A Gardener's Notebook with Douglas E. Welch

Video: AGN Short - Conversation Alcove

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 13:19:06 PST

Cleaning the roof

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 12:11:41 PST

Cleaning the roof
Originally uploaded by dewelch

Rain is predicted for this week so it was time to clean the leaves from the roof. If we don't it can back up the the rainwater and cause damage to the roof. We love our trees, but this is not one of our favorite jobs.

Still, we had a free Sunday morning, so Rosanne went up on the roof and I collected the leaves as she swept them off with our big push broom. At least now we are prepared for whatever comes this week.

Cleaning the roof [Flickr]

dewelch — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 12:07:51 PST

dewelch posted a photo:

Rain is coming so we had to get the leaves off the trees.

Read more about this in A Gardener's Notebook

Cleaning the roof [Flickr]

dewelch — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 12:07:44 PST

dewelch posted a photo:

Rain is coming so we had to get the leaves off the trees.

Read more about this in A Gardener's Notebook

Cleaning the roof [Flickr]

dewelch — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 12:07:32 PST

dewelch posted a photo:

Rain is coming so we had to get the leaves off the trees.

Read more about this in A Gardener's Notebook

End of the season

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 10:48:23 PST

This article appears today as part of the Troy-Bilt gardening newsletter.

See more content from the newsletter

I know it may seem a bit off to be writing about the end of the gardening season at this late date, but here in California we are just seeing our first real taste of Fall. Many of you have probably already buttoned up your gardens for the season, while we were just receiving the first of our Winter rains on Halloween. Still, garden cleanup is a must here, just as it is in your gardens. I sometimes wish, though, that I had the hard deadlines that killing frosts and falling snow provides.

Instead, I deal with mature trees that drop their leaves over a 3 month period, sometimes setting new buds before the last leaf falls. How are you supposed to decide when to sweep up all those leaves when there are so many more to fall? Cleaning the leaves off the roof several times a season complicates the equation. At least I don't have to deal with putting my roses and shrubs to bed for the season. Besides a heavy pruning sometime in January, the roses tend to take care of themselves, although the process can leave me looking a bit like the loser in a late night cat fight.

Like all things, gardening in California has it weird moments. While I am struggling to clean up the Fall leaf drop, bulbs are already pushing up through the litter. They start their season as soon as we get the first substantial rain and continue well into the New Year. In my garden it starts with Paperwhites, progresses through drifts of Snowbells and ends with showy daffodils. While the previous owner planted most of the others, I try to add more daffodils each year. They do seem to like it here and the drifts of yellow against the purples of the lantana and lavender is a good combination. Fall is planting time here in Los Angeles for everything. It is the one time where you can (usually) depend on enough rain to allow transplants to get a good start. I have a few beds that I want to refurbish. Now I only need to carve out the time to get it down.

A Gardener's Notebook

Join the mailing list

Being surrounded by gardens rather the typical Los Angeles lawn, allows me to experience one important part of the season...the smell. There is a a particular odor...equal parts wood smoke, composting leaves, damp earth and soggy trees...that always makes me stop and say, "Hmmm, feels like Fall." People say we don't have seasons here in California, but we really do. You just have to look more closely to see them. Fall and Spring pass in an instant, while Summer and Winter can linger long past their time. The surrounding hillsides are a good guide. With our Winter rains come verdant, grass-covered hillsides dotted with green California Live Oak trees. In Summer, the same hills turn golden, the oak trees providing dark-green punctuation to the landscape. Still, for me it is the smell that marks the changing seasons.

Like elsewhere, I am enjoying working in the cooler days. Temperatures in the 90s don't make for pleasant gardening, wherever the location. Now I feel like I can put in a few productive hours before the heat drives me into my garden chair with a cool drink. It also means that I must do the California equivalent of "making hay while the sun shines" and try to get as much done as I can.

Having spent my childhood living in rural Ohio, I can understand the longing for Spring that accompanies the dark Winter days. For gardeners this is felt even more keenly. If you are stuck in the depths of snow and slush, hopefully you can take a little solace in my gardening adventures and live vicariously through my daffodils until the ground thaws and you can once again return to you favorite spot...the garden.

Tomato vines are done

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 08:31:35 PDT

Image by pictoscribe via FlickrWell, the tomato vines are finally done. They have turned brown all the way to the top, so it is time to pull them out and see what else we can put there. The Fall is planting time here in LA, so I need to hit the nursery and get some ideas.

We didn't get many tomatoes from our 3 plants, but I suspected as much, as the location didn't seem to get enough direct sun during the day. The mature trees shade the house and garden quite a bit, so growing food stuffs is a little difficult.

Still, Rosanne really liked having fresh tomatoes around, so I will have to look for a better growing location for next year.

Cleanup is a neverending process

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 14:32:48 PDT

Image by Grufnik via FlickrLife has kept me from the garden a lot lately, but this morning's cool temperatures drew me outside to engage in a little garden cleanup. I hate when the front garden starts to look ratty, as that is the face you present to the world. I had grass sprouting in beds, lantana over-running everything and some windblown litter from the street, so that area immediately drew my attention.

My back is not allowing my long stints in the garden, but within the course of an hour, with help from my wife, I cleaned out the area, and removed some wayward nut grass from along the driveway. We ended up filling our green garden bed with the weeds and associated leaves that had collected there, so we got a small sense of accomplishment there. There is still so much to do, but I try to do a little bit at a time so I don't end up regretting it the next day.

I hope the weather stays cool so I will continue to be inclined to work in the garden. There is so much that needs to be done. I have some grand ideas for rejuvenating some more of the existing beds, but they require cool days so we don't feel like we are going to melt.

Fall Paperwhites

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 13:24:09 PDT

Fall Paperwhites
Originally uploaded by dewelch

These bulbs starting pushing their way out of the leaf little this week. it is always so odd to see bulbs in the Fall, but they are anticipating our Fall rains and sense the shorter days and cooler temps, I guess.

Weird weather here. A day or 2 in teh high 60's, then a couple of days in the 90's but dropping to the 50's at night. Fall and Spring are a little wild everywhere, I guess, even here in the (supposed) Land without Seasons.

Rain has passed us by

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 09:38:15 PDT

I was so excited to think we might get some rain today. We haven't seen any here in Los Angeles since about last February and I am so ready for Fall. The Summer heat has lasted longer than I wanted and I am ready for a change.

Today's storm was supposed to being a little moisture, but looking at the radar it appears that is went around us on the north and east. This happens all the time. I assume it is the configuration of the mountains and the air currents that break up the weaker storms before they can get into the San Fernando Valley where I am.

Oh well, I guess it is time to do the rain dance a little longer this year and keep the drip and soaker systems running.

Become a Facebook Fan of A Gardener's Notebook

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 09:33:17 PDT

Are you a Facebook user? Become a "fan" of A Gardener's Notebook using the link below:

A Gardener's Notebook Facebook Fan Page

Repotting

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 17:00:36 PDT

Repotting
Originally uploaded by meggypeggy

Ah, yes. Nothing like a little gardening help from the cats. (SMILE)

Thankfully, my cats are not quite this "helpful. "

Drip irrigation line is...well...dripping

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 13:30:10 PDT

On Thu, Sep 18, 2008 at 9:45 AM, Bette wrote:

Hi! I saw your UTube video on repairs for drip lines...it was fantastic..thank you! I have another question, though..I hope this site is still active and that you can get back to me. I have a drip line leak at the site where the emitter line is plugged into the 1/2' drip line. The water is coming out pretty good around the site - but yet the feed tube line is not easy to pull out so I'm guessing that the hole isn't overly big???. I'm not sure what to do about this. There is always enough water to puddle up so it's a significant leak. Thanks for any help. bette

Thanks for writing. In my experience, this happens when the emitter is not quite seated all the way into the 1/2" tube. The little barb edge on the emitter has to go all the way into the tube in order to make a seal. I typically push the emitter in and then tug on it to make sure the barb has gone through the wall of the larger tube, basically wiggling it around to make it seal against the side of the tube.

It could be, too, that the whole is just a bit misshapen. If adjusting the emitter doesn't work, it might be easier to simply plug that existing hole and punch a new one nearby. The make little plugs to do that, although is the hole is the issue then even the plug might not work well.

I hope this helps. Give it a try and let me know.

Here is the YouTube video mentioned in this email...

Bird Nest with paint chips

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 15:56:21 PDT

Bird Nest with paint chip,
originally uploaded by dewelch.

One small sign of how our actions can effect the world around us.

It looks like someone in the neighborhood was scraping and re-painting their house and this bird made it part of their nesting materials.

I believe this was a hummingbird nest judging by its size and design. I noticed it today as I was typing up some vines on one of our arbors.

A slow Saturday

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 22:00:01 PDT

It was a High-Tech/High-Touch day today. (See this Career Tip for a further explanation) I walked to do some errands and grab lunch and then came home to do some more work both at the computer and in the garden. After that I found myself alternating between the computer and the garden. I think this helps me keep fresh and productive. Too much of any one thing can burn you out.

I had walked up to get some new address numbers for the house at the local hardware chain. That was a simple task and then it back to the computer for a while. Then, looking out my office window, I saw a bird feeder that had been broken for months. I had noticed how I could fix it, but never got around to it. So, off to the garage for the drill and a screwdriver. It didn't take long so I took the time to clean the feeder and re-stock all the feeders before returning to the computer.

A short time later, I wanted to turn on the soaker hoses in the front garden, so I grabbed my wiggle hoe and spent some time getting the grass out of the walkways in the front garden. This is always such a chore and this year it seems even worse. We haven't had much rain, but I think my wife has been running the sprinklers (which spray paths and beds alike) more often. This helps with the shrubs but leaves us with a lot of grass, too. After a few painful minutes hoeing the paths I had had enough. I cleaned the few weeds out of the new lavender bed and then headed back inside for dinner.

One concept that has been rattling around in my mind lately is that of slowing down. Too often, in the garden, I find myself rushing to complete the task instead of engaging in it. Slowing down means I might not finish a task completely, like pulling all the grass, but I do a better job and enjoy it more. I tried to apply that a little today. While I didn't do it all, I certainly got something done and no one says you have to complete the task in one sitting. As long as it gets completed, what does it really matter.

I am going to try and do a bit more tomorrow in the same fashion -- a little here and a little there -- and see what happens. Wish me luck!

Keep digging!

Our garden clothesline - a video post to The Greenhouse

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 17:02:03 PDT

I recorded this in response to a comment on a video I posted to The Greenhouse, the online home for Gardenfork,tv.

Find more videos like this on The Green House

iPod Ready Movie

Dream garden

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 20:23:01 PDT

Snow Bowl - Flagstaff, Arizona,
originally uploaded by dewelch.

If I had a piece of alpine real estate I would love it to look just like this. The silver bark of the aspens against the dark green of the ferns, with dappled sunlight over all.

Thank goodness I can at least visit this little piece of Eden as I did on our August trip to Arizona. This spot is about a mile in on the Kachina Trail at Snow Bowl, above Flagstaff, Arizona. The elevation was about 9500 feet.

Heaven.

Join the WelchWrite Mailing List

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 20:13:17 PDT

Daylily in Van Nuys

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 10:54:21 PDT

Daylily
Originally uploaded by dewelch

I found this flower, and several like it, along my daily walk today.

Tomato Giants

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 21:57:05 PDT

My goodness! It is like the Tomato that Ate New York City!?!?!

I am lucky to see a good crop from my grape tomatoes this year, let alone a behemoth like this.

Of course, the biggest question is what did it taste like?

... or did it turn you into a zombie when you ate it? (SMILE)

Tomato Giants
By Kira Hamman

Check out this picture my brother sent me of a tomato he grew in his garden in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Wow, right?

How do you grow whopping tomatoes like this?

Continue reading at Tomato Casual

Video: June Taylor Jams by Ami Kealoha

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 14:40:38 PDT

Wow!

Take a look at this video about June Taylor Jams and see what food artisanship looks like. Amazing fruit, jams and video. I watched this as I was having lunch today and it made me hungry all over again.

Truly garden products as art.

From Cool Hunting.com

Water timers -- a reply to a Real World Green Video from Eric Rochow

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 16:37:17 PDT

Eric Rochow, over at Real World Green recently posted a video on using water timers for your sprinkling systems. The timer he showed in the video looked to be a volume-based time, measuring gallons instead of time. I have found that these work OK with traditional lawn sprinklers, but not so well with my drip and soaker systems, which use dramatically lower water pressure.

Instead, I use these clockwork water timers, from Gardena. Using timers like these, along with drip and soaker irrigation, ease the tedious job of watering, put the water exactly where it is needed and prevent you from forgetting that you have left the sprinklers on -- running up your water bill.

You can watch Eric's original video below my reply.

Douglas' Reply

iPod Ready Video

Eric's Original Video

Video: Taking out a Tree

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 14:45:13 PDT

Time to remove a small pine tree that was in the wrong spot in the garden. This is a continuation of the "editing" since we bought this house 12 years ago.

I had to go out and buy a bow saw to complete this job. My wife, Rosanne, had trimmed off all the limbs., but couldn't get through the trunk. It was quick work once I had the right tool.

All the debris from the tree was run through out chipper/shredder and the mulch is already spread on the tomato and rose beds.

Not a bad days work overall.

iPod Ready Video

Elsewhere Online: Pallet Compost Bin

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 10:13:53 PDT

Yet another homemade compost bin from easily obtainable materials. Yes, yes, I know, I seem obsessed with compost, but what gardener isn't these days, (SMILE)

Pallet Compost Bin Going green and creating your own compost bin isn't as hard as you might think. All those grass clippings, plant prunings, and other yard stuff is easily recycled into compost. The project is simple.

You need pallets, wire (to bind them together), some simple tools, and any extra hardware you would...

By: kootsman

(Via explore.)

Links for 2008-08-08 [del.icio.us]

Sat, 09 Aug 2008 00:00:00 PDT

The Objection To Being Stepped On by Robert Frost at Old Poetry

Snow Bowl - Flagstaff, Arizona

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 12:12:56 PDT

Snow Bowl - Flagstaff, Arizona
Originally uploaded by dewelch

Another picture=perfect scene that could be recreated in our own gardens, with enough patience.

Since these were shade plants they might actualy work in my back garden. I would need to provide more water, though.

Sometimes nature just gets it right

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 11:27:26 PDT

Sedona Trip
Originally uploaded by dewelch

We spent most of yesterday in Oak Creek Canyon near Sedona, Arizona. This scene from the creek really points out how nature just gets it right sometimes. I think I need to remember this more when working in my own garden. While you don't an overgrown garden, letting it do a little of its own thing can make some wonderful results. I always take pictures like this to remind me.

Video: Rose Montage from the O'Connell's Garden

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 22:42:24 PDT

We were visiting friends today -- sitting around the pool and munching on summer foods -- and their roses caught my eye. I spent a few minutes capturing the video for this montage, just wandering from bush to bush and taking it all in.

iPod Ready Video

Noted: Rutabagas, Artichokes, Kiwis, Oh My!

agn@welchwrite.com (Douglas E. Welch) — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 14:55:30 PDT

("Noted" items are interesting posts I recently found in my RSS feeds -- Douglas)

Rutabagas, Artichokes, Kiwis, Oh My!

FruitAndVeggieGuru � everything you need to know about the delicious fruits and vegetables you enjoy. Answers about how to lower your cholesterol or how to prepare asparagus. You�ll find loads of background and variety information, nutrition specifics, serving sizes, preparation ideas and care and handling tips.

(Via My Clippings on NewsGator Online.)

Links for 2008-07-16 [del.icio.us]

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT

Foldable Greenhouse by Daniel Schipper

Links for 2008-07-08 [del.icio.us]

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT

Word Clouds.
Tag clouds for text, RSS, web

Links for 2008-07-01 [del.icio.us]

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT

Trommel+Compost+Sifter

Links for 2008-06-30 [del.icio.us]

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT

IT Conversations | Jon Udell's Interviews with Innovators | Janis Dickinson
Janis Dickinson Janis Dickinson directs the citizen science program at Cornell's Laboratory of Ornithology. On this edition of Interviews with Innovators with Jon Udell she discusses the lab's various projects. One of them, eBird, is an online system

Links for 2008-05-10 [del.icio.us]

Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 PDT

Compost Tumbler - Part 3

Links for 2008-03-29 [del.icio.us]

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 00:00:00 PDT

GardenGirl TV