Gardening in My Rubber Boots

Apr 28

Replacing the Reed Fencing…

The reed fencing we’ve had over the last three years has finally succumbed to our wet & windy climate. That means the dreaded chain link is back!

Even though I liked the look of the reed fencing, I want to do something different this time around.

For inspiration I collected various fence pictures on Pinterest until I could make up my mind. In the end I was pretty set on a framed lattice fence with finials on each post. The problem is that I wasn’t sure the lattice would cover the chain link enough. To test this I got a couple panels and observed the coverage over a couple weeks.

The result of the test? I wasn’t happy that I could still see the neighbor’s fence. So, I went out and bought some 4’h x 8’w bamboo panels at Home Depot (online).

This option is a little more expensive than the reed fencing but less expensive than the framed lattice I was hoping to do. I’m happy the bamboo will last a little longer than the reed fencing and provide even more coverage.

Fingers are crossed. I’ll keep you updated with our progress.

Apr 15

8 Comments

What’s Blooming April 15, 2012

Here are all my blooms this morning. I used my iPhone 4 with the Ollo macro lens. Read more

Apr 7

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My Camellia is Finally BLOOMING!

I have lived in this house for seven years and this is the FIRST TIME this camellia has ever bloomed. EVER. Granted I relocated it right when I moved in and we’ve had some bitter cold weather the past couple years – down to 10°F. The coldest we got this year was more like 28°F. Plus I added drip irrigation to its base last year and watered over the summer for the first time (during bud development). Normally, I end up with black buds and no blooms.

Plus, I add compost to the garden soil every year in the spring and I mulch.

Any Camellia experts out there want to chime in on how I can get this beauty to bloom every year? I’d love to hear what you think and/or do.

Apr 4

110 Comments

‘Free-Range Chicken Gardens’ Book & Black Chicken GIVEAWAY!!

Just like you, I love a good giveaway. To help celebrate Jessi Bloom’s new book, Free-Range Chicken Gardens, we had a virtual book launch and giveaway.

The best part is that you had EIGHT chances to win and got to visit some great new blogs!! Plus, you not only had the chance to win Jessi’s book but also The Fresh Egg Cookbook. And because I wanted my giveaway to be better than the seven other bloggers, I threw in a Black Chicken!

My Newest Venture: BATS

My NEW Bat House

I went to a bat talk last week, given by Bats Northwest member Barbara Ogaard, and now I REALLY want bats in my garden. I even got a bat house.

Some local bats I can attract are hoary bats, yuma myotis, keen’s myotis, big brown bat, silver-haired bat, little brown bat, california myotis and long-eared myotis. These guys will range from 2-4 inches long with a 9-16 inch wingspan. They’re teeny tiny. Read more