DIY: Wire Basket Into Strawberry Planter

Since we're probably only renting this house for one spring season we're not planting a traditional garden in the backyard. I still wanted the kids to be able to enjoy the process of watching something grow and bear fruit though so Sebastian and I went to our local Ace Hardware and picked out four strawberry plants. They're going to live on our porch where we can keep a watchful eye on the hungry birds and squirrels. Or curious little fingers that like to pull things out of their pots!

I didn't want to spend more money on a long planter so I hauled out some wire baskets that have been sitting around since the move and picked up some coconut liners that go with wire planters. I could've used a bigger one for the wide basket. I pushed it down into the basket and trimmed the rounded edges. Then I stuffed those in to make up for the shorter ends.

Then I added my fertilized dirt and berry plants and gave them a nice long soak to get the air bubbles out.

Pretend you don't see the strawberry plant having an accident. It got a little excited.

I added a smaller coconut liner to the round basket after cutting a triangle shape out for an easier fit and put our last plant in a pot that has a big old crack in it from the winter weather.

I've added a few new flowers to the set up this year. My favorite being this English daisy mix. I'm also hoping for Ranunculus bulbs to bring me something pretty in a few weeks!

Have you planted anything yet this spring?

xoxo,
Rachel

p.s. Don't forget to enter the 4,000 followers giveaway below!

We're Ready For More Marshmallows

We went out and bought landscaping bricks last weekend and set this up after dark with Sebastian's assistance. We toasted (burned) marshmallows that first night and hot dogs the next. There is no longer an excuse to wait until my house is clean to have friends over!

We're two bricks short of a fire pit, though! Ha! Maybe next weekend we'll get around to that part.

My dad was an Eagle Scout so I know how to build a mean fire. Now all we need are some fantastically large tree stumps to sit on while we're wrapped up in blankets and swap stories from high school. I've got graham crackers and marshmallows stocked!

Fire pit + chilly nights = favorite thing about fall!

xoxo,
Rachel

Front Porch Buffet

I got to spend a lovely afternoon with my kids working in our front yard on Labor Day after a fun lunch/froyo date with the RVA girls. The weather was warm but breezy and everyone kept themselves occupied with something long enough for me to transfer flowers to pots and fertilize and add mulch to the elephant ears.

Our front porch has had some foliage on it all spring and summer but nothing too exciting. The last two years we've been at this house our neighbors have brought mums over from an event that were extra and we've always enjoyed them. This year, however, I've jumped the gun because I want to enjoy these fall flowers as long as the weather allows. I picked up a few new pots on sale that coordinated with what I had and some potting soil and got to work. It didn't take long for Ruby to appear by my side to investigate.

It wasn't long before she'd gotten a hold of some blooms and proceeded to pick the petals off and spread them around the porch. We had a lesson in gently touching the flowers (above) but as soon as I removed my hand her gentle touch turned into an enthusiastic grab and pluck.

And then a taste test before she was removed from the premises.

This is how she felt about her relocation.

As Sebastian would say, "It's fun to try new things!"

I hope your weekend was memorable.
xoxo,
Rachel

EDITED: Thanks to a concerned reader, I am now fully aware that the leaves and stalks of Mums are toxic to children. I'm not sure that the petals are harmful but that was Ruby's last snack on the front porch!

Proof That There Are Still Living Things In My Garden

Someone asked me how the garden was doing yesterday so I thought I'd share a little update on the state of things out back. I half expected the birds and squirrels to destroy my hard work but after gleaning the strawberries they've kind of left it alone. Every now and then I'll see where a squirrel started digging but they must have short attention spans. I have yet to get that netting situation taken care of but my raspberries are starting to form so it will have to be soon. No way I'm losing those to the birds.

Speaking of raspberries, they are growing faster than anything else out there with bright new leaves every day. The young berries are forming underneath those buds.

Our pear tree didn't produce last year save for a single pear, which I thought was odd. This year it looks like we'll have another huge crop so I'll have to haul a few people out there to shake the branches into a sheet so they don't spoil on the ground. We gave away bag fulls our first Fall and still there were thumps every half hour or so as a pear would hit the roof and bounce to the ground. The squirrels, birds, and bees loved feeding on them and we raked the rotten fruit into a big pile to compost. It sure smelled sweet out there. If you have any pear recipes send them my way!

The plant that has been taking it's sweet time is the broccoli. I've got six plants and only two of them have shot up with one of those being chewed on by something. Caterpillars? Next week I'm going to have to take out a few things that have shriveled up and replace them with more strawberry plants. I don't think we'll ever get tired of strawberries.

I've got an old refrigerator drawer than I've been using as a planter sitting next to my raised bed. I planted extra onions in it but there was lots of room so when the helicopter seeds from my huge tree in the backyard flew down into the bed they took root and shot up over night. I've weeded them all out of the raised bed but decided to leave a few in the smaller one to see what they can do. They sure are potent fellas!

What about you? How does your garden grow? Have you been surprised with early blooms or is it still too soon to tell?

xoxo,
Rachel

p.s. The top photo is my little herb garden. The chamomile must've grown five inches overnight!

The Part Where I Start Hating Squirrels

After weeks and weeks of thinking, prioritizing, growing anxious, feeling motivated, and finally purchasing all that I needed to do something about my new fixation on gardening, I have red strawberries. Or rather, HAD red strawberries.

I made my box, dug out the topsoil, filled it with purchased soil, transplanted my strawberries, broccoli, onions, raspberry bush, and tomato plant, and watered them well. I also used a vintage fridge drawer that I found under our porch when we moved in as a shallow planter after drilling a few drainage holes. Mostly because I had more onions than I had planter space. I settled on one small 4' x 4' raised bed to scratch the gardening itch instead of two or three 4' x 8' beds since I'm still a gardening novice and because our summer schedule may keep us away long enough for our garden to suffer.

Sebastian helped me water the plants and hammered a stake into the ground like his life depended on it. He also resisted picking the young strawberries even though they were finally turning red. Much to my dismay, I went out the next day to find the red strawberries were gone! Later as I was cleaning off the back porch I saw a robin pecking away at another plant and shooed it off. The day after that I caught a squirrel digging up the strawberry and broccoli plants! I wasn't prepared for such an attack on my little garden.

After doing a little research via Twitter and Google I came across a few deterants. Red pepper flakes in and around the plants to ward off the squirrels, a piece of green rubber tubing cut to resemble a snake to ward off the birds, cds or other shiny objects to catch the suns rays, getting a dog, etc. I've decided to set up Sebastian's teepee frame (minus two legs) over the garden and to drape plastic netting over it to see if it'll keep the critters from getting in. It'll be easy to water and I'll still be able to glean the goods once they are ready. We'll see how it goes.

I could always borrow my brother's old bb gun and have a teaching moment with Sebastian. I tease. DO share your own tricks for keeping wildlife from feasting on your urban garden as I'm sure I'm not the only one with hungry beasts living in my trees.

xoxo,
Rachel

Our Garden Project - The Beginning Stages

I have been thinking about starting a raised garden since Christmas and told Brett it was one of his Christmas presents when really it was just a project I needed to tackle. Ha! He didn't seem to mind. After weeks of elaborate scheming and slightly unrealistic goals of growing and pureeing all of Ruby's baby food myself, and then realizing we'd be out of town quite a lot this summer anyway, I settled on ONE garden bed. One little 4' x 4' garden bed to grow our favorites, to serve as a low risk investment until we have a better handle on gardening, and just enough to teach Sebastian about how plants grow.

Last weekend I managed to make it to the store with both kids in tow twice! The first trip wast to get materials for our tree swing and the second was for the garden and front lawn. We've been renting for almost two years now and I've always hated how our front yard looked but haven't wanted to put any money into fixing it in case we were to move. I think it was a commitment issue but this is the longest we've lived anywhere since we've been married so can you blame me? So Sunday night we were all out in the front yard while Brett moved the existing slabs of rock, pulled up the plastic tarp, tilled the dirt, and layed out where we'll be planting our elephant ear tubers. I love elephant ears. Some of our neighbors have them so I know they'll be just fine in these parts. Now I have about 30 square feet of bare yard to reseed when S is occupied.

I wouldn't get anything done if I didn't have someone keeping me on task. Ruby has been assigned project manager and tends to stay on top of things. Sebastian has been deemed my
quality inspector and part time sander. He just stops by from time to time to make sure I'm not slacking in my craftsmanship and to do touch ups when I've missed a spot.


If all turns out as intended we should have a tree swing up in the next day or two and the garden frame finished. I have two weeks until the farmer's almanac says we're mostly clear of a frost so I'm going to be patient and wait to put anything in the ground. After the stunt Spring pulled on us two weekends ago, I'm not taking any chances. Snow? Really? So far we've got a raspberry bush, broccoli, sweet onions, two strawberry plants, tomatoes, lavender, mint, and sunflower seeds. I honestly didn't have any more room in my cart so I'm going back next week for bell peppers, more strawberries, and maybe more onions. Not exactly a well rounded garden but we're keeping it fun! Who doesn't like strawberries!

photo from ApartmentTherapy

Build Your Own
If you're not past planting dates already, here are a few helpful posts on starting your own container gardens on Apartment Therapy. See how my friend Ashley did it. She's a power tool wielding super mama! And see how Pioneer Woman made it easy and entertaining for us all.

photo from ApartmentTherapy

Believe it or not there are gardening trends. See what people are planting and why.
Another link for starting a relatively manageable backyard garden.
How to know when to plant.
What plants do best in your region.
Another great resource for starting your urban garden.
You Grow Girl is a great gardening blog. You can also check out her new book Grow Great Grub.

photo from ApartmentTherapy

Gardening is the new ________ (fill in the blank).
Check out the produce aisle in the Bratcher family's backyard!
Made From Scratch, a book about the ultimate DIY lifestyle.

If you've got a link to a gardening resource that you've found helpful, feel free to add it in the comment section below. I tend to need all the help I can get in this department! I'll be sure to share our progress as we go.

xoxo,
Rachel


p.s. Thanks for the link help from twitter friends!