Bunny poop

Thank you to Caroline for giving me some of her precious bunny poop. I spread it in the greenhouse garden bed. It is full of basil, one tomato and assorted lettuce. And now...bunny poop. I've heard that it is one of the best fertilizers going. So thank you darling rabbits, thank you.

Make your own all natural anti-bacterial spray...smells clean, is safe and affordable

In the store I bottle and sell essential oils. I make my own cleaners and anti-bacterial spray. I cringe every time I see the commercial showing a chemical anti-bacterial spray in a can being sprayed all over the house and on children's toys. To make a safe, easy, effective and cheap spray take a bottle that will hold two to three cups of water. Add fifteen drops each, essential oils of Tea Tree, Oil of Oregano and Eucalyptus. Do not add the Eucalyptus Oil if you have cats. A vet told me that Eucalyptus is toxic to cats. Shake up the bottle each time you use it and use freely knowing that it is safe!

The mystery tool has been identified

Thanks to Erica at the brilliant blog Northwest Edible Life, my mystery tool has been identified. It is a Japanese Nejiri garden hoe. I highly recommend that everyone treat yourself to one of these. It is the perfect tool for creating a seed trough, or drill, or using the point to gouge out little weeds. I LOVE my Japanese Nejiri Hoe.

What is this mystery tool called?

This is a wonderful tool for seeding. It cuts a perfect trough into the soil. I discovered this wonderful "Garden Tools of Maine" tool among several others when cleaning out the greenhouse. (I am not sure this company even exists anymore?) I had totally forgotten about it buried in a canvas bag. It is about 15-20 years old, yet in mint condition. I have some lovely garden tools. We have a wonderful shop in Sidney called Dig This. It has been around in three incarnations over the years. I bought my tools there from it's first. I have these wonderful hand tools and equally wonderful full sized shovels, forks etc. I am in, what I am sure is the worlds hardest clay. It is literally like concrete in the summer. You cannot push ANY tool into it more than about an inch. And that is after some serious chopping. I refused to use/abuse my beautiful tools in that fashion. So now, as I embark on the gardening journey, using raised beds and serious soil amendments...here they are. Lucky me!

Fall cleanup...can it really be that time already?

Fall...ahhhh the colour

I looked out at my split, awful, rain bashed tomatoes, and thought, I need to get out there. So, I got out there. Two tomato plants looked 'done' so I took off the red and still green tomatoes and dug the plants out. Pulled a few lovely carrots. I emptied out the black plastic compost bin. We have been filling it for about a year. There was actually some lovely compost in it. I moved all the contents to the new three bin system. I made the decision to move the nice compost as well. It really wasn't enough to make a big difference in the beds, so my thinking was this. It was full of worms and healthy microbes, so they will hopefully kickstart the new bin. In the bottom of the plastic bin was one of my teaspoons. How does that happen?

Plants heading for, and in the compost bin

I dug out the fading Salad Bowl lettuce. It is am amazing lettuce. It has a strong taste, but does not bolt so you get lettuce all summer. It is just starting to bolt now, so I left the two largest healthiest plants so that I can take seed. Then I dug up the smaller lettuce plants that I planted a while ago, and moved them to the greenhouse for winter lettuce.

Salad Bowl lettuce babies now in the greenhouse

Not basing any of it on experience, or books, just following my gut today. Maybe my Grandparents and Uncle Harvey were guiding me today?


Can't even tell it's a cauliflower

Same bed, looks more like a cauliflower

This cauliflower is in the raised bed and about 5x bigger...huh?