Thursday - July 31,  2003                                                            posted 6:42 AM PST  

With the whole family helping we had it finished in two days. However at one part of the driveway there were three layers of concrete (nope, didn't find any buried artifacts)!  Fortunately no rebar was used, so the guys just sledge-hammered it to pieces! That was the hardest part of the job.  One day we'll have to tackle the backyard area that is all concrete (boy, the guy who owned the house before us must have loved concrete... yuck!) That job is going to be a dozy.

Continuing my post yesterday on our duckies - The two that were adopted by a local couple were named Leda and Lola, the other two who were adopted by a Culver City family were named Alice & Mary Campbell. So that completes the naming of the ducks!

The big news here in the Pasadena area is the completion of the mass transit Gold Line Train (about time!!!), connecting Pasadena with LA , Long Beach and W. Hollywood.

While puttering around town these days we have to get used to waiting as the trains scream by... Why couldn't they have gone underground - less noise, more aesthetically pleasing, less traffic? Yeah, yeah, we know... too much money!  The original plan DID call for the trains to go underground through downtown, but money funds became short and the folks running this project decided to just go underground through a few of the main blvds.  *sigh*

Pasadena's streets are already congested! We've notice the increased street congestion since moving here about 18 years ago. It takes forever to get from one end of town to the other. A friend of ours who runs a local shop in the area told me as we were talking about traffic, that it used to take her less than 5 minutes off the 210 freeway to her business, now it takes 10-15 minutes!

Weather Report:  Humid and cloudy, chance of rain later on today,

Wednesday - July 30,  2003                                                            posted 7:05 AM PST  

As the weather heats up the lettuce doesn't grow too well and has to be protected from the brutal sun.  An excellent substitute for lettuce is Tampala or Green Amaranth.  It loves the heat and is a delicious substitute!

Already, the windows of the downtown shops are displaying sweaters and fall outfits and so our minds and efforts turn to Fall plantings.  We hope to extend our tomato, cuke and squash harvest into early Fall.  With this in mind, we've been busy planting seeds every three weeks or so, enabling us to have continuous succession plantings.

News on our "animal kingdom," we finally found another wonderful home for the last two ducks that needed adoption.  It was hard to say good-bye (that evening we had to drown our sorrows in a bowl of soy ice cream) but we were comforted to know that they will be well taken care of and in good company as the family already has chickens and many other animals. 

In the end, everything turned out alright, we found good homes for the extra four ducks, so now we have our two... and they finally have names!  Dixie & Dawn Campbell.

They both have very different characteristics and are a blast to watch!  Dixie loves to playfully splash you with water as she swims around in their little pool and  Dawn often gives little "kisses" on our noses when we lean down to the ducks' height.

Like most females, the ducks "chatter" to each other.  It sounds as if they are saying "what, what, what, what."  And we answer back with "what, what, what????" 

Finally, for laughs read this amusing CSM article....  Most summer pests pale in comparison to the green one lurking in a garden near you - 97 ways to zap those pesky 'Z's'

Weather Report:  Humid and cloudy, chance of rain later on today,

Tuesday - July 29,  2003                                                            posted 6:50 AM PST  

What a rare, unexpected and delightful blessings - a record rainfall!!!  It was nice to hear the sound of rain once again. Not to mention that the plants got a nitrogen boost from the lightening

Maybe nature decided to give us a surprise shower since we have no roof on the garage?  Funny, how it is when you wash your car or something similar, it almost never fails to rain.  Anyway the guys scurried up the garage to put up the blue tarp, they were just tacking on the last corner when the rain started coming down.  Perfect timing!

Well it seems we weren't the only one that were surprised with this summer shower, many of our neighbors came outside and stood on their porch (or in the warm rain!) and enjoyed watching the rain fall.

Weather Report:  Humid and cloudy, chance of rain later on today,

Friday - July 25,  2003                                                            posted 6:52 AM PST  

For instance, yesterday for lunch and dinner we had fried green tomatoes (ones that prematurely fell off the vine), a humongous salad with homemade dressing and cream of tomato/veggie soup and a slab of bread. And for dessert, a fruit bowl. What a blessing this season's been!

Right here in the midst of the city, we are practically living off the land, except for a few basic necessities. We have to keep reminding ourselves that we are only working on 1/5 of an acre here! Imagine what a person could grow with 1, 2 or even 5 acres! Amazing! Seriously now, imagine if everyone just started to grow what food they could on their own piece of land. And what if gardens sprung up in empty lots or in front yards or balconies where people grew their own veggies or fruits that often cost an exorbitant amount in grocery stores.

We often joke that we'd never buy what we produce from the store cuz' it would be just too darn expensive. French filet beans are going for $10.99 a pound at Bristol Farms and heirloom tomatoes are at $6.99 a pound. Outrageous! And these are non-organic prices!  Now, I'm not saying that growing all the veggies will save you money all the time, especially when organic corn on the cob go 6 for $1 - that's downright cheap and a hard price to beat when you figure on the amount of water you spend on growing your own corn. Hmmm, so I guess it just depends on what you grow.

What do you readers think? Does growing your own food save or cost you more money then, say buying from a grocery or local farmer's market? Let's hear from you, pros and cons... please post in the comments box below.

Also, here's and interesting posting from our site;

I am curious to know how air pollution from cars, etc affects urban permaculture. I am gradually planting my backyard with veggies and fruits and herbs as well as flowers for the pollinators. My concern is that the pollution will make the food unhealthy to eat. How much noxious fumes do the trees actually take in? Any info would be appreciated.

Hmmm, that's an excellent question Harmony! We live near a major freeway and notice that the pollution makes our home extremely dusty... Achooo!! Since we don't have AC, window and doors are open all day and boy does this place get a film of dust - I hate dust! I do hope that washing the produce helps, but I know it's not a perfect situation. We do the best we can. What do you think?

Weather Report:  Hot, but it's a dry heat!

Thursday - July 24,  2003                                                            posted 7:08 AM PST  

The "sour" peach tree is producing too.  Many years ago we rescued it from being thrown away by a local nursery, and thinking it was a peach tree, we planted it in the yard. Unfortunately it is an ornamental, so it is very sour --  though the spring blooms are a gorgeous fuchsia color.  At summer's end we plan to rip it out and replace it with another fruit (palatable) tree, but until then we are faced with what to do with sour peaches that make the lips pucker.  Besides masking the taste by blending them in smoothies, the cooks of the family make a peach loaf bread which tastes delicious. We enjoy that for breakfast along with fresh fruit.

Our neighbor's lemon tree is loaded! We are blessed that they don't mind sharing, so every day we make a batch of fresh lemonade. For a delicious twist to plain ol' lemonade, I sometimes make herbal lemonade from plants in the yard and then throw in some red rose petals for color. And there you have it, "pink herbal lemonade".  What a  delightful thirst quencher for a hot summer day... move over CountryTime!

A PLACE FOR EVERYTHING

We girls have also been involved in helping a friend organize her home.  It's interesting to note that  besides the physical work that is involved of stacking, dusting, and moving, there's a lot of mental work that goes into organizing, filing and so on.  "A place for everything and everything in its place" is a constant job, especially for those of us who live and work at home.  The boundaries between living and working start to merge into utter chaos sometimes! It helps to have a "cleaning party" to do the mundane work of cleaning and sorting because it sure makes the job go faster.  So then you can move on to other things. Unfortunately, this old house doesn't have much closets or storage space, so it's a challenge to come up with creative and cheap storage solutions.  But hopefully, with the guys fixing up the garage we'll be able to turn the garage into a more workable storage space.

Weather Report:  Morning marine layer's back!

Tuesday - July 22,  2003                                                            posted 8:36 AM PST  

STOP!  HEY!  WHAT'S THAT SOUND?

Are we listening? Should we continue to be silent?

The Silence of the Lambswool Cardigans -- We consumers live in silence. What cheers me are the ways people are learning to read the silent histories of objects and choosing the objects that still sing.

UNPLUGGED

At high dosages, 'always on' may become counter-productive but at least it's easy to correct. The Web and email combine to create the biggest distraction machine ever invented. (I've long predicted that in the near future, being unplugged will be the status symbol. As our environments become increasingly frenetic, uncluttered time and space will be a luxury few can arrange.) Source: Rebecca's Pocket

No kidding!  I've noticed the change!  On the computer everything is fast, instant, and ready at my beck and call.  This "I want it now" behavior has even extended to daily tasks; so now when things are slow and hard, this "point and click" mentality so programmed in me easily frustrates my patience with the pace of reality.

It's enough to make us wonder how the world coped not just so long ago without all this "wonderful" technology.  Sheesh, a person actually had to sit down and write a letter (with a quill as was the case more than a 100 years ago) to keep in touch with friends and family.  And on top of that, the letter would take days if not weeks to arrive at its destination.  No email, no instant messaging.  Every thing now is lightening fast and subtly programming our brains to the fast & furious life.

FIVE ACRES & INDEPENDENCE?

"Not waiting on the five-acre rural home to begin realizing their dream and starting where they find themselves in the here-and-now, is the inspiration of the Dervaes family. On a city-sized lot, the Dervaes family are living an urban homestead project. The Dervaes document their Path To Freedom in an Urban Diary, sharing the successful experiences of a self-sufficient lifestyle and providing informational resources for others interested in simple and sustainable living." 

Thanks to TerraFirma Diaries for our site's "nomination" of  Found Excellence from TerraFirmaDiaries Blog Journal Journeys.  Her site and blog journal is a MUST VISIT so be sure to read it all!

Weather Report:  Hot, humid

Monday - July 21,  2003                                                            posted 12:09 AM PST  

Dear Jules, I like to grow a garden with my grandma. We like to watch it grow and it makes good stuff to eat.  My cousin likes to grow a garden too.  Thank you for seeds to grow a garden.  Jake, Age 7

**********

I like to garden because my parents garden and I would like to grow my food free more than have Mommy buy it at the store and I would like to say, " I grew these peas myself."  I would like to grow peas, carrots and tomatoes.  Sincerely Eliza, Age 8

**********

Yesterday we harvested over 45 lbs of tomatoes and our first apple green eggplant !  The French filet beans (aka haricot vert) are producing lots of slender, delicate and tasty beans.  We really enjoy these filet beans, one only needs to lightly stem them and serve them with a tad bit of butter and some salt -- absolutely delicious!

The hot and sweet peppers are starting to produce, just in time for making a batch of fresh salsa!   Here's our variation: Chop up some onions, garlic, cilantro, hot peppers and some colorful tomatoes a squeeze of lemon or lime juice, dash of salt and chili sauce - that's it! 

Weather Report:  Hot, less humid

Friday - July 18,  2003                                                            posted 6:22 AM PST  

There's a constant battle going on against the mildew and diseases that run rampant throughout this summer season. The cucumbers are having a rough go this year and are catching all sorts of viruses. The tomatoes are struggling too.  While some plants are lush and green others are absolutely ugly looking with their leaves turning yellow.  Every week, we dutifully spray them with organic 'concoctions' but even so, one of the guys gets the unpleasant task of going in and cutting out the dying/diseased leaves and practically de-nuding some tomatoes - it's one heck of a dirty job!

A nice surprise this year is the Anna Apples as they are continuing to produce luscious fruits. The other day we made an Apple Pandowdy which was delicious - spicy and sweet! While whipping up the dessert some of us couldn't help but start humming softly "shoofly pie and apple pandowdy"... yikes couldn't get that ditty out of my head for awhile!

We really enjoy this time of year - well, not exactly, the excessive heat and smog we could definitely do without, but the wonderful fruit and veggies that kaleidoscope our plates makes summer always a pleasure. Meals are simple and are practically 'raw' as it is much too hot to cook or eat hot food anyhow!

On the DIY roof project, sections of the backyard are looking like a total disaster area with dust and parts of shingles and shake everywhere! It's a funny feeling to walk into the garage and look up and see the sky! Well, that is if you can call it "sky" - this year the smog is the worst it's been for some time. I remember back in the 80s when we moved here, the smog was sooo bad that you could see it drifting down the street like fog moving in from the coast.  Also the mountain range that defines this area was shrouded in an awful stew of poison. Some days when the smog was a yucky brownish color, your eyes and throat burned and your head ached, causing you to feel as if you were being slowly poisoned. Well, thanks to CA's tougher rules the air quality has greatly improved.  Well,  that is until this year.  The air quality seems to be regressing.

I remember an old-timer who once told us that not too long ago the south facing San Gabriel mountain range was covered in green pines and oaks but eventually the smog killed them off. Now we are left with dry chaparral. Shame.

Weather Report:  Cloudy and humid.

Wednesday - July 16,  2003                                                            posted 6:57 AM PST  

I'd like to hear from our readers who journey on a similar path (or are contemplating about it) ...

What does SS it mean to you?  How's your journey going? Share with us your hopes and dreams...

P.S. SLOW DOWN!  I really enjoyed reading Megan's account of driving a "VeeDub Bus".  As we contemplate one-day buying a "new" car, us and our pea-soupy '76 VW putt-putting (more like chugging, sputtering and throwing hissy-fits really -- dying at intersections and so on) around town is quite a sight.   I loved how she's described the experience, too bad her editorial was never published...  peace out!

Weather Report:  Hot and humid.

Tuesday - July 15,  2003                                                            posted 7:07 AM PST  

 The peppers are starting to produce!  They are a welcomed addition to our summer meals.  The squash, cukes, beans, apples and tomatoes are all coming in at a steady rate now, though the strawberries are slowing down in production.  The eggplant, okra, and peaches are taking their sweet time...

Meanwhile, as we harvest the summer's wonderful bounty, we are continuing to plant in succession and rotate beds, hoping for a good late Summer and Fall harvest.  Waiting to be planted is another batch of corn, tomatoes, and salad greens.

The guys are still working on the garage roof, but with the heat and humidity they wait until evenings to work and they have already run into trouble!  Being an old structure, the garage is slightly tilting forward.  Of course, this will have to be adjusted before putting a new roof on. 

WHERE DOES IT ALL COME FROM?

I've read that our food travels an average of 1,400 miles before it reaches our dinner plates, but what about the rest of the stuff we use or consume? Read about their travels: Beware The Life Cycle Of 'Recycled'

Weather Report:  HOT AND STICKY!

Monday - July 14,  2003                                                            posted 12:17 PM PST  

So, I took the machine to a local sew shop (sometime back in April) and ordered the screw.... I do have an old black Singer that was given to me by a dear old lady who passed on.  Unfortunately, it's not in running order, meaning that to fix the part would cost just about the price of a new machine. 

OK, back to the story...  The lady there told me that it would take about 6-8 weeks for the screw to arrive (I'm thinking "Yeah, what are they going to do, forge the iron and build a mold?"  Anyhow, last week they phoned letting me know that the screw had FINALLY arrived - Sheesh, the Pony Express could have done a better job!   The lady joked that a one armed man in a row boat was delivering it... we are in the 21st century right? Things are supposed to be FASTER?  uh-huh.

Well, I now have a machine that runs, thankfully -- and can start going through all the boxes of fabric that friends have given me over the years.

Weather Report:  HOT!

Friday - July 11,  2003                                                            posted 7:55 AM PST  

Weather Report:  Cooler, but humid!

Thursday - July 10,  2003                                                            posted 6:27 AM PST  

          Raspberry                    Strawberry              Almost ripe blackberries

BERRY'LICIOUS

The guys have started tearing off the old garage roof and will be replacing it with an entire new roof for the installation of solar panels.  It's quite a job due to the fact that the garage is nearly 90 years old -- it's a messy job, but someone has to do it! ;-0

In the garden, we've been busy taking suckers off the strawberry plants and starting new baby plants.  One can't have too many strawberries, can they?  The blackberries, ground cherries, and elderberries are starting to ripen and we're already picking a few raspberries and blueberries.  Don't you just love it when you pick the blackberries and you get your fingers all stained!!!  Just like being a kid again, brings back childhood memories of picking wild blackberries... one for the bucket and one for me, one for the bucket and one for me....

Besides the berries, the tropical fruits are slowly starting to emerge. So far there are a few passion fruit, avocados and guavas starting to appear -- even some little papayas!  Unfortunately, the mango tree isn't doing well, as it is susceptible to a rust for which we'll have to find a remedy.   The pepino dulce ( a perennial melon from South America)  is starting to ripen and the figs should be ready in a few weeks.   Every little fruit that is harvested is welcomed!  Imagine a couple years from now when the plants have been established?  MMMMM Dreaming of bowls and bowls of fresh, delicious fruit.... 

Yesterday I had a meeting with a new French chef who is taking over a former client's restaurant. As I went through my spiel about our produce being seasonal and organic, he got really enthused and starting talking about when he was a kid and how he fondly remembers eagerly anticipating when the strawberries, peaches or plums came to market in his little town in France.  "Today, " he exclaimed, " we can get the food all year around, so there's nothing to look forward to!" 

Now that we are on the path of eating with the seasons, we can tell time by the food we eat, as each marks a time that is etched into our minds. We can vividly recall when the first crop of sweet corn or tomatoes came in and biting into the warm. sweet flesh... all senses working in unison.  It's like an addiction --once you've tasted the "REAL THING" there's no turning back -- you're hooked.... for life!

What's happening in your garden?  Check out what others are saying on our forum.

Weather Report:  HOT, but tolerable -- thankfully no humidity.

Wednesday - July 9,  2003                                                            posted 6:45 AM PST  

Purple Amaranth               Purple Echinacea                   Goldenrod

SUMMER BLOOMS

There are endless opportunities to experience when you have a garden. Besides providing fresh produce for our eating needs, the pleasure of beauty and interaction with God's nature, we can actually make a decent living from intensive gardening.

We are continually amazed at how much income we receive from this little 1/5 parcel of urban land and, even then, we are only touching on a "tip of the iceberg".  Selling extra produce to restaurants, caterers, and individuals is our main profit but there are other secondary products that could be made from a productive garden.  With the incredible range of herbs we have, it is possible to expand into herbal products like soaps (which I have already started to dabble with), teas, beauty products and so on.  Bouquets and vase arrangements could be made from cut flowers, and with propagations and seed-saving, a small-scale nursery business could easily take root here.

OK, I have rattled off a quick "can-do" list from the top of my head but we are hoping to expand our little produce business into some of those different areas. Right now, besides the veggies, fresh herbs and edible flowers, we supply herbal bouquets to restaurants and private caterers for weddings and parties. 

Also, we are seriously thinking of trying to dry herbs since we have quite a lot for many different kinds of tea blends.  Being acquainted with a famous tea shop in the area brings the possibility of partnering with them to be our outlet.  So I'm off in  search of organic tea bags...

Weather Report:  Warm.

Tuesday - July 8,  2003                                                            posted 6:31 AM PST  

Over the weekend we experienced scorching temps so we had to keep a close eye on the plants and keep them watered.  We water by hand or use our homemade soaker system.  With the extreme heat, overhead watering would just be too wasteful - the water would simply evaporate in midair.

We gals made an apple pie on the 4th using our very own apples!  That was certainly a milestone.  The pie was mouth-watering delicious and was served with a scoop of vanilla soy ice cream... mmmm.... it sure hit the spot!

The tomatoes are starting to come in at a steady rate, we are harvesting the last ears of corn and have already planted another batch.  The lettuce and other salad greens are slowly declining due to the excessive heat. We'll have to start fazing out some of our salad customers for the next few months, fortunately we'll have cukes, squash, beans and tomatoes to sell instead, which will keep the customers happy.

The garden is at its glory this time of year.  In the backyard you can't see from one side of the yard to the other -- really!  It's an urban veggie jungle!!!  You'd never know that you were smack dab in the middle of the city, all the sights are blocked from view -- one feels like they've been transported to another world.

We have a funny calling system that goes on when we need to find someone out in the "jungle".  We have to call out their names and blindly follow the sound of their voices, sorta like the Marco Polo game that's played in a pool. ;-)  Hmm, maybe I should get a bell! 

The letters from kids are starting to trickle in for our 3 FREE SEED PACKETS offer -- don't forget to write in if you haven't already, we have lots of great seeds!

Here are some of the letters we've received -- you guys are great!

My name is Devan, and I am 4 1/2 years old.  I like to plant in the garden because I can use my toy bulldozer to smooth the dirt out.  I also like to garden because I can use my big shovel, and because I like the way the earth feels.  Plus, you can grow all kinds of things.  We have a pole teepee to grow our beans on.

**********

I like to plant because it makes the world look nice.  So nice that people will stop cutting the trees.  That will make the world so nice.  From Jake, Age 8

**********

Dear Mr. Dervaes, The reason I like to garden is, life would not be good without flowers.  And herbs are good to heal people.  And we wouldn't be here if it wasn't for trees.  So basically I love the world and I want it to be beautiful!  Yours truly, Anni, Age 10

Weather Report:  Cooler!

Thursday - July 3,  2003                                                            posted 6:16 AM PST  

The strawberries steadily continue to "come in" (which is a blessing), and the blackberries, raspberries and blueberries are starting to ripen, too.

crop of tomatoes last year, so all we had to do was go back and check the diary and read that on May 22nd of last year we harvested our first tomatoes.  So, indeed, the season is a bit off - about a month or so behind schedule.  But hopefully the growing season will extend into the Fall...

Wishing everyone a safe and happy holiday!   I think I shall step away from the computer and take a break... see you on Monday!  Bring on the soy dogs!

Weather Report:  We're sizzling!  Over 100º

Wednesday - July 2,  2003                                                            re-posted 7:30 PM PST  

Although heirloom tomatoes are finicky to grow, you can't beat their wonderful colors and exceptional taste.  This year, though, we planted more hybrid varieties due to the fact that heirlooms are very susceptible to disease and flux in temperatures -- delicate little things they are!

 Here's list of tomatoes we are growing this year.

Hey tomato lovers, what's your fave tomato(es)?  Post 'em in the comment box!

Weather Report:  HOT, HOT, HOT!

Tuesday - July 1,  2003                                                            posted 2:17 PM PST  

Seems with the cool June that we had, we certainly forgot how brutal the sun and heat can be here.  The plants are a bit in shock, so we have to keep a constant eye on them to see that they don't dry up and wilt.   Unfortunately the 10 year plum tree didn't make it - RIP.  Can't understand what made it kick the bucket, as we had adequate precipitation this winter -- Perhaps it was the cold snap we had in Spring that stunted it as it was just about getting ready to bud... it's very sad, though, to see something die.  I talked with a lady at a nursery the other day and she said that this year looks like it's going to be a bad one for fruit.  And it looks like she's right, as I suspected all along. Our peach trees have very little fruit set, so  apparently it's going to be a long, hot and fruitless summer!

On the cheery side, the warm weather is certainly helping the veggies and we're able to use the solar oven again!

Weather Report:  Warm.

Monday - June 30,  2003                                                           re- posted 7:35 AM PST  

Weather Report:  Another scorcher!