Mother Nature hasn’t made up her mind here at the ranch. Winter, spring, winter, spring? Just when it seems like winter is finally loosening its grip, another icy blast moves into the area. The past two days have brought encouraging signs. The first was a large flock of geese migrating over our house. The second? … More Sure Signs of Spring?
Landscaping on the Great Plains is a losing proposition from the get-go. It does not help that I am not very good at gardening. It is even worse with pets and livestock. When we first built the ranch house, we knew we needed a dog. Every rural abode needs a protector, right? We found a … More I Cannot Have Nice Horticultural Things
My garden tendencies are a matter of public record on this blog. Too much. Too close. Great ideas gone awry (not posted in previous stories to protect the innocent). I tried to behave this year. I actually planted those tiny seeds and transplants far apart – like the label and catalog recommends. Really! I did not … More Garden Update: Invasion Of the Pumpkins
I have written in the past about extreme gardening in the Great Plains. Between wind, drought, and more wind, I have often wondered if I should seek some type of therapy. I have gotten used to a gradually-warming climate (welcomed it even). One side effect of climate change is the uptick in extreme events. We have … More May 18. Frost Advisory. Unhappy Gardener.
On a recent business trip, I took a short walk through Founder’s Garden on the University of Georgia campus. As luck would have it, my walk followed shortly after a rain shower.
Pullin’ pullin’ pullin’ Pullin’ pullin’ pullin’ Pullin’ pullin’ pullin’ Pullin’ pullin’ pullin’ Weedin’! Keep mowin’ mowin’ mowin’ Though they just keep growin’ Keep them trimmers goin’. Weedin’! Don’t try to ignore ’em Just hoe and pull and pile ’em Soon we’ll be eatin’ cukes and snap beans. My family is salivatin’ For zucchini they are waitin’, all … More Weedin’ [To the Tune of Rawhide]
Mmmmm, colorful garden vegetables ready for stir fry.
You have to be a special kind of person to garden in the Great Plains; stubborn yet flexible, optimistic but cautious. The weather changes rapidly and oscillates between extremes. Wind, heat, frost, critters, weeds, and my own ambitious tendencies make it a challenging exercise to say the least. So, I took a few days off … More Extreme Gardening – Nebraska Edition
Time to catch up on a few things around the ranch… Blizzard Fail. In my post a few days ago “Getting Ready for the Snowstorm“, I talked about the lengthy checklist in getting ready for the weather system that was predicted to dump 12-20″ of white stuff on us. Well, the ‘great’ storm has come and … More Random Updates: Stinky Puppy, Blizzard Fail, and Brilliant Garden Idea Number 1 for 2013
Fence Post Diaries 