Look out "44 North" ...Welcome "44 Blue Northwest"

Look out "44 North"... Here comes "44 Blue Northwest"

The Raspberry infused vodka was so delicious, we decided to try some freshly picked blueberry infused vodka to see how it compares to the "44 North" (Huckleberry flavored vodka) out of Boise, Idaho.  We will give it 30 days on the counter to soak up all of that fresh blueberry goodness, shaking it every day to get all of "berry goodness" out and into the liquid.  Then we will strain the liquid, and mix it with the boiled sugar water (same recipe as the raspberry infused vodka in this blog) and place it in a dark cool place for 6 months.  (Lets see how patient we can be!!!)

P.S. the blueberries that have been soaking don't need to go directly into the trash can :)  Lets try them on fresh ice cream or in a lemon sorbet!

Spring has Sprung! Time to Plant?

Weather is warming, plants are over growing their containers and the garden beds are ready!
Time to Plant!  J and I have been steadily busy working the beds, transplanting the seedlings into bigger pots,spreading some great compost and pounding in the stakes for the beans. 

Looks like we could be ready to plant.  Or............should we wait?
Never can be too sure about the frost in this area!  We will see what tomorrow brings. Last week we planted the bean seeds, lettuce, chard, beets, spinach, and carrots,  checked on the raspberry vines we transplanted and put the 3 varieties of seed potatoes into their above ground beds.

We are anticipating an awesome harvest!!!!

We are in need of some volunteers to help weed, and then harvest the veggies.  If you or someone you know want to help out....please give me a call.  We will put you to work!

The Hoop Houses Have it "Gowing On"!

The Hoop Houses have it "growing on"!

The lettuce, spinach and swiss chard have really taken off this last month with the little bit of sunshine that showed up.  

The trick is keeping the chickens out!

I moved some of the veggie starts out to the hoop houses to begin hardening them off.  They seem to be doing really well.

Seeds have arrived from Seed Savers Exchange!

Today was an exciting day! 

Most of the seeds we had ordered from Seed Savers Exchange had arrived.  In anticipation, we had our seed flats ready to go for planting.  All of the tomatoes, eggplant, squash and melons have been planted in seedling trays down in the laundry room to get a good warm start.  All of the other seeds will have to wait until the ground is ready to plant outside. 

Our potato starts are due the first part of March.

We are excited about the variety of the vegetables this year and the fact that we are starting our tomatoes from seed.  Normally we have purchased starts so this is an exciting adventure.  We are hoping to plant enough starts to give our friends a few.

Along with the vegetables pictured above, we are also planting the following for harvest.

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  Spinach
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  Romaine Lettuce
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  Red Leaf Lettuce
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  Dragon Carrots
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  Chioggia Beets
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  Basil
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  Dill
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  Delicata Squash
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  Zucchini

We have transplanted raspberries into the giving garden as well, hoping for an abundant harvest. We will be companion planting, so along with the above vegetables, we will have plenty of flowers and herbs mixed in among the rows to keep the pests down.  This will also enable us to grab a bunch of flowers to hand to the Food Pantry Staff when we bring in the over flowing food baskets at harvest time :)

Seeds of Change Giving Garden in first part of transformation!

Gardening is a matter of your enthusiasm holding up until your back gets used to it. ~Author Unknown

Linda and I cleaned out two of the raised beds in January. 

We found a dry day and took advantage of it!  We dug out overgrown

lavendar plants and turned the ground under.

Today, J and I removed the remainder of the old lavendar plants and

worked the remaining beds to get them ready for some "Black Gold"!

...Just like fine wine....aged manure is well worth the wait!

Here is a list of some of the Heirloom Veggies we are planning on growing this year.  Every day I check the mail for my seeds to arrive from Seed Savers Exchange.  They are a non-profit organization of gardeners dedicated to saving and sharing heirloom seeds.The selection of seeds that they have is amazing and through their site you can access forums and blogs about seeds and gardening. (Check them out via the link above)

Only a few more months before Spring and can hardly wait :)

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  Ideal Market Pole Beans
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  Chioggia Beet
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  Dragon Carrot
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  Scarlet Nantes Carrot
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  Paris Market Carrot
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  Udumalapet Eggplant
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  Charantais Melon (Wishing for a really hot summer!)
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  Nyagous Tomato
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  Five Color Silver Beet Chard
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  Galeux d'Eysines Squash
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  Muscade de Provence Squash
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  Cincinnati Market Radish
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  French Breakfast Radish
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  Plum Purple Radish
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  Federle Tomato
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  Speckled Roman Tomato
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  Isis Candy Cherry Tomato (these sounded delicious!)
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  Blondkopfchen Tomato
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  Black Krim Tomato
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  Amish OG Melon
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  All Blue Potato
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  Desiree Potato (pink)
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  La Ratte Fingerling Potato

Stay tuned for more pics!  Were are going to work on our "home grown" tomato cages next!

"Seeds of Change" Giving Garden ~ Transformation begins in 2 weeks!

Gardening is about being able to utilize all 5 senses; feeling the dirt between your fingers, hearing the buzz of bees pollinating squash blossoms, smelling the sweet aroma of freshly turned earth and wild flowers, seeing the transformations take place when new seedlings emerge from the warm soil, and lastly, rewarding yourself and others with luscious fruits and tasty fresh vegetables at harvest time.  I am grateful for every opportunity to be able to tranform a piece of ground into an oasis of abundance to share with others.  There are endless opportunities in even the smallest of places!

Today I took pictures of the garden area in which "Seeds of Change Giving Garden" will transpire.  I cannot wait to see all of the possibilities come to life in this garden.  The garden will be a place where vollunteers can work together to grow and harvest food for the hungry.  It is not the largest of gardens, but the possibilities are endless!  If you grow it, they will come!

What has been growing here is lavender and lots of it!  We are going to replace the exsisting plants with many vegetables like lettuce, radishes, spinach, beets, carrots, squash, beans, tomatoes, peppers and more.

The garden is a possibility because of a very generous women who is donating space to allow us to utilize the area to grow food for those less fortunate than ourselves. What a blessing!

This Winter we will be on the look out for garden tools such as rakes, shovels, small hand shovels and some soaker hoses.  Soon we will be getting the beds ready for planting; digging up olds plants, replenishing old soil with compost and planning the watering system. Stay tuned to see pictures of the transformation!  I can envision squash growing here, or maybe some green beans! 

Birds of a Feather all Flock Together! Build Your Own Homemade Concrete Pillar Birdbath!

This project was really easy and cost less than $15.00 to make! All you need is a bag of concrete, some sand, water and/or water and leftover paint, a piece of 4 inch PVC pipe, one concrete pillar form (can be found at Lowes or Home Depot),an old bowl and some really pretty rocks! (I love rocks!!!) The PVC in the center makes the finished project lighter and easier to move, as well as allows for a fountain hose if a fountain is what you would like to make instead of a bird bath.

To begin, gather together the following supplies:

• 1 bag of concrete
• 1 bag of sand
• Leftover paint (if you have some leftover from a project and want to use it up, plus it gives the project a better color rather than just the fresh concrete look)
• A bucket of water
• (1) Sakrete 10 In. x 48 In. Tube For Concrete (can cut to desired length)
• 1 length of 4 inch PVC pipe - cut 2-3 inches shorter than your concrete form. You can find small sections for really cheap at rebuilders centers or builders resale shops.

1. Begin by cutting your concrete form to desired length and then cut your PVC pipe, 2-3 inches shorter.
2. Find a flat surface out of direct sunlight (in garage maybe or on the North side of your house) and place a large garbage sack on this surface, followed by the concrete form.
3. Place your PVC pipe in the center of the form.
4. Next you will want to get a large garden tub or wheelbarrow to mix your 4 parts concrete / 1 part sand. The amount of concrete mix that you will need, depends on the desired height of your pillar. Most likely you will need the whole bag. If using one whole bag of concrete, mix in 1/4 bag of sand.
5. Next you will need to decide if you are going to add paint for a slight touch of color or just use water to mix in with the concrete. If you are going to use paint, it takes quite a bit to change the color of concrete, so don't be shy! With this one I used 1/2 gallon of old paint with enough water to make a muffin batter consistency mix. Make sure the mixture is not too wet and runny as you will end up with a watery mess! Some concrete mixture will ooze out of the bottom, just keep an eye on it. This is why you need a very flat sturdy surface.
6. Use a small shovel or scoop to gently drop the concrete mixture down into the tube. Avoid getting any down into the PVC pipe. (It is best to wad up an old rag and place into the top of the pipe before adding concrete, or tape some heavy plastic around it)
7. As you add more concrete, tamp it down all around the edges with a stake or old broom handle to get all of the air bubbles out.
8. I wanted my bowl to sit down into the pillar. To allow for this you will need to find an old plastic tub, (I used an old margarine tub) and fill it with sand so that it is weighted down. Spray it with Pam cooking release spray all around the outside.
9. Place the tub filled with sand onto the top of the PVC pipe and the concrete mixture. Continue to fill the concrete form.
10. Once your concrete gets to the top of your tube, flatten it all out and place the tub filled with sand on top of the tube.
11. Continue filling the rest of the pipe with the concrete mixture until you reach the top. Pat it smooth on the top and as it dries, to get a more rounded edge, use an old spatula to gently pull the concrete in away form the edge of the form.
12. Wait patiently for about a week, until it is really dry and set. If the weather is warm out, cover the entire project with plastic and keep out of the hot sun to avoid cracking.

Now the fun begins!!! Once it is dry you can begin to unveil the pillar by taking out the tub with sand, and then tearing the form off by layers. You may have to give it a good start with a hacksaw but be careful not to damage the concrete. I found my bowl for .25 cents at a Garage Sale and then filled it with some great rocks that my husband and I found on a trip to Eastern Oregon. These were the rejects from one of our tumblings, but they sure look awesome here.

The birds love the water and the neighbor girls love picking out a rock to take home each time they come over. The rocks always look better wet :)
Have fun!