Big Gardening Plans, Baby, Big Plans! and Edible Estates Talks

I can't listen to ABBA and write about my Big Gardening Plans at the same time. That's just to preface my distracted ramblings. It's like rubbing your stomach and patting your head at the same time- it takes a lot of concentration. (Knowing Me, Knowing You...unh haaaanh. There is nothing we can do, Knowing Me, Knowing You...unh haaaaanh.)

I had big plans for the garden this weekend! (Take A Chance, Take A Chance, take a chance, chance, chance, chance) Clear out all the leftover summer vegetables, remove the bamboo tepees trellises, remove the layer of mulch and fallen pine needles, and amend the soil, digging in a bag of kelp meal, more amendment, and healthy handfuls of Dr. Earth fertilizer. And plant the winter seedlings- lettuces, garlic, beets, sweet peas, etc. Along the way, to my dismay I discovered more freaking nematodes and ground termites. F*ck! I will douse you in neem and garlic extract and scatter your feeding ground with tilled in marigolds... I didn't manage to plant the winter seedlings, but I did plan the layout and vow that I would wake up early before work each day and plant one row. Yeah... (Money, Money, Money, must be funny, in the rich man's world, Money, Money , Money, must be sunny, in the rich man's world. So I must leave , I have to go- to Las Vegas, or Monaco...I wouldn't have to work at all, I'd fool around and have a ball...)

This is what it looked like before; I'm kind of embarrassed at the state... ( So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me, S.O. S. The love you gave me, nothing else can save me, S.O.S.) It doesn't look so bad in the pic...


This is a neglected corner of the garden that was left lingering while our fence had to be rebuilt. We gained an extra foot of land that I'd like to plant with some papyrus in the corner and bougainvillea against the fence, give it some agave and other succulent shoes and I'm not sure what else right now. I change my mind every other day. Right now I'm turning it into a pile, throwing disease free clippings from the garden, free coffee grounds from Starf*cks, and clean veggie scraps from the kitchen. There's some gray Plectranthus growing there that I grew from cuttings someone generously donated. (Chiquitita, you and I know,.....how the heartaches come and they go and the scars their leavin', you'll be dancin' once again! Chiquitita, you and I cry, but the sun is still in the sky and shining above you!!)

Let's use the moody out of focus picture so you really can't tell how crappy it looks. (There's not a soul out there- no one to hear my prayers-- Gimme Gimme Gimme a man after midnight, take through the darkness through the break of the day)



The little seedlings in cell packs are growing and they are ready to be planted in the fresh beds and given away to some peeps. (Voulez vous-un hah! Take it now or leave it! Un hah! Now is all we get! Nothing promised, no regrets! Voulez vous! Ain't no big decision! You know what to do! ) The blank spaces with nothing growing are the cipollini onions and black viola seeds. Hmmm, upon recollection, I realized these seeds were like three or four years old. Nothing happened. I'm surprised. I thought at least something would pop up, that maybe at least one here or there would still be viable. I guess this is what happens when you have a 5 year old compulsive seed buying habit. I just like to look at my seed collection and know that they are there- like my shoes . You don't need to plant them or wear them! Sheesh. (Take it easy, try to cool it, girl, take it nice and slow, Does Your Mother Know? I can see, what you want, but you seem pretty young to be searching for that kind of fun.)

At 2:00 I had a break from straightening up the garden and headed over to Machine Project in Echo Park to listen to some peeps talk about how they converted their front yards and lawns into vegetable gardens in affiliation with a project called Edible Estates. I'm sure you've heard of it by now- their initiative is so right on, you need to check it out right now. A few people talked about the conversion process, their experiences. But unfortunately I can't form sentences detailing what was said and how it was profound and important while ABBA is on. The vision is so important and makes so much sense. (My my! At Waterloo, Napoleon did surrender! Oh yeah! Waterloo! Couldn't escape if I wanted to. Knowing my fate is to be with you. Ooo-oooh- ooh!) Oh, yeah, let the beat take me back to Shallow-ville!

PS- I'm leaving in 2 1/2 weeks for a month long trip and am struggling and stressing to get everything done, in the garden and otherwise before I go. It should be a very interesting journey...more on that later.