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I consider my gardening a delusional adventure. I always think I have more time, space and strength than I actually do.

I garden for some very good reasons: it’s therapeutic, meditative and completely addictive. My gardening habit frequently exceeds my physical abilities but it also heals me and focuses my attention on something greater than what limits me. (Unfortunately, I have fibromyalgia and a few other bad DNA choices!)

I grew up gardening beside my mother across the South and the Midwest. On my own, I’ve gardened in dry mountains and now in South Texas. My family is from the central plains area and both my grandmother‘s always had at least a half acre garden. I had one grandfather who was a farmer and and my other grandfather was a Midwestern school professor and administrator with two PhD’s, one of which was in biology. I grew up knowing the Latin names for most of what I planted, loving the direction that my insatiable questioning took me and having an idea of what I was doing (because gardeners with greater skills than I had, took the time to teach me.) I’ll be the first to admit I am not an expert, but I am competent and I have a few decades of daily experience. I hope I can help pass down some of the practical knowledge I have and showcase some of my gardening experiments (I am always trying out something new.)

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Me 2017 Halloween as a jester!

Enjoying the garden on a south Texas, hot summer day.
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386 thoughts on “About”

    1. I hope you get a few going! There’s nothing like the satisfaction you get pulling food out of a home garden and preparing it for dinner. Thanks for coming by! I appreciate it.

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    1. I love your conversion chart. I have a recipe of my grandmother’s that uses a lot of those. It also had “a half egg shell of water”. I guess that size was dependant on the chicken! I imagine growing up cooking with whatever you could find around the house to reliably measure things is why a lot of old recipes seem cryptic to our cooking world today. Thanks for the visit. I appreciate it!

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      1. Thanks for visiting! I remember as a young cook being baffled when trying to do Gram’s recipes. Always figured others probably did too lol.. Have a nice evening!

  11. Thanks for stopping by with the like on my little blog. You are an amazing gardener with a beautiful site!

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    1. You definitely have a more solid stomach than I do! I’m pretty sure that the silk worms would be a no go for me, even if I had locals coaching me! Thanks for coming by. I appreciate it!

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  17. Thanks for liking one of my posts! I’ve always wanted to grow my own vegetables and some fruit, but haven’t had much luck in the past. I’m not quite sure what we’re doing wrong but maybe I’ll learn some tips from your blog!
    Do you know why cherry tomato plants wouldn’t be growing? They were planted a few weeks ago and they don’t look good. They’re getting plenty of sun and water, so not sure why this would be.

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    1. It’s late enough in the season it may just be too hot. Also, look up early and late blight and spidermite damage in your search bar. It could also be your soil. If you can’t identify a specific problem yourself take close up photos and a few of the entire plant and contact your County extension office or local nursery. (Don’t bring plant material into any place of business. You could spread whatever you are dealing with to their inventory.) For all the information you need to be successful in the garden look at the top of my page for the tab “gardening basics”. You can be certain you’ve done everything you need to do if you follow the information on that page. Good luck and thanks for stopping by! I appreciate the visit!

      Reply

  18. Thank you so much for the like on my recent post! I do more than gardening, but have a lot to learn and can’t wait to delve into your blog more! I commented on your FB page but I didn’t know if you actually got it because I didn’t see it! Happy day! šŸ˜‰

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      2. Something did not work right. Back to the drawing board. It may be that there is to much competition. I have another squash growing right beside it, and it has more or less taken over.

      3. We aren’t as efficient as bees. You are right to wonder about stress on the plant but you may just need to keep trying. I’ve had melons that no matter what I did to help with pollination would not keep fruit growing. Some problems with plants are going to be site specific. Keep trying. As the season progresses you may have more opportunities and less stress for what you are growing. You can always get in touch with a master gardener if you put your county name and “county extension office” in your search bar. You can ask them for advice. They will be experts in your area. I often email my extension office and get a reply the next day. Good luck and let me know if you can get your vine to produce!

  20. Hello (:
    Thank you so much for visiting my blog and liking my post “make you own cleanser”. It means a lot!
    Your blog is definitely what I need ’cause I want to start gardening. I’ve always been into it!
    Oh, and you seem so lovely. Have a nice day!

    Reply

  22. Hello there, thanks for the like on my post, “My Obnoxious Laugh”. I’ve briefly perused through your blog, and appreciate the gardening knowledge as well as the beautiful pictures you share on here. I don’t know much about gardening, but I do agree that it is very therapeutic. Taking the time to be out in nature and doing things with your hands really is relaxing I think.

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    1. I completely agree with you! If you’re going to laugh: let your body in on it. I laugh (and snort) obnoxiously, too. I never could get into laughing like a lady (Or sneezing like one. What’s up with those little mouse squeaks I hear women do?) I guess I’ve spent too much time outdoors to understand the logic of social limitations. Thanks for coming by! I appreciate the visit.

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      1. Hahaha, your comment made me laugh. I completely understand. Whenever I’m in the library, my sneezes sound like they echo for ages. I’m glad that you enjoyed my post šŸ™‚ Have a nice day

  23. Thank you for visiting my blog. My husband and I are also gardeners, and every year it is a new adventure! I look forward to reading more posts on your blog!

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      1. Thank you! I appreciate the time you took to read it. We aren’t perfect, but we aren’t quitters so it’s a good start :). I’m still new to the blogging world, so if you have any tips, please feel free to share šŸ™‚

      2. My only advice is to stick to topics that you’re passionate about and don’t believe that there are any hard and fast rules for blogging. I post when I feel that I have something worthwhile to say, not when a specific amount of time has elapsed. Other than that: just have fun! Good luck!

      3. Thanks for the advice! I agree with you on only posting when you are passionate or have something to get off your mind. I like having a wide range of topics to hopefully off load experiences I have had with a product/town or to just share a memory.

    1. I love your description of the co-mingling of your brain functions! I learned a long time ago that there’s a super position within me that I can access. I can tie the two together without dropping down into one or the other. It makes for a unique perspective. Thanks for coming by, I appreciate the visit!

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    1. Everyone has a calling. This is mine. It would be a very boring world if our interests were exactly the same! That’s the cool thing about the blogging world. We get exposed to so many interesting topics. I love learning about what other people are passionate about. Thank you for coming by. I appreciate the visit!

      Reply

  29. Hi, I don’t know know how you found your way to my post, but I surely appreciate your visit. It’s a poem I worked on for more than 2 years and blows would come in the way. Now that I finished it, I don’t think I am immune but I trust the One to keep me free. The blog was meant to address my native language speakers(among whom lots speak Eng.) but it seems you found it. I just wrote it as it came, I create in Eng.and Romanian.
    Thanks again for your appreciation.
    Nice blog you’ve got here.

    Reply

  30. well, you know the Latin names, you are leaps and bounds ahead of me! I know some , but not enough:-) I look forward to hearing what you have to say and learn from your experiments:-)

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    1. I only know them because my mother always uses the Latin rather than the common names. It really helps to learn how to garden when you are next to someone who is much more experienced. My granny who is 88 this year wrote a few gardening books in the 80’s but they aren’t in print. She is making a lasagna bed on her own this year! Once you’ve been bitten, you never get over the gardening bug. Thanks for coming by. I appreciate it!

      Reply

  31. Thank you for the likes at Madame Butterfly’s posts! I’m actually setting the blog for the ladies as a surprise before they come back from their weekend trip. I’m already 30 hours straight and counting; so thank you for the morale boost. šŸ™‚

    Reply

      1. You are too kind! Thank you! That creation means a lot to me. I honestly appreciate it!
        When I get my head cleared I will dive in the depths of your blog. both me and my wife like gardening, so…

  32. I like the idea of “delusional adventure”: I do not garden, but I feel the same in my running, cycling….
    Let us keep going as living the adventure is the main thing!
    Thank you liking my post.

    Reply

    1. Thanks for coming by, I appreciate the visit! There are very few addictions that are good for you, but I think you and I are involved in a couple that are healthy. Good luck in your adventures!

      Reply

    1. It will depend on your light. If you have 6 or more hours a day of direct sun on your balcony you can grow full sun vegetables and flowers. If you have less than that you can grow leafy veggies like lettuce and chard and shade loving flowers. I grow a lot of things in pots on my porch. Some full sun plants will do well with some shade if it’s super hot out. There will be a tag on plants you buy that will tell you their growing requirements. Your main concern in container gardening is making sure you don’t 1. let the pots dry out or 2. keep them too wet where it’s like a soup. Both of those conditions will kill plants. I use 20″ pots with built-in saucers at the bottom. They don’t dry out as fast. If you stick your finger down into the soil and don’t feel moisture it’s time to water. If you do feel moisture wait and check the next day. I will post an entry about container gardening soon. I’ve had a lot of questions about it. Thanks for coming by! I appreciate the visit and the question.

      Reply

  36. Great site. I know conventional blogging wisdom is to keep posts short but i appreciate those that take the time to post detailed material that they care about.

    I am sure to find some things to try out when i get the chance to garden and farm šŸ™‚

    Reply

    1. I’m so sorry you lost Dawg. My dog developed allergies when we moved to Texas. He licked his skin until it was raw and bloody and scratched his ears and eyes until he was scabbed over. We had him on prednisone and alternated benadryl and a different otc antihistamine for a year and a half solid. He finally seems to be getting a better response and doesn’t need the medications year-round. Animal allergies are really difficult to treat.

      Losing a pet is so difficult. I wish you the best as your family moves forward.

      Reply

  43. Hello.
    Thank you for visiting lifehelps.wordpress.com and liking “My Neighborhood.”
    Ah, a fellow gardener! Two years ago, I turned my front yard into a garden. I call it my yarden, and can absolutely lose track of time out there…then there are the stiff muscles next morning. I live in a high mountain valley in the Pacific Northwest, which has its own challenges, just as any other climate does. Happy gardening; I’ll be back. Hannah

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    1. I agree with the idea that there can be an overload of trivial information that we get on a daily basis. But when I was growing up my mother was always reading. It was a choice as to how she spent her free time. I don’t think it’s much different to get lost on the computer. I do think our patience for getting information is shorter. Maybe that will open up a new approach to learning and teaching. I don’t think more information will ever be a bad thing. Thanks for coming by! I appreciate the visit.

      Reply

  48. Hello there. Thanks for the visit and Like on my blog earlier. I’ve been poking around here and I see we share an interest in gardening, though I’m nowhere near your level of expertise. I plan to keep coming back and learn more. You have a new follower šŸ™‚

    Reply

    1. I do! There are a lot of plants that will take low light inside an apartment. I have a friend who trains vines along her walls with thumbtacks. Lowe’s is a place you can get ideas from. They have a section for “indestructible” houseplants: http://www.logees.com/indestructible/indestructible.htm they also have a windowsill section. Most people who kill houseplants water too often. Let the soil dry out between watering and you should be fine. I personally wouldn’t recommend the above nursery link outside of ideas. Visit your local garden center for purchasing plants. They can also help you with ideas. You need to remember nurseries are making money off of you so you might want to look the plant suggestions up on your own, decide on something and then go back to purchase. As far as your patio: you can grow almost anything in a big enough pot. 20 or 22 inch pots won’t dry out quickly and you can grow almost anything in them with the right light. Good luck!

      Reply

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