Buzzy Blog

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Someone’s been eating my cucumber leaves.  It’s not a rabbit or a deer.  It’s my dog, Ladybird. 

Not only does she love my cucumber leaves, apparently she loves the dirt as well.  This morning I went out back to find her lying in a pile of dirt.  She had knocked over my container with Cayenne Peppers and was completely crushing the plants and thoroughly enjoying herself. 

She’s not the only pest I have.  I happen to have yet another dog that enjoys to wreak havoc in my garden.  Greta.  Now who could get mad at this face?

Greta likes to dig.  Big holes.  In my yard.  Sigh… To be honest, this is nothing new, although it has been a long time since she’s done this.  Over the weekend, however, I found two DEEP holes in the yard.  The kind where you would break your ankle if you weren’t looking.  Now, I know how to solve this.  Ladybird (who is 4 years older than Greta) used to be a digger.  The difference was I would bust her in the act, thus making the punishment understandable to her.  Greta is a stealth digger.  Not like Ladybird and the cucumbers.  She eats the leaves right in front of my face.

While I don’t approve of their behavior, it’s a minor problem that produces minor setbacks in my gardening.  At least I don’t have deers or rabbits eating everything I plant.  What really gets me is Ladybird’s lack of fear.  When I found her in the dirt this morning, I fussed, I pointed my finger in her face and even gave her a pop on the nose.  Did she budge?  No.  She didn’t move.  Just looked at me like I was a huge inconvenience in her sunbathing.

I have been away from home for over a week on my honeymoon, and thankfully I had a house sitter for the dogs who was willing to water my plants!  My herbs are so awesome; huge basil leaves and enough cilantro to last me all season! 

What I was really happy to see, though, was my Upside Down Tomato Kit.  It looks so great!  I haven’t flipped it yet, since I’ve been gone, but I just had to post a picture to show everyone how great it’s doing.  Again, my soil is the same as what everyone has purchased.  Apparently we were about 1 pellet short of filling the container.  Doesn’t make a difference though, because the plants will still grow and once you flip, the roots are so established that nothing is going to fall out but a bit of soil, which is to be expected with a kit like this.

I hope everyone is enjoying their own kit as much as I am!  I can’t wait for homegrown, tasty tomatoes!

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There is nothing worse than a storm devastating a community.  Fortunately, Hurricane Ida proved to be a minor storm, comparatively.  When it comes to living in places that can get high winds, there are a few gardening tips to learn:

To save your plants, you must protect them from the wind.  The first place to start is the beginning; seeds.  If your plants are going outdoors in your garden, you should start them in a seed starter kit either indoors or in a protected area so that they can grow strong healthy roots before being exposed to the elements.

Plant your tallest and strongest plants in your garden so that they will receive the brunt of the wind.  These will protect your more delicate plants from being blown away.

Another idea is to place accessories such as trellises in your garden to protect your plants.  Trellises will support your vines and climbing plants from dangerous winds, and can help protect smaller plants that are surrounding it.  (Buzzy sells trellises seasonally in your local Target stores).

Lastly, you can try covering your plants with containers.  If faced with a hurricane or any other tropical storm, this will likely cause more debri to be tossed around your yard.  However, for lighter winds, these coverings may help protect the leaves from breaking.

If you live, like me, in an area that is prone to tropical winds, consider indoor gardening.  My lush backyard is full of plants prepared for hurricane force winds.  My basil on the other hand, is not.  This is why I grow my basil and other herbs indoors.  I can put them outdoors to receive sunlight at any time, but they are perfectly happy on my windowsill!

High winds can rip and tear the delicate leaves of your plants.

Man, it is hot in Atlanta this week.  We’ve had 90 degree temperatures.  My plants are swooning!  But thankfully they are resiliant and so pop back to life with the sweet nectar that is water.

I hope everyone is having good luck with their plants this summer.  It’s so great to be surrounded by life!   My zinnias actually bloomed just the other day and I will have photos very soon to share.  Our zinnia seeds are really incredible.

I’ve been behind on posts (it’s been busy at Buzzy!) but we will get back in the swing of things shortly.

“Gardening requires lots of water – most of it in the form of perspiration.”  ~Lou Erickson

If you’ve enjoyed looking at the photos of my Raised Bed Garden, I’m including instructions on how to build your own!

First of all, you want the bed to be at least 8-10″ deep.  The actual design of the bed should be at least 4′ wide and you can decide the length.  (The one that I built, pictured below, is approximately 4′x6′)

You may need to clear out some space.  You don’t want to place your garden where it will be covered in shade by trees or fences.  The garden will need lots of sunlight!

Of course, you can buy raised garden beds online.  We built are own with lumber purchased at The Home Depot and a drill!  You basically need to do what works best for you.  Don’t be afraid to ask at the store what sizes you need and get some advise on the construction part. 

You will need to till the soil in the spot you are going to place the bed.  We built ours first, then tilled the area inside the bed.  You will need to fill with top soil and it is best to mix this with organic matter (you can purchase this at a garden center) or your own nutrient-rich compost. 

Once everything is built and mixed, you can go ahead and plant your seeds or plants. 

I realize that I have left out lots of technical instructions. There are plenty of websites with this information.  Click here for step-by-step help constructing a cedar or redwood bed.  Click here for instructions to build a bed like mine!

Good Luck!!

The Princess Kit is now available in a set with our NEW Cars Kit on Target.com!  Now you can purchase both kits at a great price.  I’ll also let you in on a little secret – our next Disney star will be a big one, although she’s rather tiny herself.  Any guesses?

For now, you can buy these two kits together from Target.com by following this link – http://www.target.com/Buzzy-Disney-Cars-Princess-Kids/dp/B001R1VH0I

Here’s a look at the two Kits you can get as a set:

Disney

Enjoy!  Oh, and if you post a comment with the correct guess of the new Disney character – you’ll get free seeds!  Have a wonderful day!

Send in your gardening photos now for Free Seeds.  We will accept any entries that come in until 5pm on May 1st (tomorrow).

Remember, any photos will work.  As long as you take a minute to share your garden, we’ll gladly send you seeds to help expand! 

Also, bad news on my raised bed garden.  My sweet dog Greta has decided that it’s a great place to DIG.  Fortunately, she has only dug up the seeds I planted (thankfully I can get more!) and left my little plants in place.  How could I get mad at that precious face?

This is Greta

Photo taken by the one and only Atlanta-based pet photographer, Jeanette Chisolm.  She also happens to be Buzzy’s designer!  Check her blog for samples of her work.  www.jeanettechisolm.com/blog. She has many photos from the animal shelter here in Georgia where she volunteers her time and awesome talents. Enjoy!