Tastes Like Christmas!

Dancy Mandarins-Bird Back 40

That's the line I heard uttered from one of my co-workers earlier this month when I handed per a portion of a freshly harvested and just peeled Dancy Mandarin. Her eyes opened wide as she proclaimed: "Tastes like Christmas!" And you know what? She was right on the money. Because the Dancy Mandarin does indeed taste like Christmas. It's just one reason why the Dancy is known as the "Christmas Tangerine."

That's the old girl, pictured to the right. And when I say "old," I am being just a tad facetious. True -- the Dancy was the first tree I ever planted in the Bird Back 40. But that was way, way, way, way back in 2007. That's right. The Dancy Mandarin officially turns eight years old this month. I found it, tucked away, in a lonely Home Depot garden section corner. It was love at first sight.

Owari Satsuma Mandarin-Bird Back 40

We've added much more since then. Take -- for example -- this tasty mandarin offering to your immediate left. That, my friends, is the Owari Satsuma. It is "allegedly" the best tasting mandarin on the planet. That's what the commercial growers are selling at the moment at all the mandarin farms scattered about Placer and Sutter Counties. You can also find them in your local grocery stores -- but don't mistake them for "Cuties" (that's a different type of mandarin called Clementine).

The Owari Satsuma is in demand for a couple of different reasons. First, it's probably the sweetest mandarin to be found anywhere. Most citrus has a sweet and sour combination. But not the Owari Satsuma. It's just sweet. That's not a bad thing -- but if you like that sour punch in your citrus -- the Owari is not your cup of tea. Another reason why it's highly desired is that it's mostly seedless. Sure -- you're going to run across one of two them in each piece of fruit. But two is better than twenty -- if you're into the seedless type of citrus.

Murcott Mandarin-Bird Back 40

Another thing the Owari Satsuma has going for it is that it can take the knockout punch of sustained freezing weather and keep right on ticking. This isn't true for many types of citrus trees. But, as it turns out, the Owari Satsuma and the Dancy can handle that icy punch and not succumb to the elements. That's a plus, as I discovered last year, when Mister Snow Miser moved into the Bird Back 40 and set up an icicle factory for the masses.

Another citrus offering to be found in the Bird Back 40 is the Murcott Mandarin. While it isn't quite as cold resistant as the Owari Satsuma or the Dancy -- it offers one big advantage. The Murcott produces tasty, delicious, mostly seedless mandarins AFTER the Owari Satsuma and Dancy have played out. That's a big plus if you enjoy picking fresh citrus from the backyard offerings. And there's nothing I like more than stepping out into the yard in the morning and falling into a deep hole the dog has dug right next to the Murcott Mandarin tree.

Dancy Mandarin, Left-Owari Satsuma Mandarin, Right

Not that I've ever done that. Stupid dog.

For some odd reason, despite the drought, this is turning out to be a record year for citrus production in California. Some Owari Satsuma growers opened their roadside stands two weeks ahead of schedule. The trees are packed with fruit. The heavy rains we've received this month have also been a blessing in disguise, as my Dancy mandarins are packed with a juicy sweetness that's been missing in previous years.

Dancy mandarins are the original "Christmas tangerine." They are the fruit that mother packed into Christmas stockings for my brother and sisters a very long time ago. We didn't get this kind of treat often as we foraged for most of our fresh fruit and citrus. But tangerines were hard to come by and not at all cheap in the late 1960's-early 1970's. They didn't last long on Christmas morning. That much I can attest too.

Christmas Day Mimosas Anyone?

This is why I always make sure that the wife that is Venus always gets two or three Dancy mandarins packed into her stocking for Christmas Day. It's a tribute to my family of the past. And then, of course, we juice those plus another 100 of them for Christmas Day mimosas featuring Spanish Cava and freshly squeezed Dancy mandarin juice.

Hey! So I started our own Christmas tradition! Something wrong with that?

Christmas Garden Gifts

A Merry Bird Christmas

I had intended the title of this post to be "last minute gardening gifts for Christmas." Uh yeah, I'm a tad late. In fact, I'm not really done with Christmas shopping quite yet. Because, when it comes to the wonderful wife that is Venus, Christmas comes 365 days a year.

However, I did run into some problems this year when she retorted "NOTHING," in response to my question of "what do you want for Christmas, dearest?" That's a rather tough answer. If I had actually put nothing under the tree for Christmas Day, I could see myself camping in our North Natomas backyard for a rather extended stay.

A Favorite Bird Gardening Haunt

Though I am a fan of camping, I'd rather pass on the somewhat cold and quite waterlogged Bird Back 40. Besides, there's really no place to pitch a tent. Unless I want it to float away.

Still, the wife deserved something for Christmas Day. And, as I walked the aisles of Emigh's Ace Hardware this Christmas season (one of my favorite haunts), plenty of gift-gardening opportunities presented themselves. Instead of receiving "nothing," she would get items that made digging in the dirt that much more enjoyable.

Plus -- these are the types of things that vegetable gardeners really can't be without.

Cat Play Toys -- aka -- Garden Labels

PLANT LABELS: It's a simple thing actually, but you'd be surprised how quickly these things vanish in the Bird Back 40. Every row of seeds -- every tomato plant -- deserves a plant label. Sure -- our pesky cats have been known to knock a few of these into next year (bad cat!), but labels keep the garden in order. They also help us tell the difference between Atomic Red Carrots, Solar Yellow Carrots, and Cosmic Purple Carrots.

What's that? Purple carrots? They really make those things? Why, yes they do! Not just "make" them, but grow them. Carrots come in the colors of the rainbow and thanks to some fine work by researchers in all things vegetables, come packed with nutrients. Each row gets a label -- and with some 20 odd raised gardening beds -- that's a lot of rows.

Garden Sloggers for the Bird Back 40

GARDEN SLOGGERS: This is the one gift that made the wife's Christmas morning. Venus appreciates a pair of good shoes -- and now she's got a pair for her exploits in the Bird Back 40. I've been promised that these sloggers are appropriately named, and can handle wind, rain, mud or anything else that Mother Nature can throw at them.

I found the sloggers hanging on a back wall near the gardening department and couldn't resist. Call it an "impulse purchase." And -- try as they might -- our pesky cats cannot chew holes into these things.

Green Stretch Tape

GREEN GARDENING TAPE: Somehow we manage to go through miles of this stuff. If there's one rule in the Bird Back 40 garden? You can never have enough gardening tape for odd jobs. Tomato plants looking overgrown and somewhat disheveled? Put the green gardening tape to work. Branches bending under the weight of far too much fruit? Bring on the green gardening tape! Want that tree to grow up instead of out? Where's my tape?

Tape is also used to ensure that vines grow up a fence line rather than on a sidewalk or walkway, where they can be trampled by a herd of marauding cats (notice a theme here?).

Okra, Cucumbers, Onions, Oh My!

SEEDS: You can't have a garden without gardening seeds. Since Venus tends to plant everything from seed, you'd be surprised how many we actually go through. We also normally plant more than one variety of each vegetable. I mean, why grow just one variety of cucumber when you can have five? It's like growing just one variety of tomato, which will never work.

I also make sure to buy several packages of green onions -- one of my garden favorites. In fact, I'm still pulling green onions that are leftover from last summer's garden. Purchasing several packets of the same thing ensures that we'll never run out of them, as we did three years ago when we ran out of green onion seed. Or when the pesky cats dig them up and scatter them to the wind.

GIFT CERTIFICATES: I've got to give credit to my brother Andy for dreaming this one up. A gift certificate to Peaceful Valley Farm Supply in Nevada City? Can you say "the perfect gift?" My thanks to Charlotte "Daffodil Planter" Germane for whispering into my brother's Facebook ear while he was searching for Christmas items.

And while we're on this particular subject -- why is one of Sacramento's best nurseries located in Nevada City? Not that I'm complaining, of course, but I'd probably wind up living there if they'd just move a tad closer to home.

Precious "The Destroyer"

Thanks to these last minute gardening gift items and a few more surprises, Christmas Day came and went without a hitch. To borrow a line from Twas the Night Before Christmas, "not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse."

It didn't help matters much when Precious decided to invade the Christmas Village and make it her personal nap spot for the day (nobody moves Precious from her nap spot). But the fact that she didn't actually destroy it in the process, or knock over any carefully placed figures has to count for something.

I just wish she'd show the same respect when knocking carefully placed plant labels into the next century.

Winter Means It's Time to Say Goodbye

A Charlie Brown Christmas

This is probably my least favorite time of the year. Despite the holiday madness -- Thanksgiving turkey with far too much stuffing (not to speak of the butter) and the task of setting up Christmas lights and the Christmas tree -- it's also a melancholy time for me.

I'm a gardener. I like to see things grow and nourish. And you just don't get much of that during the months of December, January and February. Oh -- sure -- the break does give you some time to start thinking about next year's garden. But it's a wait that is far too long for me.

Perhaps we need a new law? Perish the thought!

The wonderful wife that is Venus and I always wait far too long to tear out the summer garden. Here it is -- December 4th -- and I'm not too proud to admit that we still have a couple of dead and dying tomato plants that I still haven't stuffed into the Green Waste can yet (hey -- it can only hold so much).

Heirloom Tomato Plant Monsters

It wasn't the greatest year in terms of tomatoes -- for anyone that I know of. It started poorly with sickly starter plants in the spring -- we never did get the Sacramento summer heat needed to produce a bumper crop of heirloom tomatoes and then ended a lot quicker than I imagined with a couple of frozen nights in early November.

Heirloom Tomato Season: Exit Stage Left!

Don't be fooled by the extra large heirloom tomato plant crop to your left. It may look big -- but this was one disappointing year. This one bed produced one tomato blunder after another -- ranging from poor production to a nasty run of Blossom End Rot (BER). Nearly every German Orange Strawberry that came off the vine this year was stricken with BER.

Yet -- the Black tomato to the left -- Evil Seed -- and the Brandywine planted to the right suffered no such BER problem. They were not overwhelmingly productive -- no tomato plant was this year with the exception of the Reliable Reds -- but why just one plant would suffer from BER problems while others planted a foot away did not continues to vex me.

There are no answers here -- just questions.

So -- the goal this one fine, fall day was to move these plants into that Green Waste can pictured to the immediate right of the tomato jungle. This was easier said than done. A gallon of water cannot contain five quarts. It can hold four. And I had far more plant material than space. And this was just one of THREE beds that had reached the "end of the life cycle."

You can see why we're still tearing out portions of the summer garden.

I'm certainly not going to repeat the same mistake I made three years ago -- when I was told by a certain, high-ranking, Sacramento City employee that I could order a "special pickup" from a Green Waste Truck. I thought that was a wonderful idea -- so I spent an entire weekend day piling up my entire summer garden in the street.

Imagine my "chagrin," when I called for a "special pickup" and was informed on the other end of the line that these "pickups" were limited to three to four times per year. "So, when's the next pickup," I asked. "We'll be there in six months," the cheery voice on the other end of the phone replied.

Great...My neighbors were just THRILLED with that pile of garden waste that slowly vanished over the course of six to eight weeks. As soon as that Green Waste truck emptied my Green Waste can -- I packed it full again.

My method of removing tomato plants is fairly simple. I attack the outer edges with a long-handled pair of garden shears (which are also used for cutting back roses). Once the growth around the PVC cages has been cut away -- I employ the "tug and rip" method -- which removes the vines from inside most of the cage (you'd be surprised how far these vines can travel). At that point -- I remove the cage from around the still-visible base of the plant -- toss it aiside -- and dig up the root system with a well-used shovel.

Rip, Tug, Shred!

Removing the eight plants from this bed -- plus the numerous volunteers that sprung up around it (they kept the Vole population well fed) -- took about four hours.

Getting all of those tomato plants out of the backyard and into a Sacramento City Green Waste truck is a process that may last well into 2011.

So -- why go through all this trouble and effort? I thought you would have figured it out by now.

It's because we're gardeners. Which means -- we're quite insane...

The Martha Stewart of Gardening

The lovely wife that is Venus will take gardening to a whole new level in 2010.

Yep -- thanks to her rather sneaky husband -- it's no longer just "tilling the soil" in our North Natomas compound. It's backyard gardening -- "high society style."

Since when did gardening become high society? How about when I said it did? Good enough? No? You want more? OK. I got more.

As I was wracking ye olde noggin earlier this month in search of the perfect Christmas gift for my model-perfect wife (we always take a solemn vow to not buy each other anything and then wind up breaking it in the most imaginative of ways) -- I ran across a posting from fellow blogger Daffodil Planter.

I've always loved DP because -- not only does she live in the God's Country that is Nevada County -- she has a certain "flair" for the art of gardening. I've never considered growing heirloom tomatoes to be a work of art -- but she takes that simple subject to a whole new level.

In other words -- Bill Bird grows and eats heirloom tomatoes. DP -- on the other hand -- turns them into a Leonardo Da Vinci work of art.

At any rate -- DP was highlighting ten great gardening gifts for Christmas on her blog -- when I ran across the posting for the Dianne Benson (The Best From DianneB) Gardening Gift Bag. "Dianne Who," was my first thought? Followed closely by "Dianne What?" Who is this Dianne person and why is she intruding upon my garden?

But when I saw the bag pictured above -- and began to do a little background research about Dianne Benson -- a mischievious thought zapped the precious few electrons that are still permeating my skull. This was the perfect gift for the perfect wife. Why not give the best that gardening tools have to offer to a lady that can spend hours creating magic in the garden?

And so -- Bill Bird made the magic happen with the purchase of the Gardening Gift Bag and a set of Felco Pruners (which are EXTREMELY hard to find locally I might add). Folks -- you're not going to find this stuff at your local Home Depot. Nope -- these are some of those rare tools that aren't mass-produced in China. Nothing against that "Made in China" label -- but I was sure pleased to find out that something as simple as a gardening trowel is still "Made in America" or made anywhere else for that matter (Felco pruners are manufactured in Switzerland).

It's not just the label issue either. It's the guarantee that when you stick this spade into the ground -- it's not going to bend like a piece of rubber. It's not going to snap in two like so many of our tools have done. It's not going to rust, bend, break or fail in every imaginable way possible.

This is "gardening in style."

As I eagerly watched the wife rip into her main present on Christmas Day -- I must admit -- I was a bit disappointed with her initial reaction. "Dianne Who," she said? "Dianne What?" But -- as she slowly fit pieces of her collection into the "Dianne Benson Leather Gardening Belt," I saw this little grin slowly blossom into a wide smile.

As she was fitting pieces of the collection together just last night -- she began to understand. This wasn't a Louis Vuitton purse -- nor a pair of Prada shoes (not that she wouldn't love both). This was something better.

The Diane Benson Garden Gift Bag comes complete with the following:

1. The all-important "yard bag."
   
2. The "Ultimate Trowel"
   
3. Japanese Clippers
   
4. New Age English Twine
   
5. Never rust Lead Plant Markers and Magic Pencil
   

Throw in the Garden Tool Belt with the #4 Felco Pruners -- and you have a gardener who is ready and well-equipped for any garden challenge.

Check that -- and make it "garden in style."

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas...

The kid is going to be alright. She tells me she is -- so I have to believe her. Folks -- it's tough to write a blog full of cheer when someone I know, respect and like very much is hurting.

No -- it's not us. Venus and I are just fine. It's another blogger who I have come to respect and admire through the years -- and for good reason. She's going to have a tough Christmas season. Lord -- I don't want that to happen. But there's not much I can do either.

I'll be honest: I'm a SAP for the Christmas season. I'm a SAP for Christmas music. It's why I added the Vince Guaraldi selections to the music lineup. If you're anywhere close to the sappiness level that I am -- well -- it's music like this that can bring tears to your eyes. It is the music of Christmas past. The music of family and friends who we love with all of our hearts -- and who are no longer with us on this Earth.

Of course -- I know that not everyone is thrilled with music on the blog. Thank you Mr. Hoffman. But you're the only one who has complained. Pam Farley -- aka Brown Thumb Mama -- loves it -- and so do her children. She's told me as much. So there. NYAH!

There's not much going on in the Backyard of Bird at the moment. The Hello Kitty Bees have settled into a winter slumber. The tomatoes -- cucumbers -- peas and bell peppers are pretty much done. The pomegranate harvest -- while wonderful -- is slowing down. The hummingbirds are still fighting over that bottle of sugar-water in the feeder -- which keeps the cats active. Other than that -- it's a little slow.

But not so in other yards.

Look at that nice gift to your left!

These -- Ladies and Gentlepeople -- are what's known as Hachiya Persimmons. Not just any persimmon mind you -- but the baking type. And -- as you might guess -- these aren't from any store. Nope! The best persimmons are those that come from a neighborhood tree -- and that's exactly where these came from -- courtesy of a South Natomas gardener.

Yes -- you can say that Nels Christensen is committed. Or -- he should be (sorry Nels). I first met him when I started this blog several years ago. I was shocked to find out that someone other than myself was actually reading it.

Nels entered the picture two plus years ago when I managed to murder and entire crop of heirloom tomato seedlings. Plants that Venus and I lovingly tendered for months on end in a spare bedroom expired in a matter of hours thanks to a series of mistakes made by yours truly.

Nels at first inquired if I was interested in a "plant exchange." When I explained to him I had nothing to "exchange" other than dead seedlings -- he was kind enough to gift me with two starter plants: a Pineapple Beefsteak and an Omar's Lebanese.

Nels is one of those backyard orchardists that I really admire. He's got a near 20-year head start on me. One step into his backyard is like stepping into paradise. It's where you'll find fruit and citrus trees that are now in full production. You can feast on thornless blackberries that grow by the hundreds beneath a 15-20 foot tall Bacon Avocado tree.

But the star of the show? A massive Hachiya Persimmon tree located against a side fence. So -- when Nels showed up a few weeks ago with a flat of baking persimmons -- I wasn't surprised.

However -- that wasn't all he bought. Nels has been busy. He also brought another holiday gift in the form of tomato seeds. Not just a few seeds mind you. But ONE THOUSAND HEIRLOOM TOMATO SEEDS.

Egads. That's enough for the next 20 summer gardens!

But -- there's a catch here folks. And it's why -- in the spirit of the Holiday Season -- why I intend to share Nels' gift with all of you (provided you want any of this).

Nels is a big fan of EBAY. As he was looking at the site one day -- he wandered across a lot of tomato seeds for sale. Not just any seed mind you -- but seeds for every variety of heirloom tomato that you can possibly think of.

The seeds were offered -- in lots of 1,000 -- by a grower who goes by the name of Tomato Bob. Bob -- you see -- has quite the operation going. He grows over 600 varieties of heirloom tomatoes in Hilliard, OH. And -- as Tomato Bob's website claims -- they are a"small family owned seed company located in central Ohio specializing in over 700 different varieties of heirloom tomatoes, hot peppers, flowers, and vegetables that have been passed down through families for generations."

Impressed? But wait! There's a catch. You see -- the "lot" of seeds that Nels ran into on EBAY happens to be what's "leftover" from seed packaging efforts. According to "Tomato Bob," there are always a few extra seeds of each variety that get lost in "The Matrix" during the sorting and packaging process.

These seeds are then gathered (swept off the floor?), packaged and offered in lots of 1,000 on EBAY. So -- the catch here is this:

Bill Bird has 1,000 heirloom tomato seeds. But he has absolutely NO CLUE of what varieties these seeds represent. Could they all be cherry varieties? Perhaps. Could they be half Brandywine and half Green Zebra? Sure -- I suppose.

Point is -- I really don't know! Neither does Nels. Nor does "Tomato Bob."

So -- the offer to the gentle readers of this gentle and little-read gardening blog is this. You want free heirloom tomato seeds? I got free tomato seeds. You want ten? Twenty? Thirty? I've got them.

This is my Christmas present -- and Nels as well -- to you. Free heirloom tomato seeds. If you're interested -- drop me a line at billbird@gmail.com with a return address and how many seeds you desire -- and I'll not only fill that order -- I'll take care of the postage.

Just don't blame me if you wind up growing 20 Yellow Pear plants.