good morning from my side of the fence. I hope we're all ready to make this a great day. I don't know what we'll do today, so it's a mystery right now. hahaha it look as if it's gonna be a cloudy day and then rain tomorrow and saturday. that's what some of the weather people are saying, so we'll probably just have to wait and see. I may get a few groceries today. I don't know what else will be on the agenda. I have another one of those raised beds like in the picture below that I need to get filled with soil now that my sweet husband got the tables made for me. they will be my lettuce houses and maybe some brassicas in one. I don't know, we'll see. anyway, I'm pretty happy to finally them fixed where they are usable as you'll find out below. so, let's get to it.
--------------------------
let's do a little bit of "2 minutes in the garden with me". when I thought I would share these pics with you, I though that I would share a little bit of what I've learned about container gardening over the last 8 or 10 years. it may not mean much to most people that inground garden, but it might be useful to those gardening in containers.
these are my 2, 4 tier greenstalks that I got planted with green bean seeds on monday. and yes, thats about 2 and half months too early for my neck of the woods. but when I got them sowed, I put the frost covers on them. I did last year and when I took the covers off late last spring, they already had blooms on them. I had greenbeans a few months earlier than ever before. so I done it again this year.
this is one of 2 raised bed planters I got last year. the legs on them were really wobbly, so I just planted one and didn't do much with it because I was afraid it would fall and I didn't want the mess on the deck to clean up. so hubby and I put our heads together about what I wanted and he built it out of salvaged lumber from the straight line winds that brought down the neighbors pine trees on our shed in 2023. we salvaged as much lumber from that as we could, so this was treated lumber and it will last a long time. he made 2 tables just like this, so now I can fill the other raised bed and get it on the other table and get them filled with lettuce and other goodies.
now on to Container Gardening 101. this is what I've learned from hard experience. I've had a lot of people tell me I couldn't do what I do in containers. obviously, that was before container gardening became a big thing. even in my area, I still keep having people tell me I can't do that. they just about lose their stuff when I tell them that they should have told me that about 10 years ago, because I've been doing it for a long time now. if they had told me when I was still young and stupid, I might have believed them. but getting old and cranky has it's benefits. I can say, "here, hold my ensure, watch this" and it really opens eyes now. hahaha
one of the things that I have learned about container gardening is that I have to ignore the "this plant loves full sun", "grows best in full sun", or any of the other sayings about growing this or that plant or your whole garden in full sun. I have learned to IGNORE the full sun statements on any seed pack, because it DOES NOT WORK for container gardening. I'm not a scientist or anything like that, I'm just someone that can take it upon myself to find out what I can and can't do. what I have learned is that containers do NOT like full sun. they just don't. I have my own theory about that and like I said I'm not a scientist, but here goes. containers absorb a LOT of heat. sitting above ground, sitting on a deck, sitting on concrete, sitting on gravel, sitting on asphalt, they absorb a LOT of heat. when seeds are planted in the soil, the soil itself disperses the heat out equally, so it's not so hot in one concentrated spot. in a container, it absorbs all the heat and it stays in one spot right there where the roots are. I don't know what the temp of inground soil gets, but like I said, it disperses out side to side and goes on down into the ground. the containers hold the heat in like the box of an oven. they just get hotter and hotter as the day wears on. that can burn the roots. that can kill the plant. even if it doesn't kill the plant, it will not thrive in full sun in a container. try it for yourself. plant a tomato or a pepper in a container and then put it in the full sun all day for weeks and see what happens. you'll get peppers and tomatoes that are sun scalded if you get anything at all. yes, peppers like it hot, but in containers, they will get too hot, being in full sun all day long. I've had some of mine lose some of their leaves because they are too hot and not loving being in the sun. it makes no difference where you live, if you're growing in containers, your tackling a whole different beast and it comes with it's own set of challenges.
even now, I have people that just can't help themselves, to tell me that what I'm doing is all wrong. I just tell them that if I listened to all the negativity I wouldn't even have enough smarts to get myself out of bed in the mornings. but I'm smart enough to tackle the job and learn, just to see what I'm capable of doing. no, I'm not the smartest, wisest gardener out there. heck, I don't even claim to be a gardener. I just claim to be someone who has sought out ways to do what I love to do and do it in such a way that I can be outside and enjoy nature. only because I have allergies and I can't be outside for days on end working in a garden. I had to figure out a way to keep me out of the grasses as much as possible, so I wouldn't have terrible rashes on my ankles and legs. I also wear a mask when outside, just to keep from getting sinus infections. so I've had a vested interest in trying to figure out how to garden in such a way that allows me to do it. that led to growing a tomato on the deck in a pot. that led to more pots of tomatoes, pots of peppers, pots of beans and lettuce pots and so on and so on and more containers, larger containers, vertical gardening towers and raised beds on legs and you name it, I guess I've got it. and again, I'm not the greatest gardener. I plant a seed or a seed start, and I pray and let God do the rest. any smarts I have, have come from Him giving me wisdom and insight enough to keep trying something different until something works. then repeat what works. my husband told me one time that insanity has been described as doing something the same way, time and time and time again, and expecting a different outcome. so, if one way doesn't give me a good outcome, I'll try something else. and with the temps that we had last summer, we'll be trying something different, if we want to grow some food. so, set your mind that every day is a day to learn and do something different when necessary. keep good records of your successes and try them again. if something fails, record it so you won't repeat the same mistake twice and then forget about it and move on to trying it a different way. I'm not set on doing something a specific way, but when it I know it works, that's how I'll keep doing it. also, what works for one area on the map, may not work for another area on the map. but, it's up to us, where we are, to keep trying until we do find what works. don't give up just because something doesn't work the first , second or third time, you just haven't found the way to make it work yet. we'll take on some more Gardening 101 in the up coming weeks.
------------------------------------
time for the giggle for the day:
Q - Why are horses so sleepy?
A - They’re always hitting the hay.
neigh winnie 😂😂😂😂😂
hum, wonder if that's why I'm always sleepy? nah, I prefer straw.
----------------------------------
picking up with Isaiah 5, this was an interesting segment of this chapter and I thought it was worth sharing. read this carefully. does any of this sound familiar?????? oh yes, you bet it all does!!!! God says "WOE, to those......." a quick search of woe and I found it means anguish, grief, trouble, and is often used as an exclamation of judgement, misfortune or sorrow. so, anguish, grief and trouble to all those who call evil good and good evil. God will take care of all of this in His timing. of that we can be sure. these 4 verses below describe the days and times we live in perfectly.
20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!
21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight!
22 Woe to those who are heroes in drinking wine, and valiant men in mixing intoxicating drink,
23 Who declare the wicked innocent for a bribe, and take away the rights of the ones who are in the right!
Isaiah 6, we see "holy, holy, holy", meaning God alone is set apart and worthy of our praise. no other being is worthy of these accolades. He is mighty and majestic, and it should show us just how unworthy we truly are. how many of us are willing to say, "here I am, send me!!"? we're all called right where we are to be a beacon of hope for those around us who need to know about God.
Isaiah 7, this particular chapter tells of the coming Immanuel, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!!!! Praise God!!! He is mighty and majestic!!! and greatly to be praised!!!
Isaiah 8, one of the takeaways from this chapter is that God's word alone is what saves souls, not what man says about God. what I say or what I type about God is not capable of saving souls, only the word of God can do that. people with good intentions can lead you to the word of God that saves souls, but they themselves can't save you. even people with good intentions can mislead you, or lead you astray, by accident. so prove what anyone says with the word of God. prove what I say or disprove what I say with the word of God. I sure don't want to mislead anyone and if I have it's been by total accident. so I try to be very careful with I do say and make sure it is scripture based.
next time we'll pick up with Isaiah 9.
----------------------------------
I think we'll call it done and move on with our day. as always, I'll ask to keep seeking after the heart of God in all we do. I pray that we all have a great day and remember to thank Him for waking us up this morning. blessings of peace and perseverance be ours today.
hugs and love, patty
No comments:
Post a Comment