Missing Blogger

Well here it is going into summer time and my usual devotion to blogging, facebooking and other online endeavors has taken a back seat to my current lover..... my yard and garden.

Something happens to me when the weather finally clears up and the plants begin to grow again.  Some might call it an obsession even.  Whatever name it goes by, I just can't get enough time in the outdoors and my favorite place to pass the time is in the backyard.

Over the dreary winter, I often sat and day dreamed about the garden and projects I might try this year.  Now it's been all action.  Between the veggies, the herb beds and my flowers I'm so busy tending to the yard that I'm sorry to say I've neglected all you wonderful blog readers.

So here I am with a little check in to let you know I haven't dropped off the earth.  I'm still here and still trying to live green!  I promise, devoted readers, that I will try to post a little more often throughout the summer.  I have some great recycle garden projects to tell you about and of course I'll have updates on the garden and what's growing on.  In the mean time, here's some photos from the yard and garden where I've been hard at work.  Enjoy!

New Tomato bed interplanted with garlic.  The bottles are recycled into a watering system that takes the water to the root zone and avoids any water getting onto the tomato foliage.  This is good because water on the foliage can bring blight.

Nasturtium after the rain.

Flowers in the vegetable garden?  Why not!  They bring beauty and bees into the space and most importantly they bring me joy when I'm weeding :0)

Yes!  We've got raspberries on our bush this year!

Last winter I lost a beautiful climbing clematis that was here.  Now I'm using the support that was left behind and growing a native honeysuckle that I found started growing on the hillside in my backyard.  When mature, this will have beautiful bright orange flowers that are a draw for hummingbirds and butterflies.

I expanded the area between the fire pit and the native bed behind it by about 3 feet this year so we could set a bench there and roast marshmallows this summer.  From here you can look out the other way and see the water and the city lights from Bellingham at night.

Another planting extension.  I added about 2.5 feet all the way around this bed.  Yep, I moved all of those rocks again.  Rock work is like doing a giant jigsaw puzzle.  Finding the right stone to fit is half the fun!

Not to be outdone by Ben's new dahlia bed, I built one too!  Mine is the rock wall with posts and his is the cedar one.  Both will be equally beautiful when those flowers bloom!

My planting around the "stairs to nowhere" has filled in very nicely this year. 

Along the back stairs.  This bed is nice and lush this year.  Those irises in the front were a beach combing find after a storm 3 or 4 years ago.  I soaked them in fresh water for a few days and planted them.  When they bloom they're gorgeous yellow iris

The new earth stairs I built are now planted.  I'm hoping to have blooms going up both sides of the stairs later this summer

Garden view from our front porch.  I'm thinking of naming her "shipwreck garden".  What do you think?

Can you name this flower?  I've got this pink running all around the house and keep adding it to the new gardens.  It gives a lovely overall effect and consistancy to the yard.  But, I don't know what this plant is called.  It grows from chunky tubers about 1/2" thick and forms clumps.  Anyone?

A friendly frequent garden visitor.

This rocky outcropping is a challenge in the garden, but I'm pleased that this year I do have pockets of pretties growing there.  I'm trying to fill any of the crannies with sedums and such.

Dill weed and pickling cukes went in along this string line.

This year I'm using this fine net to protect things from the hungry birds.  Looks like we'll be the only ones eating our strawberries this year!

Another day in the sun for Echo and another day of gardening for me.

I added this terraced herb bed last year.  It's filled in beautifully.  Here you can see the old log stairs that are now just decorative.  I love the way the moss has covered them.

I built an "island style" flag pole from wood, copper pipe, rebar and aluminum & moved the flag back to our driveway enterance.  Then I spent a day clearing blackberry vines out of here.  OUCH!  Seems like most days I'm pulling blackberry thorns out of my hands lately.

Another feathered friend.  This little goldfinch suprised me when he chose this seed feeder over the thistle tube that is hanging about 2 feet away.

Moving rocks again!  I find it a lot easier to take small loads in my little wagon than to try to take large ones in the wheelbarrow.

Here's a full view of my herb bed.  See how lush!  this is 3 working terraces with a 4th terrace (in the back) that I put trimmings in each spring.  Thinks like sticks and brush.  This offers the birds some nesting material.  It also is where I allow some nettles to grow for the butterflies and it springs up with new ferns and native flowers.

These beautiful flag irises I've divided each year and scattered them throughout the yard too.  Most of the summer they just have long green leaves almost like clumps of grass, but at this time of year they're blooming and beautiful!  This year I top dresssed with alfalfa meal and I have LOADS more flowers than previous years.  Also great because the slugs seem to leave them alone unlike my large irises.

There's so much more I could share, but that will keep for a future posting.  I'm off to do some more gardening.  Oh and by the way, I saw my first pea forming on the vine today.  :0)

Wednesday What's Growing On?

Well here we are starting into May and my garden is looking very green.  This week we had our typical spring showers one day followed by sunshine the next and my plants love that.  Everything is growing like crazy and you know what that means..... time to clean up! 

Once an over grown path, now a big burn pile

My yard has all kind of nooks and crannys and I've tried to make each one into a garden of sorts.  In the side yard behind the burn pile we have a couple large native beds with paths running around each one.  It's been about 2 years since I did any pruning in that area and I was starting to lose the paths.  No worries though.  This week I grabbed the pruners, donned a long sleeve shirt and got to it!  I cut back the native Saalal that had crept into the pathway. With a the path reclaimed, it was time to head into the beds and pulled out the native ground gowing blackberries that are always trying to take over.  They seem to grow about 2' per month in the spring! 

It's a dog's life :0)

With Ben's recent purchase of a push reel mower, I decided mowing our lawn wasn't so bad.  I had always had trouble starting the gas powered mower and hated the noise and fumes.  This new people powered mower was great to use.  It was quick, quiet and easy!  And Echo really appreciated a freshly mowed lawn!

Rhubarb ready for harvest

While I was in the backyard I noticed my crazy rhubarb was ready for a pruning too.  I don't know why I ever planted this in my flower bed, but it's going to have to stay there until fall transplanting time. I decided to cut it all back and see if I can find a good recipe to use it in today.  Rhubarb is my favorite plant in the earliest part of spring because I can see the growth every day.  Now that I've got other plants growing in around it I'll spend the rest of the summer battling to keep it harvested.  It's such a great producer!

Great germination rate for my own saved seeds!

Not too much work going on in my veggie patch this week.  I've already planted all my available beds and am just waiting for things to grow in.  As soon as the weather stays dry, Ben will be building me some more raised beds for my tomatos and other warm weather plantings.  I did notice a lot of sprouting action on my Romaine planting from a couple weeks ago.  That's extra exciting to me because these are seeds I saved from my garden last year. 

Such a sweet smelling flower

Everything else is growing in nicely in the vegetable garden.  Ben has decided to be a gardener too this year and has taken over on the potatoes so that's one less chore for me.  He also decided to have his own bed for planting utilizing the square foot gardening technique.  So far he's added some garlic sets.  I'm excited to see what else he'll be planting in his bed throughout the spring and early summer.

I do have a few pretties in bloom now.  In the rock garden the sweet woodruff is in full bloom.  It's so pretty with it's delicate white flowers blanketing the bank.  In the evenings this tiny flower sends out a huge fragrance too!

Lovely lilacs in white

Speaking of pretty flowers, the dahlia planting has been put on hold for another week.  We've done most of the work of making planting beds and adding ammended soil already.  Now we are just waiting on a run of dry weather.  They'll need to get in the ground soon, but we don't want the soil to be too soggy when we put the tubers in the ground.  The general rule of thumb is to plant them when your lilacs are in bloom, but we'll be fudging that by a couple of weeks just to be sure the soil is in the best condition.

So that's what's been growing on in my gardens this week.  How is your yard looking?  Anything new in bloom?

Hummingbird Happenings

They're not always so gracious about sharing

It's been quite a week for hummingbirds in my garden.  We had some torrential rains for a couple of days, so I moved the feeders up to our front porch undercover.  My thought was that this would allow the 10 or 15 hummingbirds that have been hanging around a dry place to eat.  It worked, but I think every hummingbird from a mile around got the word about these undercover feeders. 

When I step out on my front porch it's almost like an infestation!  This happened a few years ago too.  I'm not sure the reason behind it, but seems like every couple of years we get *way* more than our share of hummers.

A female rufus coming in for a landing

I have 2 feeders out and I've been filling them both 2 times each day!  That's a lot of nectar.  I decided to take advantage of this natural phenomenon and see if I could snap up some nice photos.  Boy did I!  I've spent an hour or more each day sitting on the porch taking pictures.  In fact I've spent so much time sitting with the birds I'm starting to be able to tell one from another!

Flowers for hummers and berries for other birds!

I'm certainly no expert on hummingbirds, but here's some things I've done to attract them to my yard and garden.  First off, hang your feeders in the early spring.  The sooner they know you have feeders up, the more likely they will make a home in your yard.  Also, plant native plants that are attractive to these little birds.  My favorite for hummingbirds is a native salmon berry.  It has a bright pink flower that really brings them in. Another native plant that they can't seem to get enough of is Salaal.  It's not showy, but makes a great landscape plant and the tiny flowers are filled with nectar.  Check with your local nursery for other plants that are known to attract hummingbirds.

I've posted this recipe before, but now there's been a revision.  New research shows that there's no need to boil your hummingbird nectar.  Just mix up 1 cup cane sugar with 4 cups water.  Shake or stir to disolve the sugar and add to your feeders.  Make in large batches and store in the refridgerator.  Also, be sure to clean out your feeders regularly.  I do mine at least 1 x per week.  If the nectar in your feeders is not eaten in 1 week, discard and fill with new nectar.

Here's a slide show of my best photos.  There's a lot but they are so pretty I had to share them all. Enjoy!

PS  I wrote a follow up post with some tips and tricks for getting your own great shots of hummingbirds. 

For the Love of Lemon Balm

So sweet in the spring

Melissa officinalis aka: Lemon Balm is a wonderful and versatile member of the mint family.  I have it growing throughout the yard for it's beauty, hardiness and sweet lemon fragrance.  

Unlike most mints, lemon balm tends to form clumps rather than runners and so is much easier to contain than others.  However, if left to go to seed you may find starts all over your yard & garden.  To avoid this, simply cut it back when it blooms before seeds are produced.

Why add lemon balm to the garden?  

Lemon balm is a great addition to perennial borders, amongst your herb bed and even in the veggie patch.  One wonderful feature of this citrus scented herb is the way it attracts honey bees into the garden and every gardener knows, bees are the best pollinators.  Along with it being a lure of bitty buzzers, the shiny green foliage provides a nice frame for fancy flowers like dahlias and roses.

What can you do with lemon balm?

This special mint is known to be calming and soothing to the nerves as well as being full of antioxidants.

Tea Time

The most common use for it is as a tea.  Just add a large handful of fresh leaves in hot, but not quite boiling water.  Let it steep for several minutes then remove the leaves and sip away.  Add honey for a sweeter treat.

It's said that rubbing the leaves on exposed skin will help prevent mosquito bites although I haven't had a lot of luck with this, but it does make you smell lemony fresh!

Substitute lemon balm in any recipe calling for mint or lemon juice for a tangy flavor twist.  Mojitos made with lemon balm have a nice lemon/lime flavor. 

In the springtime pinch out some of the young tender leaves and add to a salad for a punch of flavor.

A bowl of lemony goodness and good for you too!

My absolute favorite use for lemon balm is a twist on my "world famous" fresh summer salsa!  Here's my recipe.....

Finely chop the following:

• 1 large tomato [or use 1-2 romas or a handful of sweet cherry toms]
• 1-3 fresh jalapenos peppers [remove seeds and veins]
• 1/2 of an onion
• 1 clove of fresh garlic [garlic in a jar it has an odd flavor in this dish]
• A handful of lemon balm leaves
• A handful of cilantro leaves
• Juice from 1 fresh lime 

Combine the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix well.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Allow to sit for at least an hour for flavors to meld.  There's one last item to really give the salsa a nice kick and a full bodied flavor.  My secret ingredient:

• 1 small can of El Pato tomato sauce with jalapeno

More recipes:

Here's some more lemon balm recipes I found for everything from cocktails to dessert to perfume....

   food

• Lemon Balm Schnapps
• Herbed Strawberry Wine
• Baked Salmon with Leeks & Lemon Balm
• Lemon Balm Asparagus
• Lemon Balm Vinegar
• Lemon Balm Cake

     

   beauty

• Lemon Balm Body Scrub 
• Eau De Cologne 
• Lemon Balm & Lavender Yogurt Cleanser  
• Lemon Balm Hair Rinse

   household

• Natural Lemon Balm Air Freshener 

What a fantastic addition to the home and garden.  Now you can see why I love Lemon Balm!

What's growing on Wednesday

Chocolate mint for a tasty sweet tea

It's raining again & you know what they say...  April showers bring May flowers.  Well with our weather lately ranging from 70 degrees one day, to heavy rain the next, we have got flowers and greenery shooting up all around us right now in April.

This week Ben built me another new raised bed and placed it in the corner of our new garden area.  It's about 2' deep 2' across and 4' long.  I'm not sure what I'm going to plant in there yet.  Maybe the leeks since this is one of the deeper beds I have in my veggie patch or possibly peppers since this is a very sunny spot.

Back in the more natural and native part of my yard I noticed the Saalal and Oregon Grape are both showing signs of spring with new growth and even buds on the Saalal.  This is good news for the 6 or 7 hummingbirds I have hanging around my yard.  They really loved sipping from the tiny white blossoms  of our native saalal last year.   

Mushroom in moss

I noticed some new leaves and growth on the huckleberry bushes too.  Huckleberries grow wild here in the Pacific Northwest.  They seem only to grow where an old tree has died.  They favor old stumps and decayed duff piles.  The berries, when ripe,  are quite small like a pea, but still a  tasty treat when added to summer pancakes.  That is if the birds and chipmunks don't get to them first.

Ajuga, aka bugle weed

In the backyard herb and flower bed things are really filling in nicely.  A few days ago I chased a momma and her 2 yearling fawns out of the herb patch where they were happily munching on my day lilies again.  If only they had an appetite for weeds.  But it's fun to see them so close to the house even if they are eating machines.

Big color on  tiny violet

How wonderful to be on year 4 in a garden.  When we moved into this house it did have a lot of established garden area.  I added to that year after year and moved starts of this and that into place.  I'm really enjoying seeing how it all has come together and to see those tiny starts are now fully established plants. This year I'm really beginning to see my plan take shape as different colors and textures of plants are co mingling in the herb and flower beds.

Well, if it stops raining anytime today, I may get out and pull a few weeds.  It always seems easier to pull them up by the roots when the ground is wet.  Other than that I'm ahead of the game with my spring chores.  

unfurling fern

This weekend we plan to plant our dahlia tubers from our recent buying spree at the Whatcom County Dahlia Society's tuber sale.  Ben and I each picked up a mix of sizes and styles of blooms, so we've got our work cut out with planting and labeling them.  It will all be worth it to see them in bloom this summer.  I can hardly wait!

How's your spring garden growing?  Any big plans for new plantings and projects?  Veggies, flowers or both?  Are you going organic this year?  Send me links for your gardening blogs adventures and even mis-steps stories.  I love to hear and see how other gardens are growing too.  Just click on my photo below to email me or leave a comment.

It's Wednesday, let's see what's growing on!

Don't be mistaken, Living Green in a Colorful World is not a "gardening blog"  but spring has me buzzing the organic garden like one of the newly awakened bees I see exploring the yard.  So I'll try to limit garden posts to my Wednesday, What's Growing On posts, with an occasional extra post if we've done something really exciting in the garden. 

That said, here's what I have to report from the veggie patch for this week:

Ben and I finally came to an agreement on the placement for the new boat garden.  We placed it with bow up against a large boulder and to the left of where Ben and Echo are standing I moved some earth to create a terrace step down to the already established part of the garden.  Ben brought home several yards of soil mix already and he used some to fill this boat planter.  The boat will be home to our Roma tomatoes in June, but for now I've planted some Walla Wallas along where the boat benches are and I'll throw in some lettuce and radishes that should be ready for harvest just in time to make room for those tomato starts.

On the other side of the boat where I made the terraced steps, I stacked up some of the soil along the bow.  Then I transplanted some garden herbs (mint, oregano and lemon balm) in there.  I then stacked rocks over the top of the soil mound to prevent erosion.  Today I noticed that the herbs are starting to pop out from the cracks between the rocks.  Just as I'd hoped!

Did I mention my new outdoor sink for washing veggies?  Well it still needs to get cleaned up and the water will have to get hooked up later (we'll be using a reclaimed water system of some kind), but the sink framing was built by Ben and custom sized for me!  Yay!  Finally a shorty sink for a 5' 3" me! This is a 100% green project right here.  The sink is reclaimed from the trash heap and the water used for washing will be recycled into the garden as irrigation.  Along with that, the compost pile is right nearby, so prepping my veggies will be a breeze and it will keep dirt out of the kitchen pipes and the home septic system!  The added bonus, I have a kick ass view of the Hales Passage to enjoy while doing my garden chores.  Island life rocks!

One of the joys of the garden is the interaction with the local fauna.  I was excited to snap some photos of this pileated woodpecker that came for a visit.  These large and strange birds often hop about our backyard from tree to tree searching for grubs and insects to eat.  They even eat from our suet feeders which I fill with my own homemade suet treats that include local and native bird foods such as berries and rose hips.  They tend to be pretty camera shy and quick to startle, so I feel lucky to have snapped these shots even if they are a little on the blurry side.  In the background, you'll note our fern fronds are just coming open.