Mid-Summer Garden Update

Hey guys!

So it's been a while since I've written a post.. so sorry about that! My 7+yr old Macbook is finally on it's last leg and it has made blogging, emailing, facebook stalking, and pinterest drooling impossible. But I have finally managed to get it to somewhat work for a quick post! (I am pretty sure this quick post will take me an hr to load/type at the rate this is going).

I have to say, 7+yrs with a laptop is pretty good, right? Someday I will be able to afford a new Macbook, but for now I hope this thing gets me thru at least a few more months. I started out as a PC user, I've had Compaq (remember those! haha man I am old), Toshiba, Vaio, Dell, HP, and not a single one of those lasted me more than 2 yrs. This Macbook though, has made it for so long that I don't think I could ever go back to PC. Although the new Windows tablets do look much more intriguing (and budget friendly) than the iPad of even a Macbook.

Anyway, enough about that, let me give you a quick garden update!

Remember this?! This is my blackberry plant! It used to be just a wooden stick growing out of a pot (that stick broke btw) and now look at it! It is almost as tall as I am! Which brings me to a quick question, how tall are these supposed to get? And how long until I get some blackberries over here!

In my last post I talked about how I was growing these frankenpeppers and how I was praying that they were sweet peppers given I already had too many hot peppers growing thanks to Merrifield's crappy labeling system... well... they are not. And I found out the hard way. These things are freaking hot. I could not feel my lips or my tongue for a good half hour. Anyone want a shipment of super hot peppers? I am guessing these are anaheims? FML

And this right here.. well.. on the far right is my container lemon tree. Totally worth the investment! I have a good 6 lemons growing and the plant is still blooming. Bring it on lemon tree! Right next to that is my Patio tomato plant. That plant is worth every penny, I have had so many tomatoes come from that, despite the fact that it is still battling some disease from earlier this summer, it has held up pretty well. And right next to that.. guess what that freakishly huge plant is.. It is a pepper plant! Isn't that ridunkulous? That plant is taller than my blackberry plant. And it is dropping a motherload of peppers. It is supposed to be a Giant Marconia pepper plant.. we will see if that's what it really ends up being or not.

You may have noticed these giant bamboo sticks coming out of some of my pots. I got these sticks at Home Depot to help support my plants, including my tomatoes. The cages are too cumbersome for a balcony garden so I opted for these sticks. I got a pack of 6 for $2. Crazy cheap considering one plastic stick costs you a little over $2. I just used some twine to tie the plants to the bamboo and voila! It made a huge difference and I will probably buy more as the plants continue to grow. Thanks for selling such a great deal Home Depot! Speaking of great deals, they are currently having some of their flowers on sale! I bought some new mums to replace my older ones that were badly injured during the disease and aphids infestation from earlier this summer. 

I got some new recipes and projects to blog about so hopefully this laptop makes it long enough so I can add some new posts more regularly! Otherwise, can I get an early christmas present? hahaha

Frankenpeppers?

So this year I think I may have bought a plant of Frankenpeppers. When I went to the Merrifield nursery in VA a few months ago to buy my pepper plants I bought two banana pepper plants.. at least that's what the label said. Fast forward a few months and I have this giant pepper growing that does not look like a banana pepper at all.

Can anyone guess what kind of pepper this is? My guess is an anaheim pepper. I am seriously hoping it is something sweet because we just found out one of our Cubanelle pepper plants is a spicy one.. thanks to yet another mislabeled pot.

So here it is, my 6+ inch long frankenpepper. Has anyone had issues with buying mislabeled pepper pots before? I've been thinking that because 3 of my pepper plants are not what they were advertised to be, that I will return to Merrifield and ask for some sort of store credit for the next growing season or something. How have you guys resolved similar issues? 

I am happy to say though, that after struggling with some disease/mold/aphids this season, my plants are growing like crazy and are very healthy. Just check out my lemons! The container lemon tree is doing great, so the $60 investment seems like it will pay off. I don't think I will get $60 worth of lemons just yet, so far there are 6 lemons growing on the plant. But the tree just bloomed like crazy again and I was told that if I bring the plant indoors during the winter, it will continue to produce lemons. So we will see what the total lemon count is for this year.

The tomato plants have been a hit and miss. The San Marzano tomatoes are not container friendly. They are a tomato plant best left for actual gardens and not balcony gardens. The patio tomato though, has been dropping tomatoes like crazy. I've already eaten two and I have another one ready for picking and 7 more still growing. Next season I will invest in Patio tomato plants rather than something like a San Marzano. It grows best on my balcony and the yield is worth the investment. 

Here are my Habanero and Spicy Cubanelle pepper plants. These aren't as big as my other pepper plants because I bought these not too long ago thinking I would have to replace my garden beds because of disease and aphids. I just picked the Habanero and had it with my spicy spaghetti recipe. I also used some of my lemon thyme and tomatoes for this. So yummy! I can taste the difference when I make this recipe using homegrown ingredients versus store bought. I can't wait until the lemons are ready and I can add those to this recipe! 

I will keep dreaming of the day when I can afford to buy a home with a huge yard just so I can plan a zillion different types of vegetables and fruits. Or maybe I should change careers and become a farmer? That would sure beat dealing with Washington bureaucracy! hahaha.

Burlap and Lace Placemats

I've also been wanting to update the furniture/decor in my apartment for some time now from the old mismatched college stuff to a more adult cohesive style. Pinterest has been very instrumental in helping me decide what style I want to embrace in my apartment. After much deliberating, I have concluded that I am too scattered brain and indecisive to just pick one style.. and that I should probably just keep all of my mismatched college stuff until I get married.. or move in with someone.. or both?

I decided to tackle one little section/room at a time since I don't have a budget for everything. This way I feel less pressured to pick a style just yet. And the first thing I've been focusing on is my kitchen and dining area. I really like the farmhouse style for the dining area with a small modern twist. I would love to buy a wooden dining table, but for now, my metal/glass ikea one will have to do. I can still bring that farmhouse vibe to the dining room with some small and simple touches. That's where the placemats come in.

I've been searching for some cute shabby chic placemats and it's been hard to find ones I am in love with. So I decided to make my own. I went to Michael's and bought a roll of burlap that is 10ft long and meant to be used as a table runner. It was $12.99 for the roll. I also bought a roll of white lace trim for $2 (I used some coupons). But of course, I didn't have enough lace so I had to go back for more.

You will need:
Burlap
Lace trim
Scissors
Hot glue gun
A placemat for sizing purposes
Elmer's glue

So here's what I did.

1. I took a placemat to measure the right size for the placemats. Thankfully, the burlap roll is the perfect width for a placemat. So I only had to make one cut to make them the right size.
2. Use a sharp scissor to cut! It will make cutting burlap so much easier. Cut along the line (I used a pencil to mark the spot). You will see that the burlap will want to fray and come apart a little bit. I let it fray a tiny bit, and then with some Elmer's glue sealed the edges to prevent further fraying.
3. Cut the lace to the right size so that it goes around the edges of the burlap. 
4. Carefully line the lace with some hot glue and glue to the placemat along the edge. 
5. Push the lace down with something so that you don't burn your fingers
6. Let dry and voila!

It was pretty easy to make the placemats. They aren't as sturdy as ones you could buy at the store, but they are sturdy enough to use as decor for a dinner party or something. I will definitely be using these when I have guests over for dinner/lunch. 

The centerpiece is an arrangement of faux flowers I got on clearance at Bed Bath and Beyond for $8. They came attached to a brown base that I didn't like so I cut them off and put them in a small glass container. The little white lanterns are also from BBB and they too are on clearance for $5.99! They come with little light up candles too! The centerpiece and the lantern really help tie in the shabby chic/farmhouse look to the table. I can't wait until the day comes when I can afford a new dining table =).