Isnt this amazing? Just two weeks ago these were frozen stiff. Now they are putting on a show......Wow.

This is one of my raised beds all planted in onions...yes anyone who knows me knows I have to plant copious quantities of onions...Lets just see how well this compost does with Walla Walla, Big Daddy and Red Burgermeister.

And, there you have it..a new beautiful flower bed. It will take a bit more smoothing and raking, but then will be ready to plant. Cant you just see the flowers waving in the breeze?

Phase III: Top the entire bed with wonderful rich compost from the IC Landfill. The key to this step is to let your husband feel like he is part of the project..and you truly approve of his going out and buying a Bobcat. haha

Phase II: Cover the cardboard with aged straw or hay (I used straw) the more decomposed and wet the better.

Phase I: Lay down cardboard over the area intended for gardening. This looks pretty innocent, but when the wind came up..it got down right ugly!!! A few cuss words later and we got it covered.

Here's to LASAGNA Gardening.....an experiment in Cedar County.

Consider 82 210th Street the test grounds for Lasagna Gardening in Cedar County. I think my sister and I have determined we are so far ahead of conventional gardening practices on this one, that we may have to make time on the talk show circuit for interviews. My hopes are as high as they ever have been in anticipation of record vegetable harvest and stunning blooming power!
To date, this is what I have accomplished....I have included some photos to demonstrate. 1.) The Lasagna garden..I took lots of cardboard, threw lots of rotting straw on it, then topped it off with compost made up of lawn waste, ground branch's and food waste from the University of Iowa dining halls, now doesnt that sound like a recipe for success?? Well, give it some time and it will...it decomposes into pure black gold. 2.) Kurtis has built me three new raised beds for the garden. I did the same with them filling them with the compost. Today I planted them full of onions, radish's and kohlrabi..I cant wait to see how they do.
The thing with Gardening is that it is purely a yearly experiment to see what works and what doesnt. I feel I am somewhat the expert when it comes to some of the "It didn't work" items. But, what the hell, its still fun. Be sure to check out Jennifers blog today, could it be that the gardening genes passed on are starting to kick in??? Until next time...MOM

Here is the sign over the famous "Puka" dog restaurant. It is just a little joint in a mall, but the line was half a block long to get one of the great dogs.....

This was the view from our Condo, out on the deck. The sound of the surf crashing in was amazing. We took several strolls along the beach and got our feet wet.

A scene looking across Waimea canyon after a small rain shower...The rainbow is beautiful.

A moment out here from the beauty of the Islands. I took this picture for Wayne and Steve. These boys were putting in a new septic system....All they do is lay down PVC pipe down about two feet deep and dump the "stuff" into a pit that is created with a small stick of dynomite...no septic tanks or leach fields....Simple huh?

The size of this Bird of Paradise was just amazing..Ignore the hair...everyday in Hawaii was a bad hair day for me, but I really didn't care!

This was a guitar player at the Galloway Plantation..almost everywhere you eat on the Islands they have some entertainment, which is really beautiful.

OK, I think you have suffered long enough....

Have you had enough of the picture of me garnishing the weapon? Yeah, I think so..I know I have. I hope I haven't tarnished my almost perfect reputation..and I haven't fired a single shot since that monumental day, but then again..I haven't been challenged by any angry beasts either. Maybe word is out in the raccoon community to not try & snag a quick lunch at the backdoor anymore...
So now it is off to my current passion! Gardening. I feel like I have truly discovered the hidden treasure at the end of the rainbow. I had to have a nice long talk with Kurtis the other day, and remind him just how lucky he is that he has me to share the rest of his life with. Some women demand fur coats, multiple pairs of shoes, a different hairdresser each week....diamonds,,,,etc etc, you get the picture. Me? Nope...the only request I made of Kurtis the other day is that he accompany me to the.......Iowa City Landfill. Yep, the Iowa City Landfill. You know....where all the county garbage is hauled??? We were having a nice lunch at Carlos OKelly's when I laid the question on him. Here was my method....I asked "Kurtis, are you in a big hurry to get home? He replied "No, not really, why?" Well, I said, I would like to take a nice drive out to the Iowa City Landfill...I noticed him put his fork down, look up from his Sancho Monterey and say "The Iowa City Landfill??? What the hell would you want there?? Here is the good part....."I am interested in looking over their recycle program, I have been reading where they are making compost out there for gardens" (You see the angle now??) They collect all the yard waste, leaves, twigs and about 704 tons per year of food scraps from the dining halls at the UofI and they grind and compost it, and sell it for $10.00 per ton. Now, I ask you, what could Kurtis do but to be drop dead excited to tag along on this adventure....so a few chips later and a belly full of Mexican food...off we went. Well, let me tell you...fancy diamonds and bobbles may get some women excited....but when I stood there with mounds and mounds of black steaming compost heaped about me......I almost felt faint!!!! I had hit the mother-lode!!! I have already hit up my brother Larry to get me a full dump truck full....yep a good 7-8 tons should do!! And then......as if that wasn't excitement enough, they also have mulch....all you want for FREE!!!!! So, I am planning my new beds at this moment...you may want to take time to drive by this summer, my gardens may never look better!!!!! I can hardly sleep dreaming about scooping and hauling compost and mulch.....

Now, back to my Hawaiian trip..I will pick back up on Tuesday February 20th. This was Kurtis's birthday..not a bad place to celebrate a birthday. We started out the day by going to a old pineapple plantation called "Galloways" It has been convered into a beautiful arboretum and bed and breakfast that serves breakfast each morning. We then headed down the road to the Waimea Canyon..much like the grand canyon but Island style carved out of volcanic eruptions..it was just beautiful..except for the winding roads which in time made me sick, so we cut the trip short. We also visited the Kauaii Coffee plantation. Kurtis sampled all the different varieties, and bought a bag to bring home to Marsha. The big highlight of the day was were we ate lunch. When Jessica had heard we were going to Hawaii she was all excited and wanted to make sure we found the "Puka" dog place. The restaurant was featured on a food network show and has kind of become famous.....so off to the Puka dog we went...and had a fine delicacy for lunch. I thought they were really great!! It is a hot dog that has a bun baked on it, then a variety of sauches are injected into it when you order. I had the spicy mango relish with hawaiian mustard version and I think Kurtis had the standard catsup and hawaiian mustard. I though they were great..I think the two dogs and drinks were almost $20.00....but who cares!!
Until next time....>MOM