Gardening on the Cheap-Free Grapevine!

Every year we try to add a new food producer/source to our land. Most of the time we can find what we want or need by trading or, best of all free.ie.”Gardening on the Cheap!

We had the offer of domestic Concord grape vine from family.  It was an established 15yr old vine they were planning to pull out & change in landscaping   The vine is/was a super heavy producer ….even totally ignored the past 10 years. I nearly cried at the thought of destroying it and asked if we could dig it up. The thought of just ripping it out was heartbreaking to us.  We planned to add grapes in the near future so it was a no brainer to at least try.  Being Texas transplants and used to 0 yard maintenance they were happy to let us have it.   We dug and dug…then dug some more attempting to get the entire root ball. Mercy this thing was big! We left a mini crater in the ground.   I’m not sure if it will survive our efforts but it was sure worth the try.  We trimmed about 15 ft. of vine from the fence & planted a bunch of the cuttings along the new trellis. I know we way over planted the cuttings but I figure only a few will survive. I’ve been keeping it watered & 1-2 of the cuttings have bits of green showing so I have hopes some may live & our cooler weather is really helping cut down on the plant stress.

Hard to tell but the main stalk is nearly as large as my wrist.

The kitchen garden has done well.  I’ve added bits here and there through the season.  Mostly herbs & nearly all were transplants or cuttings I was given. Carrots seem to love this soil.  The area originally had a sand base under the pool (which I have amended) so the soil is loose and loamy. Beets have done well as have lettuces.

The 1 cherry tomato plant I put in here just took off like gang busters and is still producing heavily.

Lettuce is coming up faster than we can eat it.

There are various mints, sage, lavender, chives, oregano, thyme, bee balm planted willy nilly in and around veggies as I was given the starts. I’ll say one thing, this area has been virtually bug free, although next year may be a different story I’m enjoying it now.  I need to get out there and do a bit of rearranging/spacing  & separating. I think I want to ring the entire area with lavender. The blooms I want to harvest & dry to use to protect  the wool stash from potential moth problems.

Well, The dust bunnies in my house are scheduling a party tonight their friends all come and don’t leave so I need to go break it up now

Have a wonderful day

Katie

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Shave and hair-cut 5 cents

Don’t we wish those were still the prices!

  I need a haircut so bad but can’t decide what I want to do.  Something short-“ish” but still with a tad bit of length…because right now I’m starting to look like “Shaggy” from Scooby Do

It hasn’t been trimmed since April and, this is pretty close to Mr. Fix-It’s expression when I get up in the morning. 

Something else needing a haircut was my chives. They were tall enough to layover..past time for a trim. 

I think I’ve gotten addicted to using chives, nothing is safe….eggs, soups, stews…you name it nothing gets past the chives. It gives so much flavor for so little gardening effort, pop them in a pot and leave them alone, I pretty much ignore them till it’s time for a trim.  In the grocery the other day I saw bundles of fresh chives being sold for over $3.00. The bundles were only about 1/2 the size of this cutting.

I’d made a rather foolish attempt to dehydrate them in the Excalibur…and found them blown all over inside.

  It’s not easy picking up and shaking a Excalibur as you would a toaster to clean them out! If I still had the smaller round dehydrator It would be fine as the air flows up/down on the cuttings holding them in place.  I may try using the ambient heat from the oven next time I make bread & see what happens. Although they take up very little space the less I have in the freezer the better. Besides, I’ve saved a bunch of brown glass vitamin bottles & have them all clean ready to store my herbs.

How do you preserve/store your chives?

Do they loose flavor dehydrated?

Katie

Technorati Tags: Katidids,Herbs,preserving,dehydrating

More containers & looking for Jewel Weed

This summer one of my goals is to establish a dedicated space for an herb garden.  Ideally the bed behind the garage is where it will go.  Right now I have oregano and thyme in.  They were established last year with cuttings from my daughter Danielle and I’ve harvested and dehydrated about a pound of oregano so far. Yeah, I know what am I going to do with that much oregano?  Well…..if you want some let me know, other than that I’m looking at medicinal uses. 
Anyway back to herbs.  To start with I know I don’t know enough to properly grow them at this point.  Are some friends, enemy’s (like vegies have friends and enemy’s)?  Who needs what as far as sun, shade, spacing, which re-seed,  etc. 

Lots of reading to do so I don’t kill them.

Until then, most are in containers of some sort.

Chives, garlic, leeks,

(yes those are Hens & Chicks watching over the pots)

parsley(s), bee balm, mint (which I know will take over its space)

I need to find and start some marjoram & basil ,  figure out what is in savory seasoning (or is it an herb?)  SO much to learn.

On the west side of the garage I’ve a small selection of Lavender started.  My goal is to make my own sachet as a moth repellant for my wool habit addiction stash storage.

There are 2 other lavender plants in other areas of the yard trying to see what works best. 

OK, I just love the plant and I want them there ok?

Most of all I want Jewel Weed! Anyone have clipping they’d like to share?  It’s an alternative treatment for poison oak/ivy/sumac….which I get EVERY stinkin year. 

Yes I know what it (poison Ivy) looks like, but if I’m within 50 feet of it I break out.

So if you find Jewel Weed in your yard or along the road would ya send me some?
Here is what it looks like.  There may be some in my area but, I’m not recognizing it.

Katie

Technorati Tags: Katidids,gardening,container gardening,herbs,poison oak ivy sumac Jewel weed