Recycled Cargo Pants Messenger Bag
Well this is a small departure from what you are used to seeing on Sprawlstainable, but recently I was inspired to get into a creative crafty mode and came up with this project for making a messenger bag purse out of recycled/reused cargo pants I bought at my local Goodwill, some fabric from an upholstery [...]
Cicada Invasion 2011 Video! Amazing and Disgusting
Tens of thousands of Cicada septendecim from the XIX Brood are making an >80 decibel racket in my St. Louis, Missouri backyard garden. Totally gross and loud. Can someone please tell me what they are shooting out of their butts? Yuck! I took these videos on June 2, 2011. Some people think they are locust, but [...]
April 2011 Garden Photos
Here are some photos from my garden in April 2011. It was a very rainy month and some of the photos really turned out nice…they are worth a click to see the larger image because the thumbnails really don’t do them justice. I particularly like the way the rain droplets look…I think my favorite photo [...]
April 2011 Garden Time Lapse Video
Here is the first time lapse video of the garden….April 2011 Note the video begins with the forsythia in bloom and the hill still brown and not cut back or mulched. Then the serviceberries bloom and the grass and hill start to turn green. The next installment for May should show the hill burst into [...]
Blog Post – Actual One Year Savings Data on our Geothermal System
by Mary on May 11, 2011 | Comments Off
Recycled Cargo Pants Messenger Bag
by Mary on August 22, 2011 | Comments Off
Well this is a small departure from what you are used to seeing on Sprawlstainable, but recently I was inspired to get into a creative crafty mode and came up with this project for making a messenger bag purse out of recycled/reused cargo pants I bought at my local Goodwill, some fabric from an upholstery sample book, and a small piece of new fabric.
July 2011 Garden Photos
by Mary on August 12, 2011 | Comments Off
Wow, July was a very dry month for us here in Missouri…although the total amount of rainfall was near normal…that 3 inches all came in the first few days of the month…and then nothing for the rest of the month. Things have struggled in the drought and heat this month…there were several weeks of very high temperatures…many days in the triple digits. It has been almost impossible to keep up with weeding chores because of the heat…so things are getting a little overgrown in places…it is always difficult to stay motivated to maintain the garden when it is so hot, and this summer was a record setter!
June 2011 Garden Photos
by Mary on July 24, 2011 | Comments Off
Here is a nice collection of Photos from June, although I am a little late getting these posted…Things looked good in June…had regular rain…maybe too much rain…and the vegetable garden was a few weeks behind what it was last year…but most things look healthy and the season in quite underway. I was on a garden tour this month called the Sustainable Backyard Tour…we had about 50 people come by…and the garden looked really nice. I got a new wicker bench and chair which I have been wanting for several years for our main patio…and the weeds were mostly under control. The wildlife has been incredible this month, and it really feels like a garden of Eden out there.
2011 Food Growing totals
by Mary on July 24, 2011 | Comments Off
Last Updated August 18, 2011
Here are the current food growing totals…as well as last years totals so you can compare how we are doing. We are definietly behind for the year, but I have started a bunch of fall crops and hope to make up the harvest in a month or two.
Cicada Invasion 2011 Video! Amazing and Disgusting
by Mary on June 3, 2011 | Comments Off
Tens of thousands of Cicada septendecim from the XIX Brood are making an >80 decibel racket in my St. Louis, Missouri backyard garden. Totally gross and loud. Can someone please tell me what they are shooting out of their butts? Yuck! I took these videos on June 2, 2011. Some people think they are locust, but they are not, but it does feel like a plague with all these insects. Thank goodness I covered all 9 of my new fruit trees with netting…unfortunately, the un-netted serviceberries are getting the brunt of the cicada army. It will be a long 4-6 weeks until they are gone. Luckily they quiet down after dark.
Serviceberry Jam (and Strawberry Jam)
by Mary on June 2, 2011 | Comments Off
Today I had the house to myself and I decided to embark on my first Jamalama (Jam making and canning) I’m doing Serviceberry and Strawberry. Of course the first thing you must do when jammin’ is turn the music mix up real loud…I hope you like Jammin’ too…we’re jammin’ he he 
Two Month Garden Time Lapse
by Mary on May 31, 2011 | Comments Off
Here is a time lapse video of my hill garden from April 1st 2011 to may 31st 2011. It begins with the forsythia in bloom in the pot, and some bulbs. Soon the serviceberry trees bloom white and everything starts turning green. The Siberian Iris in the pot are growing, and when they begin blooming the bearded Iris do too way to the left of the image. The hill garden blooms in very light pink from the primrose and is also very purple from the catmint (although the video doesn’t show it well) Towards the end you start seeing the serviceberries turning red and our ladder is out so we can pick them. There was a lot of rainy days during this two months…and we did some entertaining towards the end of the video.
May 2011 Garden Photos
by Mary on May 26, 2011 | Comments Off
May was a great month for the garden! I spent a lot of time out there and am pleased that it looks as good as it does. It has rained quite a bit and everything is extremely green! I stepped back for some of these photos so you can see the design of the garden more instead of focusing so much on individual flowers. I hope you enjoy taking a tour of the garden, I wish you all could see it in person because the pictures just don’t do it justice. It is like a garden of paradise out there, with so many birds and animals, flowers and fruit, I am truly one lucky gardener!
April 2011 Garden Photos
by Mary on May 3, 2011 | Comments Off
Here are some photos from my garden in April 2011. It was a very rainy month and some of the photos really turned out nice…they are worth a click to see the larger image because the thumbnails really don’t do them justice. I particularly like the way the rain droplets look…I think my favorite photo is the Solomon seal, but the strawberry photo is a close second…actually, I like them all. The rain this month has made everything very green and vivid.
