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Design to Grow: May 2013
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A Shovel-full of Help for the DIY Landscaper. Tuesday, May 28, 2013. If you want to spice up your next fiesta, try discussing the topic of immigration. Nothing breaks through the crust of dry conversation like a political hot potato. Immigration has been simmering and spouting on America’s back burner since the Statue of Liberty bid the tired, poor, huddled masses to come. We didn’t become a ‘melting pot’ without a little heat, after all. Monarch sipping Zinnia juice. Note the tattered wings. Flattering ...
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Design to Grow: September 2012
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A Shovel-full of Help for the DIY Landscaper. Tuesday, September 4, 2012. 8220;It’s an ugly year.”. So said I to Mr. Tall, Dark and Handsome one evening as we were sitting out on our porch, gazing over our thriving crop of brown grass. 8220;What did you expect? 8221; he replied. 8220;We’re at the end of a terrible drought.”. It’s ugly.”. That is where the conversation ended. Apparently my need to state the obvious and commiserate about it is lost on him. Good thing I have you folks. With browning leaves ...
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Design to Grow: Applesauce
http://designtogrow.blogspot.com/2013/07/applesauce.html
A Shovel-full of Help for the DIY Landscaper. Wednesday, July 31, 2013. Aside from zapping the occasional bag of frozen broccoli, my microwave doesn’t see much action. Today, however, it is buzzing along at warp speed as I crank out batch after batch of applesauce. Three pails of transparent apples, fresh from Grandma’s farmyard, kick-started this production. In summertime, my family doles out garden currency like lottery winnings. 8221; I asked. 8220;Three buckets of apples.”. What she can’t use c...
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Design to Grow: August 2013
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A Shovel-full of Help for the DIY Landscaper. Thursday, August 15, 2013. Hovering over my treasure, I beamed as I revealed the latest garden loot to my husband. “Know what these are? 8221; I asked. 8220;Tomatoes” he replied nonchalantly. Clearly, he wasn’t picking up on my infectious enthusiasm. 8220;Yes, but not just ANY tomatoes. These are {pause for emphasis} Our First Tomatoes.”. He gestured towards a pile of rosy red spheres on the opposite counter. “So what are those? 8220;Mmm hmm.”. Ah, August....
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Design to Grow: June 2013
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A Shovel-full of Help for the DIY Landscaper. Tuesday, June 11, 2013. Our little House Wren. Outside our dining room window thrives a small nature preserve. All things wild flourish there. My attempt at growing domesticated plants in the same soil and microclimate requires considerably more effort: fertilizing, watering, mulching, pruning, dividing and weeding. Shwew…I’m tuckered out just making the list. Shielding Brownie's eyes from the sun,. Ryan 'The Parasol' Uftring. There are no cages to clean.
designtogrow.blogspot.com
Design to Grow: May 2012
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A Shovel-full of Help for the DIY Landscaper. Tuesday, May 29, 2012. I'm back. And it's all my fault. It’s been awhile. Remember me? We survivors of the winter of 2012 can attest to the fact that there wasn’t much to survive. It was lame by Midwestern standards. Weathermen found it befuddling, but the explanation is simple. It was my fault. The snowplow industry certainly took a hit on their bottom line. And let’s not forget the squadrons of mosquitoes that woulda-coulda-shoulda died off had we...A Fores...
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Design to Grow: Milky Spore
http://designtogrow.blogspot.com/2013/08/milky-spore.html
A Shovel-full of Help for the DIY Landscaper. Tuesday, August 6, 2013. 8221; “Stop licking your brother.” Does it do any good? I don’t know. We get our fair share of stomach viruses and strep throat. I always say what we don’t pick up from the community basketball in P.E. we get from the shopping cart at Aldi’s. And there’s clearly no hand-washing before meals. One soil-borne germ in particular, milky spore, is deadly to grubs. Oh, those poor mamas, the sleepless nights they must endure wit...I suppose b...
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Design to Grow: Powdery Mildew, My Constant Companion
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A Shovel-full of Help for the DIY Landscaper. Monday, October 3, 2011. Powdery Mildew, My Constant Companion. Mushrooms are the darlings of the fungal family. With relatives like black spot and athlete’s foot, it doesn’t take much to garner praise. But it’s mushroom’s evil cousin – Powdery Mildew – that takes all the fun out of fungus for me. It starts with an innocent dusting of white powder on leaves. In this frosty haze, millions of spores cluster, disrupting photosynthesis. The spores grow ro...Among...
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Design to Grow: July 2015
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A Shovel-full of Help for the DIY Landscaper. Saturday, July 25, 2015. A Forest of Contentment. After a week's vacation. I came home to find my garden changed. Had a field day in my absence. Not that my presence hinders them much,. But maybe I just noticed their usually subtle advance more since it had a week's worth of progress. My red pepper (notably singular) is looking small but rosy and ready to pick. For those of you that purchase a plant with a bloom or, God forbid. Even though I get it, I still m...
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Design to Grow: DIY Design
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A Shovel-full of Help for the DIY Landscaper. Creating a scale drawing brings the scope of your project down to the size of a piece of paper. Essentially, you'll be creating a miniature 'birds-eye-view' of your property. Now, shrinking down that much area with accurate measurements takes a bit of effort. But would you rather measure carefully or plant twice? I guarantee measuring is cheaper! Measuring Tape (the longer, the better). Clipboard with paper and pencil. A blueprint of your home or a plot map*.