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Showing posts from 2009

Garden Update After 2 Months

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After 2 months passed, there are some changes that have been made in our veggie garden. Being very prolific, we just planted our basil plants in spots where there aren't anything that's been planted on. My tomato plants are not yielding any fruits anymore from lack of nutrients in the soil and very hot midday sun. So we pulled them off and will let the soil rest for awhile and fertilize by adding a few garden/kitchen scraps and wait for another 2-3 months... which I have not yet done since I'm a bit busy as of these past few days. We have also added a third bed for bellpeppers, which can be seen in the foreground of the picture below. The 2nd bed: Bellpeppers and oregano, among others. My oregano plants. Very hardy and prolific. Lemon mint (I think...): The leaves contain menthol, these will be great for making massage oil since it really gives off a scent like Vicks. Rosemary plants have grown since my last picture 2 months ago. I used this recently in my porkchop dish

My Fave Plants in the Garden

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Other than veggies, we have a few plants in our garden that I really love. These are just some of them... The Papyrus Plants. True papyrus are marshland plants, it can grow to around 3-4 meters high and have a clump of thread-like "leaves" on the top that make it fluffy-looking, almost like a feather duster. It was once used as the material to manufacture papyrus paper, the writing surface of the Ancient Eqyptians. My papyrus plant with some water lettuces, this papyrus plant is not the same kind as what you'll find in Ancient Egypt. A closer look.... it's already blooming. Dwarf papyrus.... but I'm not sure if it is a true papyrus plant, it sure looks like a miniature papyrus... maybe its in the same family. And as you can see it is not submerged in water. It will thrive as long as it is constantly watered. A clump with a baby plant. Baby plant can be planted in a new pot. As a marshland plant, the papyrus loves wet soil, but if its possible, the soil where it

The New Additions

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Another week has gone by and you really feel that summer has arrived. The sun is more intense and you really feel the heat. Thank goodness the office maintains a "winter temperature" all year round with the aircons in full blast, but I can't say the same for the people at home and the plants in my garden. Although veggie plants love sunshine, around here, it really dries them up even if they are watered in the morning and in the late afternoon. The midday sun really is different today as compared to, say, 15 years ago? That is just one of the effects of GLOBAL WARMING!!! My tomato plants' leaves are already affected by it. They have shriveled a bit and are not the green, FRESH-looking, healthy leaves I saw just a week ago. Tomato Plants with new stakes and supports. We have prepared the second veggie patch last Sunday. We have put in some organic materials that should have increased the bulk of the soil, a few dried leaves and twigs and a LOT of banana leaves we go

First Three Months of 2009

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Since I was little, I loved to plant things. Mung beans, corn from popcorn packs, any seed that I can get my hands on I tried to plant. All failed attempts at growing my own veggies.... what can I do? I was just a child back then and don't know anything about fertilizers,compost, mulch, etc. etc.... Fast forward. After graduating from college, I have to take care of my dad who was then sick. I have a lot of free time and started to learn how to cook.... and use herbs. So I got interested in basil, rosemary, oregano, particularly because I love cooking Italian-style food....started planting these herbs in containers then the rest, as they say, is history..... Fast forward to the present, I just started my "full-scale" veggy garden this year, started out with my favorite all-time herb, basil. There are also "spring onions" as we call it locally and tomatoes, plus a capsicum and ginger in between. I really got excited about two weeks ago when I first "harveste