Thankful for Abundant Strawberries

What started as a single strawberry plant purchased at a Master Gardener's plant sale about 6 years ago has turned into two full-to-the-brim beds of incredibly healthy strawberry plants. Even more, these strawberries have spread so far and wide that I have been able to share starts with many friends, helping them start their own strawberry beds.

I have been asked several times what the key to my amazingly healthy strawberry plants is, and my primary response: neglect. Now, don't get me wrong. I do take care of them about once a year. In the spring, I sprinkle Black Lake Organic's strawberry fertilizer over the entire beds and then attempt to brush most of it off of the plants. Then I give them a thorough dusting of mulch, again attempting to shake the majority of the mulch off of the leaves and down to the soil. That is about it. Many people space their strawberry plants perfectly and meticulously remove runners. I don't. I generally figure, the more plants the merrier! So far my lovingly neglectful treatment of my plants has worked out very well.

Last year, though, the deer discovered my strawberry beds. Many mornings I walked out to my garden and ended up nearly (or completely) in tears as I saw the devastation caused by the deer. My view regarding the peaceful deer has changed. I no longer see that as peaceful, lovely animals. I now see them as pests, monstrous rodents. As a result of the deer's new found infatuation with my garden, we only ended up getting a handful of strawberries.

For some reason, the deer must have found better gardens to visit this year. My garden has been blessedly deer free so far this year. After last year's pitiful harvest, I have a new level of gratitude for the sweet berries we are picking.

Today, as I really picked our berries for the first time, I found myself truly thankful for our strawberries. Yes, Ayla was a little over-zealous in her picking. In her excitement, she decided that it was better to fill her bowl than to make sure the berries were completely ripe. Even so, I am thankful for our early, abundant harvest of strawberries.

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What are you thankful for today?

 Come join me (and my friends at Adventures Of Raising A Baby In The City )! Every almost every Thursday, I will post something for which I am thankful, and I would love it if you participate as well. It is medicine for the soul to give thanks and, when practiced regularly, results in contentment. It can be anything: silly, personal, or blog related. Just take a moment to give thanks!

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I'm back! (And I have a new table!)

I find it hard to believe that it has been nearly a month since I have written a post. Yikes! It is amazing how fast time can go by.

Where have I been this last month? Well, mostly at home. You see, we had these super cute kittens and I just assumed that momma cat would do all of the work taking care of our precious kittens. Instead, she ended up getting very sick. She had a horrible abscess and was extremely dehydrated.

As a result, we spent a lot of time force-feeding Rosie (momma cat) and bottle feeding her kittens. They were very little and needed to be fed about every 3 hours. It felt like we had an infant again and we couldn't go anywhere!

In addition to that, I prepared for and taught the last teaching in our Bible study at church. (Curious? If you are really curious, you are welcome to listen to it here.)

Since then I have been preparing for the upcoming Women's Brunch at our church. I am new on this women's ministry team and am still figuring out all that goes into planning these events. Now I am also speaking at that event too. I am looking forward to that!

Other than these things, I have been very busy gardening when the weather has participated. I have moved plants, divided perennials, planted new flowers and planted many veggies, both seeds and starts.

This last weekend we bought a used outdoor dining set. I am so excited to have this now! We can actually all fit around the table with room for our plates and the dishes of food. Tonight we used it for the first time.

Look at that great table with some amazing food. Yum! The best part, though, is the loved ones sitting around the table. You can see Kylie and Ayla on opposite ends of the table and Daniel's hand working on some food. Also pictured are Daniel's mom, Alice, and her amazing fiance, Bill. I am looking forward to many more barbeques and outdoor eating experiences this summer!

Stay tuned! I am returning to this wonderful blogging world and even have another amazing giveaway lined up.

Natural Dandelion Control

In our yard, we have a raging infestation of dandelions. Everyone in our area deals with their own share of dandelions, but I happen to think our yard gets hit by weeds worse than some. It really doesn't help that there is a currently unoccupied rental next door where the yard isn't even mowed.

So, how do we control weeds? Well, last week I enlisted (bribed) the help of my 7 year old and 5 year old. The incentive? 1 penny per dandelion head,  5 cents for a root.

Kylie went for the roots. She took the challenge to heart.

Ayla didn't bother going for the root, but she sure was proud of those dandelions she picked!

And they enjoyed hamming it up for the photo shoot that followed.

In the end, my yard had fewer dandelions going to seed, my kids were occupied for a good part of an evening and I invested a total of $3.37 towards dandelion weed control.

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First Signs of Life

One of those "getting to know you" questions is, "What is your favorite season and why?" For most of my life, my answer has been: summer. Summer is beautiful and sunny. Flowers are fully in bloom and the air is filled with their fragrance. The temperature is warm, providing the opportunity for summer activities such as running through the sprinkler, swimming and water gun fights.

Over the last few years, though, my favorite season has been changing. How can you top spring? Spring is full of new life, bulbs emerging out of the earth, trees budding and blooming, the sound of birds returning and celebrating eternal new life at Easter. Spring is when I begin to dream of my vegetable garden and plant those first seeds. The anticipation of the vegetables is almost more exciting than the harvest. Being the fan of flowers that I am, I love each stage of spring: crocuses emerge, tulips bud, daffodils bloom, lilacs spread their perfume. It is nearly a magical season.

Yet before spring arrives, my beds surprise me. Before my thoughts return to gardening, flowers bud and bloom. As I walk around the yard and observe perennials barely beginning to revive, it catches me off guard and brings a smile to my face. Oh, beautiful Hellebores, how I love you!

Hellebores are a beautiful, evergreen perennial and come in a variety of colors. These flowers bloom from mid January to April and sometimes even beyond. They start out small, as mine are now, but continue to grow increase in size throughout the growing season. The foliage is evergreen and a nice addition to the flower beds year round. For me, these are the signs that spring is on its way. They are the first flowers to bloom in my yard.

Need a flower to brighten your day in late winter? Plant some Hellebores and enjoy the delightful surprise of flowers out of season.