One thing that I’ve really enjoyed about having this blog is a realizing that it becomes a bit of a community. So I thought I’d take a moment to share with you what you are all up to, so you can click around and get to know each other too. I realize that this list is only a small fraction of those who visit A Sonoma Garden, but I promise to make this a regular feature so we can all meet each other.
Hortois at Garden Tips also wrote a great article on drought tolerant vegetables. If you are living in California, Australia or another dry summer place, doing anything you can to make your garden more drought tolerant is well worth the effort.
Compostings, who’s blog is always entertaining to read, is teaching us all about inoculants and how they may be necessary for your garden. Don’t know what inoculants are? Better click over to find out.
Maureen at Photos by Meg joined the Freedom Harvest Challenge put on by Path to Freedom. The challenge calls for backyard gardeners to collectively produce a million pounds of produce. 2500 people have signed up already and I’m thinking of adding our name to the list. Maureen has already produced over 48 lbs this year! Impressive!
Our own Sinfonian was featured in the Seattle Times on how to build a 2′ x 2′ potato bin. The great thing about Sinfonian’s potato bins is that they grow as the potatoes grow. As most of you know, as your potato plants grow you should mound more dirt up around the green plant to encourage more potatoes to grow. If you are looking for a compact place to grow potatoes, check out Sinfonian’s potato bin tutorial.
The Perfectly Imperfect has a beautiful picture of red daikon radish slices. Gorgeous vegetables. We are growing some this year and I can only hope they will turn out to be so pretty.
For your daily dose of cuteness, Laura just got in 100 baby chicks. So cute! Really, you must go see the pictures and the video she took of her new chicks.
I live in central Arkansas, so Spring is almost here. This is the first year I’ve planted anything other than tomatoes, cucumbers, or squash, and last year I only grew weeds! Besides removing weeds from old beds and adding compost to prepare for planting, I’ve started seeds for the first time. Several different varieties of tomatoes and peppers, as well as eggplant and a smattering of herbs currently live under lights in my bedroom.
I’m trying my hand at companion planting for the first time and have lettuce, carrots, beets, turnips, onions, broccoli, cabbage, and herbs planted together in a 6×6 bed. This time of year in Arkansas is perfect for getting perennial herbs and cool weather veggies into the ground. But it rains a lot in the spring, and apparently I’ll have to keep a close eye on things to be sure slugs don’t wipe everything out. Supposedly they dislike wood ashes, something I have plenty of, so I’ve been dusting this bed regularly.
Yesterday I inoculated four logs with shiitake mushroom spawn and worked on my native/woodland plant and wildflower beds. So I’ve been busy with all kinds of gardening chores. But I’m loving every second of it!
Our weather is quite a bit different than yours, and I’ve really enjoyed seeing first hand how a garden grows in a completely different part of the country. Thanks!!
Wow….I can’t believe you included me alongside such informative blogs….thanks so much. Yours is one of my favorites and I so agree with you on the sense of community that blogging inspires. I have ‘met’ many wonderful people here on the internet; it gives me hope in these troubling times.
Someone once pointed out to me that they thought blogging was just sitting and typing and ‘doing’ nothing of real value. But I disagree….heartily. Thru blogs like yours, we have been introduced to a whole new world of gardening, cooking, and preserving what we grow. We have been inspired to change our way of living and thinking about our planet and our resources. I do believe a sea change is happening because of these blogs.
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Thanks Jonelle for letting us know what you’re up to. You’ve got to start a blog so that we can see pictures too!
Maureen, of course I’d include you. You’ve contributed for a long time with some great comments. I’ve grown to love the world of blogging too. Sure there are plenty of crummy blogs out there, but there are so many that do have really worthy content written by some incredible people. I’ve learned and been inspired by so many people over the years.
Thanks for the detailed descriptions of tomato planting. I have been interested in dry farming tomatoes and I’ll try it this year. I live in Sonoma as well so I am excited to continue reading this blog and getting advice from a seasoned local. I am a bit obsessed with anthropologie : ) too so it seems we have that in common as well!
Hi Evalena – It’s always great to hear from other Sonomans! And another antropologie fan too! I hope you visit (and comment) again.