Passionflower Vine/October Wreath

Oh my goodness, I could not be happier about the South Pollinator Garden right now. I know I’ve written about this garden, and the pollinators, and specifically the Gulf Frittilaries before. But I have to write about it again, because I’m having such a good time visiting the Passion Vine! And I’m not the only one…. day after day I go out there to see what’s happening, and since it’s right next to the sidewalk, there is always someone else there checking it out too. It’s so fun to stand there and watch and chat with someone else about the ecosystem in the Passion Vine! They’ll see something I didn’t see, and I’ll see something they didn’t see, and it’s like this big treasure hunt. Sometimes I wish I still had little kids, because wouldn’t this be a great opportunity for them to learn about a particular life cycle?

From our side

Ok, so back in late spring, my neighbor rebuilt this fence and cut down all the bushes on his side that were growing tall and keeping the deer out of our garden. I knew I needed to put something here that would add that height, so the deer wouldn’t take advantage of the gap in security. I bought a rather cheapo folding trellis from Gardener’s Supply (I can’t afford anything fancy, and building something would take too long), stuck it along the fence line, went to Annie’s Annuals and bought eight passionflower vines, which I then planted at the base of the trellis, and made sure the drip line was all along that base line. I think 4-5 of the plants survived and started climbing. They weren’t even a foot high before I noticed Gulf Frittilary butterflies had found them, which made me very happy.

From the neighbor’s side

Through the summer, the vine grew up and along the top of the trellis, fulfilling perfectly the job of deer deterrent. The pollinator garden grew up around it, the zinnias and the tithonia reaching for the sky, some higher than our redbud tree. And the butterflies just kept coming, flitting about in a mating dance, sipping nectar from the flowers, and laying eggs on the passionflower leaves.

The vine has deeply divided simple leaves, which are lovely to look at, along with the tendrils that cling to the trellis. And of course the flowers are beautiful. The butterflies lay a single egg at a time (or at least I’ve never seen them in clusters) and the eggs are gorgeous and shimmery when you get a lens that lets you actually see them clearly. The egg is there 3-5 days before it hatches. They are usually found on the topside of a leaf. They start out yellow, and then turn brownish before they hatch.

The female butterfly tests the chemical compounds in the leaf with her antennae, and knows that the plant is the correct host for her babies. The caterpillars eat the leaves, ingesting those chemical compounds, which hopefully makes them less attractive to birds. The larvae has five instars, or stages of growth, before they finally pupate on the passion vine (I can’t wait to see chrysalises!!!! Chrysali? oh who knows). The caterpillars are kinda cute in their own right, brownish reddish, and get this sort of blue-ish stripe as they get bigger.

The passionflower vine is now starting to fruit (see top picture), which is an added bonus that I didn’t really expect. I mean I know they fruit but I wasn’t sure if this was a fruiting variety. What a welcome time of year for fruit! I think they are supposed to get sort of hard and purplish brown, and then they are ripe. More on that as it happens. Passionflower jelly, here we come!

I’m not sure I’ve ever seen such a complete life cycle of any insect before, other than my honeybees. I plant specific flowers for insects all the time, such as fennel for anise swallowtails (had the caterpillars and adults, but never seen eggs or chrysalises), and dutchman’s pipevine for pipevine swallowtails (never seen any activity on it or around it, but hatched a chrysalis I brought in from a nearby creek), but this is the first time I’ve seen the whole thing from start to finish. It’s thrilling to watch.

And oh yeah, here’s the October wreath, finally:

This one is made out of California Bay Laurel. My mom gave me the idea. She grows several of these trees in her yard, and about once a year I ask her for some branches to dry as I use the leaves for cooking. She brought me a whole sheaf and said they could be used as a wreath AND a food. It was such a great idea that I promptly followed through. This plant smells nice fresh or dry, and will turn a handsome dusty sage color as it starts to lose moisture, so it should look good until November.

It Might Be Time to Plant Some Trees

Preparing for today’s blog, I went deep in to our photo history and, Lord, we have some beautiful pictures of trees. Tom and I have never been shy about taking pictures when hiking and it was really great, actually pretty comforting, to look through them. I’ll scatter some throughout this post. Most were taken in the last six years, and all in California.

I’ve been struggling with how to write about the climate issue. I suppose most of you have read the recent paper, put out by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The headline in the Washington Post on October 7th spells it out in stark terms: “The World has just over a decade to get climate change under control, U.N. scientists say.”

I must say this headline, article, and the study it’s based on, has had me more than a little depressed of late. I don’t like to dwell on it, because thinking about what life might be like in ten years if we don’t make the necessary changes makes me feel quite hopeless.

But we must think about it, no matter how much we don’t want to. And I want to write about some things we can do - little things, to be sure - because taking action, no matter how small the action is, always makes me feel better no matter the situation, and maybe it does for you, too.

But on the other hand, I’m also very aware that some folks might feel defensive. I don’t want to shame anyone, ever. We all have our limitations. For some of us, they are economical. For others, it’s time. For still others, maybe there is a lack of urgency. But I don’t think we can afford, any longer, to remain apathetic about the issue.

I also don’t want to sound like I have all the answers, either, because I don’t. I’m paralyzed thinking about what my children’s lives will be like in ten years. I’ve been perseverating, really, about the problems; going over and over in my head about possible solutions, and what we can do to help the situation.

I feel our family already does pretty well with regards to conservation, but there are definitely things we can still work on. And I want to share our plan with you here, in the hopes that you are inspired to make your own plan, and maybe share it so we can learn from you, too.

The most important thing any of us can do is vote. Tom and I are looking for candidates and policies that continue to push environmental conservation forward, not backward. Adam, who isn’t even quite 17, has already pre-registered to vote when he turns 18. We discuss these issues during our family dinners and aren’t afraid to hash out differing opinions and wrestle with options. Our kids often have a perspective that we find valuable. I personally need to do better research about the issues on our local ballots. I’m good with national or state level issues, but not so ‘woke’ about the local stuff. This is my own personal goal for the next election. We wouldn’t dream of missing the opportunity to make our voices heard and voting is considered a mandatory event in our household. I hope it is in yours, too.

I believe we also need to take a hard look at ourselves and our lifestyle and figure out what we can do to make small changes. For instance, our family can eat less meat (conventional beef production is a major producer of greenhouse gases in the form of methane). What meat we do consume should come only from pastured animals (we’re pretty good at this already, but I’ve vowed to be even more of a stickler). Animals out on grass actually improve soil and do not contribute to global warming. It costs more, yes, and it’s not as readily available, both of which will help us to eat less of it.

Conventional dairy farms are also major contributors of greenhouse gases. We’ve made a pledge, in our family, to purchase milk, cream, and butter from Straus Family Creamery, a local company that is committed to reducing methane in the atmosphere. One way they do that is by reusing the methane as fuel for their delivery vehicles. All their milk and cream comes in reusable glass bottles (remember those?) and are returned to the store for a refund of $2. This makes their products more affordable. Also, all their dairy is organic. Their cows aren’t 100% grass-fed, but I do believe they are working towards that goal.

I really think it is worth considering big purchases too. One of our cars is electric, and I don’t think we will ever go back to owning a gas car in the future. Electric technology is imperfect to be sure, but California is making it easier and easier to own an electric car with charging stations everywhere, and even though they still use energy (some that comes from coal), there are zero emissions, so that helps in the long run.

Another thing we are planning to do this winter is put solar panels on our roof. We cannot afford to purchase them. But we can allow a company to put them on our roof, which feeds power into the grid, and we’ll get 30% off our bill. This is something I am researching now and will give you more details about it as I learn more.

Finally, we might all consider planting a tree or two. Trees are a major plus, sequestering quite a bit of carbon in their root systems and the soil around them. I once did a calculation to figure out the amount of carbon our Valley Oak (Quercus lobata) sequesters each year; 640 pounds. That’s incredible. There are a few guidelines however; not just any tree will do. You want to plant something native to your area, something slow-growing and long-lived. Check with your local extension office to determine which tree is best for your area (and if you live in CA, I can help you with that). A native tree will also benefit your local wildlife. Wildlife in general is going to have a hard time of it as our climate changes in the next few years.

If you can’t squeeze any more trees in the yard (Honestly, I am FULL UP), surely there is a local organization in your city that is planting trees in parks or open spaces. If not, there are organizations dedicated to restoring forests. Those organizations could probably use your donation to continue doing their good work.

I’m sure there are many more ideas that YOU have; please share them with us in the comments. Let’s learn together. Let’s have an open forum of ideas and suggestions. No shaming, just moving forward with solutions. Let’s take some action, together.

Weary

Early October is just a frantic time of year, because every free minute is taken up with the total changeover of the garden. I’m nearly done, now. I’ve only got two beds left to plant - more garlic and more shallots. Then Tom and I will cover them with floating row cover, and we’ll call the winter garden complete.

The top of the piano is full of fruit waiting to ripen and/or eat and/or preserve. It actually felt good to chop out the tomato vines, haul bags of compost, and put fresh seeds and starts into the ground.

The greenhouse is empty once again, and the green bin full of compostable cups and popsicle stick labels. The last of the peppers have been sliced up and frozen. More sriracha has been made and is fermenting on my kitchen desk. Next to it are some seed potatoes on which I’m waiting for more sprouts. Next to that are seeds drying on paper towels - Delicata squash and Shishito peppers, bought at a roadside farmstand this past weekend (they were delicious and I want to grow them next year in my own garden). Next to that is the jar of beans I’m slowly adding to as the bean vines dry. My desk is full of non-desky things.

Some flowers are in their element - zinnias, tithonia, rudbeckias, cuphea. Others are starting to dry up and produce seeds, such as the native sunflowers I grow in my woodland garden.

I started a new herb bed near the blueberries and bought (and planted) some Eryngium planum, common name Sea Holly, which I recently found on a school field trip. I’ve been looking for this plant for ages. It looks like a blue thistle, but it isn’t quite as ouchy as thistle, and the bees adore it.

I’m pooped, but the winter garden is in, for the most part. Now the weather can change and we’ll be ready for it. Meanwhile the warm days and cool nights are perfect for all the greens and brassicas and root veg, which will get a good start now and then overwinter beautifully. As soon as the fall rains come, I’ll sow the spring wildflower seeds in the pollinator beds. I’ve already started planting sweet peas.

I haven’t even had time to make the October wreath - I’ll get to that as soon as I’m able - I think I’ll use trimmings from lemon verbena and culinary sage.

Merritt College Fall Plant Sale THIS WEEKEND

Maybe you’ve been panicking because you didn’t start enough seeds to see you through the fall produce season? Maybe you’re in the mood to plant a succulent display? Or maybe you want to get some California natives in the ground before the fall rains start (the best time to do so)?

If the answer to any of these questions is yes, you’re in luck! Our Horticulture department sale is this weekend! Our classes have been busy doing all the seeding and planting for you, and we have tons of glorious-looking starts for your edible gardens.

We have just begun to move everything out to the sale area, and by Saturday these tables will be positively groaning with a huge variety of edibles, for sale at very reasonable prices. You could have a salad every day at dinner until spring. You could have enough greens to scramble with your eggs every morning. You could start that herb garden you’ve been meaning to plant, and have it well-established by spring. I personally seeded at least ten of these flats, and many more were seeded by my classmates. Our nursery manager Nia watched over them and made sure they were watered and fed with organic fertilizer. They’ve been moved several times to get the very best kind of conditions for growing. And they’ve hardened off in our lath house, so you can put them directly in to the ground and then reap the delicious harvests!

Bring cash or your checkbook (sometimes we have a card reader, sometimes not). Be prepared to spend some time at the other booths, such as the one manned by Hida Tools (the best pruners ever). I think there might be live music. There might even be food. It will be festive!

While you’re there, make sure to check out our cool permaculture hill, full of perennial edibles. Get inspired by the planting beds, all of them changed out each semester by a new class. This is a teaching and learning garden, so it’s different than going to a botanical garden or a nursery that sells thousands of plants - it’s interesting to check it out and see what’s happening here, and often more realistic than what you’ll see at a fancy garden. Head down to the meadow area and get a load of the beautiful bay view (this is where I often have my lunch). And all your purchases go to a great cause - our landscape horticulture program. Thanks for supporting us!

Harvest/Preserve/Compost/Plant

Twice a year, we find ourselves chanting these words like a mantra. Harvesting happens all season, of course, and so does preserving. But there’s something about both May and October: You’ve simply got to get the next round of plants in, and yet there’s still a bunch of the previous seasons’ produce that needs processing before that can happen. So you harvest what you can, preserve as much as possible, pile up the biomass in your compost, add finished compost to each bed, and get what you need to plant out of the greenhouse. Another circle, another cycle.

This past weekend, we cleared out watermelons, cantaloupe, cucumbers, pumpkins, and beans, before adding some compost to the beds and planting out kale, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, kohlrabi, beets, romaine, and braising greens. PVC hoop houses went on, floating row cover went on. It’s starting to look like autumn for real around here.

Our front porch is covered in pumpkins and looks very festive. The bean plants are on the clothesline drying; I’ve been taking off pods as they get crispy and harvesting the dried beans for soup this winter. I think they are so pretty! The cucumbers were bitter, so the chickens got the lion’s share. And the melons mostly did not have time to ripen, so the chickens got those too.

With an eye to the final changeover next weekend, I did the last of my canning, and picked hot peppers for hanging and drying. This week, I’ll continue to pick sweet peppers for freezing, and tomatoes for chunky freezer sauce. Next weekend, those plants must come out to make room for garlic and shallots.

As for compost, I have found it’s very difficult to make any finished compost in the summer here. Without rain, the compost piles don’t stay sufficiently wet enough for decomposition, and using municipal water has its drawbacks; namely, the chloramines used to keep the water safe for drinking, do not off-gas and therefore kill soil life. (This is an issue with our drip system as well, and it’s a frustrating problem that has no cheap or easy solution.) And of course the composting process relies on plentiful microbiology, so killing it with our municipal water defeats the purpose. All this to say, in the fall I have to buy the compost I need to top off all the planting beds.

Usually I buy it from American Soil in Richmond or Sloat in Danville. But I have always had reservations about these products. First of all, I have to have them trucked in from long distances (expensive), or do it myself (borrow a truck, make several trips, etc). Secondly, the product isn’t consistent; sometimes it’s very sandy, sometimes very woody. Thirdly, I can’t obtain the provenance of the materials used to make that compost. This is also the biggest problem, as I want to know what I’m putting in my soil, and therefore my food.

Over the years, I have bought a bag or two of compost from a neighbor named Eldon. He’s a landscape maintenance guy, and he makes compost and sells it by the 2.5 cubic foot bag. (He also chops oak and sells firewood.) His compost is made mostly from oak leaves, redwood duff, and horse manure that he gets from a friend in Briones. The finished product is a gorgeous dark color that smells amazing and is full of moisture. So this year, I gave him a call and asked if he could supply me with all I needed for the garden (about 30 bags or the equivalent). And he has happily complied! He brought over half of it this past weekend and will bring half of it next. I’m so satisfied and glad about having this resource. The compost is truly local and Eldon is willing to share his ingredients and processes, so I know what I am getting. Plus, he turned out to be a kindred spirit and we shared seed and plant knowledge and talked gardening for a while, which always makes me feel like what I’m doing is worthwhile.

If you’d like Eldon’s contact info, please write to me, because I know he’d be glad to supply your garden too. That’s his gorgeous product, spread over my beds waiting for planting, in the picture above.

Before you write to me to ask if that compost isn’t too acidic to put on planting beds (there’s a lot of false information out there about the acidity of tree products), the answer is no. Or rather, yes, but it’s definitely not a problem. Compost should be and usually is slightly acidic. Slightly acidic soils harbor much more organic matter and therefore much more soil biology and LIFE. Most annual veg plants actually prefer a slightly acidic soil. Plus, our native soil here in Northern CA is naturally higher on the pH scale, so adding something with a little acid in it is good to balance that. All this to say that using wood products in your compost or planting beds is FINE.

The only exception is spinach - spinach likes a little higher pH to grow optimally. I’ll treat that bed a little differently. Usually I spread the compost on top and plant directly into it - I do not till the compost in to the soil (I do not disturb the soil at all if I don’t have to). But in the spinach bed, I will mix it in, so that I’m not seeding directly into the compost.

How’s your fall/winter garden coming? Are you chanting the same mantra we are? I’d love to know what you’re planting and how you’re prepping.