Eightymillion

A DIY craft and photography blog. Dogs included.

Gardening Tips & Ideas: Part 1 of 2

This year we planted the garden on Memorial Day.  Why so late you ask?  First, it was the only day my boyfriend (Adam) and I had off together.  And second, it was the first day of the season that Mother Nature decided to give us nice weather.
Adam did a lot of research into different techniques that could be used in the garden.  He usually tills the garden by hand with only a shovel.  Last year we borrowed my Uncle’s rotary tiller.  This year we chose not to do either.  Keep reading.
We spent Memorial Day weekend pulling out all the weeds that have accumulated since last year’s garden.
Now it was time for a quick road trip.  I won a contest ($50. gift card to Home Depot) that was hosted by LA’s How2Girl, in which I was to submit my favorite DIY projects for the garden. A couple weeks later, my prize was in the mailbox.  They don’t have a location here in town, so the closest one is in Cedar Rapids. Well worth the trip.
Everything on our list was on sale.  Perennials for $2.50, vegetable starter plants for $3.33, seed packets for $1.50.  We always do a mix of starter plants and seeds for our garden.
We filled up two carts, loaded the truck, and headed home to get started.
First we positioned the plants in the garden.  Then brought in two pallets.  I had seen several ideas on Pinterest and wanted to try it myself.  I hate weeds and refuse to use chemicals in the garden, so this was one way to control them.  Refer to this article when looking for pallets to use.
Using the leftover fabric landscaping from last year, we cut enough to cover the bottom of the pallet to secure the dirt inside. Leave extra fabric along the edges to staple up the sides.
Depending on the construction of the pallet you may use less fabric to secure the sides.
Using a staple gun, Adam secured the fabric to the pallet.
We put the starter plants in first, mixing the dirt with some miracle grow.
All of our leafy vegetables are planted as seeds.
Funny story.  We recycled a dog kennel that my neighbor gifted us to keep the dogs out of the kennel.  It works!  They enjoyed watching from the other side.
I filled the pallets with dirt and then planted one with leafy vegetables and the other with herbs.
The cilantro and basil were starters.  In between we planted garlic chives and green onions (seeds).
Using a sharpie I marked what was in each row.
Next, using a Rubbermaid tub filled halfway with water, we dipped the newspaper in, enough to dampen it, and then placed it all around the plants.  Skip the sale ads, that paper is to glossy.  Instead of cutting holes in the paper it was easier to just rotate the paper around the plants.  Your goal is cover all of the exposed dirt.  Read more here about newspaper weed control.  We did three layers of paper.
After the newspaper was in place we added a layer of straw.  And last watered the entire garden. That’s it! The garden is in.
I’ll be posting part two of this post to show how everything is turning out.  Including a couple more tips to help you out.

Where did the Summer Go???

It’s nearly the end of August, WOW!

My Mother’s store, All That’s Vintage, is going great in Galena. I’m thankful to have another venue to test my products in. Along with my handmade cards, I’ve added recycled jewelry to my line, using typewriter/cash register keys. She created a blog at Allthatsvintage.blogspot.com
We’ve designed the new ad for the store to be in the Galenian Magazine. How does it look?

My writing assignments have taken a change. An announcement will be coming very soon. Very excited to share, but I can’t just yet……….

I’m going to start doing Giveaways on my fan page of Facebook. Just another way I want to test some of my new products out. If you would like to become a fan (like), please refer to the box to the right to guide you there.

I never sit still, so I’m also in the works for opening another storefront for my products. It will be hosted on the Meylah Website.

A few months ago, I responded to a link a friend had posted on Twitter about a new magazine coming out. The first 500 to respond get a free subscription. I LOVE IT!!! It’s called Starlee-Success on Your Terms. It’s a magazine created for women entrepreneurs. It has been most helpful to me. I’ll be doing another blog post for my review of the magazine. It was pretty cool to see my Twitter comment in their third issue.

Who planted a garden this year? Daily I am picking vegetables from my garden and harvesting them. With the days getting shorter it means that fall is coming. Which is good. A nice comfortable time of the year to work outside or online, I prefer online.

My three dogs continue to grow, inspire, and drive me crazy all at the same time. I wouldn’t trade them for anything. Who else can I endlessly share my thoughts and ideas with and they will always agree with me? They are the perfect business partners. I’ve been experimenting with some new homemade treats for them, we’ll see how they go.

The “munchkins”(nieces-nephews) continue to grow by walking, holding their own bottles, and learning how to “talk back”—they too have inspired me with some new projects I’ve been exploring that are more kid-friendly.

And that brings me to my biggest project this summer which is just winding up. My office, or what use to be called the dumping station. Too much stuff. Too many to-do piles. I basically put myself through an “Extreme Makeover”–and it’s working. I can channel my thoughts more clearly now and it’s time to get the jobs done. Planning to write an article on my journey through this makeover for Handmade Spark.

Well, that just about sums up my summer.

Talk to you later on the next post.

Jennifer
eightymillion.etsy.com