Then the potatoes joined a few golden beets, and radishes from an earlier harvest in the oven to roast. Before...
The squash was grilled in a grilling basket beside a marinated halibut fillet... can't you just smell it!
June 23, 2010
From soil to plate!
I harvested a whole crop of veggies tonight - beans, tomatoes, and these squash, purple carrots, and potatoes.
Then the potatoes joined a few golden beets, and radishes from an earlier harvest in the oven to roast. Before...
Then the potatoes joined a few golden beets, and radishes from an earlier harvest in the oven to roast. Before...
June 17, 2010
Beautiful Chickens at the San Diego County Fair
These were just three of the amazing chickens at the fair. Most of them made poor photo subjects because they moved too quickly. I was very excited to see a speckled sussex and a porceline Belgian D'uccle, but, sadly, the pictures didn't turn out. The top is a Dutch bantam, the middle is a pencil tip Polish and the bottom is a white-crested Polish.
June 13, 2010
Recent harvests
Anaheim peppers and purple dragon carrots!
Pattypan squash on the vine!
New pickles! And I made my first jar using a super flavorful recipe from this book -
Drip irrigation system
With the hot California summer quickly approaching, I got my drip irrigation system set up in the front. The total cost of the system was about $100, but is working to water about 25 potted plants, and three beds. Plus I have enough supplies to set up the backyard for only the cost of timers, which were $30 a piece. The hardest part of setting up a drip system is punching those dang holes in the main tubing. It takes a lot of elbow grease and my thumbs were wrecked for a day, but now I don't have to worry about any watering in the front of the house!
Here is a useful website which helped me get started:
Ok, so it is long, but this link will take you there.
June 12, 2010
June 01, 2010
Washing Machine Hook Up
One day I measured how much grey water came out of my washing machine during a week's laundry (4-5 loads), and was astounded. I was racing from the garage to the garden with buckets and still water was spilling on the garage floor. I counted about 50 gallons per load, and that is with an energy efficient model! As a resident of thirsty Southern California, I decided right then and there that I wasn't going to let this water go down the sewer any longer. This water was bound for the garden.
It took some help from a friendly Lowe's floorman, but I found a way to channel this water out that has worked like a charm for a month now, so I will share this trick.
I first lifted the drainage pipe from the sewer pipe, which was clearly visible behind my washer. There was nothing connecting the pipes, so that was simple. At Lowe's I purchased a large quantity of black 3/4 inch flexible pipe used to make drip irrigation systems and a hole puncher. I also purchased a piece of connective tubing used in sink garbage disposal systems that effectively enlarges the 3/4 inch pipe to 1 inch, the same diameter of the washer outlet pipe.
Then came the hard part, and I am going to save you from making the mistakes I made and flooding your garage several times. I tried using bicycle tire and sealant to wrap the two ends together - Don't try that, it was messy and ineffective for the amount of water pressure produced by the washing machine. I returned to Lowe's several times and finally found a connective piece that worked - a PVC 1 inch connector with threading on the inside of both ends. With sealant and the gripping power of the threads, I was able to twist and muscle the two ends into the threading, and it is holding great! A relatively cheap and simple way to take a 1 inch pipe down to a 3/4 inch tube that snakes through my garden, dripping out the grey water through small punctured holes. This provides a deep watering once a week, which has been fantastic this spring. The real test will be during the summer, when a daily deep watering will be necessary. I am still devising a way to mechanize that chore!
It took some help from a friendly Lowe's floorman, but I found a way to channel this water out that has worked like a charm for a month now, so I will share this trick.
Then came the hard part, and I am going to save you from making the mistakes I made and flooding your garage several times. I tried using bicycle tire and sealant to wrap the two ends together - Don't try that, it was messy and ineffective for the amount of water pressure produced by the washing machine. I returned to Lowe's several times and finally found a connective piece that worked - a PVC 1 inch connector with threading on the inside of both ends. With sealant and the gripping power of the threads, I was able to twist and muscle the two ends into the threading, and it is holding great! A relatively cheap and simple way to take a 1 inch pipe down to a 3/4 inch tube that snakes through my garden, dripping out the grey water through small punctured holes. This provides a deep watering once a week, which has been fantastic this spring. The real test will be during the summer, when a daily deep watering will be necessary. I am still devising a way to mechanize that chore!
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