Garden By The Woods

This long view of our garden by the woods was taken from our highest ground.  Our house would have been built where I am standing to take the picture if money had been limitless.  Two stories on the south side with only one story above ground on the north side was the plan.  The lower level would have been set into the hill with a wall of windows on the exposed side.  That did not happen but working this ground now is as good as it gets.  Remote quiet and distant views make this seemingly wilderness land perfect for the way I want to live.  Pictures show that this is the best tended land on our place.

There is a second ridge behind the one that can be seen.  It is huge and separates the Susquehanna river and Unadilla river watersheds.  The geographic impact on us is the miles of frost rivers that pour down these hills and sweep across our gardens.  I could not have put the garden near the house in a colder spot if that had been my goal.  As it is the cold flow sometimes stays just above this garden when it hits the lower one with full force.

The visible ridge is part of several square wooded miles crossed only by one seasonal road.  We have heard the old timers talk about interactions with bears, wildcats and wolves.  In my younger days I had the land owner's permission to walk his land to the top of the ridge.  Age and a small measure of common sense now keep me closer to home.  On many days it feels like coyotes are close at hand watching me.  So far they have kept their distance.

The original purpose of opening this garden land was to provide ground that had not been contaminated by garlic diseases.  Potatoes are the first crop planted in newly cleared meadow ground.  Next year garlic will be planted where the two rows of potatoes now grow.  Potatoes will then be sown where the pasture grasses now reign.  That area will be cleared of grasses and stones as time allows.  A quick count shows that there will be three more beds where garlic has never before  grown.  If I am still here then, the garlic will of necessity return to ground previously used to grow it.  Considering the elapsed time interval and the near disease free state of our garlic there should be no major problem.

The possible passing of the man that had operated a pick your own strawberry farm prompted me to plant strawberries in larger numbers here.  Previously we had grown only enough plants to supply fresh fruit for our cereal.  Two rows of purchased plants were formed.  New plants from runners were carefully set in four additional rows.  There was to be a one foot wide clear path down the center.  The berries had different ideas and we did it their way.  This year runner plants will be taken to start a new bed.  We hope to see three years of decent harvests from the original planting.  This is a learning experience for us since we know nothing about the proper cultivation of strawberry plants.  We do intend to move new plants into ground that has not previously grown strawberries.

This is the current state of our plants.  Filtered shade created by the nearby trees delayed the active growth of our plants.  Hot dry weather has kept the crop in a holding pattern.  We picked and processed eight quarts of berries from another location.  They were closed for three days to allow their plants time to recover from the ravages of hot dry picking.  We now have about one half of a years supply of jam in the freezer and we are counting on our own fruit to supply the other half.  The going is shaky and slow.  Yesterday's harvest yielded only two more jars of jam.  We clearly have enough berries.  We have little control over the weather and its impact on our crop.  Yesterday I trucked ten gallons of water for these plants.  Hand watering with a sprinkling can took considerable time and effort but likely fell far short of what the plants need.  Rain is in the forecast for the next several days.  My winters supply of jam depends on some real rain.

A Wild And Wonderful Morning In the Garden

 After several days of rain and thunderstorms, Ed and I had plans to get an early start and spend the  predicted  cool and sunny day in the garden.  I was drinking my morning coffee and looking at the garden out the living room window  in anticipation when I saw movement.  It was at the far end of the garden so I checked it out with my binoculars.  I saw a young male wild turkey and five baby turkeys.  The babies formed a line and the adult followed behind looking for food in the short grass while drying off in the sunshine.  One of the things we love about the house and garden is that we have a chance to watch the wildlife.  I thought to myself, "Wow this is already a very special day!"

A short time later we were just finishing our breakfast when a female deer stepped out of the tall grass between the two bird houses that can be seen out my kitchen window.  She was followed by a single fawn.  As we watched the mother deer began to lick the fawn just below his little white tail.  That immediately caused the fawn to nurse.  Mom continued to lick her baby and the baby continued to drink for some time. It was fascinating to watch such intimate family behavior.  The deer seemed to feel right at home  there just outside my kitchen window.  I don't know how long this might have gone on, but the adult tree swallows, whose family occupied one of the bird houses, felt the deer's presence was an intrusion into their space.  The brave little birds flew high swooping down barely missing the animal's head.  At first the deer ignored the birds, but then one actually hit an ear.  On the next pass the mother deer ducked.  The tree swallowed were buoyed by that and increased the onslaught.  Mother deer and fawn headed elsewhere as fast as the fawn's legs could carry him.   Now I thought, "This is why I love it here!"

Next we made a trip to the bedroom to get dressed to go outside.  This time it was an indigo bunting that caught my attention.  He was sitting in the smoke bush seen at the right of the picture.  If you have ever seen the iridescent blue of one of these little birds you can understand my interest.  I called Ed to take a look and to my surprise and delight the beautiful blue bird flew to the Rose of Sharon that grows right outside the bedroom window.  We both stood  admiring the unbelievably beautiful bird.  If not for the glass he would have been close enough to touch.  When he flew away, we finally got ready to head out to the garden.  I thought, "It can't get any better than this!"

The first project on our agenda was to pick snow peas and strawberries.  Ed was picking the snow peas and I was sitting on my garden cart picking strawberries  working are directly under the little pink and green birdhouse in Helen's garden.  A pair of wrens had moved in as soon as the house was installed.  As I worked I could hear the birds singing or perhaps scolding from a short distance away.   One of the little birds got tired of waiting and flew to the house right in front of me.  It was a wonderful surprise!  I really think the wrens may look on us as the hired help!

A little later when I was weeding, a beautiful comma butterfly landed next to me on the stone path.  If I had the camera I could have taken the most amazing picture.  On an ordinary day in the garden this would have been a really special event, but today it seemed to be just part of another extraordinary day!

When I headed inside to make lunch I noticed this tiny caterpillar on my parsley plant in the kitchen garden.  I had never seen one like it before.  I returned with the camera and took its picture.  It is an early instar of a swallowtail butterfly.  All of these things actually happened in one morning and that is the truth.  I can hardly believe it myself!

Arbutus Seeds and Strawberries

This is always a busy time of year for us but we frequently check on the progress of the arbutus seed clusters.  Today Becky found the first open seed berries.  They are just beginning to open and the ants have yet to find them.  The white pulp beneath the seeds is what the ants eat.  They simply discard the seeds.  This may be the year that I taste a small piece of the white pulp.

Seed clusters are numerous on the three female plants growing behind the arbutus wall.  We have yet to see a new plant from seed appear in this area.  Arbutus is well known to rigidly follow its own schedule.  The number of years required for its seeds to germinate remains unknown to us.  We have scattered seed in suitable spots around the place but no arbutus plants appeared.  We tried to carry seed over the winter in our freezer but nothing grew when the seeds were spring planted.

The large number of big light green new leaves is impressive.  These leaves and their new stems quickly followed the cycle of the flowers.  The small reddish green new leaves show that these plants are still sending out new growth.  This pleases us since next year's flowers form only on the tips of the new growth.

These plants have nearly filled their safe area under the cage.  We need to decide just how we will deal with the ever expanding plants.  It may be that the foraging animals only feed on arbutus at the end of winter.  If that is the case, then we could remove the cage during the months of new growth.  Then we could replace the cage after allowing for the unhindered passage of new growth under the cage sides.  That would place the new growth at risk of being eaten but the rest of the plants would remain  protected.

We usually limit each post to one subject.  Strawberries are included here so that we will be reminded that fresh strawberries appear at the same time as new arbutus seed.  New strawberries never go unnoticed and their appearance will remind us when to look for arbutus seed.

The berries in the basket were just picked from our sixty plants.  The box is marked for Heller's Farm but sadly they are no longer open for picking.  We have been enjoying their berries for five decades.  All good things come to an end and that appears to be the case here.  Heller's fields were always well cared for and their berries were excellent.  We will remember their friendly greetings, fair pricing and top quality fruit as a totally pleasant experience.

We plant one dozen plants within the confines of a forty by sixty inch cage.  Bird netting keeps nearly all of the birds out. The cage is simply set aside to tend the plants or pick the berries.  We tried to plant thirty plants in the garden by the woods.  No covering netting is in place and no red berries have been found yet.  We may need to find a way to cover those plants next year.  For now the new plants are sending out runners.  We will limit the number and location of the new plants so that all have room to grow.  A densely planted bed like those that were in Heller's fields is our goal. 

Garlic, Strawberries and Onions

For the first time ever, every garlic clove planted resulted in above ground growth.  Three were slow to emerge but they are all up and growing now.  Rot issues still exist in our harvest but the brown spots are smaller than in years past and fewer in number.  It is hard to believe but these plants will be harvested in less than ninety days from now.  We are opening a new planting bed here this year.  Potatoes will be planted there this year with garlic to follow in the fall.  We believe that new ground is regularly needed to avoid bulb rot issues.  That is another reason while the garden continues to expand while we cannot keep up with what is already here.

Our mail person drove up the hill to deliver a package today.  Our onion plants had arrived.  This bed grew potatoes last year and was covered with plastic bags full of fallen leaves over the winter.  After setting the bags aside, a quick stir with the potato hook had this ground ready to plant.  Welded wire fence establishes a grid that allows for quick placement of accurately spaced planting holes.  We used the same spacing that was used to plant the garlic.  Eight inches between the rows and six inches between plants in the row allows ample room for growth with just enough room for a weeding hand.

This photo is misleading.  Becky planted most of the onions while I set the few that were beyond her reach.  The bed in line with the onion bed contains thirty newly placed strawberry plants.  We ordered new strawberry plants last year from a new supplier.  We have done business with Miller's Nursery for decades but the death of one of the brothers caused the surviving brother to close their business.  The new Sparkle plants got off to a rocky start.  In one spot only five plants of the twelve planted grew.  We were not expecting much from the living but they produced a huge quantity of new plants from runners.  The blossoms will be removed from these plants this year to encourage plant growth and the production of more plants from runners.  We intend to train the runners so that two rows of plants similar to what is found at Hellers, where we pick jam berries, result.  Now to find some mulch straw.

I had harvested a pile of horse apples dropped by our neighbor's horses,  When the pile was moved to make way for the onions, this salamander was living in the warmth under the pile.  We do not know where it will spent this night but at least it escaped an inadvertent shovel injury. As near as I can tell it is a Northern red backed salamander.  He breathes through his skin, needs to stay wet and never actually goes in the water.  We have never seen one like this before!

Two Degrees Of Frost

Posted frost warnings ended the night's sleep early this morning. Legend has it that if the frost is washed off the plants before the sunlight strikes them, frost damage may be avoided.  Whether that is fact or fiction is not the point.  Washing frost was the only thing that could be done since our overnight low hit 30 degrees F.

Footprints in the white grass will blacken in the sunlight.  Brittle blades of grass were broken by contact with my boot.  Many times valley fog prevents formation of frost but this morning the droplets of mist are themselves frozen.  Clear blue sky is peeking through directly overhead.

Strawberry freezer jam is a special treat that starts many a morning here.  Recent heavy rainfall changed our muddy flat river into a finger lake as the river filled low fields with brown water.  A phone check revealed that the flat where we pay to pick strawberries did not flood and it is low enough that frost may not have hit there last night.  Our two dozen plants were just mulched with straw and it lessened the hardness of the frost.  What frost did form was washed off.  Our strawberries should have avoided widespread damage.

Sod block walls and a tarp provide protection for the newly emerged Oriental lilies.  Sunlight is already hitting the higher ground and will soon find the tarp.  Warmth will build under the cover and the tender new growth under it should be fine.

Every plastic pail that we own was used to cover something tender last night.  Three Salmon Star lilies spent the frosty night under this garbage can.  Water splash can be seen on the stone wall where frost was washed of the Pinxter.  We will wait to see if those flowers escaped damage.

Our wild blueberry bushes grow in the shadow of the gravel bank hill. Frost pours down upon us as cold air slides down the nearby ridge. In this protected spot, these blossoms may have escaped damage. The blueberry opens its flowers a few at a time so the still closed ones should still have the potential to form fruit.  Slender green rods push outward from past blossoms that have already made fruit.

Sunlight is now streaming down on all of the gardens.  Time to get my feet wet while removing all of the protecting buckets and the tarp. Then the many pots of plants that spent the night inside will be returned to the stone wall.

Second Thaw

It's just January 15 and the garden has already gone from a substantial cover of snow to no snow twice.  This afternoon I slipped on my green garden shoes and headed out to take some pictures in the garden.

Some of these strawberry plants look pretty good in spite of the fact they still have their runners and dead leaves plus a few weeds.  Somehow we just didn't get this bed cleaned up before the snow hit.

Ed did get a bed of strawberry plants trimmed and set out late last fall.  They look quite nice and don't appear to have frost heaved even though they were newly transplanted .

This time of year Ed's stone paths make all the difference in the garden.  They allow me to walk all around inspecting the garden beds which contain  muddy, waterlogged and, in some places, still frozen soil.  My feet were nice and dry when I finished my garden tour.

I was attracted to the rusty color of Ed's carefully trimmed and mulched Siberian iris.  There is no sign of new green here and that is a good thing.  It is still only January!

It was comforting to see the green of chrysanthemum plants peeking out from the stems meant to protect them.  So far they have done their job and our hopes for the return of the chrysanthemums in the spring are still alive and well.

This Dianthus looks spectacular spilling over onto the stone path.  The tiny green plants are the chervil that I planted last fall.  One of the fine herbs, it is easy to move around the garden just by laying the stalks with ripe seeds where you want them to grow.  Early in the spring I will have flavorful green leaves to brighten up  salads made with lettuce grudgingly purchased from the supermarket.  It will help to dull the pain!

Near the end of my tour, I did discover that the snow is not completely gone from the garden.  Here inside the square on the north side of the stone wall some snow remains.  Where it is located, it receives no direst sunlight since it is always in the shadow of the stone wall.  That doesn't keep the foxglove from looking all ready to do its thing in the spring. These low rosettes will send up flower spikes in the spring that will look terrific in front of the stone wall.  A few brand new lady's mantle leaves can also be seen.  Getting a glimpse of plants getting all ready for spring makes it seem closer somehow, but that is a pleasant illusion. It's January for Pete's sake!

Waiting for the Garden to Dry Off

I made an early trip out to the garden, slogging through the wet shin deep grass, to pick a few red strawberries for breakfast.  I chased three rabbits from the garden on the way.  Our inability to get the grass around the garden cut has given them cover and they take advantage of it. Yesterday a wild turkey and her babies spent the entire afternoon in the "short" grass around the garden.  I could see the wet hen clearly, her shoulders and neck were above the grass.   Ed saw the babies, but I never did .  We really want things to dry off so we can mow around the garden.  Now it is too easy for the critters to slip into the garden under cover.  That can be murder on the plants.  It also makes it so that we can't see what is out there.  Seeing the wet turkey hen was nice, but I wanted to see the babies too!

My Clematis is beginning to bloom.

Jane's Rugosa rose looks lovely when wet and still has its beautiful scent.

Our friendly flower spider can still be found in the same iris.  It looks quite comfortable and fairly dry under its flower petal roof.

I discovered another patch of nettles along the edge of the driveway. They must have come up after the Red Admirals had passed by.  Here the plants are still green and growing.  This butterfly is not one that I have been able to identify.  I don't think I've ever seen one like it before.

The morning fog has lifted and the rain has stopped.  Perhaps this is the day things will dry off enough for us to make some progress.  Today we hope for partly sunny.  I heard that tomorrow there is a possibility that it won't rain at all.  A wise, blue, furry monster name Grover once said, "Where there's life there's is hope."   There's still lots of hope here at the Stone Wall Garden.

Catch Fly And Rain

This picture of catch fly was taken yesterday. I got my first catch fly from Mary Jo. Anything that attracts butterflies and hummingbirds attracts me. This interesting plant gets its name from the sticky sections on the stems that trap small insects.They are the brown areas about 1/4 inch long in the picture. The plants self seed every year. The hummingbird loves these bright pink flowers.

It's been raining all day. We've enjoyed watching rain falling on the garden from the comfort of the living room. Ed has the last of the plants in, and is looking forward to getting back to the shade garden wall. I still have a few more seeds to plant, and plenty of weeds to pull. A walk through the garden reveals strawberries, spinach,radishes, mesclun, lettuce and fresh herbs are ready for picking. The catnip drying has begun. I'm beginning to dry herbs for tea. New flowers are blooming every day. It's a glorious time for the garden!

Strawberries and Chamomile

It never ceases to amaze me how new plants seem so impervious to the winter. Really small plants seem to have the ability to thrive under the snow. These German chamomile plants were tiny in the fall. The strawberries were starts from runners in the bed next door. There they are green and beautiful while the older more established strawberry plants need trimming and tending.

If you have never had chamomile tea from fresh flowers or from newly dried ones, you are missing out. The flower heads have a wonderful aroma, and the tea is very relaxing. German chamomile is my favorite. It can be distinguished from the others by its hollow receptacle. Since it is a self seeding annual, it comes up where it was planted the year before. If I want to relocate it, I cut some of the plants with seed heads, and lay them on ground that has been prepared so that they will self seed there. The seeds are like dust. I still remember my first packet of chamomile seeds. At first I thought the packet was empty. This is one of those plants that start most easily with fresh seed heads from a friend.