In memory of Andrea

In November of 1993, a little 5 year old girl came up missing in my hometown, and was never found. This case, and the Smith case in South Carolina are what changed the child abduction/abuse investigation practices by law enforcement forever. The little girl was never found, but her father and stepmother claimed to have scalded her in a bathtub - then threw her body from a local bridge. I remember it like it was yesterday, and it saddens me to think someone could do that to a child...
Anyway, back in August, my local extension agent told me she had a landscaping project for me, and of course I was eager to volunteer my time and efforts for a good cause. So, I drove by the Franklin County Detention Center to make up a plan for it.

I took these 3 pictures for reference purposes, and measured the area to work with. That's my red truck off to the side, and also my notebook laying on the curb. This information was needed so an autocad drawing could be made, and I quickly got to work on it. This was gonna have to be well planned, and all of the existing soil would have to be removed to a depth of 4". Yeah...lots of work here! Thankfully, some of the inmates were eager to provide most of the labor on it, and that was a lifesaver! Whew.....

Since October was National Domestic Violence Awareness month, we finished it just in time for the dedication ceremony scheduled on the 29th. Whew....talk about close!

Photo below - Stones with inscriptions about abuse were installed at 2 of the corners, and mums were planted on both sides to direct a person's eye to them. That's a gardenia in the back, and pansies, dwarf yaupon holly shrubs to the sides. Over 400 pavers were installed for the walking surface - which came in 3 different sizes. Man, talk about a jigsaw puzzle!

Yesterday, it was finally time for the dedication ceremony, and you can bet that EG was there.

Photo below - there's Sheriff Larry Plott making the opening statement of the ceremony - in which he went into detail about how he and his team investigated this horrible crime. He has been our sheriff for at least 25 years.

Photo below - a flock of geese flying over added an extra touch to the beautiful ceremony.

Photo below - after a wreath was laid on top of the headstone, each member in attendance released a balloon into the air. It was a beautiful ceremony, and one i'll never forget.

Although her body was never found, the memory of her will live for many years to come.

It was truly an honor to work on this project, and I hope that it serves the community even after I'm long gone from this earth. Andrea deserved only the best, and that's what I gave to her - EG's best....

Take care

EG

More about the greenhouse

Gary, welcome to my blog, and thanks for following!

Every time I build something, it's usually different than anything on the internet. It must be the OCPD thing, 'cause it always turns into a quest for the perfect, original idea. Shoot...I even think to myself "what the ?" while doing it..Hehe. Maybe I need a visit from a catholic priest or something....hehe. Anyway, here's some more photos of the greenhouse construction project, and a few comments about each.

Photo below - Digikey provided me with most of the electronic components used for the homemade temperature controller. They have all kinds of stuff, and I frequently buy from them for my work. Oh yeah....I'm sure ribbit really enjoys the background, although they do suck pretty bad right now. Hey, they can't be good all the time! They'll be back!

Photo below - here's my little power supply for the ventilation fan. This battery was given to me by one of my good friends at work, and it'll make the fan run for a very long time. However, when used in a cold environment the capacity is reduced. Still, it will run the little fan for days.

Photo below - here's where it gets pretty interesting. A small pvc greenhouse or hoophouse is of course very lightweight, so it becomes a challenge to keep it in place. Well, some cross supports in my main box gave me a pretty good idea on how to anchor the thing so the wind doesn't move it around. The bottom part of the pvc framework is confined to the 4x4 box that was created when the raised bed was originally built, and i'll utilize this to my advantage. The actual "anchoring" will be done later in the project, probably toward the very end. You'll like it!

Photo below - here's the top of my frame with fan installed, and as you can guess - the four machine screws pointing upward have a purpose, as well. In this photo, you can see that I put the framework for the entire greenhouse together, mainly to see what it would look like. Well, I'm probably gonna make a slight alteration to the design, so a small problem can be addressed. The bottom part of the frame wants to bow upward. Oh yeah - the pvc fittings surrounding the little fan are the only ones that were glued together, as I wanted to make the greenhouse so it could be taken apart later. This project will definitely be "redneck engineering" at it's finest. Heh.

In other news, more shingles were installed on the roof of the shed over the last couple of evenings, and maybe I'll be able to start on the siding pretty soon. Next weekend should be available for it, because the memorial I've been working on at the detention center is finally complete. Whew....talk about alot of work!

The dedication ceremony will take place next Thursday, and of course several Alabama politicians will be there, too. Just think...EG hanging out with some state senators and representatives for a little while. Ha! I'll probably offer them some of my Red Seal chewing tobacco. Hehe...That would be pretty funny. Photos will be taken, and of course i'll blog about it.


Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

EG's 4ft x 4ft. greenhouse, controls phase

Unlike most greenhouse gardeners that use theirs year-round, mine will only be used for about 3 months out of the year. Doing so, keeps me from having to worry about all of the variables that have to be addressed - like humidity, cooling, heating, etc. Nope, this one is gonna be used differently. To fit my application, it only needs to do one thing in the early part of the year - protect the tomato seedlings after they outgrow the propagation chamber next April. BTW, the hardening - off characteristics will be a plus, too. Also, it may get used for rooting cuttings and such, but I haven't put much thought into that, yet. Anyway, based on my climate and intended use, I only need one thing. Ventilation.
Yep, even when the outside temperature is 30-40 degrees, the temperature inside my little greenhouse can quickly reach 90-100 on a sunny day. This would require a small fan to remove the heat, and if it was thermostatically controlled - that would be great, too!

So, here's what I came up with : A small 12v dc fan that required less than 200 milliamps of current, a cheap temperature controller, and a power source that could be used anywhere on the property. Since I already had a gel-filled battery from an electric scooter (12v, 35 amp hour capacity) and a small fan (cpu fan, 12v/190 milliamps) from a junk pc, all I would need is the means for controlling the circuit. With only $6 worth of electronic components, the controller was assembled from the following diagram :



The way this controller works, (without getting too technical) is R1's (thermistor) resistance value changes as the surrounding temperature increases/decreases. As the thermistor is heated up, it's resistance decreases until the threshold voltage determined by R4 (8,200 ohm resistor) is reached. At this time, the output of the operational amplifier (IC-1) goes from high to low, causing transistor Q1 to be saturated - allowing current to flow through the emitter to the collector. Since the fan already has a negative signal supplied to it, Q1 basically acts like a switch - providing the positive signal to energize the fan motor. Does that make sense?
R4 is a fixed resistor, and should make the fan come on when the temperature reaches 88 degrees, but i'll probably tinker with some other resistance values to get it to come on at maybe 80.
The battery should be able to operate the little fan for 184 hours straight before going dead, which is over a week. Based on daytime/nighttime temperatures, the battery should last for at least 3 weeks before it needs charging again. That's not too bad....

I figure the fan is rated for about 30 cfm, which will provide about 2 complete air changes per minute within the greenhouse. That should keep it from getting too hot inside, as well as control moisture as it collects on the inside of the plastic. Now when you see it, you'll understand the reasoning for the design concept. Hehe.

Told ya it was gonna be weird. Ha!

EG

Addressing some health issues

I have lived with various health issues for several years now - of which are mainly insomnia, joint pain (mostly knees), and sinus problems. For my whole adult life, I've lived each day with some type of pain, and can only breathe as normal people do about 1 day out of a month. Well, I'm doing something about it, finally. Two of the problems were diagnosed this week, and I wanted to share them with you.

1. Gout (gouty arthritis) - I would have never in a million years thought this was the reason for the occasional crippling pain in my knees, but it's true. Since they aren't hurting right now, the doctor has asked me to call when it strikes again, and he will extract some fluid for a definite diagnosis. Thankfully, medication is available, and also I can alter my diet to help with it too. No surgery needed. Yay!

2. Restless leg syndrome - This is a pretty funny story. The doctor asked me who referred me to him, and told me I had this sleep disorder, and I told him "Me". I had done my research on the subject, and knew without a doubt that this was what I had. After describing to him what it felt like, and when it usually bothered me, he told me that it was one of the best descriptions he's ever heard from a patient. (I'm sure he doesn't get many patients like EG in his office) heh. As a matter of fact, he spared me the whole "sleep study" thing, and wrote me a prescription right there on the spot. Ha! The medication is commonly prescribed for Parkinson's disease, and has some pretty messed up side effects. Hallucinations is one of the most prominent, and just for the fun of it - I think i'll occasionally just blurt out random words like "squirrel!" Hehe....I'll have to do that at Thanksgiving....That'll freak the family out. My sisters already think I'm a retard...

3. Deviated septum - this is my sinus/breathing problem, and i'll most likely not address it. Surgery is the only cure, and I just can't let someone start cutting on my nasal passages. Sorry...No thanks! Besides, I've heard recovery is awful!

In other news, the leaves are starting to fall from the trees - and I've already scoped out which yards have maple trees in them. For non-composting gardeners, maple leaves decompose faster than any other leaf, and is highly sought after by composters. I may even rake a yard or two just to get them. In the next few weeks, composting will be the hot topic of discussion by all gardeners - especially me!

Cleanup of the earthtainers will begin pretty soon, and I really dread this task. It's gotta be done, though. Storing the growing medium in something over the winter should be interesting, as I haven't decided what kind of containment to use. Whatever it is, it's gotta withstand the elements, and be reasonably inexpensive. Any ideas?

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

October 20th, 2009

With the door installed in the shed, i'll hopefully get to install the shingles sometime within the next week or so. Since the dedication ceremony for the memorial at the County Detention Center is scheduled for October 29th, though - it will take precedence until then. Oh! See the buckets in front of the shed? Those are the ones I got from WalMart the other day, and will add them to the collection of buckets for the eventual swc workshop.

Speaking of buckets, I wanted to show you how the broccoli are doing in the swc's. For any new readers of my blog, these plants are part of a study for Auburn University - to show the progress of this particular veggie being grown in a swc. Before my tutorial can be made into an Alabama publication, it has to be validated with a documented study. For the record, these cat litter buckets have a capacity of 4 gallons of growing medium. (Yep, I measured it)

Also, I wanted to show you the current growth of the onions that were planted earlier. They're doing very well, and I expect to get pretty large bulb onions from them in early May. Hopefully, no onion maggots will show up later....That would be a bummer!

Lastly, the mini - greenhouse construction isn't going as expected. The framework is complete, but some of my electronic components and other accessories haven't arrived yet. Oh well...they'll show up in a few more days - I'm sure. Man, let me tell ya - these are gonna be some freaky greenhouses! Ha! Since they will be in plain view from the road, I can already hear the passersby. Maybe something like "Dude...look at what that crackhead put in his garden!" Hehe. Believe me...there's a real good reason for the shape/design - as I always emphasize on functionality before appearance.

Oh! Me and the boys opened a jar of the homemade salsa the other day, and it was yummy!

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

Told ya it was gonna be close/ Harvest Monday

Thanks to the final two harvests for the year, I made my goal of 400 lbs. by 2/10ths of an ounce. Holy Moly.....I knew it would be close, but not that close! Whew.....what a relief. I mean...I was really contemplating weighing the 2" long cucumbers still on the vines. Hey, they're edible!

I waited until the very last minute to harvest the lettuce, and we'll have some nice salads over the next few days, for sure. Gosh, I sure do love fresh lettuce.

As I was doing a little more cleanup in the garden on Saturday, I couldn't help but feel sad. I mean, my favorite hobby is over with for several months....It sure was a good year, though. The 2009 garden was 3 times better than the one in 2008, and that's a very good accomplishment. Maybe one day i'll be as productive as Granny, but I kinda doubt it. I think by making my beds deeper next year, my harvest will increase significantly - surpassing my 1.9 lbs./sqft for this year. Of course there will be many other changes, as well - but not by adding more space. More garden would just mean more work, and I don't need any more of that. Anyway, I can't wait.....

In other news, it sure has been cold here. Dang, talk about a drastic change in temperature! I worked with the inmates at the detention center for about 4 hours on Saturday, and we finally got all of the pavers in place for the memorial. It's taken forever to get the 400+ pavers installed, and now we're ready to start on the 4ft. wide, 80 ft. long flowerbed surrounding it. Yeah, this is a HUGE landscaping project. With only 2 weeks until the deadline for completion arrives, I know we'll finish in time. There's gonna be a big dedication ceremony later this month, and of course EG will be right in the middle of it. Ha!

Also, the manager from WalMart called me on Sunday, and told me he'd let me have 20 buckets for the swc workshop next spring. That was nice, and I only need about 50 more before spring.

I also got the door installed for the shed, and it can be locked, now. That's good, 'cause i'll be putting stuff in it as soon as the shingles and siding are installed.

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

Buckets for the swc workshop

As previously discussed, I am hoping to conduct a workshop next spring for the Franklin County Extension Office, in which I show citizens how to take disposable plastic buckets and turn them into self watering vegetable planters. Doing so, will keep them out of the landfill and open up gardening possibilities for people without available space for a garden. When it gets approved, I'd like to have accumulated enough buckets to conduct the same workshop at Colbert and Lauderdale Counties, too. For each county, I figure at least 60-70 buckets will be needed, so I'm looking for buckets!

Anyway, Freecycle was the first place to ask, and I've already got 11 cat litter buckets from a nice lady named Angela. Here they are, all tucked away inside the shed. Yay!

Photo below - I even went to a deli/bakery at a local grocery store, to see if they had any buckets to contribute to the cause. Wouldn't ya know it? They just emptied 2 five gallon buckets that cake icing comes in! Shoot...those will work too! Of course some icing was still attached to the inner walls, so what do ya think I did? I have a dog that eats everything, and I just let ol' Jude get down with her bad self. Ha! You should have seen it....her ears were white...heehee..

After she satisfied her curiosity and gluttony, I just laid each bucket beside a fire ant mound. Here's a photo of one, and the ants are doing an excellent job of cleaning it for me. I love my ants.

I'll pick them up this weekend, as they should be as clean as a whistle by then. I went to WalMart, too - and wouldn't you know that they haven't even called me to say if I could have any or not? Boo!!!!!! I left emails, my phone number with 2 different managers, and still - nothing. I'm gonna have to bring in the County Extension Agent for this one, it looks like.

Photo below - here's the shed all wrapped up like a mummy. I must've used 1,000 staples for this job. Man, my hands had 4 or 5 blisters on them from the staple gun. No fun, I tell ya!

I also bought a steel door for it, and will hopefully install it this coming weekend. I think the roof can wait another week....

In gardening news, everything in the garden will need to be harvested before Sunday night, because it's gonna get down to 33 degrees. I went ahead and harvested the green beans, melons, and several large pods of okra yesterday, and more okra, some cucumbers, and lettuce are all that remain. With only 3lbs., 1 oz. to reach 400, this is gonna be close!

Also, I have made my final decision on the design of the hoop covers. Yep, it's changed again. Ha! Aw man...this is gonna be weird! I might be mildly retarded or something. Hehe...

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

Land recovery/improving the landscape

Our place sits on exactly 1 acre of land, and at least 1/2 of it is not very usable. Directly behind the house, the land slopes severely to the bottom of a big ravine. The ravine itself would make an excellent pond if a liner was installed - and I've contemplated doing just that over the last few years. But for now, i'll just continue to work on the areas that can be cleaned up for adding to the actual landscape surrounding the house. While walking the property the other day, my wife and I discussed different possibilities of enhancing the yard, and came up with 2 winter time projects for me to tackle. The areas of concern are along the driveway, and also the area directly behind the house.

In this first photo, you can see that there isn't much of a "yard" once a person walks to the bottom of the stairs for the deck. This is the area that I showed in a video a while back, and also mentioned building a retaining wall. My plans are to raise the elevation of land to where it will become even with the soil at the bottom of the deck support posts. Yeah....this project may put me out of commission for good. Realistically speaking, it may take me over a year to complete.

Photo below - here's a view from the opposite direction. I went ahead and cleared off all of the undergrowth with Austin's help, and several small trees had to be cut down, too. My wife said they were obstructing the view of the woods, so we just started hacking away. I enjoy demolition projects, because my OCPD isn't a factor at all. Anyway, the wall will begin at that large tree in the center/left background, and come straight toward the 2nd tree from the right - going about another 30 feet in the same direction. Yeah....big wall!!! It'll probably be 60-70 feet long, and 6-8 blocks high at the lowest point of elevation. Once completed, we'll be able to have a shade-loving perrenial garden back there, and all kinds of stuff.

Now for the other project....I put this "border" in place on one side of the driveway back in the spring, and the crabgrass didn't think too much of it, apparently. Man....talk about some invasive stuff! Anyway, i'll take care of this problem very soon, and may also extend the "border" all the way to the end this time.

Photo below - here's the other side of the driveway, which has never been cleared off before. The trees on the left are where the property ends, and everything from there to my truck was cleared off by me and Austin last Saturday. Small trees, honeysuckle vines, and brambles had completely taken over the area, but we made short order of that little problem! 2 years ago, this was my first intended spot for the square foot garden, but it just doesn't get enough sunlight. Besides...a garden here would have looked kinda funny, I bet. I wonder if a greenhouse would look ok...hmm....Nah, she'd never go for it. Wishful thinking, though!

I'm not sure what all my wife has planned for the area, but i'll make it pretty for her in the end. A large raised bed with small trees, shrubs, and flowers would look great, I bet. Anyway, this project will take place during the winter months, and will be ready for planting in the spring. I do most of my outdoor projects between November and April, because not much goes on during those months. I don't mind, because I hate watching tv. Blech!

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

Problem pests for cucumbers

I walked out to the garden the other day to inspect the remaining plants, and saw some clear "goo" on a cucumber leaf and immediately knew this was not a good sign.....You know me, "Mr. garden insect", and how I have to investigate further....I really like garden pests, they fascinate me - and contrary to popular belief, aren't that difficult to control. Maybe I should have studied to be an Entomologist or something....hehe. Yeah, I've got a bug fetish....

Anyway, when I saw the holes in the cucumber below, I immediately knew what it was. They showed up last year at this time on the cantaloupe, but this time were on the cucumbers (the only cucurbit left in the garden). If you've never seen a pickle worm, then you're in for a treat. I got some pretty nice shots of what to look for. As usual, you can click on each photo to enlarge it.

Photo below - here's what the little stinker looks like. Pretty small, huh? Boy, this thing can really damage fruit - let me tell ya! They don't bother with foliage at all, and instead - bore straight into the fruit (squash, cucumbers, cantaloupe, melons, pumpkins), and really do a number to the interior flesh.

Photo below - here's some of its excrement, which will be the color of whatever it's bored into.

Photo below - here's another one, that hasn't got its body entirely into the fruit yet. I really think their color is kinda pretty, with the tiny black dots and all....I know, pretty weird. Ha! If it wasn't at the very end of my growing season, it would bother me - believe me.

Photo below - I found a couple of these, too. The spotted cucumber beetle has gotta be my favorite harmful pest in the garden, because let's face it - they're kinda cute. However, they spread disease like the plague....I had to kill these, of course. Splat!

I've noticed a decline in most bloggers' posts as of late, and it's just what happens this time of year. We just run out of stuff to talk about. Well, not all of us. Heh. I'll keep blogging about composting, the memorial landscaping project, landscaping projects at home, construction of the shed, construction of my highly anticipated hoop covers, and the broccoli and onions throughout the winter. No break for EG, that's for sure!

Speaking of the hoop covers, my good friend John made me realize something. I've been thinking about how I could provide some heat for them economically, and at the time they'll actually be used - won't need any heat at all. Ventilation will be my only concern, as the inside temperature can easily build to 90-95 degrees during a sunny, winter day.

I know most of you are eager to see the design, but I haven't got all of the details finished yet. I'll tell ya this much - they'll have thermostatically controlled ventilation fans, which will be controlled by a homemade combination of semiconductors (electronic components) i'll assemble, hehe. I wanted to go all out on it, but it just gets too expensive. Maybe I can make enough from the plants to upgrade next year. I think it's possible. Anyway, you're gonna love this ventilation system, and how it works. I feel like that mad scientist for the intro of "Robot Chicken", ha!

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

This is ridiculous

Rain. It's unbelievable. I feel like the state of Alabama is just gonna slide off into the Gulf of Mexico pretty soon. Jude's pen is a total, muddy mess - and there's nothing I can do about it right now. I'll most likely move her pen over about 10 feet, and spread some new cedar shavings on the ground inside it after the rain finally stops. This is definitely not funny anymore.

Anyway....while the rain let up for a bit, I decided to take some quick photos of things right now. Just look at this burgundy okra! I'm letting it grow as long as it wants, because I figure alot of you will want some seed for next year. Oh, and it'll weigh more, too! Heh. EG's no dummy.........

Photo below - Can you bellieve the beans are still producing? Dang....Each harvest is not very big, though. Still, that's a long growing season for them - like 6 months already......

Photo below - I wanted to show you one of the rose bushes I bought at Kmart a while back for a dollar each. Yeah....I bought 4, and planted 3 in front of my parents' house, and this one behind our house. This one is a white variety called "iceberg", and I bet it'll be pretty...You can get some really good deals when they have a clearance sale on the garden center stuff....

Photo below - Remember the blueberry workshop I helped with during the summer? Well, here's the plant they gave me for helping with it. It's a rabbiteye variety blueberry, and I planted it between the little apple trees at the end of the yard. This area gets at least 8 hours of direct sunlight, so it should do much better than the other 2 at the edge of the woods. Yay!

Photo below - I've decided that next year i'll plant something in this red container and place it on the backside of this trellis. It's the bottom part of the original 16 gallon shop vac from about 20 years ago. With a few drainage holes drilled in the bottom, it should work like a charm. Oh...i'll plant honeydew melons in both of these - just wait and see...

In other news, I have completely covered the shed walls with the roof felting that was leftover. It took a long time to do it, but I'm glad I did. At least the OSB won't be exposed anymore, because who knows when this stupid rain is gonna stop....

Me and Austin have also been clearing off some areas around the house to landscape later. Every fall, I always try to expand the yard by clearing away small trees and such. I'll post aboit it in a few days.

The landscaping project for the memorial at the Franklin County Detention Center is pretty much on hold until the rain stops. It's gotta be complete before the end of this month, so Mother Nature really needs to cooperate pretty soon!

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

October 11th, current ideas and pics.

It was an "ok" weekend, I guess. Saturday's plans were completely changed by a phonecall from my Dad, as it seemed he needed to buy some groceries - but had a dead battery on his car. So, I took him to get a new battery, and get groceries, too....He always uses those electric powered shopping carts, but I usually end up putting most of his stuff in my buggy. Heh. Anyway, I changed the battery for him when we got home, because he is still recovering from the second knee replacement. Speaking of knee problems, I go to the doctor on the 19th to have mine checked out....Finally, we'll see what's wrong with them.
The last half of the day was completely messed up by a very light, misting rain...blech! Also, my football team got the crap beat out of them...Boo!!!!!!
Anyway, I wanted to show some new pictures of things around here, and comment on them as I go..

Take a look at these saved plastic bottles in the old municipal garbage can...hehe...I have alot! These will be used to sell large tomato seedlings in next spring. I'm ready....

Photo below - Oh! I wanted to show you one of my japanese maple trees that I planted out into the yard a few days ago. This is one of the seedlings I scooped up from underneath a large tree last March. I sure hope it makes it through the winter. I have another one planted about 20 feet from this one. BTW, this is what my native soil looks like. Yah...total crap!

Photo below - My first planting of onions is doing good, and there are 54 total in the recently vacated sweet potato containers. They will be allowed to go all the way until May 1st.

Photo below - Here's my broccoli that is being grown in the swc's made from cat litter buckets for Auburn University. Before my article on growing in this particular container can be turned into a publication, they must be tried and true - with documentation and pictures along the way. If needed, I can easily cover them with some type of makeshift hoop cover, as they will probably take a long time to reach maturity.

Speaking of hoop covers, I have changed my plans again...Dangit. I can't help it...I come up with a plan, then walk around out there just playing with Jude - looking at my big box the whole time. A thought comes to mind on how to improve the original plan - then a new one takes its place. OCPD is really something to deal with - let me tell ya....

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

Sweet potatoes, round 2

A special thanks goes out to Angela, who gave me 11 cat litter buckets yesterday for my swc workshop next spring! I hope to collect 40-50 more before April, as I'm sure many citizens will be interested. Freecycle is such a cool thing....Yay!

Now, for the remaining sweet potato harvest...



Some current gardening news...
With only 12.5 lbs. to go before reaching the 400 lb. harvest total for the year, I really don't think i'll make it....sigh. The only things left in the garden are 3 honeydew melons (2 are very small), a small watermelon, cucumbers, okra, and lettuce. Ending up with 399 lbs. will make me scream, but it would be funny, I guess.

My onion sets that were planted a couple of weeks ago have already broke their dormancy, and should reach maturity around March/April. Speaking of onions...they have got to be the easiest thing a person can grow. I mean, critters won't eat them, they are hardy well below zero, no special care is needed, and you don't have to worry about bugs.

**GWAR concert review**
The show was awesome, and The Masquerade is a cool place to see one! I won't go into details of what the band did during the show, but will only say that just when I thought they couldn't be more hardcore with their on-stage antics, I was pleasantly surprised again. Ha! It rocked!!! My son Chance will never be the same. Heehee...

Tomorrow will be spent helping with the community landscaping project at the Franklin County Detention Center again, which is slowly starting to come together. Talk about alot of work!

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

A video from the deck

I shot this video from the deck last Saturday - mainly to show you the turning of tree foliage has begun. BTW...my camcorder somehow alters the actual viewing picture so that things aren't in perspective. For instance, the shed looks pretty narrow, but is actually 8ft x 8ft x 8ft. In other words...things are bigger than they appear in my videos. Enjoy!

No gardening today, because it's time for GWAR!

***A completely off-topic post!!!!***

Ok, look.....we all have our preference in music genres, and mine just happens to be heavy metal. I didn't have the opportunity to see my favorite bands while growing up, because we couldn't afford it, and my parents were very religious. When I got older, I decided to make every effort to see those that were missed during my childhood, and take the kids (ages 14, 18, 22) with me.

Anyway, me and my son Chance (age 18) are going to Atlanta to see GWAR tonight! I took 14 year-old stepson (Austin) to see them last year, and when we got home the next day - he walked up to his mother and said "I really need a hug right now". HeeHee...he loved it, though. Being a musician myself (bass guitar), I can really appreciate the technical ability of this band, and their stage show is quite entertaining! I laughed through the entire show in Memphis last time. I'm gonna try to get my picture made with them, that would be funny....

Preparations for spring propagation

This video is of the contents in the old playhouse right now, and it's really cluttered! Now, you'll understand why I need a large, organized shed for my stuff. After this video was made, I caught a little rat snake by the front door. It almost got away, but thankfully I grabbed hold of its tail, then pulled it out into the open. Jude was freaking out! Ha!

A quick post before the weekend

Before hitting the sack, I thought I would write a few words about the garden, and what's goin' on in the life of EG. No pictures for this post - sorry....
All of the squash and tomato plants were removed this evening, and the garden is looking pretty bare now. The beans, cucumbers, and okra were picked again - and given to my parents.
I'll let the okra grow to maturity, so the pods can be dried - then seed saved from them for next year's crop. I should get lots of seed from them, so EG will have lots of burgundy okra seed to trade this winter.
One of the honeydew melons is close to being ready for picking, and I sure hope it's as flavorful as the one a while back. Man, that thing was good!
Disassembly of the earthtainers will begin pretty soon, and I think a couple of olive barrels will be used to store the growing medium over the winter months. Two should hold it all, and the watertight lid will keep it completely protected from moisture and ants.
Even though the garden is still not completely done for the year, I can't help but think about ways to improve next year's.
My tomato seed order came in the mail yesterday, and I got a really good bonus pack! Black cherry....I can't wait to try them! Just wait 'til ya see the tomato lineup for next year's planting. It's impressive!
Sometime during February/March, i'll construct 15-20 swc's that will be sold to friends - which will most likely be made from 5 gallon buckets, and 18 gallon totes.With help from the heirloom tomato seedlings, I hope to at least cover all of my gardening expenses for the year. At least 200-300 seedlings will be started, then propagated into transplants with my 2 different propagation systems. Gosh, I need to go to bed! Tomorrow is gonna be a really busy day!

Take care, and happy gardening!

EG

Random observations

SCloutier, alizardinthegarden, and Tim - Welcome, and thanks for following the blog!

While inspecting the garden the other day, I noticed the following droppings on a cucumber leaf. I knew they had to be from a worm or caterpillar of some kind, but couldn't imagine which one was present. Typically, the only worms on cucurbits is the melonworm, and pickleworm.

After a few minutes, I found it. (EG always gets his bug/worm!) It is the melon worm, and the first one found this year. These things are really doing a number on squash plants in the State of Florida right now - but not EG's garden in Alabama!

Photo below - while inspecting the okra plants, I ran across this cluster of eggs. Pretty weird, huh? I thought so too, especially the way they are covered by some type of powdery looking substance. Right now, they haven't been identified. This pic may have to be sent to the Auburn University Entomology Department for identification. They'll know!

Photo below - the compost pile on the left is completely finished, and looks great! Boy....that was an easy batch to "cook". The hot summer days sure did much better than the frigid temperatures last winter..... The bins have kinda got crooked from settling and such, but will be straightened up sometime in October. As previously mentioned, it'll be expanded to a 6 bin system, because I need LOTS of compost for next year's garden. More bags of grass clippings have been added since this photo was taken, and now we should have more than enough.

As the leaves start falling over the next few weeks, you can bet that EG will fill the back of the big red truck almost everyday during lunchbreak. I think 100 bags will be enough, and should be able to get that much with 5-6 truckloads. It's a good thing we have a pretty big backyard, 'cause 100 bags would be alot to store somewhere!

On Saturday, I hope to get to work on my volunteer landscaping project at the county jail. I was asked to design the landscaping for a memorial out front by the local extension agent - and it's for a good cause. The memorial is of a little girl that came up missing a few years ago, and the parents had apparently killed her - then threw her body from a local bridge. Her body was never found. It's theme is about child abuse, and funded by the state. I'll blog about it when finished...

I've finally made my mind up on which material to use for the exterior walls of the shed. Vinyl siding that matches our house will look great, although a little time consuming to install. Once the exterior is completely protected from the elements, i'll be able to take my time on the inside. Man, I can't wait to get into that thing, because my stuff is very unorganized. I got the roof felting installed today, because it's gonna rain alot tonight/tomorrow. I'll probably wrap some around the exterior walls too, because I don't want the OSB to get damaged before the vinyl siding is installed.

Take care, and happy gardening!


EG