[Magdalen] First fruits

[Grace Cangialosi]

I have a whole Rodale book on straw bale gardening; it's got all kinds of possibilities. The "last" frost date here is always May 15th, so I can still plant tomatoes, though I may not put the full size plants in bales. But I'm going to put a row of them along the side of the house for greens and flowers and herbs. It's a very clean way of gardening--you can lay mulch or extra straw in the rows between the bales. Just make sure you use straw bales and NOT hay!

> On May 9, 2016, at 2:43 PM, "Lynn Ronkainen" <houstonklr at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Thanks Grace... I did google and read several articles... next year I'm going to try it - too late for this year here in the big TX, we've only about 6 weeks left of summer veggie growing.
> 
> I think I might get 4 or 5 bales and put them on the edge of my patio at the point where the cement meets the flower garden dirt.  It may also help in keeping water where it belongs, instead of on the patio after hard rains LOL
> Lynn
> 
> website: www.ichthysdesigns.com
> 
> When I stand before God at the end of my life I would hope that I have not a single bit of talent left and could say, "I used everything You gave me." attributed to Erma Bombeck
> "Either Freedom for all or stop talking about Freedom at all" from a talk by Richard Rohr
> 
> --------------------------------------------------
> From: "Grace Cangialosi" <gracecan at gmail.com>
> Sent: Monday, May 09, 2016 12:55 PM
> To: <magdalen at herberthouse.org>
> Subject: Re: [Magdalen] First fruits
> 
>> You could also use the straw bale method...could plant as many as you like. Just google straw bale planting.
>> 
>>> On May 9, 2016, at 11:20 AM, Jay Weigel <jay.weigel at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> 
>>> No tomatoes here (damn walnut trees!) although s/o has read of a method
>>> which sounds promising.....filling a 5-gallon bucket (holes drilled in the
>>> bottom for drainage) with good soil from elsewhere), covering the soil with
>>> plastic, and inserting the tomato plants through slits in the plastic, then
>>> keeping them in a place free of the incursions of walnut--infested soil or
>>> marauding squirrels with walnuts to bury. Our upper deck would be a fine
>>> place. I don't have my herbs in either; they normally are planted in pots
>>> on said upper deck, but I haven't visited my neighborhood greenhouse due to
>>> the exceedingly chilly, rainy weather. This week, for sure.
>>> 
>>> The greenhouse is run by a lovely Mennonite (conservative--wears "uniform
>>> dress" and cap, but drives) lady who employs several of her female
>>> relatives, including a look-alike sister, an exceedingly elderly woman who
>>> is either her mother or aunt, and a sweet Down's syndrome woman who does a
>>> great deal of the fetching and carrying and who surprised me last year by
>>> informing me that she was about to turn 53...I had her pegged for *much*
>>> younger, not because of the DS but because she simply looks about 35. In
>>> fact, they all look much younger than they are, except for granny. And
>>> Arlene (the owner) has just about the greenest thumb I've ever encountered.
>>> She has the best collection of herbs anywhere, year after year, and coleus
>>> that just knock your eye out, plus fine house plants and porch plants and
>>> occasional oddments of garden plants, besides the old standards in fine
>>> array. AND the best mulch anywhere. People come from all over just for the
>>> mulch.
>>> 
>>> On Mon, May 9, 2016 at 12:57 AM, Rick Mashburn <ricklmashburn at gmail.com>
>>> wrote:
>>> 
>>>> Alex is the gardener on our house. Looks like we are going to have a bumper
>>>> crop of tomatoes this year!
>>>> 
>>>> Peace, Rick
>>>>> On May 8, 2016 9:43 PM, "Susan Hagen" <susanvhagen at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>> 
>>>>> I had a salad with tiny lettuce thinnings and baby radishes from the
>>>>> garden.  The cucumber was from the grocery store but it all tasted
>>>>> wonderful.  I weeded the asparagus patch which, sadly, seems to be
>>>>> fading out, probably from neglect.  Still, I get a few cuttings from
>>>>> it each year.  I do enjoy eating from my back yard.
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>>> --
>>>>> The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among
>>>>> you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the
>>>>> land of Egypt.
>>>>> Leviticus 19:34