Catastrophic #FAIL or Why Texas Weather Hates Me



if you look closely, you can see the bug who met his maker after eatting all my leaves



Admitedly, it has been a crazy weather season.  I think anyone who may watch television any where could say this year has already been nuts.  This has wreaked havoc with the Beekman seeds I planted.  While my onions and potatoes have done well (except for in this picture where you can see a nasty fat catapiller stripping the leaves) but in the bins further out, the Beekman seeds, well, they got the hell beat out of them.  We, for several odd weeks, alternated between ridiculous hail storms out of no where, then tornados, culminating in a storm that combined the two.  The first four seeds planted, grew to various heights and one by one died a glorious death.  Only the French Breakfast radishes eeked out tiny little bubbles of what they could grow to be...sad indeed.

Now we are facing record breaking temperatures and severe drought.  I am debating planting the next four batches.  We have been trying to move for some time to a more moderate climate and lately, there is finally a bit of action on that effort so I may hold off.  Surely there is some where on the planet thats not over 95 degrees everyday? 

For next year, regardless of where I am, I know I will need some sort of shelter, even if temporary to keep them safe.  So the experiment continues!

Beekman Seeds, Week 2

This past week, we finally got everything started for the garden with my Beekman heirloom seeds. Considering what it looked like before, I was happy how it turned out. Since we are in a rental and potentially moving this year, we wanted something portable that could go with us if we move. I also have not spent time learning to cultivate container gardens (other than herbs) but I have read so much lately of the ridiculously amazing things people are doing in small spaces. (A wonderful book that I found for a resource in making these things amazing is Gardening In No Time by Tessa Evelegh.)


We found these great bins at Costco that we altered by drilling drainage holes in the bottom. I put a layer of rock in the bottom to assist in drainage and then filled with dirt. Of course, I had some help:



Jack approves the dirt selection


Once everything met Jack’s approval, we planted four of the heirloom seed packets that were ready (carrots, turnips, spinach and radishes) as well as one bucket of garlic and onions and one of potatoes. Many moons ago when my boyfriend was a child, he described to me a manner of growing potatoes inside a stack of old tires. While it seems odd, the pinching off of some leaves and cover with dirt in multiple layers over time made a lot of sense. We are trying this in a container this year to see how it works.



I already have some sprouting and will put those pictures up next week. Have you planted something yet? It’s good for the soul, try it!

It does help if you have some help...even if that help is kind of
 lazy for the most part.  :)


Mango supervises the project

 Have a great week everyone!  Peace to you.

I Beekman, do you?

Last year, we had the great good fortune to happen upon the Fabulous Beekman Boys on Planet Green. Often the discussion in our house has revolved around dreams of having a farm. While each of us have different reasons for wanting one, Little Monkey bases this decision on wanting four fainting goats she can name Ennie, Meanie, Miney, and Moe. No, I don't know why.



We spent our extra time catching all the episodes as they popped up on our DVR and laughing along with Josh at Brent's need to channel Martha Stewart (as so frequently I do) and became big fans of the diva on the farm, Polka Spot. When they guys announced that they were taking viewer questions for their holiday special, Little Monkey was quick to offer several for Polkie. I registered her once she narrowed it down but I didn't hear back from them and it eventually slipped to the back of my mind. Imagine our surprised when, as we are watching the holiday special, once the guys head to the barn to ask Polkie a question, we hear "Emma Harris from Arlington, Texas asks...". You would have thought Little Monkey had won the lottery. She recorded it and forced everyone visiting our house over the next two weeks to sit down and watch the holiday special with her. She called her dad (who lives out of state) to inform him of her celebrity status and was dismayed to learn he didn't even know there was a Planet Green nor who the Beekman Boys were (this resulted in him loosing a multitude of cool points with her). A visit to the farm is now on the family bucket list and once circumstances and finances change, I will be getting her there one way or another.



This year, the Beekman Boys have partnered with Williams Sonoma on a package of heirloom seeds and a community gardening project. Living in a rental with very little yard, we are relegated to a small, long space currently covered in ice and snow, but I couldn't turn Little Monkey down. She is very excited about growing plants and the idea of expanding from pots of herbs on the porch to raised beds with tasty edibles. I am excited to see her have so much fun learning about something that she can use when she has her own space to grow when she is older.

Site of future most awesome garden

I am by no means a master gardener so it will be interesting to see what I can do and what I can't with what I am given. If you are interested in joining us, you can still get your seeds and sign up. If you have a Twitter, I would recommend following along with the guys and all the action.



Happy planting!