The only thing more difficult than keeping up a garden,
is keeping up a blog about gardening!
..
JUNE, 2009 BIRDCAM is active now! A Logitech Quickcam is hooked to a laptop by USB cable, it goes out to the balcony. The camera is taped to a tripod. Not an elegant setup, but it works.
The feeders are hung off the railings with clamp hooks. I ordered the hooks from http://www.bestnest.com/. I placed an umbrella over the feeders for shade and duct taped it to the railing. I put a dish out so birds can drink and bathe. My first issue was the minimal settings Quickcam offered. I did not have control over the exterior lighting which was too bright and blownout, even adjusting gain and exposure etc. I soon realized the dark green umbrella was not even sufficient. I suspended a hanging geranium to add more shade. I then discovered http://www.ebirdseed.com/ and the blog on that site described taping sunglass lenses over his camera lens to better control the outside glare! eureka! Tried it...and it worked splendidly. I can leave my $39 Quickcam (the usb cable only cost $4) outside day and night, sheltered on the balcony. It is a cheap, sort of rough setup, but it is working.
A GARDENER'S LIFE is not easy, but the rewards are so immense! I garden on 2.5 acres of property, keeping it up by myself! It is in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California....
Check out my article 'Deer, Oh Deer' in the
Monterey Bay Master Gardener's Winter Newsletter, Pg 5
http://www.montereybaymastergardeners.org/newsletters/GOTE133.pdf
Monterey Bay Master Gardener's Winter Newsletter, Pg 5
http://www.montereybaymastergardeners.org/newsletters/GOTE133.pdf
NATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATION: My garden and property were certified as a wildlife habitat by the NWF. http://www.nwf.org/gardenforwildlife/certify.cfm FEBRUARY, 2009 - lawn repair today! Lawn repair is essential now, as the wildlife literally make a mess out of it each fall and winter. Today I cut the lawn, put down some good soil in bare spots, and used my Scotts whirly bird applicator to put down grass seed, and then fertilizer. Last step- heavy watering, which I will have to continue so I turned on my timed sprinklers.
March, 2009 It is early March, Oops, bad tick bite. Sent me to the Doc's. I was worried about lyme disease as we have so many deer in the area. Took the critter in a baggy and the Doc told me it was not a deer tick and probably not a carrier of lyme disease.
April, 2009...April got off to a cool and rainy start, but we are now having a heat wave with temps in the upper 90's. Saturday I broke down and decided to start my vegetable garden.
May, 2009...MY WAR ON THISTLES!!! Crikey! Check Youtube 'Sunnygardener' channel for the video of this! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUyciuD3qQg Since I had my pathway done, the thistles have taken over! They were literally 10 feet tall and 20 feet wide and stretched 100 feet along the pathway!! This is how I got rid of them: 1: Took my hedge trimmer and cut them down as far as possible. Some stalks were as thick as small tree trunks. Next, clippers, then a large tooth tree saw. 2: Piled them along the path, trying not to let the flower seed fly. Walked the area to pick up any remaining seed heads. 3: String trimmer cleaned up the area. 4: Hauled the debris away, rather than compost and risk having it start all over again! 5: Roundup herbicide on any emerging thistle over the next year.
June, 2009...and the main lawn is green and lush, a stark difference from the muddy mess the deer made of it over the winter. I seed and fertilize regularly, with a Whirly bird Scotts spreader. Cutting frequently ensures that weeds don't pop up and it makes the grass thicker.
June, 2009...and the main lawn is green and lush, a stark difference from the muddy mess the deer made of it over the winter. I seed and fertilize regularly, with a Whirly bird Scotts spreader. Cutting frequently ensures that weeds don't pop up and it makes the grass thicker.
Rattle Snake!...a youngster, next to the hose I keep at the front of the house. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkmxLjCWTl4&feature=channel_page I started to pick up the hose and got quite a surprise and so did he! He rattled and hissed at me. My neighbor, Bruce, came walking by and he used a rake and put him in a box and we carried him over to release in the orchard across the street. I put the video on Youtube. I have seen several large gopher snakes, they are easy to deal with and not confrontational nor excitable like the rattlers!
July, 2009 and it is time for a little cleanup! The little backgarden is overgrown with nasturtium. They have taken over everything, tumbling in and out of the pots of roses and over the little rock pathway. The sweetpeas grew to 6' tall! Alas, the vines with their delicate tendrils are dried out. It's a good time for a cutdown and cleanup!
I had to trim the vegetation that has overgrown the drive, then cart it off. I used my powerful blower to clean up. Final step was to power wash the edges of the drive. It was a full day's work including driving to Home Depot for a replacement electric hedge trimmer! The new one is powerful and cut through the hedges like butter. Good equipment is a lifesaver! Next project, fill the cracks in the driveway, as the fella from Graniterock said it looks good and the surface will last another couple years without sealing. That sounded great and easy on the budget too!
