November 8, 2013 by Born To Organize

Looking Back at the Corner Garden

Earlier this year I removed a small patch of lawn, a corner near the sidewalk facing the house. Originally I thought I would plant annuals and perennials, but decided annuals would be more fun. Perennials, once established, require little maintenance. I wanted a bit of action in my new flower garden and it’s action I got.

Corner near the sidewalk

April:

After removing the grass and preparing the soil, I planted seeds, including Sunflowers, Bachelor Buttons, Cosmos and a Spring Mix of assorted purple plants. I covered it all with a portable green house. The goal was to keep digging critters away from the seedlings to give them a fighting chance.

It half-worked. None of the critters were able to dig, but I couldn’t keep it well-watered either.

The seeds didn’t get enough consistent moisture, and next to nothing germinated.(I did get one sunflower).

April, 2013
Seeds tucked in for warmth and safety

May:

Disappointed but not defeated, I headed to the nursery and bought a few cell packs. I picked up a dozen sunflowers as a compliment to the one that grew from seed, my signature annual Alyssum and a few flowering annuals.

May, 2013
Sunflowers, Alyssum and assorted annuals

June:

In early June, I drove up to the house in an unseasonal windstorm, and saw the fruits of my recent labor (the sunflowers) bending in the wind. I dragged a bench, a folding table and anything else I could think of and braced all the plants. I’m sure the neighbors wondered why I would move the bench to the edge of the sidewalk, but desperate times (sunflowers in peril) require desperate measures (in this case looking foolish). That said, I’ve gone out to lunch with girlfriends wearing a wig and false eyelashes so I suppose my concerns about looking foolish are moot. Ha!

June, 2013
Sunflowers staked to the bench

July/August:

The summer heat settled in and then this happened. The Bachelor Buttons, Cosmos and assorted seeds took off. Every week something new popped up. What a joyous experience. As the sunflowers died back, the annuals filled in. This also became my test garden. I bought (and forgot) about three pink zinnias and left them to suffer the heat out back. I replanted them in the sidewalk garden and they flourished.

sidewalk garden flowers

September:

The Bachelor Buttons started going to seed, testing my resolve. The orderly me wanted to deadhead the flowers and trim back dying branches. Daily visits from the birds kept me in check. It was nice to see them swoop down and grab a bite. Another plus, re-seeding. As the birds and squirrels drop seeds, they’re likely to regrow the following season. We all win!

I planted most of my garden peas in the curb garden, but since I had plenty, I planted a few among the summer annuals. As the annuals died back, the peas could take their place.

zinnias and cosmos

October:

October was all about pumpkins and Halloween. Drip irrigation and a warm sun kept things humming along.

Oh, and this visitor:

butterfly collage

November:

The peas are growing among the summer annuals and will need to be staked soon. Still lots of color but the zinnias are starting to decay. Nightly temps in the forties signal the end of summer weather, even when it does make it to 72 F by mid-day.

November, 2013
Going to seed

November, 2013
Garden peas grow among the flowers

What’s next? Time to collect seeds for next year. I’ve snagged a few here and there, but I need to make a concerted effort now before our promised Monday rain. Oh wondrous rain, how I’ve missed you.

Then on to planning for next year. Happy weekend. I’ll see you Monday.

July 26, 2013 by Born To Organize

What’s Luck Got To Do With It?

Heart-Shaped Clover

Some people believe in luck; others believe you make your own. Personally I like the idea put forth by Carl Jung that ‘luck’ is synchronicity, the idea that “the experience of two or more events as meaningfully related, whereas they are unlikely to be causally related.”

In other words, through blogging, I’ve discovered a world of interesting and articulate people who might not otherwise have crossed my path. Synchronicity! I look forward to logging on daily to see what fellow bloggers have to say; unique perspectives from around the globe.

Trying to spot a four-leaf clover on the forest floor, I had a paradigm shift. Why search for the elusive four-leaf clover, when there are pretty green hearts right under my nose?

In our not-always-pretty world, I’ve found bloggers with grace, poise, humor, advice, skill, and fascinating points of view. The hearts in the clover. At the risk of sounding pollyannaish, I believe the world is full of good people. My experience in the world of blogging validates that truth.

‘Lucky’ me!

Clover: Forest Floor, Felton, California

June 13, 2013 by Born To Organize

Sunflower Power: Still Number One

I’m a firm believer in one of the following two clichés:

Variety is the spice of life.
Familiarity breeds contempt.

Can you guess which one?

Emerging Sunflower, 2013

Sunflower, 2012

Sunflower going to seed, 2011

Hope blooms from a packet of seeds

Did you guess?

I love the variety a garden affords. When you live and play in California soil, variety abounds. That said, I have three garden favorites that appear year after year: pumpkins, tomatoes and sunflowers.

My top three favorites never breed contempt. For over a decade now, sunflowers make the list. One tiny seed leads to a magnificent flowering plant, growing a majestic 5 – 12 feet (1.5 to 4 meters) or more. As they grow, they attract beneficial insects. They’re a huge favorite with the bees. Sunflowers produce a mass of seeds which we generally ‘offer’ the squirrels at season’s end. The bright yellow flower is my favorite anyway, so I’m happy to share the remaining spoils.

How about you: variety, familiarity or a little of both?

Sunflowers, 2013

Also from gardeningnirvana:

April 15, 2013 by Born To Organize

Boston: In Other’s Words

Warning: The words in italics are not my own, but I agree with all of them. I’ve removed the f-bomb to keep my G rating.

Tragedy…and hope. The world is still a good place. Plant flowers, hug your children, pet your cat and love the ones you’re with. And yes, grieve.

To read the post in its entirety, please link to Oswalt’s facebook page.

Please join the conversation in the comments section, below:

by Patton Oswalt

Boston. F**ng horrible.

I remember, when 9/11 went down, my reaction was, “Well, I’ve had it with humanity.”

But I was wrong. I don’t know what’s going to be revealed to be behind all of this mayhem. One human insect or a poisonous mass of broken sociopaths.

But here’s what I DO know. If it’s one person or a HUNDRED people, that number is not even a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a percent of the population on this planet. You watch the videos of the carnage and there are people running TOWARDS the destruction to help out. (Thanks FAKE Gallery founder and owner Paul Kozlowski for pointing this out to me). This is a giant planet and we’re lucky to live on it but there are prices and penalties incurred for the daily miracle of existence. One of them is, every once in a while, the wiring of a tiny sliver of the species gets snarled and they’re pointed towards darkness.

But the vast majority stands against that darkness and, like white blood cells attacking a virus, they dilute and weaken and eventually wash away the evil doers and, more importantly, the damage they wreak. This is beyond religion or creed or nation. We would not be here if humanity were inherently evil. We’d have eaten ourselves alive long ago.

So when you spot violence, or bigotry, or intolerance or fear or just garden-variety misogyny, hatred or ignorance, just look it in the eye and think, “The good outnumber you, and we always will.”

My heart goes out to the people of Boston, the families and victims of the attack, and yes, to the heartless soul or souls who are behind this violence. I’m trying hard to understand your heart of darkness.

March 19, 2012 by Born To Organize

Spring it On!

Patio Garden

Hooray for spring which officially arrives on our coast around 1 am tomorrow. Spring Equinox symbolizes the re-emergence of plants and trees awakening from winter’s slumber. It also means longer lines at the garden center.

When I was single and working full-time I used to use some of my paid time off each spring to start my garden. It didn’t matter where I was living, I always found a way to break ground even if it meant settling for a patio garden. When I rented a room in a house in Willow Glen, I planted in the three narrow strips lining the driveway. My production was minimal in that miniscule plot, but the corn got plenty of sun, and I had the immense pleasure of gardening.

When the Willow Glen owner sold the house and gave us the boot, I moved to an apartment in nearby Campbell. I managed to cram about 20 houseplants into my 400 square foot apartment, valuing greenery over any superfluous furniture. As I set down emotional roots, so too did my garden expand. I spent my weekends at local nurseries and assorted home and garden centers planning for my little patio. One pot became three and eventually I lined both sides of the narrow walkway with potted flowers and plants. I added vines along the fence, and even planted some zucchini behind my apartment, though I really didn’t have enough sun. I planted flowers along the path to my door, to the delight of my neighbors who shared the view. The owners of our four-plex preferred simple cement. It was nice to have a bit of green along the walkway, welcoming me home each day.

I married my husband in 1995 and settled in a quiet neighborhood, known for excellent schools. It was important to both of us that we raise our boys in one place, having bounced around so much in our own youth. I’ve enjoyed it immensely. It took awhile to realize I could turn plants loose from their pots and allow them to put down roots. I love the stability that allows me to plan a garden from year to year, not worrying about evictions or troubles from the city. My Campbell four-plex, as it turned out, was illegal. It has since been torn down and replaced with a single-family dwelling.

Life is impermanent and change is inevitable. But year after year, spring arrives, and along with it feelings of hope. In the end, it’s not about yields but about the joy of the practice, the nuanced discoveries and the dirt under your nails.

What are you planting this spring?