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| Squirrel abatement patch |
Last summer Jack and I built a cage around the tomato garden because the squirrels were eating all of my tomatoes, before they were ripe. I did not have a chance to harvest any of them! So we built a 7' high cage, pictured below, around the tomatoes and after that we did not lose a single one. It was actually kind of fun watching the squirrels run all over the cage trying to find a way to get in, but not succeeding! After the first heavy frost of the season I pulled the plants out and pretty much ignored the garden and the cage for the winter. This spring, when I went back out to get the garden ready for this summer's tomatoes I found three squirrel sized holes in the netting. Disbelief! Those pesky squirrels were actually pre-planning for this summer. But I'm bigger than they are and I have more resources, so I patched the holes, as you can see above, and we are good to go, once again. Now I wish I had used chicken wire instead of the plastic netting because it would have been more durable. I never considered that the squirrels would chew through the plastic, though I should have, as they are just big tailed rats. If they chew many more holes in the cage I will put chicken wire over the plastic netting. I am going to win the war against the squirrels!!
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| Tomatoes in cage to keep the squirrels out |
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| Baby tomato |
In this picture you can see one of our many baby tomatoes. There are about 8 or 9 babies in the garden, already. I'm looking forward to summer tomatoes!!!
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| Chocolate and apple mint |
Last summer we planted several different varieties of mint in pots around the patio and they all survived the winter. This pot is a combination of chocolate and apple mint. I can't believe how beautiful it is, already! Do you need a little mint? Come on by, it's free for the picking!!
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| Rabbits don't jump - unravaged beets |
My other rodent problem has been rabbits. Last year they destroyted my beets. It was so frustrating. There was nothing I could do to keep them out of the garden. So this year I decided to raise all of the beds a foot and crossed my fingers that rabbits couldn't or wouldn't jump up a foot and a half to get in my garden. So far, the plan has been a success! The beets in the foreground and the lettuce in the background are untouched by bunnies. Yippee!!!!
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| Beet greens - no bunnies |
Here's a picture of the beet greens. No bunnies have been gnawing on these plants. What a relief!
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| Herbs |
Every year my garden gets a little bigger. Last year I built the 3' x 6' raised bed for the tomatoes. This year I decided to take all of the herbs out of my raised beds and plant them around the edge of the patio. I filled the bed with Mel's mix and moved the herbs into the border garden. Look at them! They are as happy as can be and now I have more room in my raised beds! The herbs in this garden are oregano, sage, and chives. I've got more than I can use, so if you want fresh herbs for this evening's dinner and feel like stopping by, feel free to come by and snip a bit!!!
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| Lettuce |
The lettuce is doing great. I'll have two crops this year because I planted starts and seeds at the same time. The starts are mature, as you can see above, and have been giving us salads for a few weeks already. The seeds I planted will be mature by the time we are done eating the starts. Yummy!!
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| Watch Frog!! |
I found this adorable little frog in a flea market in Wyoming the last time we visited Steve in Laramie. He diligently watches over the garden, protecting it from pesky pests! Thanks Watch Frog! I appreciate your service.
My garden brings me a lot of joy. I love growing my own food. It just feels so right!!!
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