Ah the winter weather

how it just goes static now. Overcast, cold, slightly breezy and yesterday it was clear mostly with some wind. Weather person said there was a Santa Ana condition coming and I think it came and went. In cold weather it just means it's dry and cold instead of dry and warm.

I took some more scraps out to the pile and noticed some little piles of dirt and some dirt pushed up into the compost as well.

Hard to get the dirt color corrected to look like dirt when it comes out pink but it's the same color as the other dirt. 

Anyway, the little specks are worm poop! Yes, worm castings which is why the dirt is mostly clay and not anything organic. The dirt pile in the compost is almost in the middle, might go out there tomorrow and stir it up. Mostly onion skins and ends as well as two tea bags. I picked up some 'Sleepytime' tea for the evenings, rather tasty with chamomile, peppermint and other herbs in it so it's perfect for the compost pile. Will have some potato skins soon and maybe some green onion and other trimmings later.

So other than dirt, the camellia continues to open it's one flower slowly all the other plants are asleep except for the tree that is over the fence where we park It's in full bloom, shedding pollen and... it sounded like there was a hive of bees in it. I may have to post that on fb as blogger only likes videos from youtube or my computer. It was luckily quiet enough when we went to the car that was the loudest thing but since the sky was not as cloudy and the bees and flowers were so small it was hard to see anything unless you focused on one cluster of tiny flowers. (I don't remember the name of that tree unfortunately it might be an ash tree.)

The iris that was left behind is still growing and actually doing better. Someone is taking care of it for sure. It should be dormant and cut back by now but this is San Diego... anything goes when it wants to.

I think when I get a little extra money next month I can get my soil and do spring planting. I hoped for winter but that's how it goes.

Gardening is not cheap for initial set up but if you save seeds and do your own seedlings, have a ready pile of compost and a few other things already set aside, the maintenance is not as expensive. Self-sufficient/sustainable gardening. If you are lucky enough to have a friend with a farm or livestock, there's a part of your fertilizer. Gosh to have all the animals my friend has, you will always have compost and manure of all types (except cow).

Suburban/city farming is different though. I would not be able to use manure at all due to how close the garden is to the building. So, organic fertilizer and purchased compost and soil is necessary. I have looked in the local area for community gardens but there's only one and it is not close enough to make it an option. As for anywhere that has horses or other animals for manure, one of the neighbors has chickens, I can hear the rooster every day. But going to a random neighbor that  may or may not have a good grasp of English, much like the gardener, and ask for chicken poop? Nope.

So it will be a spring planting next year when I get soil and here's to a more productive and less destructive growing season!