How To Grow Japanese Maples In Hot Climate

In our garden we have four different types of Japanese Maples.  So how do you care for a Japanese maple? And how about caring for them in hot sunny southern California? Well, I will show you our trees and tell you how I care for them.

Red Emperor Japanese Maple

We have two large and two smaller Japanese maples. This large red Emperor Maple is four years old. It gets direct afternoon sun in the summer so caring for it is important. Japanese maples are an investment and can be very expensive. This tree cost us $250 four years ago and now they are double that price at the same nursery so you want to take very good care of your Japanese maples.

Bloodgood Japanese Maple

This tree is by far the most sensitive to the summer heat so we planted this one in a mostly shaded location. It receives dappled morning sun only. With a low growth pattern we lightly top it in fall and trim the sides to keep the pathway clear.

Japanese Maple Green Leaf

Taking Care Of Your Japanese Maple Tree In Hot Weather

1. At the time of planting if you can choose a spot that has afternoon shade but morning sun, that is ideal. However, I have my emperor maple in mostly afternoon sun and it can get scorched a little in triple digit temps but now that it is older, it is doing well tolerating it. If you have a very young maple you can shade a little with an umbrella or something, it would help in a heat wave.

2. Japanese maple are shallow rooted so mulch well. Some I have planted in the grass which works well to protect the roots and keep the moisture in. Once a year I clean below the trees and lay a nice thick layer of mulch or wood chips over the ground.

3. Keep soil moist but do not over water. The do not like soggy standing water. Our Japanese maple get water from our automatic sprinklers but in the summer I lay the hose around the base in different areas about twice a week for a longer soak. Do this especially if some really hot days are ahead.

4. Fertilize every spring with Fox Farm fertilizer  especially for Japanese Maples. This bag lasts me about 2 years but makes such a difference in the growth and leafing of our trees.

How to Grow Tomatoes In Containers

With a small urban backyard, I have to be creative with growing areas so besides in the ground, or vertical I am also a fan of how to grow tomatoes in containers. Even in an apartment, if you had sun on a patio, you could grow a nice hanging pot of tomatoes.

7 Tips For Growing Tomatoes In Containers

1. Pick a spot with at least six hours of sun.

2. Choose varieties that grow best in your area or for containers. I do cherry tomatoes as those don't need much support due to weight.

3. Choose the correct container. One large enough so that it doesn't dry out too fast and can support the root growth.

4. Use premium potting soil for vegetables. Tomatoes produce a lot so need a good soil.

5. Feed regularly. I mix in a slow release vegetable fertilizer as well as feed when I am watering using a liquid form. When plant is first starting out I use Miracle Grow but once buds set, I switch over to a blooming fertilizer. It this point I want lots of blooms and not lots of leaves. This is my all time favorite liquid bloom fertilizer and it will help your tomatoes set tons of fruit.

6. Water daily if your weather is dry. The tomato I have in the hanging basket with moss, I will water twice a day if hot or windy. If you wonder how often should I water my tomato plants in pots...everyday unless it is raining or you have standing water in a saucer below.

7. Trim off the lower branches and sucker shoots. You don't want a huge out of control plant that tips your container over. Focus on blooms and fruit. Growing tomato plants in pots and pruning is usually a must.

Here are some of my current tomatoes:

Other great tomato articles:
How To Save Tomato Seeds
How To Grow Tomatoes From Cuttings
How To Plant Tomatoes The Right Way

Patriotic Garden Ideas - Decorating The Old Coop

As the 4th of July approaches, we are getting our patriotic garden ideas out there and as usual we are decorating the old chicken coop in red,white and blue.

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Mini Fairy Garden, DIY Worm Composter, Small Front Yard Orchard - Garden Update June 9th

A little video tour of our front yard garden for June. See our Mini Fairy Garden, DIY Worm Composter, Small Front Yard Orchard and what is growing right now.




Here is the slow cooker peach cobbler recipe.
A miniature fairy house to start your own mini fairy garden.

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Patriotic Porch Flowers

Busy getting the front porch ready for Memorial day with some patriotic flowers. The hubby is out of commission with a bum foot so it was up to me and I decided to add prim tea stained American flags to go with the warm colors of table and decorative pillows.

Primitve American flags are the colors I tend to prefer cause they go with my deeper colors in the house and now the front porch.  You can watch the video of our Memorial day decor here and let me know how you think it came out. Feed those blooms with our homemade frugal flower fertilizer. And if you like our videos, you can follow us on Youtube.

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Five On Friday - Vegetable Garden Bed 5/19 and Update

Update video of our front yard vegetable garden, old chicken coop, white garden and patio tomatoes.

The little chicken coop out back remains in the garden. I tried to give it to a couple people who wanted larger coops instead, so it sits as I think, cute garden art. It is 7 years old now so made pretty well for under $200.

My white garden, in the shade of the Emperor maple is starting to grow. I can't wait until it fills all in. I have always wanted a white garden but in our tiny backyard garden, we have to create smaller versions of garden rooms.

The petunias are doing well and have loved our rains this last week. Yes, we had rain in May.

Last year, I grew this patio tomato plant by just tucking into a large pot that already had flowers in it. Just remember to feed weekly. You can see it did wonderfully and produced a lot of cherry tomatoes I think due to the tomato fertilizer I use on my container tomatoes.

Yesterday I made a video update on the front yard garden bed. Watch it above and if you would like to follow us on Youtube you can go to our channel and hit subscribe on the right.
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Growing Sweet Potatoes, Dehydrating Tomatoes & New Soft Inexpensive Sheets - Frugal Friday

Now that summer is over we are back on a regular blogging schedule and it is time to bring back Frugal Fridays. I love saving money and sharing our frugal tips with you and a little bit of daily life in our home.

I checked the sweet potatoes we grow in the old wheel barrow this week. I have more out in a front planter but they need at least another month. I think the sweet potatoes out back can be dug up in another couple of weeks. I want to have them cured by Thanksgiving. Here is the post on how we grow sweet potatoes in an old wheel barrow.

Last Christmas I asked for a Nesco dehydrator so I could try dehydrating some of our garden surplus to save for our pantry and long term food storage. First, I did a bunch of herbs and when I had a bumper crop of tomatoes one week, I did tomatoes. Four trays dehydrated down to a quart sized mason jar of dehydrated tomatoes.

Aren't they gorgeous? I used some the other day in a pot of pasta and they tasted so good. I just soaked them in some hot water and put them in water and all.

I needed new sheets for our bed and I picked up these from Walmart. I had bought them in blue for my girls and when they were so soft and cozy, I snagged some for us. I think they were around $30 for a queen set and they are so soft so if you need a set of sheets and don't want to spend a lot of money, I recommend these. I don't have the package still but they are their mid priced sheets.

What Vegetables To Plant In Fall & A New Raised Bed

If you are wondering what vegetables you can plant in fall then check out my detailed post. This year for us a couple new things are going in as we now have the old coop fence repurposed in the garden to use along the back and I am excited to have two varieties of peas put in. We also made a new raised bed to grow more food.

Here is my list for this year of What Vegetables To Plant In Fall:

• Peas
• Snow Peas
• Bok Choy
• Asian Greens
• Swiss Chard (Two varieties)
• Green Beans
• Parsley (Germinates better in cooler weather)
• Cauliflower
• 1 Black Beauty Zucchini
• Beets (Chioggia and Bulls Blood)
• Buttercrunch Lettuce

In Containers:

• Carrots

Making A New Raised Garden Bed:

Around and between our two newest fruit trees, the hubby dug out some of our lawn and framed with pressure treated fencing he cut and nailed into shape. We have a small wire fence to keep pests out. Our plan is always to have less lawn and more vegetable gardening space. This is not a large bed but again it is more space to try a couple new rows of fall crops.

After the frame was cut and put in, we made sure we had no more lawn in the area. For us we have invasive St. Augustine so we wanted to make sure we removed it all. Not as bad as crab grass but I didn't want any roots down in there. I then framed all the edges with thick layers of newspaper. This will help block any new grass I might have missed and also decompose and attract worms. They love paper.

Then I filled each bed with a mix of steer manure and planting mix.

Homemade Flower Fertilizer

I have a homemade DIY frugal super easy flower fertilizer recipe for you today.

Why pay for expensive plant fertilzers when you can make your own? If you have a flowers in containers or the garden this easy plant food recipe is a must make. The impatiens above are four years old. I trim every winter and feed in the spring with my homemade frugal flower fertilizer and look at it as of early June.

The calibrachoa superbells hanging pot was given to me on Mother's day. Look how many blooms are on it now compared to when it came home from the nursery. See the before and after.

Homemade Liquid Flower Food

In a two gallon watering can, mix two tablespoons of molasses and one tablespoon of epsom salt. Mix with a stick or wooden spoon and water. Feed weekly for containers and every two weeks for garden flowers. When watering the garden plants with this mixture, feed well and follow with a nice soak from the hose to get the fertilizer down to the roots.
I have used this on tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers as well.
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A Week In The Garden - Chicken Update

The garden is a tumbly mess of plants right now. I love it though. June in Southern California is bountiful. We are picking vegetables daily and everything has filled in. Summer heat has not taken its toll just yet, so we soak up all the time we can outdoors.

Though I grew most of my tomatoes from seed this year, I did plant a few of the heirloom varieties I have wanted to try. I have noticed they are slower to set but I am starting to see the first of many yummy tomato dishes that are ahead.

Strawberry plants I potted up last year are bearing fruit and they never seem to make it in the house. We pick and eat them warm from the sun. So sweet and juicy.

My bantam chickens are laying almost daily. Their little eggs make up about half an egg but are perfect for my kiddo who loves to eat a fried egg sandwich daily. These two know how to pose for the camera and let me tell you chickens are notoriously hard to get a good shot of.

Now Biff and Buff are a couple of happy gals and I do not believe we have seen the first egg yet. I thought maybe they had laid one because it wasn't in the nest box, but that was weeks ago. I was probably one of my crazy bantams playing a joke on more or just dropping it like it was hot.

They should be laying soon. Combs are getting red and growing larger. I will look forward to nice sized eggs daily for sure.

Growing Sunflowers: Tips and My Favorites For Growing and Cutting

I love to grow sunflowers and they are an easy summer flower to grow. Sunflowers can be grown for the flowers and the seeds and because I followed my earlier planting schedule, I already have a garden full of the cheery sunflowers I love.

Growing Sunflowers: Tips and My Favorites For Growing and Cutting

This large variety of sunflower is Mammoth. We took a picture of my hubby's mammoth head next to it for comparison.

As the seed head dries it will turn brown. In about 45 days when the back of the sunflower is dried and you see the brown seed heads, the sunflower is ready for harvesting. I am growing sunflowers for chicken feed. The protein in the sunflowers is great for the chickens come fall when they begin to molt (loose their feathers) and grow new ones as feather growth requires lots of protein.

Best Sunflowers To Grow For Cutting:

If you like to pick sunflowers for bouquets, the best varieties are the multi-branched sunflowers. They will give you long straight stems perfect for cutting. One of my favorite red sunflowers for cutting is the  red Velvet Queen. A deep red velvet color sunflower.

I save sunflowers seeds from this variety to replant every year.  Red and yellow are by far the most popular but there are many colors including orange. This is the best orange sunflower by far.

You can see how huge this sunflower grew and how many flowers were there for the picking.

 Wondering how to grow sunflowers from seeds? They are easy to grow and low maintenance. If you amend with some compost when planting and water regularly, they will grow without care. Once established they are actually pretty drought tolerant which is good for us Southern California gardeners right now. You can grow sunflowers in a pot or container as long as it is fairly large to hold the sunflowers up.
Remember to water containers regularly as they dry out faster than the soil in the garden will.

Remember to check out my tips for making cut sunflower bouquets last longer.

How To Grow Tomato Plants From Cuttings

We all love frugal gardening tips. More vegetable plants for free is for me. Today, I will share how I grow new tomato plants for free by rooting tomato cuttings in water. 

Our growing season is long in Southern California but even if you don't live as far south as me, try taking a cutting from a newly bought plant as soon as you bring it home. Of course you would need to buy a larger tomato plant than those that come in a six pack for rooting tomato branches.

First, find a branch on your tomato plant that would produce fruit. Do not just pick a leaf stem, they do not seem to work so if you need to trim your tomato plants you could start a cutting then too.

Strip off all the branches at the bottom of the stem about half way down at least. Carefully take a knife and just scrape the sides of the branch on about the bottom inch of the tomato cutting. Place in a glass jar with water in a sunny window. You will see roots in about 7-10 days. Just keep filling the jar with water to the original mark.

When you have plenty of vigorous roots about an inch long, plant either in your garden or in a pot.
Remember to follow my tips on how to plant tomatoes the right way.

DIY Seed Starter Stand From DVD Rack - Garden Quick Tip

My husband was going to toss this old DVD rack when I told him I thought it would make the perfect

DIY seed starter stand.

 Being the frugal gardening girl I am I drug it out back and stood it in the planter in a sunny spot. The best thing about this seed starting stand is that when I water the top pots, the water drains through to water all the seedlings below. This works especially well when I am fertilizing with my compost tea and saves water as well.

Little Garden In The Big City

I garden in our little garden in the big city because I love every aspect of it. The planning, the soil, the work. It is one of life's greatest joys. Though I live not far from Los Angeles and there isn't a farm anywhere around me, we manage to eat a lot of fresh picked organic produce almost daily because of our little garden.

Below is a snapshot of what I picked in one day this week from our urban garden. That does not even show the vegetables I harvested throughout the week. With a little planning and changes in your existing garden beds, you can start growing food crops that will feed your family the freshest organic produce you can find. The nutrients that you are getting when you eat something just minutes from picking, is optimum nutrition,

Our whole yard has not been turned over to rows of fruit and veggies, though I would love that, but by enriching the soil with lots of organic compost from our chickens, our soil allows for densely planted garden beds that produce abundantly. Planting this way saves on water as the soil is shaded by all growth and cuts down on weeds.

I never till our soil. If an area needs a little loosening I will do that as I mix in compost but now after years of good organic soil amending, I just plant. The roots of my plants are longer than ever. They grow deep reaching for water and nutrients deep down in the soil. This reduces the need for water.

I want to inspire you to start tucking some food crops into your existing garden. Get some compost, plant some FOOD, and see how good it feels to tend your little bit of land, or even a collection of pots on a balcony. I grow lots of what you see in containers. With proper care, this is a great alternative if you don't have a yard or have less than perfect soil conditions.

 When you till the soil, you tend to your soul. There really is something about that. Go organic and you will see your yard abundant will life. We see so many butterflies and bees in our yard every day and this is when they keep saying there is a shortage of both. Not in our garden.

Our chickens can nibble freely, as I do not use any pesticides. My daughter often picks fruit and veggies and eats them right there cause that is what her momma does. There might be a little dirt but we wipe it off and eat as we harvest. Our food is safe and fresh and I know where it came from.
So from my little garden in the bit city, here is hoping you get your hands dirty real soon. You won't be sorry.

If you have any questions or a topic about gardening you would like to know more about, please feel free to leave it in the comments section and I will address it for you.

Updated: We no longer keep backyard chickens and you can read our story here.

Garden Quick Tip - Easiest Way to Harvest Zucchini

It's almost summer, so I think it is time to take our Quick Tip Series outside. Today... the easiest way to harvest zucchini and other vegetables from the garden.

This time of year I need to peruse the garden daily and harvest vegetables that are ready to be picked. A quick tip - keep an old steak knife or other small knife outside with your garden tools so you can harvest easily without breaking the stem off of the squash.

Often you can twist them but sometimes the top of the squash will break off and then they do not last as long. The stem of the zucchini or other squash helps keep them fresh longer. So I like to keep my little knife handy in my harvest basket to easily reach in and cut the stem. This works great for picking cucumbers and other vine grown produce.

And remember so many of the vegetables are easy to grow in containers. That is where the one above is growing.

Garden Tour 2015 - Growing Edibles In Your City Garden

In a Southern California garden this is our main growing season. Temps are perfect for lots of growth and summer heat has not hit yet. This year we are expanding our edible garden beds mixing ornamentals and edibles so that our garden is producing organic nutrient rich food but also pretty at the same time.

There is so much I could share but we'd be here all day and you would be bored with me so here are some highlights. I endeavour to remove more lawn each year, expanding areas for vegetable gardening. When you are trying to grow a lot of your own produce in a small city yard, you have to ditch the lawn at some point.

Below here I have pumpkins, zucchini and bell peppers in containers. One bell pepper plant is now four years old and loaded with bell peppers and it is only May. A tomato and other herbs are start ups in here too.

I grow lots of vegetables in containers and pots. Here are strawberries, cucumbers, zucchini, onion, parsley and basil as well as a pumpkin vine to the left. You can see my jug of compost tea sitting there as well. I always have a batch brewing and feed my plants with them on a rotating basis.

This garden bed has been a bonus area we have gained after having a tree removed. Once summer hits the six squash plants in containers, will be pulled out and the tomatoes and pumpkins will remain and fill in. Heirloom tomatoes are thriving in the full sun.

The front planter this year is our squash garden for sure. The entire thing is grown over with all types of squash and pumpkins. That is for another post but it is thriving this year. My plan to plant early has paid off. The garden was in by January and February and I am already picking loads daily. I was very frugal and started most of my plants from seed this year.

This photo of my main veggie bed is from a couple weeks ago. More changes and growth have taken place since. We have veggies, an apple tree, greens, broccoli, herbs. You name it and I try and grow it.