Lighting up the Night

I’ve been thinking about getting a set of solar string lights to try out for quite a while. There are no outlets on the outside of this house and living rurally it can be quite dark sometimes. It would be nice to have a little light around the front door when get home after dark. I thought a set of these Starry Solar String Lights that charge with the sun during the day and come on automatically at night might just be the perfect option. I especially like that they’re warm white, because I can’t stand the piercing blue of most LED lights. These don’t pulse either, which I was worried about. Overall, they’re great for being LEDs, normally I can’t have them around because they bother my eyes.

They’re pretty bright, especially since it’s so dark up here on the hill. I’m going to give them a try for a few months, if they last I’ll be getting a few more sets for the garden.


I’d really love to use them here and there to add a little nighttime interest and highlight a few features in the garden, like the rounded trellis in the middle of the potager. I have old fashioned lights in our apple tree and it’s one of my favorite things in the garden at night. Everyone that visits at night also loves there. There’s just something about the warm glow of lights in the garden.

I’m also considering getting a set to put at the bottom of the driveway by the road, it would be the perfect way for people to find our driveway after dark.

Do you use light in the garden at night?

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Countdown to Turkeys

Our turkey hen has been sitting on turkey eggs for almost four weeks now. Of course she’s supposed to be hatching them out while I’m supposed to be gone.

Mr Chiots has strict instructions to monitor closely and take pictures if necessary. Of course it could end up being nothing, turkeys are notorious for not being good at fertilizing eggs.

Are you eagerly anticipating anything at the moment?

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Taking Back the Pathways

Yesterday I spent an hour or so taking back the pathways in the potager. They don’t have any covering, no mulch, no gravel, nothing. I really need to add something to them, but that will have to wait until I get them widened and changed slightly. They are difficult to weed since they get packed down with all the trips I make on them. This past year I let my arugula and dill go to seed, so most of the weeds were volunteers.

I’m in the process of trying to decide what surface I’d like to use on these pathways, this fall I’m hoping to have them changed and widening. I’ve been debating a few different surfaces: brick, crushed limestone, and mulch. Mulch or wood chips would be free since I can produce them myself. Brick would make for a nice hard surface and a clean one in mud season. Crushed limestone or small gravel is a surface that I really love, the sound it makes underfoot is one of my favorite things. Decisions, decisions, it’s a good thing I have a few months to decide!

What’s your favorite surface for garden pathways?

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A Beautiful Solution

I was having trouble with ants getting into my hummingbird feeder. Not only were they drinking all the syrup, they were chasing off the birds. Research on-line recommending an ant moat, others highly recommended using packing tape around the hook, still others used poison, which of course wasn’t an option here.

Since I had packing tape in the office, I decided that was the easiest and cheapest solution! It didn’t work – at all. The ants walked right across the tape without any problems.

I decided to buy and ant moat. After looking at so many plastic and metal ones that received mediocre reviews, I came across this beauty.


Now the hummingbirds can enjoy their drink without the ants and I don’t have to make nectar as often. I love watching these little guys from my kitchen window as I do dishes.

Do you have issues with pests at your hummingbird feeders? Any tips to keep them away?

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Parade of Lettuces

I was out looking at the potager yesterday and noticing how beautiful all the lettuces are getting. There’s something so pretty about Batavian and Butterhead lettuces, they almost look like roses. Edible gardens really can be just as beautiful as ornamental gardens, in fact I think they’re more beautiful in some cases. Here’s a parade of some of the lettuces growing in the back potager. I planted 16 different varieties this year and I love each and every one.











I really love butterheads and the varieties with red tinged leaves. They’re all just as tasty as they are pretty too!

What’s your favorite kind of lettuce to grow?

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