Winterizing your Garden- Part 3- final touches until spring.

Winter is in full swing.

Get your garden soil ready for next spring.

Get your catalogs out for next years planting. Some catalog suggestions below.

 Watch out for heavy lifting...use a gator or wheel barrel to move heavy objects, soil and garden supplies.

      Bring inside the potted plants, keep them in warm temps and water, so you can put them back out in Spring.
      For California growers you can bring the plants close to the house to avoid the occasional frost.   Plant broccoli, carrots, cauliflower,spinach,cabbage, bok choy, peas and lettuce for your winter garden.You will want to start your winter garden in Sept.- Nov. There is no hard fast rule, sometimes gardening is trial and error.  I didn't plant one this year because I traveled during December.
       I am enlarging my garden for this coming season. I want to put in two more above ground boxes. I am planning the layout and rotations now. I'm going to  scan the catalogs to try something new or different varieties.

      Protect the roses from the roots coming up because the ground heaves.  Put a barrier around the plant and put dirt inside. When the ground freezes then warms up the roots will come up or heave, then the roots will get mushy and disease can come in. This will insulate the roots.

 Cover the holly because it is edible and deer and other animals will  munch.

 Don't cut back the tree peony it will turn back to a bush if you do. Let it dry and buds will form for the Spring. It will grow big and beautiful.

 My sister in law planted these. Next year I may try planting beans too!

 Dry beans on a rack, keep moving them around and pick through them to get out the unwanted ones.
Growing beans are SO rewarding. You can use in soups on cold winter days.

Some great catalogs for seeds 2013 are Territorial Seed Company, The Cook's Garden for seeds and plants, Burpee, AND Gardeners Supply. 
Happy planting!!! Thanks to my sister in law Ann, for all her hard work, planning, teaching and inspiring me to love gardening.

3rd grade projects and Art!

I love being a substitute. When I go to all of the classes I find the most interesting projects, art, and bulletin boards. When I put these pictures on my blog its a way to remember what I saw AND show you.

 Self portrait, make squares first,each square has a design in them, draw a face, face 2 light colors, background 2 dark colors, shirt 2-3 colors, hair 2 colors.

                         

  Tall stories. They write an original story and make the booklet. 

                           Creating your own cereal, design it, write on the box!

                                      Learning about the students birthstones.

                                                  BIRTHSTONE PROJECT

Winter and Holiday crafts!

Here are a couple of cute ideas for the children. They take some adult help.

                        Cute kinder project , older classes can do most of it on their own.

                                        Precut scarves, different hats and circles.

                          You will need buttons, something for the nose and movable eyes.

                              For the kindergarden class our teachers aide helps them.

 Here is a cute paper plate Santa. You need cotton balls for the beard, google eyes, pom pom's for the nose and cheeks, red paper for the hat(as they cut hats will differ with every child) AND black marker for the mouth. Easy,fast,fun and the children LOVE it!!

 LOVE LOVE this project. You paint the Snowman and flicker with the paint to make the snow. On the back of the card you write the verse. In a little baggie you put hot chocolate,kisses,marshmallows and a candy cane as a stirring stick. YUM...fun parent or grandparent gift!!

I hope this will help for some last minute school or homeschool project.
Have a great time!

Winterizing your Garden Part 2- Last Harvest

     Its been a great season for fresh veggies, herbs and fruits. The season is over and now we harvest the last of our garden. In California I still have some herbs and other plants growing. In the colder climates as long as the ground isn't frozen you can still keep some plants.

Herbs still going strong, thyme, rosemary- prostrate and upright, verbena plant is in the center, chives, two types of parsley, sage (perennial)

                                                               Carrots don't mind the chill! They get sweeter in the cold. Keep growing until the ground freezes.

                             Yummy Arugula, grown from seed and comes up every year.

Celery....The white tubes are used to blanch the celery. Protects the celery from too much sun.
               For California growers a good winter crop.

Garlic is planted in the fall.

Happy Gardening!

Winterizing your garden! Part 1

I traveled to Michigan to visit family and went to my sister-in-law, Ann's  garden. She has the MOST amazing garden. She was my inspiration to start my two little box garden in Cali. 

Our growing climates are vastly different but some of the garden winterizing tips are the same. I will be posting about California winter gardening soon.

FIRST: you must clear out leaves. If you don't mice, rats, other rodents, and unwanted bug will hide in the leaves. You want to try to do this before its time for the snow and frozen ground .

Before

After

                                 Lemon verbena -  the leaves can be cut and saved for tea.

After

Before

                                                                                                             

Step 2: Cut back dead and overgrown branches. Above are the raspberry bushes. They need to be cut back in order to grow next year.

 It takes time and work to get everything cleaned up. Its a great time to think,get fresh air and exercise all at once! It looks good when your finished and your garden will be ready for next year.
A few days after this picture was taken the ground was covered with snow.

                                                                         

I am going to posting more garden winterizing tips...subscribe and you will get the post in your email!!