In chronological order from this past spring …
Podcast # 6 is in the books, as tonight I chatted with Annie Haven, owner of the Authentic Haven Brand and maker of the manure tea affectionately known as “moo poo tea”.
She has a wealth of knowledge and provided a ton of great information on treating your soil naturally and without chemicals. She also shared some compelling personal stories on how she achieved success with her company solely through the use of social media.
You can listen to our chat by clicking here.
Here are a few links that came out of our conversation:
To read about the story of Joe Lamp’l’s struggle with “killer compost”, click here.
To learn more about the toxic manure issue in Washington state, click here.
And here is contact info for Annie:
Her Twitter handle is @GreenSoil
Her Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/ManureTea
Her company website where you can order the magical manure tea is http://www.manuretea.com/
If you mention this podcast at the time of purchase, Annie will throw in a free tea bag with each order.
I want to personally thank Annie for a fun and inspirational conversation. I wish you continued success in the future.
John
I really can’t stay – Baby it’s cold out here
I can’t bring you in – Baby it’s cold out here
You’re good to zone 5 – No way I stay alive
Your roots are good to go – How do I know fo sho?
My wife will start to worry – Please, what is your hurry?
The kids will disown me – They’re always so busy
So really I’d better leave – If you do I’m sure to heave
Maybe just a minute more – I promise not to be a bore
The neighbors might think – Baby, it’s sucks out here
Is he missing a link? – Like really sucks out here
Nothing I can do for you – Plenty you could actually do
You’ve survived it all before – Nothing like a temp of minus four
I have to run, run, run – Mind if I accompany you?
You’re like totally stuck in the ground – More reason to have you stick around
This is getting strange – No one has to know
Ah, but it’s f’n frigid outside
I’ve got to head in – Oh, baby, I’ll freeze out here
Could cut you all down – But the spring ain’t that near
You’re gonna do fine – Might be eaten by deer
Why don’t you see? – How can you turn on me?
There’s bound to be talk tomorrow – Don’t make me sit here and wallow
At least there will be plenty implied – If the temp gets below -20 and I died
I really can’t stay – You planted me here
Ah, but it’s cold outside
Oh, baby, it’s cold outside
Oh, baby, it’s cold outside
May she believe in Santa until she is 28:
Making sure the birthday doesn’t get mixed in with Christmas:
Oh the pains I went through (wink wink) to make these cookies:
On to decorating the Christmas tree:
And then the school concerts:
Christmas Eve giddiness:
Me and the siblings:
Enjoying time with Mimi:
Some how managed to get the four cousins together:
Some moments are just too priceless for words:
Cookies were phenomenal Santa loved his cookies:
The stockings were hung by the chimney …
Actually the full reading as an annual tradition (will need a king bed soon):
Ready to come downstairs on Christmas morning:
Football cards were the gift du jour:
A little excited to get the Barbie jet:
May be the best looking jersey of all time:
She never ceases to amaze me with her creativity:
Some one listened to one of my podcasts where some of my friends recommended a certain garden tool from Cobrahead:
How you like the use of the Norfolk Island Pine?
If you look closely in the background, you can see the reenactment of George Washington crossing the Delaware River:
More time with cousins:
A lot of board games over the break (and I swear I didn’t peak at the football game once):
And a new found obsession for roller skating:
Time to get our glitter on for New Year’s Eve:
Some creative use for cotton candy:
Maybe you want to join us on New Year’s Eve and shut off Minecraft for a little while?
After her 15th New Year’s Eve, she has the right to be exhausted:
Oh look, he’s back and participating with the rest of us:
And finally, my two best ladies:
Happy New Year!
John
Resolutions are useless.
We get a temporary jolt that “this will be the year”, but we all know, shit ain’t going to happen.  Â
Exhibit A – take a look at my garden resolutions from last year:
Soil test – fail
Compost – fail
Education – fail
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I couldn’t have made my resolutions any more attainable and yet I still went 0 for 3.
Dope.
So for this year, we are going to shake it up a bit. A little reverse psychology if you will.
Here we go:Â
Growing your own food really is a waste of time. I would much rather just buy our produce from a big old supermarket and pay more for it. So let’s make a promise to grow less fruits and vegetables this year:
I love having to move large shrubs once they outgrow their location. The pain of digging it out and trying not to destroy all of the plants in its path once it is unearthed is the frickin best. I vow to ignore proper spacing rules in 2014:
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I love taking my chances on a plant that deer love to chow down on. Those plants that are not deer friendly, like Allium, are so boring:
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I find berries on shrubs/trees to be such a distraction and an unnecessary mess. Plus all those annoying birds come and devour them. No more plants with berries in 2014:
One of my favorite moments in summer is when we go on vacation and I fail to line someone up to help water the containers. I love the mystery of returning home to see if any of the flowers or even the plants survived. Pure adrenaline. I am going to do more of the same in 2014 and even try to plan our vacation for the hottest and driest part of summer:Â Â Â
The wear and tear, cost and effort of cutting the grass is so worth it. It is so rewarding to spend most of my free time sitting on a lawn tractor. So let’s remove more of those garden beds and add more lawn:
Ignore what my daughter has to say and do my best to fail to live up to her expectations:
Remove all blue foliage plants from my garden:
Keep ignoring my conditions and try to fit a square peg in a round hole. I refuse to attempt to grow a bog garden:
Happy New Year my friends and let’s ignore our resolutions in 2014.
John
As I sit here and review all of the gardening photos I’ve taken in 2013, I am both anxious for the warmer temps of spring and dare I say, enjoying the serenity of the winter garden. Yeah me! The goal has always been to find plant enjoyment 365 days out of the year and while there is still work to be done at that front, progress has definitely been made.
So won’t you please indulge me and do me a solid by checking out this look back on all that went down in my garden (and a few pics of others gardens) in 2013? Grab a beverage, sit back and relax and dream of what is soon to come and what has been.
In chronological order starting in January of 2013:
A little winter interest to get us through the cold dark days of winter:
They are never too young to get involved with power tools … in freezing temperatures:
Starting seedlings indoors couldn’t be easier. Transplanting them outdoors … that is another story:
Cool season ornamental grasses are a must as they grant you some green blades when all we desire is green:
Is there anything more encouraging and promising than the signs of the first birds in spring?
I was never a “bulb guy” back in the day as I found them too fleeting and not worth the effort. That was dumb:
Dividing large grasses in the spring is a friggin effort, but oh so worth it as the divisions take root so easily and spread the love:
More massing, greater impact:
Deer in fact, do like peonies:
Anything that blooms in the morning-only when I’m typically not there to see it, really doesn’t bloom at all:
Add me to the list of believers in weed control via cardboard:
Native plants = good:
You can (almost) never go wrong with a path:
Visiting other gardens is the greatest inspiration of all (thanks “Gardens at Federal Twist”):
Texture > flowers:
Pinching back buds in early summer is a good thing as the bloom period extends that much further into the fall:
Green is good. Too much green is not. Poor planning John:
Seating under a shady tree is always warm and inviting:
You mean I can actually grow my own food? Who came up with that brilliant idea?
Note to self: Good idea to locate fantastically scented plants in an area where they can be enjoyed by others and at night:
Scarecrows that resemble real people will scare the crap out of your family and neighbors:
I dare you to sample that sharp bladed grass you destructive bastard:
“Well look at that, you genius viburnum cross pollinator you”:
Blooms that last into the fall cannot be appreciated enough:
Ornamental grasses can work in tandem with each other:
When the blooms are spent, the party isn’t over:
Have I mentioned that visiting other gardens is an inspiration? Even more so in the fall. Repeat thanks to “Federal Twist”:
When life gives you poor draining soil, you plant tulips in containers:
Clethra (Summersweet) never gave me any semblance of “fall color” … and then that all changed:
Thanks Google (specifically “Google Awesome”) for automatically adding falling snow to many of my winter pics. It doesn’t look corny or anything:
Pretty frickin awesome, eh?
As I am want to do, I moved the ‘Cheyenne Sky’ to a much more prominent location in the summer, banking on it putting on a damn good show for years to come.
Now we wait to see how the OG actually grows and evolves.
From a quick browsing session on the Internet, this warm season grass looks like it has outstanding blue/green color from mid spring until summer and then gets that outstanding color, or some similar version of it, by July/August. Also, with a max size of about ‘3 x 2’, this one will be easily added to multiple new locations throughout the yard.
Yet another Panicum that appears to be a must-have.
John
Some times smaller is better … or least just as good.
That is my take on Joe Pye Weed ‘Little Joe’ even after only having added it to my garden this past spring.
I have gushed incessantly in the past when speaking of my love for Eupatorium (Joe Pye Weed) so why wouldn’t I love a smaller, therefore more versatile, cultivar? I found three of these remaining at my favorite garden center, Ambleside Gardens and Nursery, and immediately snatched them up.
Once home, I put a plan in place to determine exactly where these native perennials would go. And when I say “plan”, I mean a thirty second, half-assed analysis before finding a location on a complete whim.
In the ground they went and by mid summer, they were all in full bloom:
Now I know I can’t judge a plant in a matter of a few months, but I already know I’ll be dividing these in the not so distant future and will spread the love throughout all of my landscape. Why it took me so long to acquire these dwarf cultivars I don’t know, but I am thrilled to have finally done so.
By early October, as expected and as witnessed with their larger brethren, that familiar gold/orange fall color emerged:
Nothing off the charts, but a solid counter punch to all of the red fall hues.
A few weeks after that, all of the leaves had fallen and those kick ass seedheads were on display:
As I mentioned in a post last week, I don’t see the need to bore you with all of the details of ‘Little Joe’ when you could easily find them in a web search. But what I can tell you is that I have mine in full sun and in a spot where the deer frequent frequently. No issues to date in any way.
Here is one last shot, back in August, of the surrounding plants next to my collection of ‘Little Joe’. If you look closely, you’ll see that Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly on the right is leaving a Clethra ‘Hummingbird’ and heading over to visit ‘Little Joe’ on the left.
Good times.