They're Growing!

I took some picture of the garden on June 15th and June 29th. This is how much they have grown in 2 weeks!

June 15

June 29

June 15

June 29

June 15

June 29

These others are the newest pictures

Hospice Gardens!

Here are some recent pictures of the Hospice gardens! 

Splitting Ornamental Grasses

Ornamental grass is beautiful and it is easy to maintain in almost any landscape. With time, ornamental grass can begin to thin out in the center. When this happens, it is best to split the grass. You can replant portions of it throughout your yard, or give the splittings to your neighbors and friends - just like Nana does.

Here is what I recommend:

1. Shear off last year's growth so that the plant stands 4 to 5 inches tall. It is best to do this in early spring before the growing season takes off.
   
2. Decide how many plants you will be splitting the grass into.
   
3. Split the grass by angling the spade directly down into the clump. Decide on the size you want the new grass to be and then make another cut into the grass.
   
4. Lift the new portion of the grass out and replant it in the new location.
   
5. Place at least three inches of mulch around the new transplant and make sure to give it a heavy watering to allow it to begin to root.
   
   

   • If the grass has a large bare spot in the center, lift the entire grass out, remove the middle, and replant a clump where the barren center once was.
     • Ornamental grass grows very well in all types of soil.
   • Do not shear back the ornamental grass until early spring.

HOPES THIS HELPS ROSE!

New Veggies

This week I have added some hay to keep the moisture in the ground and also add some garlic in a pot, leaf lettuce in a pot, and attempted a cucumber plant on the topsy turvy but I don't think it will last because the plant was too fragile and snapped when putting it through the small hole.

Pictures will be uploaded soon!

PS: I am also starting a small worm composting bin behind the shed. Hope that goes well!

Portulaca Oleracea - The Common Weed of Our Vegetable Garden

 I did some research and found that the weed that comes up every year in our vegetable garden is called Portulaca Oleracea. And it turns out it is edible!

Portulaca oleracea (Common Purslane, also known as Verdolaga, Pigweed, Little Hogweed or Pusley), is an annual succulent in the family Portulacaceae, which can reach 40 cm in height. The species status in the New World is uncertain: it is generally considered an exotic weed; however, there is evidence that the species was in Crawford Lake (Ontario) in 1430-89, suggesting that it reached North America in the pre-Columbian era deposits.

Although purslane is considered a weed in the United States, it can be eaten as a leaf vegetable, providing sources can be found which have not been poisoned deliberately. It has a slightly sour and salty taste and is eaten throughout much of Europe, Asia and Mexico.The stems, leaves and flower buds are all good to eat. Purslane can be used fresh as a salad, stir-fried, or cooked like spinach, and because of its mucilaginous quality it is also suitable for soups and stews. Australian Aborigines used to use the seeds to make seedcakes.
Purslane contains more Omega-3 fatty acids (alpha-linolenic acid in particular) than any other leafy vegetable plant. Simopoulos states that Purslane has .01 mg/g of Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). This is an extraordinary amount of EPA for land based vegetable sources. EPA is an Omega-3 fatty acid normally found mostly in fish, some algae and flax seeds.

GET THIS! Known as Ma Chi Xian (pinyin: translates literally as "horse tooth amaranth") in Traditional Chinese Medicine, it is used to treat infections or bleeding of the genito-urinary tract as well as dysentery. The fresh herb may also be applied topically to relieve sores and insect or snake bites on the skin

Asian Garden Trellis

Check out the new design for the trellises we sell at the Gathering on the Green! Tell me what you think by commenting and voting on the poll on the side.

Thunderstorm Does Number on Backyard!

It was nice while it lasted, but the gorgeous London weather came to an abrupt end with a wild storm Monday that brought with it hail, heavy rain and at least one funnel cloud.

Monday started beautifully, but not long after 2 p.m. the thunder roared and the skies opened up with torrents of rain.

In a few pockets, such as Byron and White Oaks, golf ball-sized hail stones pelted down. But in our backyard, few small hail stones fell. What did most of the damage was the hard rain and strong winds.

The clouds seemed to be clearing around 3:30 p.m., but by 5 p.m. The skies blackened again as a second wave of the storm rolled in.

Here are some pictures of the damages...

Neighbor's Flooded Backyard

My Poor Green Onions!

 Cedar Mulch Wiped Away

How to Comment

I apologize to you who could not comment because it wanted you to register to an account. I have fixed the problem. the reason it wouldn't let you comment was because I accidentally  had it on the setting where you had to sign in first. Now it does not require you to sign into anything.

Here is how you do it:

Writing a comment on a blog is no more difficult than sending an email. Honestly. It's three basic steps:

• Fill out your comment
• Leave your name
• Press Submit. That's it!

The easiest thing to do is just look for the word "comment" and click on it. For example, on this blog, you'll see

If you click on the circled link you can add your comment.

Next it will bring up the box where you type your comment. Type your comment and then select Comment As: and select Name/URL

It will ask you to put a name in....(you can use any name)... and a URL (only if you have a website, but you can leave it blank). Then hit Post Comment! That's all!

BEET SPROUTS - "Mmmmmm" - Inspiring Article

A interesting article published  by Society Garlic in 2008. 

Thinning the carrot (left) and red beet (right) seedlings was a little scary and tedious and painful—did I pull out the “right” ones? But later, I potted a few of the extra seedlings (not knowing if and or when I’ll actually transplant them) into temporary plastic pots until I figure out where those seedlings should eventually reside. I also transplanted a few lettuces that seemed crowded, but I think now I should have left those alone because they seem really wilted.

I felt better about the thinning when we just plain ate the extra beet sprouts—yum! Caveat: I know that beets and their greens are healthy and edible, so I felt comfortable eating the seedlings. I would not be so bold with just anything!

Jordan: I should try taking some out of the garden when they are bigger and put some into a garden salad. What do you think? Comment below.

Hanging Tomato Plants

This year, I wanted to try something a little different. As you may have seen on TV infomercials, there is a new way to grow your tomato plants...UPSIDE DOWN! This way is said to keep the plants from being infected from ground bugs, gives you more room in the garden, and it is supposedly easier to harvest your tomatoes. So off the store we went and picked up one of these upside down pots for $10 or so.

Here is what I am talking about...

CLICK ON THE LINK TO VIEW VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4L1wKS4M1Zk&feature=related 

I planted the foot tall cherry tomato plant I picked up at Van Luyks for $0.99 into the Topsy Turvy. In the last few days, I have already noticed it growing lusciously. I can already see flowers and small tomatoes growing already! Next year I want to try grow cucumbers from it!

Here is what our plant looks like so far...

Day 6 of Vegetable Garden

6 days ago, I went to Van Luyk Greenhouses and Garden Centre and purchased a bunch of vegetable seedlings for the garden. But it didn't start off there. In fact it started at Canadian Tire. They too had a healthy variety of plants to choose from. However their cheapest was around $1.29 each. I did like how they had Asian inspired vegetables like Pok Choy, Chinese Broccoli and some other Asian greens. Nevertheless we ended up at Van Luyks because of their $0.99 sale on all bedding and vegetable plants.

I ended up picking up the following:

• Romaine Lettuce (8 plants)
• Broccoli (4 plants)
• Celery (4 plants)
• Red Bell Peppers (4 plants)
• Red Hot Chili Pepper (1 bigger plant)
• Beet Seeds (package)
• Green Onions (1 bigger plant)
• Beef Tomatoes (4 plants)
• Cherry Tomatoes (1 foot high and flowering plant)

Before hand I weeded the garden, irrigated the soil, filled  it with black earth and cow manure to make the soil rich and loose. Then that evening, Nana Moe came over and helped plant everything in. This is what it looked like 6 days later after planting... Notice how I put up a turkey wire fence around the romaine lettuce and celery, just in case we get rabbits wandering around. 

Today, I noticed the beets are starting to sprout out of the ground.  Will start thinning them out as soon as they get a little bigger. Also note in the above picture the black hose connected to our eaves-trough. I collected some stones from Port Stanley the other day to help drain the rain water that comes out.

The other side of the garden looks like this. I still have room for one more thing but I'm not sure what to plant. I think I might put some sugar snaps or peas along the fence.

Anyways, that a quick look around the 2010 veggie garden. Check back soon for upcoming articles including:

GROWING TOMATOES THE NEW WAY

FROM SEED TO LYCHEE TREE

INFECTED CLIMBING HYDRANGEA

Welcome - 2010 Garden!

Hello and welcome to the official site of the Lee Family's garden website. Here you will see up to date pictures and possibly videos of the latest things growing in our backyard. You may even get the chance to visit Nana Moe's hospice gardens and view some of her work.

I know that this site will mainly be viewed by family members, but if you wish to pass this website along to friends or distant relatives, be my guest! After all, this was the intention...to share our garden to others around the world! So feedback is very much appreciated and comments on the site are also welcome!
Happy Summer 2010!