My new Garden History blog

While I listened to the presenters at WordCamp on Saturday, part of my brain was whirring away, plotting out my new blog. Yes, it was to be a "niche blog" -- it combines three of my interests:

gardening+books+history

Originally my thought was to basically transcribe and annotate the text of the "Profitable Instructions..." book but I knew that was too focused. As soon as the words "garden history" escaped my lips, I knew this was the spark I'd been seeking.

I wrote the About page first -- I started drafting it in a Google Doc on Saturday evening -- so that I could really get an idea of how the site might evolve. While the inspiration was one book the goal I settled on was,

"This blog aims to glean some history — not only about gardening but also about gardens themselves — from books and other writings from the past 400 years, give or take."

With that in writing, I could then start thinking about where the blog might go in the future which may be why my brain would not shut down on Saturday night, long after I walked away from my laptop.

Sunday, I asked Hubby how to do the WordPress install on one of my domains (I chose my personal one, for the hell of it). After some initial fumbling to find my admin panel login and password and later realizing I needed more space (Hubby reallocated things and increased my capacity tenfold), the install was ridiculously straightforward. I spent the next little while fiddling with various templates until I found one that will do just fine for now.

To cut the tale short, I finished a shareable product by 11:00 last night and if you haven't already seen it, you can check out Garden History: Looking back at backyard gardens.

And to turf it returns.

I am home today, sick with a killer head cold, but that didn't stop me from finding out that overnight the "People's Garden" had been returned to bare land, re-seeded, fenced off, and marked as an area under restoration. As yesterday was the last day of classes prior to exams, it makes sense as far as timing goes.

Not letting being away from campus get in my way, I put a call out for someone to take me a photo ("pics or it didn't happen") and within an hour I could see for myself that it was gone (left, photo by C. Newell).

As soon as I got the original message, I immediately checked the Victoria Food Not Lawns blog. While I found nothing about this event, the most recent entry concerns Wednesday's "semi-facilitated" discussion -- originally planned to take place by the fountain, near the "people's garden" but moved at the last minute to the Student Union Building. It also mentions that several of the students involved in the protest had been singled out by UVic Administration and had been sent letters earlier this week -- VFNL calls the tone threatening; I'm not sure they could have been worded differently in order to be perceived otherwise by the students.

Throughout this exercise I have been torn. While I support guerrilla gardening of vacant lots, unkempt boulevards, and abandoned spaces, I can't quite see past the trespassing angle that is suggested by many proponents. I cannot accept that anyone or any group has the right to tell me how to use my land. Of course as soon as I typed that I thought, "But people do tell me how to use my land; there are all manner of land use restrictions and bylaws and undersurface rights to which I have to adhere." I may have to rethink my position.

Getting back to the campus situation, I believe the administration had no choice but to remove the gardens -- it was only a question of timing -- to have left the garden in place would have set a curious precedent. There would be nothing to stop gardeners from taking over every square foot of open land -- or, on the opposite end of the scale, to prevent others from paving every square foot and declaring it improved parking or from setting up commercial activity. The University released an update today, stating again that

The university will continue to work with student organizations on campus to hold a public meeting at an appropriate time in the future to enable all interested members of the campus community to receive accurate information, provide their perspectives on sustainability, gardening and food issues on campus, and learn about the variety of initiatives underway.

I was also very happy to read in the same announcement that,

The plants retrieved from the site have been relocated to the underutilized areas of the existing campus community gardens where they may be replanted by students interested in on-campus community gardening.

Hooray! There were a number of lovely plants in that garden and it had been heartbreaking to consider that they may have just been plowed under or composted. Now if only we could see the University commit to a permanent food production space on campus that would truly serve the whole community... that would be the best possible outcome for this protest.

Turf War Continues at UVic

As promised, Resistance is Fertile/Food Not Lawns took up shovels and re-built "the people's garden" on Wednesday.

There was a huge crowd watching -- some supportive, many just hoping the cops would show up and sort things out. Oh, and dozens of cameras including news crews from almost every media outlet in the city. There was a pile of tools, plants, and some wood near the fountain. Someone wearing a suit and a clownishly large top-hat emblazoned with the UVic logo was speaking into a megaphone, "Return to your classes, nothing to see. Please do not try to think for yourselves. Do not engage in conversations about food security," and so on.

Four people got to work raising a banner between the trees that read, "Reclaim the Commons" and below it another reading, "Resist Bureaucracy." Around 12:15, someone shouted, "SOIL!" and a half dozen people marched off to the parking lot, bringing back black plastic garbage bags full of dirt. I peeked around the corner, curious as to the source, and spied a blue VW transporter pickup truck -- how cliché.

Once the dirt had been delivered and shovels placed in a line, ready for action, a few people took turns on the microphone, speaking about the group's intentions and the reasons for the protest. Looking around I could see only two Campus Security officers at a distance though I did suspect plain-clothes Saanich Police were in the crowd. At 12:30 the call was made to dig, and dig they did:



I went back to work but the crowds remained, watching, for about half an hour then gradually dispersed. The work on the garden continued. When I checked in later, on my coffee break, much progress had been made, and the ringmaster was announcing that there was to be a potluck later that night. There was also a call for supporters to camp overnight in hopes of preventing the University administration from bulldozing "their garden" again.

When I left work on Wednesday, I fully expected that arrests would be made overnight and the garden would be removed. Imagine my surprise the next morning when I arrived to see the garden still in place and campers just rising from their tents:

They had even continued to improve the garden, adding plant markers and other signs. I had to wonder, was it an April Fool's prank by the Administration? The supporters were now calling it a "Victory Garden."

Ultimately, I think the University just changed its approach. They issued an update to their press release/statement, adding that, "The university is reviewing the level of disciplinary action it will be applying to those responsible for damaging university property." For the most part, however, they seem to be leaving the activists alone, hoping they will get bored without an audience.

Thursday was pretty quiet -- when I left at 4:00 there were only a few people on the garden site. When we visited the site out of curiosity on Saturday (midway through the Easter weekend), it was completely untended:

As I have stated before, I doubt that the people who started this garden would be around to harvest. That is made clear within a statement on their own blog, "I hope people will continue to interact with it, by taking care of it and dialoguing about it..." Just like every co-operative and volunteer group with which I've been involved, there is a call for many hands to do the work and, just like every co-operative and volunteer group with which I've been involved, I can tell you that very few will step up to do the work. I'm betting even fewer will step up when there is a risk attached to the work (discipline, criminal charges, or what have you).

Next Thursday is the last day of classes; after that there will be great stretches of time where there is little or no traffic near the library. Eventually, I suspect, there will be no one either willing or able to watch the garden -- they will have moved on to other protests, other projects, maybe even day jobs -- and the university will quietly direct facilities management to dismantle the garden and re-sod the land.

Guerrilla Garden Drama Continues

One thing I missed on Thursday: after a relatively peaceful memorial at the garden/lawn site, the group marched over to the Administration building and seemed threatening enough to those inside that Campus Security instigated a lockdown.

Here's a follow-up article in the Times-Colonist: Garden Protest at UVic Heats Up, and a piece run by CBC News: UVic Rips out Unsanctioned Student Garden -- some of the comments on the CBC piece (both pro and con) really got me annoyed. Here is one voice from inside the protest group: Resistance is Fertile UVic Students and Community Members Seek to Remake Campus.

I wish that the Food not Lawns/Resistance is Fertile group would accept that they have the spotlight and use it to their advantage. They are calling for more action on Wednesday and I suspect it will be more confrontational this time.

I'm sure there are ways that they could work with both the Campus Community Garden and also the Administration if what they truly wanted was a resolution. Unfortunately, I think they just want attention.

If their issue is about growing food, they could join the CCG -- there are collective plots available to all students and the community -- or they could sign up for the Sharing Backyards project coordinated by LifeCycles, or they could even go big or go home by working with Linking Land and Future Farmers through the South Island Orgainic Producers Association. Both Sharing Backyards and LAFF seek to match people with land they cannot work with people who lack land to work.

If it's about helping the CCG find a new location, why not work with them -- start a garden on the Cedar Hill /CJVI lands. This area, adjacent to Mystic Vale is pretty much the last remaining farmland from the HBC Uplands Farm [see Planet U for a great description] and is currently used as a dog park and a disc golf course. This area has been set aside for "future development" for a long time. The 2003 Campus Plan (which is still being used to drive development) notes:

The primary area reserved for future development is the CJVI site. This 12.4 ha (30.7 acre) property of open-space land adjoins Cedar Hill Cross Road at the southeast corner of the campus. The property is surrounded by residential neighborhoods on one side and by South Woods on the other side. In view of the moratorium on natural areas, the timing of permanent development of this property may be advanced.

The following policy directions provide guidance on the urban design and landscaping matters. Wherever the ‘A’ symbol appears, this denotes that there is a corresponding action item in Section 5.

Policy Directions – CJVI Property

LB#26 Potential Uses The CJVI Property has potential for temporary uses and permanent development, including academic expansion, faculty and student housing, sports and recreational facilities, parking, and any special opportunity uses that may arise.

LB#27 Master Planning Study – ‘A’ Prior to any permanent development taking place, a master plan for the CJVI Property will be prepared with these caveats:

• The plan will be guided by the vision and principles of this plan, as it may be amended from time to time.
  
• Permanent development will provide landscaping and visual buffering to minimize its impact on nearby neighbours and on the adjoining forested areas of the University.
  
• Creative thought must be given to the best way to provide links and connections from these lands to other areas of the campus.

The use of this area for communal agriculture in one way or another has been well documented for about 15 years and if the protesters are aware of all of these plans then I can understand their frustration. However considering how slow the wheels sometimes turn at UVic, I also understand that we are likely some months (or years) from a decision.



If you find this subject as interesting as I do, here is some additional background reading:

• A Path Less Taken: Planning for Smart Growth at the University of Victoria (pdf discussion paper, 2002 -- see esp. page 18 "missed opportunities")
  
• Uncommon Ground: Creating Complete Community at the University of Victoria (pdf, discussion paper, 2005)
• University Cedar Hill Corner Agriculture Facility Proposal (pdf, proposal 2008)
• Students Plot Agricultural Change (Martlet, March 2009)

Guerrillas on Campus

Regular readers know I am not one who loves lawns. They are great if you have kids or pets who need somewhere to run but in a city like ours, there are far better uses for land and I don't mean houses with bigger footprints. And don't get me started on golf courses.

I mean gardens. Food is ideal. Landscaping with native plants is good too. Hell, even reclaiming one's yard as a Garry Oak ecosystem would make me happy. That said, I'm not about to go ripping up someone else's lawn to make my point.

That's exactly what a Facebook group called "Urban Agriculture at UVic" did yesterday:

They started over the lunch hour and inside two hours, they had built an impressive little garden. Campus Security officers watched from a distance and called the Saanich Police who also observed before returning to other duties. Gardening continued. When I left work at 4 there were still people working at the details but the musicians had packed up and the crowds had long since dispersed. A coworker noted that when she left a lab at 9 pm the garden was still in place. On arriving this morning, it was all gone; it had been leveled before the janitorial staff arrived around 6 am:

The event was called Resistance is Fertile: a Food Democracy Teach-Out. Planning for the guerrilla garden/flash mob looks like it started last fall. The activists brought shovels, plants, musical instruments and a soundsystem. It's not clear where the dirt came from but the buckets I saw being used were the smokers' ashtrays (wonder where they dumped the butts?) and the rocks were removed from the retaining pond on the other side of the library.

I don't think it is a coincidence that this event was timed in the same week as a Campus Food Forum, hosted by the Campus Urban Agriculture Collective, part of the UVic Sustainability Project (which is student run and not affiliated with the Office of Campus Planning and Sustainability though they do work together on some fronts) and the Food Matters! Regional forum on food security, hosted by Capital Region -Food and Agriculture Initiatives Roundtable.

I do think it is unfortunate that all of this takes away from the very real issue of the relocation of the existing Campus Community Garden -- an issue which, coincidentally, prompted Hubby to suggest exactly this location as an option for the relocation; others have suggested the Cedar Hill Corner (aka CJVI lands).

While Twitter was a-buzz with the goings-on yesterday and my co-workers kept an eye on things out their office windows, the media was largely silent. Nothing was reported on either local evening newscast -- the only UVic story was about the rabbit problem on campus. However, this morning I did find a brief piece in the Times-Colonist: "Budding Gardeners Spring into Action at UVic."

So, what's next? This morning, as we sipped our coffee in the Bibliocafe, we watched a small subset of yesterday's guerrilla gardeners gather at the scene. Will they try again? Possibly. Will the University administration remove it again? Most definitely. Everything on campus needs to happen according to a plan -- it's not all about bureaucracy, either. Issues such as access, safety, maintenance and much more all have to be considered before any project begins whether it's a warehouse or a greenhouse.

To plant a garden is one thing, to maintain it is quite another. Even the most laissez-faire gardener like me has to devote a certain amount of time to weeding, thinning, watering, fertilizing, and general care. A lot happens between seed and harvest and I suspect that the enthusiasm these gardeners showed at the outset would wane long before the first carrot was ready to be plucked.

If you want to support urban agriculture on campus, please write a letter in support of the Campus Community Gardens. They've been growing food on campus since 1996 and any extra food is donated to the student food bank. There is currently a waiting list for plots -- tell Campus Planning and Sustainability that local food matters.




EDIT to ADD: At 1:00 today, a small group planted makeshift gravemarkers and three signs in the remains of yesterday's garden. They stood in a circle and held a memorial, leaving the signage behind.

Well, it isn't orgainized.

... but it isn't ugly, either.

Above is part of my garden last summer-- it's pretty typical of all the gardens I've kept. Sometimes, I look out over my garden and think "it's beautiful" -- in the same way that a forest, marsh or other natural ecosystem is. When everything is working together and producing life, that is the pinnacle of beauty. And while that may seem a little melodramatic, it's nothing compared to the gutter-sniping in the blogosphere these days over ugly gardens.

In the article that started it all, Robin Ripley says, "If gardeners are going to approach grocery gardening in that lackadaisical way, I suggest they find another hobby."

First of all, who decided to call it "grocery gardening" -- that makes it sound like food stamp collecting and frankly I find it condecending -- like Marie Antoinette suggesting cake to the hungry -- I'll take eggplants over orchids any day.

Secondly, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, sweetheart, and order does not always equal beauty. When was the last time you saw a field of wildflowers in even rows? And did you think it was ugly? I guess Mother Nature needs a new hobby.

Which reminds me, much like the term "grocery gardening" calling gardening a "hobby" dismisses everyone who is gardening because of food security issues or out of the need to stretch a budget.

Mary Schier suggests that ugly gardens might be a feminist issue -- hell, yes it is! Ripley's article reminds me of 1950s postwar ideals of housekeeping that led to the proliferation of jellied salads among other atrocities. In my mind, laying down landscaping fabric is the equivalent of putting on pantyhose -- you are not likely to find me doing either.

Do I plunk and plant? Not entirely. Do I plot out one foot squares in grids and allow for perfect spacing? Not a chance. My method lands somewhere in the middle and I get a decent amount of food and enjoyment for my (minimal) efforts. I also cut corners; I use and reuse whatever I can to get the job done -- last year I used plastic forks as plant markers; I pull weeds only when it is necessary or convenient. I have a laissez-faire attitude to gardening and I am totally OK with that. I think if I were to fret over row placement and companion planting and soil acidity and balancing plant heights and colours and persistent weed control, I would never plant another thing.

Yes, there are some important issues that need to be considered, especially for first-time gardeners but Ripley's offhand comments only serve to add a layer of guilt to an otherwise relaxing activity and do nothing to encourage new gardeners to give it a shot.

Poetic Preface

On Friday, I wandered over to the gardening books in the stacks, not sure what I was looking for really, but I found a gem.

The book is a reprint of a 1603 manuscript, "Profitable Instructions for the manuring, sowing and planting of kitchin gardens" by Richard Gardiner. References vary in the exact title and some sources list its publication as 1599. It is credited as being the first English text devoted to vegetable gardening.

The work opens with an author's preface, in which he humbles himself before both God and reader, imploring anyone who knows of better methods to share them with his neighbours for the glory of God.

Following that is another preface, in the form of a poem by Edward Thorne:

Reading it, I was immediately transported back to second year university, to my Medieval Studies class on manuscripts. Of course this book is not exactly Medieval but it is still printed in a typscript that poses a challenge to modern readers where the initial s looks like an f and the v and u are routinely interchanged. Add to that the lack of standard, accepted spelling, capitalization or punctuation and it can be quite a challenge. For the heck of it, I transcribed the whole poem/preface -- you can compare it to the original above (click to open it at Flickr) -- it's really quite a lovely opening for the book (which, itself, is an entertaining read). My transcription leaves the spelling in tact save for the v vs. u issue.

Edward Thorne Gent. in commendation of the worke and the Author thereof.

He that desires with skilfull hand,
to frame a Garden plot,
And to manure and make it apt
For Herbes that serve the pot,
Or choice to make of seeds and Plants,
and best of both to know:
And them in seasonable time,
to plant, to set, and sowe,
Let him peruse this little Booke,
which undertakes the charge,
Of all the fore recited points,
to shew the course at large,
Of Carrets first, and Cabbage close,
and how to keepe them sound:
And Parsnips also to preserve,
and Turnips faire and round.
Of Lettice next, and garden Beanes,
and Onions of the best:
Of Cucumbers and Artichockes,
and Radish with the rest,
These and such other hearbes and seedes,
hath Gardner, in good will:
Unto Sallopian neighbours his,
entreated of with skill,
His talent lent he doth not hide,
if all were understood,
But sets it foorth with willing minde,
to doe his neighbours good.

The poore which late were like to pine,
and could not buy them breade:
In greatest time of penury,
were by his labours fed.
And that in reasonable rate,
when Corne and coine was scant,
With Parsnip and with Carret rootes,
he did supply their want.
The rich likewise and better sorte,
his labours could not misse
Which makes them many times to thinke,
that Salop London is.
Then rich and poore in friendly sorte,
give Gardner all his due,
Who shewes himselfe in all his acts,
so kinde a friend to you.
And wish as he doth well deserve,
his welfare and his health,
That hath so greatly profited,
Salopians common wealth.

You'll note Thorne's use of italics for proper nouns: the author's name, shown here as Gardner instead of Gardiner and Salop/Salopians which I couldn't figure out at first. Turns out, Salop is another name for the county of Shropshire, where Shrewsbury is located, and Salopians refer to the people who live there.

I'm not done with this book yet, it's fascinating, so you may see more clips here, or elsewhere.

Duck, Duck, Goose?

Actually, I am thinking chickens, but ducks and geese could be included in this discussion.

We have been thinking about chickens (the back-yard variety) for some time (pretty much ever since we moved in here).

As we get closer and closer to making a final decision, I decided to re-check the laws. I know City of Victoria allows urban chickens and I know there are no roosters allowed. I thought there was a limit of 10 but now I can't find any reference to any limit.

The city bylaw on Animal Control states:

37. No person shall own, harbour or keep any farm animal or rooster within the City of Victoria.

where "farm animal" is earlier defined as "any domesticated animal normally raised for food, milk or beast of burden and includes cattle, horses, swine, sheep, goats, mules, donkeys, asses and oxen;" -- i.e. excluding poultry.

It also says owners are not to allow their animals to be on any private property other than their own (e.g. your neighbour's flower bed).

I've been through other possible by-laws that might mention the issue and found nothing more. No limit, nothing about structures to house them -- heck it doesn't even preclude keeping them inside one's home. (I would not keep them inside -- eeek and eww.)

Surf over to Victoria Animal Control Services however, and you can read this (if you scroll waaaaay down to the Bylaw Regulations section):

"Farm Animals are prohibited with the exception of chickens, ducks & geese. These fowl can only be kept as pets or for personal egg consumption. Eggs cannot be sold or advertised for sale. Excessive numbers of fowl will bring into question intended use. Roosters are prohibited. If you are thinking about keeping chickens call us and we will tell you the issues and potential problems to avoid. Potbellied pigs are considered Farm Animals regardless of where they are kept (indoors or outdoors)."

I'd sure like to find actual By-laws that state anything about the fact that excess eggs cannot be sold and what exactly an excessive number might be. I'm not even thinking that we would likely come up against any of these issues but I would like to know exactly what limitations are, within the law.

Laws aside, we do have to ponder how to house them, how to deal with potential rodent and predator problems, and what to do when the hens stop laying. For housing, I am partial to the Eglu Cube by Omlet but Hubby is prepared to build a DIY variation. I still don't know if there is a "season" for buying new hens. I kind of suspect there is. Sigh. At least Kiddo is reading Storey's Guide to Raising Poultry that I borrowed from the library. Maybe she can fill us in on the details.


[photo by sarniebill1 on Flickr.]

Tin Foil Hats All Around!

Sometime in my late teens or early 20s I started planning for the inevitable -- the collapse of civilization as we know it. (I had high hopes for Y2K but, alas, it was not to be.) I started learning how to do stuff myself and to collect books on pioneer and DIY skills. An earlyish version of my website included my luddite skillset -- stuff like building fires, growing my own food, and knitting. Heck, years back Hubby and I even joined Victoria LETS (Local Exchange and Trading Society) -- basically a barter group -- but were disappointed by the lack of variety and activity in the group. We also tried making tofu and could do that again, if we had to -- right now, I'm happier to pay the $3 for someone else to do it.

Tonight, I spent some time sorting through and doing an inventory of my seeds, spawned in part by a discussion on Facebook about the movie Collapse (my take: the guy is probably a nutbar but has some decent insights, too. It's playing at Cinecenta next month and I plan to go see it, despite its potential effect on my psyche) and in part by some Frankenfood Fear thanks to finding a study that revealed organ damage in mammals linked to three varieties of Monsanto corn currently being used for food and for animal feed out there. Gah.

Happily, now that my seeds have been inventoried (there were almost 60 packets, varying in age and amount used, ranging from personally saved seeds to some purchased at local markets to certified organic to basic, er, over the counter seeds) and my goal this year is to use as many as I can through the season. I have a LOT of mesclun mix seeds -- probably because I like having greens available year-round -- and I am planning to grow at least some on the deck where I can pick them in any weather. I also sent Hubby some tutorials on mini-greenhouses for starting seeds and to extend the growing season (right now my cabbage and broccoli are struggling but the leeks have perked up).

Outside of gardening, I am still proud of the number of things I know I can do if need be, though there are a few I have yet to master, or even try. While I believe I could maintain or even (re-)build a home and make do with what I had on hand for some time, I am lacking some pioneer skills. (For instance if there is no one with whom I can barter meat or fish after civilization falls, I will become a vegetarian pretty fast. ) I think I could manage to raise chickens as long as I didn't have to kill them so at least I could have eggs. If I could figure out how to shear a sheep (this does not look comfortable for either party), I could probably get from there to yarn somehow. And I might be willing to try my hand at raising a goat I could milk.

**While I am on an agriculture tangent, I have been considering whether I can donate to the Land Conservancy to save Madrona Farm (I really do want as much local farmland as possible to stay as such) without getting on a sucker list. (Oooh, looks like I can give money to some lawyer-types to hold in trust. Pondering.)**

Anyway, if I had the right supplies I could make or mend clothing, make candles, soap (though I've never tried, I understand the principles), and bread. I can preserve food, make paper, and perform basic first aid (Hubby is the star on that front though). I can do math long-hand, use most hand tools and make a bird-feeder out of a milk jug.

So, start saving your tin-foil kids, you're going to need it for the hats.

***

p.s. Would you rather celebrate the end of the world? Do it wearing a Haiku for the Masses t-shirt. ;)

Tomato bounty

So... for all my whining about my never-ripening tomatoes, we ended up getting a lot of bang for our buck. If you remember, we bought six (eight?) seedlings and also tried starting some from seed then got a bunch of seedlings from a friend, which resulted in a tomato forest in our garden. However, the weather this year was a bit weird and most people in the area had to wait a long time for any ripe fruit.

I got a bunch of yellow cherry-sized tomatoes off our plants and a few larger tomatoes that, once inside, eventually turned orange-red. However, last week, when the forecast threatened frost, I pulled all the remaining plants and harvested a HUGE mountain of mostly green tomatoes. We also got a couple of pounds of ripe tomatoes from the same friend who gave us the seedlings.

I found a quick-and-dirty recipe for pickled green tomatoes from Martha Stewart of all people -- basically just dunk them in leftover pickle brine for a week. I did that with about a cup of sliced tomatoes but then I went looking for other recipes. I finally decided to wing it after looking at oodles of recipes. I made two quarts last week and another three quarts today. I sure hope they taste OK... ;)

I put aside a few of the nicest tomatoes that remained then the rest went into a tri-colour tomato sauce -- I didn't measure at all and it came out a full quart.

So, we have two pounds of green tomatoes waiting to ripen in paper bags and about a pound of ripe fruit. Truthfully, I'm almost as tired of tomatoes as I am of cucumbers but I am still thankful for the bounty that my garden provided in the end.

Vacation's End

All told, this was one of the best fall vacations we've had.

This time last year we had just moved in. It seems hard to believe it's been a year, so hard that until I looked it up on the blog I wasn't completely sure what day we had moved in (it was October 9th).

With the getaway at the start of the week off, we got back relaxed for the rest of our week off. We balanced some hang time with getting-stuff-done and some time with friends and family (though Thanksgiving was extra tense this year -- not sure what really was going on there...). Kiddo and I did some crafting together including a "rag doll with Coraline eyes" that she designed and we collaborated to finish:

Hubby made lots of headway on getting the new deck stairs underway (the "deathtrap stairs of doom" have to go -- the new stairs will go down the back of the deck, toward the apple trees and easier access to the bbq. It's the first step toward prepping for the addition.

Today, Hubby pulled down most of the weird carport skeleton over the driveway to reclaim the wood for the project, too. And you know what? I really wish we had pulled that sucker down earlier. After it was down, I moved and re-stacked the wood we had hastily thrown there, and our driveway looked pretty good.

We had an unseasonably warm and dry week, too; tomorrow we are expecting rain with frost forecast for this evening. We turned the gas fireplace on today for the first time in months and I decided I had best get in the last of the cucumbers (the vines were dried up anyhow) and pull out the tomato plants. There were 6 cucumbers left and I don't know how many pounds of mostly green tomatoes... I think I may try pickling them...

Back to work tomorrow. Sigh. At least it's a short (if busy) week.

Cost of a garden

The news is full of stories about the "new trend" of urban gardening and now people who have jumped on the bandwagon are now crying foul that they haven't got back what they spent. I never expected to get back what I put in the first year or two but once the beds are established, I should get plenty back.

Even this year, we did pretty well despite having lousy dirt (not soil, just dirt) and not really knowing how the light would (or wouldn't) fall in our yard.

Big winners:

two cucumber seedlings produced about 25 cucumbers
two zucchini seedlings produced about 15 large zucchini
two bags of onion sets are still producing, pretty much 90% success rate
radish seed tape produced plenty of radishes -- almost too many to eat.
carrot seed tape produced lots of carrots but too close together
potatoes each produced at least a pound of potatoes in return -- we easily got 12 lbs of potatoes
eight scarlet runner bean seeds produced many pounds of beans plus attracted hummingbirds to the yard.

Jury is out:

two eggplant seedlings produced only one eggplant but a lot of amusement and pretty flowers
a dozen strawberry plants produced few berries (two pints?) but those it did produce were ridiculously tasty
four summer squash plants from seed (we planted more but only 4 sprouted) produced about 12 small squash plus several that rotted or were eaten by slugs, etc.
a half-dozen peas planted from seed produced about 4 pods each -- not much but enough for lunchbox snacks
lettuce -- seed tape produced closely grown plants that were great for a while then all wilted at once.
six pumpkin seeds produced two plants which yielded three pumpkins, one of which rotted on the vine. However, they are pretty and will be useful for Halloween.

Big disappointments:

tomatoes -- lots of seedlings, some purchased, some given to us -- produced almost no ripe fruit.
edamame -- 6 seedlings produced some beans but not enough to make a side dish for the three of us plus I mistakenly left them on the plants too long and they dried there.
spinach -- I planted it too late and what grew just bolted.
peppers -- killed by the heat of the greenhouse because we didn't un-pot them and plant them in the garden.

For most of the summer, we haven't had to buy too many vegetables, just supplemental. I figure we got about $100-$125 in vegetables out of the garden after spending about $70 on seeds and seedlings (I'm not counting what we spent on dirt or materials for the raised beds). Not a fantastic return, admittedly, but the seeds we bought will last us through one or two more seasons, to be supplemented by a few seedlings. We have also tried saving a few seeds to plant next year.

The biggest value of course is not the actual cost of the food but knowing where it comes from and having the freshest possible food available.

getting stuff done

Today has been a getting stuff done day. This morning, I brought in more bounty from the garden -- fruit and veg including about 9 lbs of plums. Looking for a way to store the plums I found that egg cartons work wonderfully and each carton holds between 14 oz and 1 lb of plums, depending on their size.

After that, Hubby helped to take down the canopy on the back deck (as we get closer to the rainy season, I wanted to make sure we took it down while it was dry) and helped get the table inside and downstairs. Then I attacked our mountain of boxes -- emptied some and moved others -- to make room for the table. It's in place, with part of the mountain underneath, and with about half the surface usable. Yay! I am however, too exhausted to take a photo just yet.

I had planned for crafting, too but I am really tired so I may just watch a movie. Oh, but speaking of crafting, check out these cute earrings our friend made using LEGO® bats!! I am debating whether I would wear them if I asked her to make a pair with clip-on posts.

Zucchini Season!

It's been so hot I haven't wanted to go outside but the veggies kept growing anyway...

I picked all of these last night -- four green zucchinis the size of my forearm and one yellow one, slightly smaller. There are several more just about the same size still on the bushes.

Meanwhile, Frugal Victoria is finding more followers and fans on both Facebook and Twitter (yes, I went to the dark side of 140 character updates. Sigh.) -- the upside of which is that people are now sending me tips. Hurrah!

I also entered a contest to win an OTTO espresso maker (this is one beautiful piece of machinery that retails for about $600!) -- I had to write about how specialty coffee changed my life so I whipped up a little creative non-fiction, "A rebellious act."

Of course, I now think I may have got some details wrong (was the Old Towne actually on Yates, not Johnson? Had it closed before I left for England?) but the overall feel is still there. I also found, on re-read, that I had repeated myself... but there's not much I can do about that now. The prize will be awarded by "popular vote" so go have a look at the other entries, too. Oh, and before you ask, the editor of CoffeeCrew selected that photo from my Flickr stream; I sent a different shot. ;)

Lazy weekend

Actually, that's not entirely true, but there wasn't much on the books.

We decided yesterday to go out to Langford for a trip to Costco and Glenwood Meats with a friend of ours. Unfortunately, we ran into trouble as people were lining the streets and rail line to get a glimpse of the Emperor and Empress of Japan as they travelled on the E&N -- at least that's what we think was going on; there were no signs and nothing on the news later for the kickoff to the Langford Summer Festival (thanks for the update, Hubby). So, after some delay (because Glenwood Meats was on the far side of the impromptu parade route), we did manage to get both stops done and also sneak in a trip to the evil Wal-Mart in search of lawn ornaments on clearance.

After that, I napped. A lot. I'm still not sleeping well (I think I need to hibernate through the heat... in a nice cool, damp cave somewhere) so I find I am napping almost daily.

Then I hung out with Kiddo, sorting and playing with LEGO, for the most part. We found two sets still in boxes that she'd never opened (that's how much LEGO she has!!). She did most of the small one last night (finishing the set -- a Star Wars Pit Droid -- this morning) and now is working on the larger set.

Today, I got some much needed yardwork done -- trimming, weeding, staking and repotting one tomato plant from the greenhouse. I am pleased that we are starting to get food from the garden -- more than just the odd bit of lettuce and clump of radishes. It is very satisfying, though I doubt this year the garden will pay for itself. Maybe if I can master year-round planting and harvesting...

On Facebook, I decided to buy an ad to get more fans for FrugalVictoria.com. Before the ad started, I thought I was doing well with 47 fans. Since the ad has been running (it finishes tonight), I've more than trippled that number to 144 fans and counting. (I'd be happy to share more details if anyone is interested in the mechanics and costs.) What it's done, though, is made me feel more obligated to keep the website fresh and interesting. I may have to do that for my Creative Miscellany page, too.

heat and other headaches...

OK, so it's officially hot today -- we broke a 100 year old record in the Capital Region. Yay for us. In case you were curious, the great basement bed experiment was a minor (but reversible) fail. Basically, sleeping sideways is not an option and we also need more padding. Noted.

The heat is good for one thing, at least: the garden is spewing forth plenty of green things... (below: scarlet runner beans, peas, zucchini)

At work, the panic over moving desk locations* means I brought home two bagsful of stuff that had accumulated in my drawers and on my desktop and I am by no means done... but there is progress. Also, I may have an actual location for my workspace now -- my assigned space has been virtually moved around the floor-plan at least 6 times since we began planning. (Actually we didn't get to plan; a planner was brought in with little knowledge of what we do or how we need to do it.) On the plus side, the digitization equipment has been set up in its new home in the basement. It will be quiet (there should be few if any, "Hey, what are you working on?" interruptions) and there is even a phone so I could be reached at that workspace -- how novel!

***

P.S. My zombie haiku (yes, I was lazy and recycled one) was a runner-up over on BoingBoing.

***

*nearly 2 years ago we started talking about moving... last month we were told "after May 18th" but were not given any firm date or any boxes in which to pack things ... last Friday word came down that we would be moving on June 5th. Today, there were still no boxes. Sigh.

Some accomplishments

I just realized I don't think I have blogged about the one thing I've been most proud of, work-wise this month -- scanning and promoting an 1897 map of Victoria for cyclists. I saw the map come through cataloguing and knew right away that it was both a good fit for an existing digital collection and also perfectly timed to coordinate with Bike to Work Week. I asked my manager who said "Sure!" then scanned it in four pieces and stitched them together digitally. Next I coordinated with other members of the digitization team to get the metadata and "Zoomify" functionality, mounted it and talked to the Reference staff and our communications officer about promoting it.

The Reference staff asked me for a write-up which I provided; the communications officer asked for suggestions of where to promote it and off it went. The write-up was posted last Monday in the Featured Resources blog and on the front page of the Libraries website; late in the week the Times Colonist ran a story. It's been very satisfying.

***

On the home front, the garden work seems to be paying off -- we have lots of potatoes, the radishes have started to sprout, the bok choy is growing well, and the onion sprouts are a few inches tall. Looking at the plum tree tonight, I was disappointed by the amount of insect damage but pleased to see lots of proto-plums growing. There should be a decent yield. I'm not sure the apples will do as well; I have excised several large tent caterpillar colonies but they've already done considerable damage. Fingers crossed.

Of cabbages and kings

(Well not really but that was quoted on the wall by our booth at Floyd's 2 where we had lunch today.)

First, since I know you are all on the edge of your seats -- I did bike to work and back on Thursday and again on Friday. Thursday took me exactly 30 minutes from my back door to the bike racks outside the library; home took about 25 minutes because more of the trip is downhill. On Friday the trip in took about 27 minutes and back about 25 again. So it's safe to say that I need to allow at least half an hour each way. Yay! Bike to Work Week is on approach so I will try to keep cycling through the next two weeks and see where I am at after that.

Even though I was exhausted, I did get outside to plant the strawberries and water all the garden areas last night, but that was about the extent of my activity. Oh, except I did also take a bunch of photos -- not that it takes a lot of energy to take photos :)

Today, we slept in somewhat, then went out in search of garage sales -- the first two were non-sales and one was just a bunch of toddler toys. Actually, there were tons of toys and baby things for sale today but we didn't come home empty-handed. We got some little folding stool/table things for the living room, two deck chairs, and a little planter set for outside, a few other little things, and Hubby found another ornament to zombie-up.

Today was also the first full day of the Moss Street Market for 2009, so we went and got some seedlings, some fresh, tiny donuts, plus some veggies and focaccia bread. As if that weren't enough, it is also Free Comic Book Day so we stopped downtown where there are three stores in one block. Between the three of us and the three stores we got a fair haul:

Now we are home where I am about to tackle some movie reviews and other web updates.

Happy Easter!

It's Easter morning which, around here, means an egg hunt before dinner with Hubby's family. In my continuing quest to find stuff other than candy to put in the eggs, I decided to split a LEGO set up and hide it for her. Don't fret, she got some candy, too... just not a mountain of candy.

It took her almost no time (certainly less time than it took me to hide them) and now she is merrily building a drag racer from the LEGO.

But what else have we been doing? It's been almost a week since I last posted! Well, we've been sorting stuff for the yard sale and trying to source dirt for the raised beds. We've fallen behind where I wanted to be for planting, but there's still time. We got a truckload of "busted up sod" delivered for free but getting the grass out of the dirt has been a huge challenge. On the plus side, I bought some compost accelerator a while back and it has been working wonders on our compost -- it should be ready to spread in the beds very soon.

Yesterday, I mowed the lawn (first time it was dry enough to do so) and it looks good. The day before, I discovered to my delight that there was rhubarb dormant in the back yard which I had unknowingly insulated by covering the area with leaves last fall. I had been gradually using the leaves to layer the compost and had finally cleared enough away for the rhubarb to sprout through! Yay!

challenging weekend

Kiddo made this weekend... difficult. It was hard to be too grumpy about it because it all stems from her bout with the flu. Still, would like to just leave this experience out of the precious memories file.

The weekend wasn't a total write-off. I found my stash of knitting needles and more yarn among the boxes that came home last weekend so I made a list of the needles I own. I also found four little balls of wool that have been lingering in my stash for ages...

I spent a couple of hours searching through patterns at Ravelry but still don't have any good ideas for how to best use the wool... any input would be welcome! While I was poking around on the site, I realized I hadn't logged in for well over a year and there was a message from a moderator wanting to feature my Ma Cobb Hat photo on the feature page from January... oops. Anyway, while I was there, I also stumbled across the notice for this year's Victoria Fibrefest -- something that has been on the periphery of my radar for a couple of years. I may try to get to some of the events this year... who knows?

The sun was out today and Hubby took advantage of the weather to build another raised bed -- now we need dirt! While he was finishing that off and working on converting a pallet to a new base for Kiddo's tree fort, I worked on turning some of the ground inside the raised beds and pulling out some of the grass and weeds.

Oh, but the most exciting news (and subsequently some of the most frustrating): we made two sales from ThoseDeWolfes' etsy store (yay!) but I suck at estimating postage and Canada Post sucks at making shipping affordable so we lost some of the profit from each sale to shipping costs. Sigh.