Gardening Adventure Update

If you remember, a while back I started a new adventure. Gardening. Things were looking so very good, but then we went on a week-long vacation. Not good. Our smaller plants (peppers) didn't get enough water or got too much, and our larger plants were wilting or drying.

One thing that I did notice and was excited about was that our Galia melon and summer squash bushes were growing very well. The Galia melon bush began growing like crazy, and I remembered a trip that my husband and I had taken while at Disney World for our honeymoon (10 years ago).

August 15, 2012

At EPCOT, they have an agriculture boat ride where you learn about what foods Disney World grows on property and some alternative growing techniques. They had melon growing on trellis and being shaped into Mickey Mouse icons. They had tomatoes hanging upside down and hanging from their root. They were growing vegetables and trees in sand. Herbs were being treated by way of a vitamin wash and hydroponics. Way cool! If you get the chance to visit, I highly recommend it!

I digress.

Based on what I had witnessed on that tour, I decided to use an old chair back and create a makeshift trellis.  The result was amazing!  It started growing like mad! We had our first melon within a week.

The melon did get too heavy and began bending the vine, so much so that the vine began to crack. I decided to figure out a way to give the melon some support so that it didn't break the vine and kill the fruit. It is a VERY yummy fruit.

August 19, 2012

Then another little melon showed up three days later and I felt the need to give them both a little support.  I had an abundance of soda bottles so I created a makeshift clamp with which to hold each melon individually.  What I did for each was cut the top of a 2-liter bottle off. I then cut the bottle in half from top to base. The very bottom of those bottles are much thicker and harder to cut, so I left them intact to act as an anchor.  The result of which is below. I know how it must look to a few of you, but believe me, it was unintentional. That just happened to be where the melons grew. The irony is not lost on me. Hehe.

August 22, 2012
Notice the change from August 15th?

The other day, we noticed that the supports themselves were slipping because the melons were causing the "clamps" to expand, pulling them back through. My husband suggested wiring the bottles to the trellis. What our minds came up with together, was so much better.  

We took a thicker gauged wire hanger and cut it into pieces taller than the space between the slats. We brought one half of the bottle through the opening between the slats and punched the wire through, allowing the other half to remain on the other side of the trellis still allowing a shelf of support.

Wire holding the 2-liter bottles to the "trellis.

Bottles hanging out

 

August 28, 2012
Can you see the difference from
just six days prior?
Just wow!

The Galia melon vine continues to grow and is attempting a takeover of the entire bed. It looks as though it is making an effort to mate with both the tomato and summer squash plants. We have to keep redirecting it, but may soon have to move the tomato plant. Every redirect seems to cause it to attempt to reach out to the plants again. It's stubborn for sure, but luckily we are on top of what's going on.

I have seen bees pollinating the flowers on the plant, so I am sure the growth is partially due to their diligent efforts. The songs from the Bug's Life show at Disneyland keep playing through my mind. Some bugs are good for gardens.

My little nieces come over two to three times a week and keep wanting to go outside to look at the plants. They want to help water them, but I have to disappoint them on the days they come over later in the afternoon. They are getting so excited, I'm considering having them help me plant our next round of seeds.

August 31, 2012

The growth has been progressing so well that we found a new baby melon very quickly!

So yesterday, we saw what you see in the picture on the left (below). It was time to loose it from its vine! We were stoked. 

September 8, 2012 - Ripe and ready to snip!

In little over a month, we have gone from seed to snip. We have at least two more melons on the vine. We can't wait to get going on more items. And to think this was all a practice round to see if we could do it.

I gave the melon a day to rest and then, this morning I cut it open. Isn't it pretty?!

Now, I just need to figure out how to save the seeds for next year!

Happy Gardening!

A New Adventure for This Food Junkie

I've been freezing chicken stock, bbq sauce, soups, spaghetti sauce, and various meals for years. I have a ten cubic foot chest freezer and a ridiculously small  nineteen cubic foot refrigerator/freezer, but it's not enough space to hold everything anymore.  I make batches, not serving sizes, and I am quickly running low on freezer space.

There's only two of us, sometimes three, but I like being prepared for the unexpected guests or the request to host a decent sized dinner party.  There's also poker nights once ever four to six weeks at our house in which we provide a meal.  Makes the day easier if I have something at the ready so that I don't have to be in the kitchen all day.

My husband, God love him, has been supportive of me and my love for cooking. It used to drive him absolutely bonkers that I enjoy making things from scratch. He's given in on some things, but he absolutely will not give in on his need for Nestle Chocolate Chip Cookies. He loves the refrigerated squares - which drives me bonkers. I have my own refrigerated dough for cookies that I like to prepare. He eats mine, but a piece of him just can't let those darn Nestle ones go.

Where am I going with this?  Here it is.

I've already written about my new found hobby of gardening, and you'd think that'd be enough to keep me busy. Nope. Though I have been too scared to even imagine myself doing something this "daring" with food, I am going to begin and additional hobby. The thought is still causing me some trepidation, but I've already begun the process of learning about my new venture.

I'm biting the bullet. I'm taking up canning.  

Yep. It's the next natural step, isn't it? One grows a simple little houseplant and sees if they can help it to survive their predisposition for killing the greenery which assists in giving them the very air they breathe. Once one has somewhat mastered the art created by a green thumb in growing houseplants, the next step would be to take up gardening. Right? Well, as you've read, I've done that.

In anticipation and hopefulness of the abundance of fruits and vegetables, I am going to learn how to do an ages old food art. It is the next natural step. My basil is coming in, and it is nearing the time to harvest, which also means it is time to make another batch of spaghetti sauce.  Well, that and I am running low on stock in my freezer. So, instead of filling my freezer, I shall fill my meager excuse of a pantry.

The thing that's getting me excited is that if I can truly keep this gardening thing going, I will be purchasing other plants or seeds. I am already giddy about growing blueberries and strawberries in the springtime. If I can do that, then I can make jams or spreads and really get things going. Wee!

Don't worry, I plan on taking you all on this ride with me.  As if I'd leave you out.  You'll share in both my successes and my opportunities.

Gardening: Taking the Food Junkie to New Heights

Gardening.  Never thought I'd be one to take up the practice.  I use "practice" instead of "habit" because I could still screw this up.

When I was little, my family had a small vegetable garden in our huge backyard.  It was neat, for me, to see things growing back there. I got excited when it came time to harvest.  I think my parents got bored with it though, because I don't remember having it for very long.  I do remember Mom had said she could kill any plant that was given to her. I, apparently, have that gene as well. Up until about three years ago, I too could kill any plant you gave to me.  

Three years ago, my husband's family lost an elder - his grandfather - and we were given one of the arrangements to take home and cultivate in his memory.  The beautiful container held four different types of houseplants.  I killed one within days.  The second went within two weeks and the other two were hanging on by a thread. I was devastated. I knew that i had a predisposition to killing plants, but I really wanted them to survive.  They were supposed to live on in his memory.  I am happy to report that both have survived (in case you hadn't already guessed).

My husband decided that he wanted to start an herb garden and picked up some sweet basil. I use a lot of basil in my sauces and recently found some interesting recipes with the ingredient so this was an attractive idea.  This beautiful herb has come in beautifully, and I now have two large pots full of basil, ready for harvesting. Perfect timing because I'll be making my next round of spaghetti sauce in a couple of weeks. I'm thinking maybe Margherita Pizza for dinner one night very soon. Nom!

Anyway, add the above success to the survival of two houseplants and inspiration by way of Pinterest, and you get a food junkie that wants to try her hand at gardening.  I know, but hang in there with me.

Two or three months ago, I had seen someone post about gardening in a soda bottle.  I remember the basics of it, but I hadn't bothered to re-pin the idea, because I couldn't imagine ever doing anything like that.

Re-purposing at it's best.

The joke is on me!

ALERT:  Crazy Food Junkie has a new high!  Seed cultivation.

We had a weekend birthday bash for my husband's fortieth last month and saved every seed from every pepper we'd used.  I planted them in the soda bottles and hoped for the best.

Long story made short, it worked! I have red, yellow, and orange bell pepper seedlings. I also have jalapeno seedlings! Neither the green bell peppers nor the yellow chile peppers did well, but I will try those again. 

I transplanted the yellow bell peppers into my newly built raised garden just this morning.  Hopefully they thrive.  If they don't like it in their new home and decide to vacate the premises, I know how to plant more.

Once the husband figured out we were doing pretty good at this gardening thing, he wanted to plant summer squash. Then, a few weeks ago, we picked up some crazy melon that had the skin of a cantaloupe, but the inside looked like a honeydew melon.  It tasted like a mix of both.  I just found out this morning that it's called a Galia melon.  (Got to love Google search!)  

Hopefully this gardening thing works out. It's all on me to keep it going since I am the one at home with these things. I have a lot of reading to do and the Arizona heat to consider. Keep the faith, Food Junkie!

SIDE NOTE:  I was inspired to make garden sticks out of used plastic knives. Another re-purpose idea, but it came from my brain for a change.  Woohoo!

Time to pin it!