Green AvalonGreen Avalon

The Birth Of A New Generation

Sadaajit — Tue, 14 May 2013 18:32:57 +0000

Simple and fascinating to watch. Try growing some of your own!

In The Beginning

It started with small white tails after just three weeks. Then it proceeded on to small green sprouts after about another week. After approximately four weeks I’m now the proud mother of about a dozen or so tiny Amaryllis seedlings.

It all began back when the Amaryllis bloomed a couple months ago. My husband has always been fascinated by them. They grow so fast and have such huge [...]

Gardening Is Healthy

Sadaajit — Tue, 07 May 2013 19:17:54 +0000

Getting a little dirt under your fingernails relieves stress.

I’ve not talked about it much, but gardening is good for you. You breathe fresh air, get your allotted ten to fifteen minutes a day of sunshine (no blocker for that period), it’s great exercise, and you release stress. If you vegetable garden, you get to eat the healthiest food on the planet, that grown in your own garden. Gardening is a great part of a healthy lifestyle.

We’ve heard many, if [...]

Organicgirl® Move Over

Sadaajit — Fri, 03 May 2013 18:49:18 +0000

I love Organicgirl® products. All through the winter when my garden is sleeping I buy their products whenever possible. The main reason is they stay fresh for so long. I don’t know how they do it, but I’ve had Organicgirl® products last well over a week longer than their competition.

Eating tender greens from the garden is a wonderful early spring treat.

However, today I walked out into my own garden and picked a good sized bowl full of baby lettuce. [...]

Focus Plant: Celosia

Sadaajit — Thu, 02 May 2013 12:33:07 +0000

Celosia lining the path to the front door last summer. They combined beautifully with vinca, salvia, and zinnias.

A Chance Encounter

A couple of summers ago I picked up a pot of celosia in the clearance section of a local big box store. I had always thought celosia were pretty, but it is very prone to mildew rot, so I hadn’t bothered to buy any in the six packs, as usually they were already infected with the disease. However, this was [...]

The Elusive Knitting Swatch

Sadaajit — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 11:22:44 +0000

Even though most of my creative time is spent out in the garden right now, every once in a while we have a rainy day or the creative bug bites me in the evening. I’m trying to get started on my tunic sweater, but am having a dickens of a time with the swatch.

When knitting you do a swatch, to see if what you’re knitting is the right gauge. The pattern calls for size 8 needles. When I used those [...]

The Quest For Herbs

Sadaajit — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 00:48:12 +0000

A rather unusual find at the herb sale. I love pomegranates, though, so decided to try one.

Preparing For The Hunt

At the crack of dawn I was scurrying around preparing to enter the quest for some new herbs. The sale started at 7 a.m. and I knew I had to be there within the first hour to get anything worthwhile.

It was a long drive in, nearly an hour and as I got closer and closer the tension began to mount. [...]

I Hate Sorrel And Garlic

Sadaajit — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 22:39:31 +0000

I was at an herb sale yesterday and had to laugh when I saw they had sorrel for sale. Oh, of course they were selling the well behaved, easily contained French sorrel, not the take over your garden and kill your plants red sorrel.

Sorrel Comes In Many Forms

Sweet, tame French Sorrel

Sorrel is a fickle plant. There are several different kinds of sorrel, which are mostly innocuous. Garden sorrel, or French sorrel (Rumex scutatus), grows in an easily controlled, tidy [...]

Seedlings Abound

Sadaajit — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 20:33:41 +0000

My broccoli and cauliflower seedlings look great. Cabbage (in the back) a bit wimpy.

This is so exciting! I got to move my seedlings from under the lights in the living room to the back deck. They’re growing up and I need to start making them independent. As independent as plants can be, that is. This isn’t the first graduation, but it’s the biggest. Earlier I started hardening off my broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower seedlings. They’re ready to plant tomorrow. [...]

Hot Flash

Sadaajit — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 17:28:32 +0000

That’s what we’re having right now. A week and a half ago we had snow, today it’s supposed to be 85˚F. Spring sprang hard and fast and I’m having to do a quick tap dance to keep up. Today I need to get all the hoses reconnected and in working order with quick connects and watering wands. I need to get the sprinklers back out and start a watering regimen for the front, back, and side yard. I don’t know [...]

Head Count

Sadaajit — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 23:31:26 +0000

Finally, the weather has broken and we had a nice sunny day, that wasn’t so windy you thought you might get blown to Oz. So, I decided to take the time to uncover all the seeds I’d put in and get a good look at who was up and who wasn’t.

Who’s Braved The Elements

The unknown pea. 100% germination!

I was a surprised by some of the seeds that hadn’t emerged yet. Of course, after the maddening spring we’ve had with [...]