Exhausted Dog

Just got in from a long walk. Zoey jumped up on the couch & nested in the blankets. The wind had made her a little nervous, so I put a blanket on top of her to help her relax. Here she is, about a minute later:

A Very Important Weekend

Today is the one year anniversary of Zoey's coming to live with us!

Mama & Papa O'Brien sent some fun gifts to help us celebrate. Here is Zoey playing with a particularly satisfying panda on Friday night:

After a late night of fun with Amanda on Saturday, & an afternoon in the sun with Susie in the backyard on Sunday, she finished the weekend with a long & very serious nap:

She seems happy to be living here, & we're certainly happy to have her here on Mars!

Mars Farm Update: Starting to Eat Things! Plus A Vicious Attack!

This weekend on Mars Farm, we got our first taste of what's been growing -- it was time to thin the arugula, lettuce, beets, & collards, and there were so many sprouts by the end of it, that we both got to eat a big bowl of fresh Mars salad for lunch on Saturday.

Tonight, I think we'll be having more salad with dinner -- the big head of lettuce on the front porch (the winter planting's lone survivor of the January cold snap) is calling my name, & the mustard greens in the front window are getting out of control again.

Here's how it looked on the front porch on Saturday morning, before I got started:

Here's how it looked in the back yard:

Zoey's contribution lately has been stepping on plants as she tries to eat the grass behind the beds. Very unhelpful.

Then, overnight on Saturday, Mars Farm came under attack from unknown Critter or Critters, digging around in the dirt:

trampled collards

a near miss for the favas

almost all of the second planting of spinach is gone

I would post Zoey out there to stand guard, but I'm pretty sure she would do just as much damage, trying to get at that grass.

The Paparazzi Got Me

A wily paparazza snuck into the back yard while I was putting up my pea trellis!

A Trellis for the Peas

The big news this week on Mars Farm is that everything is now sprouting & growing happily. Today, I put in a few more carrot, spinach, beet, & arugula seeds, to extend the harvest by a few weeks, & put up a net for the rapidly growing peas to grab on to:

Now more waiting!

From Shabby Chic To...A Little-Less-Shabby Chic

We both still love the idea of stripping the built-in down to the bare wood & refinishing it, but let's face it -- it's going to be a while before we get to that.

This is where we left off last March, when Zoey arrived, & we needed to stop creating lead paint dust:

This week, as part of the general sprucing up efforts, I put a thin layer of paint on the parts that still need a lot of love, & left the better spots bare. It should still be straightforward to start the project again if we want to; in the meantime, we're hoping this looks a little neater, & hopefully is a little more in keeping with the general eclectic decorating style of the house.

Mars Farm 2013: Sprouts, More Seeds, Raised Beds

The weather continues to get warmer, the days continue to get longer, & sprouts are starting to come up at Mars Farm:

Snap Peas!

Lettuce!

There were beets planted here before the dog got in. Bad dog!

Meanwhile, this weekend, I planted some more seeds:

Herbs!

Herbs & Thai chile peppers!

I also finished building the raised bed for the pumpkins:

Mr. Bunkport's leftover lumber -- cut & ready to go!

Front panel completed! 

Backing the open spaces between the wood planks is a section I cut from a livestock feed sack I found on our neighbor's 'free' pile on the sidewalk. My hope is that it will allow more heat from the sun to get to the soil, versus if there were just more wood there instead.

Back panel completed!

The sides go on!

Almost done!

Not quite square, but done!

It's 22 inches high, 3 feet long, & 19 inches wide. Why so big? Pumpkins require deep beds, & since I can't really dig into the existing soil without accelerating the slow collapse of the concrete wall on the north side of the yard, I thought this was the best way to take advantage of the great sun on that side. 

Also, this will be great for tomatoes next year. They also require deep beds, & as it happens, are poisonous to dogs -- I'll be able to put 2 or 3 tomato plants in here next year without a problem, & also not have to worry about the dog getting into something she shouldn't.

This was also a great way to use up the lumber sitting in the garage. The only thing I bought for this project was a hand saw & a box of nails.

After the pumpkin box was finished, I used the scraps to make a little (16 inches long, 8 inches wide, 7 inches deep) box for a small, round variety of carrots I just got:

Here it is, with soil & seeds in the sun:

In a couple weeks, I'll be able to get the pumpkin box out into the yard & the pumpkin seeds planted in it. All this waiting is unbearable!