Both of my grandmother's had cast iron collections. These were things they either purchased in Kansas or are my family's heirlooms. My mom's family on a road trip to Washington DC. My granny on my mom's side married a jerk, (to say it mildly) after my grandpa died. He made her get rid of her … Continue reading How I Restored My Antique Iron: Two Methods
I am currently featured on one of Raintree Nursery's videos on YouTube. Laura and Raintree's Ambassadors have some excellent tips. You can see it here: https://youtu.be/qtfuw9u1_f8 For anyone interested in the hugelkulter bed I use in the video (my information starts at these three times 8:58, 20:26, 24:38 and are pretty quick) the instructions... and … Continue reading Hugelkulter High Density Fruit Tree Bed (Or Heather’s Humor Odyssey)
There are three ingredients and four steps to making your own yogurt: ultra pasturized half and half (for those of you who live outside of the United States, it's half milk/half heavy cream), a bacteria, and inulin. You add these all together and heat the mix for 36 hours. The rest of this article is … Continue reading L. Gasseri, L. Reuteri or BC30 Bacillus Coagulans Yogurt Making-The Ultimate Guide
Hugelkultur The most expensive part of my garden is the city water that we're on. Our city water is piped in. The aquifer that our land is over does not have good water. We're near an air force base, started in the 1930's and I wonder if over the years, that aquifer has been polluted … Continue reading Watering In High Heat
The things I grow in summer are things that I don't have to baby. Today our "feel like" temperature was 103 degrees Fahrenheit. I'm not interested in doing manual labor in that sort of heat (Although, I did. I was out in that heat for about an hour and a half yesterday weeding and pulling … Continue reading Low Maintenance, Highly Productive, Summer Vegetables.
One of my family's favorite summer foods are often called either "quick" or "refrigerator" pickles. These make the crunchiest pickles because they aren't cooked. I grow Armenian cucumbers, which are actually melons. They taste like cucumbers and they don't get bitter in our high heat like actual cucumbers do. So, I always have fresh additions … Continue reading Quick/Refrigerator Pickles
Summer is officially bearing down on us down here in South Texas. Boy, is it hot! If you garden: you sure don't want to do it in the middle of the day when it's over 100°F! However, all the things down here that I choose to plant will usually sail through the heat as long … Continue reading Summer Sun And The Fruits Of My Labor
This is the most reflective paint I've ever seen! I'm at it again! My mom came to visit me and it's been crazy! We cut down two trees with a chainsaw. It was the above ground growth on an incense bush and a pomegranate, that died back during our horrible freeze. My 20 year old … Continue reading Fine Paints of Europe: Dutch Door Kit
I have about a quarter acre of land. When we first moved in it was just grass, a gravel play area and one small oak tree. Fast forward eleven years and my yard is fully planted. There are fruit trees and bushes, flowers and habitat for birds etc. I grow almost all of my vegetables … Continue reading Achieving The Best Use Of Solar Energy In The Garden.
I just pulled 40 ears of corn out of one of my raised beds. There's still another 20 or so still ripening. I love late May! Nonastringent Persimmon I started working on my perennial food forest about eleven years ago. Gardening is my hobby, not my job, so those eleven years took time I might … Continue reading Food Forest
Cardboard and paper trash is a gardener's treasure! This is a Hugelkulter/Keyhole cross, garden bed. I have grown in beds of this design for close to 10 years and I love them! I can grow an endless amount of things in these beds. This is a banana in the background and okra up front. Overwintered … Continue reading Building The Perfect Raised Beds
Four years ago today I finished this project and wrote this post on how to paint kitchen cabinets. I have to say that they are still one of the best home improvement projects I've done. Not simple. Not easy. But very worthwhile. The finish is just as nice as the day I rehung the cabinet … Continue reading I Painted My Kitchen Cabinets And I Love Them!
This Easter we went to our family's low country shrimp boil in San Antonio. I love the food every year! This year though, was a bit different. I discovered last year that I can't eat wheat. I've developed an allergy to it, and it's pretty serious. The wheat sensitivity, is way back from climbing up … Continue reading Best Damn Rainbow Fruit Skewers And Dip Out There!
I've got a seat saved for you! Come see what I'm doing in the garden! Right now I am finishing up the main chores I have left until our summer is in full swing. Our days are sure cool this year. It's not officially summer weather for us, for sure. It's very weird to be … Continue reading Pre-summer Checklist
My totals from 2021 back to when I started. I have been writing my blog crazygreenthumbs.com for 10 years now. I have had some great experiences with it, and at this point, in April 2023, I'm at a total of approximately 338,000 views. I have been published in a monthly magazine, I have an e-book … Continue reading How to Write A Successful Blog
"Soooo, what have you been up to, you crazy little gardener?" Well. Actually, I've been very, very busy. Busy, busy, busy. Mainly, because I don't know how not to be. I fill my free time with projects and experiments. Once I get these ideas for new projects, I get a bee in my bonnet until … Continue reading Hugelkulter High Density Fruit Tree Bed (Or Heather’s Humor Odyssey)
I got a call the other day from a neighbor. "I have seven bricks, do you want them?" "Yes! Yes, I do!" I have plans for bricks, and free ones are the best kind! These plans were sparked by regularly spending hours on Pinterest (Can't sleep? It's Pinterest time!) and randomly remembering a few pins … Continue reading Painting Pavers To Look Like Books
I have a very short spring, especially this year. Usually I get my summer corn out in the beds in late February and harvest by late May. This year was an odd one. We froze all the way out into March and it was heavy freezes, too. Very bizarre for my part of the world, … Continue reading What To Grow In Spring and How To Use It
My raised beds. I keep up with planting and harvest times on my phone. I have a hard copy of spring and fall planting dates in my binder. I have been building a food forest for the last 11 years. I love finding plants that will both flourish in South Texas and feed my family. … Continue reading Keeping Track of a Food Forest
I have shopped at Raintree Nursery (they are a mail order, specialty fruit nursery) for about 16 years now. Some of my favorite fruiting plants have come from them. So, when they put a call out this year for expert growers, with ten years (or more) of experience in their area, I threw my hat … Continue reading Plant Ambassador
Crazy Green Thumbs 