Tag Archives: kardia tou thespiae

2012 Kardia tou Thespiai garden update, Week One

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Technically, I could have resumed garden work periodically in March, but frankly, it was a combination of sore joints (back, especially), erratic weather, and plain ol’ sloth that got me started so late.

Earlier in the week of 9-15 April, I put up another bird feeder, and the birds seem to be enjoying the yummy suet cake I bought for it. I got one with all kinds of berries in it, and I know if I were a bird, I’d be all up in that shit, for I am a fiend of sweets.

On Wednesday, my humanoid meat-based house-mate got a sales e-flier from Big Lots and noticed that they just got in a bunch of collapsible compost bins for $35, and he offered me yet another loan to get one, since this would be about $10 less than the neighbouring ‘burb of East Lansing will be offering them for next month. It took a few days to put together not because my intellect is prematurely enfeebled beyond the ability to comprehend a simple diagram, but because the plastic was not very pliable in snapping certain parts into certain other parts, and cos I am but a small Hobbit-like creature, I’m simply not big enough to conform it to my will and thus had to wait for when the aforementioned humanoid meat-based house-mate to have a spare five minutes.

Either way, the neighbour next door seems to find my gardening amusing.

Sunday, I FINALLY raked up the brush from last year’s wildflowers out in front. I could have done it last autumn, sure, but honestly? I really think the unkempt twigs look good in an Addams Family sort of way during the winter, so my instinct is to leave it until the thaw — and the reason I didn’t rake it all up after the first thaw is cos I was trying to put it off as long as possible until either a) I got a compost bin or b) I at least had a plan on what to do until there happened to be a compost bin. See, I’m clever like that. I also feel just awful putting yard waste out to the curb, even though I know the city is just going to compost it (or so I assume that’s why they want it in separate bags). So, I raked up and wrangled in my humanoid meat-based housemate in to helping me fill up the bin, after placing it in the most convenient sunny spot in the back garden. ZOMGZORZ, this bin is FULL at the mo’, and I’ve deputised one of the empty cat litter buckets for stuff for the compost bin.

The good thing about raking shit up is that I can see how well my fowers are coming back —at least on the one side. See, last year, half of the front garden was mowed down against my instructions NOT TO, and likely due to the dispersal of grass seed all over that side, not grass has choked out half of it. If I owned this place, I would sue. Now I have to return to back-breaking tilling to remove everything on that side of the front garden ALL OVER AGAIN. If anybody lives in the Lansing, Michigan area and wants to come by to help out, by all means, e-mail me.

Also, I was approved for a small ($300) PayPal credit line connected to my PayPal debit card. Excellent. Good side to this: I don’t have to insufferably beg for readers of this blog to give me money. Down side: I am racking up more debts. Fortunately: I have learned my lesson since my first couple years on my own, and will hopefully keep it all under control this time.

Current wish-list for the garden:

re-painting the porch: $90 (estimated)
re-gravelling the front path: $50 (estimate)
compost bin: $36
rain barrel: $50
a few more bird feeders: $30 (estimate)
wood for bat houses: $20 (estimate, for two)
windchimes: $15-$20
decorative thinger for the back door: $25
garden arch trellis kit: $50?
bug lights for front and back doors: $10?
porch swag hooks: $2

Plans for this week:

* Call property management and see if they’ll reimburse me (at the very least) for paint for the porch, so long as I’m wiling to do it myself.
* take out grass between city pavement and street, replace with clover.
* get more wildflower seeds, replace all that got fucked up thanks to idiots last year.
* try and make a dent on all that gill-over-the-ground that has taken over the back garden, including several spots I’ve already dug up.
* get a couple things off the wish list

I’m still waffling on which kind of decorative door thinger I want out back. Stars are great, and many pagans and polytheists have them, and clearly there’s perfectly fine Hellenic reasoning for having one and I see a lot of different stars, some of which are just gorgeous, but I’ve seen a lot of beautiful suns lately, and being a Leo, I’ve always been attracted to solar symbols —which, I giess kind of makes my decision, barring the discovery of any really gorgeous stars.

Quick Garden Update

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Thanks to donations, this last week I picked up a small coconut hanging basket for the porch, a Greek oregano, a rosemary seedling, a new bag of potting soil, a large garden spade, a packet of anemone poppy (wind flower) bulbs, and a packet of hooks for the porch. If a friend follows through on her pledge to donate some more money this coming week, I hope to get a few things for the birds. Also, today, broke one of my shoe and clothing rules and grabbed a pair of Crocs from Big Lots (name brand, even) — but only cos, if the front garden has taught me anything about shoes, it’s that for gardening, you really need something you can hose off — at least I didn’t have to pay full price for them.

Before it started raining this evening, I also dug up some of the wild strawberries in the back and transplanted them to the basket (if only cos I intend to eventually clear out that area to make an unobtrusive parking space for a Stella — and why lose perfectly fine strawberries?).

It’s supposed to thunderstorm again tomorrow, but I still hope to get some digging in for that pond. At this point, I doubt that I’ll be able to complete the pond before the end of summer, but at the very least, I can dig it out and be ready in time for spring again.

Photos will come when flowers happen out front again — or, at least, I can get some more landscaping work in.

Again, donations are always appreciated, and (at least this year) absolutely necessary — as I’ve noted, I need new glasses this summer (though this is mainly my own fault; I got in the bad habit of wiping this pair with a paper towel, assuming that Viva “cloth-like” paper towels would leave my lenses unscratched).

I’ve also written up a draft of garden rules for visitors.

I don’t do this proudly

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As those of you who read my more personal diary may be aware, I have high generalised anxieties (though, being an extrovert, I’m pretty low on social anxieties), and money is one of the things that I get especially anxious about.

Now, DreamHost, my server provider, is actually pretty good on bandwidth and such, and I’m thankfully not popular enough to make site functionality an immediate danger, but the last few days, I’ve noticed a huge spike in hits — mostly concerning my Adonis post, for reasons I can’t figure out.

Then there’s the fact that this garden project is obviously very important to me, and money has so far been very short all year, so far. I’ve been made a generous donation offer by one of my best friends (for the near future — long story short, she’s feeling rich and is waiting for her next paycheque), and it’s clear to me that this is only a very small amount of what I need to bring the garden up to the point that I had hoped it would already be at this first year.

So I’m selectively signing up for advertisement space on this blog. I’ve enrolled in AzureGreen’s Affiliate program (an on-line store I’ve used for herbs and incenses and Wendy Rule CDs) and am considering signing up for others. This is all pretty much with intent to help fund the garden project, and could use some advice on where to look for other sign-ups. I don’t intend on using Google AdSense or similar services, cos I like a level of control over who and what I’m selling out to.

Now, the AzureGreen Affiliate program isn’t terribly great: While I like the 15% referral commission from all completed purchases made from my affiliate link, they only pay out after I’ve earned $100. So cos I can’t rely on it for needed garden funding, I’m obviously leaving the Indie GoGo campaign going. Also, you can click on the donations button under “Tip Jar” in my sidebar and donate directly.

I wish I didn’t have to do this, but AdFree Blogging can only go just so long until you realise you’ve got bills to pay. :-(