Beyond the Bell Pepper

Picture courtesy of Leslie Seaton

under CC BY-SA 2.0 license

While I will get around to planting bell peppers this season, first I wanted to plant some pasilla chile.

The pasilla chile is a large pepper, usually used in dishes like chile relleno.  It's a very mild pepper and, where bell pepper seems to generate a lot of stomach acid even though it has no heat at all for me, the pasilla leaves me without any indigestion afterward.

I was about to go to our local Latin supermarket to buy one and get the seeds out of it but my wife said she already had one so I scooped some seeds out of that.

I keep a few egg cartons on hand because our local egg ranch sells beautiful, loose jumbo brown eggs. Or they did, Friday was their last day in business so suddenly, I don't have such a pressing need to keep the egg cartons around anymore. I'm using one as a seed tray.

Fill it up with potting soil...

...put a couple of seeds in each compartment...

and water in.

I really hope these do well because I'd like to use them in place of bell peppers in many of my recipes.

Darryl

Copyright 2014 - Darryl Musick

All Rights Reserved

TEXAS - Galveston Island – A Great Place for Wheelchair Travelers

NOTE: Kelley Van Auken passed away Sunday, March 23, 2014. In tribute, we are re-running this story she did for us three years ago...

Today, we have a guest post by Kelley Van Auken about Galveston Island, located about 50 miles southeast of Houston...

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For most people in a wheelchair who travel to a beach, the sand is something to be admired from a balcony or a boardwalk.  The idea of easily being on the beach or taking a roll along the water’s edge is usually not a part of the vacation plan.  Galveston Island, however, has gone to great lengths to try to make their beaches an exception. 

Throughout the island there are five beaches (sometimes called “parks”) that have manual beach wheelchairs available for free.  It does cost $8/car to enter the beach, but for an enjoyable day on the beach it is well worth it.  The beaches that currently have wheelchairs are: Stewart Beach, East Beach/Apffel Park, Dellanera Park, Pocket Park #2, and Pocket Park #3.  In addition to these beaches, along the Seawall there are places that have ramps down to the sand at no cost.  There is parallel parking along the street on the beach side (easy for a van with a ramp), with disabled parking spaces here and there. 

The island even has beaches where you can drive your car onto the sand.  And, if you are more interested in the ocean, the 61^st Street fishing pier is one of many that are accessible and it also has wheelchair accessible bathrooms. 

If you can drag yourself away from the relaxing beach, Galveston also offers some great tourist attractions for persons in wheelchairs.  One of the most popular tourist attractions, Moody Gardens, is a 242 acre facility that has vans with ramps to transport disabled travelers throughout the complex.  All of the buildings have ramps leading to the entrances and wheelchair accessible bathrooms.  Their theatres have accessible seats with removable arms, the man made lagoons have ramps to get into the water, and the paddlewheel boat is accessible. 

In addition to Moody Gardens, there is a free ferry to Bolivar Island that offers great opportunities to watch dolphins in the wild.  Unless you want to drive around Bolivar, rather than driving your car on, park in the parking lot and walk/roll onto the ferry.  (If you drive on it might be impossible to let a ramp out of a vehicle.) 

While The Strand and Postoffice Arts District have the same problems as other downtowns with some places not being wheelchair accessible, it’s my opinion that there are enough accessible quaint shops, galleries, and restaurants to make it a great area to visit.  If a place looks inaccessible be sure to ask because some of the not-to-be-missed places are accessible through a side door.  Fortunately there are good ramps at each corner and plenty of parking lots with disabled parking spaces.

These are the main attractions I have enjoyed on Galveston Island.  I am sure there are many more that are great for wheelchair users, but it is hard for me to give a firsthand account of them.  I am addicted to the sand and the surf, and it is hard to pry me away from the beach! 

By Kelley Van Auken

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Condo building located directly on the beach on Galveston Island!

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The Season is Springing Out All Over

The blooms...they just keep on comin'.  Cymbidium hybrid Lloyd Hawkinson 'Madrigal' put out two spikes with these white and pink flowers.

That's not all, you can browse our posts for the last couple of weeks to see more cymbidiums in bloom.

This little dendrobium is blooming...

...as are our bletilla orchids. 

I always recommend the bletilla to people who say they can't grow orchids because these literally take no care at all from me.

Not to be outdone, our hanging basket dendrobium has opened too. This climate is perfect for dendrobiums.

This little Angel Face rose will be the first bloom for us this year.

And finally, after getting a big haircut last season, this Superbells Calibrachoa hybrid in a hanging basket is back.

Darryl
Copyright 2014 - Darryl Musick
All Rights Reserved

Dastardly Dandelion

I've got a small zucchini plant doing it's best to survive from fall, through winter, and now spring. I'm willing to give it a chance at a good warm season but this darn dandelion grew right underneath it.

Do you think I can get the weed out without killing the zuke? Let's see...

Gingerly, I put my trowel between the two plants. I wiggle it back and forth a bit to get down to the roots and pull up on the weed.

Success!

Now, let's see if this poor little plant can survive the shock and produce some good fruit for us. Like they say, what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger.

Darryl
Copyright 2014 - Darryl Musick
All Rights Reserved

Old Man Winter Never Got Old

OK, I guess I have to admit we're never going to get a freeze this year. Our winter turned out to last all of three days, maybe four if you push it, and it never dropped below 45 degrees (F).

I'm sitting here a week before the official start of spring, temperatures should hit 90 by tomorrow. Like the governor, I'm officially declaring the end of winter and an early spring.

Time to get back to work...

I've cleaned out the west wall and dumped a bag of Amend in it. This is an organic soil and soil amendment. How can you tell it's really organic? Just follow your nose.

Now that I've got that wonderful barnyard smell worked into the soil, let's plant.

I had a tough time with the tomatoes started from seeds last year. This year, it's a couple of buck-99 hybrid seedlings from Lowe's.

They pop in easy enough.

I will be growing most everything else from seed, though.  My wife found this little seed starter kit somewhere deep in the garage. It even comes with a free sample of fertilizer.

Each cell is a biodegradable square with a pellet of dried potting mix.  I water it and wait for the mix to expand.

Today, I'm planting onions, zucchinis, and...for the first time...I'm going to try some cantaloupe.

The onions are on the left and I'm putting in 2 zucchini seeds in each cell. Let them duke it out and I'll keep the best 2 or 3 plants to transplant.

Same with the cantaloupe.  Once planted, I'll put it on top of the whiskey barrel where I plant to transplant it later.

One last test of the sprinkler pattern then I'll count this job as done.

Darryl
Copyright 2014 - Darryl Musick
All Rights Reserved

Attack of the Killer Mockingbirds

Well, maybe not killer. I'm not even 100% sure it's mockingbirds but something's been eating my tomatoes and I've heard their calls mocking me in the morning (mockingbirds are an ongoing pestilence in our garden).

Before I get to that, however, we've got to take a look at the status of the backyard.

Our last in-ground tomato plant has just been played out.  I was going to harvest it this weekend before pulling it out but, as you can see from the top, something beat me to it.

No use delaying the inevitable, out it goes.

Now, it rests on the top of the weekend's clippings in our green waste barrel.

Next, I'll need to prepare the two blank spots in our side garden, above. Zucchini on the right; onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, and something else to be determined on the left. I think I'll skip the corn this year, maybe some nice, big pasilla chiles instead. Those are delicious!

It's citrus bloom time again. Here's the Meyer lemon buds...

...and here's the Cara Cara orange blossoms.

Finally, I'm able to scrounge this little last harvest. The last Meyer lemon, some tomatoes from our Cherry Falls hanging basket that'll go on some burgers I'm grilling tomorrow, and a tiny little zucchini I'll chop up into tomorrow's eggs.

Darryl 
Copyright 2014 - Darryl Musick
All Rights Reserved

Mow, Mow, Mow Your Lawn...

It's my least favorite gardening chore to do. Mowing the lawn is like doing the laundry...no matter how much you do it, you're going to have to do it again.

This week was a little extra painful. My schedule is to mow every two weeks. Last weekend...the due date...we had a (dry) year's worth of rain over the course of three days.  With the deluge, lightning, and thunder, I didn't want to become a human lightning rod.

So I waited one more week.

Now, I've got a very thick and shaggy lawn in need of a haircut. The picture at the top shows what three weeks of growth looks like on this lawn.

I won't begrudge you if you hire a gardener to do your lawn. Heck, I had a gardener at my old house where the backyard grass went on forever but with my tiny 500 square foot front yard, I really can't justify a gardener or even a riding mower.

Plugging in my string weed whacker to a 100 foot extension cord, I get to work on trimming the edges. I'll sweep that debris back onto the grass before mowing.

Next, it's just slogging through the grass with my lawn mower. I've just got a basic Craftsman from Sears but I'm happy I opted to go with the large back wheels, which are much easier to push through the thatch.

Still, it took about 6 stops to empty that bag of clippings to get the job done this week.

After all the effort, I must admit the front yard looks pretty sharp. Until another two weeks...

Darryl
Copyright 2014 - Darryl Musick
All Rights Reserved

Presenting the Musick Channel Family of Blogs

You may have noticed the change in banners at the top of the pages and maybe even our new Twitter feed.

Tim Musick has joined me as a partner in blogging and we've put together five blogs for your enjoyment.  This conglomeration of blogs is going under the umbrella banner of The Musick Channel.

In addition to The Cheapskate Urban Gardener becoming part of The Musick Channel, we've also got four more channels for you to check out...

Tim's Sports World - where Tim Musick muses on the world of sports...it's triumphs, controversies, and news.

The World on Wheels - The premiere travel site geared to those who use a wheelchair and their companions.

Tinseltown, USA! - An entertainment blog featuring the best of Hollywood in movies, TV, and more.

Musick's Music - How can we have a name like that and not be into music? Come here for our observations on the world of music, videos, and criticism.

You can find links to all of our blogs at our main web page, www.musickchannel.com, or follow our Twitter feed (www.twitter.con/musickchannel) where you'll get notices of all of our channel's posts. Please add to your favorites so you never miss news from our sites.

As always, our content is always free (but it is copyrighted, so ask before you use it).  You'll never be charged a penny to read our reports, see our pictures, or watch our videos.  We do appreciate it if you notice our Amazon links and do your shopping through them as we make a small commission on each purchase at no extra cost to you.

Thank you for you support, as we head towards our 5th anniversary of blogging, we hope to have a whole new world of information and entertainment for you.

Darryl Musick
Publisher, Writer, Editor, and Co-Owner of The Musick Channel

Tim Musick
Writer, Editor, Social Media Manager, and Co-Owner of The Musick Channel

Presenting the Musick Channel Family of Blogs

You may have noticed the change in banners at the top of the pages and maybe even our new Twitter feed.

Tim Musick has joined me as a partner in blogging and we've put together five blogs for your enjoyment.  This conglomeration of blogs is going under the umbrella banner of The Musick Channel.

In addition to The World on Wheels becoming part of The Musick Channel, we've also got four more channels for you to check out...

Tim's Sports World - where Tim Musick muses on the world of sports...it's triumphs, controversies, and news.

The Cheapskate Urban Gardener - I take square foot gardening and penny pinching to the extreme to create an urban oasis in the shadow of Los Angeles and show you tips on how to turn your yard into a green paradise too.

Tinseltown, USA! - An entertainment blog featuring the best of Hollywood in movies, TV, and more.

Musick's Music - How can we have a name like that and not be into music? Come here for our observations on the world of music, videos, and criticism.

You can find links to all of our blogs at our main web page, www.musickchannel.com, or follow our Twitter feed (www.twitter.con/musickchannel) where you'll get notices of all of our channel's posts. Please add to your favorites so you never miss news from our sites.

As always, our content is always free (but it is copyrighted, so ask before you use it).  You'll never be charged a penny to read our reports, see our pictures, or watch our videos.  We do appreciate it if you notice our Amazon links and do your shopping through them as we make a small commission on each purchase at no extra cost to you.

Thank you for you support, as we head towards our 5th anniversary of blogging, we hope to have a whole new world of information and entertainment for you.

Darryl Musick
Publisher, Writer, Editor, and Co-Owner of The Musick Channel

Tim Musick
Writer, Editor, Social Media Manager, and Co-Owner of The Musick Channel