But the white Mount Baker lilac is in full, glorious bloom and there are bouquets of it scattered about the house and I find that deeply satisfying along with the work it takes to make that happen.
The swallow nest boxes are up to 70 percent occupancy and a chickadee has made a home in a house by the raspberries.
Rhubarb pies have been made, tomatoes are setting fruit in the greenhouse, the corn is attempting to tassel, a pumpkin has a male bloom, the strawberries are covered in blossoms, the peonies have countless buds, the lilacs are either blooming are almost blooming and the honeysuckles are gorgeous.
Oh, and did I mention that the lilac that hasn't ever bloomed is blooming?
Here it is, only the second week of June and the garden is looking very comfortable indeed. To think, it only took seven years to get here.
The weather is worrisome. The lack of rain requires me to spend too much of my time watering.
My non-gardening spouse, John, hooked up a 55-gallon barrel to our sump pump and it fills every day, so we are watering ornamentals from that source. Handy.
The corn has outgrown the greenhouse umbrella so I am taking it off completely every day but replacing it at night. It just balances on the tops of the stalks. The floating row cover is still on the pumpkins and methinks, it will stay there a good while longer. Rumor has it there was a frost on Diamond Ridge this past week. Weather is a force that is not to be trusted.
This is such an odd time of the gardening cycle. Many of us are still planting, but the weeds are attempting to dominate the beds before we can put in the plants of our choice. So there we are, weeding and planting and weeding some more.
Take heart. The plants will soon reach their potential and shade out the weeds and all will be well.
The goal here is to reach a point where I can just wander about with my long-handled cultivator and keep the weeds stirred up so their presence is not glaring. Once this step has been achieved, I will invite over many friends and we shall stroll about, champagne in hand, enjoying the overall ambiance. What a vision.
In the meantime, a compost pile needs to be composed. There has been a persistent question: Can grass clippings that have been fed a commercial fertilizer be used in a compost pile? Well, I checked in with the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service in Soldotna and they said: You bet. Plants do not know if their food is commercial or organic, it becomes what it needs once it enters the plant.
But beware if you use "weed and feed." Any pesticide or herbicide that has been applied to your lawn cannot go into the compost. You will need to wait three years before you can safely use the grass.
On that note I will say that I do not ever use grass that has been fed with commercial fertilizer. To me that defeats the philosophy of an organic garden.
The lawn needs to be mowed every three days. That is a huge amount of grass clippings. The best food for your lawn is its own clippings. At the rate we are mowing, both the lawn and the compost pile can benefit.
I am making a compost that is about a three-foot cube to start out. The first layer is grass clippings, then horse manure, then shredded dry material (last year's raspberry canes, leaves from under the alders by the mailbox, anything that can go through the shredder), then kitchen scraps, a king salmon carcass, weeds that have not gone to seed and any garden trimmings. It is critical to water each layer. Don't make it sodden but water is gently; use common sense. Keep repeating these layers, ending with grass. Cover that with a few shovels of garden soil.
I cover the whole shebang with black plastic. This keeps in the moisture and heat. And heat there will be. Lots of it.
Be ready to be amazed when you go after this pile with your shovel. Which you will do in about three days.
Turning the compost pile allows air to enter the mass and speed the process. Turning is crucial if you want compost in a hurry. If you are more laid back, feel free to just leave it there for a year of two. It will become compost.
I, of course, am in a hurry. I turn.
The compost is more or less finished in two weeks. Some of it gets spread around the vegetables and perennials, most of it gets put into a pile and used in the greenhouse come fall.
There is no sense in not making compost. What else are you going to do with your kitchen scraps? With your garden trimmings? With your weeds? With your dry stuff that has been chipped or shredded? Turn it back into the garden. It does not take a great mind to figure this out. Just start piling and turning and you will be in business.
And you will have foiled Monsanto et al. to boot.
Rosemary Fitzpatrick has been gardening with gusto in Homer for 27 years.
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