(
Via Snappy's Gardens Blog)
Posted by admin to blackbird on 2008-01-07, 22:28:00
A quick bird post before I go to work again.This juvenile blackbird hops amongst the plants eating the peanuts. She batters the peanuts to take the outer layer off to release the white flesh of the nut. She hops up and down the raised border, onto the pavers battering the peanuts.
Two days off after today.Im still waiting for the African bag gardens, and the Vegetable seeds that I ordered.The garden waits for me to be off work!
(
Via Gardening Question of the Day (from the Old Farmer's Almanac))
Posted by admin to Uncategorized on 2008-01-07, 20:00:00
What kind of water conditions do fig trees need in the United States? (
answer).
From The Old Farmer's Almanac.
(
Via Country Gardener)
Posted by admin to January thaw, mild temperatures, weather on 2008-01-07, 19:59:00
It got up to 16 degrees C (60 degrees F) today and was still 14 C (57 F) when we went to bed. Virtually all the snow that was here since the beginning of December has melted.
So we've got mud season in January. I prefer snow. But we always get a few days of mud season in January, and it appears to have nothing to do with global warming.
According to David Phillips, senior climatologist for Environment Canada, (who was being quoted in all the papers today) southern Ontario has experienced a January thaw every year since 1937, the earliest year for which records are available, except for 1977, the only year we did not have a January melt-down.
For us temperature roller coasters are quite normal in January, but one of the most dramatic happened three years ago: on Jan. 13, 2005, the temperature reached 17.6 C (63 F). Five days later it dropped to -25 C (-13 F). I remember it well because the golf course across the road opened up for play for about a week.
© Yvonne Cunnington, Country Gardenerhttp://rpc.technorati.com/rpc/ping
(
Via Gardening Tips 'n' Ideas)
Posted by admin to Uncategorized on 2008-01-07, 19:24:07
Photo courtesy: *Susie*
This time last year I wrote a post on
how to become a gardener if you weren't already one. In it, I listed 10 rules to keep in mind which would help someone to grapple with the basics.
This year I want to lift the bar a little and identify 21 Skills that even the most basic gardener should be able to grasp. With these skills in their toolbox, gardeners should be able to handle almost any gardening scenario and will also be capable to troubleshoot any problems that might occur.
- Propagating softwood cuttings
- Germinating vegetable seeds
- Making compost
- Pruning Roses
- Pruning Shrubs
- Dividing Bulbs
- Watering Plants
- Staking Trees
- Mulching Garden Beds
- Killing Weeds
- Handling Pests
- Improving Your Soil
- Plant a tree or perennial shrub
- Repair a lawn
- Grow container plants
- Ability to maintain your garden tools
- Fertilising plants
- Basic Plant Identification
- How to spot a nursery bargain
- How to use the Web to find gardening information
- Learning to relax and enjoy your garden
And that's it. These 21 basics should empower anyone wanting to be a gardener.
(
Via Girl Gone Gardening)
Posted by admin to weather on 2008-01-07, 19:03:00
54*, 90% humidity, S 15 mph wind, thunderstorm, URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD ADVISORY, TORNADO WATCH
Strange weather for January. Today, for the second time in a row, we broke records. According to Weather Underground, we hit 69*, which breaks the record for this date back in 1965 (50*).
But, what can I say? Crazy weather is to be expected with this whole global warming thing. There are those
(
Via grow this)
Posted by admin to Jessie M. King Illustration, Mystery indifferent to differences, Rubiat of Omar Kayam on 2008-01-07, 16:04:00
"Whatever It was
that made this earth
the base,
the world its life,
the wind its pillar,
arranged the lotus and the moon,
and covered it all with folds
of sky
with Itself inside,
to that Mystery
indifferent to differences,
to It I pray,
O Ramanatha."
The Poem is by Devara Dasimayya, (10th Century)
“Whatever it Was”The picture is by Jessie M. King, illustration for "The Ruba'iya't Of Omar Kahyya'm" (1913)
(
Via An Iowa Garden)
Posted by admin to Uncategorized on 2008-01-07, 15:17:00
We've had an unseasonably warm bit of weather the last couple of days, before a return to reality tomorrow. We had 18 inches of snow on the ground prior to this, so it's been slow going in melting it all. I've been doing my part by going out in the back yard at intervals and yelling, "MELT DAMMIT... WHY DON'T YOU JUST MELT!"
Unfortunately, living in a little valley where the whole bottom is covered by a frozen pond is rather like being in a styrofoam cooler with ice, so while the open country around our cluster of hills is all bare ground, we still have a fair amount of snow here. That hasn't seemed to deter Galanthus reginae-olgae, though. This little fall-blooming snowdrop opened its flower around Thanksgiving, and today the retreating snowbank revealed it still jauntily in bloom, six weeks later. From what I read, in climates even a signifigant bit milder than ours, this snowdrop tends to dwindle away to nothing, but so far (notice I said so far) it seems to get a little better each year in our garden.
There will be more snow and cold to come, and spring may still be little more than a faint hope, but today it was warm, the snowmelt gurgled down the driveway, and the tufted titmouse first sang Peter-Peter-Peter- from the top of the black cherry tree. It was a good day.
(
Via Home and Family: Gardening Articles from EzineArticles.com)
Posted by admin to Uncategorized on 2008-01-07, 13:13:03
To use pesticides against mole crickets is the easy way out. In order to reduce their damage in the long term though, it's better not to rush in with the poisons.
(
Via OregonLive.com: Dig in with Kym)
Posted by admin to photos on 2008-01-07, 12:51:16
These amazing photos have been emailed to me several times. Obviously, they're making the rounds. I have no idea if they're real or photo shopped, but I choose to believe they're on the up and up. I've had my share...
(
Via A Larrapin Garden)
Posted by admin to Uncategorized on 2008-01-07, 10:45:00
The post oak out front is a kind of winter hourglass for me. Its copper leaves stay on nearly throughout the winter and only clear in the blustery winds of Spring. The crown of the tree loses leaves first, and finally the bottom limbs thin out just in time for new green. This photo was how the new year 2008 started. We had a few days with temps in the bitter teens. Now we're in a run of strangely warm and windy days with highs near 70. Seems odd for January, but odd weather is getting to be the norm!
The woodpeckers are everywhere this time of year and this morning I saw a Brown Creeper out on a red oak in the chicken's pasture. Lots of birds particularly like the acorns on the ground under this Post Oak so despite it's tough reputation, I've come to love it in the front yard. And yes, it does indicate that the soil on our hillside is fairly awful, but we knew that already!
Post Feed Footer here
A quick bird post before I go to work again.This juvenile blackbird hops amongst the plants eating the peanuts. She batters the peanuts to take the outer layer off to release the white flesh of the nut. She hops up and down the raised border, onto the pavers battering the peanuts.
