Great Backyard Bird Count

One of my favorite Citizen Science events is about to occur - the Great Backyard Bird Count !

What is a Citizen Science project you ask?
       It is any project where ordinary people go out and collect data and submit it to the requesting group. This data is used to detect trends and developments. Some projects require you to go through a training class - like if you are a stream monitor. Jim will be doing citizen science when he records and reports on the success of the birds that move into the nest boxes on the Bluebird Trail.

This year the Great Backyard Bird Count is Feb 15-18, 2013. I'm going to try it at the Community Garden as well as at my house.

If you are interested, join me at the garden on 

 Saturday, Feb 16 between 2:00 and 4:00 and we'll look for birds.

Bring binoculars if you have any.

Below are pictures of some of the birds that have been heard or seen in and around the garden. We'll just see how cooperative they are when we go looking for them!

To the left, pine siskins on the tube feeder. Above, a red-bellied woodpecker. Below the pine siskins, a tufted titmouse.

A male cardinal (to the left) is bright red all over. While a female cardinal (above) is buffy brown with red highlights. She isn't bright like the male because she needs to be hidden while sitting on the nest. Below is a morning dove.

 

Garden Damage after the Freeze

The Good News - the freezing weather is over.
Even better news - we now have 10 days of warm weather.

The Bad News - the freezing weather is over
Worse news - we now have 10 days of warm weather.

Warmer weather is a mixed blessing for plants at this time of year. It gives them time to recover from the cold weather but because it is going to be warm for 10 straight days, we are going to have a huge outbreak of pests (aphids and sucking/chewing critters) and fungal disease outbreaks.

Everyone needs to come out to the garden and check their beds for damaged leaves and killed or melted plants because of the cold weather. Leaving damaged vegetation in your beds creates the perfect climate for disease and bugs to proliferate.  As you can see from the pictures there are a lot of "melted" out plants because the lows were so low.

Removing all damaged plant material now is essential!

Dead plant material just creates hiding places for insects and disease in your bed. If you wait to remove the dead plant material until just before you plant, there will be bad critters lying in wait to attack your newly planted veggies.

Be sure and inspect all your plants closely for eggs and aphid nymphs. Just before the deluge last week, I saw I had some but the rain washed all the azamax off that I had sprayed. I've since resprayed but I still need to keep an eye on the situation because it will be warm so long.

Luckily, I  don't have any cold damage on my plants. However, the frost cover trapped all the rain and high humidity inside so now I have a lot of damage to my Swiss Chard leaves. This week all the damaged leaves need to be removed and the plants that look more dead than alive need to be pulled out.

Next year I think I'll plant my Swiss chard so it will be outside the cover since the majority of the Swiss chard grown in the open is doing very well. My carrots and spinach are thriving under the cover but the Swiss chard, not so much.

               VickiBed41

"Bubba" Blue

A Great Big Welcome to....
                                  Bubba Blue!

Bubba's new home is Bed #34

But it looks like he is driving Caully

 (who resides in Bed 30) to drink

The Carlos Montano Garden Art Studio

Four Winds Planter

At Green Meadows we like to garden.  In the cold, the heat, the wind, and especially on a warm, spring day, we like to garden.  But we are not only about gardening.  We have many interests.  Sometimes we even like adventure.  On February 20th, we have an appointment at the studio of Carlos Montano in Fairburn, Georgia.  Those that want to participate can meet at the garden at 8:45 on Wednesday the 20th and caravan south of Atlanta to his studio.  Carlos produces beautiful garden art to enhance your garden. You will find incredible planters, bird baths, statuary and more.  He also reproduces unique pieces created by the late Atlanta artist Christine Sibley.   His work is very well known in Atlanta and it is not sold in stores.

Magnolia Stepping Stone

I know you will be pleased with the quality and also with the pricing.  Several of us went in October and came home with unique pieces.  I have pictures of several pieces that I purchased and you can go to his website, Carlos Montano Studio .   The website only gives you a small sample of the items he has available and you cannot appreciate the variety and quality from the pictures on the web.  Carlos promised that in February as he prepares for spring, the studio has more items available than at any other time of the year.

Garden Wall Plaque

      Those that would like to join us need to email me at our Green Meadows email address so I can have a head count of who is going and how many vehicles will be needed.  Trucks and suv’s are great as they allow more room for bringing things back.  We will plan a nice stop for lunch and make this a fun outing.     If you like garden art, you don’t want to miss this trip.

Carol Hanak

Beyond Freezing Temps Warning

Here is another HEAD's UP that we are going to have beyond freezing temps for the next few days. The only good thing is that everything is extremely well watered at the garden.  Cover as soon as possible on Thursday to trap as much heat under your frost cover to get through Friday and Saturday.

Friday am - 29 with a high of 38
Saturday am  - 22 with a high of 49
Sunday am - 35 with a high of 55
Monday am - 30 with a high of 54

After Monday morning it looks like we won't have any super cold temperatures for a few days.

Army of Armadillo's

I've been slow posting the pictures from last Saturday's workday, I plead...rain delays. Grin. 

We had a great group of 13 people show up and we got tons of weeding done while talking up a storm. The winners of the weeding prize drawings were Vann, Amy and Jim.  Plus we had very tasty treats as well. All under a sunny sky. What more can you ask for! Well besides no weeds.

Denise contributed the treats and the "weeding" prizes and Mike brought one of his pottery pieces for another guessing game.  Dalita was the grand prize winner of the guessing game this time. Vann was very lucky because she was the runner up for the guessing game and ended up taking home two prizes.

 The Treats

 

The players

 

The Pottery Girls

 

 At the end of the Day, the major paths were weed free. Now we all have to be like chickens spotting a June bug - jump on the weeds before they get too established and pull them out.

Mike's Pictures from the Thursday Workday

Rita and Elise digging weeds

Carol moving dirt to top off a bed

Dalita supervising Vicki's weed pulling



Hard at work spreading mulch
 



Lost & Found Box

We now have an official Lost & Found Box in the shed. It even has something in it! The tools in the Lost & Found Box were originally found on Dec 20 near Bed 17. 

What the Lost & Found Box looks like

 

 

What is in the Lost & Found Box

Question on Corn Seed

Hey Everyone,

I have a really stupid question that I seem to see mixed information on.

I am looking at Sugar Buns Hybrid Corn Seed which states it contains sugar-enhancer endosperm.  If it is endosperm enhanced, is that the GMO seed? 

Also on a funny note the endosperm comes up as a misspelling and blogger wants to replace it with the word spender......Maybe it is the late night on the computer, but spender and endosperm in my corn is certainly tickling the ole funny bone.  That would be a conversation piece in the garden, lol!

Denise, Beds 25 & 29

Super Sow Sunday

I received this email for a good chance to get some early spring planting knowledge. Super Sow Sunday at all Pikes Sunday, February 3, 10am - 3pm Start your seeds now so they are ready for spring. Join us for this hands-on event at all Pike Nurseries locations. We will have everything in stock you'll need, and of course plenty of expert advice! No registration needed.

Bluebird Trail - Labor of Love

All it takes is one person taking one small action to make a difference. The Green Meadows Preserve Bluebird Trail is a perfect example of that statement. (You can follow Jim's bluebird adventures here - Green Meadows Bluebird Trail)


Male Eastern Bluebird 

I'm sure most of you have met Jim (he has beds # 34 & 35) at some point when he comes out to Green Meadows to walk his two golden labs Daisy and Abbi, work in the garden and work on the bluebird trail. Jim has helped build the Community Garden from the ground up. He put in over 200 hours of volunteer work before he got his two beds in July of 2012!



Jim pounding in rebar

While Jim was helping to build the garden he noticed bluebirds flying around everywhere. Shortly after that, he and Kathy (his wife) bought a bluebird house to put on the fence to provide a home for the bluebirds. The more he watched the birds and read about them, the more he wanted to help provide nest boxes for them.  Green Meadows Preserve has lots of choice habitat for bluebirds but lacked one essential thing - spots for bluebirds to build a nest.

The Community Garden is lucky enough to have 3 bluebird boxes nearby. Two of the boxes are in the small clearing behind the shed. Lucky, because not only are bluebirds fascinating to watch, but because bluebirds eat lots and lots bugs. In fact, 60-80% of their diet consists of bugs!

Box # 1 is the original box Jim had on the fence. Box # 20 is the

box that Jim and Kathy gave their grandaughter for Christmas.

 

There are 20 nest boxes on the bluebird trail. Jim's human assistants installing the nest boxes have been Kathy and Mike (bed #30). Daisy & Abbi go along as needed.  Four of the nest boxes on the trail were donated by community gardeners - Kitty & Harvey, Jim & Kathy, Vicki & Victor.

Jim showing Avery and her father Jed

the bluebird nest box she got for Christmas.

On the first terrace up from the garden you can see a bluebird feeder and a birdbath that have been installed.  If bluebirds eat insects, why have bird feeders you ask?  They also eat suet, cracked pecan meats, sunflower meats, dried and live mealworms and any live grubs we happen to dig up in the garden. (Denise has donated dried mealworms to feed the bluebirds.)

Jim is going to put a small feeder on the fence so we don't have to leave the garden when we find grubs to feed the bluebirds. Providing more food sources means the bluebirds will stay around, have babies in the nest boxes and eat our pestiferous bugs as well.

Where is the food? Where are those humans that are

bringing the bird seed out? Mike? Jim?

 

Be sure and watch all the activity around the bird feeders and birdbath! There is already lots of action to watch around the 2 boxes near the garden. The males are investigating the houses and trying to get females to accept check them (and the nest boxes).  In another 6 weeks or so they will get serious and start building nests. 

Saturday Weeding Party & Door Prizes

Hey Everyone,
 Don't forget that we are having the Saturday version of the Weeding Party/Workday from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm Saturday the 26th.

   The main tasks for the Saturday Weeding Party:

•  weeding the two big main paths
•  weeding where the Sunflower/Good Predator Borders are going to go in
•  finish pruning/cutting back the pollinator beds

Be sure and bring your favorite weeding tools and possibly something to kneel or sit on, as the ground is going to be soggy after the rains on Friday. Rain makes it easier to weed but unfortunately much wetter and messier.

I've also been informed that there will be DOOR PRIZES for Saturday as well!

     See you there if you can make it.

              Vicki

Thursday's Weeding Party Accomplishments

Thank you to everyone who came out and worked -we had a great turn out and a lot of fun.

For January you couldn't have asked for better weather. Thank goodness it was sunny because it was very chilly at 10:00 am! Even though we worked hard for two hours there is still lots left to do at the Saturday Weeding Party.

A special Thank You to Dalita for bringing the delicious Bits-o-Brinkle Cookies for us to enjoy which were made with pecans collected at the garden.


The mulch loaders and wheelbarrow pushers

 

Part of the weeding crew

The mulch spreaders

 

These pictures don't show all the action because 2/3rds of the pollinator beds got pruned AND there were 7 more people weeding!

 

 

Door Lock has been Moved!

The lock on the shed door has now been moved.  Be careful when you use it so you don't pinch a finger. There is a piece of nylon cord hanging from the lock - use it to open and close the bar and you won't shed any tears.

Victor Williams moved it down so
all us vertically challenged people can reach it.

 

Spotlight on a Vegetable - Kohlrabi

Hey Everyone,

I do not know if anyone has ever grown Kohlrabi before, but it has to be one of the best kept secrets out there.  This winter it has proven itself as the most pleasant surprise in my garden.  It has the texture of an apple when eaten raw and a flavor that is so unexpected.  I taste a hint of cabbage to it, but the rest I still need to determine.  It is juicy, mildly flavored, and oh so very sweet. 

  

 Purple Vienna Kohlrabi

My understanding is that Kohlrabi is a European delicacy prized by chefs for its versatility in the kitchen.  Let alone the fact that it is low in calories, high in fiber, and a good source of several vitamins and minerals.  It is also a member of the brassica family for those who enjoy eating foods with anti-cancer properties.  While I enjoyed the first of my bulbs raw, grated on some Lolla Bionda greens (specialty Italian Loose-leaf), there are a host of recipes easily found for boiling, braising, roasting, sautéing, steaming, stir-frying, stuffing, and even throwing it on the grill.  Simply impressive!  My next bulbs will be sautéed with carrots in a little olive oil and garlic butter, and then tossed with fresh parsley for a side dish.  I cannot wait to try this, yummy!

The link below is to Renee’s Garden, which always has a wealth of good information.  Renee grew up in the same part of Ohio where I was raised and she has been such an inspiration with her journey to obtain some of the best seeds out there.  She has a wonderful article written on Kohlrabi and a few recipes posted as well. 

http://www.reneesgarden.com/articles/kohlrabi.html - link to Renee's article on Kohlrabi

For any of those wishing to try Kohlrabi as something unique and versatile now would be the time to sow seeds indoors for transplanting into the garden the first part of March.  Purple Vienna has won a place in my garden for years to come and I cannot wait to try some of the other cultivars.

Hope you enjoy as well,

Denise, Beds 25 & 29 

Serious COLD Tues AM & Weds AM

Just a heads up that Tuesday morning the low is going to be 26 and Wednesday morning the low is going to be 24. If you have anything the least bit tender it is most likely going to be hit hard. The extremely heavy frost on Saturday morning did damaged most of the lettuce that was still in the garden and this freeze may finish them off.

You are Invited to a Weeding "Party"

This month, our Community Garden workday is going to concentrate on removing winter weeds and onions that are taking over.  The workday will make the task much more enjoyable since there should be plenty of people to talk to while you are working. And it certainly won't hurt anything if you get distracted and chop through the middle of the weed while you are socializing!

 

We have too many weedy areas like this!

 

There are two "parties" so everyone has a chance to join in the fun.

Thursday
   Jan 24 10:00 am to 12:00 pm

Saturday
  Jan 26 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm

Bring your favorite weeding tools, water and something to sit on in case the ground is still wet.

 

This is what we want the garden to look like!

No Longer Left Behind

I've felt like I was getting left behind but I finally found something I liked to put in my bed. Sue asked me what I was going to name her so I said Posey...one because she has flowers and also because that was the name of the little black puppy we had back in the early '70's.  Now when Caully wants to go visiting she can go visit Posey instead of that rough and tough Rocky over at Denise's.

 

But I think I need to make her a hat as well because even though she does live in a  nice frost cover house it gets really cold up there. 

 Poor Caully had a frozen head Sat morning even

 though she was under the frost cover!

Parsley, Parmesan Cheese & Garlic Fries

Baked French Fries with Parsley, Parmesan Cheese & Garlic

I made this recipe with fresh parsley and garlic from the garden and wow, they were wonderful.  It was so yummy; I felt the need to share!  Originally it appeared in Bon Appetite Magazine and came from the kitchen of Cookin' Canuck.  Sometimes I even change it up a bit and make chips for a party tray that is always a hit!

Ingredients:

4 - 5 medium russet potatoes

3 tablespoons extra light virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

1 - 2 cloves of garlic, finely minced (one large or two small)

Parchment paper required

My Guilty Pleasure!

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Wash and peel potatoes.  Cut into 1/4-inch julienne style strips.  (See my photo above)   Dry the potatoes between paper towels.  

In a large bowl, combine the olive oil and kosher salt.  Add the potatoes and make sure they are coated well.

Divide the potatoes between two baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spreading into a single layer.

Bake until the potatoes are golden brown, about 35 - 40 minutes, turning the potatoes every 10 minutes and rotating the racks halfway through baking time.

Place the cooked potatoes in a large bowl and toss with the garlic, parsley, and Parmesan cheese. Season with additional salt if necessary.

Makes 4 servings

Hope you enjoy!

Denise, Beds 25 & 29  

Pecan Picker Upper at Lowe's

Today I went up to Lowe's on Dallas Hwy to get some basil seed for the garden and to meet Bill to look at tools for the garden. Amazingly enough, I found Lowe's carries the exact same kind of pecan picker upper that I have! (Though they do call it a nut picker upper.) They had 7 or 8 of them for $10.98 which is a good price. They are in the Tool section on the wall, kind of at my eye level.

Now true, pecan season has ended but if you go ahead and get one now, it means you will be on a more equal footing with the other obsessive/compulsive pecan gatherers.  Ahem....I'm not naming names to protect the innocent but we all know who the obsessive/compulsive pecan picker uppers are.  And we all know who started them on the path towards owning their own pecan picker uppers. Ahem.....

 

Here is the link to the one Lowe's has -  Pecan Picker Upper. When you click

on the link you can see it is just like the one I have in this picture.