Hail storms in Colorado Springs

We have had more than our share of hail storms already this season here in the Springs. In order to have any kind of successful garden at all, it is almost imperative to have some kind of cover for your garden...not only to protect it from the hail, but also to keep the little critters out. We have chosen to make our cover out of shade screen...the same kind that you use to repair your window or door screens. You can find it at Lowe's or Home Depot. I would love to have a screened enclosure for my garden that looks really pretty, but my dear husband doesn't really see the need for that as long as it serves its purpose, which it pretty much has. Occasionally, we will get a bird or a squirrel that has found its way under the screen, but then I just go out and chase them out. The funny thing is that once they get in there, the can't seem to find their way out, even with the door wide open. It usually takes awhile to chase them out...thank goodness this does not happen very often. 

New Home Storage Specialist for Ridgeview Ward

Leslie Fife has been called as the new home storage specialist for Ridgeview Ward. I'm very excited to see some great new fresh ideas come from Leslie, as she is really excited about her new responsibilities. Check the blog from time to time, as I have asked her for articles to post here.

It's that time of year...get ready to garden!

It's time to get your garden ready to plant. Start by preparing the soil, and then, if you have adequate weather protection, for ex. "Walls of Water", you can even begin planting a few plants outside. For help in growing in our area, check out the link for the Colorado Extension office.

http://www.ext.colostate.edu/menu_garden.html

Transplanting into larger pots

Last week I transplanted my plants into larger pots with potting soil, and also thinned out a few more tomatoes. I used popsicle sticks and pipe cleaners to carefully stake them up so they would grow straight.

Starting seeds indoors

In colder climates like ours here in Colorado, it is a great thing to start your seeds indoors a few months before you can actually plant them outside. Last year I started tomato plants in March, but decided I needed to plant them a month earlier this year. I found this terrific little adjustable grow light at Phelan Gardens Nursery here in the Springs, and the little plants are doing quite well. This year, I planted 3 varieties of tomatoes, 2 varieties of bell peppers, cucumbers, squash, and some herbs. When I transplant them to my garden around the beginning of May, I will put "walls of water" around them to protect them from the frost and cold weather at night. So here is the process of starting your seeds indoors:

1. Purchase peat moss pellets and put them in seedling trays; add warm water until they expand to about triple in size. 
2. Gently pull apart top netting on each pellet and plant 2-3 seeds in each one, following directions on back of seed package.
3. Cover tray and put in dark warm area until seeds have sprouted...a few days to a week. I put mine over a heater vent to keep them warm.
4. After seeds have sprouted, take off the cover and put them under the grow light. Water when peat moss gets dry. It will usually turns a lighter brown when it starts to dry out.
5. After the plants begin to put on the "true" leaves and have grown several inches in height, thin out your plants and leave only one or two of the strongest plants in each pellet. 
6. When plants get too large for the pellet, transplant them to larger pots with a good starter soil. Keep under grow light until plants have grown large enough to transplant into garden. 
7. When you are ready to transplant the plants to the garden, put them outside in a sheltered area for a few days to get them hardy enough to transplant.
8. Don't forget to put the "walls of water" around the tender plants after you have planted them in the garden. 

Citrus Season

This is the best time of year to buy citrus because it is in season. It is the most flavorful and the prices are the least expensive. One of the few things I miss about living in Arizona is our citrus trees--especially our lemon tree. The lemons would start ripening just after Thanksgiving and were at their peak at Christmas time and for a month or so thereafter. A Christmas gift for my neighbors was always a freshly baked lemon meringue pie with a basket of lemons. 

Just recently, my daughter's in-laws brought lemons back from a trip to Arizona and I was reminded about how much better the lemons grown in Arizona were as compared with the ones that we buy here in Colorado at the local grocery store. They are noticeably larger and much more flavorful. I still do not know why we can't purchase this wonderful citrus here in Colorado when we are so close to AZ. Since Paula's in-laws were kind enough to share their bounty with her, she returned the favor by making her father-in-law a lemon meringue pie. The recipe called for 1/2 cup of lemon juice, or the juice from 3 lemons. She measured 5/8 - 3/4 cup juice from only one lemon. 

So what do you do when you have an abundance of citrus that won't last forever? When we were in Arizona, I had an electric juicer and I juiced all of my lemons, and then froze the juice in ice cube trays. When the cubes were frozen, I would pop them into a zip lock bag, and then I would have enough lemon juice to last the rest of the year. Talk about yummy lemonade...the best! You should also remember that the fruit will be the most flavorful if you leave it on the tree and pick it as you need it, or until there is danger of a frost or the fruit is so ripe that it begins dropping from the branches. 

Comparison between AZ lemons and locally purchased lemons