http://www.durgan.org/URL/?HQEXL 30 June 2010 Picking last of the cherries.
The birds almost stripped the cherry tree since yesterday. I picked ten pounds today and estimate the birds got around 20 pounds. Next year I will attempt some type of defense. The modified cooler for picking bush fruit is very handy. It means both hands are free and spilling accidents are almost non existent. The strap maintains the container at chest level. I managed to obtain a mesh pail for cleaning various fruit, which works well.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?NPWQK 30 June 2010 Cooking Beets.

Beets should be cooked without breaking the skin to prevent bleeding. Do not wash too vigorously, and leave the tap root on. Cover with water and gently boil until a fork penetrates the beet. Time is about 45 minutes and depends upon the size of the beet. When cooked fill the pot with cold water and squeeze the beet gently to remove the outer surface. Presto you have a perfect vegetable. I eat like an apple or cut and use a little butter for flavor.
The pristine greens are selected and steam cooked for about ten minutes. Eat with a bit of butter and add vinegar if desired.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?GWWWG 30 June 2010 Garden Produce Picked Today.

Produce picked today, broccoli, Easter radish, beets, romaine lettuce, Bing cherries, early cabbage.This is the last of the Romaine lettuce of 12 plants. It was starting to bolt. All produce has no bug damage and no ‘cides were used.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?SLABB 30 June 2010 Rabbit in Live Trap
A half grown rabbit was captured in a live trap. The trap was baited with a piece of apple. The rabbit was set free about 10 km away in a bushy area alongside the road. This was my first catch.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?PFJDT 30 June 2010 Papaver somniferum, Red Peony Type

This is another opium poppy bloom. It has the appearance of a peony at first look. It is growing along the morning glory trellis. This bloom is one of my favorites. They would look nice in a small patch, which I will try next year. This peony type has the black basal cross on the stem side of the flower.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?PYZBL 29 June 2010 Bing Cherry
There is one Bing cherry tree in the garden. It was planted in 2007, purchased in a pot from a nursery. This is the first year that the fruit is abundant. The birds wreak havoc on the cherries, but there seems to be ample for us all. The first partial picking was today.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?ZGHZC 28 June 2010 Yucca Plant
This plant is a perennial, and never needs watering. Every years it flowers and often has three or more flower spikes.

Common names of Yucca glauca are small Soapweed, Great Plains yucca, Soapweed yucca, beargrass, yucca, Spanish bayonet.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?FYFDL 28 June 2010 Shasta Daisy
This perennial clump returns in full bloom each year. The clump needs division from the center out about every four years. The center is liable to harbor unwanted insects.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?PYNGI 28 June 2010 Papaver somniferum. One of the most beautiful types.
This is one of the many types of opium poppy. I consider it one of the most beautiful.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?KPBES 26 June 2010 Fruiting Mulberry Bush (Morus nigra)

This mulberry bush produces a large quantity of pleasant tasting fruit. Most of the fruit is still unripe.The birds enjoy and are often visiting. The fruit is picked by placing a plastic sheet under the tree and shaking. I simply eat the fruit raw, and find it to be a pleasant desert. The juice of the berry readily stains and clothing can be permanently stained if care is not taken. The depicted tree was purchased from a nursery about five years ago.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?AJCOQ 25 June 2010 Dividing Rhubarb Plants

Four rhubarb plants were divided, since the stalks were getting to small. This bed has been in situ for about six years and they were crowded, and the harvested stalks were to small.

The existing bed was rototilled, compost added, and divided roots planted, then watered with downspout rainwater. After the next heavy rain compost will be added to retain moisture. Two divided plants were placed in another area of the garden along the fence. There is another isolated plant purchased last year in another area. The total plants in the garden area is six.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?THWRE 25 June 2010 Vining Vegetables

Vining vegetable vegetation spreads widely, and can smother other plants in a main garden. My method of growing is to plant these types in a bed of their own on the normal lawn area. The grass obviously grows high, but returns to normal condition when cut in the Fall, when the vines are removed. When cutting the lawn, the area is enlarged as required. The central root system is hand weeded and heavily mulched. The vines are not moved and allowed to grow freely.

Cucumbers are in the main garden and grown on a trellis. This method has two distinct advantages. The plant is contained, and the fruit does not lay on the ground, so the part that normally rests on the ground does not turn yellow. The fruit is a pristine green all around.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?BJULS 24 June 2010 Basil

Four plants are grown and produces a large quantity of basil, until the first Fall frost. The plant requires no care and no insects attack in my garden.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?UNYWF 24 June 2010 Detroit Red Beets

The first beets of the season were pulled today. Spacing carefully when planting allows for easy picking without tangled discards. The greens (tops) were also cooked. The row is 25 feet, which should supply fresh beets for the summer.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?EULCT 24 June 2010 Bing Cherry Tree

The Bing cherry tree is laden with fruit this year. The fruit is not fully ripe. Robins love this fruit and do damage, but I suppose there are enough cherries for man and bird. For care, I rake back the mulch and add a layer of compost in the Fall. Lime sulfur is sprayed in the Fall to discourage over-wintering insects. This tree is a nice addition to any home garden.
http://www.durgan.org/URL/?PYZBL 29 June 2010 Bing Cherry First Picking.
The fruit is ripe and two bowls were picked today.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?HQEXL 30 June 2010 Picking last of the cherries.
The birds almost stripped the cherry tree since yesterday. I picked ten pounds today and estimate the birds got around 20 pounds. Next year I will attempt some type of defense. The modified cooler for picking bush fruit is very handy. It means both hand are free and spilling accidents are almost non existent. The strap maintains the container at chest level. I managed to obtain a mesh pail for cleaning various fruit, which works well.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?FNJET 23 June 2010 Live Animal Trap

Two Live Animal traps were purchased today. The cost was $50.00 for both, since they were on sale. The purpose is to trap the few rabbits in my garden and transport a few miles away from my area. Do they work? The traps are set, baited with a carrot, and I must wait and see.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?CHAFD 23 June 2010 Opium Poppy (Papaver somniferum)
One opium poppy is growing on the edge of compost heap. This is one of many types. Notice the thick. lettuce like appearance of the vegetation. All Papaver somniferum have this type of vegetation. It takes hundreds to get any amount of drug, and Afghanistan has the European market and Columbia has the N. A. market. This one flower is fairly typical and many have the good Christian cross on the back of the flower, but not always. Many of the flowers are very beautiful. All poppy seeds sold in bulk food stores are from the opium poppy, and they propagate very well.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?TGETC 11 July 2007 Papaver Somniferum ( Opium Poppies) Pictures from 2007. I was trying to classify the different flowers but gave up, since there are so many and different colors. and every time I felt all was going well another new type would appear. Bees love this flower.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?LYZMS 22 June 2010 Shirley Poppies
Shirley Poppy is the name given to an ornamental cultivar group derived from the European wild field poppy (Papaver rhoeas). Wikipedia. I have many poppies growing at random throughout the garden. They self seed and are a welcome sight during the late Spring and early Summer. I dispense seeds amongst the tulip beds to hide the vegetation, which can get ragged in appearance. Neena is always sniffing out the resident rabbit.

Conserving and utilizing water in a garden.
http://www.durgan.org/URL/?Rainwater 8 April 2009 Downspout Rainwater
Pictures indicating a simple, practical method of utilizing downspout rainwater. Barrels cost 15 dollars and all parts and tools are readily available. Any urban downspout system must address the overflow problem during rainfall. The large bung hole is a reasonable compromise for overflow. The height is such that a hose may be utilized for watering plants. The system is readily expandable. I have four barrels, two on each side of the house.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?Downspout 16 April 2009 Downspout Water Connection
The downspout water system was switched over to Summer mode by connecting the downspout to the storage barrels.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?WandW 28 May 2009 Watering Plant Roots.
This method gets water to the root area of the plants. The hydraulic effect of the water makes pushing the wand into the ground effortless. The device is made by cutting off the end of a typical water garden wand as sold in most hardware stores.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?CFIAT 23 May 2010 Transporting Downspout Rainwater
Moving small quantities of rainwater can get tiresome carrying in five gallon pails. The two wheeled car in conjunction with a five gallon pail eases the burden. The lid on the five gallon pail eliminates spillage.

Mulching
http://www.durgan.org/URL/?WMRTE 20 May 2010 Planting Tomatoes outdoors.
Twenty one tomato plants were removed from their pots an placed in the outdoor garden. The area was heavily mulched using chip bedding. The plants will be staked using rebar and the new type tomato support. The temperature today was sunny 26C and no frost is expected until the Fall. I haven’t watered the tomato plants since planting in the garden to date 20 June 2010.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?XGUZW 22 June 2010 Romaine Lettuce

This row of 12 plants of romaine lettuce were planted as seedlings in early May. Usually there is some bug damage. The five that have been pulled to date are perfect with no bug damage. To preserve for a longer period after pulling, the root is kept in water in the kitchen. I have been told that picking the leaves from the plant in the garden allows the plant to grow and one gets fresh lettuce as required. I have never tried this method.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?JVXAQ 21 June 2010 Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis)

There are several elderberry bushes along my walking trail. The bushes are heavily laden with flowers and some fruit clusters are forming. It appears that, I am the only person pickling the fruit. One year I got 20 pounds and there was at least another 30 pounds left. I make juice from the berries and sometimes a pie. It has been a wet June and it appears the elderberry thrives under these conditions.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?KXFPU 20 June 2010 Fruit and Vegetable Garden

These are pictures to document the vegetable and fruit garden at this date. Not everything is ideal, but one seldom wins all with a garden. Potatoes, tomatoes, and cubits are all doing well. The fruit all are producing as it should.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?MLQHA 18 June 2009 Jade Cross Brussels Sprouts
There is a set of leaves for each sprout formed along the stem. The bottom few leaves are removed to facilitate picking from the bottom to the top of the plant during the season, and to check for eggs of the white cabbage butterfly. The objective is to have insect free sprouts and compact sprouts. The stake is to keep the stem straight. Sometimes the stem bends then I straighten it by tying to the stake. My 12 plants produce a great number of sprouts. When large enough I pick from the bottom all during the summer. Brussels sprouts grow until frost and keep well until snow falls. At the present stage of growth the plant is a mass of leaves. I have no evidence that the flavor improves with a frost, which is much propagated. The sprouts taste exactly the same all season. Brussels sprouts grow very well in my garden to a height of 3 to 4 feet, and require little care.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?FAZAT 17 June 2010 Plant Trellis Supports

Various supports are required for plants. My practical system is based on material from the fencing section of any large hardware store. The parts are readily available, easy to fabricate and very strong. Four by eight foot reinforcing concrete with six inch mesh is extensively utilized, as is various lengths of half inch diameter rebar. These are painted with tremclad on a piece of plastic to inhibit rust. Good quality tomato cages are also used as are recently acquired six foot spirals, and rings for tomatoes. I also have an overhead portable system which is no shown, since I changed the tomato support system this year.

I use the four by eight 6 inch mesh concrete often. the fence railings are 10 feet so I put them 2 feet in the ground for portrait cases. This I use for the blackberries. The mesh is held with plastic ties.

I put the 4 by 8 in a row in landscape orientation for supporting peas. For support I use the 5 foot fence posts at four foot intervals. Plastic ties are used for fastening.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?EQSVQ 16 June 2010 First head of Premium Crop Broccoli cut today

The small side heads will be allowed to mature. The head is perfect and no cides were used, and there was no bug damage. There is a total of 24 plants in the garden area. In the supermarket today broccoli heads were selling for $1.79 each.