Plans for February Gardening

Repost from Febuary 2021: 

Location:  Vancouver, Washington   USDA Zone 8a

February Gardening Tips and Ideas
From Michael P. Garofalo

February Gardening Tips from Tsugawa Nursery

Here are my gardening chores for February:

Rake up fallen sticks and fir cones
Rake up all deciduous leaves
Fertilize plants and lawns
Add topsoil as needed
Add pea gravel and regular gravel as needed
Lower the level of the walking by east side of house
Scoop up all dogshit in walking areas
Keep work areas and supplies neat, covered, and out of sight
Make sure all garden pots drain properly
Water permanent indoor plants and over-wintering potted plants
Water any outdoor plants that need water
Browse seed racks in stores and catalogs
Plant shrubs when available
Look at outdoor furniture on display
Read gardening books
Add artistic touches to the garden
Repair and improve fencing
Secure the fence edge so my dog can't dig under and escape
Add level bricks and pavers for walkway paths in the garden


Here is where I shop in the Vancouver, Washington, area: 

Tsugawa Nursery, Woodland, Washington

Yard'n Garden Land, Salmon Creek, Highway 99 and 102nd Street, Vancouver, Washington

Shorty's Garden Center, Mill Plain Blvd., Vancouver, Washington

Lowes, 76 Street and 117th Ave (Lewisville Highway 503), N.E. Vancouver, Washington

Home Depot, Andresen and Paden Parkway, N.E. Vancouver, Washington

February Gardening Chores
Red Bluff, North Sacramento Valley, California, USA
USDA Zone 9

Typical Seasonal Weather for Our Area, USDA Zone 9 Normally, in February, we have high daytime temperatures of 59ºF, low nighttime temperatures of 40ºF, and get 3.4 inches of rain.

Red Bluff Gardening Notebooks of Karen and Mike Garofalo

Cloud Hands Blog Follow the seasons in the Northern California garden of Karen and Mike with their notes, links, resources, quotes, poems, and photos.

February Garden Activities and Chores in Red Bluff
USDA Zone 9

February: Quotes, Sayings, Poems.  Compiled by Mike Garofalo.  


February Gardening Chores

Browsing and ordering from seed and garden catalogs.
Pruning leafless trees and shrubs.
Weeding and tending the winter vegetable garden.
Relax and read books.  
The soil is usually too wet and cold for much digging.
Keeping cold sensitive potted plants in protected areas or indoors.
Make sure that the cuttings in protected areas do not dry out.
Repair fences.
Put straw mulch over fertilized vegetable garden areas not planted.
Distribute fertilizer and minerals.
Weed the sunny vegetable garden.  
Prune and mulch dormant perennials.
Planting bare root trees and shrubs.  
Remove dead trees, shrubs, branches, and twigs.
Enjoy the bulbs and rosemary in bloom.
Repair and sharpen tools.
Construct gardening boxes and flats.
Write a poem. Keep a gardening journal.
Fertilize with 20-9-9 or 15-15-15.
Trees without leaves need little or no watering.
Take a walk in your garden.
Sit and observe.
Turn the compost pile.  
Burn piles of gardening cuttings saved since last February.

Here are some photographs of our yard and gardens in February:

Activities I Do Everyday

39. Fourteen Acts I Do Everyday at 8o Years of Age

Get Up, Stand, Move; Plan
Eat breakfast; Think
Talk with my wife; Listen
Read; Reflect
Tend to our garden; Smile

Write, Web Publish, Journal; Analyze
Enjoy Walking; Encourage Others

Do some Yoga or Tai Chi; Study Sages
Do Household Chores; Clear Mind
Eat Lunch and/or Dinner; Gratitude
Clean my Body, Drink Water; Purify
Socialize; Communicate for Peace

Mind My Own Business; Summarize
Sleep; Dream

53. Write Sonnets and Quintains

SM8 Sonnet Model 8

Garofalo Sonnet Form

5 2 5 2 = 14 Lines

Quintain Couplet Quintain Couplet

The Couplets are often connected thematically with each other.

Can be rhymed verse, blank verse, or free verse.

Typographically, mostly Left Justied; but with some variations in identation, spacing, layout.

Makes free use of punctuation.

Some use of hypertext and reference links.

A Google drop-down Translation Menu. Read the webpage in over 50 different languages.

Many of these Sonnets are cellphone readable with ease. However, due to the limitations on the width of the lines on a cellphone screen, these Sonnets can appear to be 28 to 45 lines long. Viewed on a larger desktop screen, the same Sonnet can been seen as just 14 lines. Consequently, this cellphone line length limitation affects the writing style.

Examples in The Gushen Grove Sonnets: #1, # 2, #4, #9.

The Gushen Grove Sonnets. By Mike Garofalo.

Quintains, Pentastich, and Tankas. By Mike Garofalo. Over 750 Quintains.

Tercets, Haiku, Senryu. By Mike Garofalo. Over 1,000 Tercets.

Pulling Onions. By Mike Garofalo. Over 1,000 One-Liners, Quips, Epigrams.

Poetry Research. By Mike Garofalo. Bibliography, Links, Notes, Reviews, Commentary, Research.

Sonnet Poetry Research. By Mike Garofalo. Bibliography, Links, Notes, Reviews, Commentary, Research.

Quintain Poetry Research. By Mike Garofalo. Bibliography, Links, Notes, Reviews, Commentary, Research.

 

 

January Gardening Chores

Location:  Vancouver, Washington   USDA Zone 8a

January Gardening Tips and Ideas
From Michael P. Garofalo

January Gardening Tips from Tsugawa Nursery

Here are my gardening chores for January:

Applying manure to the empty vegetable garden.
Mulching with fallen leaves.
Panting a Fuyu Persimmon and Columnar Apple Tree
Pruning back roses and dead plants
Raking up fallen leaves in the back yard.
Finishing the back yard wood shed.
Improving the side porch, weeding, reorganizing.

Taking care of indoor plants.
Reading gardening books.
Helping Karen.

Here is where I shop in the Vancouver, Washington, area: 

Tsugawa Nursery, Woodland, Washington

Yard'n Garden Land, Salmon Creek, Highway 99 and 102nd Street, Vancouver, Washington

Shorty's Garden Center, Mill Plain Blvd., Vancouver, Washington

Lowes, 76 Street and 117th Ave (Lewisville Highway 503), N.E. Vancouver, Washington

Home Depot, Andresen and Paden Parkway, N.E. Vancouver, Washington

January Gardening Chores  
Red Bluff, North Sacramento Valley, California, USA
USDA Zone 9 

Typical (Average/Normal) Seasonal Weather for Our Area   Normally, in January, we have high daytime temperatures of 54ºF, low nighttime temperatures of 37ºF, and get 4.2 inches of rain.

Red Bluff Gardening Notebooks of Karen and Mike Garofalo

January Gardening Activities and Chores in Red Bluff
USDA Zone 9

Pruning leafless trees and shrubs.
Adding compost, ashes and fertilizer to the vegetable and flower gardens.
Taking cuttings from dormant figs, grapes, and other shrubs.
Spraying dormant fruit and other trees.
Weeding and mowing where needed.
Burning piles of gardening cuttings.
Fixing wood and metal fences.
Placing cold sensitive potted plants in protected areas outdoors or indoors.
Sharpening and oiling garden tools.
Protect tender plants from frosts.
Checking for and repairing any leaks in sheds.
The soil is usually too wet and cold for much garden digging.
Indoor activities: sorting seeds, planning, reading, writing, etc.
Caring for indoor plants.
Weeding the winter garden.
Watering potted plants as needed.
Adding Ironite and other soil supplements.
Fertilizing under trees and shrubs. 
Keeping tools and equipment out of the rain and moisture. 
Browsing seed and garden catalogs.
Reading gardening, botany, and agricultural books.
Planning garden improvements for the new year.
Fixing any leaking roofs or rain gutters. 
Keep a journal.  Write a poem.
Take a slow walk in the garden.  

January Gardening Chores and Tips for Other U.S.A. Zones


Oak Hill January Tips - Georgia

Oregon State University January Tips

Earth Wise Creations January Tips - Zone 9

Seasonal Garden Chores - Links

Top Garden Projects for January by Ed Hume in the Pacific Northwest

52 Weeks in the California Garden by Richard Smaus

The Gay Gardener - Monthly Chores

Monthly Gardening January Tips from Ortho 

Monthly Garden Tasks in an English County Garden

Winter Rose Care

The Garden Helper Tips for January - Northern U.S.

Fruits and Nuts - January Tips - Virginia

Gardening Tips - January - New York Botanical Garden

Master Gardeners Tips  

Giving Away Your Books

 

Book Collections Weigh Heavy on Clark County Baby Boomers.

Readers pare down, decide what to take into next chapter of their lives.

Article in the Vancouver Columbian Newspaper, WA, 2/5/2023.  This article briefly describes why seniors are weeding their book collections.

• "Sale/trade

Books must be in top condition if you intend to sell or trade them.

Vintage Books, 6613 E. Mill Plain Blvd., Vancouver, 360-694-9519

Powell’s Books, 1005 W. Burnside St., Portland, 800-878-7323

Zephyr Used & Rare Books, 360-695-7767

• Donate

Books cannot be damaged. Call to arrange to drop-offs of large quantities.

Birdhouse Books, 1001 Main St., Vancouver; 360-602-1098; open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday

Literary Leftovers, 813 W. Main St., Suite 105, Battle Ground; 360-342-8268; open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday

Fort Vancouver Regional Library Foundation, 1007 E Mill Plain Blvd., Vancouver; 360-906-4700; accepts book donations 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday; does not take encyclopedias or textbooks. (Friends of the Library groups associated with various branches also accept book donations in smaller quantities.)

Northwest Children’s Outreach, 6615 E. Mill Plain Blvd., Vancouver; 503-828-1472; accepts books in good condition that are suitable for babies through teens; open 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Tuesday and Friday

Goodwill, various locations

Little Free Libraries, various locations

Bookseller of Bakau, online used-book seller, 360-904-7367

• Recycle

According to Clark County’s Recycling A-Z guide, hardcover books cannot be recycled. First, remove the cover and discard it in the garbage. Then the paper inserts can be recycled. Paperback books can go in your blue recycling cart."

Winter Gardening Projects

A Repost from 2014:

Karen and I have been very busy this week with home improvement projects and winter garden chores. 
We drained the west pond and removed cattails, berry vines, and other "weeds."  We removed dead cypress trees along the edge of the pond.  This was very tiring work for us.
We are planting two new rows of trees in our orchard.  We are planting potted trees (gifts from Cathy Goodin), and bare root trees.  I am laying down drip lines for all the new trees in the orchard.  We will also prune and fertilize all existing trees.  We will paint all the trunks white, and spray. 

Weeding: Quotes, Sayings, Facts

Working in the Garden: Quotes, Poems, Sayings

Progress on Home Improvement Projects

Lately, I have been very busy and working hard each day on outdoor home improvement projects.  I improved all the fences in the back yard.  I rebuilt the west fence, 30 feet long, and added a gate.  We added our first small "sunny garden" on the west street side of the property.  We improved and weeded the nursery area.  I built a new fence, 60 feet long, on the east side of the back yard to hide all of our workshop and storage areas.  We got the irrigation system working in our front yard; thanks to Sean's help.  We removed the dead Western Red Cedar tree limbs and branches over our east roof (from our neighbor's tree); thanks to Mick's help.  Karen added new vegetable plants and flower beds.  

Mostly work on rough carpentry, gardening, lifting and moving.  On the whole, enjoyable.

When resting during the heat of the day, I read, study, research, use the Internet, play video games, make notes, shop, and nap.  

Most of our home improvement objectives have been accomplished.  We will set new goals and objectives in September.   We want a 8 foot by 8 foot garden bed set over the removed lawn on the west street side of the property.   I will redo and improve the garden hoses watering system.  We will plant more shrubs in our garden and yard.  

We have travel plans in the Northwest this summer and autumn.  My brother and nephew and families are visiting us this summer.  

Not doing much Taijiquan, Qigong, Yoga, Feldenkrais, or walking since the Spring.  Mostly focused on home improvement work projects.  This work on home projects gives my 72 year old body plenty of exercise.   I do plan to resume my former exercises in August of 2018.  

Work Quotations:  http://www.gardendigest.com/work.htm

"Every kind of work can be a pleasure. Even simple household tasks can be an opportunity to exercise and expand our caring, our effectiveness, our responsiveness. As we respond with caring and vision to all work, we develop our capacity to respond fully to all of life. Every action generates positive energy which can be shared with others. These qualities of caring and responsiveness are the greatest gift we can offer."
-  Tarthang Tulku

I will add a few pictures of our efforts:

January Gardening Chores

I now live in in Vancouver, Washington, USDA Zone 8b.  The best listings of garden chores I have read for Vancouver are the following:

Tsugawa Nursery, Woodland, Washington - Garden Tips for January

January Gardening To Do List

Vancouver, Washington, Zip Code: 98662.  Zone 8b, 15F-20F Low, Average First Frost October 21-31.  Average Last Frost: April 1-10.  Ecoregion 3a: Columbia/Vancouver Basin.  Palmer Drought Index: Extremely Moist.  


From 1998-2016 we lived in Red Bluff, California
From 1946-1998, I lived in East Los Angeles, California

January Gardening Chores
Red Bluff, North Sacramento Valley, California, USA
USDA Zone 9 

Typical (Average/Normal) Seasonal Weather for Our Area Normally, in January, we have high daytime temperatures of 54ºF, low nighttime temperatures of 37ºF, and get 4.2 inches of rain.

Red Bluff Gardening Notebooks of Karen and Mike Garofalo
January - Quotations, Poems, Lore   Compiled by Mike Garofalo.  

January Gardening Activities and Chores in Red Bluff 
USDA Zone 9

Pruning leafless trees and shrubs.
Adding compost, ashes and fertilizer to the vegetable and flower gardens.
Taking cuttings from dormant figs, grapes, and other shrubs.
Spraying dormant fruit and other trees.
Weeding and mowing where needed.
Burning piles of gardening cuttings.
Planting bare root trees and shrubs.
Fixing wood and metal fences.
Placing cold sensitive potted plants in protected areas outdoors or indoors.
Sharpening and oiling garden tools.
Protect tender plants from frosts.
Checking for and repairing any leaks in sheds.
The soil is usually too wet and cold for much garden digging.
Indoor activities: sorting seeds, planning, reading, writing, etc.
Caring for indoor plants.
Weeding the winter garden.
Watering potted plants as needed.
Adding Ironite and other soil supplements.
Fertilizing under trees and shrubs.
Keeping tools and equipment out of the rain and moisture.
Browsing seed and garden catalogs.
Reading gardening, botany, and agricultural books.
Planning garden improvements for the new year.
Fixing any leaking roofs or rain gutters.
Keep a journal.  Write a poem.
Take a slow walk in the garden.  

January Gardening Chores and Tips for Other U.S.A. Zones

Oak Hill January Tips - Georgia

Oregon State University January Tips

Earth Wise Creations January Tips - Zone 9

Seasonal Garden Chores - Links

Top Garden Projects for January by Ed Hume in the Pacific Northwest

52 Weeks in the California Garden by Richard Smaus

The Gay Gardener - Monthly Chores

Monthly Gardening January Tips from Ortho 

Monthly Garden Tasks in an English County Garden

Winter Rose Care

The Garden Helper Tips for January - Northern U.S.

Fruits and Nuts - January Tips - Virginia

Gardening Tips - January - New York Botanical Garden

Master Gardeners Tips  

January - Quotations, Poems, Lore

Home Projects in January

"Soon will set in the fitful weather, with fierce gales and sullen skies and frosty air, and it will be time to tuck up safely my roses and lillies and the rest for their winter sleep beneath the snow, where I never forget them, but ever dream of their wakening in happy summers yet to be."
- Celia Thaxter

January Gardening

I pruned six roses. I dug up each rose and transplanted the roots into a new large pot. I moved six pots of roses to the nursery area in the back yard. 

I excavated and layed pavers by the front door. 

We had moved some large potted plants indoors: a lemon citrus, an avocado, a succulent, a fuchsia, etc.

I reworked the sides of the large covered patio on the east side of our house. I closed the entire fence line on the east side from the front gate to the back yard gate. Then I hung brown plastic sheets to enclose three sides and provide some additional rain protection. Two 75 watt utility lights were hung to provide worksite illumination. All sides included four level plastic storage racks to maximize storage in this covered and enclosed storage and work area outside the garage.

I started putting the the 4"x4"x8' treated posts into concrete in the ground.   

Busy Moving 2

Got the Main Bedroom back in order.
Got an office workstation set up for Karen in 2nd bedroom.  Cable TV and high speed Internet.
Set up an area for potted plant nursery in southwest corner of back garden.  
Set up hoses and watering areas.
Cleaned off the outside back porch.
Keep a close eye on Bruno in the back yard: temptations include chickens, dogs, ducks.  Bruno can dig under fences.
Working today on installing wood shelving in Wood Room (large room with wood floor).  
Moving books from boxes to shelving.
Install sliding screen door on outside of sliding glass doors in the Wood Room.

I will include some photographs later today or tomorrow.

Moving Out and Coping Stuff

My son and his wife, and my wife and I all worked on packing up our belongings and moving them into storage containers in town.  We four adults worked from 3/25 to 3/27.

We how have 18 days before we must move out of our home in Red Bluff.  We live at this home, on five acres of rural property, from 1998-2017.  

We have made good progress on the overall task of preparing to move to Vancouver, WA.

Updated Chapter 1 of my webpage on the Tao Te Ching.  I try to update one Daodejing Verse/Chapter each week.



My home library (VSCL) is all packed up and in storage.  
I've used my Kindle a bit more lately.  

My Kindle reading list right now includes:

The Swerve by Stephen Greenblatt
Finding Flow by Mihaly Cstkszen....
Spiritual Ecology: The Cry of the Earth  compilation
The Backpacker's Handbook

However, lately, I just don't have much time for much reading.  


I am following the Golden State Warriors NBA basketball team out of the San Francisco Bay area.  They have a very good win streak going, and beat the Memphis Grizzles on Sunday.  The Warriors will be even more competitive in the upcoming playoffs (only 9 games to go in the regular season), if Kevin Durant can return in three weeks.  

Come Saturday Morning

Busy day ahead:  walking, teaching Tai Chi Chuan, mowing, weeding, updating drip lines in south orchard, laundry, cleaning house.  My wife, Karen, has been helping my son in Portland, since March 16th, recover from a kidney translplant; so, more work for me at home alone.  I will put up some pictures later in the day.  

Tai Chi Chuan Yang Style

Red Bluff Notebooks

The Spirit of Gardening

Green Way Research Subject Index

March Gardening Chores

Red Bluff, North Sacramento Valley, California, USAUSDA Zone 9

Lately, we have had lots of rain in the valley and snow in the mountains.  This week, thus far, 4 inches of rain has fallen.  Snow levels are down to 4,000 feet in the Yolla Bolly's to the west, the southern Cascades to the east, the Trinity Alps in the northwest, and Mt. Shasta to the north.  More rain and snow are expected for the next six days.   Consequently, little gardening activity outside for a week or two because of our soaked clay soils.  The next photograph, taken in 1/2012, shows how the snow covered Yolla Bolly's look from our backyard. This mountain range is about 30 miles to the west of our home.

Typical Weather for Our Area   Normally, in March, we have daytime high temperatures of 64ºF, nighttime low temperatures of 42ºF, and we get 2.7 inches of rain.

Red Bluff Gardening Notebooks of Karen and Mike Garofalo

March:  Quotations, Poems, Sayings, Lore

Spring Equinox Celebrations

Spring:  Quotations, Poems, Sayings, Lore

Gardening:  A Somaesthetic Practice


March Photographs by Karen Garofalo

March Gardening Chores in Red Bluff

Browsing and ordering from seed and garden catalogs.
Planting potted trees and shrubs.  
Placing cold sensitive potted plants in protected areas or indoors.
Pruning and mulching dormant trees and vines. 
Repairing and sharpening tools.
Fertilizing with 16-16-16 or manure. 
Planting seeds in containers in the greenhouse.
Planting some vegetable starts in the ground.
Watering as needed.
Removing deadwood from trees and shrubs. 
Moving bulbs. 
Raking up fallen twigs and branches.
Weeding around the base of small trees and shrubs.
Mowing and weeding as needed.
Cleaning and repairing drip irrigation lines. 
Making up To Do lists. 
Spring Cleaning inside the house. 
Spraying dormant trees and shrubs. 
Painting fences and art objects as needed. 
Bringing spring flowers indoors to enjoy. 
Developing Spring Resolutions for personal improvements. 
Fixing up lawn mowers and other power tools for outdoor work.   
Sharpening and oiling hand tools. 
Home improvement projects. 
Roto-tilling and double digging as needed. 
Updating March and Spring webpages. 
Reading, reading, reading.


Karen Garofalo took all the photographs shown below at our home in Red Bluff, California.

Busy Gardening

Karen and I have been busy at home working in our yard and gardens.  We started major projects at our home last June. 

The Spirit of Gardening: Over 3,500 quotations arranged by over 100 topics, compiled by Mike Garofalo, 1999-.

The Garden in October

The Garden in November 

We have together:

Cleaned, dug, fertilized and rototilled two sunny garden areas.
Been planting and watering our winter garden vegetables. 
Been cleaning out ditches.
Hiring people to fix walls, paint, and clean up the south field.
Repairing broken poles and fenceposts.
Cleaning up up our Sacred Circle Garden.
Making a new compost bin.
Celebrating harvest and Halloween events.
Watching the University of Southern California (USC) vs The University of California football game.  Cheer "We Are .. SC!"  My dad and I graduated from USC. 

Here are some recent photographs: