Rain?

It sprinkled here last night. It hasn't so much as sprinkled/rained here since May 24, so I was a little excited at the prospect of water falling from the sky.

So much so that I shot a quick video.

(And yes, my grass looks hideous. I know that. But I live in a desert, apparently this is news to some of my neighbors).


NorCal Rain? from Katie Hobson on Vimeo.

Organic Gardening Blog

It rained for about 5 minutes tonight. I am waiting for the video on Vimeo to convert, until then, this post will have to do.

I can't remember the last time I logged into Blotanical. (Sorry Stuart!). Really. Not because I don't adore the site (because I do), but because I am super busy as always, and have limited computer time. I was browsing my stats today and found the Blotanical awards site was mentioned a few times in my referrals.

No way, I said.

I logged onto Blotanical, and sure enough, this lil ol' blog made the #2 spot under the Best Organic Blog category. (Or number 3 or 4 depending on how many times you refresh, which is still an honor to be listed with Mike of Tiny Farm Blog, The Manic Gardener, and OurFriendBen at Poor Richards Almanac) NO WAY! A special shout out to Susan of SustainableGardening.com for her win!



I can't believe it. I don't feel like I've blogged about gardening in ages! But I swear, there is gardening going on daily here in my neck of the woods. Life tends to get in the way of blogging about it sometimes.

So thanks to everyone for considering this blog worthy of the #2 Organic Gardening Blog award. I am dumbfounded and exhilarated, and re energized about posting about my organic gardening pursuits.

You all are awesome.



See! Gardening!

Yes friends, there is good news today

Aside from all the greedy, horrible financial news coming out today, there is a bright spot.

See the New York Times article, An Urban Farmer is Rewarded for His Dream.

I really needed something like this today. What about you?

No picture today.

Out of the funk - and into a challege!

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”

-Howard Thurman


Moonrise, originally uploaded by gardenpunk.

Posts here have slowed down lately, and GardenPunks seems to be taking a turn again – the blog tends to evolve every year to incorporate our newly-discovered passions and current interests. I’m having a hard time finding inspiration for interesting garden or environment related posts, perhaps it’s the doom and gloom of our economy and the current outlook (“Great Depression, Now in Color!” screams a silly picture from PunditKitchen.com this morning)

Chris and I have become complacent about some of our environmental adventures – riding our bikes to work, hanging laundry on the line, catching water from our showers and sinks, running the dishwasher only when super full…the list goes on (while we still participate in these adventures sometimes, it’s not as much as we’d like – and then there are the excuses for each…). The garden is hanging in there, looking as gorgeous as ever, I even started some winter seeds and am approaching another round! But why I can’t get motivated to post about it is beyond me.

I’m going to stop beating myself up and commit to a challenge – 5 posts per week minimum. Posts about photography, gardening, food, and environmental issues all represented at least once in the rotation.

I blog because it makes me feel like people care, as narcissistic as that may seem. The readership we’ve gained over the last 2 years is still important to us, and we want to give you what it is that made you subscribe to us in the first place! So hang with us through the funk – and let me know if there is something you would like to see us write about!

It's the small things

Thank you note, originally uploaded by gardenpunk.

A couple weeks ago my childhood friend Sandy and her husband Ryan visited us for dinner and a garden tour. It was fun chatting about items that suited our mutual interests.

Sandy has always had an eye for design, and is working on some creative projects of her own back in Philly where she landed after college. I was pleased to receive a Thank You card today (seriously, when was the last time you received a Thank You card for hosting dinner!?), of her own design - hand-drawn/written, gorgeous paper, and humorous to boot.

Visit Sandy over at Markerlove.com. You'll fall in love with her eye for good design.

PS - You can have the orange cat, but not the brown one - she doesn't much care for dogs. Plus the orange one is more evil fun.

Sierra Frost

Sierra Frost, originally uploaded by gardenpunk.

Chris and I spent the weekend helping my Dad with family cabin maintenance. It was such a nice break, and beyond great to spend some time with my Pops.

We ate pizza, watched, movies, stained decks, washed windows, talked about life and photography, cinematography, politics, life, family, and happiness. Chris now understand where I get my 1,001 hobbies from.

When I got up to take Jake to the bathroom this morning, everything was covered in a icy mist.

I am really looking forward to wearing my winter clothes. This was just a precursor.

More Sierra Frost pics here

What kind of punks we be?

If we didn't remind you that it is International Talk Like A Pirate Day.

I be needin some grog. Now go on, you landlubbers and be swashbucklin.

Moonrise

Moonrise, originally uploaded by gardenpunk.

We've had gorgeous moonrises the last couple evenings. Coupled with a cloud bank that rolled in yesterday, this made a gorgeous shot.

Today in the garden

Monarch Butterfly, originally uploaded by gardenpunk.

We had a visitor.

Lolcats: Sunday Edition

Blending in cat is



Blending in

Chippy lays on our bed that has brown sheets and sometimes if you don't notice her she can freak you out by making noise.

More lolcats

This one is for Margo

Nature Imitating Nature

I found a tomato hornworm the other day, so I pulled it off of my 'Green Zebra' tomato plant and threw it on a patio where birds are known to congregate. I watched it for a while because I was bored and it was intriguing.

Did you know that the poop of tomato hornworms looks like flowers? Really. Photographic evidence below.

New Toys

New Toys, originally uploaded by gardenpunk.

My Lee Valley order arrived this morning. I ordered the grid paper, curve creator, and stencil for landscape design.

This means my drawings will now be in scale, and I will have plenty of "gardening" to do in the middle of winter!

PhotoShelter stops stock sales

(This is a repost from another blog I have. I feel it's time to begin sharing pieces of a personal journey).



Well there goes that idea…

I just received an email from PhotoShelter announcing they are shutting down the stock photography sales part of their business effective 10/10/08. They are going back to personal storage and sales, their core (and original) business.

Official Announcement
PhotoShelter founder's blog

What does this mean to me?

I am looking into the world of photography as a moonlighting career, and possibly more seeing if I have what it takes. PhotoShelter was a wonderful place for photographers to sell the best of the best of their pictures to the likes of media companies, magazines, etc. Prices started at $50 and went up depending on the use of the picture - upwards of THOUSANDS of dollars for those lucky enough to be great photogs in the right place, right time. The best part of PhotoShelter was the 70/30 split, with 70% of the sale of the picture going to the photographer - by far the best in the business.

This site would have allowed me to build a portfolio, advertise it/publish it online, get to learn the art of photography in and out, and perhaps make a teensie bit of money on the side. (I have no illusions that this would have been a full time gig.)

I am majorly disappointed.

The reason I was interested in stock photography is because this kind of photography gives a photographer creative control over pictures and what kind of pictures they want to take, rather than a freelance gig in which the subject is assigned. You take good pictures of things that are beautiful to you, and if the stars align, the pictures sell on PhotoShelter. I was excited to begin this chapter of my business life soon after the first couple photo classes I am taking (with more in the future), and PhotoShelter seemed to be the perfect place for me to do so.

Have I mentioned that I am really disappointed?

PhotoShelter was the last bastion of this type of business in the US. Now photographers like me have choices like iStock photo (~28¢ to the dollar spent by a buyer, woo hoo) , or Getty images search through Flickr (a paltry 20-40% of the sale price of a picture, $29-$200,000). The closest thing to PhotoShelter is Alamy.com, a UK company with a 65/35 split. [I will look into it, I'm sure, but the sting of PhotoShelter stopping stock sales still lingers]

If you're a photographer, I would love to hear why/how you do what you do. What do you do that you think has helped you become/stay successful?

Feel free to comment here or shoot me an email katie [at] gardenpunks.com

And the winner is...

Comment #8 - Janine!



She uses a shop vac to suck up insects, and stuffs a paper towel in the hose to keep them from crawling out.

Janine - please use the Contact Us button on the main page to email me your address and choice of EcoSMART product (Ant & Roach Killer, Flying Insect Killer, wasp & Hornet Killer, or Insect Repellent).

Thanks to everyone who participated in our EcoSMART giveaway!

Homemade Sriracha

So with the Thai Dragon peppers having provided us with a number of ripe peppers, I decided today would be as good of a day as any to make homemade Srirracha.



After a very fruitless search for a recipe, I decided to improvise.

Ingredients -

• 2.5 oz ripe Thai Dragon peppers - I seeded them after weighing
• 4 oz Jalapeño peppers - I used frozen peppers from last year. They were a mix of red and green, mostly red. These I did not seed due to being frozen, had they been fresh I would have seeded.
  
• 4 very ripe Roma tomatoes - Skins/seeds removed,
  
• 1 clove of garlic
• Vinegar - I used a mixture of white, white wine and cider.
  
• Pinch Salt
• 2-3 grinds Black Pepper
  
• Smoked Spanish Paprika (optional)
  
• Ground Coriander (optional)

After seeding the peppers, put them in a stainless steel pot, and cover with vinegar. Boil until peppers are very soft.

Blanch the tomatoes in the boiling vinegar to make the skins easier to remove.

Strain peppers from vinegar. Save the vinegar, as you will be using it later in the recipe.

Add garlic, tomatoes, cooked peppers, salt, pepper and optional ingredients to a food processor. Combine, adding vinegar to achieve your desired consistency.

That is it!



---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sauce tasted very much like standard Sriracha (but hotter) without the paprika and coriander. However, I think they each added a little additional depth of flavor, especially the smokiness of the paprika.

It is way too hot for Katie to eat, and is actually pretty hot. Using mostly jalapeños helped to cut the heat a bit, but those Thai Dragon Peppers are pretty hot.

Whine

I wish it wasn't hot on the weekends. Otherwise I might actually get some gardening done!

I feel for those of you in Texas, as I've heard reports that you had a whole month over 100 in parts...

Stay cool everyone!

This Week On Funny Cat Videos

An ode to Chipotle from Katie Hobson on Vimeo.

I have mentioned that Travis is obsessed with the paper sacks we get when we eat at Chipotle. Here is what happened last night when we went.

Wanting, burning desire 0:11
Tearing into sack 0:56
Where Chipotle bags go to die 1:15

It's bad enough that I always take video of my pets. Imagine what it would be like if I had kids!

Minty Elixir of Death + CONTEST

Since I found my minty elixir of death last year, Black Widows have been no match for me.

I am a proponent of letting nature be - that is, as long as the bugs are taking care of one another, I am all for allowing a few aphids and creepy crawlies run about.

Black widows are another story entirely. They are the only thing I actively seek and destroy (well, except maybe the Harlequin bugs). Yes, they probably eat the rolie polies and June bugs, but all I need is for either Chris, Jake, or myself to get bit by one of these buggers.

And the freak me out so badly that I still have nightmares about them, as an adult...

It took me a while to locate an organic solution for black widows - and it came in the form of a Wasp & Hornet spray made from a high concentration of mint oil (my so-called minty elixir of death).

EcoSMART offers a wide range of organic pest control and insect repellent options, including a Wasp & Hornet spray which I took for a test drive last weekend.

The peppermint smell is quite nice, and the strong blast knocks the black widows down on the ground. I used a whole can quite readily (just like the competing brand), but more than a dozen black widows no longer call my house home. I need to reload - there are still more out there.

And while I'm no Pioneer Woman with her fabulous contests and all, I am excited to announce a contest here!

I would love to hear the ORGANIC way you deal with pests - this can range from innovative ways you take care of rolie polies, homemade/homegrown solutions, or how doing nothing is working out just fine for you. The winner will get to choose from one of the following EcoSMART products: Ant and Roach Killer, Flying Insect Killer, Wasp and Hornet Killer, or Insect Repellent.

The contest closes at 9pm Pacific Daylight Time (that's California time) on Sunday September 7th at which time I will choose a winner at random, so get your comment on!

This post wouldn't be complete without carnage shots from last weekend's hunt.

Da proof is in da pudding.

Meeting a Fellow Blogger in Person

On Saturday Chris and I ventured out to meet Sean of Bamboo Geek and his wife. They were having a bamboo sale, and since I was in the market for some bamboo, I figured what better time to talk to an expert and recycle my money within the regional community.

After telling Sean my requirements, (10-20 feet tall at most, clumping only, canes I can cut and use in the garden), he selected 'Alphonse Karr' for us, and gave us one of the best specimens he had in a container!

This is what it's expected to look like in a few years, hopefully...

Click to visit this site and see larger view

This should provide a nice screen in place of a misshapen Callery Pear that we plan to cut down this winter (we will be keeping and reusing many of the long branches as garden stakes and whatnot!).

It will also give our neighbors shade just as the Callery (Bradford) Pear does now.

It should cut down on the sound transmission between our houses, a benefit to each of us!

I'm really excited about this bamboo, and this is no small feat considering I used to despise bamboo. Little did I know that I didn't like running bamboo because of its propensity to spread rapidly (not a good thing in the land of the suburbs on 1/4 acre lots).

So thank you Sean for your knowledge and help in selecting the perfect bamboo for our application. And a double thanks for teaching me to like bamboo!