Tuesday, April 08, 2008

Bronx cheer from ol' man winter...because he can! They said it would snow, and it seems they aren't wrong often enough anymore....so last night on the way home this is what I got...

.....her too....
....coming down pretty heavily and starting to stick...bummer!
This morning the sun was out, and we lucked out with only a soggy "dusting". Poor daffodil! Some plants were unscathed.... .....and this cute little Common Goldeneye seems un-phased. These ducks are pretty shy, but I want to get out here some morning with a tripod and try to be still enough for better pictures. They're so darn cute, and it's fun to watch them dive. (Along with the Buffleheads, Common Mergansers, and Cormorants . I'd love to spot a Pintail or a Canvasback too, but those sightings are more rare.) After some pesky vertigo in the morning, it's off to work.........at least the snow is off the road.........well, mostly.....
.....Mrs. Pheasant is coping pretty well...and so must I. Anyhow, let's recall more activity from Saturday.... ...spring composting getting underway last weekend, first let's see how it looks after winter. Yep, quiet so far. As temps come up, we'll get some heat going in here........for now let's add a dry layer of old foliage that was trimmed off the plants from last year........and top it with some kitchen scraps and coffee grounds.......isn't it beautiful? (Well okay, the end result will be ;-)Now top it off with a few shovelfulls of snow...let's get this composting party started! I began filling in this bin way back on 3/22/03, and the compost I get out of the bottom is really good stuff! However, it filled rather quickly initially, so I got this barrel composter 12/11/04 to take up the overflow. Looks like we've had a security breach of some sort here...

....ah yes, some animal has taken advantage of the fact that this has no lid. Ah well, he's kinda "stirring" it for me...
...let's stuff in some more dead foliage trimmings....
...topped with more snow. Another compost party underway!
What to do with the rest of my dry foliage trimmings? Add them to this open "cold pile" behind the picket fences....
......there! This will decompose much more slowly, more of a "high tea" than a party, but it produces compost just the same. Alright now, more spring, more spring, more spring...woot, woot!!! ;-)

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Those late evening and early morning shots are gorgeous!

I emptied my compost bin this spring and spread it on the veggie beds... All the veggie seedlings are doing the Happy Dance. :)

Glad you didn't get a bunch of snow! Yee-haw! (That's Texan for "YAY!")

lisa said...

Thanks Vonne! I need to remove a bunch of compost from both bins fairly soon to make room...planting time is coming soon!

EAL said...

I think I'm looking forward to your spring bulbs just as much as you are. I couldn't believe how many you planted. All this crap weather will make them seem even better.

We're seemingly thawed out here and I have some bulbs coming up, but who knows what the next few weeks will bring.

lisa said...

Thank you! I sure hope they all come up like I want and there aren't any snow storms at just the wrong time. Early like this isn't so bad, but....oh well, no stopping it, eh? :) It's fun to see the beautiful things growing elsewhere mostly, but some days I just can't look....*sigh*

chuck b. said...

It's frozen outside and you're gardening. I'd be inside under blankets. Crying.

Why make compost with all that leaf litter decaying on the ground? :)

Rurality said...

Snow?! Geez. It was 82 here yesterday...

Speaking of compost... the neighbor's cows visited us yesterday while I was gone. They ATE a year's worth of our compost. And a pile of wood chips. Stupid cows!

B said...

I got too comfortable. I had a little laundry (just table cloths and a blanket) on the line when it started snowing on Tuesday.

A friend has her grandchildren up from Georgia. He was so delighted we've all taken to calling this 'Hunter's snow.'

Annie in Austin said...

At least it thawed long enough for you to see how much of your garden was waking up, Lisa! I'm also looking forward to the bulb show, and bet yours will linger a while instead of shriveling in a hot spell. Good luck with the compost making!

Annie at the Transplantable Rose

lisa said...

Chuck-Now that this snow melted and we got sleet and ice last night again, the blanket and crying sound like a logical next step! ;-) As for the compost, well you know me, I need MORE :)

Karen-"Cows ate my compost"...that sucks! You'd think they would be looking for fresh green stuff this time of year...stupid indeed! And 82 degrees?! Honestly I wouldn't trade you!

Tam-Heh, kinda makes the snow more bearable when you can see someone else's delight in it, eh? Yea, frozen laundry is no good, though.

Annie-Thank you, I hope my bulbs are paying enough attention to the weather to grow reeeally slooowly...mortal damage to emerging lovelies would be very disappointing after my labors last fall! Fingers crossed!

Garrett Sawyer said...

SNOW!!!! AHHHHH! I don't know what to do! lol. I've only seen snow twice (not man-made)...and both times I was wearing shorts, a tee, and flip flops...lol. Here in Pomona, CA the closest thing we get to a white Winter is in September during the L.A. County Fair inside the Winter Wonderland building (all man made) lol. It's weird, it's like the hottest time of the year and you see real snow flakes falling outside of the building to advertise whats inside, it's sooo California.

lisa said...

Wow...snowflakes in the hot summer sun...yea, that WOULD be absolutely bizarre. I must admit, I'm so used to the extreme difference in seasons around here, that I'd really miss them. (I maintain this belief because I've never lived outside the midwest, and only been to warmer climes a handful of times. But Florida in summer...I'll never forget that trip! Nah! ;-)