Does all this color indicate the arrival of spring?

I certainly hope so.....notice the insect getting nector from this flower.

I have not planted any thing new in my yard this season, all that is springing up in bloom here have been planted from previous seasons.

When I trimmed away all the old brown and dead branches from the surface, look at what I uncovered hidden away.

This is the flower from "Mother of Thousands", a succulent. Plants from this family are usually unusual and interesting.

And much to my surprise they all came back.......proving again you can grow plants anywhere and I do!

A healty tomato plant sending out flowers. One of many-many that reseeded itself from last season. The "critter" I have been battleing, that ate almost everything in my edible gardens, obviously does not care for tomato plants.....yet.

No color here, but as I walked my yard today, I was thrilled to see my Gossypium Barbadense (Egyptian Cotton tree), break out with leaves and doing well....for several reasons. This plant is a native of Peru and I started it from a seed that I collected on a visit to the Polansek Gardens and Museum in Winter Park, Florida. I did not know that I would be successful to propagate it, to begin with and I did not think it would tolerate and survive the severe cold temperatures we experienced in Central Florida for several evenings. Also, I am told that the garden no longer has it's tree where I obtained the seeds.

There is always a surprise in store in my garden and as usual, I welcome it.

Look What I Caught.....

With a face like this does he look guilty? In a previous post Who has been eating my arugula, I talked about my vegetable garden invasions in the night. Yes, some critter was stealing my produce right from under my nose while I was sleeping. I had no choice I borrowed a Have a Heart Trap from a friend's dad and set it out in my garden baited. I thought that I might catch the critter who was guilty. I caught a squirrel!! My dogs went bonkers when they saw it. My first thought was that it was impossible to be a squirrel doing this....I have thousands in my yard. They breed, like rabbits, up in my huge Oak trees that fill my yard. They are a nuisance in many ways, they eat all the bird food that I put out so I had to stop, and they torment my 3 dogs constantly, especially Niko, my biggest hunter. I think I was hoping to catch a Rabbit or something cute.

As I again took a glimpse at my plants chewed down to just nubs, I just knew I needed to move forward with my plan and remove what I caught from my yard, however I was starting to feel guilty about it. Could this squirrel be a mom with a nest of babies up in the tree close by? I do not know how you would tell the sex of a squirrel, however as I stopped to take the photo of my little trapped critter, I did notice that he looked like he could be a boy squirrel therefore I was not responsible for potential orphan squirrels. This should make me feel a bit better right? Wrong, as we got into my car to relocate the little fella, I thought about in my heart, I don't believe he is the guilty party, but just a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time and he fell for the bait! I know I surely have been in that position. I found my self talking to him about the ride in the car as he sat in the trap in my back seat. I knew for sure this had to be his first ride. I put on the music for him to calm him...some Jazz. It would be alright, I was taking him to a better neighborhood about a mile away and across 2 major roads. Upon arrival to my destination, I removed the trap from my car and I opened the door releasing him on the Seminole County Bike trail. He was gone in a New York minute and up a tree. Good luck little guy, I hope you are happy in your new digs.

Back to my problem, When I arrived back home, I did speak to one of my neighbors the one behind me, who told me that she has been seeing rats in her yard and her hubby was trapping them. Now I know for sure, who is stealing my veggies and that makes sense! I just have to decide if I want to deal with attempting to trap them and deal with it if I do, or just do nothing and see what happens.

The " Have a Heart Trap" is the most humane trap to catch an animal without causing them any harm or danger. They come in various sizes, are fairly easy to use and can be used over and over.

Attention all single gals! Could this be the breakthrough we are waiting for?

As a Seminole County, Florida, Master Gardener I attend a monthly meeting of this group. Sometimes we have invited speakers, we exchange ideas, plant cuttings and sometimes even trade seeds to start our own plants. At last week's meeting, I was given two packs of seeds. You are viewing the front of the package above. Could this be for real, Grow Your Own Boy Toy?? Not a bad concept at all. Give this package of seeds to this girl that still believes in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny and watch me plant them following the growing tips.

Let's see I live in zone 1, per the instructions on the back of the package, outdoor planting dates, September-February. It is time to plant.......

So watch for updates, days to germinate 8-18 days.

Could it be, Grow Your Own Boy Toy??

May all our dreams come true!

Who is eating my Arugala?

Gardeners have been experiencing very unusual and unpredictable weather lately. In my own Central Florida garden, my Christmas Cactus photographed at Christmas/late December 2010 is just beginning to bloom. This plant typically in past years has been as predictable as the best calender, displaying it's showy flowers, as a gift, just in time for Christmas day. We were caught with little warning in mid December with a "hard frost" for two consecutive nights killing off and browning up plants, gardens and even turf. Floridians like myself are not used to this and as a gardener, I find this to be just so invasive of nature to just wipe out with one swoop my beloved garden. Below is what was left of my "edible garden".

As I moped about, surveying the damage, I did discover buried way in the back of my yard in a very often not explored spot, a Bromeliad in bloom. Was this a sign that Mother Nature was attempting to win back some of my lost admiration and wonderment?

So, after looking at my edible garden disaster for several weeks , as long as I could possibly endure this, I did break down and pull everything out and replanted. Ah a new fresh start. I planted all the "winter or cold weather" veggies that could survive another hard freeze. I planted several varieties of lettuce, celery, broccoli, cabbage-green and red, brussel sprouts, kale, beets and probably some additional veggies that I just did not think of now, in addition to many herbs in portable pots, that can be moved under cover in severe or freezing weather.

So here are my new little sprouts proudly doing what I expect of them. And I do check them several times a day. Even my kale and beets are coming up from seeds. My raised beds measure 4 foot X 6 foot, and were easily made by cutting 2 pressure treated boards in half, originally 12 foot and 8 foot. A drill and and some special screws and I have my raised beds to house my edible garden and I control the growinng soil. Yes, since the new planting, we had several additional evenings with a hard freeze and I just cover my raised beds with a full size fitted sheet....really easy. I would like to take the credit that I thought this out and planned it accordingly, but cannot. This worked out quite by accident!

This morning, I noticed that my Arugula was ready for harvest. There is nothing like going out to the garden to pick fresh produce for dinner. I immediately got on the Internet and found a recipe for Cape Cod Chopped Salad which looked very yummy, and proceeded to go outside with my basket and clippers to pick my Arugula. But.......it was all gone! Chewed down to just nubs. Who is eating my Arugula? What furry little critter is getting the benefit of all my work? First the weather then the critters.....

By the way, I will mention for any of you Vegitarians out there, I am sure this salad would still be yummy with the bacon left off!

Obviously the photo above of the Arugala is not from my garden. I have decided to just be patient and wait for my crop to regrow, which it will....and I will get to it first.

If you are not familiar with Arugula, it is a spicy little leaf, which some describe as bitter and others characterize as having a "peppery-mustardy" flavor. Because it is so potent on its own, it is often mixed with milder greens to produce a nice balanced salad. It can also be sauteed in olive oil. You can substitute most any green for arugula, but the closest matches are Belgian endive, escarole, and dandelion greens.

In the meantime, while I wait, I will admire my Orchid which is in full bloom and fills my kitchen with the sweetest aroma. But, I could not help to think that what I have experienced in my garden is probably how one would feel when they go to the refrigerator for a glass of milk and find a milk container empty!!!

In the true spirit of the holidays....

Food, family, friends and fun....

This past long holiday week-end spent at my daughter's home, we had 4 woman cooking in the kitchen. There were times, you would have to wait your turn to get to the stove, which is gas and I still haven't figured it out. We had as many as 17 for dinner on December 25th, with the food served, a vast array from many ethnic back grounds.

My overall favorite dish, was a Greek potato salad served on a bed of greens with sliced fresh beets, Feta cheese, avocados and tomatoes. Feta cheese in lieu of a large amount of mayonnaise made this Greek potato salad creamy and incredibly yummy. Unfortunately there was no recipe, so I will have to improvise when I attempt to duplicate it. This dish was truly too pretty to not take a photo of...so I did!



And in the true spirit of the holidays, our family complied! We ate, we ate.....and we ate again.

Mrs. C, your entry was truly the winner in my mind.

Spoken as I sit here in front of my computer still "grazing" on a left over Peruvian dish that I could not tell you the name of. Yum!!

Who has been eating my eggplant???

I guess I should consider myself lucky, as my "edible garden" has escaped the critters of the yard.....up until now. My eggplant has been healthy, producing and most of all untouched by the critters of nature, providing the main ingredient of many recent meals. (sauteed with ginger, green onions and lots of garlic, served over brown rice, being one of my personal favorites).

I guess those days are over, a thief of the night has found it's way into my garden. Two days ago as I looked over the garden in the early morning, I noticed an eggplant had been snacked on. I immediately plucked it off the plant and discarded it. At that time I didn't take it too seriously. But the next day....the same thing, with a 2nd. eggplant, so I decided to leave it and see what happens. The photo above is that eggplant the next morning, perfectly scooped out and eaten. At least the little culprit went back to the same one he had gotten into the night before and left the others on the vine intact. They are still much smaller. I really don't know what I can do from here about this situation. I consider myself fortunate that it took this long for the critters to discover my garden and I realize that I have enough to share, within reason.

Recently, my three dogs have been digging down into my plants and they are in most definite "hunt" mode, especially Niko. I think that they are on to something. I believe that whatever animal is snacking on my eggplant, is also residing in my garden, right under my nose. I will have to keep an eye open and see if I can solve this little problem.

GET THE DIRT......

Get the dirt on how to have a great garden at the Seminole County Master Gardener Expo, a Horticultural Exposition. Whether you only have a really small garden or a huge garden........ No matter the size of your garden or the type of garden is your interest, this is the place to "Ask The Experts"! Gardening is for everyone! Come out and and speak to and listen to local and regional celebrities EXPO will take place at one of Seminole County’s finest lake-front settings. The Seminole County Master Gardeners have invited exhibitors from a wide variety of interests in urban horticulture: growers, retail sales, landscapers, non-profit organizations plant societies and more. The objective is to bring these varied urban horticulture interests together in Seminole County for residents, visitors and others to experience. Expert speakers and instructors are scheduled to speak throughout the day along with entertainment and food service. Sample some great tasting foods while wondering around the exhibitors displays.

Something for every one's taste. Have food, fun and MORE! 　
Learn new craft ideas
Find out all about bees
Meet Sir Gus, the kissing Camel

(You haven't been kissed until you have been kissed by Gus)
Enter contests to win prizes

　Purchase plants and horticulture items
See beautiful plants & landscape ideas

View vegetable gardening demos and alternative gardening demos

The Seminole County Master Gardeners have been working on this project for over a year and hope to see you out at Expo 2010.

Red Bug Lake Park

3600 Red Bug Lake Road

Casselberry, FL 32707
Saturday, November 6, 2010

10:00 AM to 4:00 PM

For more information, please call (407) 665-5550