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My California Reds onions are beginning to surface now, I was worried that the sun was drying out the soil before they could germinate, but that's not the case.
I pulled up another cuke plant so now I have one left, growing up the bean trellis. I picked 3 cukes this morning and I'm hoping for a few more before the final plant dies off. This final plant was the strongest and healthiest of all of them.
We need to buy a couple of new hoses, with the apartment in the basement being built our one and only hose has been badly abused by the plasterer! Not sure how many holes there are in it. Ideally we need a permanent one for the herb bed in the front that can be used when we landscape the front with some flower beds and one for the back.
It's amazing how hot the soil in my garden becomes. I felt the soil where I have my potatoes (sprouting now). I'm not sure how roots survive that kind of temperature really. That's why I plant my beets and beans so close together, it keeps the sun out and you don't have to worry about the soil drying out if you miss water for a day.
I'm impatiently waiting for the side path to be completed so that we can get the machine down in the back and level out the rest of the garden. Everything seems to take at least twice as long to complete than estimated. I'm planning on taking a drive to St. Andrew to look at some fruit trees they have, I can't wait! I would love to grow miniature lemon (not sure if I can get this, may have to experiment and grow from seed!!), orange, banana (will get suckers from a friend), guava, cherry, can't think of any more right now.
One of my four remaining cabbages have split, I'll see if I can salvage any of it for the pot today.
I'm thinking that when I've pulled up my dying lavender I'll have enough room in the area (if I use cages) for six tomato plants. So I'll have space for more planting than I had anticipated. So...
Note to self: Space between english peas and romaine lettuce, space between potatoes and newest pole beans. Space in polystyrene box remaining.
We're finally getting some more overcast weather here. It's been so dry everywhere, the grass is brown all over the island and looking very sick. I'm hoping for some rainy weather now. PLEASE!
I pulled up a couple more cuke plants, I have two left now with a few cukes on them.
I have an eggplant about the size of a baseball, nice and shiny and purple.
My Scarlett Emperor runner beans are still flowering profusely but I have yet to harvest one single bean!
The corn has taken off quickly as usual. I'm going to try my hardest to harvest these on time this time! I always seem to pick them too soon or too late!
Harvesting lots of sweet and hot peppers, I still have loads of hot on the bushes. I used some to make some pepper spray on sunday, and sprayed it around my romaine lettuce seedlings, a cat had been messing around in there and around my peas. I think it's not coming back!
None of my onions or leeks have come up yet.
All of my tomatoes are up now, my solitary beefsteak is thriving, I still have time to feed the beds they'll go in and I still have time to buy the materials to make some cages. I'll try and do that this weekend.
My mums and asters are growing, slowly, but still healthy. My gladioli on the patio seem to be leaning a bit, I'm not sure whether to pack some more dirt in there.
None of my strawberry seeds have germinated yet. All I can do is wait and hope.
I thought I was going to lose my 'salad bowl' lettuce, but they didn't look too bad when I went out to water last evening.
My english lavender is almost dead. They obviously didn't like the move from pot to bed in the blistering sun. I'll have to find a nice pot and try again.
My dill and coriander haven't showed up yet either. I guess I'll have to wait a bit longer.
The Balsam on the patio is looking really good, they have more leaves now and are growing stronger and stronger.
My mysterious white beet that came with the reds is still growing just like a beet but white!
The bush beans are almost ready to flower now. Nothing is eating them either!
I saw a large frog or toad in my garden yesterday, I hope he stays, I love the idea of bug-eating visitors that don't want to leave. I have some small whistling frogs in the garden too, but they're less easy to spot. I would like my garden to be as reptile-friendly as possible. Lizards, frogs, toads and salamander are very welcome. Now if only they ate monkeys!
I was up early this morning in the garden. It's the best time, when the sun is just rising and the day is relatively cool. I can get a lot done between 6 and 8am.
This morning I cleared down some dirt and planted some potatoes slips. I have the excess dirt piled to one side so as the plants grow I can add more and more dirt. I hope we don't get heavy rain, it wiped out my potato growing attempts last time.
I sowed some red and some white onion seeds into the old shelving I salvaged from the garage. Here we go again!
I sowed some leek seeds in one of the polystyrene containers I'd found. I'm still deciding what to put in the second one. Radish or carrots would be ideal but though I love the foliage of carrots I find them to be annoying little veggies to grow. Also, when I've grown radish in the past no one has particularly eaten them, even though I told my husband and youngest son that they would be good for their sinus problems. Actually.... I'm thinking to sow some more lettuce seeds... rocket and salad bowl would be nice, I may wait for a couple weeks, I already have romaine and salad bowl seedlings planted.
I'm eagerly waiting for my tomato seedlings to grow enough for me to be able to plant them out. I've prepared: Golden Sunrise, Red Pear, Gardener's Delight, Beefsteak and Tigerella. I only sowed the Gardener's Delight and Tigerella a couple days ago so it's going to take a while!
I needed to bite the bullet and tackle my growing strawberries fears. I saw pictures of AngelsGardens strawberries growing and decided now is the time to try. So I followed the instructions on the back of the seed pack for the Sarian F1 variety. I have sowed just six seeds in cells and placed them in a plastic bag.
I've sowed some dill and coriander in cells this time, for some reason (probably because the herb bed doesn't get regularly watered!) my attempts to sow these directly into the herb bed are failing, over and over again. I really have been without coriander in my cooking for way too long.
For the last few months I've been buying and planting seedlings, sowing various seeds, harvesting and feeding and tending my plants continuously. It's very satisfying and rewarding. Just when I think I can't plant anything else I either harvest something or find a container of some sort.
On saturday I pulled up all my onions, some still had green stalks but they needed to come up. I can't begin to tell you how good they smelled when I was sorting through them. I'm learning a little bit more every time I grow this type of veg.
I made some temporary seed beds from an old shelf I had in the garage. Filled it with dirt and it's ready for my 'Californian Red' onion seeds. That way I don't waste too much valuable space waiting for these to mature in a regular bed. I may sow some regular white onions too.
I still have plenty of shallots that could be planted, I dried them from the previous harvest, alas, I don't have much room for these right now.
Shallots staying dry in a box
I bought some more asters, I read up on them and they kind of remind me of daisies. Apparently the most common colours are pink and purple, I hope mine are purple, please let them be purple.
Asters & Mums in pots on the patio
My Balsams have been repotted and put on the patio, they seem to love it out there, they get the more gentle early morning sun and are thriving and growing their secondary (first true) leaves.
Balsam on patio with true leaves
I'm keeping an eye on all my flower plants on the patio, keeping watch for bugs and diseases. All's well so far.
I think my weeping fig is slowly but surely bushing out a bit.
My gladioli in pots on the patio are getting taller and taller. I'm not sure when they are supposed to bud? The leaves aren't very white fly friendly thank goodness.
Gladioli growing well on patio
The solitary pumpkin is still thriving, the leaves are speckly and growing bigger. I hope I've left enough room for the roots. I've given it around 12 sq.ft. Hoping that's enough, I don't mind it wandering down the path if it has to.
Pumpkin growing happily in a bed
Well, I've got my sprouting potatoes out on the countertop. I'm planning, this evening, to dig down and plant these and gradually add dirt as they grow. It's worth a shot just to be able to have some fresh picked potatoes, even just one would make it worth while!
Beets and bush beans are growing really well. Not much maintenance for these right now. The main problem I have with the beets is moths laying their eggs at night under the leaves. I've been constantly watering these at dusk, hoping that the wet leaves will deter the moths from landing. I guess only time will tell.
Healthy bush beans
Beets growing rapidly in a bed
Harvested some cukes, a sweet pepper and some hot peppers. Cukes are a good size, I'm very pleased with them.
Cukes, hot peppers and one sweet pepper
I was looking at the new Lemon Grass plant I have in the herb bed, I'm thinking that maybe I should have read up on it, I have a feeling that this is a 'spread and take over' kind of herb. It seems so innocent and unassuming right now...
I'm learning (from my sage and past basils) that you have to be quite ruthless with herbs, or they simply go nuts and take over the whole world. I think my sage may need pruning again, the chives are getting straggly again, the only thing that doesn't look threatening is the fennel!
Lemon Grass in herb bed
Purple Basil (4) in herb bed
More Asters on patio
English Peas
Well, since my flower seedlings are not growing too fast I went out and bought four Asters (I have to read up on what these are and how to grow them) and four Chrysanthamums, I'm not sure what to do with these either. I'll be putting them in pots. They're a nice healthy size.
I bought some Lemon Grass for the herb bed, I think that's all for this bed, I have: Chives, Sage, Fennel, Peppermint, Flat Leaf Parsley, Coriander, Dill, Marjoram, Purple Basil, Thyme (and Lemon Grass). Plus one hot pepper plant.
I got some Romaine Lettuce plants also. I'm quite fond of this type. Nice and crunchy and keeps well. I'll have to get my Chicken Caesar Salad recipe out.
Re-sowed some more english peas last evening to replace the ones that didn't show up.
I'm thinking to harvest the onions now, they don't seem to be growing anymore, though the stalks are partly green still. I read somewhere that you're supposed to tie them down so all the energy goes into the bulbs, is that true?
Harvested a couple of my cabbages, the combined weight was 6lbs. Not bad.
One of the cuke plants is now growing up the fence with the runner beans.
The bush beans and the beets are growing really quickly.
I'm going to sow some more onions. I have an old half shelving unit which will give me some small fairly deep spaces that should be ideal for starting these slow growing but well appreciated veggies. I love growing onions... and beets. My youngest chose this variety... California Reds. They're supposed to be quick growing... 200 days! 7 months. I don't think so. I MUST remember to drill holes in the bottom.
I have an old drawer which maybe the ideal candidate for trying to grow some new potatoes again. If only. I MUST remember to drill holes in the bottom
I picked a completely red sweet pepper this evening. That's a first. Normally they go mushy and rot before the change color.
Two varieties of my english peas are showing thru now. The ones I got from Canada are still sleeping I think. Maybe I'll plant the more of the others in their place if they don't show.
I have one pumpkin seedling right now. The first true leaf is a bit speckly. Hoping that is not PM!
I harvested the remaining cauliflowers including the tiny one. Having them with dinner tonight.
Cukes were growing fast, and some got eaten by some ravenous monkeys. So I made a scarecrow, or scaremonkey. My youngest named it Margaret Scaremonkey. She has a big straw hat with sunflowers around the rim. I'll take pictures once she is mounted. I have to change her location every now and then.
The sixth gladioli in the pot came up... with two shoots instead of one. Though one did look kind of weird and misshapen it seems to have straightened up now. I seem to be more successful growing bulb/corm flowers than those from seed. I hope I haven't spoken too soon!
I bought some more seedlings. My lettuce I sowed didn't show so I bought some more 'salad bowl' , the reddish oakleaf variety seedlings. I also bought some Purple Basil. Since the Sweet Basil seeds I sowed before haven't showed up either. I'm just waiting for them to take off, go nuts, then, as usual, I'll pull them up. Or maybe this time I'll prune them back and keep them under control!
The lettuce I let run to seed was pulled up last evening. I collected a lot of seeds from them. That wasn't too difficult.
Will be harvesting a couple of cabbage this evening. My husband thinks they need to come up. He's probably right, they're so heavy they are actually leaning over.
Something has been eating my eggplant, something quite large! I'm hoping the lizards have eaten it, whatever it was.
Most of the corn has come up, I may have to fill in a few gaps this evening.
O, yes... one of my hot peppers have turned completely red, the one in the herb bed.
Well, just about all of my bush beans are up now. There's always something very satisfying about growing a simple bush bean, of the few things guaranteed in life, bush beans are one of them. I wish I could say the same for growing flowers!
I'm a bit puzzled as to what to do with my flower seedlings. Not sure whether to put them in bigger cells or what. They are still indoors and not doing much of anything. Can't you tell I've never grown flowers before, ever!
Only one of the sunflowers I sowed has surfaced, and it's not looking that great. The seeds were bought (two packs) in the UK. This particular pack has a really low yeild. I may try the other pack and see if it fares any better. Or maybe sunflowers take forever to germinate in general. I'm not sure.
My english lavender is struggling a bit. Some of them have browned and are almost dead. I'm thinking it may have been the fertilizer burning them or something.
I had to pull up another sickly looking cuke. So now I'm down to four. Well at least they look healthy and are fruiting nicely.
I saw a hummingbird hopefully pollinating one of my Scarlett Emperor beans, yes, I'm still hopeful. Even though another hummingbird came and chased it off before it could do much. Apparently there's a problem with honeybees in other parts of the world too. I rarely ever see any here anymore.
One 'Golden Sunrise' and two 'Red Pear' tomato seedlings are now up. It will be quite a while before they get planted out, looking quite frail and a bit leggy right now.
None of my english peas have germinated yet. I know they are generally slower, I hope they make it!
On my to do list is getting rid of an army of black ants that have taken up residence on one of my older sweet pepper plants, I tried blasting them off but they're pretty resilient. Lemon juice carefully applied might help. They're coming from next door's garden.
The chives in the herb bed got 'shaved' on sunday, I sent our youngest out, he did a pretty good job. They're around a couple inches tall now.
I was looking at some scotch bonnet pepper pictures online last night, I read that they are small and grow to 2-4cm, I was wondering why one of my sons asked 'why are your peppers so big?' . They are quite big compared to the size they're supposed to be. I'm not sure what's going on there?! I planted them right next to my sweet peppers, I'm not sure if that factors into their size though? All of them are still pale green, they're supposed to change to various shades of orange and red. Looking forward to that.
Mmm, this seems to fit in here somehow, my favourite of his sonnets.....
When, in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes,
I all alone beweep my outcast state,
and trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,
and look upon myself, and curse my fate,
wishing me like to one more rich in hope,
featured like him, like him with friends possess'd,
desiring this man's art and that man's scope,
with what I most enjoy contented least;
Yet in these thoughts myself almost despising,
haply I think on thee, and then my state,
like to the lark at break of day arising from sullen earth,
sings hymns at heaven's gate;
For thy sweet love remember'd such wealth brings
that then I scorn to change my state with kings.
Shakespeare- Sonnet #XXIX
Having a good day today, I checked the garden early this morning, some of my bush beans are almost up, the soil is slightly breaking where they're pushing through.
The pole beans I planted are really aggressive and have eagerly pushed through the soil showing off their crinkly primary leaves. Their initial color is quite odd compared to bush beans, more of a dark olive greeny brown that will soon turn to a regular shade of 'bean' green.
One of my cukes looked really awful this morning, you know you have a problem when your plants are wilted first thing in the morning even before the sun touches them. I pulled it up and planted some corn in that corner, I figured if there is a problem with the soil corn would have the best chance of survival.
I bought some coriander seeds today which means I'll probably find the ones I lost any day now!
I thought sweet peppers grew quickly... they're slow compared to a few cukes I've been watching! I'm hoping to water them well enough that they grow to full size without any strange shaping, though easier said than done most times.
Some of the cabbages look like they're ready to harvest but I'm not sure really. I'm trying to leave them a bit longer. I'm curious to see how large they can get.
The peppermint (yes, I can call it that now that it has markings on the leaves and the stems are darkening) is doing well in the herb bed, but not so well in the veggie bed round the back. It's looking a bit straggly.
Five of the six gladioli planted in pots have come up, probably around five inches of flat sword like leaves showing. The sixth that hasn't shown has put down roots but for some reason isn't sprouting.
The flat leaf parsley is doing well in the herb garden, I'm very pleased with it.
Not sure about the flower seedlings, I'm waiting for them to get stronger and show secondary leaves. Some of them are drying up and dying. I'm trying to be patient with them but they are sooo slow!
One of the tomato seedlings have surfaced, a 'red pear'.
Now I've finally got my hands on some AAA batteries I'll see what I can take pictures of in the morning. I quite like taking picture even though I'm not very good at it, it helps to see the various stages of plant growth. To be able to look back at this blog in the future will be very valuable.
Last evening I planted my pumpkin seeds and my lettuce seeds. In the herb bed I planted Sweet Basil and Dill seeds, the Basil may come back to bite me later on! I couldn't find my coriander seeds anywhere. When I've pulled up the seeding lettuce I am waiting on in this bed I will have room for 2 more herbs, coriander and I'm not sure what else... maybe a cinnamon basil?
So I'm now waiting for bush beans, pole beans, english peas, lettuce, pumpkin, gladiolus', basil and dill to show, I love the anticipation!
Early this morning I was out and about, I was determined to do something about the messy, weed ridden onion patch under the chicken wire and out of the reach of the monkeys.... and me. So I disassemble the structure and got to pulling weeds. Cleared everything, I had to replant a few onions that came up with the weeds! They're still mainly around the size of golf balls. They smell great and I can't wait to sample them. They were planted from seed and are well worth the wait.
I found a runner bean online that is self pollinating. MERGOLES I wonder how many more there are out there? I just read some more, I'm so confused. No bees, no touching, lots of beans, that's all I'm asking for! Can anyone give me some advise and help me out here? Please?
I've been thinking about my strawberry seeds and gathering information....
Growing Strawberries From Seed
Planting:
Best started indoors in early March. These seeds are very tiny and should be sown on the surface of the soil. Sprinkle seed very thinly over the surface of the soil and cover flats or trays with a clear plastic wrap, bag or dome to hold moisture and humidity within the soil. Provide bottom heat to maintain a soil temperature of 15-21°C (60-70°F), which will maintain a temperature at seed level of 15-18°C. Seeded trays should be kept from any direct bright light until seeds germinate. Trays can then be moved to a sunny location. If the temperature fluctuates widely, then germination will be very poor. Germination will take 3-4 weeks. After 4-6 weeks, transplant tiny seedlings into 2x2" pots until they are ready to be placed permanently outdoors. Light feedings with a well balanced fertilizer can begin at this time.
Growing:
Thrive in full to partial shade with a soil pH of 5.5-7.0. Moderate feeders. Alpine strawberries are perennials and special care should be given to area in which they will be permanently planted. Prepare a rich well drained soil by adding plenty of compost and well rotted manure to the area. Use bonemeal and compost teas or other balanced fertilizers during the growing season.
Harvesting:
Pick once the fruit has fully ripened to a crimson red. (These strawberries will be much smaller than commercial types).
Pests & Diseases:
Red Spider Mite is easily recognizable by the first signs of fine speckling on the upper surface of the leaves, which eventually lose colour and become hardened. In severe attacks, webbing can be seen on the underside of the leaves. Mites love dry air and dust, so wash off foliage with a jet of water in dusty seasons. An excellent all-natural bio-degradable insecticide is Safer's Natural Insecticide. Mulch over winter for protection.
Companions:
Melon.
I was looking out yesterday afternoon and realized that my 'shady' spot under the mango tree gets the sun for maybe a couple hours a day, 3-5ish. So I figured I'd try to grow some of my English Pea varieties; Lincoln, Little Marvel, Kelvedon Wonder and Onward. They're all dwarf varieties and won't grow more than 3 feet. I've not had much success growing peas (with the exception of black-eye peas, hardly counts!) it's way too hot here. I love the taste of fresh picked peas so I'm trying again. I planted around 2 dozen of each.
I planted the rest of my Gladiolus' last evening too. I just dotted them about, between the various vegetables. Just four in all.
The weeds are drying up nicely in the gravel pathways, I'll keep reapplying salt every month, I think, until I don't see them at all.
Will be sowing some lettuce seeds this evening, in the space where my beets used to be. These 'Grand Rapids' are very useful to have and should be ready in a few weeks. Hopefully I should have some cukes ready, to go with them in a salad.
Will also be sowing a couple of pumpkin this evening, straight into the bed, I'm not sure which variety they are, I just know that the pumpkin I got them from was huge! Will probably pull the weaker one and just grow one. I'm trying to be disciplined in my planting, I hope I don't get carried away, I always find it difficult to cull my plants. So I may give it away.
I almost forgot, I have to sow some coriander seeds too. I keep forgetting and this is my favourite herb of all time.
I find that if I blog what I plan on doing it gets done!
Well, until I harvest my cabbages and cauliflowers, I have no more space for planting anything. I have saved some space for the 5 tomato plants, 1 pumpkin and 4 lettuce.
I have quite a few green lizards situated at various points in my garden, I really like having them around to eat the bugs, though I wish they'd do a better job with the worms the moths create on the leaves of my beets and tomatoes! I've been noticing a larger lizard over the past few days. It's kind of a muddy brown and around a foot long including its tail. I thought it was a mouse the first time I saw it! I would love to take a picture but I know that's impossible.
There's a Carnival ship coming in to dock right now, I'm not sure which one, I know the Destiny comes in on wednesdays.
Let me quickly recap what I have (or will have by this evening) planted/sowed in my garden and in seed trays: Cucumber, Runner Beans, Onions, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Eggplant, English Peas, Sweet Pepper, Hot Pepper, Lettuce, Beets, Bush Beans, Tomatoes, Pumpkin, Thyme, Sage, Fennel, Chives, Flat Leaf Parsley, Mint, Coriander, Marjoram, Gladiolus, Lobelia, Sunflowers, Alyssum, Balsam, Zinnia, Lavender I think that's it.
Was out early this morning, managed to get a few things done.
I changed my mind about the shallot planting. I decided to plant some bush beans instead. Should have no problems with these. Should be up in around 4 days.
I shifted a lot of soil from the 'bush bean' bed that was causing the water to run off the side and on to the gravel path. Nice and level now. I piled up the dirt in another bed, and now that's got me thinking of trying to grow potatoes again. Though I had planned to plant a pumpkin in that space, since the cukes are doing so well in that bed. Decisions, decisions!
I found some windchimes, I plan on hanging them in the garden. I have to buy some hangers and some hanging baskets for my lobelia (cascading).
Gladiolus - a couple of these are peeping through now, I'm so excited!
Picked a couple more sweet peppers. The hot peppers are still green. This is the first time I've grown hot peppers, I'm not sure how long it takes for them to turn red.
I've been watching some small 'yellow breasted' birds for the past few days pulling at the flowers on my 'Scartlett Emperor' bean plants, not sure what they were doing?! Probably something awful that I'll find out later during a 'what was I thinking' moment! I knew a lot of the birds names in the Uk, but here I don't know many at all. We have some doves living on our house, they had babies, I saw them waddling down the driveway this morning.
Sowing five tomato varieties, trying to stick to one of each, will give away the extras: Beefsteak, Golden Sunrise, Red Pear, Gardener's Delight and Rutgers. I'm trying to get this right this time, I always end up with a big mess of tomato plants sprawling all over the place. So, by the time the seedlings are up and ready for replanting I hope to have in place some homemade 'cages' for them. I will try covering the cages with some type of netting to deter moths from laying their eggs this time, and keep the birds away. Hopefully now the tomatoes won't be taking over the garden this time. I'm not planting any 'patio orange' this time, I seem to always have a problem with blossom end rot with this variety. I also have seeds for: Tigerella, Costoluto Fiorentino, Black Cherry, Grosse Lisse and Roma. Will try these around Sept-Oct.
Will post pictures to go with this blog later today, it always amazes me how quickly digital cameras suck the life out of AAA batteries and they're are the one's I'm always running out of!
Well, on my evening inspection of my herb bed, I took a close look at my recently planted mint that didn't look like peppermint, now it has darkened somewhat and begun to have markings/lines on it. It was too dark for a photo so I'll do that in the am.
Didn't have time to plant out the shallots, maybe I should tackle that in the early am and not the evening. The sun always dips so quickly, I can barely get anything done.
I've been thinking about garden accessories... I found some reasonably priced molds for stepping stones, planters and edging. The site is called History Stones
I love this one, would look great at the edge of a flower bed. (see below) Would work out really inexpensive when making them with the mold! Around $10 for the mold.
Here are some pictures of ideas for stepping stones.
You can make a lot and brighten up your garden for next to nothing, compared to how much they charge for stepping stones in the stores.
If you don't buy the special mold you could use something you may have already, see below...
Making Your Own Garden Stepping Stones
What you will need:
Molds
Cement
Decorations/Embellishments
Mold Ideas:
Plastic Planter Saucer - for round stepping stones. Reusable.
Old Cake Pans - you should coat the pan with cooking spray or petroleum jelly. Tip: Try using a layer of sand on the bottom of the pan. When the mold is hard it pops right out, just brush the sand off the bottom and its ready.
More Mold Options - small pizza boxes, aluminum pans, ice cream buckets, plastic storage boxes.
Cement Tips: Quick-Setting Concrete - Quikrete, under $2 for a 60-pound bag. - a little pebbly - makes at least a dozen stones.
Stepping Stone Concrete - find this at crafts stores - made especially for use in stepping stones. The average cost - $5 to make 1 stone.
Decoration Ideas: Marbles, Pebbles/Stones, Shells, Beads, Flat Marble/Gems, Small Mosaic Tiles, Beach Glass, Stained Glass, Special Mementos/Souvenirs
Things to use to make prints/designs on the stones: Cookie Cutters, Handprints - Paw Prints, Leaves, Popsicle Stick (to write names or verses), Patio Paint (or other outdoor paint), Stencils
Step by Step - How to Make Your Stepping Stones
1. Protect your work surface and yourself. Lay down some newspaper, plastic sheeting, an old tablecloth, etc. Weather permitting, you can make these outside. Always wear eye protection and rubber gloves.
2. Set your mold on your work surface. If you are using a special stepping stone mold follow any special directions it came with.
3. You can use clear, plastic planter saucers. You don't need to do anything to prepare them. If you use a cake pan or other household item, you should try coating them with a liberal layer of cooking spray or petroleum jelly.
4. Mix up the concrete. Follow the manufacturers directions on the bag of concrete you are using. For Quikrete you can use a mixture of 5 parts concrete to 1 part water. You should have the consistency of soft cookie dough.
5. Fill the mold about half full and smooth it down. Lay your cut piece of screening or hardware cloth into the mold and then finish scooping the cement into the mold until full.
6. Gently tap around the outside of your mold to help remove any air bubbles and also to help even out the top. Now leave your stepping stone to set up for 30 to 60 minutes before you add any embellishments or decorations - this is more important if you are making handprints or other prints in the cement.
7. Once the cement has been given some time to set up, you can start decorating it. If you make a mistake, you can simply remove the items, flatten out the top with the side of a popsicle stick or spoon, tap the sides to smooth, and start over again!
8. Leave stepping stone to sit for 2 - 3 days without being disturbed - do not move it. Once it is dry, you can gently pop it out of the mold.
9. Now, you can finish decorating it if you are planning on doing any painting. You can seal the top of your stepping stone with a clear acrylic sealer if you do use patio paints.
10. Let your stepping stone sit for another week before putting it outside.
Extra Tips
Yesterday evening I picked my first cauliflower, it was delicious! Also had some of the sweet peppers in a salad today. They were very easy to eat on their own. Crunchy and sweet! Picked all the beets, I usually pickle these.
I moved the lavender into the sun with the others, I'm not sure what to put in the shady area now.
I pulled up and trashed the sickly looking Polestar beans. I planted more Scarlett Emperor's in their place, around 12.
The cumbers are doing well, not sure if I have to give them a hand with the pollination. (sigh)
I fed and watered everything this morning. Finished sprinkling the salt on the gravel paths, some weeds are already turning brown.
I think my 'monster' sweet pepper 'tree' has some kind of rust problem. I may have to pull it up eventually. Small orangey-brown spots on the leaves.
One of my other sweet pepper plants had aphids on it. I simply blasted them with water, seems to work everytime.
I have a 'brassica' (wasn't sure what it was till today) that is kind of stunted, I thought it was a cabbage, but the leaves were slightly different in shape than the rest. It is only a quarter the size of the other cabbages. I peeped into the centre to see what was going on and spotted creamy curds! (florets) All this time I was thinking it was a cabbage with a growth problem! Also, I read somewhere that cauli's take 4-6 months to mature, not in my garden. More like 10 weeks. I'll have to make a note next time of when I plant the seedlings out.
So, after pulling up the cauliflower and beets and moving the lavender I have more room to plant more stuff!
I just moved the beet seedlings together this evening, now that it's cooler. I may plant some of the shallot sets I kept and dried from the last harvest in that space tomorrow.
I also planted out the rest of my mint in a large pot in the same bed as the baby beets. Hopefully it won't go walkabout!
No sign of the gladiolus' or the sunflowers yet, not expecting any show till maybe next week. I'll give the Lobelia, Balsam, Alyssum and Zinnia seedlings another week or so before I separate them into larger cells. The Lobelia is like a carpet of tiny leaves!
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