This week was strangely peaceful at Chez Kurtzwilde. The crisis/opportunity event in question was a problem with the computer. After dealing with the mundane details that left me unconnected for the near future, I felt a profound sense of relief.
It’s not that I didn’t miss it! I really did. But I had a few small projects I wanted to jump-start with the change of seasons, so I took that time while I was unplugged. The biggest goal on the list was to get seeds or plants in the ground.
I’m not talking about a PBS-special-worthy garden plot fit to set the neighborhood abuzz. Please, folks, that just isn’t going to happen here this year. One thing this house project has forced me to be is practical about my expectations.
No, I’m talking a few onions, and the rest done in whatever plant matter Loki can be charmed into eating. That means we’ve got watermelon in, strawberries hanging, and this feisty-looking but harmless bell pepper plant. My sweet has never had pet plants before, so there’s some sunflower seeds going to town in a pot by the porch.
I put all these things in the very worst spot in the back yard. That was the patch I could reasonably dig in the time I had, so that’s what they get. Honestly, I reckon the shade out there might do them some good when it gets dog-killing hot later on.
I might get some photos up of our garden, but y’all godda know: this is one ugly garden. The soil’s bad, there’s all kinds of undergrowth giving me fits, and this irritatingly mighty oak is messing with the sunlight exposure. Birds are down here hiding from the snow much later than they ought to be, so I’ll soon be stringing up a net to stop the pecking at the strawberries.
Now, some of y’all aren’t near to having weather for outdoor plants, but let me say we’re having a ball with our hanging strawberries already down here. I didn’t really expect to see fruit on the plants so fast. The way I remember doing things, it took about a year to get berries off the sets.
Anyway, I’m trying strawberries two or three ways this year. We’re going the long way around from seed for fun, not that I think it’ll do anything useful. I’m talking to a fellow at the flea market about sets for next season. Our big experiment this season is something we found off-the-shelf at a garden center.
We found a planted-out strawberry pot/hanging basket for a few bucks, brought it home, hung it up and started giving it water. The darn thing’s in flower and fruit even as we speak, and looks to be enjoying its home at the end of what used to be a clothes line post. I’ve heard of doing strawberries this way, but never had the chance to try it before. If I can thwart the birds, I’m sure Loki will have photos when it gets red and pretty out there.
Right now about the only red we’ve got is little seedsucker bugs. Loki and Cactus are trying to get video of them off the camera, but technical issues abound. I will say I like them, because they’re eating up the seeds of this awful tree my sister let get started all over the place. I had a devil’s time stamping them out last year, and would just as soon not let them get started this time.
Most proudly, we got the first licks of paint in on this tiki salon we’re putting where the tv room was. A tv does not deserve a room of its own. Tiki does, and we’ve gotten it started at long last.
Our motto remains: Chip away! Chip away! We’re like foley artists, or Yosemite Sam on the Rock of Gibraltar. Do that little bit for the day, then look back over time.
Lots more stuff has been going on in the background while I work on Chocolatiers. There’s a new puppy-in-law, and Loki’s team is killin’ it on StarCraft 2. Oop, that’s Loki wanting breakfast, so I’ll save that for next week. Hope y’all enjoy this week’s chapter of Chocolatiers!
