Protecting Ripening Blueberries from Birds

If you've previously had any fruit trees or bushes in your yard, you know how quickly they get picked by the birds once ripe.  Birds hang out all day in the backyard just waiting for the fruit to ripen, whereas I can only go out occasionally to pick what is ripe.  So, you have to learn tricks for keeping the birds out of your fruit until you can get to it yourself! Once you see your blueberries fully formed and there are no more blooms on the bushes, then you can safely cover them from birds.  Before that point, you don't want to cover them, as then the birds and bees wouldn't be able to get to the flowers to pollinate them and create blueberries! I first tried putting a rubber snake under the bushes, but that didn't seem to have any effect. 

Blueberries waiting to ripen

So I had to resort to more extreme measures.  I got this bird netting as a gift so I figured I would give it a shot.  To recreate my setup, put posts in the ground on each side of your blueberry bushes and make sure the posts are taller, when in the ground, than your bushes.  Then spread the netting over top and around the posts, leaving no gaps.  Be sure to leave extra netting at the bottom so you can curl it over the ground to ensure the bottom is closed.  The first year I thought the wire fencing I had behind the bushes would be enough, but I was wrong!  Birds just jumped through the fence, feasted on my blueberries, and then got caught in the netting on the other side trying to get out.  So, I had to also hang a layer of the netting between the bushes and the wire fencing.  Once you have the top and sides secured, then place rocks over the netting bottom where it is laying on the ground.  To connect different sections of netting, I used twist ties and overlapping netting edges to secure.  
 

Four blueberry bushes covered in netting - protected!

The final result isn't pretty, but I can remove a couple twist ties and pull up one side to pick my berries - which are now secure from the birds that want to feast on them!  Also, check out my previous blog posts to find a nice recipe for blueberry muffins.

Dirt Rich

I've never considered myself granola or hippie, but I started realizing how many food scraps I was throwing away and how much dirt I was buying in the spring to supplement my garden.  Why not make rich dirt with those food scraps instead?  So I investigated a little.  I don't really like bugs or stinky piles of rotting stuff in the yard, but a rotating compost bin caught my eye.  It's on a stand, has two sides for letting one sit while adding to the other, and overall looked tidy.

All the pieces laid out, with my helper inspecting things.

While I have no idea what I'm doing - I'm willing to give backyard science a try!  This bin arrived in a small box 2 days after ordering.  The instructions were pictures (my kind of language!) and I had it together in a couple hours (strongly suggest using a socket wrench).

Completed compost bin

 I've already saved my eggshells and coffee grounds from breakfast and I'm sure by dinner there will be more to add.  Once the garden gets going, I'll have all those scraps from cutting veggies as well.   Check back for updates to see how things are progressing!  Hopefully in a few weeks I'll find myself dirt rich!

Get your Goat

Normally I post about how to get things to grow, but this time I'm posting about getting rid of plants!  I've had a mess in my side yard since I moved into the house.  The briars, weeds, and vines had gotten so bad that I couldn't see the cows next door anymore.  The cleanup of this area was priced by a landscaping company and it was going to cost thousands.  Then I heard about a goat rental company....Amazing Grazing Goats!  Their quote was much lower than hiring people to bushhog, plus I would get goats for a few days.  So....Goats were a Go - and they were so much fun!

The goats were family farm raised and extremely friendly.  Each one was named (I got 8 females) and they enjoyed treats and head scratches!  The goats eat the vines and weeds down to the ground and they digest the seeds so well that they don't sprout back.  Their poo is fairly clean and makes for great fertilizer.

The goats were delivered on a Monday night and by the following Sunday, they had eaten everything and were out of food!  The before and after pictures really show the extent of the work they did.  All I am left with are sticks and loose vines, which I will pile up and burn later in the year.

The goats would stand on their hind legs to reach up and grab branches and vines.  They stood up against trees to get hard-to-reach greenery and weren't shy about nibbling anything that looked good. The "goat man" also came and cut down large vines and limbs so they could get to the tasty leaves.  It was great that they cleared all the brush but left the trees healthy and intact.

I strongly encourage others to seek out goats for clearing any troublesome wild areas.  Not only did they do a fantastic job, but they also served as entertainment for the whole neighborhood!  The goats will be missed!

Hidden vegetables for taco night - a quick, healthy dinner!

Spruce up a quick dinner idea - taco night - with some hidden garden vegetables!  Pick out your favorite taco spice mix (I go for the low sodium packets) and get ground beef at the store (I go for the more healthy 93/7).  Chop all the vegetables you chose to include while your meat is browning in the pan.  I diced green pepper, onion, and yellow squash and then sliced the tomatoes for topping.

Onions, green pepper, and squash diced for the tacos, with tomatoes for topping.

 Follow the directions on your taco spice packet.  I added the diced vegetables when I added the spice and water. 

Browned meat, taco spice, and diced vegetables ready for cooking.

Then I warmed my taco shells, filled them with the meat/veggies, and topped with shredded cheese and sliced tomatoes.  I made a little Mexican rice as a side item.  A quick, healthy meal and the vegetables are nicely hidden in the spicy meat taco!

Delicious soft taco with hidden vegetables!

I also suggest making extra, because the cooked meat and vegetables are great leftover for making nachos or burrito bowls!  Spread your favorite tortilla chips on a plate, drop spoonfuls of the spicy meat over the chips, sprinkle with cheese, and then heat in the microwave until everything is warm.  Top with sliced tomatoes and lettuce for a delicious plate of nachos!

Scrumptious Garden Spaghetti

This week I picked yellow squash, zucchini, and green peppers from the garden.  Today I got stuck inside due to torrential downpours, so I decided this was the perfect opportunity to make a big pot of garden spaghetti sauce!  My squash and zucchini had gotten a bit large, so they had the soft center.  When this happens, I cut out the center and throw it away, then chop the "flesh" of the vegetable for cooking.  I diced the green pepper, squash, zucchini, and some onion into very small pieces and placed it all in a pot with a bit of olive oil.  You could also add diced tomatoes or fresh herbs if you had those coming in.  

Diced squash, green pepper, onion, and zucchini

I sauteed the vegetables, adding Italian seasoning, minced garlic, basil, and oregano.  I also enjoy a little bite to my spaghetti sauce, so I added black pepper and chili powder.  After the vegetables were softened, I added some browned sausage and canned spaghetti sauce.  You can leave out the meat if you want to make a vegetarian sauce and you can use whatever canned tomato sauce is your favorite!

Scrumptious garden spaghetti sauce with whole grain pasta

Once the sauce was warm and ready to eat, I spooned it over a big plate of whole grain spaghetti noodles and topped it all with some Parmesan cheese!  It was a quick and easy summer meal and used many of the garden vegetables coming in.  The sauce also freezes well, so I suggest making a BIG pot of sauce and then freezing it to enjoy this winter.

Transitioning from spring to summer plants in the garden

Salad season is drawing to an end.  When it gets hot and the lettuce plants grow tall, the remaining lettuce leaves can become bitter.  At that point, it's time to pull up the lettuce.  Once the old plants are removed, churn up the soil making sure to break up or remove any remaining roots.  Then add a little plant food, but be sure it doesn't get onto the leaves of anything you are leaving in the garden as it can burn the greenery.  After you have mixed up the soil, you are ready to plant your summer garden.  It's that easy to transition from the spring plants to summer ones!  I pulled up the spinach awhile back and put red/green bell peppers in their place.  Today I pulled up the lettuce and then planted yellow bell peppers.  I enjoy yellow peppers and have a delicious white chicken chili recipe for them, but I have had trouble finding yellow pepper plants.  Finally someone online posted they had extras for sale!  We'll see if the yellow peppers do as well as the green ones did last year! 



New yellow pepper plants in the middle, next to the more mature green pepper plants on the right.  The colored rocks on the left were marking my radish seeds, which have sprouted.  The seashells are marking carrot seeds, which are just beginning to break the soil.

Remember when planting the pepper plants that they will grow much larger.  They grow taller as well as branching out.  Also, be prepared to support your pepper plants as they grow.  I use wire semi-circle stakes to provide them stability, while some people use small cages.  Either one works, just be sure to get them in place before large peppers grow.  Water if the soil is dry and hopefully that hot, summer sun will take care of the rest!

It's Salad Season!

All this rain has been great for my leafy greens!  I have Romaine Lettuce, Black-Seeded Simpson Lettuce, and spinach.  The lettuce can be grown fairly close together because they grow up, not out.  The spinach needs a bit more room to grow out. All of these are great because you just cut off the leaves that are ready to eat and the plant keeps growing more!  I use a pair of garden scissors to snip off leaves, making sure I don't damage the neighbor leaves that are still growing.

Romaine Lettuce, Black-Seeded Simpson Lettuce, and Spinach

If you pick when it is hot, sometimes the leaves feel a bit wilted.  To help with this, let them sit in a bowl of cold water after picking and rinsing.  After 30 min to an hour, they will normally stiffen a bit.

Soaking in cold water to help restore wilted leaves

If you aren't going to eat the leaves immediately, wrap them in a wet paper towel and place them in a Ziploc bag.  Be sure to remove as much air as possible before storing in the refrigerator.  The lettuce will keep a few days stored this way - then you can have a salad anytime!

Rinsed lettuce wrapped in damp paper towel for storing