Christmas Decorating with Natural Materials

I really like a real Christmas tree.  My uncle grew them so they came from there for many years.  I have also cut them from the yard when they were in the way.  This was the case the first year we lived in our house.  The balsam fir was smack dab in the middle of the access point to the back yard.  We knew walking around the tree was not something either of us was going to do, so we made it into our first Christmas tree at the new house.  It was so fresh that it even started to bud out on the window side of the tree.

Such was the case with the exterior tree I have decorated outside the house.  The spruce was growing too close to a planting area and the upper two-thirds of the tree was in great shape.  Being a spruce, it would not make a good interior tree (too much needle loss for as long as we keep ours up).  I had planned ahead on this job and put a t-post into the ground before it froze.  The tree was cut and wired to the post for stability.  I used the lower branches not cut as part of the "tree" and placed them around the base as a ground skirt.  Six string of LED lights and we're in business.
My husband prefers colored lights, I prefer white.  I made a gathering of curly willow, alder branches with "cones" still attached, red-twig dogwood and cedar trimmings.  I even had a white birch log in the yard so that became part of it all.  The upright branches got white lights and the evergreen ground cover is graced with multi-colored sets.  It also gave us a little bit of Christmas in the back of the house.

day time view of garden assembly left to right: alder, red-twig dogwood,
birch log, arborvitae, curly willow

Night lights together

Up close view of alder

Get real, buy real

Cutting the tree is women's work in this family!

I miss my Uncle Bob as he was one of the best uncles around.  He never had kids of his own (biologically) but had his step kids and every one of his nieces and nephews that he treated well.  His wife, Marvel, also opened the door with a smile and treated us to her homemade chocolate chip cookies every "Green Friday" (hey, we didn't go shopping, we got our Christmas tree!).
I paid tribute to my Uncle Bob and every year I think of him and how I miss his tree farm visits.  It was more than just the tree I miss, it is the tradition of getting it.  I have gone with my oldest daughter and her husband to cut a new tree twice now.  I went to a lot sponsored by the Boy Scouts last year and had to go back to the cut your own again this year.  The lot just is not my style...yet.  So here's to all the Wisconsin Christmas Tree Growers out there...thank you for staying in business and keeping my holiday REAL green!

Frasier Fir from Evergreen Acres Christmas Tree Farm in East Troy, WI

Autumn life at the Nursery

A few of the moments that have made autumn a good time at my new "old" job

Trees on the move

Loading in the yard

Breaking new ground

Digging yourself a hole and climbing in

Deer in the oaks

Full moon in autumn

Storing up for winter

Just hanging out

Mud removal with a buddy

Two crew operation to get the job done

Wrapping things up for the trip

A frosty morning with a few of our friends

Sauerkraut season in new digs: a new generation

I have come through another sauerkraut making session in our new home.  I enjoy the presence of the restored kraut cutter in the off-season as I keep it on display in a prominent spot where I see it often.  It reminds me so much of my parents and the times we would make sauerkraut as a family.  I talked more extensively about how to make sauerkraut in a prior blog and encourage you to refer there for that experience.  
I applaud all the younger generation who are coming up and embracing the new-found old methods of food preservation.  I encourage all of you to continue on the quest to find better food sources and providing for yourself in the off season.  You are the next generation to bring food back to the home where it belongs.

Making cuttings...a new stage

As I promised months ago, I said I would post some pictures of my new work environment back at the nursery and greenhouse that made me the heavy duty gardener that I am today.  Remember last year's gearing up in the basement greenhouse?  Well, I will not be making my cuttings like I usually do since my living space is not the same and I have greenhouses to watch instead (and not enough energy to do both).

We had to start over with the propagation bench that we had used years ago and had been abandoned for a new, but not necessarily economical or successful method.  We have incorporated the extensive misting system into the method, but we are using the heavier sprinkler head option.  Short soaking bursts less frequently to keep the cuttings moist down where the roots will be growing.  We are also incorporating direct bottom heat with heating cables in the perlite filled bench.  There is heavy screening material to provide very adequate drainage so we have very even moisture and heat.  We expanded to a second bench with heat mats and a second thermostat.  Electricians hooked us up with an outlet in reach of both areas so we don't have to stretch the cords or use extensions which are not great ideas when water is involved.  The heat mats (similar but much longer than my home model) are regulated digitally with the thermostat which will accommodate all three mats.  We can put up to 30 flats of cuttings in this area to add to the 15' bench adjacent to it.  We had some downy mildew problems with some but the rooting is coming along nicely so we can start to get them into flats of soiless mix soon.  

We also finished off the fall mum season this week.  I regret that I did not get a better picture on my own phone of the growing area before we shipped.  This was just before shipping on a particularly peaceful morning before work.  The coleus bed is in front with the mums the rows of colors in the back of the frame.  If I download a better one from the work files, I will add it here.

Enjoy these glorious days of autumn.  It is my favorite season.  It is time for a get away to take in the colors of northern Wisconsin.

                            

Roof top gardens

Clock Shadow Creamery building-green building with a green roof
Enjoying their goat cheese curds with the view.

 We just finished a wonderful weekend of exploring our city with the fourth year of Doors Open Milwaukee.  It wasn't until I was reflecting on the buildings that we saw (not to mention several that I didn't get to) how many opportunities there were to see rooftop gardens in Milwaukee during this event alone.  We toured the three buildings which I have photos from.  Clock Shadow Creamery is the only urban cheesefactory in the state.  They have a beehive on their rooftop with vegetable beds as well as a rain water collection system for flushing the building's toilets.  Even the elevator makes its own energy during its down cycle.

88.9 Radio Milwaukee promotes many community events

MSOE Grohman Museum,
gardens and sculpture garden

The radio station formally housed in the basement of the public school administrative building is now in a neighborhood once known more for tanneries than environmentally friendly industry.  Radio Milwaukee promotes local musicians as well as promoting and hosting community events.  They are just blocks from the new Global Water Institute which is internationally known for making waves in freshwater sciences.  Milwaukee is the leader in this essential area of development in our ever shrinking globe.  The Hanging Gardens shares space in this new business and research center.
A fun and fascinating stop at the Grohman Art Museum is a treasure worth seeing.  During rooftop events the sculptures lining the roof edges are turned in.  The rest of the time these statues look out over State and Broadway as a tribute to the working people that have built our world through hard work and innovation.  There are also gardens within a few blocks of here on the Municipal Building, the Downtown Library, as well as several residential apartments. There is even a soccer field being built on top of a parking structure on the MSOE campus.  
There are hospitals in the area with healing gardens built on rooftops.  The Urban Ecology Center also includes roof top gardens in their development.   There are people who have even invested in rooftop gardens for their house or garage to help reduce the runoff into storm sewers while gaining garden space in a small space.
My favorite roof top garden ever has to be Al Johnson's Swedish Restaurant with the goats feeding up in Door Co.  Not really a garden but fun never-the-less. 

Al Johnson's goats

A long hiatus from writing

Seed Savers Exchange near Decorah, Iowa

International Society of Arboriculture Annual Conference in Milwaukee, WI Tour de Trees finish line.

New plants in new places.  Jade Princess penisetum with Prairie Sun Rudebeckia

Just a couple of girls out for an afternoon walk.

A beautiful sunset dotted by chimney swifts in flight.

Morning coffee with some old friends in a new place.

I love to write about gardening almost as much as gardening itself.  This past growing season has been a whirlwind of changes.  My job took me into a new position at my former greenhouse experience.  Taking on the job as manager at the end of April is challenging enough in a greenhouse operation.  Add in a full-scale tree nursery and you have one big task to tackle.  I am thankful for the capable people who worked very hard to get the work done as quickly as they could.  Add in a very wet spring followed by a very wet June into July and not much can be done on time.  We have persevered.

There are new digs which come with the job.  I am enjoying the quiet and the neighbors are mostly wildlife.  My husband and I are still trying to settle into a normal routine.  I miss my gardens and the familiarity of the plants I have placed there, moved around and brought into a mature garden.  I leave them in the care of my daughter and her husband to continue on.  I hope to make some divisions and bring a few old friends to our new home.  There are lots of gardens here, but they are mostly for stock plants and they aren't really mine.  I enjoy looking at them but I have no ownership of them.  My pots that made the trip with me hold the key to my heart more than any of the other plants around me.

The summer also had some wonderful highlights.  The International Society of Arboriculture held its annual conference in Milwaukee.  I attended everyday and took in as many lectures and sessions as possible.  I came away with new things to take by to my job.  Connecting with so many other professionals is always great.  Meeting up with old friends is the highlight of these events.

I also took a camping vacation with my husband.  We love to drive the back roads.  We drove through the driftless area of southwest Wisconsin and northeast Iowa.  Seed Savers Exchange was in the area and I was able to stop in to see the gardens and purchase some heirloom seeds.  We found cheese factories, quilt shops, and miles of Mississippi River roads to travel.  I recommend the area very much for those who enjoy beautiful scenery.

Fall is just around the corner.  I do not have mountains of tomatoes to can (most of the plants died from wilt that I did not have time to diagnose).  I have enjoyed the pole beans and froze about eight pints for winter use.  The lettuce and spinach were wonderful with the cool moist weather.  I did not get in the succession crops so my soil is empty where onions, radishes and other vegetables have been harvested.  I miss the bush beans and the soy beans never left the package.  No flowering kale will grace may gardens this year as they are also still in their packages.  I hope I find them all for next year after moving them all.  I still haven't found the power cord for the massage chair.

I need to find that delicate balance between work and home gardens.  So much of what I do centers around plants.  Leaving the work mentality behind so I can savor those private moments in my patch will be my new goal.  I have a winter to set a plan to do that.

Summer gardens

A bed of reseeding annuals including Prairie Sun Coneflower, Larkspurs and Violas

Not in bloom but thriving with lots of buds. Tithonia, bachelor's buttons, cosmos, and coneflower varieties.

The herb garden in full glory.

Tithonia, petunia Purple Tower, calendula and vining flowers all combining to one unit of flower power.

Larkspur, alysum, and various perennials all together.

Eliminate Maintenance Nightmares

We all have those spots in the yard which we spend more time maintaining than enjoying.  We had an area that was to be a patio area next to our little pond.  It was going to hold a table and chairs where we could sit under the umbrella and visit with company over a meal.  This spring's job changes and a move prompted the re-evaluation of this plan.

I have spent the last two years controlling weeds and shoring up the wall from erosion until we could get our patio into place.  The pond took a little more work with additional sunlight exposure to control the algae.  My husband's knee surgery and additional work hours postponed the progress of patio development.  More maintenance just to keep the weeds in check.

Last month I decided that the pond was more work than beauty.  I pulled up the rock and liner and filled it in with dirt.  I was able to add another six feet of herbs into my garden and several hours of free time.  I used my water pump to add the same element of water movement into a bucket with an old fashioned pump as the water element for my yard.  Almost zero maintenance has been achieved without the loss of the water feature.

This last week solidified the decision to finish off the rest of the area.  My daughter and son-in-law will be living in the house while we relocate to my on-site management position.  They have no interest in developing the patio area in this part of the lawn.  I pulled the weeds one more time, dug some dirt out of the last-to-be-developed garden planter area, and graded and seeded the spot back to turf.  I even did it as a rush job to take advantage of a three day rain forecast so I didn't have to water it.  It will become part of lawn mowing which will add about 45 seconds onto that job vs multiple weeding and hours of brick laying.  They will still be able to use it for lawn seating.

I have been applying the same principle to the work landscape.  Many areas were planted 20 years ago when the new greenhouses went up.  The evergreen shrubs suffered severe winter damage.  One side of the residence had shrubs that extended 15 feet away from the foundation.  With multiple well and driveway maintenance issues, we had to clear away areas to get the workers in.  I just didn't stop there.  
Everything that was creating areas of additional maintenance time were cleared out.  If the lawnmower didn't fit into the area, shrubs came out.  In the end, we added several pieces of historical elements to the landscape and added space for plant stock.  We found long lost electrical outlets and water connections which added value to the removal of the old plant material.  Maintenance workers were happy to have clearance to the structure without having to fight through layers of vegetation to access electrical and water connections to all the buildings.  Areas along the residence will be regraded after the work is done in hopes of eliminating water leakage into the basement.  There are so many benefits to re-evaluating the landscape materials that their loss has been nil.  I would do it all over again.
Take a look at the things in your own landscape that are time suckers and think about what they add to your landscape.  If the work is not worth the time, find some way to alter what is going on.  Open up pathways to your mowers to eliminate trim time.  Add pathways through the garden beds with wood chips to provide access to areas and eliminate weeding nightmares.  Sometimes taking a step back with a critical eye can open up possibilities to enjoying what you have even more.

The storms keep coming

City street tree taken over with the wind.  Just one of many.  One fell on a car as it was traveling just a block from here.

The neighbor's Catalpa narrowly missed her car and went in the opposite direction of three houses.  Everyone was grateful for that.

Years ago her sons were trimming off a broken limb with inadequate tools.  The chain saw was out of commission for this rescue operation but we made do.  The hockey stick replaced the baseball bat used last time.

Milwaukee has been under a dark rain cloud for nearly a week.  I haven't been in my garden for a whole week and found four inches of rain accumulated in my rain gauge.  I found peas ripe and lettuce ready for the picking.  
We had straight line winds that ripped through the neighborhood.  It was all over in less than a minute for the worst of the damage.  I had just finished unloading groceries and happened to be in the basement when it all let loose.  I came upstairs to find my husband looking out at the ruins of my neighbor's tree.  It has been a favorite of her family and many others who walk by.  It is a tree with character.  It will be missed.

A very sad moment between friends.

Seattle kind of weather

Milwaukee has been experiencing some weather extremes.  The days have been wet and gloomy, more like Seattle than the typical mid-west summer.  The extra rain and high winds tested the skills of the City of Milwaukee Forestry Department.  Late nights and long days went into clearing the streets of downed trees and limbs.  They are a well oiled machine when it comes to storm work.

The wet weather has hampered gardening.  I had worked quickly to get my plants in before the lingering front settled in.  The plants are thriving from getting in the ground before a thorough soaking.  I over-seeded and patched some areas of turf which have sprouted well with minimal attention.  My only regret is I didn't get my shade plants in before it all hit.

Our crew still has a bunch of trees to get in the ground.  Most areas are so wet, that we can't get in to do this.  Other spots need just a couple of days to make this possible.  The trees that are in are happy with the moisture levels keeping them hydrated.  The rain is good in some ways and a hindrance in others.  I guess you can't have it all.

The walk through my misty garden was a treat this morning.  Water drops clung to everything.  There were spider webs across the grass that were beautiful.  There was fur and feathers from a battle that took place yesterday that was not as appealing to see.  Everything was just so quiet and peaceful.  I love a hot cup of coffee on a cool, wet morning.  I think I will take advantage of the saturated mulched areas and get the Weed Dragon busy burning up all those tree seedlings coming up.  Make hay when the sun shines, burn weeds when it doesn't.  Have a great weekend!

Rain and the garden wait for no man

I took a walk in the garden before work this morning in between rain storms.  We have been hit pretty hard with wind and rain.  There has been plenty of storm damage keeping my co-workers in the district offices busy in to the wee hours of the morning.  The rain has kept us out of the fields.  We are so close to finishing the tree planting that this is an unwelcome roadblock to that completion.  The walk this morning was a welcome diversion.  I found my garlic forming scapes (seed heads) which were ripe for the picking.  These saute up well in dishes and are best picked early to continue good garlic bulb formation.  Seed formation tends to diminish the rest of your plants in general.
I took another gander around the yard on my return from work and found a bountiful crop of those beautiful Alpine strawberries.  So packed with flavor in their marble size miniature form.

They will be a tasty addition to a spinach salad for supper.  I made up some bacon to make it an official spinach salad.  The cool weather has produced the best crop of spinach I have had in my garden in years.  I have taken note that planting on the north side of my raised beds helps to keep it from bolting early.  This will be the first spring I have had success with this crop.  I planted in square foot fashion and popped about 3 seeds per dibble hole to ensure success.  The first round was thinning out the extras and now I take out the largest of the plants.  Lettuce has also been a terrific crop this year.
If you are experiencing rain, take the time to see how truly beautiful the garden is with the moisture brightening all the colors.  It's worth the damp feet.