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Potatoes Are Harvested

May 11, 2012

Bishop Composting, Gardening, Potato Growing, Potatoes, Rubbermaid , 1 Comment

Just finished up the potato harvest…..mixed results. The Rubbermaid bin seemed to be a little more prolific…. I had high hopes for my wire baskets. I was anticipating small new potatoes up the length of the plants that were systematically covered  with soil, mulch and compost. I found many more clinging to the plant stems in the bin. I may have had better success all the way around had not the leaves come under attack by a little critter….a little orange bug destroying the leaves….apparently the nymph stage of a leaf hopper. I did get some potatoes and we will enjoy them!

I did reap a bounty of composted material from the baskets and the bin. Two wheel barrow loads of the good stuff. I will try again next spring and probably use some 40 + gallon garbage cans or recycled 55 gallon food grade plastic drums. As a bonus the material from the baskets and bins were loaded with worms… the red wriggler composting types near the surface and some big fat earthworms churning away in the middle…. One wheel barrow load has been spread and I will work on the other soon….

Had garlic mashed potatoes last night….I really think I can tell a difference between the store bought spuds….who knows how long they have been stored and what they have been sprayed with….vs. mine, fresh from the garden! I also grilled some carrots that I recently harvested… That was a first for me and they were not bad at all….need to try that again. Tomatoes are really looking good – a real surprise is the volunteer plant that I let grow….loaded up with clusters of cherry tomatoes!

Click on the photos for a larger image.

TTFN

Bishop

Making Ready to Transfer the Worms

May 7, 2012

Bishop Composting, Gardening, Healthy Lifestyle, Organic, Potato Growing, Rubbermaid, Vegetables, Vermicoposting , , , , Leave a comment

The worm bin is getting to be well filled with that wonderful stuff euphemistically referred to as worm castings – worm poop – I use Rubbermaid containers…36 quart size to house them. They reside in the garage year round and the Houston heat does not seem to bother them. I actually made two bins when I ventured off into worm world. I have found that 4 months or so is an ideal time to let the little guys toil away in darkness before preparing their new abode and harvest more of the good stuff.

As part of my ongoing research into growing methods…..not really research, its just that I get bored easily and I am always want to try something new and different. The back-up bin was put to use growing potatoes. In addition to the 4 foot tall wire baskets housing potatoes I tossed a handful of extras into the bin filled with about 8 inches of soil. Over the next few months I kept adding shredded leaves and compost as the plants grew. Yesterday I decided it was time to make ready the bin for the worms and dumped the contents – potatoes, leaves, compost and all.
I was pleasantly surprised…with minimal efforts I have 8 or so pounds of naturally grown potatoes. My wife is wanting to cook the new potatoes today….I agree hun!

TTFN

Bishop

The Tomato Challenge – Close But No Cigar

May 5, 2012

Bishop Gardening, Vegetables , , , , 4 Comments

I have mentioned several times in my recent blogging that I “may” have a ripe tomato before May 1st. I am sorry to report that I was two days short of the goal. The first ripe tomato, a cherry tomato, was consumed by my wife on May 2nd. I am going to claim partial success though……in the garden I planted over at John’s house….the cherry tomatoes have been ripe for over a week now. Unfortunately, he didn’t get to consume that first ripe, red tomato of the season either. That honor goes to his golden retriever, Pismo. She LOVES tomatoes and it is a real challenge to keep her away from the goodies. The photos for this rambling were taken on April 30th. You will see that my efforts to grow tomatoes are going well but the target was missed by just a smidgeon!

My asparagus is really doing well this year. It is so tender and sweet that much of it munched on while tending to the other garden chores. I have pulled almost all of the carrots and have really enjoyed eating them fresh, steamed, sauteed in butter – with a dash of nutmeg and cinnamon – and tonight I will grill a few. The Royal Chantenay Carrot has been a stellar producer for the heavy Houston soils….becoming less dense every year as I add compost, the Cosmic Purple were pretty…..pretty small too. Lovely color but they were stunted – the descriptor in the catalog says -” The smooth purple skin contrasts beautifully with the bright orange coreless flesh. They have a very sweet flavor and are a hit with kids and adults alike. The tops grow to 15 “. Roots are tapered and best harvested around 7″.” Partially true – color and taste and the tops are tall and beautiful. They would make a a nice border planting. Size, hmmmmmm, not anywhere near 7″. The Danvers Half Long were also a great carrot to grow here in Houston.

Have not been traveling much lately so I have been tending the gardens on a regular basis. I have not written much lately as I have been busy finishing up a video for the High School soccer team….my wife nicknamed me the great American volunteer as I seem to find myself on the everyone’s list. I haven’t had a child on the local swim club team for more than two years but volunteered to do their year end video……maybe it is because I also enjoy working with the kids!

TTFN

Bishop

Composting – Making a Difference

April 25, 2012

Bishop Gardening 5 Comments

If you have been reading my blog once in awhile….you know that I do a bit of composting. The link below takes you to Hot Bin Composting…a UK blog touting the wonders of the Hot Bin product. It seems to be a good product but my fascination is with the good advice that comes along with the blog and the difference we can all make.

I am a bit more of a laid back composter but slowly becoming more precise with my “recipes” for the compost mix. My bins are big – a twin 4X4X4+ set-up…. I usually just pile it in in any order, the summers very heavy in green material. This past fall/winter I invested in a big leaf vacuum/shredder. I loaded up on leaves – the “brown” component of the composters recipe. The 64 cubic feet plus of leaves in the right hand side have been incorporated into the grass clippings going into the left side. I am looking for more leaves as we speak. I took some rotted produce out to the bin today and pulled back the top layer – wow-  the steam just boiled out of the pile… it was so hot that I couldn’t keep my hand in the middle of the pile. My guess – 140 to 150 degrees F. The proper recipe must work!!!!

My advice… listen to the advice – we can take a huge bite out of the compostable trash that goes to the land fills and feed our families so much better. Just Let it Rot!!!!!

Compost Awareness Week – 6 – 12 May 2012.

My Double Compost Bins

 

PS….I have also been using an activator and I add some dilute agricultural molasses as food to jump start the little bugs decomposing the composting materials… no meat, no fat and no bones…..just vegetative material.

TTFN

Bishop

My Second Mistake of the Year

April 24, 2012

Bishop Beans, Gardening, Philosophical , 3 Comments

Well, maybe that is an exaggeration…… I really just lost count and started over. Sometimes a mistake or an error can lead to a learning. I set up the poles in my garden for my pole beans just a few weeks ago. I  planted both a purple variety and what I thought were the Blue Lake pole variety. The purple variety are up to the 8 foot level and setting blossoms. My green pole beans acted like they were stunted. Guess what, those stunted beans are just 12 inches tall and loaded with blossoms…. You probably figured out my error….I planted bush beans!

It will be OK though. The bush beans will be done shortly and the poles are still there waiting to be wrapped up with the vines of the pole beans –  so into the ground went the “real” pole beans.  I should get an extended harvest…may have to remember to do it again in the late summer for a fall harvest. If CRS doesn’t overwhelm me I will plan it for next spring…seems like a good idea! – CRS is “Can’t Remember Shtuff” I run into it on an increasing frequency now… When it gets real bad it won’t bother me because I won’t recall that I have forgot whatever it was….

The example below is one of my pole bean teepees from a couple of seasons ago….prolific is an understatement!

This is an example of pole beans doing what pole beans do best! Obviously much more than a 12 inch bush bean plant!

Blossoms, Berries, Buds and Bounty

April 22, 2012

Bishop Beans, berrries, Gardening, pollination, Vegetables , , , 8 Comments

Wandered out this Sunday morning with my new tool – A Nikon J1 camera – all of the photos were taken this morning except for the bees….their results are shown first in the line of photos busy bees and the end of the line. Click on the image to see it full size…

 

TTFN

Bishop

Sweet Serendipitous Salads

April 22, 2012

Bishop Beans, berrries, Gardening, Vegetables 5 Comments

Serendipity is not a term that rolls off the tongue of a good ole Texas lad but I have been exposed to folks that have majored in and studied English – a bit of their mastery of the language has rubbed off on me. Reddish, redolent, Royce Hall reminiscing’s!!!!

A simple explanation that even I can understand – serendipity, the accident of finding something good and useful without looking for it.  So, let’s laughingly and lovingly link this term to me and my garden.

As I wander through the garden, checking on plants, pulling the weeds, thinning the carrots – I always seem to fall behind on that one- , staking the tomatoes and snacking on the various fresh veggies. I realize that I consume what could be called a “salad” in the course of 30 minutes or so of futzing around in the garden. Succulent sugar snap peas just seem to be much sweeter when picked and consumed within seconds. I didn’t realize how sweet the arrows of aromatic asparagus could be until I chomped on one just after snapping it off. The crunchy and crispy carrots are so sweet but the do require a bit of preparation…..thanks to my Valentine’s Day gift of a garden sink (see poll run in one of my February Blog postings) I can field rinse the dirt off.  I can reach down and pick a few fresh luxurious luscious leaves of lettuce and add a few super sweet strawberries into the mix and I have just had a great salad – quite by accident. Healthier too…..no dressing drenching the delicious offerings needed – just good as grown and grabbed.

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My bountiful backyard blackberries are blossoming beautifully. I will soon be able add some sweet blackberries to my sweet serendipitous salad serving’s. The peas have plodded past their prime but the green beans – not as sweet but tasty nonetheless – are blooming, carrots continue to produce as do the strawberries…… I will have to wait another 5 weeks or so to consume the crunchy climbing cucumbers in my garden munching madness. Oh, and the tasty and tempting tomatoes…..homegrown in the garden are so good…the Celebrity variety has a few on the vine now and I noticed the telltale  tint of turning pink beginning to spread… I may have a new personal first, a ripe tomato well before May 1st. Wow, a wonderful garden windfall! Is it Global Warming?

There could be some benefits to Global Warming! I may be able to triple my tomato tonnage, enjoying their great taste and as a side benefit…. the plants are consuming the carbon dioxide and adding oxygen…. “gardeners of the world unite!!!!! Let’s solve the greenhouse gas issue and feed ourselves well! Grow gobs of good gas (oxygen) generating & ginormous greenhouse gas gobbling greenery! (Yes ginormous is a word recently added to the dictionary).

Just a side note, over the last 400,000 thousand years the rise in CO2 and temperatures has been followed by a deep freeze cycle……are we scaring and/or legislating ourselves into the freezer? I do agree that we can do a much better job conserving our energy resources but we can’t stop global warming and flat-line both temperatures and CO2. Mother Nature is much too big to manipulate. Hmmmm……I will stop there – I think I need to write down my prediction for Global Warming. Coming soon….. Carnac the Magnificent will predict the future( for the youngsters and foreign friends….the comedian Johnny Carson used to do a bit as Carnac the Magnificent . Check out the link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Carson#Comic_characters

TTFN

Bishop

Morning in the Pea Patch

March 31, 2012

Bishop Gardening, Philosophical, Spring , 3 Comments

Mornings – ah literally my favorite time of the day. I enjoy the stillness, the quiet and watching the dew gather up on the plants as the sun sends its golden warmth to caresses the garden. This time of year, unfortunately doesn’t last long enough! All too soon these gentle mornings give way to some brutally hot and even more brutal humidity! The pea patch is in it’s last few weeks of the this lush green and dew bejeweled days. I am realistic enough to know that this is the expected and natural progression. The dead vines will be chopped and shredded on their way to the compost pile. I am well prepared though for their replacement. Two weeks ago I planted the cucumber seeds that have now emerged and will begin climbing the lattice soon to be vacated by the peas. The peas loath the heat but my cucumbers embrace the heat….. The garden illustrates diversity and adaptation  at it’s best.

As much as I love these spring mornings in my pea patch I know that soon the dew will be on my forehead, (is it dew or “perspiration”,)  when I step into the garden. I can take solace in the fact that I have choices that I can take in response to the the new conditions rather than lament to passing of these sweet and special mornings in the patch! Change…..it is something that many times I/we fear or want to avoid. The world around us is always changing and always will. With change I/we have an opportunity to adapt and respond in a way that  is “forward looking” – and yes we use our knowledge of the past – the past, a place where cannot really return,  but it  provides a vision for the path forward.

I will continue to enjoy each morning, each day and each evening that I can spend in my garden. I will look forward to the changes yet to come – not worrying about those things which are beyond my control. So as the environment warms I will adapt, I will plant new varieties, I will embrace new practices to tend my little patch. As the weather becomes wetter I will raise the beds a little higher, choose my planting to embrace the changes and I will continue to enjoy all of my mornings, days and evenings in the patch.

TTFN

Bishop

Garden Shots

March 24, 2012

Bishop Gardening , , , , 1 Comment

I took the camera into the garden the last few days….I am always impressed by the perfection in nature….

Bishop

TTFN

Enjoying it While We Can

March 22, 2012

Bishop Beans, Gardening, pollination, Relationships, Vegetables , , , 6 Comments

Just returned to Houston yesterday from a quick  meeting with a client in lovely Midland, TX. I guess there really is no rest for the old guys wanting to retire. I am not sure what retirement means because I don’t ever picture myself without an “avocation”.

NOUN:

  1. An activity taken up in addition to one’s regular work or profession, usually for enjoyment; a hobby.
  2. One’s regular work or profession.
  3. Archaic A distraction or diversion.

I think my vision of an avocation will be a blend of definition 1 and 3. Oh yes….I have been accused of being a bit archaic by my children……they seem to grow out of that phase but it does take some time. I can be a distraction and a diversion as well as being distracted on occasion. I am constantly diverting my attention between the large number of activities that fit in definition “one” above. Gardening is high on the list as is photography, fishing, bicycling, blogging, canning, sweating in the gym, day dreaming and I’m sure that Kathy would add a couple more to the list.

Definitions one and three in my life right now are pretty broad. I do love tending my garden. I did wait at least 25 minutes after my return home from this trip before wandering out into the garden to check on things. I have been advised that it does not bode well to go to the garden immediately upon return, I need to see and visit with Kathy for a bit and then wander off. I enjoyed my bicycle ride down to the local Starbucks this morning.Today at  5:45 AM it was dark, the air was crisp on the face and I had to smile a little inside at all of those folks rushing off to their definition “2” of the avocation term. I do not miss that morning rush one bit. I also thought of my best friend John, by the way – he was on his rush to work at least 20 minutes before my ride began, I know he is looking forward to the time where he can choose either 1 or 3. He is a bit like me and I am certain that he is capable of blending the two admirably.

Wow, the garden is taking off! The Yukon Gold potato plants in the wire cage are huge. Below is a picture from March 2nd. Yesterday, the 21st, I adding more shredded leaves bringing the level up to the brim. My estimate – the tops of the plants are now 30-36 inches above the planting depth. I am so anxious to see and yes, taste the results.

Back on March 2nd this is the image....yesterday the 21st the plants are over the top. The picture is straight - the cage is listing to the left.

The sugar snap peas are nearly finished….I did get to eat a handful while roaming around yesterday. I harvested a few more asparagus spears and they graced the table last night. Added a few more ugly and misshapen strawberries to the freezer. Hun, I am saving the best ones for you to eat fresh. The cucumber seedlings are all up, oh….not the pickling cukes….I planted them a week behind, so almost all are up! The pole beans, both green and purple, are ready to grab the poles for their upward spiraling dance. I have got to see if I can manage some room in John’s garden for a tepee of beans.

I noticed the absence of of the wonderful scent of the Meyer Lemon tree blossoms. If I could only find a way to capture and bottle that scent I could add another to my list of avocations – and maybe make a pot full of money doing it….I will stick that thought over into the already brimming full “day dreams” list. I have enjoyed the heavenly scent as well as the abundance of honey bees this year. Their hard work has the tree loaded with little green buds soon to become lemons. I will definitely have to do some thinning.

A tandem attack on the lemon blossoms.

The term” enjoying it while we can” started out in my head this morning as a reference to the weather, we are definitely enjoying this window of spring like weather. We have actually had the AC unit on several times in the past weeks but this morning was glorious. My head is also filled with the thoughts of all that I am able and capable of doing now….yes, I do enjoy it all!!!!

TTFN

Bishop

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