June 3, 2012

robin fledglings

Here are photos I took over the past couple weeks of the robins from the nest just outside my dining room window. Four blue eggs were laid April 22 to 25. Four chicks hatched about a week later. They grew really fast until they didn’t fit in the nest. The nest was a pile of feathers, birds stacked on birds. The big orange-breasted chick (“Alpha”) was always calm and got the best spot in the nest. Two middle-sized light-breasted birds looked identical to me (“the Twins”). The smallest had a…

June 2, 2012

hummingbird and bumblebee

I took this photo yesterday – A hummingbird and a bumblebee side by side at dusk at the honey suckle.

June 2, 2012

photos of my community garden plot this week

Its a super year for the garden so far. My potatoes are growing really fast. I planted them a few weeks ago in trenches and then last week and leveled the soil around the growing the plants. This coming week I will mound up the soil around the plants. Onions and lettuce are doing well. And I have a nice patch of sweet potatoes. I planted a couple of Butternut squashes at the base of my new garden arbor – looking forward to seeing big squashes hanging down later this…

May 23, 2012

Today: Planted in the garden next to my house seeds for two double rows of soybeans (Envy and Butterbean) with soy bean inoculant. Also two double rows of bush beans (Tavera and Royal Burgandy) and two poles of Chinese pole bean. In my community plot, I weeded and spread salt marsh hay in the paths.

May 20, 2012

cukes, eggplants, and watermelon transplants

Today I transplanted cucumbers, eggplants and watermelons. I put them in the cold frame with covers removed – the warmest place I have. In the morning I prepared the soil – weeded, raked a pile of new compost flat, dug it in a little, and then raked the soil flat. It was so hot that I waited til evening to transplant the seedlings. It was dark when I finished planting and watering. The cold frame is next to the robin nest – overfull with 4 big birdlets. I keep thinking…

May 18, 2012

a busy week in the garden!

Wow! What a super week. I haven’t posted because I’ve been busy gardening. Last weekend I tended my backyard. Monday I helped my parents in their garden – its all planted now and looks beautiful. Tuesday, I spent a long drizzly afternoon in my community plot. I brought in compost and planted lots of little seedlings. Like my parents, the beds are full now. The only garden still waiting for me is my side yard where the very warm weather plants (beans, watermelon, eggplants, cukes, etc) will go in. I…

May 14, 2012

Mom and Dad’s garden

On Monday, my parents and I worked a full day in their vegetable garden. We planted tomato, pepper, lettuce, sunflower, basil, cilantro, squashes, marigold, cosmos, daisy and cucumber seedlings. Dad staked his recently planted snow peas. Some type of bug was eating the broccoli, cauliflower and bok choy that we planted a couple weeks ago. My guess it was the green caterpillar of the white cabbage butterfly. I replaced some of the seedlings, searched for green caterpillars (I found one) and then covered the patch with hoops and row cover.…

May 12, 2012

seedlings

These are photos of my seedlings growing this past week. They have been inside til today when I moved them out to my cold frame. I hope the weather will be warm enough to plant them soon.

May 11, 2012

robin nest

Today I realized there are 4 chicks in the robin nest outside my window. They are growing very fast. I will live stream video until they fledge: http://www.livestream.com/robininthegarden

May 7, 2012

photos of my plot

This weekend, I planted bunch of seedlings. Broccoli, parsnips, carrots, beets, bok choy, radicchio, and onions. I see that several plants from last year reseeded: bachelor buttons, borage and dill. I also planted a bed of potatoes and expanded my asparagus bed.

weeks and counting until my last spring frost

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