Fence Succulent Garden

I love neon channel letters from old signs. I first saw bunches of them for sale at Farm Chicks in 2011, but didn’t know what I would spell or how to use them (and that was the year of everything wedding—the budget was occupied). It is a secret wish of mine to dedicate a full wall with a complete, mismatched channel letter alphabet, but alas that would require an available wall and a super good deal on letters. I saw them again last year with a plan in mind. I would buy the letters for “garden,” plant succulents in them, and hang them on our back fence. I bought the letters, but didn’t get everything planted that summer. Turns out I’m a slow mover. Determined to do better this year, I actually finished the project and am quite happy with the results.

I’ve been planting succulents in things (mostly old shoes) since I was in high school. I had one succulent shoe for about 15 years. Succulents are easy to grow (one of their best qualities) and are available in a variety of colors and shapes. Our back gets fence is full sun all the time, so it was the right spot for the fence garden. Succulents need well-draining soil, lots of sun, and little water.

Step one.

Find yourself some letters. I like the idea of spelling a common word, but initials or a family name could also be fun.

Step two.

Get those letters ready for planting.

The letters in their original state. 

Wash them. Scrub them. Remove any left over neon or clips. (I forgot to take a close-up “before” picture to show the insides in their full glory, but you can see from above that they were gross and needed stuff removed--the "a" still has all of its neon tubing).

I used pliers and wire cutters to remove the neon clips and the neon tubes. Then I used bleach water and a scrub brush to clean them and put silicone sealer around the seams where the bottoms of the letters meet the sides.

All cleaned up and ready to plant.

Two of my letters were rusty or had missing paint. To solve those problems, I repainted. The “r” needed a complete painting job; it was originally purple, and I chose to repaint in the same color. I liked the purple in the grouping. I also repainted the inside of the “d.” I taped the outside to protect the paint and used a khaki spray paint I found in the garage. That was a big step.

Step three.

Get the succulents ready.

Break apart tight clumps. I chose pretty standard Hens & Chicks for this; they’re not fancy, but they’re perennial. The roots should be 1 – 2” long. In doing research I read that the succulent cuttings should be allowed to dry out for a couple of days before replanting to encourage new rooting. I let some air out and others I just planted right away (which is what I’ve always done in the past). We’ll see how they last.

Step four.

Prepare for hanging. I used nails that fit into holes that were mostly already in the letters, placing them to line up so that when the letters are planted, I can just heft them up onto the nails. Note: make sure the fence is stable enough to hold the letters and nail into a cross bar on the fence, rather than just into fence boards. The boards won’t be strong enough on their own. When you like the arrangement (I forgot to take photos of this step, drat), take the letters down for planting.

Step five.

Plant, plant, plant.

Dirt.

Fill the letters with well-draining soil—sandy soil works well. Poke succulents into the dirt, packing them fairly close, but leaving a bit of room for more chicks to grow. 

Adding water to the d. 

Give them a bit of water for the roots to start taking hold. Leave the letters horizontal for a 1 – 2 weeks to allow the roots to take. (It would be a shame to hang them right away only to have all of the plants fall to the ground).

Finished!

Step six.

Hang your letters. Some of our succulents have gone craze and are blooming--they especially like the N. The letters were hanging for a few days before I planted them and we liked the look of the empty letters on the fence, but with the planting there is less contrast between the letters and the garden around them; they blend without losing their funk. They belong.  

Were have you planted succulents in unexpected places?

Picking Strawberries

Strawberries are ready at some of the farms on Green Bluff in Spokane (and hopefully where you are as well). Strawberry season is one of my favorite points of summer. There is nothing quite like the goodness that comes from fresh, fully ripe berries. Grocery store berries are simply not the same—all pale on the inside and tasteless all over. Blech.

Ethan and I picked berries at Siemers' Farm this Sunday morning, continuing our tradition of picking berries on an early summer morning with a cup of coffee. It's one of my favorite days of summer. 

My tips for picking berries:

1. Plan on picking after a couple of good sunny days. Sun is crucial for ripening and sweetening berries. If days have been gray during picking season, wait it out. Sunshine is necessary to develop the sugars in the berries.
2. Check with the farm. Call or check their website. You want to go on a day when berries are ready. I’ve found that Green Bluff farmers are very good about updating messages on the Fresh on the Bluff page so that you know what is ripe when. We’ve lucked out two years in a row, picking in a field on its first open day. Berries dripping off the plants make for quick work.
3. Get to the farm early. Strawberry season is a hot season, so picking in the cool of morning is MUCH more pleasant than a hot afternoon. Get yourself a coffee on the way if you need, bring water, and sunscreen for protection.
4. Bring cash. Many farms don’t take credit cards because the fees for a small business can be steep (this is one way they keep prices down). Prevent frustration by bringing cash with you.
5. Only pick the brightest, reddest, shiniest berries. Strawberries do not ripen any further after picking; so only choose those that look like storybook strawberries. (This is also crucial information for choosing berries in the store if you’re not picking them yourself). In the fields, farmers want you to pick only the ripe berries. They want you to get the best product, and they want the pickers who follow you to have ripe berries to add to their boxes later that week. If you pick under ripe berries, the ripe ones will likely rot on the plant and never be enjoyed—that’s not good for anyone.
6. Along with #5, also be careful not to pick bruised, damaged, or moldy berries. These ones will just leak all over your good berries and reduce the already limited shelf life of the whole box.
7. Move the plants around (gently) as you pick. There are often ripe, delicious berries toward the middle of the plant or hidden under leaves. You don’t want to miss them.
8. Don’t dismiss the small red berries. Small berries are often the most flavorful, in fact.
9. Plan your intake wisely. You want to only pick the berries you will use within two or three days of picking. If your berries are the ripest, red-through-the-middle berries, they won’t last much beyond three days after picking. (My 20 pounds this weekend was ambitious, but most of them have already been used or in the process of becoming jam—whew).
10. Bring a friend. The peace of the fields is wonderful in the morning, but it’s nice to have a friend in a nearby row.
11. Taste a berry or two in the field. Make sure they’re sweet and juicy. Don’t eat the farm out of business, but tasting is okay—and there’s nothing quite like tasting a couple of berries in the field on a dewy morning.

What fresh fruit are you picking this year? What do you plan on doing with it? These are things I need to know.

Coming soon: A post about what I did with 20 pounds of strawberries (other than grabbing handfuls from the boxes, rinsing them under the tap and eating them a la carte).

Off the Shelf, May 2013

The books I've picked up, turned the pages of, and thought about during the month.

Fever by Mary Beth Keane

For the second month in a row, I have finished my book group book a week ahead of time. This may be a record for me. Fever was good. The novel didn’t blow me away, but I enjoyed it thoroughly. Keane ‘s novel follows the (fictionalized) story of Typhoid Mary, the woman who was discovered to be an asymptomatic carrier of Typhoid Fever in New York at the turn of the 20^th century, infecting people for whom she worked as a cook, but never showing signs of the illness herself. After reading the story, I have a difficult time referring to her as Typhoid Mary; it was likely a name she hated. The story is quite sympathetic toward Mallon (for good reason) without romanticizing her, which I appreciated. So much of her story is heartbreaking because of the lack of knowledge about disease and medicine—Mary Mallon was unusual and few people, let alone a working cook and those around her, understood what it meant that she could pass on a disease she never had herself. Keane wrote Mallon as a complex, emotional character; she exhibits pain and anger along with love and kindness, often all at once. Keane’s novel made me want to know more about the non-fiction Mary Mallon; it made me wonder how much we know about Mallon’s life and if we have access to her correspondence, but then, I’m a giant nerd who loves that stuff. I would read more by Keane.

Film: a Very Short Introduction by Michael Wood

I’m teaching a film class in July. I ordered books for the course last week and am in the process of research for planning classes. I will be reading more film books in the next two months. I did not end up ordering this one (which I might regret, this is a good little book). I think the Very Short Introduction series by Oxford University Press is pretty fabulous. They are smart, (very) short, and $10. There are 183 books in the series. Browse. Learn stuff. 

Mason Dixon Knitting by Kay Gardiner and Ann Shayne

I don’t own many knitting books (only three, I think) but I find myself picking this one up pretty often. A friend recommended it and I have found myself knitting several of the projects, some regularly. I like the authors’ sense of humor (one of the best project names: Absorba, the Great Bathmat) and they don’t shy away from mentioning mistakes or colors gone wrong. The projects range from beginner to more advanced and cover everything from dishcloths and baby blankets to curtains and nighties. So far, I haven’t had any difficulty with instructions and have been happy with every project I’ve worked. Next up: Absorba, the Great Bathmat!

An update on The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Sutterfield from April: I finished the novel this month and I did enjoy the story. It’s not one I feel the need to read again, but it’s an intriguing mystery about storytelling, memory, and loss. I’m glad I finished it and recommend it. 

To be fair, I also read, commented on, and graded over 200 pages of student papers during the first half of May. I’m hoping to pull more books off the shelf in June. Many more. Sometimes I think my job teaching literature and writing is bad for my reading of literature and writing.