Another Tough Year for Gardens

Last year was bad for vegetable gardening (hottest summer on record here in OK).  This year, while not as bad, has not been great.  Especially since I was stubborn and am still trying to raise only heirloom vegetables.  From seed no less.  There is just something extremely satisfying about seeing your own vegetables growing.

my first ever eggplant

tigger melon still green

tigger melon almost ripe

Needless to say, heirloom gardening is always a good learning experience (no built-in disease and weather resistance - all natural).  And I am saving seeds too.  However, with the small output of my garden this year, I have now resorted to buying my veggies from the farmer's market.  I did get some veggies though, before the heat and animals (deer, raccoon, rabbits) took over.  Here are some of my various pickings:

Moon and Stars watermelon, Tigger melon, Cantaloupe

I am keeping my gardening chin up and planning a fall garden (with a few more modifications to the beds to help with the pests).  

Something simple - Kat

Happy New Year 2012 !!!

New Year's Resolutions -
First and foremost - work on getting healthier, stronger - otherwise, all else is for naught.

• Explore more - old town main streets and backroads, canyons and mountains
• Experience wider - learn more, read more, enjoy more
• Love deeper - Keven, family, country, self
• Serve selflessly - God and community
• Create freely - fabric art, drawings, clothes, who knows
• Live simply - garden, stitch, build, bake, can, clean

Kat

Best Fall Ever in Oklahoma !!!

Since we moved to Oklahoma in January 2000, I think this has been the best Fall ever for fall colors and up there for temperatures.  The trees have begun to lose their leaves out here in the country - especially after the few freezes we have already had - here is Wednesday morning's (11/9/11) heavy frost - even bird bath froze.

But the trees still have some fantastic color...

Some close-ups of leaves, a cottonwood branch and some prairie grass (wish our whole yard had this grass!).

Today we had amazing weather!  Temps got up to 80.  Sky was beautiful.  Trees were beautiful.  Kev mowed the grass for the last time this year and dumped some shredded leaves in the garden beds - preparation for next year's plantings.  I did some stuff around the house then sat out on the patio and quilted.  Pure Fall heaven !!!

Oh happy days - thank You, God!!!
Blessings,
Kat

Tend Your Own Garden

While I love flower and vegetable gardening, this is not what the title of this blog refers to.  But it will serve as a good example of the importance of these four words.

I had a beautiful beginning garden in May.  I tended it everyday, morning and night, looking forward to my months-long reward for all this hard work.  Coneflowers, lilies, zinnias and gallardia - green beans, okra, squash and canteloupe.  And our yard -  Keven had it looking like a golf course!  Then THE summer of 2011 hit OK ... hottest summer on record, most number of days of 100+ temps.  And the rain - where did it go once summer arrived?

Well, by the beginning of July, I was physically suffering - the heat was taking its toll on my not-too-healthy-to-begin-with body.  I was really aching by the end of the day, with the very warm mornings of gardening and watering chores (you would think those darn weeds would die with everything else from lack of water and excessive heat - ha!), followed by a day at work.  By evening, I was pushing myself to get more watering in, feed the thirsty and hungry animals that frequent our yard (ok - the lack of mosquitos this year has been a blessing, though not for the animals that depend on bugs for their sustenance).  Getting into bed every night, I hurt and I hurt BAD - could not stitch or read, could not visit with my friends, could not go to sleep (much less stay asleep when I was finally able to drift off).  And then it would start all over the next day.  And the weekends - those were CATCH UP watering and weeding days!  But I was intent on having those fresh-cut flowers for my tables and fresh veggies for our summer meals. And Keven - well, our grass was still nice thanks to his hard work. 

So now, back to those four wonderful words.  I was reading the book from clutter to clarity - simplifying life from the inside out by Nancy Twigg (which I highly recommend to all you overachieving, stressed out, "quiet time is wasted time" kindred spirits out there).  Ms. Twigg challenges the reader - Tend Your
Own Garden.  And my response, "I am trying - I have all this stuff I want to be doing, but this gardening is taking up all my time and energy and strength and stamina this year.  I can't quilt.  I can't go out with friends.  I can't even do my nightly reading.  I am physically spent."  Blah, blah. 

But then, her point hits me.  I have to take care of myself first - nobody else is responsible for doing that.  I was trying to best Nature itself and was losing the battle - not just the flower and vegetable garden battle, but the battle to keep myself healthy for the other important things in my life (afterall, it is just this one rare summer, right?).  I had to stop tending my garden to tend MY garden.

And I stopped - and the flower and vegetable gardens (and eventually the grass - even Keven has his heat limits) died - no more watering and weeding needed.  I started feeling better, and then even BETTER - and I had energy to read some wonderful spiritual and educational books, and I did MORE quilting and other stitching in the last 2 months than in the last 2 years, and had energy to go places with Keven and friends, and I started sleeping again.  Crazy, huh?

Well, I think Ms. Twigg and her book saved my summer (and much more).  I realize now that paring down the material things (not fabric material, mind you!) and eliminating some of the excessive tasks on our to-do lists every day is NOT the end-all-be-all solution to simplifying your life - the solution starts by simplifying the clutter in the mind and soul of all the "wants" and "shoulds" that seem to take over our lives.

Oh, did I mention?  Our cactus garden did VERY GOOD this year!!!! 

Well - I did get on a bandwagon, didn't I?  I promise my blogs won't be this wordy all the time - because that is simply not simple, is it?  Ha!

Blessings - and don't forget to TEND YOUR OWN GARDEN.
Kat