Monday, June 9, 2014

more tires and junk - bahahahhaah! - a pile of other stuff and food....oh ya baby!

we had a most-awesome-fabulous day today....well, minus the black flies, of course. i really detest those little things. but anyway - wow - what a day!



it was 20C with a nice little breeze and we got a ton of stuff done. hey everybody - high-five us! we're feeling pretty awesome right now! it might be because we knew today was going to be georgous...so i made a bodum of coffee last night and let it sit in the fridge over night in order to make vietnamese-style iced coffees to start our day....have a peek:



yummo-deeeelishous! and so strong! it really got us moving - bahahahahah!

oh hey - wait - i need to backtrack a bit. last evening, we were enjoying a gorgeous sunset:



that's when the phone rang. my sister and next door neighbour called to tell us that her husband had 2 more cooked lobster for us - can you even believe this stuff???  needless to say, jam went over to get them and before i even knew it - all that was left of those two babies is in this bag:



my goodness we have good family, friends and neighbours. i'm sorry i didn't get a pic of the actual lobsters. they were beautiful 1 and a half pounders. and we just dove right in before i even thought of taking a pic.

oh ya - i forgot to tell you all that the summer bedding is out. we washed all of the summer bedding, used apple cider vinegar in the rinse cycle, hung all of the bedding on the line and let it sit overnight to collect all of the fog, mist and dew...then let it air dry in the beautiful sun - this bedding smells like heaven!


we've been working like dogs in the garden/greenhouse for the past week. and when doing so, you need to eat good. here's a delicious BLT on home-made sourdough bread. it's big enough to feed 80! no worries - we can eat for 80 with no trouble at all!


how about some toasted ciabatta buns with homemade hamburgers? jam had his usual relish, mustard, onion and tomatoe. me? i smeared my bun with homemade guacamole, baby! you can get my guacamole recipe here.


anyway - how about some tires and junk?!?!??!? can you imagine - taking things that people throw away and making them useful?!??!? it's an awesome skill to have and THE man, jambaloney has it in spades!!! here's 3 tires, that he got for free. then, when we first arrived here, he invested in 4X8 concrete re-inforcement wire sheets. it was a superb investment as we are re-using them every year. here's 3 ugly tires, with the re-used sheets for 3 kinds of pole beans. i planted 16 beans in each tire, corresponding to where the lines on the sheets are. once the beans are big enough, we will train them up the wire. not bad eh?


here's some more ugly tires and junk. how about 6 tires of bush beans, of 5 different varieties and they will be trained using discarded sections of old lobster cages, that jam got out of the garbage and wound them in circles so that each tire contains a minimum of 15 bean seeds. pretty impressive eh?


how about turning our hugelkulture bed into a permanent strawberry bed? we have, on our land, cranberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, wild strawberries and now we have a permanent strawberry bed!



just wait until jam builds us another greenhouse - a year-round greenhouse with heat, using all of the extra windows - oh i mean junk! - that he has been collecting for years. then we will try to grow exotic fruit like lemons and limes...oh and don't forget mangoes. and avocados. wouldn't that be awesome?

here's some tadpoles in the pond - aren't they soooo cute?!??!?!?!?


we have no idea what they are...and really don't care.


PioneerPreppy coined the song "tadpole, tadpole - all named frog"....and i sing that song everytime i visit my little tadpoles and tell them how much i love them! no really - go check his post - it is the funniest thing i have seen in a long while! PioneerPreppy really should record the song on YouTube at least. perhaps Usher would see the video and turn our beloved PP into the new Justin Bieber!!! i'd buy the album....wouldn't you all????

oh lookee here...more tires and junk! that would be 12 tires of peas, made out of an old, rusted swing set that jam found in the garbage and the fencing is made out of discarded display racks from Home Depot. and people have the gall to call this junky???? ya, whatever!


here's all the overwintered peppers moved to racks in the front of the greenhouse. jam got these racks out of the garbage and they are just perfect for our huge pepper plants that now look like little bushes and/or trees. they are full of blossoms - can you believe it? and some of them are already producing peppers?!??!?!? oh joy!

and here is a pile of cucumbers, zucchinis, squashes and melons that i transplanted from their little styrafoam cups into little pots that jam got out of the garbage a few years ago - we re-use those garbage pots every year - they work like a charm!


here is a little...well, getting kind of big, volunteer sunflower that planted himself in a pot. he did it, or a squirrel did it. i now need to transplant him in the front yard.


the tomatoes are going hog-wild-crazy and need to be planted IN THEIR TIRES.....like soon! oh me oh my! i love these kinds of problems!


this last pic is for my friend Mike from the blog Living Prepared. his blog is full of great information - you should really check it out. anyway, he asked that we document our potatoe procedure. Mike, as you can see, we planted our seed potatoes in the first layer of dirt, mulch, seaweed and compost and covered each tire with some dead grassy material. you can see the potatoes poking up now.


once the plants reach 4-6 inches tall, we will drop another tire on them and put dirt and compost up to almost their necks. once the potatoes grow another 4-5 inches after that, we will drop another tire on and fill up with dirt and plant material.

we planted 160 potatoe seeds and are conservatively expecting....based on our years of knowledge gleaned from growing potatoes in tires.....probably 200lbs of potatoes and about 20lbs of potatoe seeds. i will keep documenting our potatoe experience throughout the season as Mike has asked that we do so.

for anyone who has never grown potatoes in tires - if you have any questions - just yell in the comments section and we will do our best to answer any and all questions. we have been tire gardening for several years and have learned much from our successes and failures.

well kids - this post has probably put most of you to sleep by now, then there are some others who just scan the pics, then there are the others who will see how long the post is and just go to another blog....no worries. this is OUR blog. and we blog about what we are doing and what interests us. we are happy if anyone finds it interesting....but we lose absolutely no sleep if you don't.

tomorrow is supposed to be another gorgeous day. oh man - what kind of trouble are we going to get in tomorrow? you'll have to check back and see.

off to catch up on my other favourite blogs. my favourite blogs are listed in our blogroll. you should check them out. there's a lot of really interesting people there doing really interesting things. have a great week!

27 comments:

  1. Justine Bieber? Really? That's the best you can do? Plants look good. Tires are still ugly. Can't wait for pics of those kymber cherries...I mean Tomatoes again this year :)

    Tell Jamby I want some of that lobster trap meshing next time he sees some...

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    1. shoot buddy - i thought i was giving you a compliment which i have to admit is not the easiest...cough...bleck...ahem...cough...thing to do! yes, i do believe that you could be the next Justin Bieber...in yer bee suit, up on a stage - why buddy - your bee suit could be the next fad craze!!!!

      sadly, i have always been called a maverick and my ideas are usually 10-15yrs in the future.

      that lobster trap meshing is laying around all over the place up here. get yerself a little u-haul, come up for a visit, do some trout fishing, fill the truck with the lobster trap meshing and head home happy and proud! we'll vacuum seal all of your caught trouts and freeze them, put them in a cooler with lots of those blue freezie things, and you can get them home safely.

      now when are you gonna git yer wiener butt up here? eh? much love buddy! xoxox

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    2. I keep telling you I don't think Canada has lifted the travel restriction on me yet. They were pretty mad about that whole Windsor incident.

      It's a good thing I knew how to swim.

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    3. yo dude...between me and Senior - we know the best places to cross over the various waterways between New York and Maine. and i can swim halfway to meet ya. jam will rent the u-haul and go with you. sound like a plan yet? love ya buddy! bahaqhahahah!

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    1. and it was very nice to see you here Warlock. come back anytime as we consider you to be a good friend. much love, buddy!

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  3. You guys rock. Can you paint the outside of the tires to please Oscar Meyer.??

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    1. Don't worry noodle man Kymber will give you a new opinion soon.

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    2. Rob, buddy - i ain't doing nuthin to please that wiener man! i ask - what has he done for me lately? (h/t to Janet Jackson - bahahaah!). but i love the name Oscar Meyer - that's his new name - bahahahahahah!

      PP - what the heck are you talking about? makes no sense??? please reply with something that makes sense, ya wiener!

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  4. You two are my inspiration to continue our little homestead here in the California High Desert. It isn't an easy place to garden but seeing your wonderful enthusiasm for the process, always makes me full of energy to put into our place. I love the pictures and your writing is fun and interesting. I always click on Framboise Manor as I have my morning coffee.

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    1. gmv - you couldn't say a nicer thing if you tried! thank you so much for that! the California High Desert is definitely a very difficult place to garden but the mere fact that you are trying sooo hard - well, that just speaks to your character! you must be made of concrete to keep your spirits up and keep on keepin' on! i salute you, madame!

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  5. Kym, thanks for the potato tire update. I'll be looking forward to the next one.
    How did Jam cut the side walls off? With a jig/sabre saw?

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    1. Mike - i will keep you updated throughout the whole potatoe process. jam used a rigid-bodied Stanley knife for cutting the side walls off. the sidewalls are easiest to cut just inside the tread of the tire. if you want more info - just yell here or send an email. much love buddy!

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    2. Thanks, never thought of that tool, I'll give it a try. Guess I thought it would be difficult cutting through the side wall with a knife blade.

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  6. Sweet Kymber,

    I happen to like all of your tires, Bahahahahaha!!!! A lot of that has to do with the fact that I have tires in my garden too :-)

    At least this time I had dinner (and it was good...most from the garden) before reading your post. Grrrrrr..........you had lobster and you didn't share!!!!

    Enjoy the beautiful weather, sending hugs and love to you and Jam.

    Your Friend,
    Sandy



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    1. my Sweetest Sandy - i know that you have tires as well and in some cases - those tires just can't be beat! i am glad that you had your dinner before reading the post - oh man - how i wish i could send you some of these lobsters - i am going to look into the cost of doing such a thing! we are really enjoying the weather - this has been the absolute best June since we have been here - it's amazing! and we are thrilled!

      we are sending big, giant hugs and lots of love back to all of you! give that little Beans a big kiss from us! xoxoxoxoxo

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  7. I love your blog and I read every word. Even when there are many many words, lol! The more words the better! Love the pics, too!

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    1. Kjb2000 - welcome to our little blog! i don't think you have commented before, but i really appreciate you doing so now. please feel free to comment whenever the mood hits. we love comments. and thank you for enjoying all of the lengthy posts - bahahahah - and the pics!

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  8. My son cuts the tires with a box knife. He was use a saws all but said the knife was easier

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    1. lw - your son has got it completely right! jam tried the saws all but found that the rigid-bodied Stanley knife was best! much love - xoxoxo

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  9. I did potatoes in the 18 gallon "party buckets" and they are growing like crazy. I used a small Kiddie pool to start growing mints and lavender for my pain relief salve. Now I can't get a kiddie pool because many think it is a great idea for a raised bed. My garden is doing great this year, added the edible front beds that are doing good and working on improving soil and got enough free wood for this winter. The year started of sort of crappy but now things are coming together!

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    1. myadventures - oh bahahahahah! several years ago, back in the city, i grew my tomatoes in a kiddie pool - the kiddie pools work like magic!!! i am glad that you are growing potatoes in the buckets - you should have a pretty good yield! and i am glad that you managed to get at least one kiddie pool for your pain relief salve - seems like everyone is catching on to the kiddie pool idea eh? bahahahah! i am soooo happy to hear that your garden is doing so well! working on and improving soil is a hard job - trust me - we know it! and i am happy that you got enough free wood for the winter - woohoo! you go girl! much love - xoxoxxo!

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  10. Nothing wrong with tyres - mine are planted up with sweet potatoes now. They gave me plenty of butternut last summer.

    kymber - You seem to grow everything in containers. Why don't you plant in the ground? Is the ground too hard, the soil not good? Or is it the length of your growing season? Or because of the local wildlife?

    Whatever - as long as you are able to produce your own freshly grown goodies lol...

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    1. Dani - i am glad that you are using "tyres" for your sweet potatoes. we're just not big fan of sweet potatoes so we don't grow them. but butternut squash - oh ya baby! love 'em!

      Dani - our soil is full of rocks. we are on what is called a "till plain". which means it is a mixture of a little bit of soil, mostly clay and tons of rocks. weeds have a hard time growing in this soil! and that says a lot! so that is why we use tires and raised beds.

      we have an incredibly-extended growing season here - we don't get our first frosts until late october - so cold-hardy veg and such do very well. as for wildlife - we have no probs with wildlife - our probs are our cats getting our beds which is why we are building such "cat-proof" cages.

      and yes - producing your own freshly grown goodies is out of this world. we use no pesticided, herbicides or anything like that. we strive to be organic in all that we grow. we like to know that what we are eating is healthy and gmo-free. much love, Dani, to you and all of yours! xoxoxo

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  13. Thanks Kymber, I found the post! :)

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