Wine Barrel and Nest Update.....

The madrone "nest" is going to be a box of kindling.

The twigs and branches have no flexibility.  So after a lot of effort,  I have decided that no self-respecting bird would use madrone as nest making material.  However, that doesn't mean that I have given up on the idea of building a great big messy nest.  I will just head down to the creek and get some willow that has a lot more give to it.

Wine barrels with beans

Maybe the nest didn't turn out, but the vegetable beds are doing well.  We have planted regular green beans, black beans, Romanos, red kidney beans and Peregions.  Peregions are an heirloom bean from here in Oregon. This is our second year of  planting them. The Holstein cow of the bean world, I love their black and white markings.

Heirloom Peregion Beans

It is our fourth year to plant red kidney beans.  Every year they do better.  We plant the seeds from the previous year's crop.  They have acclimated well to our cold short growing seasons.  The kidney beans started as a bush bean, but are reverting back to pole beans.  It will be interesting to see if the Peregions and the black beans do the same.

Red beets with a couple of sunflowers.

We planted a lot of beets, both here and in the regular garden.  We tried the golden beets a few years ago.  Really, really like them, but they don't germinate as well as the red beets, and of course, they don't make your pee turn red.  Our garden looks great........................if today were May 15. 
May all your beets, red or gold, germinate!