SMALL STEPS

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Even though I was out of town all week I was still able to round up some plants for the garden. I am trying to comply with my 2010 challenge to learn more about sustainable gardening, spend less by using seeds and propagation techniques and to recycle the things I have on hand whenever possible.

I was able to take some cuttings from some plants that I liked to add to my garden.

One was a Kalanchoe that had bright red flowers. I have two of these succulents already a light orange and a dark orange .


The other cutting is from a plant I am not familiar with.

It was still growing strong last week in 20 degree temperatures up North so I have to figure its a pretty tough plant.

Here is a picture from last May of the donor plant in bloom.

I am sure that some one will recognise this plant and tell me what it is. I had my eye on it for awhile and finally got some cuttings from it for my garden.


These guys are Park's Sweet success Cucumbers that I started from seed from the 5Th of this month.

They are replacing the Tomatoes that had been in the five gallon container.

I'm hoping to start some seeds a couple each week so that I can get a continuous crop of the cucumbers up into the summer.

These Sweet Success seeds are hybrids and I plan to start some organic heirloom Cucumber seeds after the hybrid seeds are used up.

Some more of the old seeds that I am starting have sprouted. These are mixed Zinnia plants that I am going to plant around the garden. I have a lot of the Zinnia seeds so I can start several more of them every week also.

The hardest part of changing to organic sustainable gardening is the attitude part. The challenge helps me to set some goals and helps to keep me honest about the methods I use. I really want to move away from the average garden center garden and plants grown by the nursery. Not that there is anything wrong with that it's just you don't learn much .

It's a lot harder to plan ahead and propagate your own plants than to buy them already half grown. The reward is that you learn and at some point I suspect no longer need the garden center. Not to say I am anywhere near that point but I am slowly inching closer. I have found lots of gardeners who will help and share their experiences and techniques if you are willing to ask.

It is a process that is taking a lot longer than I suspected. But there is a lot of forgotten information out there to be learned . Small steps to becoming less dependent and more self sufficient.

I suspect in times past folks knew how to garden organically and grow their own food and garden. Else wise they would have starved. The best part is that it is kind of fun to learn and empower oneself.

---sanddune---

NEW ADDITIONS

Several of the cuttings that I took on May 6 th have rooted and are ready to put out into the yard. This guy here is from my Angel Trumpet bush. I had to add the wire cage to protect the plants from my dogs who seem to derive great pleasure from trampling my new transplants.










This Croton plant was also made from a cutting that was taken and potted on May 6th. Both of the cuttings seem to have developed healthy roots and seem to be ready to face the elements on their own.


The Gardenia cutting didn't survive and the Bougainvillea is still green with some new growth but is looking kind of sickly. I planted the Bougainvillea out too hoping the added light will bring it back around.
Overall that is a 75% sucess rate with the cuttings experiment and I have three new additions to the garden pretty much for free.

This guy I planted out also just to see if it will survive and prosper here. It is an Unknown Swamp bush that I brought back from North Florida on Mother's Day. The original growth had shrivelled up and died . I kept it around instead of trashing it and was rewarded with this new sprout and growth. So I planted it, caged it placed it in the garden. We will see what happens with it. My wife seems to think that it is Poison Oak. Of course it is not Poison Oak, I hope.





This was my morning suprise today. My Park's Pearl hybrid Cucumber started producing it's first cucumber. I suppose they gave it the name Pearl because of it's whitish color. I will have to look it up to see how big it gets but its looking like salad is on the menu real soon.

---sanddune---
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