Backyard orchard: take 2

It has been crazy around here lately, folks! Do I start every post with that statement?

The past two weeks have been especially busy, but I think things are settling down a bit so hopefully more frequent posts are headed your way! I have some projects that I’m dying to share and even more that I can’t wait to pick back up.

For now, how’s about a mash-up of what we’ve been up to lately?

First things first—remember the little backyard orchard we planted in the spring? At the end of that post, I made a comment along the lines of I hope they don’t die immediately. Well, I come bearing good news! They are not only living but thriving—they all have tons of new growth, especially the avocado. I got a bit more proactive in taking care of my little orchard and, in my research, found this amazing citrus forum (and tons of other garden/home/nature related forums from this site for all your plant & yard needs!). You can search by your particular plant and save threads that you like for later reference. In fact, I felt so empowered by the knowledge gained from this database that I expanded my orchard from three (blood orange, page mandarin, lula avocado) to six (+rio red grapefruit, meyer lemon, & mexican lime)! As the end of summer neared, all citrus went on major sale, but since it’s still relatively hot here and we don’t expect cold temperatures for quite a while, it’s fairly safe to plant this late in the game (I searched the forum first just to make sure-ha!).
This is my Rio Red Grapefruit--It may look sad to you, but that's only because you didn't see it when I first bought it. This little guy is on the up-swing!

My meyer lemon and Mexican lime are in pots on our patio for now—planted in a homemade gritty mix. They may end up in the ground eventually once we decide on a master plan and start a major backyard overhaul. For now they are both happy in containers, and if we have a freeze this winter, I can easily bring them in the house or garage for safe keeping.
Left:Meyer Lemon, Right: Mexican Lime

My lime tree is very happy. It bloomed and has fruit of varying sizes all over!

I have been hit pretty hard with Citrus Leaf Miners this year. Nearly every one of my new baby leaves has some damage. From what I’ve read, the damage is mostly cosmetic, but I’d like to get a better handle on it next year. I bought a spray, but it didn’t work at all. I need to go talk to my friends at Wabash Feed Store for their recommendations. Anyone have a fool-proof cure for CLM? I’d love to know your tips & tricks!

Moving along… We went night fishing in Kemah with some friends a few weeks ago and it was a total blast! I’ve never considered myself a fisherwoman, but it was a lot of fun AND, as an added bonus, we caught a ton of fish! We fished into the wee hours of the morning (we got home at 5am) and spent the rest of the day lounging around and taking naps. I think I enjoyed the lazy day with my man just as much as our night fishing excursion! Those are the best sometimes, amiright?

I said we caught a ton of fish...I didn't say they were huge :) Sushi for one?

My little brother and my cousin got their Aggie rings last Friday! This is a HUGE day at A&M—I think I looked forward to my ring day more than my graduation day! We went up to celebrate with everyone on Friday and went back for the game on Saturday. It’s so nice to be on campus and NOT have to go to class! I don’t miss college at all (if you couldn’t tell from this post). I’m very happy with my big girl life :)

One last thing: Our 1 year anniversary is in October!! I can’t believe how quickly it's flown by, but at the same time, I can’t believe all we've done in one year’s time. Since our wedding photos came in during my blogging hiatus, I’m going to be sharing them (and other wedding/1^st year related bits) throughout the month of October to celebrate!

Happy fall, y’all! 

The backyard orchard

When we moved into our house in March, we decided to do a few things to the inside and hold off on the yard and outdoor area for a little while. 

Prioritizing. 

BUT THEN, our neighbors peach tree started to grow delicious, beautiful, tiny peaches (approximately 80% of which fell into our backyard). And we were bitten by the fruit tree bug!

 Squirrel for scale. But mostly because it's the cutest thing ever.

I'm not 100% sure why their peaches are so small, but from the knowledge I've gained after researching for our own fruit trees, I think it's because they only have one tree. If there were another peach tree close by, they would cross pollinate each other and their fruit would grow larger and for a longer period of time. I think. We contemplated planting a peach tree on our side of the fence, but that didn't really work out in the grand scheme/our backyard master plans.

Spring is typically the best time to plant so we went to Wabash Feed Store to get started. The staff there is very knowledgeable and were able to talk us through the fruit tree buying process! We landed on a Lula Avocado tree (we eat avocados like crazy around here), and two citrus trees (cross pollination, baby!). We chose Blood Orange and Page Mandarin because both grow well in the area and aren't readily available at the grocery store.

We haven't done a whole lot to them besides water them like crazy to keep them from shriveling up in this Texas heat, but we did pick up a few tips for new tree growth from online research and talking to the folks at Wabash. First, we painted the trunk of our little Lula with a watered down white latex paint. The trunk has not yet developed bark, so it has no protection against the sun. We made sure our Lula never leaves the house without sunscreen. Tree parenting.

Secondly, we pinched our blood orange! Pinching a fruit tree means you pick off the fruit it makes it's first season so it can focus on growing roots, branches and leaves instead of putting nutrients and energy into making fruit. We only had one little blood orange and no mandarins.

We are loving our little trees. Hopefully these pictures will be a reminder of how small our trees were when we planted them--not a reminder that we once thought we could grow trees. Ha! Wish us luck!

monthly resolutions--april

My monthly resolution for March was to write in a prayer journal daily. I have to admit, I wavered a bit on the "daily" part, but overall this was a great resolution, and one I will continue to do even though I no longer feel bound by a blog resolution. I found that I thought of different things when I was writing down my prayers as opposed to thinking them in my head or saying them out loud. Give it a go. I think you'll like it. 

As for April, I resolve to start and maintain a garden. I am proud to say that I have already won half the battle! Last Thursday, Rhett was in town and we went to wal-mart and picked up some "apartment gardening" supplies and got to work. I picked out the pots [mason jars] and the herbs/flowers I wanted and he picked out the baskets and figured out how to put them up.

Ok, so it's not worthy of HGTV, but it definitely perks up my balcony which, up until now, housed a small grill, broken pallet, and lawn chair. Hopefully there will be green soon! I have to admit, when I thought of this resolution, I did not take into consideration that I am going on a field trip to Utah on the 14th of April and will be gone for 9ish days... so I'm going to have to get someone to babysit my new plants. Does that still count as my resolution?? 

These little guys are actually the ones who got my all excited and ready to start an apartment garden. Last week, Darby from fly through our window posted pictures of her easter grass planted in egg shells and I decided to give it a try. 

I cracked my eggs very carefully with a steak knife and dyed them inside and out. I couldn't believe how vibrant the inside of the egg was!

I added some potting soil [pre-watered--Darby's advice] and seeds and let them do their thing! It's been really fun watching them grow. After less than a week, they are looking pretty good, and apparently will get even better over the next two weeks! Don't be surprised if I obsessively post pictures of my eggs and apartment garden like they are my kids :) They're just so fun! Rhett asked me the other day [as I was watering my eggs with a spoon] if I was going to turn into one of those crazy ladies. 

It's not out of the question.