It was the best of times, It was the end of times.

I watched a show about the impending doom of 2012 and realized I need to fortify the homestead to survive the end times.  Well, maybe not, if was going to be paranoid about events to come I would probably be more worried about the devaluation of the dollar and the potential for sky rocketing inflation.  Of course if that happens and it takes a wheel barrel full of dollars to buy a loaf of bread the my cucumbers should go up in value. If one tomato sells for a kazillion, trillion, monopoly money dollars then I will at least have some tomatoes.  What I have realized about myself, however is that I prefer living in earthquake country to a hurricane zone.  By that I mean that growing up in California you get use to earthquakes and when they happen, they happen. Not much you can do about it, no sense worring about it.  Hurricanes, on the other hand, are on the news for weeks with predicitions about where they going to land.  Of course those predictions don't really mean squat until the last little bit. You can get prepared, seal up the house, pack the car, and run for life only to have it turn and head somewhere else.

Of course when we moved here everyone said don't worry about hurricanes they don't come this far inland. Uhhh, well, in the six years we have lived here two have come through.  Probably, my  fault bad weather seems to follow me around.  In the six years the ran fall here has also significantly dropped off and the branch that runs behind the house has dried up every summer, which it never did in all the time my wife lived here as a kid.  If there was some kind of societal collapse we would be in a better place than many to feed ourselves and survive, but one thing I learned living here is that people moved to the city to get work because having to kill, grow or gather everything to feed a family would be a huge pain in the ass. I would be a much slimmer fellow than I am now. 

Little by little I have been putting in this years garden.  So far I have some zucchini, squash, green beans, carrots, shallots, tomatoes and cucumbers in the ground with about half of it poking up through the soil.  In the next couple weeks I have to get peppers, eggplant, herbs, and possibly some corn and melon in the ground.  I had kind of been finding it hard to muster the enthusiasm to the planting done, but some squash plants had come up on their own in the garden either from seeds that didn't sprout last year or some squash that got forgotten in the garden.  The smell of those plants gave me the shove I needed.  I never thought it would matter, but that sort of earthy smell always make me want to spend more time in the garden.  The smell conjures up memories of being in my grandfathers garden as little kid in Delano.  I don't remember much from before I was around ten years old so I am always surprised when I smell the squash or tomatoes and it instantly takes me back to that house. Now I wonder if grandpa was getting ready for the end times and just didn't want to spook a little kid by letting on that the world was gonna end.

Of Moles and Miracle-Gro

Just thought I would take a minute to let y'all know what's coming up in our garden.

So far, we've transplanted tomatoes, 26 total, about 8 different kinds. My wife loves to try different heirloom types, but we're limited in what we can find around here because of our location. Note to self--next year, order seeds early and try to start them in the house around mid-February. Here are the kinds we have so far:

• Health Kick Roma (supposed to be higher in lycopene by 50%)
• Sweet 100 cherry tomatoes
• Golden Jubilee full-sized yellow tomatoes
• Golden Pear tomatoes (the little yellow ones)
• Big Beef beefsteak
• Regular Roma tomatoes
• Red Grape tomatoes
• Early Girl slicing tomatoes
• Best Boy slicing tomatoes

The transplanted peppers are also looking happy in their new home--we have sweet banana, big green bell, and red bell.

Both types of sweet corn came up, but the Chubby Checker appears not to have germinated yet. So we have about 3 half-rows to fill with something else.

Also a dud are the blackeyed peas and the purple-hull peas. Not sure what's the deal with those, but we'll give them another week and then give up and replant those two rows with something else.

Mustard greens have sprouted, as have the radishes, yellow squash, zucchini, okra, pattypan squash, acorn squash, dragon tongue beans, Ford Hook lima beans, and both the pole and bush green beans. We're also seeing a few of the watermelon seeds sprouting, and both types of cukes. And the marigolds and sunflowers that the kids planted are also coming up.

No word yet from the gourds, pumpkins, or cantaloupes. Not sure if they take longer to germinate or not.

We sprinkled some Miracle-Gro on the transplants and on the beans that had at least one set of true leaves, and on the corn. We'll see if that helps. Plans are in the works to do some fertilizing in a week or so, with some time-release fertilizer pellets.

Also, we have MOLES. I don't think I've ever even seen a mole. My mother-in-law says we need to get "peanuts" from the feed store to kill them off. So we'll be doing that fairly quickly too.

feeling fenced in

I gave my soil another tilling today, and even using my Troy-bilt Pony (which rocks) I am sore. I can't imagine doing the whole thing with a pick-axe and a shovel. I finished putting a small fence around the garden, but it's kinda messed up and I'm not sure it will keep out much. In the back corner I see rabbits every night if I go out with a flashlight. They may have to die. I found out at the feed store today that I put my T-posts backwards for the little clips that hold an electric fence--what do I know about putting in an electric fence?! Oh, and by the way, if you don't know where the feed store is, you don't live in the country.

The garden is about 30' by 50', so it's not tiny but certainly not huge. I don't know squat about growing anything and if it wasn't for the legality, the only thing I would grow would be a big patch of weed. The sad thing is that a patch of weed that size would provide quite a nice lifestyle. Tomatoes, peppers, and other such vegetables will have to do.

My wife and I planted two fig trees today about ten feet from the garden. Besides that, I just ripped out all the other crap that was growing around and taking over a small peach tree. Off to the left of that is a large pear tree half-destroyed during Hurricane Rita, but always covered in fruit. So far we have eaten very little of that fruit. Squirrels and birds must be eating it before it ripens. I need to cut down a bunch of growth from around it so that they can't get to it.

When we first moved here we planted eight blueberry bushes. They seem to be doing alright but haven't produced berries yet. The woman who runs the pick-your-own blueberry place says they need lots more water and fertilizer. Over the last few days I went around and cleaned out all the grass growing around them. My wife, Luci, found a place we can get free mulch to put around them. I can't believe it, but I am pretty happy about that.

In the Beginning

I have achieved victory over my tiller. It hadn't been used in three years, and then only briefly, before being retired to the carport where it sat, full of gas, rusting in the southeast Texas humidity. I was just about to pour the new gas I bought on top of it and light the whole thing on fire when it started. I had to pull out the carburetor and clean it, but paid off, and after a ton a messing with it I have (at last) begun to till the garden.

Having recently joined the ranks of un-bailed-out masses, I am out of work, freaked out and happy to be home all at the same time. For the last three years I have been going to work in Las Vegas, building stupid shit for rich people, but the party is over. I am looking at our garden and blog the same way: as a learning experience. Maybe I will get lucky and someone reading this will have some good advice for me on this country living thing.