Composting Dog Poop

Being a gardener and occupying my residence with three grown Labradors can create dilemmas but with being creative, the largest dilemma of dog poop can become a friend to the gardener. Composting dog manure is an excellent source of nutrients for any gardener’s beds.  Besides dog manure, egg shells, potato skins, and any leafy greens will aid in packing the compost full of proper nutrients. 

I have a couple key tips for the next venturing gardener.

1.  Have an area designated to be the compost area.  I use a black plastic box that is roughly two feet square and stands about three feet tall.  It has a removable two part lid.
2.  Every few weeks, pour some water in and stir it.  I drag my hose out there, shoot some water in, and use a pitch fork to stir it.
3.  If you are not completely sold on making your compost completely organic, dump some Rid X on the pile once a month.  Rid X will not harm any plants and will aid in breaking down the dog manure into rich black dirt. 
4.  NEVER put meat in your compost.  It doesn’t break down.
5.  If it came from the Earth, it can be returned. 

Happy times cleaning your yard of dog manure and composting.

Planting Bulbs in the Fall

Imagine the snow melting with temperatures beginning to stay above freezing causing puddles to form along the streets and sidewalks. As you pay close attention to garden areas, you start to see little green spikes poking out of the earth as mother nature awakens in April, from a peaceful winter's sleep. All winter long, those tiny spikes were gathering their energy just to give you a fancy show again. Little do you realize, the work being put forth for this year's show began a year ago.

A flower has one sole purpose, to produce its beautiful flower. Once the flower is produced, it strives to retrieve all the essential nutrition it can from its foliage to produce a baby bulb and prepare to flower again the following season.  So how can a person ensure the odds are in their favor for a beautiful display?  You have to know what it needs and when it needs it.  Truth be told, most bulbs just want to be left alone.

It all begins in the initial planting.  You want soil to be neutral but filled with good compost.  Dig your holes only as deep as the package says to.  Plant them and follow with water.  Then water them some more.  And some more.  Keep watering until the ground is frozen with the bulbs getting locked in a nice ice pocket in the ground.  I have found planting bulbs in late October and early November with saturating the ground until it freezes works wonderful.

How to Prepare my Backyard Pond for Winter

When I first moved into my house, it was August.  The sun was shining and my visions were running rampant on designing my backyard to become my oasis.  Almost immediately I decided the sights and sounds of a backyard pond were a must.  I picked the spot in the backyard and put in a 192 gallon pond.  A week later, I added fish.

Fast forward to the end of October.  The weather was getting colder and I needed to research the how's and why's of what to do with freezing temps rapidly approaching.  As I search in the internet and talked to people, there was not a single source for all the information I needed.  So here is a compilation of my research.

As the trees were losing their leaves, the falling leaves were finding their way into my pond.  This became an everyday chore of skimming them out.  Using some scrap wood, build a frame that is slanted on two sides to make a tent shape.  Attach wildlife netting to the frame and put over your pond.  This isn't fool proof but it does help considerably and if you leave at least one side open, birds will still bathe and drink from your pond.

A layer of ice eventually will form on top of the pond.  But hopefully will stay thawed underneath for the fish.  For optimal results your pond must be at least two feet deep in the middle. 

Throw a fish aquarium thermometer in the pond to check the water's temperature.  The optimal temperature coming into winter is 40-45 degrees.  The fish's metabolic rate will decrease considerably until is just stops until spring.

Water Temperature and Feeding:
55 degrees plus - feed normally
46-50 degrees - feed once or twice per week as long as the fish are moving a lot
40-45 degrees - feed wheat germ based food once per week if the fish are still moving
39 degrees and lower - do not feed
The most important thing to do is to ensure you will always have a hole through the ice when it forms.  This hole is essential to allow exchange of the gases for the fish.  I put a water tank heater in my pond.  This heater will keep a hole present around it at all times.  Without the exchange of gases, your fish will die.

Do not skim all the leaves from the bottom.  You could have frogs hibernating under them.  Come spring, look in the water closely before skimming.  You might find tadpoles.

Adjust your fountain so no part of the plastic pole is sticking out of the water.  Leave your pump running though.  Water movement creates oxygenated water and will help keep the water from freezing.

Good luck tucking your fish in for the winter!

Winter + Yard = Planning and Work

This is my first winter living in a house that I am completely responsible for.  So you can only imagine my inquiries in regards to what I needed to do to be ready for the cold and snow in Iowa.

I will be writing a series of blogs talking about important items that need attention before Old Man Winter arrives.

Stay tuned for the "how to's" of:
Backyard Ponds
Dog Poo
Compost Piles
Leaves
Flower Gardens
Planting Bulbs
Misc Tips

http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7903471929125085#editor/target=post;postID=1028810838925069795
http://justwhiskey.blogspot.com/2011/12/how-to-prepare-my-backyard-pond-for.html
http://justwhiskey.blogspot.com/2011/12/planting-bulbs-in-fall.html

Taco Casserole on a Budget

Prep Time: 15 mins        Bake time:  30 mins

Ingredients:

1 lb of ground beef or ground turkey

2 packets of taco seasoning

1 C of salsa

1 C of sour cream

1 box of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese Deluxe

1-2 C of shredded cheddar or mexican mix cheese

garlic powder

salt/pepper

Optional:

chopped black olives

sliced mushrooms

Prepare the macaroni and cheese as directed on the package. 

Brown the ground beef or turkey.  Drain the grease and add the taco seaoning and allow to simmer.  If desired, also stir in the mushrooms and black olives.

Once the macaroni and cheese is prepared, stir in the sour cream. 

Stir in the garlic, salt, and pepper as desired.

Using an 8x8 lightly sprayed pan, put half of the macaroni mixture in the bottom of the pan spreading it evenly.  Follow with the meat mixture and then the top layer of the other half of the macaroni mixture.

Dump the salsa on top and spread evenly.

Cover with foil and bake for 20 mins.



Remove cover and sprinkle with shredded cheese.

Continue baking for 10 mins or until the cheese is melted.

Happy Eating!

Note: Makes for excellent leftovers!

Original recipe before tweaking was obtained from www.kraftfoods.com a few years ago.

New Trees in December in Iowa?

I wouldn't say I was excited to gather my mail from the post office today until I opened my little box and found a key for a bigger box.  That meant someone had sent me something and it had to special since its Christmas time.  And then it happened... I opened the box and found the white plastic bag with live trees in it from the Arbor Day Foundation.  But its December and in Iowa, the ground is already frozen on the top inch or so.  There was no way I was going to be to break ground with a shovel.  What do I do?

I brainstormed for a short amount of time and then it hit me.  Yesterday, as I was cleaning out the garage, I came aross a five gallon bucket full of potting soil.  My brained triggered in on having my sights on everything Dad has taught me about trees and their needs.  Trees need to be able to go dormant for the winter with their roots in medium with little to no water.  The purpose of the ground is to give the roots insulation.  I can re-create that insulation with my bucket of dirt and the garage. 

I brought the bucket outside with the trees in hand.  One by one I planted the trees in the bucket; eight following the rim with two planted in the middle.  I got them all packed in settled for the winter and gave them a little bit of water.  I will leave them outside for a few days since we will be right above freezing and then move them into the garage for a long winter's sleep.  Let Mother Nature do her thing and force them into dormancy.  Goodnight sweet trees.  See you in the Spring!