Gardening

[cineater]

Exciting day at the budding pot plantation.  He is bringing in his first harvest.  I'm like really, you keep the bud and throw away the leaves?  Not how we did it in the 70's.  I was a little horrified.   

It's all hydroponics and seedless buds these days.  I have to ask myself, how many chemicals are you pumping into these plants?  It was all natural but now is anybody concerned about the chemicals going in?  One hates to bring that up when it's on the verge of being legalized.  But do we have a real safety issue that hasn't been considered?

He got a big kick out of the gnome marijuana plant sign.     Everything I got him for his birthday had to do with growing pot.  He's a pretty happy camper.

[cineater]

No matter how good the plants look, if the rest of the landscape isn't in shape, it all looks like shit.  To that end I got on it since the flood, including power washing the house this weekend.  It's one of those rare occasions where the gardens are looking good and the home front is too.  Just the car left to go.  And of course the gardener.  Don't think there's much hope there but an afternoon nap is well deserved.   

[cineater]

We dropped a compost heap on the wicked witch.   

[cineater]

Frequent visitors to our gardens. 

[cineater]

There is something wrong with me.     I'm letting the stains on my roof make me crazy.  I'm happy with my yard except I keep noticing those stains.  Today I got on the roof and sprayed pool shock.  Did a good job except my sprayer sucked.  It did more of a straight line then fanned out spraying.  So now I'm thinking I need to get up there and and maybe mop it with that stuff or push it around with a broom. 

Seriously, is that going to far to scrub your roof?  I think so but I bet I'm going to end up doing it.   

[cineater]

The soil tests are back from the flood waters and we have no heavy metals in the soil.  We are still worried about pathogens and haven't determined when we can grow in our pantry beds for the food pantry.  Such a shame we are throwing all that food away.  We took down the fencing and letting the wildlife take what they want.  Not sure if we are training them about where a food source is and we are creating a problem for the future.     The two fawns love the sweet potato vines.

[cineater]

Opened the back door and walked right into its web.  Fortunately it was on the other side of the web.     Not a problem spider but it still got relocated.

[cineater]

The property owner of the gardens is having a big open house on the 15th.  We just cleaned up after a flood.  We're looking good and it only takes a little reminding from me for everybody to keep it up.  So, I take the opportunity to get them to wrap somethings up, paint a few things and get the mother nature statue up.  We're going to get it done.  But then the Iris garden decides it's a good time to renovate and the hoop house decides to hard wall the sides.  Okay, stop piling on people.  Do not make your overall lead crazy.     Really not too worried about it.  Excited we are getting some stuff done.  Very proud of my team.   

[cineater]

It's so nice to runaway from the garden and disappear into GNRland.     Yeah, the garden is my circus and those are my monkeys but here in GNRland, "nothing really matters to me".   

[cineater]

This year's Mother Nature.

[cineater]

The monarchs are coming!  Just south of Chicago and heading to St Louis. 

You can follow the migration here:  https://maps.journeynorth.org/map/?map=monarch-peak-migration&year=2022

[cineater]

The gardens are so ready for the open house tomorrow night I left there today and went and had my nails done.  There's no more to do when that happens except I blow off the parking lot tonight.  Nobody notices when you do that but they notice if you don't.

So proud of my team.  We even have hydrangeas on sticks for little girls to have flower wands.     The rest of us can try to catch monarchs for tagging.     Not as easy or graceful as you'd think.

[cineater]

The kids came over and got the furniture for the baby's room out of my growing room.  I was able to add 5 new LED lights.  Replaced some of my florescent light fixtures but I've doubled what I can grow. 

This is the first time I will use LED lights.  Is there a difference when you grow with those instead of the florescent lights?  The LEDs are so much lighter fixtures then the others.  Cool thing is they plug into each other.  And they have chain pulls so I can turn off a few if I don't need the whole group.

Now to figure out my outdoor growing.  I'm going to be growing natives in milk jugs out there.

[cineater]

Fucker got me 3 times before I dropped the hose and ran away.  It was almost completely dark out there.  I must have disturbed an inground bee.  All the honey bees would have been in and they only sting once.  Fortunately I'm not allergic, just a couple of small welts.  Watering in the daylight from now on so I can see them coming.   

[cineater]

Not sure what those are but they have a nest in one of my solar light collectors in my tomato pot.  They came at me on the patio.  Sorry guys but you have to die!

The girl I nominated for state Master Gardener of the year won!  So well deserved.

[cineater]

My friend initially thought it was an in ground bee too.  But when I told her what happen and that they were building a nest, she thinks it was the queen honey bee.  Whoever, just don't let the Benadryl run out.  This itches!

[cineater]

Happy Fall.  We've entered 26 specimens in the flower show.  More of a moral thing than a want to win thing.  Supporting the garden clubs in the area.

[cineater]

My go over and check it out person reports we got 1 major ribbon, 8 blue ribbons and numerous 2nd and 3rd places.  I got first for my elephant ear and my strawberry fields gomphrena.  Got second for my fireworks gomphrena and lavender.  I got everybody's permission before we took flowers out of their gardens but they don't know who and what got entered.  I'm handing the awards out at our quarterly leads meeting next week.  This is going to be fun.

Er, I do word association to remember the name gomphrena.  I think of gonorrhea.  

[cineater]

We're getting into the 40's every night this week.  Time to bring in the house plants.  I'm not quite ready for them so they will go in the garage for the night and out on the driveway during the day.  Need to clean them up and clean the windows they will sit by.  Hopefully I'm not bringing in that many but I always have a problem letting them die.

[cineater]

Fuck, the bees are back.  Got me in both hands while I was out watering the plants.  They must have moved the nest just a little bit over.  I've been watching and hadn't seen them around.  Shit!