It is *so* gardening season! Celebrating with John Denver, and the muppets:
I've done very little thus far this year between months' of wedding stuff and the sprained wrist... Things grow on their own none-the-less!
Given my slow start this year, I bought a number of plant-starts this year instead of doing the bulk from seed. (Here are the fateful ones I was carrying when I tripped and sprained the drawing hand).
I've begged and hired some help and gotten the initial weeding done and the strawberry beds strewn with straw....
-the plant starts put in (seeds still to come) - and SoMuchParsley! left over from last year. Pulled out lots, but it's so lush and lovely, I can't bear to tear out more as of yet. The overwintered greens are happily growing and the sweet cicely is blooming....
- the raspberry bed is cleaned out, strewn with straw and has some new babies placed in-
-and the new-as-of-last-year spiral bed is maturing nicely. Mostly traditional/medicinal herbs. Wave at the cranky chickens (they are banished to the coop until the new growth is sufficiently established that they won't demolish it).
It is a veritable jungle of sumptuous jungley growth (here are the burgeoning buds on the kiwi vines). Maybe by next week I'll be able to actually work out her
3 Comments on Music Monday - The Garden Song (muppet style) + April garden, last added: 5/3/2012
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By: Tara Chang,
on 5/14/2011
Blog: Silver Apples of the Moon (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: The Hermit's Grove, spring garden, Add a tag
I got to go back to The Hermit's Grove today -
- this time to pick the caretaker's brain about my own gardens...
- I weeded alongside of him and took notes on all his words of wisdom and experience...
It was fun to see how much everything had grown just since last week -
-it has actually been sunny and kind of *warm* the last couple of days. Leaves! Flowers! Growing things!
And this was the most clever thing I've seen - our incredibly invasive and prolific blackberries, sort of topiaried and curtailed and wrapped in a 'wreath'. Easy to pick and easy to contain.
Inspiration right and left....
4 Comments on Succulent Saturday - more garden photos -, last added: 5/15/2011
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By: Tara Chang,
on 4/23/2011
Blog: Silver Apples of the Moon (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: chickens, spring garden, Add a tag
Sorry for my bloggy absence, but we've had our first sunny *week* in recent memory - and it had to be spent out in the garden.
After months and months of studio time, it has been pretty neglected and is taking *much* clean-up before I can even attempt re-planting... I have nearly planted 6.5 out of the 8 of these beds here however!
Need to wait on planting the beans, tomatoes and cucumbers... Not warm enough yet.
The current and jostaberry (as well as the blueberries, gooseberries and aronia berries) are happily blooming.
Got my *new* backyard bed rototilled and have roughly laid in the bricks so that I can start planning its contents.
The chickens are very grumpy about all of this. I keep them locked in until all the seedlings are well enough established to withstand their grazing and scratching. They perch and yell at me every chance they get.
You'll have to wait for June, girls!
3 Comments on Succulent Saturday - spring garden post!, last added: 4/25/2011
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By: Tara Chang,
on 4/13/2011
Blog: Silver Apples of the Moon (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Website, deadlines, spring garden, Add a tag
I have finished the final revisions on the latest book. yay.
Done and done.
Done and done.
Now open for a break for a bit. Which is a happy thing
(I can hear my garden calling me...)
(I can hear my garden calling me...)
In other news, at long last I've also updated the website a bit. Shiny new things, all in one place!
It'll be interesting to see what comes next...
1 Comments on WIP Wednesday - update, last added: 4/15/2011
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By: Tara Chang,
on 5/30/2010
Blog: Silver Apples of the Moon (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: sketches in church, spring garden, Add a tag
...teeny purse Moleskine (blech..)...
...and late May gardens...
...raised beds and raspberries...
...currents, jostaberries, grapes and bed-of-Brassicaceae (formerly Cruciferae)...
And here be "Easter egg" radishes, fresh pulled from the garden...
Yay, spring!
2 Comments on Sunday Sketching -, last added: 5/31/2010
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By: Tara Chang,
on 3/13/2010
Blog: Silver Apples of the Moon (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: gratitude, deadlines, spring garden, kitchen remodel, Add a tag
What a couple of BIG BIG sighs of relief
I've been able to breathe this week -
I've been able to breathe this week -
First of all, after months (more accurately years) of working on the Wind Dancer series, I *finally* painted the last painting and Fedexed off the last piece of art. It took extra-extra late nights of working - and I ended up pulling an all-nighter to get it finished/scanned/covered/packaged. Got to bed after 8:30am the following morning - I think that's a personal record!
Secondly, while I was sleeping off the all-nighter, the kitchen fairies came and installed the countertops and sink! A few hours later, my fix-it guy came and hooked up all the plumbing and did all the finish-work. After waiting the 24 hours for it all to dry, we now have a working sink, disposal, and dishwasher. I must say, life is much, much easier now. I've ordered fancy-schmancy cabinet pulls and knobs and there are a couple of little odds and ends, but it is essentially *done*. Big, big hooray.
I can now take a bit of a breather to catch up on things like sleep, and housecleaning, and seeing my family, and The Garden! In fact, I got to import my mother for a week to help me with long term garden planning and organization (she's very good at this sort of thing, and I find I am still pretty much without a brain, so all help in that arena is appreciated!)And if things go well, I may even get to go out and *read* blogs again. I've missed being more two-sided the last several months. Hope to see you soon.
8 Comments on Succulent Saturday - Completions..., last added: 3/15/2010
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By: Tara Chang,
on 5/15/2009
Blog: Silver Apples of the Moon (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: spring garden, Add a tag
Since I'm still too wiped to actually go out and *work* in the garden, I'm having to content myself with watching my mom whip it into shape,
and in photographing the current state of growing things in the pre-twilight light....
There are things coming up in all the beds-
-the raspberries are filling in nicely.
(For the chickens, hope springs eternal that if you are outside, then maybe they can be also? They spring hopefully to the top of their feed can and chide you for their incarceration.)
Microgreens.
Mounds of chives, getting ready to blossom.
The lilacs are full out.
And my young quince tree is absolutely covered this year!Oh gardens, I will think loving and wistful thoughts in your direction until I can return to you....
10 Comments on Garden update -, last added: 5/25/2009
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By: Tara Chang,
on 4/10/2009
Blog: Silver Apples of the Moon (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: gardening, mom's garden, spring garden, Add a tag
Most of the seeds I planted before I went to visit my folks have started to sprout.
And a few of the seeds outside have also just begun (here you see the starts of microgreens!)
But my gardens always pale in comparison to the incredibleness that are my mother's...
She names her homes and land. This is apt - she has dozens and dozens of roses growing around her property (although there is not much to show for them now beyond hips).
Pathways and gateways...
Statuary galore...
Cold frames and square-foot beds for veggies -
-plenty of fruiting trees -
-all sorts of herbs and ground covers -
-sheds, arbors, decks, pots....
-and signs pointing the way to where we all live. :-)Even in winter and early spring, it is beautiful and charming.
11 Comments on The wonder that is my mother's garden -, last added: 4/12/2009
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John Denver himself looked rather muppety. Maybe that's why they collaborated so often. :)
Heh - yes, yes he does.
And I must say, there is something incredibly adorable about a singing, muppet cantaloupe!
SO glad to hear you are on th mend, must say I'm very envious of even your left handed sketching lol. The garden is looking fab, coming along a treat, sigh, im still waiting for mine to get dug over, things have been far too busy here the first quarter of the year & Poppy has taken up lots of time too, though im not complaining. But you have inspired me to try & get on in our veg patch again now thank you Tara x ps: HJope ur back to ur right-handedness very soon x