Posted: 3/1/2010 4:55 PM
No doubt this is a bit premature. But we're starting to see some signs of Spring. Our yard has small lavender flowers that pop up at the earliest point in the year. The yard was covered in them yesterday. So gardens can't be far behind!
[
Continue reading "Dare We Say "Spring"??" ]
Posted: 2/13/2010 2:23 AM
We've now had our Oasis garden for one full year! Our winter veggies are looking fabulous and the seedlings I recently planted are finally coming up.
[
Continue reading "Backyard Botanical Garden Pays For Itself!" ]
Posted: 1/11/2010 7:42 PM
Here we are in January and our Oasis Garden is still producing cherry tomatoes! In fact, we picked over 12 pounds of them this past month. They don't exactly look beautiful on the trellis anymore--most of the leaves have turned brown or fallen off. But, since we're still harvesting about a handful of tomatoes each day, I didn't have the heart to pull them out yet.
[
Continue reading "Eleven Months" ]
Posted: 12/14/2009 12:32 AM
It's now been 10 months since we first started our Oasis Garden. The summer veggies are almost all gone and the garden is filling up with winter plants.
[
Continue reading "Ten Months" ]
Posted: 11/15/2009 1:22 PM
Here's our Oasis Garden, nine months after we first planted it.
[
Continue reading "Nine Months" ]
Posted: 10/11/2009 11:27 PM
After starting our garden eight months ago, our Oasis is still thriving.
[
Continue reading "Eight Months" ]
Posted: 9/13/2009 11:21 PM
Time sure flies! It's been seven months since I first planted our Oasis garden. The garden is still very full with large summer vegetables including eggplant, zucchini, Swiss chard and tomatoes.
[
Continue reading "Seven Months" ]
Posted: 8/21/2009 7:52 PM
Backyard Botanical Oasis Garden
Plant Layout for Fall Garden
[
Continue reading "Oasis Garden, Fall Planting Layout" ]
Posted: 8/12/2009 1:55 AM
It's been six months since we started our Oasis Garden. The trellis is nearly full. It's supporting Roma tomatoes, cherry tomatoes and cucumbers. The rest of the garden is still pretty full as well. This past month, we had our biggest harvest yet-over 50 pounds of vegetables. Since starting the garden last February, we've harvested a total of 101 pounds and we've grown 25 different things!
[
Continue reading "Six Months" ]
Posted: 7/26/2009 2:19 AM
OK, this is strange. Something built a nest in the garden--twice this week. I found one nest balancing on the branches of the tomato plant and a few days later there was another resting on a large zucchini leaf.
[
Continue reading "Mysterious Visitor" ]
Posted: 7/20/2009 2:31 AM
It seems every day, there's another zucchini waiting to be picked. And if you skip a day, that zucchini will nearly double in size! I like to pick them while they're still small--no more than 8". If they get too large, they get "seedy". It's incredible to think that we've harvested nearly nine pounds of zucchini so far, with plenty more on the way. All that zucchini came from a single seed I planted back in late March. I see people buy six packs of zucchini plants at the nursery and wonder what they could possibly do with all the zucchini they'll harvest. One zucchini plant is more than enough for most families.
[
Continue reading "Endless Zucchini" ]
Posted: 7/10/2009 8:58 PM
It's a jungle out there! Well, actually, it may look like a jungle, but our garden is still tidy and organized. After five months, it's just REALLY FULL!
[
Continue reading "Five Months" ]
Posted: 7/6/2009 2:35 AM
It's been two months since I planted corn seeds. Now, the corn stalks have tassels at the top and are about 10' high!
[
Continue reading "Corn Is Coming!" ]
Posted: 6/29/2009 1:27 AM
They were worth waiting for! We finally have lots of ripe tomatoes and they are fabulous! Immediately after harvesting the first two, I ate them right on the spot--they didn't even make it to the dining table.
[
Continue reading "Nothing Beats Home Grown Tomatoes!" ]
Posted: 6/22/2009 1:37 AM
Everything grows so much faster in the summer than in the cooler months. The green beans that I planted last month have huge leaves, much bigger than the ones I planted in February. Plus, they're already beginning to flower. The corn, zucchini, cucumber and eggplant are noticeably larger each time I visit the garden.
[
Continue reading "Summer Garden" ]
Posted: 6/15/2009 2:58 AM
Since starting our Oasis Garden four months ago, we've harvested 20 varieties of vegetables, herbs and fruit weighing a total of 38 pounds! Here are a couple of pictures of our very full garden.
[
Continue reading "Four Months" ]
Posted: 6/8/2009 1:04 AM
Wow-the end of the school year is so hectic! I barely had time to visit our garden this week. It seems that every afternoon or evening there was an event for one of our kids. I'm so glad the garden takes care of itself! I spent maybe five minutes harvesting some herbs, string beans, and the last beet. That was all the gardening time I had. While I was busy running around with the kids, the zucchini nearly doubled in size. Soon, I'll have to trim off a few of its giant leaves so it doesn't shade the basil and herbs.
[
Continue reading "Glad My Garden Takes Care of Itself" ]
Posted: 6/1/2009 1:14 AM
Although many gardeners say it's not necessary, I like to prune my tomato plants. The one growing in the back left corner of my Oasis Garden is a Roma, which I've never grown before. It was so bushy you could hardly see the tomatoes growing on the vines. So, I cut off some of the sucker branches-the ones that have no flowers on them. Now, you can see there are lots of green tomatoes. It's been cool here again (in the low 60s). I think they're waiting for some warmer weather before ripening.
[
Continue reading "Tomato Plants - To Prune Or Not To Prune" ]
Posted: 5/25/2009 7:06 PM
Now that our Oasis garden is in full swing, it's like having a farmers' market in our own backyard. This week we ate 13 different home-grown vegetables and herbs! In addition to all that's been growing for the past couple of weeks, we've begun to harvest the scallions and the first zucchini will be ready in a few days.
[
Continue reading "Farmers Market in My Backyard" ]
Posted: 5/18/2009 1:47 AM
Last week, I harvested most of the veggies on the right side of the garden. I pulled all but one beet, about half the carrots, half the potatoes and the rest of the arugula. Finally, there was plenty of room for new plants. I added some Miracle Gro Organic Garden Soil, since the level of the soil had sunk a bit. Then, I brought out the plants that I'd started from seed a few weeks ago. Everything had germinated, other than the cherry tomatoes--but at the moment, there's no room for them anyway. I placed the eggplant at the front of the right side, and planted the cucumber in the back right corner, by the trellis. Next, I planted six corn plants in a triangular pattern, close to the soaker hose. Corn is a heavy nitrogen eater and will suck all the nitrogen out of the soil. However, beans and beets are nitrogen givers. So, I planted seeds for both in between the corn stalks. By growing all three vegetables in the same general area of the garden, the soil will remain balanced.
[
Continue reading "Companion Planting" ]
Posted: 5/11/2009 1:21 AM
Our Oasis garden is now three months old. Every day there are veggies just waiting to be picked. It's so much fun to see what's ready to harvest for dinner each evening.
[
Continue reading "Three Months" ]
Posted: 5/4/2009 1:32 AM
Generally, potatoes should be harvested a few weeks after the plant has finished flowering. However, my potatoes seem to have their own schedule. A couple of days ago, I noticed the soaker hose near the potatoes was bulging upward. When I tried to press it down, it wouldn't lay flat. That's when I realized that it was being pushed up by the potatoes. I carefully pulled out two of them, along with a small third potato by accident. The plants haven't even begun to flower and the potatoes shouldn't be ready for several weeks. But, some of them didn't know that and here they are.
[
Continue reading "Potato Surprise" ]
Posted: 4/27/2009 1:55 AM
We've had a bunny invasion in our backyard. I put in two flats of ivy geranium plants on the hillside behind the garden and planted marigolds along the front of the garden. The bunnies devoured all the new flowers. They're also dining on the grass by the garden and leaving their droppings everywhere. My dogs seem pleased; they think the rabbits are depositing kibble in the yard - yuck! Anyway, thank goodness for the Backyard Botanical's rabbit-proof fencing. Although the rabbits are enjoying the rest of our yard, they can't get in the garden, which is still looking fabulous.
[
Continue reading "Love the Rabbit-Proof Fencing" ]
Posted: 4/20/2009 1:16 AM
We finally had a couple days of warm weather here and now everything in the back garden bed is flowering. The peas have reached the top of the trellis and have pretty white blossoms all over. Within a week, a pea pod will grow from each one.
[
Continue reading "Peas and Beans on The Way!" ]
Posted: 4/13/2009 1:24 AM
It's been two months since I planted the garden. The beds are full of vegetables and there's something to harvest almost daily.
[
Continue reading "Two Months" ]
Posted: 4/6/2009 1:39 AM
I think I've won the battle against the mushrooms. Each day there are fewer and fewer of them. Now, it's time to get ready for the rest of the intruders around here. Where I live, the potential garden visitors include: snails, slugs, moths, caterpillars, pill bugs, ants, rats, mice and squirrels.
[
Continue reading "Ready To Battle" ]
Posted: 3/30/2009 12:54 AM
The garden continues to flourish. The peas have now climbed to the second section of the trellis, although some of them needed help getting there. They grow long tendrils that are blindly flailing in the breeze, searching for something to cling to.
[
Continue reading "Planning Ahead" ]
Posted: 3/23/2009 12:53 AM
This past week, I harvested butter lettuce, spinach, radishes, chives, cilantro and flat leaf parsley. The garden is growing so quickly now that you can't tell I've picked anything from it. Each time I've cut any cilantro, lettuce or spinach, the plants seem to have quickly replaced what was removed.
[
Continue reading "Cooking with Fresh Herbs and Vegetables" ]
Posted: 3/16/2009 1:43 AM
It's been one month since I planted the garden. Although it's been unseasonably cool here in San Diego, everything is still growing beautifully.
[
Continue reading "First Harvest!" ]
Posted: 3/9/2009 1:26 AM
The potatoes have finally sprouted! Now that they've shown up, every single thing I planted has emerged. I even spotted the first strawberry of the season.
[
Continue reading "The Gang's All Here" ]
Posted: 3/1/2009 7:23 PM
For the first time in nearly two weeks, I actually had to do something in the garden besides admire it.
[
Continue reading "First Bit of Maintenance" ]
Posted: 3/1/2009 4:05 PM
We came home from our trip and I held my breath for the unveiling. I slowly took off the frost cloth. Despite the cool weather and all the rain that fell in San Diego, the garden is doing great!
[
Continue reading "The Unveiling - Fresh Sprouts!" ]
Posted: 2/27/2009 11:47 AM
We assembled our new Backyard Botanical Oasis Garden a few days ago. Soon after, I was hit with the “gardening bug” and just couldn’t wait to plant it. I missed all of the spring veggies and was especially longing for home-grown tomatoes and fresh basil.
[
Continue reading "Early Spring - Let's get started!" ]
Posted: 2/27/2009 11:44 AM
Shopping list for Backyard Botanical Oasis Garden
[
Continue reading "Oasis Garden Start Up Shopping List" ]
Posted: 2/27/2009 11:31 AM
Backyard Botanical Oasis Garden
Plant Layout for Early Spring Garden
[
Continue reading "Oasis Garden Planting Layout" ]
Posted: 2/11/2009 10:43 AM
Welcome!
This is the place to come for ideas, helpful insights, and lessons learned by gardeners like you. Our lead gardener is Lisa, the inventor of the Backyard Botanical garden concept and a home gardener herself. Please feel free to participate all you want.
[
Continue reading "Welcome to Backyard Botanical's Garden BLOG" ]