Last weekend I spent a lot of time digging around it the dirt. It was great.

My gardening adventures started out bright and early on Saturday morning when the Good Girls went down to EarthWorks Farm for a little volunteering. Merete, Meredith, Jen and I spent a few fun hours spreading manure on farmland that would later be tilled and planted. Maybe manure spreading doesn't sound so great to you, but I had a lovely time. The weather was sunny but cool, and EarthWorks was looking great with fresh, green crops growing everywhere. The farm has really come a long way since the first time we went there. It's very impressive. Plus, manure-spreading is an excellent workout. Meredith and I think it might become the next exercise trend, once pole dancing fades out.

Then, on Sunday, Dakota and I had a gardening windfall on our morning walk with Nigel. A very nice neighbor who is moving to Idaho with his partner offered us all the free plants we could carry. Thinking quickly, we went home, grabbed Dakota's car and started loading up the back.

Since I am an admitted cactus addict, I was happy to score several nice cacti and succulents. In addition, we got two free fruit trees! Our neighbor happily gave us a baby papaya tree that he'd grown with seeds from his own impressive tree, which is fruiting like crazy, and a very cute kumquat in a pot. Since I'm currently in the process of killing/attempting not to kill a second kumquat in the back yard, this healthy tree was much appreciated. Dakota also scored what I think is a staghorn fern. Here it is poking out of the back of his car.



After the big free plant score, I was inspired to do some backyard gardening. So, I planted some more seeds in my winter garden plots. This year I am attempting to grow:

Chard
Beets
Turnips
Spinach
Cabbage
Kale
Arugula
Peas
Carrots

I know that sounds like a lot of vegetables, but I like to try a lot of different types of seeds since my soil is not the greatest. That means I don't get to plant many rows of each vegetable, but that's okay. Luckily, arugula, chard and spinach can all grow in pots. This year's heirloom seeds are from both Seed Savers and Seeds of Change. I am hoping that things go as well as they did last year, or perhaps even better. I sure do love braised turnips straight from the garden. So far, I have only sprouts.



To cap off my gardening weekend, Dakota took a break from ripping out kitchen cabinets to help me dig a hole for the lovely apple tree he gave me for my birthday a couple of weeks ago. It's a semi-dwarf Pink Lady. Pink Lady apple trees were originally developed in Australia, and are supposed to do well in Southern California. Dakota terraced off a little section for it, and we dug the hole very deep and wide to give the roots a good start. I'm hopeful it will survive despite the curse of our backyard and make tasty, pretty apples next Fall.



If I can do a good job with the new apple, papaya and kumquat trees, and keep the older orange, fig and lemon trees alive, we will have quite a nice little orchard. I'm not sure why I've had such a hard time with fruit trees in the past. I guess they require a lot of water to get established, and the last few years have been extremely dry. I also suspect our hard, rocky soil is not helping matters. Here's hoping for a rainy winter.

First off, how ridiculously cute is this photo from Cute Overload? Yes, that is a mother hen sitting on a sleeping puppy. I love how annoyed her chick looks. I mean, that's where he's supposed to sleep!

Okay, down to business. If you live in California, this post is for you. On the November 4th ballot, you'll have some cool stuff to vote for, and a few annoying items to vote against. Lisa, Peggy, Tina and I would like to encourage you to vote yes on one particular proposition: Prop 2.

Proposition 2, also known as the Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act, would make some small but important changes to how farm animals are treated in California. Essentially, it would "prohibit the cruel confinement of farm animals in a manner that does not allow them to tum around freely, lie down, stand up, and fully extend their limbs." (Source) For chickens specifically, the law would mean they would have to be in a cage that allows them to completely spread their wings without touching the sides of the cage or another chicken.

As someone who owns and cares for chickens, and who has seen injured factory-farm hens in person, I think that Proposition 2 is an important first step toward treating our farm animals humanely. Just because we eat animals doesn't mean we can't have some compassion for them while they are alive. Chickens may seem like weird, dumb birds to some, but I can tell you that they do have "personalities" of sorts, and they can feel happy or afraid. I'm sure the same is true for pigs and cows and turkeys. I just don't know any personally.

Many have pointed out that Prop 2 provides the bare minimum of quality of life for chickens, pigs, calves and other animals--and they're right--but I think it's a good first step for California. Hopefully, in the future we'll be able to take further steps to improve the lives of farm animals. Or, you know, maybe everyone should have a coop in their back yard. It is pretty fun.

The opposition to Prop 2 claims that the law will increase food costs and cause farmers to move out of state, but I doubt that. Estimates indicate that the law would cause a mere 1 cent per egg cost increase, and I seriously doubt that transporting eggs and meat from out of state will really be cheaper that treating animals more humanely in state. (Plus, nearby states Arizona, Oregon and Colorado already have similar laws in place, so I'm not sure where those farmers would move to.) And, honestly, I think people should be willing to pay a bit more so that an animal can stand up and turn around during its short life.

So, that's the end of my little political message. This election is going to be really exciting, and I feel hopeful that things will go the way I'd like them to in all the races I'm watching. Fingers crossed!

This weekend, as demolition continues on the kitchen project, we're trying to pick the paint color for our cabinets and walls. We'll be using a particular type of paint, called Milk Paint, which Dakota found during his extensive kitchen research.

The Milk Paint formula is based on the way people used to make their own paint using cow's milk and limestone. The modern formulation from the Milk Paint company contains milk protein (casein) and lime, plus natural pigments like ochre and iron oxide. Milk Paint is free of VOCs (volatile organic compounds) and other potentially toxic substances and is biodegradeable. So, it's an extremely environmentally friendly paint. In fact, it's so nice and natural that it doesn't even smell bad.

Last week, we received several Milk Paint samples in the mail. The paint is shipped as a powder, and then you just add water to make paint. This also allows you to mix it thicker or thinner, depending upon what kind of coat you need.

Right now, we're deciding between a couple of different shades of green for the cabinets and walls. Because they use natural pigments, Milk Paints don't come in an endless supply of hues, but there's definitely a nice selection. And all the colors have a warmth that I think will suit our Shaker/modern design nicely.

So, will it be Bayberry Green or Lexington Green? Decisions, decisions...