hourly wage) to go to a society meeting. More BLAH, BLAH, BLAH. After which my boss graced me with one. A Bilbergia. I hesitantly found a place for it in my landscape. I hate, oops. I would rather not throw a plant away. I have watched it grow and bloom and have come to appreciate their beauty. Look at the colors. And some of the blooms are spectacular. My collection is growing. I am not about to join the local bromeliad society. And I am still wary of the spiney beasts but I have opened my eyes to their beauty. My horizons just keep expanding.

It Takes a Thief

Well, "thief" may be a little harsh. I have crossed the line I believe. I can no longer satisfy my need to grow things by visiting the local nursery. I actually pulled my work truck off the road the other day. I had been eyeballing a royal poinciana with a single seed pod hanging( just out of reach). I tried my two step ladder but still couldn't reach it and the only other option was climbing on the hood of my truck. Please tell me you understand. Surely there are more of us out there. As I climbed on the hood I imagined someone calling the office to report this strange behavior to my boss. We have our business name and # smeared all over our trucks. I did get the pod and I didn't get reported. Since then I nabbed more pods off some trees by Tim's work (no climbing involved) plus as I was scanning the surroundings I spotted a sprout. So I nabbed it too! I don't want to just go and buy a tree. I want to watch it grow.
So far the goods gained have been on public property Or from my clients.
Notice the nice loquat to the left. I yanked him up when he was just a sprout. Have you ever had a ripe loquat? One taste and you'll be looking for sprouts too. Well. You may go the more conventional route and buy the tree. I have three Jacaranda sprouts from seeds I collected. I have not gone so far as to cross onto someones property. I would however not have a problem knocking on someones door to ask for a clipping from a plant. I have had someone ask me for clippings and was quite happy to oblige. And one day when my Poinciana is large enough to produce seed pods and I see some poor fool struggling to reach just one. I believe I would offer my ladder. And if you notice someone on the side of the road climbing on the hood of their truck under the trees. Please understand they aren't meaning any harm. They are just in love with growing things. God has put some really beautiful things on this earth. Some of us were born gatherers. I'm just doing what I was born to do.

Goober Peas

How do I keep squirrels out of my plants? Have you ever heard this question? I've heard it discussed in grocery lines. I've read numerous tips and tricks to keep the little critters at bay. I've come up with a fail-proof method of dealing with them. This may not work for everyone but for me and my honey, it has worked just fine. We have come to the conclusion we will just deal with them and yes we indulge them. In fact I believe we have over indulged them to the point they hear the back door open and they greet us. Hard as we have tried we can't resist those pleading eyes. Raw peanuts have become a staple in our household. Right up there with therapeutic paper (toilet paper). We have a "bird" feeder we have turned over to our squirrels. The cardinals and jays have to scramble to get a little seed while the little pigs are taking their afternoon siesta.

Anyways, back to the goober pea point of the story. We are now finding peanut plants popping up all over. See. They like to garden too!