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Strawberries for my Birthday

March 13, 2014

Bishop berrries, Gardening, Strawberry , , , , , , 2 Comments

This morning I woke up on the green side of the earth rather than the under side……That was a good thing and made even better with a handful of fresh picked strawberries – <strong>Yee Haw</strong> – the strawberry harvest has started. I picked a nice handful of red, ripe, sweet berries. Once in hand the self-talk started. Should I share them? Should I eat every one of them before I get into the house? A bit of a dilemma for me.

I didn’t share-(sorry Kathy) and I didn’t eat every one of them. The very best berries found their way into my mouth and several others started the frozen package being accumulated for the jam making later this spring. There is something so very special about berries picked at the peak of their flavor. That first berry I bit into caused a wonderful flood of true strawberry flavor and my mouth was overjoyed.

A handful of Birthday Berries for me!

A handful of Birthday Berries for me!

A healthy berry bed....more berries on the way!

A healthy berry bed….more berries on the way!

While wandering through the garden on this beautiful birthday morning I found a few early stalks of asparagus….Not enough to save for anyone other than the birthday boy. If you have never had asparagus picked and savored the freshest, you are missing the sweetness that is missing from commercially farmed and shipped from who knows where asparagus.

My lemon tree is showing signs of blossoming soon. I can’t think of a flower blossom that is any more intoxicating than that of citrus. It is amazing how some scents and aromas can cause flashback memories. When my lemon tree blooms I am always transported to a late night motorcycle ride from UCLA down Sunset Blvd., to Will Rogers beach. That cool night ride took us through what used to be extensive citrus orchards before the land was converted to homes and estates. Fortunately many of the home owners kept the citrus trees, helping to fill the air the night with that intoxicating citrus blossom scent…..I said <strong>intoxicating</strong> before didn’t I! Let me dive into the Thesaurus! Intoxicating is a good word for the scent filled night air but…..there could be a stronger word or something better able to convey the sweet olfactory assault that created the enduring memory!

How about “enthralling” – no, doesn’t capture the feeling/memory/brain recalled sensation. “stimulating” – not quite strong enough either. “Enchanting” – close. “ Exhilarating” – needs a little more to meet up with the sensations and emotions connected to the sensory memory . I’ll have to wave the white flag and give up on finding the perfect word….I will take any suggestions – English majors preferred! Just trust me…..it was an amazing memory.

The garden is shaping up nicely; onions, strawberries, snap peas, asparagus, beets, turnips and yes, tomatoes are in the ground and putting down roots. I’m another day older and the garden is entering the new growing season….It may sound trite but I feel renewed….not older – just entering a new phase…. TTFN Bishop

Bee Keeping Class

February 16, 2014

Bishop Gardening, Healthy Lifestyle , , , , 3 Comments

I made use of the Christmas gift my daughter Lisa purchased for me. She gave me a three hour bee keeping class for two! Yesterday we took the short drive out of Kingwood to East Knox Drive about 10 minutes from my house. We were with a group of 12 or so other souls looking to learn a little bit about bees and bee keeping. The young man teaching the class under the umbrella of Round Rock Honey was top notch. He is a petroleum engineer cum bee keeper for a little over 2 years….being an engineer he has learned a lot by reading but it is backed up by his practical experience.

The best part….He lives in the Kingwood development where I live on probably a little smaller residential lot than I have…..along with more than a dozen hives in his backyard. We may be kindred spirits – he got permission from his wife for one hive….but as luck would have it his hive spun off some new queens and at the end of season “one” he had 4 more hives….My buddy John L will certainly see the connection!

The class was pretty interesting but there was a gentleman in attendance that must have been a “Geek” type engineer…. he had some close to on topic questions as well as TOO many off topic questions. We got into sugar molecule discussions, solar and electromagnetic disruptions to bee navigation and several other inane deeply trivial blather! He became fascinated with the frame base material, a thin plastic sheet imprinted with hexagonal patterns. The bees will build upon these sheets in the frames with beeswax and put to use as they see fit, pollen storage, honey storage, brood chambers of the various types. He spent a good chunk of time holding a sheet of the material up in front of sunlight and wondering out loud how he could add some LED lights for some cool light patterns! Hmmmmmm reminds me a little of my college days and altered states of consciousness…. I don’t think he emerged from those days fully intact. Our instructor is an engineer by education but seems to have his feet on the ground as a good ole Missouri boy graduating out of the University of Missouri Science and Technology in Rolla, MO! Very practical young man.

Daughter Lisa geared up and ready to play with the bees.

Daughter Lisa geared up and ready to play with the bees.

Honey....being added to a frame.

Honey….being added to a frame.

The Queen....her life is not as wonderful as we may have thought!

The Queen….her life is not as wonderful as we may have thought!

Standing in the way of the landing pattern. The returning bees were blocked on landed early on some class mates

Standing in the way of the landing pattern. The returning bees were blocked and landed early on some class mates

Drone Bee - the one with the big eyes!

Drone Bee – the one with the big eyes!

Pygmay goats in the feed store yard along with peacocks, pot belly pigs, miniature horses and burros....fun place to visit.

Pygmy goats in the feed store yard along with peacocks, pot belly pigs, miniature horses and burros….fun place to visit.

 

Wish me well folks as I go to the CFO for expenditure approval and the subsequent site request!

 

TTFN

Bishop

 

Strawberry Towers Materials Correction

January 23, 2014

Bishop Gardening 2 Comments

My last post I shared the details of construction with all y’all and I made an error. I was hoping to get a little further into 2014 before I made my first mistake but I failed to make in through January. Next year …. I am aiming at not making a single mistake.

The strawberry towers are made with FOUR INCH DRAIN PIPE !

I stated 3 inch in the post and that was my first mistake….hopefully the last one for 2014!

TTFN

Bishop

Strawberry Towers Forever V 3.1

January 18, 2014

Bishop Gardening , , , 7 Comments

Version 3.1 is under construction with a couple of key changes. Version 1.0 was made with 2″ PVC (too small in diameter but close to being tall enough). The slots for planting were drilled with a hole saw. I shredded my fingers while planting the crowns because I failed to sand the rough edges. The density was very good but it was a challenge to keep them properly watered. Check out the start of my strawberry tower experiments here.

Strawberry Towers Phase One

I toyed with, played around with…………poor choice of words…..I am always wanting to improve on the prior efforts so I have modified V 1.0 and V 2.0 and then V 3.0 ……. 3.0 was not well thought out and the added pockets on the short towers were not well spaced out. They were crowded, impinged upon the others and looked ugly….but the berries grew pretty well.

With V 3.1 I started with 3″ PVC drain pipe and I chose the version that created pockets rather than drilled holes. I spaced them a little closer and arranged them in a logical and orderly fashion. I should be able to get 28 plants in a space that would have held 2-3 plants in a matted row system and much easier for an old guy to harvest without bending over.

The photos below show the construction process. Some time soon I will fill the pockets!

Started with a center line snapped with a chalk line on 3" PVC drain pipe.

Started with a center line snapped with a chalk line on 3″ PVC drain pipe.

I left a space of 12″ at the top for a water reservoir above the first pocket. I space the remaining slots at 9″ vertically between pockets. I snapped another snapped line at about 90 degrees left and right. The pockets were staggered to better spread out the plants.

A snapped chalk line as a starting point. First pocket at 12" in order for reservoir at the top.

A snapped chalk line as a starting point. First pocket at 12″ in order for reservoir at the top.

Using a saw and a slotted box to cut a slot to be shaped later.

Using a saw and a slotted box to cut a slot to be shaped later with the heat from a paint stripper.

I use a paint stripper to heat up the plastic above the cut slot in order to shape the pockets.

Paint stripper used to heat the PVC pipe to soften the plastic so I can shape it. Posed picture but it pretty much shows the process.

Paint stripper used to heat the PVC pipe to soften the plastic so I can shape it. Posed picture but it pretty much shows the process.

I keep a leather glove on the hand that I use to shape the softened plastic PVC.

Using my gloved hand to mold and shape the pocket. Use a leather glove as the plastic is hot.

Using my gloved hand to mold and shape the pocket. Use a leather glove as the plastic is hot.

There is a blank space at the bottom. I use a post hole digger and plant the tower about 12 inches deep for stability.

Me with a tower.

Me with a tower.

Closer view with my Christmas t-shirt "Decker's Homegrown Produce.

Closer view with my Christmas t-shirt “Decker’s Homegrown Produce.

Closer look at the layout.

Closer look at the layout.

A pocket on a V 2.0 model with a Chandler plant, This is what the new tower will resemble once filled

A pocket on a V 2.0 model with a Chandler plant, This is what the new tower will resemble once filled

 

TTFN

Bishop

Strawberries, PVC & Gardening

January 14, 2014

Bishop Gardening, Strawberry , , , 3 Comments

The strawberries are blossoming and the high achievers are beginning to ripen! You have seen my past posts on my strawberry towers and if you haven’t you can search going backwards in time. I have reloaded the towers with Chandler strawberries after adding a few more pockets to the shorter towers.

My newest adventure with the leftover pvc from my youngest son’s Engineering project at Texas A&M University is shown below. I did have to buy a couple extra joints beyond the 12″ of 3″ pipe he needed but what the heck! I have started construction on a mini greenhouse with the hope of getting my tomatoes off to an early start! Is it possible for me to have ripe tomatoes before May 1st? That will be my challenge!

I enjoyed a misshapen strawberry today and the harvest is just around the corner…found a perfect berry today that is two maybe three days away from being perfectly ripe. I hope to share a photo and a tasting critique…..Unless of course my 4 year old garden helper from down the street comes into the yard and finds it before I can pick it! He is all boy and into anything and everything!

A look at the towers

A look at the towers

One of the early blossoms

One of the early blossoms

The mini greenhouse awaiting the cover and tomato transplants

The mini greenhouse awaiting the cover and tomato transplants

Quick photos by my iPhone….I continue to be amazed at the quality of the images!

TTFN

Bishop

 

Versatile Blogger Award Accepted

January 3, 2014

Bishop Gardening 4 Comments

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I have been patted on the back as a Versatile Blogger and therefore have received the versatile blogger award by the Belmont Rooster – http://thebelmontrooster.wordpress.com/

I have been very slow responding but I want to thank him and pass some recognition along,
His blog is amazing! I envy his organizational skills, his depth and breadth of knowledge and his support for my blogging efforts as well as those of others. He is definitely worth a visit!
From his “About” section – the intro – “I now have two blogs, The Mystical Mansion and Garden and The Belmont Rooster. I decided to go ahead and make this new blog because I moved from Leland, Mississippi where the mansion and my gardens were to my hometown in Windsor. It seemed a little weird adding new posts about my plants and gardening in Missouri to a Mississippi blog!”

As part of the award requirements – Seven Things About me;

1. Bishop is my middle name – A great, great grandfather’s name.

2. I have far too many interests…yes dear I agree with you on this….but it sure is an interesting affliction.

3. I can spend all day behind the lens of a camera, not uttering a word and be very content.

4. I love dirt on my hands and sweat on my brow.

5. Farming must be in my blood – from my dad’s side I can track Decker lineage back to the early 1600’s as farmers in the country and from my maternal side – a variety of broom corn is associated with the Rennels family in Charleston, IL.

6. I have 10 bicycles in the garage and probably all of them have air in the tires and can be ridden.

7. I tolerate cats….

I have nominated the following blogs that I follow for the same award. Please take time to check them out. My interests are broad. My first blog was Backyard Farming but one of my big loves is – Home brewing! – Thus my nominations cover both!

1. The Grill And Barrel –Http://thegrillandbarrel.wordpress.com
2. The Hudson Valley Garden … great read and photos Hudson Valley Gardens http://hudsonvalleygardens.us/
3. Mr. Hops Beer Talk – “Avid homebrewer and craft beer taster. I love all the hops I can get.” http://mrhopsbeertalk.wordpress.com/
4. Beer Goggles –If you are looking for beer adventures in the Inland Empire give her a look. http://andreaherreria.wordpress.com
5. Sparkling on the Vine She loves beer, wine and baseball.. http://sparklingonthevine.com
6. A fun blog to visit, entertaining and educational. Welcome to We Make Home Brew. http://wemakehomebrew.com/
7. ‘The Beer Gypsy’ An eclectic Ontario gal – http://thebeergypsy.com
8. Garden at 8505 http://gardenat8505.wordpress.com
9. Head Over Beers – Fun, fun, fun and beer.http://headoverbeers.wordpress.com/
10. Shh Fit Happens She is an amazing gal…. she is also responsive to your comments, take a look – http://shhfithappens.com/ture, w
11. Good Beers Better – Just too much fun – http://goodbeerbetterhats.com
12. Attempting zero waste lifestyle in a military household  – energetic and fun read….I really do lover her wit and straightforward approach. http://militaryzerowaste.wordpress.com/
13. The Orange Bee – an Inspiration. I am now signed up for my first bee keeping class and will be a bee keeper this spring!http://theorangebee.wordpress.com
14. Jimmy Cracked Corn – An amazing backyard farmer. http://jimmycrackedcorn.wordpress.com/
15. Butterflies and Me – Beautiful and simple…. Enjoy! http://bluebutterfliesandme.wordpress.com/

The rules – To my nominees – the rules as follows-

If you are nominated, you’ve been awarded the Versatile Blogger award.

  •  Thank the person who gave you this award. That’s common courtesy.
  •  Include a link to their blog. That’s also common courtesy — if you can figure out how to do it.
  •  Next, select 15 blogs/bloggers that you’ve recently discovered or follow regularly. ( I would add, pick blogs or bloggers that are excellent!)
  •  Nominate those 15 bloggers for the Versatile Blogger Award — you might include a link to this site.
  •  Finally, tell the person who nominated you 7 things about yourself.

TTFN

Bishop

Backyard Farm – December Notes on Christmas Morning

December 25, 2013

Bishop berrries, Composting, Gardening, mulching, Potato Growing, Strawberry , , , , , , , , , 2 Comments

My postings for the past couple of months have slowed a little but I have tended to some of the chores!
• Spreading compost from the bin on the right and turning the bin on the left.
• Son Ben did a fantastic job adding gravel around the edges. Looks great! An early and well appreciated Christmas gift.
• Turned ad prepped the bed for potato planting.
• Cut back the Asparagus ferns and added a layer of compost and leaf mulch. Gotta love Houston, two days ago I noticed several young shoots about 6 inches above the mulch…my reward for taking care of the bed. NOW GO TO SLEEP DANG NABBIT!
• Carrots and sugar snap peas have emerged from the late fall plantings.
• Planted 6 Blueberry plants and 8 replacement bare root blackberry plants – Ben was a little overzealous when he added a pvc irrigation line in the blackberry bed. We had a good laugh!
• Planted more Chard and Beet seeds yesterday as well as some red onion seeds in the front portion of the potato bed.

December 4th I ate my first ripe strawberry – way too early, it was kinda small and misshapen but it was sweet! Inspection yesterday showed numerous blossoms and a few dozen green berries trying to fill out. It may be another stellar strawberry year and maybe, just maybe a few more jars of jam to share.

One of several confused strawberries. This was the little one I ate! Yum

One of several confused strawberries. This was the little one I ate! Yum

TTFN & Merry Christmas – share something wonderful with those you love!

Bishop

My Falling Into Fall Efforts

November 25, 2013

Bishop Composting, Gardening, jam and jelly, Strawberry, Vegetables , , , , , , , , 2 Comments

I haven’t written much lately about the backyard garden but it has been slowly morphing into a winter garden. I harvested the last cucumbers two weeks ago because I knew that the Houston winter temperatures were coming. On the vines were a few edible and nearly a dozen immature cukes that became worm food.  The sweet potato vines finally showed their dislike for anything below 50 degrees F. They weren’t grown for tubers this year, but they did provide great ground cover. I found a couple of nice sized tubers and a bunch that were restricted by the heavy soil to  elongated sausage looking things. The dying tomatoes were pulled up along with the Poblano pepper plants.

I left the Serrano peppers in as the plant is still setting fruit. I made a batch of Serrano  Pepper jelly last week and may make another batch soon. This week I also made a couple of pints of lemon curd from my Meyer Lemon tree. What an amazingly rich treat – 4 very big lemons, 2 cups of lemon juice, at least 2/3 cup of zest, 12 egg yolks, two sticks of butter and two cups of sugar… I am afraid to calculate the calories per teaspoon! I will send a jar to my granddaughter – she loves it!

Over the past two weeks I pulled about 2 large wheel barrow loads of compost out of my bins to amend the beds. I fed a bunch to the asparagus bed hoping to get it producing better during this next spring. I added a bunch to a section of the beds that I have designated as the carrot patch. That same bed is also home to my sugar snap peas – hopefully this planting of peas will be the one that produces. I tried on two previous efforts to get them to sprout and the cool weather never showed up. They don’t like warm weather! I hope I didn’t miss the weather window!

Some of my strawberry plants are confused. Weeks ago I had a number of them blossom and I plucked the blossoms off. After traveling and working for a few weeks out of town, I ignored them. I now have green strawberries – about 3 plus months too early!  My 100 new strawberry plants planted in early October have settled nicely into their new home and will hopefully bring me a couple of good years of harvesting pleasure.

I have four pineapple plants started from tops nearly two years ago.  They are now beginning to leaf out vigorously and who knows, this may be the year. A little research says it takes 2 years and maybe more if it is cold, in order to flower. The leaves look like they are becoming mature so this could be the lucky year.  I put another top in the ground a week ago to add to my collection. According to the research the buggers will start spreading on their own. May wind up with 30 or 40 before long.

My little buddy Caleb and his now walking little brother Levi, stopped by for a visit a few days ago. Caleb is ALL boy….gotta keep an eye on him. Levi loves to munch on cucumbers off the vine and the cherry tomatoes, not so much for Caleb. They both enjoy the strawberries when they are in season. I hope to have them back this week to help plant my beets and turnips. I was in the process of harvesting the worm poop and adding another bin to the top of my worm composting bins during their visit. Being boys….they both loved touching and playing with the little wrigglers! Mom wasn’t as enthused or amused as the boys were! I sent them home with a couple of long stemmed roses for their mother……she left smiling!

The new carrot patch....waiting for the emerging tops.

The new carrot patch….waiting for the emerging tops.

The old sweet potato bed - cleaned out and what next ????

The old sweet potato bed – cleaned out and what next ????

Pineapples - or hopefully this year they will fruit.

Pineapples – hopefully this year they will fruit.

Those danged, confused strawberries.

Those danged, confused strawberries.

Strawberry towers planted with about 85 of the 100 new plants.

Strawberry towers planted with about 75 of the 100 new plants.

 

TTFN

Bishop

 

Worm Food

November 17, 2013

Bishop Composting, Gardening, Vermicoposting , 7 Comments

My silent workers toiling away in the darkness of the worm bin have been overjoyed of late! My daughter Ashleigh asked me “ Dad, how do you know that they are overjoyed?”

“It’s simple, they wiggle more!”, was my knowing response.

There is a little more to it than that. The red composting worms I use,  (Eisenia fetida or Eisenia andrei), are surface or near surface feeders. For most of the summer, up until two weeks ago, they weren’t wiggling much at all. In fact they either stayed buried deeply in the bins or, possibly succumbed to the brutal heat. During the weather change I took some groceries out to the little guys. Not much sign of activity. I was afraid that this long hot summer had been too much for them. I spread the meal out, put the lid on and hoped for the best.

Two days later I took another bowl if groceries out and on the surface, especially on the strawberry trimmings, it was swirling with red wrigglers.

Yes they were overjoyed!

A bowl of yummy wormfood

A bowl of yummy worm food

My overjoyed workers wiggling, waving and eating!

My overjoyed workers wiggling, waving and eating!

 

TTFN

Bishop

 

18. $1.75

November 11, 2013

Bishop Gardening Leave a comment

I loved this simple approach. I do supplement from my garden when I can. This is a challenge we can all do and keep more in our pockets and probably cut fat, calories and miscellaneous “parts” that get mixed in unbeknownst to us!

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