Rainy Projects
We have gotten some good rain the last couple of days. We really needed it. The pond hasn't gotten much but all the swales are saturated. We have been working on various projects around zone 1 and 2.
The north swale finally got seeded and mulched yesterday. And half covered with jute netting today. I consider this on the edge of zone 1 for the slope facing the house and the top and backside I consider zone 2. These trees will get less attention so I need to figure out what to plant here. I contacted the nursery that got us the red bud and scotch broom and russian olive. Their supplier had no more and did not have any of the other plants I inquired about.
I have been busy planting many shrub and tree seeds that are unavailable in the nursery trade. Many of them need cold stratification. This simply means they need a certain period of time in the cold in order to get their little germination clocks started. Rose and elaeagnus both need this. So i figured I would do the hot water treatment for some, plus 24 hour water soak and then get them in pots outside for the cold stratification all at once. Those that need it will get it. Hopefully those that don't won't rot. I got some great tree pots when we purchased the swale plantings. They are small but deep.
The kids and Stephen also worked on the brick path from the car area to the front door. The rain made the ground somewhat diggable. They dug out and then leveled the area, filled it with sand and laid bricks. It looks much nicer and is more secure than the temporary path we have. Yesterday was our One Year Anniversary for moving into our house. It seems MUCH shorter than that. But we are still so happy to be out here.
I have had greenhouses on the brain of late. The challenge is that in the summer the greenhouse if not equipped with shading and ventiliation will excessively overheat. I also really want to work on the chicken coop since spring is fast approaching and that is when you can purchase baby chicks. And with all the meat we have been eating, a dog would be great to eat the scaps.
Many of our tender perennials were covered with leaves and plastic milk jugs to protect them from the intense frost we experienced last week. Some people mentioned we hadn't had low temperatures like that in 17 years. The Yolla Bolly Mountains to the west of us were blanketed in snow yesterday morning. I hope the pinapple mint is ok. The Rue is flowering through all of this cold and the White Horehound seems completely unaffected.
I planted the newest bed with a Red Salvia, Melissa, and Russian Lavendar. The Vitex also planted there earlier was well mulched. Since both grapes survived the grasshoppers and hopefully the frost, someday this area will certainly help with the intense heat and sunlight on the southwestern side with its plant shade. I also got the dandelion into the ground and finally after many years the White Sage. If we don't get attacked by plague numbers of grasshoppers again this summer, we should have some great bee and butterfly food. Not to mention lots of color. It would be nice to see what the garden can look like if left to grow.
The north swale finally got seeded and mulched yesterday. And half covered with jute netting today. I consider this on the edge of zone 1 for the slope facing the house and the top and backside I consider zone 2. These trees will get less attention so I need to figure out what to plant here. I contacted the nursery that got us the red bud and scotch broom and russian olive. Their supplier had no more and did not have any of the other plants I inquired about.
I have been busy planting many shrub and tree seeds that are unavailable in the nursery trade. Many of them need cold stratification. This simply means they need a certain period of time in the cold in order to get their little germination clocks started. Rose and elaeagnus both need this. So i figured I would do the hot water treatment for some, plus 24 hour water soak and then get them in pots outside for the cold stratification all at once. Those that need it will get it. Hopefully those that don't won't rot. I got some great tree pots when we purchased the swale plantings. They are small but deep.
The kids and Stephen also worked on the brick path from the car area to the front door. The rain made the ground somewhat diggable. They dug out and then leveled the area, filled it with sand and laid bricks. It looks much nicer and is more secure than the temporary path we have. Yesterday was our One Year Anniversary for moving into our house. It seems MUCH shorter than that. But we are still so happy to be out here.
I have had greenhouses on the brain of late. The challenge is that in the summer the greenhouse if not equipped with shading and ventiliation will excessively overheat. I also really want to work on the chicken coop since spring is fast approaching and that is when you can purchase baby chicks. And with all the meat we have been eating, a dog would be great to eat the scaps.
Many of our tender perennials were covered with leaves and plastic milk jugs to protect them from the intense frost we experienced last week. Some people mentioned we hadn't had low temperatures like that in 17 years. The Yolla Bolly Mountains to the west of us were blanketed in snow yesterday morning. I hope the pinapple mint is ok. The Rue is flowering through all of this cold and the White Horehound seems completely unaffected.
I planted the newest bed with a Red Salvia, Melissa, and Russian Lavendar. The Vitex also planted there earlier was well mulched. Since both grapes survived the grasshoppers and hopefully the frost, someday this area will certainly help with the intense heat and sunlight on the southwestern side with its plant shade. I also got the dandelion into the ground and finally after many years the White Sage. If we don't get attacked by plague numbers of grasshoppers again this summer, we should have some great bee and butterfly food. Not to mention lots of color. It would be nice to see what the garden can look like if left to grow.
Hi, i became interested in permaculture a few months ago. Been wanting to plant some nitro-fixing tress on my property but havent had much luck finding seeds that are more adapted to the mediterranean climate. Do you guys know of a good reliable source? I found a great site in Australia but they dont ship to the US, legal reasons i guess. Hope to hear from you guys. Cant wait to see how that swale turns out a year form now.
ReplyDelete-Daniel
Yeah, nitrogen fixing plant seeds are hard to find. I found some from nzseeds which took awhile to get here and horizon herbs has some and bountiful gardens also has some. Right now my little seed station is full and I am hopeful I can get some to germinate. Hope this helps. Thanks for reading! Our swale plantings are some nitro-fixing plants that you can sometimes find.
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