Catnip and Cantaloupes

I've got something sneaking into my garden at night-- perhaps a cat-- that is really enjoying the catnip I potted in my herb pot. I noticed the other day that two branches of catnip or snapped in half...

Today I noticed that my catnip burglar had even ripped off some leaves, leaving them chewed up around the herb pot (which is really a Lowe's bucket!)


Hmmmm. Maybe I'll figure out what it is one of these days.

I also noticed this morning that my cantaloupe is blooming...

If I can keep that up, and bring these to fruition (despite the 3 inch grasshopper that was walking away from my garden as I watered it this morning), then that right there is three cantaloupe (pronounced can-ta-lope-ehs in my house) that I can expect in the upcoming months!

My First Vegetable Garden

Well, I've got me a little garden going! A few months ago, I mentioned that I was covering the raised bed with a tarp in hopes of killing the weeds and weed seeds. Well, it did a pretty good job. We scooped up the dead grass from the top of the bed and threw it in the compost heap and horticulture bin.


Then we scooped out a bunch of the top layer in a quarter section of the bed, so that I could plant a small vegetable garden. We mixed in compost, potting soil and top soil. I planted a poblano pepper, jalapeno pepper, green bell pepper, cucumber, watermelon, zucchini, 2 eggplant and cantaloupe.

So far, everything is looking good.

I also potted an herb bucket, and I planted a Rome tomato plant and sweet basil in another bucket.
My tomato is growing like gangbusters, and already has a small tomato coming in.


And there are tons of new blooms that foretell of more tomatoes to come.



I noticed the other day that the strawberry pot that I had last summer has a couple of plants still going in it, and one has even sprung up a couple of little strawberries.


I also had an old pepper plant from last year that I had given up on and forgotten over the winter, and just noticed the other day that it has 3 peppers coming in on it.


Even my mango tree is trying to put out a little something, despite the freezes that hit it hard this winter. I've spotted 3 small mangoes so far.

So that's my small attempt right now at growing my own food. I'm just sort of testing the waters right now. We'll see how it goes, and I'll share what I may learn.

Have You Seen This?

Have you seen the movie Food, Inc.? Everyone should watch this movie! Amazing! You would not believe the corruption that fills our food industry. They have government in their pocket just the same as big tobacco. This movie made me madder and more determined than any movie within the last few years, and it reaffirmed once more why I dislike Monsanto so much.

If you have Netflix, please be sure to put this one on your list. Or just go to their official website to watch it...

Official Food, Inc. Movie Site - Hungry For Change? - Trailer and Photos

Stay Tuned

I know I've been dormant, but I should be out of hibernation eventually. I still haven't planted my vegetable garden, but hope to do so in a month or two. I still have a raised bed full of weeds and grass. However I hope soon to try a technique that involves covering the bed in plastic and leaving it to sit for six weeks or so in an attempt to create an environment that will kill most of the weed seeds in the soil of the bed.

Did you know?...

Did you know that you apparently need TWO eggplant plants in order to produce? I've had an eggplant for awhile now, and while I get blooms nothing ever comes to fruition. However Tina from Garden Goose recently informed me that the problem is that I need a second plant. That's important to know. I'll know better next time.

Top 10 Edibles for Florida

Here is a list of the top 10 edible plants to grow in Florida, as outlined in Sunset's Florida Top 10 Garden Guide. According to the zone map in the Sunset book, I live in zone 25, which is the warmest zone in Florida. Most of Florida is zone 26, with northern Florida mainly being zone 28.

Green and Lima Beans: Peak season is late winter through late fall in warmer areas of the state; May through October in cooler areas. Bush Blue Lake and Contender varieties are the two overall best bush beans for Florida's climate and soils. Others that grow well here are: Cherokee Was, October Glory, Purple Bush and Roma II. Fordhook 242 is the preferred lima for this area. The preferred pole beans are Kentucky Wonder (deemed the best snap variety), with Dade and Blue Lake as close seconds. Florida Butter is a good pole lima bean. Plant them with other warm-season vegetables, such as tomatoes, cantaloupe, collards, okra, eggplant, cucumbers and peppers.

Blackberries: Peak season is May and June. Best thornless is Apache, Arapaho, and Navajo. Chester is cold hardy. Best thorny blackberry is Chicksaw. Plant blackberries towards the back of a vegetable garden, or wherever they have space. To expand your fresh fruit options consider combining blackberries with fruits such as peaches, nectarines, pears, blueberries, and grapes. (Not for zone 25)

Blueberries: Harvest season for rabbiteye blueberries extends May to July. The harvest season for highbush blueberries is April through May. Emerald is the best for areas from Ocala to Sebring. Jewel grows well in mild-winter regions. Millennia is one of the most widely-planted varieties in north-central Florida. Beckyblue, Bonita and Climax are three early-season "Rabbiteye" varieties. Equally good but later-ripening cultivars include Brightwell, Powderblue, Tifblue and Woodard. Blueberries are typically used in the landscape as hedges for screening, but can also be used in cluster plantings or as single specimens. (Not for zone 25)

Broccoli: Peak season is October through April, withstanding freezing down to 25 degrees. Favorite varieties for Florida include Waltham 29, Packman, Green Comet, Spartan Early, Atlantic, Green Sprouting, DeCicco, and Green Duke. Plant with other cold-tolerant vegetables, such as carrots, cauliflower, collards, onions, kohlrabi, and cabbage, and with herbs such as thyme, cilantro and rosemary.

Cabbage: Peak season is fall to spring. Best varieties are Chieftan Savoy, Copenhagen Early, Early Jersey Wakefield and Red Acre. Plant with other cold-tolerant vegetables such as kohlrabi, collards, onions, cauliflower, bok choi, mustard and carrots, and with herbs such as thyme and cilantro.

Lettuce: Peak season is fall to spring. Best butterhead is Buttercrunch, but other good choices are Deer's Tongue and Tom Thumb. Best head lettuce is Great Lakes. Best leaf lettuces are Black Seeded Simpson, Oak Leaf, Red Salad Bowl and Red Sails. Best romaine is Parris Island Cos, Valmaine and Dark Green Cos. Grow lettuce with cool-weather vegetables, such as carrots, broccoli, turnips, mustard, collards, kohlrabi, onions, cauliflower and cabbage.

Muscadine Grapes: Peak season is fall. Fry is a bronze grape that is large and very sweet. Nesbitt is black, medium sized, and high-yielding. Southern Home is black-fruited. Summit is an outstanding bronze selection for the home garden. Plant grapevines with other fruits, including blueberries, blackberries, nectarines, plumes, peaches and pears. (Not for zone 25)





Onions: Peak season is spring. Lisbon is the best bunching onion for Florida, and Red Baron is a bright red. For bulbing onions, Candy is extra-sweet, Copra is the best storage onion, and Mars stores well and has a little color. Plant onions with other cool-weather vegetables, such as carrots, cauliflower, collards, kohlrabi and cabbage, and with herbs such as thyme and cilantro.

Strawberries: Peak season is spring. Florida 90 is an older variety, Florida Belle is good for its disease resistance, and Tioga is large and vigorous. Plant strawberries with other cold-hardy vegetables, including broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, beets, Swiss chard, kohlrabi, lettuce and onions.

Tomatoes: Peak season is summer and fall. Best varieties include Better Boy, Bonnie Best (best in northern Florida), and Manalucie. Other large-fruited varieties are Floramerica, Celebrity and Flora-Dade. Other small-fruited varieties are Red Cherry, Sweet Chelsea, Sweet 100, Floragold, Patio and Roma. Plant tomatoes with other warm-season vegetables, such as beans, corn, cucumbers, eggplants, okra, peppers and squash.

Top 10 Fruit Trees for Florida

According to Sunset's Florida Top 10 Garden Guide, these are the top 10 fruit trees for Florida:

Banana (Musa)













Carambola, Star Fruit (Averrhoa carambola)







Citrus (Citrus)











Fig(Ficus carica)-- Not for zone 25, where I live










Jaboticaba (Myrciaria cauliflora)








Loquat (Eriobotrya japonica)










Mango (Mangifera indica)











Papaya (Carica papaya)












Persimmon (Diospyros kaki)-- not for zone 25, where I live







Sapodilla (Manikara zapota)

Big Heirloom Seed Win

I won an awesome giveaway for heirloom seeds! I received the seed stash today, and can I just say WOW! Look at this haul:


Now just because I don't think that you can really appreciate from that image just how many packets there are, here they are.


There's pumpkin and eggplant and flowers...


...various kinds of peppers and some peas...


...okra, corn and tomato...



...all kinds of lettuce, including one called "Drunken Woman"...


...and tons of beans.












Is that an awesome haul, or what? I can't wait to try my hand at growing some of these puppies come fall/spring. Maybe I can try some beans this summer.

Thanks again to Tina of the Victory Garden!

The World According to Monsanto

For anyone who is already familiar with the workings of Monsanto, or for those who are interested in learning how Monsanto is threatening our global food supply, check out these videos on Twilight Earth. No need for me to say anything further. These videos speak for themselves.

Win Free Heirloom Seeds

Go to The Victory Gardener for your chance to win a bunch of heirloom seeds. Enter for your chance to win a variety of at least 20 different types of seeds from My Victory Garden etsy shop. Lettuce, beans, tomatoes, flowers-- all sorts of heirloom seeds. The giveaway runs through May 16th.