Tulips

So today after work I build some tulip cages! It is basically two rods shoved in the ground with chicken wire around them. I'm hoping this Spring, our third at the house, I will actually get to see what color they are when they bloom. I got a bud last year before the deer chomped them all to the ground. So this year I built two cages. One on a purple and green leafed tulip in the garden by the street and one on a green leafed tulip near the from porch. Unfortunately my tulips are all over the place because when I was digging up all the daffodils I accidentally dug up the tulips too and all the bulbs were mixed together! Oops, (the first spring the deer got to the tulips so quick, I didn't know I had them till year 2 when strange leaves started appearing among the daffodils.)! This does however give my tulips a little cover before the deer munch them down, seeing as they are camouflaged by the daffodils which the dear are not quiet as fond of. So, hopefully they work! They look like weird fuzzy cacti!

Springtime Itch

I am ready. Ready for spring. I am ready to start my gardening adventure for this year. I hope that this year I will have more time and more motivation to do what I want to do with my garden and lawn. Now that the chickens are grown and easily managed I think I will be able to spend more time working in the dirt. I am also hoping to expand my tiny vegetable garden this year so that I can have a crop that is more suited to what I actually eat a lot of. Garlic, potatoes, onions, peppers are staples of my diet that I hope to grow. I want to work on turning my garden into an edible garden also. There are so many gorgeous plants that also serve as food. I am hoping that year two of my herb garden will also bring a better harvest and more productive care. There are still many plants that need to be moved around and spread out from the gardens long neglect. This will be the first spring that I get to use some of my composted chicken manure. I hope it is ready. The signs are good.  I am thinking about building a 10'x10' garden in the back yard to put into practice the native american trifecta or the "three sisters" garden. It is basically growing corn, beans, and squash very close together and allowing them to work off one another. A good article is here: http://www.reneesgarden.com/articles/3sisters.html . First i need to let the trees leaf out so that I can see if I get enough sun in my proposed area. I am also hoping to plant two dwarf apple trees this year. I think this summer is going to be full of trip to farmers markets and Findlay Market, and of course Natures Harbor Farm  http://www.naturesharborfarm.com/ Cant wait for this fake winter to be over!