Gardening

Last January Ron helped me make a beautiful vegetable garden on our property. We have left much of our acreage native with trees so it was hard to find a flat spot that was clear enough to get 6-8 hours of sun. We tilled and augmented the soil with compost I make from kitchen scraps and garden debris. It was glorious! Glorious until we suffered from one of the worst droughts of recent time.

To find the silver lining in a bad situation, this all happened about the time I was diagnosed with my cancer. I was going to treatments daily and my immune system started to tank, so I couldn't work the garden if I wanted. Ron tilled once again and we added more amendments in hopes I could plant a fall garden. Needless to say that fell by the wayside as my surgery was scheduled and I focused on getting stronger for the big day.

Now it is January once again and I am ready to start all my little plants inside. I have wonderful trays full of dark, rich humus all over my house. I do all organic gardening and try to only purchase organic seeds and plants. It is so much fun to try to decide what to plant. I always have to have several different types of tomatoes, with the little yellow pear tomatoes being a favorite. I think this season I will try the lemon zucchinis and see if they grow well in my climate.

This year I will introduce my oldest granddaughter to the world of gardening. She will be two in March and she already likes to dig. Last year I let her pick and eat grape tomatoes, which came back out with a shudder! She has since found the delight in eating a sweet tomato so I can't wait for her to try them fresh from the garden again.


Here is a simple recipe for Compost Tea. Don't be intimidated, you can't fail!


Making Compost Tea


*Four cups compost
*2 tablespoons of molasses
*4-5 gallons non-chlorinated water
*oxygen supply
*5 gallon bucket

The quickest way to improve your soil is to use compost tea. I like to make aerobic tea, or tea made with oxygen. Also, you need to feed the tea by adding molasses. I use a 5 gallon bucket, run tubing in the bottom of the bucket, throw in the compost water and molasses, and wait 24 hours.

**if your water has chlorine in it, you need to allow the water to sit for 24 hours before starting. The chlorine will kill all the organisms in the compost!**

An easy source of oxygen is an aquarium pump. Not having an aquarium pump, I use my air compressor and a tube that we poked holes in. You want vigorous bubbles to keep the water well aerated.

When the tea is ready for spreading, you can use a Sprayer or a watering can.

Spray or pour compost tea on plant leaves, lawns, vegetable gardens, shrubs, everywhere! You will be amazed at the results with continued use.

Enjoy!