New York Renovator

From time to time, I like to feature a guest post when someone has something informative to offer and when I’m too lazy busy to write anything. This guest post about compost bins is brought to you by the cool dudes at NatureMill Compost Bins.

Making Energy Efficient NatureMill Compost Bins A Priority In Your Home

Despite all our best go green efforts in this country, food recycling still needs a healthy boost into our collective consciousness. Even though food represents one of the easiest recyclable resources, nearly half of all solid trash collecting in our landfills is in the form of food waste. To some, the process of composting seems labor intensive and it’s thought this is why food recycling isn’t more of a priority. Other homes admit being deterred by the apparent contradiction of utilizing electric compost bins and draining the earth’s natural resources in an effort to repurpose food waste.

Green Model Compost Bins: An Eco-Friendly Must Have

Fortunately, simplifying the composting process with an electric compost bin and preserving our world’s precious natural resources can work together side by side. Choosing an energy efficient compost bin from NatureMill minimizes the compost bin’s environmental impact with designs that run on fewer than 5 watts of power every day. The compost bin ensures the most efficient composting process for your home. With a typical expense of less than $.50 each month, it’s easy to see how a NatureMill compost bin can revamp the way your family views composting.

Befuddled by the billions of weeds cluttering your yard or garden beds? Curious about that odd-looking herb or a nasty plant that stubbornly resists your weed-thwarting efforts? Check out the National Gardening Association Weed Library for identifying that plant. This is a very valuable resource for me. Not only do I have a lot of plants around the homestead, particularly weeds, but the kids are always doing something or another for their science courses.

I haven’t done ANY gardening (yet) this year. It’s just been too busy. Hopefully, we’ll do some major weed-pulling in a few weeks. This is what lies ahead of us….

When I first moved here over a decade ago, I knew next to nothing about gardening. I bought some books and checked some out from the library, and went to work, studying. I learned a lot. The nice thing about gardening is that it’s actually kind of easy. Plants are pretty resilient, and they will endure a good amount of abuse, lol.

So when I moved here, there were few plant: a rhododendron on its last gasps; a front flower bed FILLED with hostas (yuk); a stinging nettle bush next to the driveway (we got rid of that nasty bush the second day we moved in!); and an old Scotch rose disfigured with horribly drippy bags of fluorescent-orange spots. I later found out this was a fungus.

The rose bush, while pretty, was situated right next to the garage wall, in the shadows in an obscure area. I hacked at it to remove it. The thing grew back every year! And every year, I hacked at it again. I cut, I sawed, I weed-whacked. It just stubbornly refused to die! As a matter of fact, it grew back beautifully, free of the orange goop. I guess it had been neglected for so long that my vicious hacking only helped it!

Last year, I didn’t hack it. I was too exhausted. I just left it.

Look at it today. Photo taken this morning.

It’s still in the shadows in that obscure area, by the garage wall. I have to admire the tenacious little thing. It’s blooming like there’s no tomorrow- and I guess that makes sense because I hacked at the poor thing like there was going to be no tomorrow!

So I’m going to leave it. Maybe next year I’ll take the root suckers and plug them elsewhere in the garden. There are a few offshoots of this bush, elsewhere around the yard. They are also blooming prolifically. And they smell HEAVENLY. Oh, those old-fashioned Scotch roses! You can keep your hybrid plastic-surgery models– give me the old fashioned, hardy rose.  They are absolutely delicious. Like any true blood American, I love an underdog. And this rose bush is definitely a contender. LOL

So I have plans to put roses everywhere. I’ll incorporate them into my lilac-laden garden plans. Wouldn’t that be so wonderful– lilacs in May, roses in June. What’s for July and August?

For the first time in years, I’m seriously thinking about skipping all gardening this year, even the vegetable garden. It’s been my custom to add a little bit to the yard every year. When we bought the property, it was horribly overgrown. Neighbors used it as a semi-park and dumping ground. It took a heck of a lot of work to build this yard, to convince people that NO you cannot use my new lawn as your doggie doo despository, NO you cannot use my lawn as your next NASCAR racetrack, NO you cannot give your kids saws to chop down my new baby trees just for the fun of it. It’s been a ferociously uphill battle, but I had some major victories. My Secret Garden is my pride and joy.

Two years ago. Mmmmmmm.

But a number of things have really discouraged me. The flooding, for one. Every few years, my property is flooded with several inches of flood waters. It wipes out EVERYTHING. I’m tired of it. I’m so tired of battling the town, begging them to solve their stormwater drainage problems and slow down the McMansion uber-development up the hill. I’m tired of cleaning the silt and the mud from the house and yard. I’m tired of all the weeds that take opportunity on the wings of the flood waters to sink their gritty roots into my lush flower beds.

My gardens are under there... somewhere. See how close the water is to the house.

The vegetable garden today. *sigh*

It’s been raining just about every day in Upstate New York, since January. When I step onto the lawn, my feet sink a little into the squishy mud. We can’t mow sections of the lawn because it’s filled with sticky mud. What do I do? Shovel out the lawn???

Then there’s the deer. We are inundated with deer. I live in town, for pete’s sake! But there are woods (albeit small lots) in the back. Dozens of deer come to my property for their munch fests. I think word has got out via online printing services or something that there’s a feast of free vegetation to be had here. They eat like there’s no tomorrow. They even eat the plants that deer aren’t SUPPOSED to eat. Oh sure, I could spend $6,000 and put up an 8-foot fence around the perimeter of the property…. all 2,500 feet of it…. but we put up a small fence in the front, and THAT was agonizing enough. No can do.

Then there’s the fact that I work a few jobs now. Working, coupled with doing all the mom and housewifey stuff like cooking and cleaning, coupled with all the renovations this old house desperately needs has me depressed and frustrated most of the time, when I stop to think about it (something I try to avoid!).

I can’t keep up with it all. I’m too old. I’m not even sure if I can keep up the house anymore. While we have *most* of the downstairs gutted and renovated (except the windows and bathroom and some trim work), the upstairs awaits me. And the house beams are sagging and need to be supported (a major undertaking). And the basement foundation needs to be remortared outside (requiring excavation). And the roof needs replacing. And of course, we need new siding and we have got to get gutters to direct all this water away from the house. I really wonder if it’s all worth it. Why fix up a house and yard when it floods so bad that it wrecks everything you’ve done? I just want to patch up the holes, sell the place and get something situated on a hill. It’s SO discouraging.

We can't mow yet because there's a ton of mud sitting on the lawn still.

I guess this is normal for people experiencing flooding and other problems. I don’t see any way out and it’s terribly depressing to think about it. I think I’ll just get my zucchini at the store this year….

Subtle, she is not.

Sorry I haven’t been around very much. Winter is long in tooth this year. We had a little reprise yesterday (and last week). With thunder! But as I suspected, nothing accumulated and the birds didn’t fly back south. The flowers took a bold stance and are still persistently blooming. But shame on me– I still have not ordered garden seeds! Growing season doesn’t “officially” begin in Upstate NY until Mother’s Day, when *they say* threat of frost has passed. I don’t know, though… last year we had a frost in June. We’ll see. I can confidentially report that the monster snowbanks are now all melted (although north of us, I’m sure they still have dregs).

My thoughts are turning more toward the land, now that I can see it again, haha! We’re starting to think about home projects, garden projects, New York holidays– maybe even a farm stay or a camping trip– and of course the regular work to do around here. Because the kitchen renovation consumed my time and energy last year, I totally ignored the gardens. They are in terrible disarray. And the deer literally devoured my hedge or young arborvitae this winter. I am still very angry at them about that. More about them, later. Today’s a good day and I don’t want to spoil it.

So spring really, really is here. It may take some time before it’s a consistent visitor, but winter IS over. It is! Honest! Hang in there!

I recently wrote an article about pet-friendly lawn fertilizers, and the topic got me thinking more about my own lawn and my methods. Chemical lawn fertilizers, despite their claims of non-toxicity, are still chemical agents. These chemicals may remain in the lawn for quite some time. Dogs romp in the grass, and may absorb the chemicals into their skin. Cats nibble the grass and lick their paws. I don’t know about you, but I don’t like chemicals, period, and I don’t want my pets rolling around in it.

We want Fuzzy to be safe in the lawn.

There are ways to fertilizer and improve your lawn naturally, without any chemicals at all. And even better, the natural methods are less expensive and better for the environment, too. Here are some tips I have gathered throughout the course of my research.

1. Aerate your lawn.

Over time, grass lawns become packed down from foot traffic, lawn mowers, and thick growth. Grass needs air just like any organism. Use a lawn scarifier to aerate the grass. The scarifier, available as manual or powered devices, roll across your lawn. A roller with peg-like appendages puncture your lawn. Some fancier models remove dead grass, moss, and weeds, too. The small holes will be barely noticeable to you, but they provide little channels where air, water, and minerals can soak directly into grass roots.

2. Mulch the lawn.

Leaves are nutrient-packed mulch, like liquid gold for your lawn. It’s best to compost them the year before– pile up leaves in a bin in the fall, and allow them to decompose. By the time spring arrives, the leaves should have decayed into a dark loam. Sprinkle the mulch onto the lawn with a shovel, in broad strokes, and rake the mulch into the grass. This is THE best fertilizer for your grass.

Look for natural mulch without added colorants and chemicals.

3. Shred the grass clippings.

Some folks mow their lawns, then rake up the grass clippings and pile them on the street curb for the town to pick up. Know that if you do this, you are giving away some very valuable (and free!) fertilizer. Instead, invest in a lawn mower that shreds or mulches the grass as you mow it, and leave the clippings on the lawn. The clippings will decompose and provide the lawn with nitrogen and other yummy nutrients. Never leave clods of grass in your lawn, however. The clods block the sunlight and can cause fungus or mold to grow. Rake up large clods of grass clippings.

A badly damaged lawn full of weeds may need to be replaced.

4. Don’t over-mow the lawn.

If grass is cut too short, it cannot photosynthesize properly to produce enough food for growth. The weeds will eventually overpower the weakened grass. For most grasses, the lawn mower should be set to 2 to 3 inches. A good rule to follow is called the 2/3 rule: mow only the top third of grass, and leave the other 2/3 intact.

5. Keep weeds at bay.

Weeds are fellow competitors, contending with grass for water, sunlight, and soil nutrients. Large weeds such as burdocks and plantain should be removed quickly before they establish a party in your lawn.

Weeding the lawn is a tough one for me. My front lawn used to be a lush, beautiful lawn. Then came several years of destructive flooding, where muddy waters and silt covered my lawn. The flooding introduced a profligate number of weeds seeds. My lawn has never really recovered, and it is not possible to root out all the weeds that wiped out my lawn. So sometimes, in serious cases, you can only do so much before you have to completely re-sod the lawn.

I hope these tips help you! There ARE ways to make your home environment an enjoyable place– and a safe place– for your pets.

I have been as negligent of my gardens this year as I have been about blogging about them. Thank God, plants require very little care and attention. Unfortunately, the weeds also thrive on negligence. :-p But it looks like my vegetables are holding their own. The snow peas are on the brink of harvesting (I just love them raw); we also have cucumbers, which are not doing so well (never do, really); loads of kale, lettuce, spinach which is overwhelming in its production; the red cabbage is coming (yay!), yellow squash is starting to produce fruit… I love vegetable gardening! Talk about diet supplements that work!! There is nothing like fresh, clean food that you have grown yourself.

Here is my chorus of onions in the late afternoon sun:

The zucchini has a few babies!

The cantaloupe is doing poorly, due to a cold spell in April, a very dry May, and a totally soggy June. The apple tree is producing little– I only spotted THREE apples so far– but the grapes and berries are doing well.

The native, wild stuff seems to be doing very well in Upstate this year. Plants that I usually have to pamper, such as tomatoes, melons, and cukes, are doing very poorly. It does not fare well for our emphasis on the raw food diet, but I am grateful for the stuff that we are getting.

June is really a crucial month for us, and it was very disappointing this year. We got SEVEN inches of rain in June. Way, way too much. Everything is soggy, and the pests breed in the wet weather. So even my flower gardens are rather limpid this year.

Still, it is good to see my fruit plants producing, such as the berries and grapes. They get better every year.

I’ve been hearing about this new “organic” pesticide, and wanted to check some out for myself. The gracious folks at Safer Brand gave me a free bottle of EndALL insect spray to try out. Summer is only just beginning here in Upstate New York, so I can’t say we are plagued with loads of pests (yet). But for the past few years, I have had problems with aphids, tent caterpillars, sawfly larvae, and cucumber beetles in my gardens. And spider mites are a real pain for the indoor plants. Sheesh! I don’t want to use pesticides because I’d rather not eat food tainted with toxins, thank you very much! But the bugs are sometimes overwhelming.

So we tried the EndALL Insect Killer spray on some nasty spider mites that had been infesting the houseplants. The EndALL worked very well– solved the mite problem and didn’t stink up the house with a nasty chemical smell. According to the label, EndALL will kill: Japanese Beetles, weevils, caterpillars, bagworm, aphids, leafhoppers, tent caterpillars (yes!) sawfly larva (YESSS!!), chinch bugs, sod webworm, armyworms, billbugs, lawn moths, box elder bugs, Asian lady beetles, gypsy moth larva, earwigs, whiteflies, and more. So far, SO GOOD! We’ve had a problem with the sawfly larva, especially– they devour my pine trees every year. :-p

Ugly things!

EndALL spray is suitable for flowers, fruit trees and bushes, vegetables, lawn, ornamental plants, and houseplants. Active ingredients are potassium salts of fatty acids, clarified hydrophobic extract of neem oil, pyrethrins. Yeah, i couldn’t understand that, either. As long as it doesn’t say “dynamite” or “yellow cake uranium,” it looks good to me!

So if you’re looking for an organic solution to your pest problems, give EndALL a try. It’s mild enough to be pleasant and safe to use, but powerful enough to zap the nasty bugs!! Thanks to the folks at Safer Brand for sending me this terrific product! I’ll be making good use of it.

This is a sponsored post, brought to you by the folks at Safer Brand.

UPDATE! See what High Mowing Seeds has to say about my shipping and packaging complaint. WHOA!!! They rock!

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I decided to go 100% non-Monsanto, 100% organic with the garden this year. No funky seeds, no funky fertilizers, no funky pesticides. It’s expensive to go organic, lol. My seeds from High Mowing Seeds, a small seed distributor in Vermont, came in.

I’m really happy with the selection of seeds, and am looking forward to planting them… but I’m a little disappointed by the packaging and shipping. I spent a whopping $11 for shipping. For that price, I nearly expected a valet to come to my front door, to roll out the red carpet and unload the packages into my gardening shed. OK, maybe a $3 sturdy box. Maybe a $1 bubble-wrapped padded envelope, even, like I get with my all natural vitamins. But this is what I got:

Maybe I’m being a tad fussy…. I’m used to paying HALF that amount in shipping and getting TWICE as good a package. The seed packets were all smashed into this thin little envelope. I haven’t yet checked all the seeds in the envelopes to see if they are crunched. I have a husband who works for the post office, so I know how packages get a severe beating through the mail system. I’m kinda disappointed. Hopefully, the seed quality will be spectacular and more than make up for the pitiable shipping.

Anyway, they are here. I’m really looking forward to planting leeks and kale this year! And cabbage! I’m trying out a lot of new things this year:

• Giant Chard
• Red Cabbage
• Cucumber
• Siberian Kale
• Collards
• A large selection of lettuces
• Leek
• Muskmelon
• Snow pea
• Spinach
• Yellow squash
• Zucchini
• Roma Tomato
• Rutabaga
• Basil

They had no Romaine lettuce, so I need to obtain that from another company. I also plan on getting marigolds to keep the slugs at bay. And I’ve got some potatoes ready; the kids may want some pumpkins and I do want sunflowers again this year. Sunflowers do well here. This is what we got the last time we planted them.

It’s been cooler at nights again (high 30s), so I have to delay the seed planting until it’s a bit warmer. We also have to till the beds yet. The Hubs and I spent an afternoon replacing the rotted old wooden boards with new ones.

Lumber prices are CRAZY. Why are they jacking up the prices THIS year?!?! Don’t they know I have a ton of work to do?! :-p These six 2 x 6 x 12s cost me $60. Ridiculous. I could only replace one bed. *whine snivel*

Well, I’m going to be pulling out some plaster and lathe this weekend. Just a little. I’m going to be testing out my plumbing skills with the washing machine set up. Mmmmm… I’ll have more on that later. Please PRAY for me!

I’ve always wanted a porch swing. I was hoping to get something last year, but big bills reared their ugly heads, and then winter was here. And this year, all my attention and money is going into the new kitchen… but come autumn, I’d just love to finally relax after all that hard work and get a swing. I spotted this at Buy.com; isn’t it exquisite?! It’s wrought iron, and you secure it to the ceiling joists of the porch. I like this much better than the kinds that have those canvas canopies. Buy.com always seems to have a sale going on, even on things like these!

Of course, I need to finish my front porch. :-p It was almost finished a few years ago, but the roof leaks in the winter (ice dams) and I cannot close up the ceiling until I fix those leaks. And the rails and columns need to be painted and adjusted. We get so much water underground (and above ground) that the porch has sunk into the ground. I love my front porch, but it’s HUGE (10 x 20′) and empty. I want to make it more welcoming. I think a beautiful porch swing will do the trick, don’t you?

I don’t know what else to add to the garden surrounding… maybe a bench. too? I’d like to add a bird feeder, but don’t know if the birds would come to the house that closely. I have my Secret Garden on the side of the porch– oh that will be so lovely when it’s all grown in!

We work at this a little bit every year, adding more flowers and shrubs and more of the concrete walkway. It’s a very beloved garden to me. Eventually, the Rose of Sharon and Lilac bushes will grow up on both sides of the arbor, and make a virtual green, flowery wall. Oh! I can’t wait. I think I may add a Victorian glass globe or a bird bath and feeder in here. It will look SOOOOO beautiful! Buy.com has all that stuff, too. Very good prices. I love this one, and there’s another bronze bird bath just like it. You’d think this would be close to $100, but it’s only $31!

Oh, dreams dreams. I love gardens! They are so inexpensive to make! And the reward is so satisfying. After I finally get this kitchen done, I cannot WAIT to begin the gardening again!