Soil Cocktails

"A 50c plant in a $5.00 hole" is a saying most gardeners have heard. When you are planting its extremely important to amend your soil.

I like to think of it is a "soil cocktail". Given the amount of clay in my yard, area adding organic material to the soil is essential to the health (or life) of my plants. For every plant or shrub I install, I add a mixture of top soil, mushroom (or homemade garden) compost, and black cow. I like to scoop the materials straight from the bags and toss them in a large plastic pot before mixing them with the soil I've removed while digging my hole. I sometimes also layer my cocktail mixture and the original hole's dirt as part of the planting job.

I often end up with extra soil from the original hole that I dug out (Not sure if anyone else has this problem). I used to have a hard time disposing of all of my "extra dirt". Recently, I've starting using it to make my ring shaped mounds around my plants to help them capture and hold water. Clay works especially well for this purpose since its easily molded.

Got any planting to soil amendment tips? Click comment below and let's hear 'em!

Black Gold....Compost

Composting is a secret of many a respected gardener. It's also a great alternate for those, unlike my friends in Oakwood with a chicken coop (and poop), who are looking for sustainable ways to fertilize their plants!

Last year, we bought a composter from Neuse Works (unfortunately, they are closed currently, but some like models can be found at Logans and Atlantic Avenue Orchid Center). It was stand model which allowed for tumbling and easy mixing. It also composts quickly in a little about 30 days. It was love at first site.

If you're not up for a manufactured bin, consider this alternative...In Charlotte, we created our own composter using wire fencing fastened in a circular shape. We tossed the components with a pitch fork and it seemed to work. I recommend it as a cheaper alternate to see how you take to composting.

There are all kinds of composting formulas online, so I'm not going to repeat them here, but I will share a few tips from our brief composting tenure. I didn't grow up composting, so some of these may be "old hat" to those of you veterans.

• Keep a pail in your kitchen or fridge for food scraps (coffee grounds, vegetable peelings, fruit cuttings....) to minimize your trips to the bin.
• Place your bin as conveniently as possible to your kitchen without it being an eye sore. (Originally, our's was next to our kitchen stoop which made frequent tumbling easy. We've since moved it to the back of the yard where it only receives weekend visitation)
• Newspaper and dryer lint can be used as "brown" materials in the summer when dead leaves aren't typically as abundant. This is really great since fresh scraps are so bountiful in the summer, but need to be balanced with brown materials.
• Heat and compost "tea" are normal. Expect them.
• You can add water to compost, if you need to in order to keep it damp.

With gas prices as they are, I'm looking for ways to save on everything. Composting is a great way to not only reduce your waste but also avoid a trip to the store for fertilizer or prepackaged compost.

Gardening in the Dog Days of Summer

The July garden is typically kind of a bummer for me. In years like this one with all of the rain, weeds abound making weeding an all to frequent necessity. Its also usually blatantly clear by July which of my Spring and Fall plantings didn't work. Unfortunately, with the blistering heat its hard to do anything about plant casualties until the Fall. This year is no exception.

I've had great success (maybe too much success) with my herbs and my side bed looks great, but some other areas aren't quite as I'd hoped. Rather than get down this year, I've decided to channel my gardening energy into planning for my Fall plantings.

I've already got a list of changes to make:

• In my side perennial bed, my Bee Balm is OOC (out of control) and totally dwarfing my Yellow Yarrow.
• Some Hellebore or Lenten Rose are getting too damp and need to be moved out of the path of rain runoff in the back by the pond.
• A few Hostas are getting more sun than I ever thought they would.
• Re-organize my mailbox bed. The drought tolerant plans have worked great, but my arrangement left a little to be desired.
• Move my Gladiator Aliums to a more showy location where they can colonize their hearts out!

In order to stay energized, I'm focusing my efforts to NOT on what is struggling, didn't work or is shriveling up and dying; but rather to what and how I want to use my Fall weekends. I'm getting out my garden magazines and problem solving and thinking about Fall bulbs. (If you are doing the same, consider Terra Ceia Farms (a NC company)). I'm also starting to ponder a new bed for the front yard which means sketches abound. No time for the blues!

Mastering the Art of Pot Drainage

We've all had the pot that wouldn't drain or know somone who bought a sensational looking pot that they didn't realize didn't have drainage holes until they'd already planted it. I frustrates me that they don't just pre drill holes in more pots!

Drainage Holes

A few weeks ago I burned my hand falling on a hot drill bit after drilling drainage holes in several pots: very smart! My dad gave me some advice to avoid future skin seering ocassions: run water over the drill bit and pot as you make the hole to cool the operation. He and my husband also both suggested a diamond drill bit: however, I was too excited about getting my new annuals planted to take the time to go back to the hardware store. I either make one large hole in the bottom of each pot OR make several smaller holes depending on the pot and drill bit size.

Drainage Materials

After you've gotten your drainage holes taken care of, its important to fill the bottom 1/4 or so of your contain with a material that will encourage water to drain. I was fortunate to be able to repurpose the 3 truckloads of white landscaping rocks that the homeowners before me COVERED my yard in for this purpose! However, I also keep a plastic tub of broken clay pots and even rocks I uncover while digging in the yard to reuse in my pots.

I read recently in a magazine about using old tennis balls to aid drainage in larger pots. I tried it recently with Mason (my not-so-helpful gardening side kick) at my side. So far, my yellow hibiscus seems happy in the pot among the recycled tennis balls.

Hydrangeas

In the Fall of 2006, I bought 3 Penny Mac Hydrangeas from Home Depot. They were extremely healthy looking plants, however after some reading I regretted not getting not getting the Endless Summer variety. Nonetheless, they have performed excellently and I couldn't be happier with them. This year they've hit their stride and are blooming like crazy and hanging in there with the heat.

Last summer, I took several floral arranging classes at The Art of Flowers in downtown Raleigh. I was reminded of the Limelight Hydrangea. Its a show stopper in arrangments when paired with pinks and reds. I set out to buy three and got a hydrangea education along the way.

Hydrangea Macrophylla

The most common hydrangeas in our area are the Hydrangea Macrophylla or bigleaf hydrangea. These hydrangeas' blooms vary from pink to blue depending on the pH (or acidity) of the soil. If you want blue blooms increase the acidity adding aluminum. For pink blooms, add lime to the soil. Don't forget that as pretty as they are in the summer, these hydrangeas are decidious and will loose their leaves in the winter. Unless you like the twiggy look in the winter, like I do, they might disappoint you if you if they are too prominent during the winter in your landscape. These hygrangeas bloom on old wood, so prune them after flowering.

Hydrangea Paniculata

The limelight hydrangea is a Hydrangea Paniculata or Panicle Hydrangea. From what I've read, its white and light green blooms of the summer turn to a deeper pink or red in the Fall: I can't wait! This hydrangea blooms on new wood. In fact, my plants had recently been pruned to about 2 feet tall when I got them in March and now they are about 4 - 5 feet tall. No blooms yet, but I'm hopeful!

What to do with all those herbs: Oregano and Parsley

My husband is from Argentina and is a "foodie" if ever there was one! He loves to cook and to send me to the herb garden with my herb snips. Below are three of our staples! If we've had you over or taken you dinner, you've probably had one of these recipes.

Zapallitos Revueltos (Scrambled Zucchini)
One large onion (sliced long ways)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 zucchini
2 teaspoons oregano
Salt
Pepper
2 eggs

Place sliced onion in a pan with olive oil on low heat. Cover and cook until onions are soft. Slice 2 green zucchini to about 1/4" thick and add them to the onions. Add oregano, salt and pepper and cook on low heat stirring until soft. Turn off the heat and add 2 eggs stiring into the mixture. Add additional salt and pepper (or oregano) to taste.

Marinated Pork Tenderloin
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup dry red wine
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons fresh Oregano, chopped
3 tablespoons fresh Parsley, chopped
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Pork Tenderloin

Whisk together the oil, wine, garlic, parsley, oregano and pepper. Cover the pork thoroughly with marinade, cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours (preferably overnight).

Chimi Churri (a traditional Argentine sauce)
Red wine vinegar
Olive oil
Garlic
Parlsey
Red pepper flakes
Hot water

Andy nor any of my in laws measure anything, so just mix and enjoy! We use it as both a marinade and a sauce. We store it in our fridge and add additional hot water, olive oil or red wine vinegar for reuse.

Andy has also found a new passion in local food and ingredients: his inspiration, Animal Vegetable Micracle by Barabara Kingsolver. We've been buying all local and organic and limiting all of our produce and meat to purchases from NC farmers. Its been both fun and rewarding although I'm already lamenting the end of strawberry season!

Lately, we've also been exploring local meat and cheese CSAs and tomorrow we're headed Celebrity Farms (a goat cheese farm in Siler City, NC) for a locally grown Sunday dinner. If you're not up for a trip to Siler City, you can check out their cheese at the North Hills Farmer's Market.

Drying Herbs

My herb garden has exploded: I've got blooming lemon balm, oregano, dill and cilantro. I did a little pruning last weekend and potted my "out of control" lemon balm in hopes of creating fuller plants and making my little spot a little less crowded.

I decided to cut and dry some of my herbs for use in the winter. I've tried drying herbs by hanging them upside down to no avail, so this time I removed the leaves and set them out to dry on plates. About a week later they were nice and crispy, so I pulsed them in the food processor and stored them in some glass jars. We'll see how they work.