Something-I-Made Monday

To keep me to some sort of regular posting schedule (ha!), I am instituting "Something-I-Made Monday." Please feel free to participate by leaving a link to something you made in the comments section. Here is my contribution.



I know it doesn't look like much, but these straw bales are going to be my garden! I was all prepared to do a lasagna garden where you layer newspaper on top of your grass, then compost, grass clippings, etc., until you have a nice mix of things to plant in. But then I started reading about straw bale gardening where you plant directly into bales that you have helped along in the decomposition process with lots of water, then nitrogen, and then fertilizer.

I found an ad on Craig's List for some very inexpensive bales. We went out last weekend to pick them up, and we had a great time. The guy works for the state, but lives on his family farm where his dad used to grow, pickle, and sell his own horseradish! He still grows some, so we are definitely going back for some of that! He also had the most beautiful rooster I had ever seen! I mean, like right out of central "I-need-a-rooster-for-a-movie" casting. He also had the most fabulous collection of old tractors and farm equipment along with a great old barn. We mentioned what great photos we could take out there, and he said he would love to have us come back and do that!

Today I potted my tomato seedlings and my baby basil plants. I also am going to grow potatoes in a hay mound, so I went to Agway to buy some. The Green Mountain potatoes were only 75 cents a pound, but I only needed 4 potatoes so that weighed, like, nothing. The guy very kindly just waved me away without charging me! So I bought one of their straw bales to make up for it.

Just the other day I discovered some foxgloves growing in the back of the yard that I didn't even know were there. We have lived in the house for two years now, but they must have been hiding!