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Greetings, and welcome to the new subscribers!
These newsletters take me a week or more to write. I scribble notes of things I want to include, then add according to what's actually happening in the garden or with the weather. We had some good rains in September to close out the year, and we're supposed to see more this coming week. I hope this bodes well for snow this winter.
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I had a light frost on some zinnias a couple weeks ago, but in general, there hasn't been much cold weather or dieback from frost. That will surely happen this month! But when is the perennial mystery. Like I always say in the fall, pay attention to weather forecasts, and be prepared to cover plants to extend the season as long as possible. But so far, it's extending on its own! As I'm polishing up this newsletter on Sunday morning, it's 36º at daybreak. No killing frost yet.
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How It Started and How It Ended
I posted this on Facebook, but I know a lot of you don't do social media, so I'm sending it here.
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It was an impulsive move to grow starts for sale. The first year, my recycling habit was evident, and there was someone in town who I swear ate nothing but yogurt. He supplied me with more containers than I could use. I had a small strawbale coldframe for hardening off. That was 2013.
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Tomatoes and summer squash in yogurt containers in the first strawbale coldframe.
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The second year, I had a website and started to get all professional n shit, so I figured I should buy pots to add to that image. At the same time, the yogurt people moved to Santa Fe. The timing was perfect.
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Over the years, the coldframe got bigger and so did my business. I needed more space. In 2017, I bought my first greenhouse and retired the coldframe. I used the straw for mulch.
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In 2020, along came covid, and my business doubled. I wasn’t prepared with enough seed, soil, or space. I had to resurrect the coldframe. In 2021, I bought a second greenhouse for overflow but still had to use the coldframe as the business was still growing. It has continued at a steady pace since, but my body hasn’t kept up. I scaled back this year and finally made the decision to quit.
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Greenhouse #1 and Greenhouse #2 in the background
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The overflow greenhouse has been sold. The original greenhouse will turn into Noni’s Hobby Greenhouse where I can play with plants and relax. You know, like retired people are supposed to do… The solar greenhouse attached to the house where the starts get started will be turned back into a warm, sunny reading nook for winter.
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Thank you all for your business, friendships, and sharing these years. I'm not disappearing, just morphing.
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THE NEW BOOK!
I was just informed that The New Book was a finalist in the 2025 New Mexico Book Awards in the Cookbook / Gardening / Crafts / Hobby / Home category! That's quite an honor!
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You can order The New Book directly from UNM Press or shop at Moxie, Earthgoods, Gutiz, op.cit. Books, and always from me. Someone said they saw it at B&N in Santa Fe, so if you see it somewhere else, let me know!
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Writing, Art, & Gardening
I'm getting back to writing. I started a Substack called Backstories and Brain Chatter. It will be essays, not garden how-to, although that might get thrown in since gardening is what I know best! Subscribe to find out where it goes! I've opened up paid subscriptions, because a dear friend wanted to support my work. There is no paywall, though. All content is available to everyone. Think of a paid subscription as Buy Me a Coffee.
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I've turned my collage ladies into greeting cards! Earth Mama Greeting Cards are 5"x7" and blank inside so you can write your own message for holidays, birthdays, or just to say Hi, I'm thinking of you. You can also add text right on the website, and they'll print it however you want it. It's semi-gloss paper, but there are other types to choose from.
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I don't have any on hand yet. There's still much to figure out, but now that the garden is done, I'll have time. Hopefully I'll have other products as time goes on. Stay tuned!
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Earth Mama Greeting Card - Each mama has a name. This is Taylor (not as in Swift!).
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As for gardening, I keep getting the question, Will you be able to NOT grow next year? like it's an addiction (which it is!). I'm definitely not doing CSAs. I'll never grow to that scale again. I might do something, but it's only October. I need to enjoy the fall, get through the winter, and see what feels right come spring.
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At home, I've harvested all the food the grasshoppers didn't get. We made candied jalapeños from my peppers. I sprinkled seeds of reseeding annuals in beds where I'd like to see them grow and saved seeds of beans and a wide variety of zinnias. Paul and Enriques shared perennials they grew from seed, so there's still a little planting to do. What doesn't go in the ground will go into what I call the nursery, the shade on the north side of a fence. I think I need to make a new bed or two to accommodate their generosity!
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I turned off my hydrant when it was raining so much and have been spot watering with rain water. I'll roll the hoses up soon, since nothing looks thirsty. I'm picking dried grasses and seed pods for arrangements.
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This time of year, I go around the yard and label new plantings with bamboo stakes with orange flagging before they go dormant. Yesterday I found two new milkweed plants that are about 4" tall, so they'll get labeled, too. They don't sprout until it's fairly warm out, so I want to be sure not to accidentally dig them up in the spring. I'll draw new maps of the yard, too. Just this spring, I pulled up a plant I'd just put in the ground last year. I thought it was something I'd meant to remove, when it was actually what took the place of that plant. Argh. I didn't read my own maps!
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I'm looking forward to a winter without the stress of planning CSAs! I can feel the available psychic space already. It's lovely.
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Holiday Shopping
There is a limited supply of Renee's Garden Scatter Cans at Earthgoods for $10!
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T-shirts are $12, available from me. All cotton, L and XL in men's and women's sizes. Add some color to your life!
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The Write Shit Down Garden Journal and Ranchitos Keychains
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Please forward this email in its entirety. All rights reserved.
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If you received this newsletter from a gardening friend who loves you, you can subscribe here to get your own copy!
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Ads are $25/mo with a 6-month commitment. One-time placement is $30. The newsletter goes out on the first weekend of the month. You provide artwork, and I link to your website or event page. Contact me for more information. Thanks!
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