Harvest Season

That's right guys its time to start harvesting! And I did so, last night! I began with the bushy globe basil last night. It was the only plant that I allowed to create flowers, because that way I would have busy plants from it from next year. HOWEVER! After much research it seems that I may have harvested too early on that one, but I got 10 black seeds, the rest were white and thus immature when I picked them. But 10 seeds is all I need for next year! They are lovely little things, tiny and round and look just like their brothers in the seed packs! This means I have my very first 2nd generation Tine Seeds! After harvesting that plant, I removed it from the garden, its had its day and we all waved goodbye.

After that we moved on to the coleus, which had tons of seeds to share with me! Lots from only the pink and purple one because I like the multicolored ones and I think it will look nicer net year to have the same kinds in the one pot together. Those seed pods were so interesting! I mean how do you think God decided that he wanted 4 little seeds in each pod and that you'd have to peel the pod apart to get at them, just to replant again next year? Very fun.

After THAT! we hung Emma's basil upside down to dry because its come to the end of its rope. Literally, hehehe.

So yes, the harvest has begun and after I finished writing this! Time to trim back the lavender! If mom doesn't thwart me again...

Sunny with a Chance of Meatballs

Ah a good morning to my plants!

I've had a rather busy last few days believe me you! It was frigid the other night and I simply couldn't in my right mind leave those poor babies on the front porch. It was just far more cold than I would have expected, exactly 47, and I draw the line at 50 for the little plants to be outside, SO! I cleaned up the closet and hung the plant lamp present from my friend and brought them into the house. They spent the night in my well lit warm closet and stretched out.

The Lavender is making new growth as well even though I keep telling momma that it will get woody and will be unable to prune it once we wait too long. But that happens. It does smell great!

However! You know how I said that my closet got cleaned out? Well if you recall what was in there I'd like to report! My sunflower seeds dried and were ripe for the picking. I sorted them appropriately, apparently the only edible sunflower seeds are ones where the husk has white stripes on it. So I picked out all those and put the others in a bag for aunty patty's cardinals and jays. Can't wait to drop that off, but look at my harvest! There are several more sunflowers ready for hravesting when I go back to work on Monday, but we'll see if there's room for them in the closet. WHOO!

Indoor/Outdoor

So I spent today playing soccer and going through pictures so I thought it was time I updated everyone on the beautiful garden! I have tons of new pictures and even a video! Just a panned view of the garden, but here's my outdoor garden and Chris and Kelly's:

Those are my dahlias, and as of Thursday there are five of them! Next year I'm going to try ball dahlias. Those colors are just captivating if you ask me. And the Sunflowers, there's tons of them!!!

My happy little people, they are always asking me to show them flowers and here they are. I even managed to take those sunflowers that were finished and have begun to dry them.

Its a beautiful place that makes me reallly happy. Next time I'm there on Thursday I am thinking I will finish trimming in the backyard and update. I just love it so much. Next year the plan is tulips, hyacinths, and teddy bear sunflowers! God gave us so much, I thank him for that.

THIS! Is my home garden. I just finished grooming a basil and another has met its end. It had the trunk of a tree and was starting to lose all its leaves. There was no harvesting it, but it was so beautiful and brought joy to my home. It is good to have these things around me. Soon they will come indoors. The Lavender will be groomed back to the wood and brought inside next week, to be placed under the lamps that were gifted to me, as well as the baby basils that are beginning to grow. Growing season is almost over... for the outside!

They are growing so fast that I'm going to cry when they start to wilt.

This is the marigold this morning: and this is this afternoon!

The basil is producing flowers and is ready to harvest soon as well! And with that I say! adieu!

Buds and Blooms

This morning started with a tummy ache and thankfully it was solved by crushing some of my dried basil. Its smells filled the air so beautifully and wonderful that I was solved of my stomach ache and went outside to tend my plants between the football plays. Upon going out there, I did two things! First checked for my mantis, and to see if she's chosen her place to make an egg case (she's very good at hiding mind you), and then checked the plants for buds. I was pleased to find!

Emma's marigolds have produced buds and are ready to make flowers. These flowers started in a Vacation Bible School in Sycamore, where they were teaching the kids what plants grow in. If they could plant in sand, dirt, or rocks. Very interesting. Anyway they planted several plants inside paper cups, marigolds, basil, and carrots, as well as pole bean in a plastic bottle. The bean didn't come up, but everything else did and the marigolds are ready to sprout after 2 and a half months. Exciting!

Also after some thinking about it, I let one of my basil plants make its flowers so that I can harvest it again next year and make a bushier plant by only harvesting from the plants that are bushy. They look very nice and smells better. I have a full jar of dry basil now. I am flattening a branch it as well between the pages of my heaviest book. I would love to make some shampoo however. That would be really nice. I just really love basil. I used the microwave to make them as crispy as I could. First time using that method!

On top of that! Our strawberry plants are getting much heartier and I'm glad to say their stems are very strong now! They look extremely good. I'm very proud of them.

More Mantis!

okay so I was reading about the manits, and apparently the bigger ones are females and the smaller ones are males so what we thought was Mr. Matis is in fact a lady, and she has grown huge as you can see from last nights post, BUT! A new matis has arrived on scene. A Mr. Mantis! And he is much smaller than her and brown colored. Very cool. He's on the window hehehee. I wonder how they get another mantis from miles away to notice them?

Mr. Mantis has Returned!

He's back guys! And he's a full inch bigger than he was. I'm really happy to see him here and clamoring about to eat the incests on the plants. *waves* Hi Mr. Mantis!!!

A Splash of Color

My latest gift from mom was this beautiful clearance plant from menards! I love it. They are orange mums. My favorite color on my second favorite plant. Its truly amazing how cheap they were considering how many blooms and how inspiring they are. I love them so much! I just can't help but love them because God gave me this precious gift and I never want it to be squandered. So lovely. So perfect. Thank you! And thank mom for buying me these amazing little suns in a pot.

On a nice note, Nicky's sunflowers made seeds! That's right they got all huge and upright and bees came and went. Now they have tons of seeds. Well not tons, the blue jays came after they smelled them and ate most the seeds, but there were lots of bees and I love bees! I can't wait to see what my sunflowers look like now that they have had more time to open!

Its such an interesting thing, working in ones potted garden. OH! And speaking of pots I was also gifted with some new ceramic pots from mom. They are so amazing. She understands my taste in pots I swear. One is a vibrant deep blue and the stains look like its raining. The other is mint apple, my favorite nail polish and tall with a lipped edge. I am allowing Emma to transplant in the blue one so that her strawberries (which have finally gotten a growth spurt), can be moved to. The other green one, is going to be the new home to a Thai basil plant. I planted seedlings with Emma on Monday, the babies are sprouting now. Very nice to see.

This thing is also making seeds now, and I'm waiting before a little bit of more time goes by so that I can harvest the seeds, as well as with a single basil plant that I allowed to make flowers. Its the stoutest and bushiest. The more seeds I take from the busier plants, the more bushy they will get from being harvest and planted from those perimeters. At least that's what I'm hoping.

Its very relieving to finally have some time to sit back and smell the basil.

My Garden!

Its grown so beautifully people! There is just something so great about having gone over there last night to see my people and the product of hard labor. The plants look gorgeous! I'm overwhelmed.

The whole thing turned out great! Look at how it thrived! Before and after!


Just look at the marigolds and how lush they are!


And the spikey plants!



Everything is so beautiful, and all the potted plants lived, but just look at my sunflowers!!!!! Following the sun and the kept safe from todays storm by the fence. There are so many blooms I can't wait to see them again!

The Wonderful Smells

I just love walking out in the mornings to smell something so great. Its an amazing thing that lavender can make such an amazing full smell all over my front step. I only have one tiny bush and I just get bulled over with it's greatness. Not to say that the basil isn't like that too because it is. Its getting MUCH happier now that its outside for some good amount of time and the rains that happened certainly aided the poor thing to get back to normal now that its miteless. Checked all my plants there other day and they are mite free, WHOOT!

Not that the darkness of the leaves and the fullness of the plant wasn't an indication, but checking always makes it seem more definite. Its just really relaxing to finally have a chance to see them thrive. I think I'm gonna start taking them with me on a traveling cart, hahaha. I just wish I could share them with the world because they are so great.

Lots of pictures to come

The developing Sunnies!

Just wanted to show off my cousin Nicky's sunflowers. They have blossomed enormously so and I am pleased to announce that they are truly epic. Making seeds as we speak.

MANTIS!

Oh my gosh!!

Its been such an exciting week! Mom is on vacation leaving me more time to do what it is I lurves! First, I harvested one of the bigger basil plants because it was in desperate condition. Not enough space for all those roots. So I clipped those down and hung them along with the boxwood because it was starting to dampen off.

The strawberry has grown leaps and bounds and I can't wait for it to start its own little flowers and berries for Emma's delight. So I'm watering and moving them from the indoors to the out because of the chronic storms that have been happening and placed them outside when I discovered something completely shocking!

A MANTIS ON THE MINT PLANT!!!!



Just awesome! I guess he was sheltering from the storms on my mint plant which is awesome. Such a great opportunity.

of pests and men!

SO! The herbs are loving the out of doors. I sent them out there and check them every hour with a cold water spray bottle and try to scare away the mites. It seems... that along with the mites having left, the plants have taken over. No one seems to mind them. In fact, there is a local stray/housecat I have dubbed 'Hector' who likes to wipe his face all over the lavender. Its cute so long as he doesn't... you know, do his business on my plant!

Anyway sicne these 4 have done so amazing outside I took the next pot out to get the buggies off of that one too. Even so mom thinks I should leave the cured ones outside because they've gotten so strong in the rich sunlight. Its true ^^

SO! I was reading more about my lavender plant since its been saved from the pestilence, and it seems I'm not going to have flowers this year. They flower only on the 2nd or 3rd year. ALSO! I'm suppose to have been pruning them! Because if you don't prune them in the summer than the next year the plant will grow... 'unruly?' Now I still don't know what the 'woody' part of the plant is, but I think I did well when I took my scissors out there this afternoon. These dried leaves will be an attempt at lavender basil tea. I hear the mix is quite nice. I know the smell is!

*dies of heavenly scents*

Anyway lets hope that the plants enjoy some more outdoorsy time and I get to enjoy the nice smells! Guess the shampoos will wait til next year!

Basil Oil

So guess what!

I found that last vile of attempted basil oil from oh.... last year? Lol. Pretty horribly spoiled. That's what happens when you try to hide the bottle away and then don't tell anyone where you put it. Anyway I am making some basil oil now again the way I made the lilac oil because its the best idea I could think of to help harvest some of the basil. This way I can get to work on candles sooner or later. Not that I can afford wax right now. Hopefully sometime soon I'll get some.

Busy with the Buggies

Sooo I failed. I thought that the uggy buggies had only taken over a few of the plants. Well upon getting them off those plants they returned... from the other plants. So NOW! I'm going to eave them out of doors. Well the first bunch I am going to leave out of doors. I have 4 outside now. The Lavender, the second boxwood basil, the mint, and the sweet basil. They are going to be getting the 'cold shoulder' of bug techniques. First they go outside, then! I spray them with chilly water every few hours and sprinkle it all over them until the bugs decide its the worst place EVER to live.

THEN! I move them indoors after washing down the plant area and take the next batch outdoors. I've decided the soap thing is evil because it killed most my plants. Well it ate away at the leaves and its sort of miffing me off so that tech is gone. But this way I'm hoping that I'll get everything all cleaned up and such. Anyway I hope that my wonderful neighbors don't think of this as an opportunity to put their cigarettes out in them. They seem decent enough people. Anyway. Here's hoping.

Poor jail babies!

Cooking with Tine!

That's right peeps! Yesterday I mad the most delicious stuffed peppers known to man! Meaning if I rarely eat them and I was shocked by how awesome it truly was. Anyway the really cool part was that I used mine own herbs to make it! It was really amazing. Sure it was pretty much midnight when we finally got to eat them but it was soooo worth it!

See that basil leaf in the middle? That's only one of my MEDIUM sized leaves! They are so hugely awesome! It was the sweet basil I used this time though because I didn't want overpowering.





EPIC!

Pests!

Oh people, I have been plagued!!!! I suppose this has never been a problem because it seems to this day I've never bought plants from out of doors until this year. Years of only little seedlings worked up to big ol plants and now I'm definitely regretting this stupidity of purchasing from Lowe's because now I have!!!

DUNDUNDUN

Spider mites!

I absolutely loath them! They are slaying my mint plant, and have now affected all but two of my 6 basil plants. After examining the web for some kind of answer I came across something that claims to be a for sure thing. They said that if I mix dish soap, not anti bact. soap, with water and spray each of the plants and then rinse them with cold water we should be good. I really hope so because they are demolishing my plants and I'm getting VERY mad about it. I can't use anything that people can't ingest, because I use them as seasonings, so the soap seems best, but anyone with any other suggestions on the matter, PLEASE let me know.

Sunflower!

Guys, its happened!!!

The sunflower is blooming! So Proud of my little baby! I'm gonna have to take it outside to get it pollinated. Makes me realize how little I know about flowers. Does it need another sunflower around to get pollen-ed? Will it make seeds without more sunflowers near by? Darn you bees for not listening.

Home Coming...

Ah its wonderful to be home. Yes its been a few days and all, but that certainly doesn't stop me from taking forever to get back to everyone! I am and forever will be! a slow poke.

Anyway! Upon return from FL, I was shocked to find that m plants had grown magnificently! You have to understand, while I was away I requested for the mother hen to tend the babies and please water them according to schedule. I also requested regular updates, which I did not receive, so I was thinking I would be coming home to a ruined wilted garden! But instead, I came home to this beauteous sight!

And then I went to Nicky's house for memorial day and what did I see but these amazing awesome presents! She gave these to me! Because mine are just so wimpy here at home. She gave me a pot of these things called... coleus! She made them from her very own homegrown seeds from last year and says she wants me to have them for the garden at Chris and Kel's! They look painted! Isn't that awesome!?!?!


Also did a bit of research upon coming home to find that my aloe plant needed mass trimming! Apparently once the leaves drop as low as they had its a strain on the plant, so I now have a cleanly trimmed aloe plant that is nice and gooey.


Oh its been so amazing guys! And to let you go, I have a photo op of my basil plant that is now so big that the leaves are as big as the one at the store! LOOK!







EVERYTHING IS AWESOME!

Replanted my lavenders too in nice new pots. Pictures to come!

Beautiful Smells!

Oh my goodness, I did not have a good night. In fact I had a terrible night and couldn't sleep very well at all, but this morning is a little better. In fact much better, because my windows are open and today was phase two!!!

I bought cheese cloth yesterday at Hobby Lobby. Very, very exciting and this morning, I took my lilac oils and hoisted it to the sink and strained! Its so wonderful. I smelled my hands afterward and it was like smelling concentrated lilacs. Its soooo cool. The funny thing about that is remember I said that most places say you can't make lilac oil well HA! The oil that's NOT working is this dandelion oil. I strained it yesterday and I think I let it spoil because it made my stomach hurt like no ones business when I smelled it. Grossness! But hey I have to remember that there are 3 stages so I won't give up on it until then. So far all I know is that the lilacs are working!

More New Additions

Yesterday was EPIC! I started out the day checking out my bank account to realize I had about 50 dollars more than I thought I did, so! I brought home some new additions to my store bought plant family. Its been an awful growing season so far, but its finally starting to look good rather than the bleak sadness that has been going on here.

To start out the happy day, I opened my windows and let in the morning air. The strange thing about that, though I live at a complex with little to know yard, there are outdoor plants that stand about as tall as my window and blew their smell right in. LILACS! It inspired me. So seconds after getting up I whooshed through the house to find a jar and filled it with lilacs to begin the oiling process for the essential oils. Its so cool. I've read that no one makes lilac oils, but I'm going to try and I'm going to succeed.

After that we went to do the laundry like we do every weekend. Between the loads we usually do something so mom took me to the dollar store where I found some more nice candle holders and we gathered some pots for mom since she thinks we should put some flowers in the Chris/Kelly garden and I think she's right. Next step was getting the flowers, of course! That's where we found Walmart, and holy cow, it was amazing. I found dwarf lavender! Something I can grow at home for only 2 dollars! Its amazing. Here it is!

Mom however did not fin the flowers she was looking for, so after changing over the laundry again, we headed to Menards. That was even more amazing because mom found the flowers she wanted and I found, you guessed it, ANOTHER lavender plant! This one was an herbal lavender, meant specifically for the fun stuff, and it was even cooler because they look so much different, I mean look at this!

Its been so very fun! Look at how beautiful. The day just went so amazing. I had this great day and it wasn't going to go unwasted. That wasn't the only thing huh!? We went to my cousin's/auntie's house so that I could hang with the fam. It was so nice to drop by and see my family enjoying the day. Check out what they've got in their front yard.

We were there until 8pm and my goodness it was just nice. I've missed you spring, so much.

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Today! Today is going to be something that resembles, though a home version. I'm going to be replanting today, the boxwood basils that I have been claiming to replant for a week, and after mom gets home I will gathering up some cheese cloth so that I can take care of step two of the dandelion oils. The full day to come, later!