I have been gardening this way for years.  I call it lazy gardening. The more I leave the soil alone the more I notice my plants grow...some of them anyways. Right now in Nov I have tomatoes growing in my garden. One year I had to harvest my November tomatoes right before the freeze and so they were still green but they were huge. I can't get tomatoes to grow here in the summer or Spring. It's way too hot and is too much work.

What You Can Get Done in 30 Minutes Without Your Kids vs. With Your Kids | More LOLs & Funny Stuff for Moms | NickMom

What You Can Get Done in 30 Minutes Without Your Kids vs. With Your Kids | More LOLs & Funny Stuff for Moms | NickMom


I saw this and I immediately started laughing. Very true. With that agreement, I still miss my kids. The one still too young for school...I'm glad he still has two years to. I'm glad about this on most days. Not the days I can't find his shoes or the days he isn't happy with anything or the days he through those face to the ground tantrums... Being a mom - its a mixed blessing.

Exactly 1 Year Ago

Exactly 1 year ago I made my last post here. I almost gave up on this blog for many reasons: I stopped gardening,  I canceled my CSA memberships and I stopped living as green as I use to because other things took priority over my life, dealing with a divorce, work, sad but strong kids, a financial crisis... the list goes on. You want to know the irony of it all?

It rained a lot this summer (compared to last year), though still a very hot dry august and my garden gave fruit to many things including: cantaloupe from the compost bin (its a huge plant too) and butter nut squash from last year seeds that harvested and grew themselves. The mint took over half of the garden in the backyard and the rosemary in my front yard grew so wild I had to trim it at least once a month and give some away. Last month I found myself clipping a lot of my oregano, my rosemary and my mint and placing it in small plastic container I recycled as small vases and then giving them to friends and family who shared with me in other ways. I still have so much of this stuff to give too.

All this is growing amongst either dry soil or weeds and tall grass. If it wasn't for my neighbor mowing my lawn...the HOA would be after me now. However, the birds and the butterflies love these weeds and tall grass so I keep it long in the back yard longer.

I'm enjoying cooking again too. I cook so much with the rosemary and oregano I have to look up new recipes to experiment with the flavors. I make wonderful tea with the mint.

A very good friend of mine, I made over this very difficult year, also introduced me to a new type of basil and I love it. She gave me several clippings from her over grown garden and I have experimented with a number of new recipes  using it. In addition she gave me seeds of it to grow some of my own.

On a sad note last years drought or the one before that (can't recall) killed 3 of my pine trees in the back yard and two of my bushes. This year they became so dangerous to leave standing, especially in Junes crazy rains, that I had to get them cut down. It cost me a fortune to have them cut down, but at least my kids and I are now safe in out home. However, my lime tree has exploded with leaves and has grown very tall. I think by this year or next year it will bare limes. My other plants: roses, bulbs, cannas, lilies etc., are doing well too.

When it is in the budget I plan to plant more fruit trees in the back. I could grow them from seed as I did my lime tree, but it would take years before I saw any fruit. When the weather cools a bit more and the mosquitos are not on rampage I may venture out again and see what I can give back to my garden.

I hope this time I can give some of my time to something that has given to me so much during such a hard time.

In the middle of August

I'm afraid I've given up. If my garden has anything living in it it isn't because of me. We're on a voluntary water conservation too. There are signs for it all over the neighborhood. There are signs like this all over the city.

I stopped watering a couple of months ago, before the signs, when I realized I couldn't keep up with the heat without having to pay a high water bill. I couldn't afford to keep my garden alive. If and when it rains here, it is once or twice every few weeks. Not enough to fill rain barrels enough to water on a constant basis. Successful gardeners in my area must be constantly fighting the heat and finding ways to help their plants conserve water.

It's so hot and dreadful I can barely keep my kids hydrated. Most of the summer break my kids have watched tv and read their books, because it's too hot to do anything in the house (AC doesn't work well) and way too hot to play outside unless it is done very early in the morning or late in the evening.

We took a stroll around the botanical gardens the other day at about 10 am and all 3 of my children and myself were drenched in sweat. We weren't running... we were just walking. Despite the heat, it was nice taking in the fresh air.

From the house, to the vehicle, to work, to the vehicle and then back home, to vehicle to someone else's house (family) or building (library) back to the vehicle and so on. Our moments outside are brief and still we sweat. The heat is oppressing. It has imprisoned us. Sure, yesterday's rain helped bring down the heat some, but today it is back to "normal".

The heat has lasted for months and as I watched my garden die my inspiration to keep this blog alive dwindled. Why? Because every time I come home or step out the front door I see my yard, the dead grass, the dead plants and the rock hard soil. Then I  look around and see, my very green rosemary bushes, my twisting jasmine, my rose bushes (one with a blooming red rose)  healthy looking flowering bushes, green bulb leaves and a few other green plants. I am amazed at what has survived.

In the fall I plan to put a fig in the ground in front of my front window. Figs provide a lot of wide shade and though they don't get very tall, they can. ear. I'm told fig trees are messy, but my mom has a fig tree and there has never been a mess around it that I've seen. Then again between all of us and the birds the figs don't have a chance to hit the ground.

I can't wait until fall.

Wait until use see the lettuce!

My garden looks amazing. There is so much green and so much color. Wait until I post the pictures...

I love the Spring Time

Looking out my windows and I smile because my garden looks wonderful! I have green plants I thought had died growing, plants that never seem to die flourishing and plants I grew from seed fattening. My rose bushes are filled with red new leaves. My tall flowering bushes in my back yards are often visited by yellow and black colored butterflies. There are vegetables (lettuce, beets, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli) and herbs (cilantro, rosemary, oregano) growing in my yard. On my birthday as my parents were leaving my home I handed them some cilantro, rosemary and oregano. My father was so delighted. He knows and I know and so many other people know how expensive these herbs can be in the grocery store. I grow them at home with ease.

I spent the afternoon and evening of the 18th weeding my front garden. It was relaxing, until my back begged me to stop. Is there a way to garden without my back suffering for it? I meant to take pictures as soon as I was done weeding, but then it was dinner time and after that too dark. The next day was my birthday and I forgot. Yesterday, my head hurt so bad I wanted to cry. Since my birthday on the 19th my son and I have come down with some sort of bug. The little guy was worse off than I was, but he is sleeping and recovering now. I am feel much better now.

The day outside is beautiful. While he sleeps I could take some pictures...


Oh! I almost forgot to mention. For my birthday gift my kids made me gifts our of recycled material and they bought me beautiful flowering plants for my birthday. My husband bought me a tomato bush and made all the food (a variety of salads) for the picnic. I am loved.