ANNOUNCING: Main St. Winter Garden

Winter Garden 2010!


Like a giddy girl, I excitedly made a plan the night before planting. I wrote out all that I had purchased at local stores (mainly mom and pop shop, Merrihews Sunset Gardens). I then thought about what plants would grow well near each other and my sun exposure and designed it from their.


Compost and worms!


This is our homemade compost from our worm compost bin at home. It was filled with hundreds of worms! I made sure to bring lots of worms in order to aerate the soil. As you can see, I love it as much as our garden. :)


We spread out the compost and worms in each bed before planting and welcomed them to their new home. We also had already dug our beds and amended the soil two weeks prior. We used Organic Amend and a very small amount of Organic Chicken Manure.


I then laid out the plants (still in their packs) in the spaces where I wanted them. I rearranged my spacing several times before planting, in order to create optimum spacing/sun exposure for the needs of each plant.




I had just finished planting my red cabbage.






This front bed has Bright Lights Swiss Chard, Early Wonder Beets, Snap Dragons and Lavender (given to me by my gardening buddy on Park Dr., Radana). At the base of the front fence (in front and behind on BOTH sides) are Knee High Sweet Peas and a Wildflower Mix.


The other front bed has Carnival Multi-colored Carrot seeds and a Romain Lettuce patch surrounded by Pansy's. Also, the Knee High Sweet Peas and Wildflowers in front.


This is my main bed that has larger veggies, multiple flowers, an herbal patch and greens. I planted Red Cabbage, Marathon Broccoli, Cheddar Cauliflower, Sugar Peas, Vintage Stalks, Pansys, Rocket Snap Dragons, Foxy Foxgloves, Lady Lavender, Berggarten Sage, Pineapple Sage, Milk Weed (Asclepias Tuberosa), Summerwine Yarrow (deep burgundy red), Bachelor Buttons and Romaine Lettuce.


Herbal section that I will build upon. I would love to add Chamomile!





Our childrens garden space! I had to create room for them to dig, explore and play. Right now my eldest is almost 3 and enjoys the process of digging and destroying rather than planting. We want him to just enjoy time in the garden now and eventually learn how to grow his own plants. I did throw in some Lettuce and Chard in his section, to get him interested. He actually enjoys munching on it as he plays.


Aside from our black soil compost, we also have compost juice. We had almost a bucket full!! Before we watered, we poured the compost juice around all the plants in each bed.


Watering everything in.




Enjoying the moment.

Jack-O-Lanterns out of Sugar

HALLOWEEN FUN!


Carving our homegrown Sugar Pumpkins.

10 Things I Like...

A blogger friend of mine asked me to join in her garden game! I am honored, so here it goes (in no particular order)...

10 THINGS I LIKE...

DREAMING ABOUT A NEW SEASON IN MY GARDEN. I love that time after harvest when all I can do is dream about, imagine and draw out in my mind what my new garden will grow for the upcoming months. I love thinking about where I will place my plants and who I will pair together. And making my list of colorful flowers for the bees and yummy edibles for my families bellies gets me rather excited. Visualizing it, like a watercolor painting in my mind and then watching it manifest and grow abundantly is one of the most rewarding experiences.

DANCING LIKE NO ONE IS WATCHING. I have a degree in theatre and I've danced for years. For my own pleasure and others entertainment. I was with a wonderful Bollywood Company, Amrita, up in Northern California. You can check out the website, if you'd like. www.Amritadance.com Dance is form of expression for me. A healthy release that fuels my spirit and replenishes my energy and body . It makes me smile with joy, inside and out.

ASTROLOGY. I've studied Western Astrology for over 10 years now. I do natal, transit, and composite readings for myself and others. I also wrote an astrology column for a newspaper, Womens Voice's, up in Northern California, for 3 years. The planets are where I look for guidance. I seek council in the energetic relationships between people and the planets. Even on a daily/weekly basis, I look to my Western Ephemeris in order to better plan my week or reflect on what transpired. I find Astrology to be a way in which I stay connected with my spirits evolution. It helps me to look at where I've been and where I want to go with relationships to family, friends and my community, performance art, parenting, gardening, writing and any other endeavors I embark upon.

PLAYING WITH MY FAMILY! Whether the four of us are at home wrestling on our king size bed, digging at the garden, traveling, frolicking at the beach or at a party, I wouldn't want to be with any other company. My children, husband and close family enjoy celebrating life together. My very favorite time is right before bed, when we read, tell stories and sing together on our big bed. It is a time where we connect as a family and decompress from the day. It is sacred time. Contentment.

TRAVELING NEAR AND FAR. From backpacking the Grand Canyon in Arizona to a cruise on the Mediterranean, I LOVE travel. Meeting new people, learning about others cultures, eating delicious world cuisine, sightseeing historical places and living more spontaneously all make the travel experience very appetizing to me! I was born into a traveling family. By the time I was 5, I had explored in and out of my country. I've been all over the United States, Central and South America, Caribbean, Europe, China, Japan, and Africa. My goal is to raise my children with similar exposure to the world. I feel that it has made me a more compassionate person and has allowed me to relate to many people , similar and different. I think diversity is the beauty of the world. And what a BEAUTIFUL rainbow we all make!

FOOD! I love indulging in a good meal. Some of my favorite cuisines are Middle Eastern, Thai, Indian, Japanese, Italian, Spanish, Ethiopian, Southern Soul BBQ...and of course, DESSERTS! I have a weakness for sweets! Especially if they are homemade from scratch. That always pleases me so!

WATCHING MY CHILDREN CONNECT. I adore watching my almost 3 year old and 6 month old connect for the first times. Lately, they have discovered each other on a different level and are absolutely enamored by one another. My 6 month old LOVES my 3 year old and vice versa. He is the only one in the family that can get her to have laughing fits that last for 5 minutes. They gaze at each other and smile into each others eyes. It warms my heart. I am so happy that they have each other to grow, explore and discover with.

MY NEW MAIN ST GARDEN PROJECT. As some of you know from following my blog, I have a community garden space. After becoming a featured gardener with my mother for a season, I was offered a new garden space that is quadruple the size of my existing plot. It had been abandoned for almost a year however and needed tons of work. We've ripped down structural settings, laid brick, raised beds and lots of junk even. We are starting from scratch; re-designing the entire garden, building and painting a fence around it, laying brick and boarders, amending soil and then eventually planting our Winter Garden 2010-11 in it. Although the project is extremely overwhelming at times, I am loving this process and feel so blessed that my family has a larger space to work, play and grow in. We couldn't be happier about the transition and can't wait till we are able to plant our new garden and watch it grow!

COMPOSTING. I love a good compost, almost as much as my garden does. After years of composting, we have settled on a layered worm compost bin. We love that it supplies our garden with nutrient rich compost juice and black soil. Their is nothing better than a nice compost tea to boost your plants growth and production! And, I believe that composting completes that cyclical process for a gardener. We amend our soil with nutrients, plant a seed, watch it grow, flower and produce fruit. Then, we eat the fruit, discard the rest in the compost and build the soil up all over again.

GROWING. I love growing plants in my garden. I love growing flowers and food for my family. I love growing knowledge in my mind. I love growing smiles. I love growing as a parent. I love growing from maiden to mother to wise crone. I love growing a big heart. And I love growing into a better person everyday by connecting, sharing, reflecting and striving to be my best.

Weather Update: October 4th

This picture was taken in front of my home on a day (September 27, 2010) that was 113 F degrees (roughly 44 C) here in Los Angeles, California. It broke the record in downtown Los Angeles, since records have been kept from 1877. For nearly 5 consecutive days, we experienced extremely hot weather that continually got more and more humid. This picture was taken in the evening at dusk, as thunder storms began to loom.

Today (October 4, 2010), we are now at 60 F degrees and it is pouring rain, as if it was the middle of winter. No one knows what to think of this extremely drastic shift in weather. Including my garden. Through the heat wave, my pumpkins, peppers, basil and eggplant had huge growth spurts. Now, I'm afraid if the cold continues, the plants will eventually slow down production again and I will have to harvest the plot. Keep you updated....

Ripened Tomatoes and New Harvest: October 1st

JUST AFTER DAWN IN MY KITCHEN.



Those of you that saw my Full Moon in Aries Equinox Harvest, will recognize these beautiful tomatoes! They ripened wonderfully on my sill. Another success story written.




Autumn has arrived my friends. Venus leaves our night sky. Let us celebrate the underworld, those that have passed before us. The earth slows down its production. The veil between worlds is thin. It is a time to go inward and replenish. Blessings Mother Earth for what you have provided for our family and the sacrifices you undergo daily.

Day#7 of Main St. Garden Project: Oct. 2nd

PLACING THE BED BOARDERS AND STAPLING THE CHICKEN WIRE TO THE WOOD FENCE POSTS.


The family playing and working in the garden together. Notice we began laying our design for the bed boarders down. We are using strips of half logs that we will reinforce with wood. I loved this idea because we could create supple curved beds, rather than a sharp line raised bed look.



Already a great helper.



A stellar team!