Oh Mercy, Mercy Me.....

I am without computer today. (I'm on a laptop just now) I turned on my usual computer that has everything on it (including my file of passwords) and got the blue screen of death!!! AAAAarrrrrrgggghhhh!

Now about all I can do is write. So seeing as how the title of this blog contains the word "thoughts", today you're getting thoughts. I can't get to any photos.

Maybe this is a good thing. I would probably post a lot more often if I didn't feel compelled to always include some photos. I can't even download any photos. Thank goodness we do backups twice a week.

The veggie garden is waning now. I've pulled all the pea plants (long ago) and also all the bean plants, the one cucumber plant, radishes are long gone, onions were harvested long ago, cilantro is going to seed, dill is going to seed, fennel is going to seed. I'm going to try to capture seeds for next year. I have one head of dill which will be more than enough. I love the smell of dill, don't you? As prolific as dill is, I'm surprised the whole countryside is not covered with it. Is that the definition of a weed? Prolific?

Still have lots of tomatoes though. I'll be canning today for sure. We have three cabbages still growing. We've eaten the largest one. Soooo good.

Still have lots of herbs growing, oregano, chives, parsley, mint (of course it's growing), sage, thyme. I'm going to try to transplant some of them into pots to keep over winter. I still have the growlight setup from my seed starting last March.

I guess I could start some late summer/early fall veggies: lettuce, cabbage and others that I can't think of now.

Besides canning tomatoes, I've been drying herbs. It's easy and fun. They sure lose a lot of their scent though when they dry.

My composting for this year has not gone well at all. Of course, It's consisted mainly of tossing greens on top of a dirt pile at the back of the yard. I've not been putting tomato vine cuttings in it because I read somewhere that they were bad for compost. Does anyone know anything about this?

Guess I'd better go for now. Sorry about no photos. I have a whole collection gathered and resized and ready (almost) to post about the lush stage of the veggie beds. I hope they're still there when we get the computer fixed. I'm hoping it's just a fried controller and not a dead hard drive. Keep all fingers crossed please.

Tracy DiSabato-Aust, Live and in Person!

I drove to Cleveland Botanical Gardens today (Cleveland, OH) to go to its annual Sustainability Symposium. It was a fine presentation and well worth anyone going and participating.

I, however, had only one reason for going.

Tracy DiSabato-Aust, my dear friend, mentor and favorite gardening expert/author, was the keynote speaker. Check out Tracy's blog "Tracylive.com". Tracy is not only extremely knowledgeable and an excellent speaker, she is also very dynamic and fun to listen to. She was animated and excited about her craft as always, even though she had just undergone ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) surgery on her left knee last Tuesday and was under strict orders to remain seated during her lecture.



Her visual aids were exceptional, showing many of the plants in her new book, "50 High-Impact, Low-Care Garden Plants" in an animated, clear fashion that was easy to follow. Tracy's natural humor and presentation style grabs her audience and holds it from beginning to end. She spoon fed knowledge into us and we weren't even aware of it. As noted photographer and author, Ian Adams (also present) said, "She is a force of nature". He was as enthralled as all the rest of us were. We all were enjoying the show and learning at the same time. Such a pleasure!

Fans greeted her after her lecture.


Then, during the lunch break, Tracy spent over two hours signing her books for her gardening fans. All three of her books were on sale at the CBGarden gift shop.


(Shameless plug, I was extremely honored to get to do the line drawings of pruning and other maintenance techniques in her first book, "The Well-Tended Perennial Garden".)

All three of her books, the two afore-named plus her second book, "The Well-Designed Mixed Garden" are available at Timber Press.

Also on Tracy's website, you can get a sneak preview of each of her books. I encourage you to get these books. They are essential additions to your library and to your gardening work basket for reference as you're out there enjoying digging in the dirt.

While you're at Tracy's website, you can see her calendar. If you have the opportunity to go see and hear her, you won't be disappointed.

One final photo. Tracy and her husband, Jim, her buddy and fellow tri-athlete.

Gardens, time to begin...

Okay, okay. Enough of all this fitness and snow stuff. Let's get down to what's really important.

GARDENS !!!

Here is a photo of our little house with two new beds opened up. Bad photo, you can barely see the left side one (stage right). Previously there were no gardens or trees or shrubs AT ALL. Zilch, None, Zippo!! This was taken early Nov. 2008.



I've got a few catalogs:


I've got some books: This is NOT an endorsement. I haven't read them yet.


And, below are the
BEST OF ALL GARDEN BOOKS, IMHO.

AND I've got the most important books of all. This IS AN ENDORSEMENT of Tracy DiSabato-Aust and anything she writes. She is totally awesome. I have taken classes from her, I have been a "worker-bee" helper as she gardens, I have heard her speak, I have seen her garden designs, so I know what I'm talking about.

I have the first two "Well" books: "The Well-Tended Perennial Garden" and "The Well-Designed Mixed Garden". I have read them and trust them implicitly. Not only filled with excellent information, they also are a fun read. I can't wait to get my hands on her new, just released third book: "50 High-Impact, Low-Care Garden Plants". I KNOW it will be as fabulous as the others. You can get a sneak peak of her new book at Tracy's website which also has so much to offer. Enjoy!

Now, my question is: I'd like to try my hand at starting some of my own plants from seed this year. Do any of you have experience with this? How should I get started? Do you have any links for me? Thanks in advance.