Tumblestein
Hi. I'm Greg Hauenstein. I'm a politico, filmmaker, web geek and amateur backyard green thumb living in Des Moines, Iowa.
This tumblr blog will chronicle the backyard adventures of my wife and I as we attempt to grow veggies, herbs and flowers. The occasional political post may sprout up. SPROUT UP, GET IT!?
Please read and enjoy!
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Perpetuation and Taxation
In the dirt-covered steps of my ancestors…
My Grandpa Hauenstein told me we have relatives buried in Olds, Iowa. Before that, I thought I was the first of us to settle down here.
I guess that’s where I get the subconscious desire to plant stuff in the ground and watch it grow. Sounds like I need to spend more time with the family tree and not just the herbs and veggies.
Emily and I have been trying to get this done for the past month. Our seeds from the amazing Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, IA had grown into mostly healthy plants on an end table in our bedroom where the pets wouldn’t bother them. I say mostly healthy, because the sunflowers hadn’t been getting enough sun or space and were looking pretty pathetic.
Just removing the plants from the carrier caused a couple to snap and fall apart. We would have simply planted them in the ground from the beginning but we got them back in March so the ground too cold to put anything in it.
We ended up sticking some dowels in the ground, running string between them and propping the remaining plants up against them. Here’s hoping all goes well.
Onto the backyard. A few years ago our shed was blown about 2-3 feet forward into the front of Emily’s car by a summer storm. The newly uncovered space became a quick haven for Creeping Charlie. Well today was Charlie’s end. Me and Charlie, eyeball to eyeball.
Out went the Creep, in went the Sheep. Sheepnose Pimento peppers, to be exact.
(Capsicum annuum) Tomato-type peppers are exceedingly flavorful with sweet juicy flesh. Very meaty, good for canning. An Ohio heirloom from the family of Nick Rini. Keeps for an extended period when refrigerated. 70-80 days from transplant.
-Seed Savers Exchange
We put in twelve pepper plants and nine John Baer tomato plants.
(Solanum lycopersicum) (aka Bonny Best) From the Bonny group of tomatoes that includes Chalk’s Early Jewel. Introduced in 1914 by J. Bolgiano and Son of Baltimore. Bright red, meaty, smooth fruits with very good flavor. Once a leading canning variety, also great for fresh eating. Heavy producer. Indeterminate, 60-80 days from transplant.
-Seed Savers Exchange
We had so much fun planting. I had a giant dirt eating grin on my face the whole time. I can’t wait to care for these things outside of our bedroom now.
You can see more photos on my Flickr page.
How’d we do for our first time, fellow Green Thumblers?
Tacopocalypse Pre-Farmers Market Preview
Distance: 9.7 miles one way, 19.4 miles roundtrip.
Destination: The new Tacopocalypse booth outside The Royal Mile.
Pop up farmer’s market today from 10-2 in front of @royalmilebar on 4th St. Also @Tacopocalypse Best selection, 10:00. Worst selection, 1:55
— Larry Cleverley (@dirtfarmerlarry) April 14, 2012
That was the tweet that set my day in motion. I indulged a bit too much last night with pizza and wings so I figured I’d kick some caloric tail by riding my bike down to the Tacopocalypse booth downtown and sample their wares. The Neal Smith Trail in between the Trestle Trail intersection and downtown Des Moines has reopened. What a great ride along the Des Moines River!
It took about an hour to get down there. It was worth every huff and puff. Sam and Larry sold out within an hour of setup. I ran into Erik Helland, my state rep, and we had a good chat about the joys of bacon chorizo. Enjoy the photos and see many more on my Flickr.
C’mon, Internets and/or savvy Obama campaign staffers, you’re gonna make this a meme, right?
Miss M’s original post that inspired this Tumblr.
The Affordable Care Act saves lives. Plain and simple.
David Sedaris’ Santaland Diaries
One of the greatest Christmas stories ever told.
Courtesy of This American Life
Cross posted on http://bit.ly/sP0wLM on December 20, 2011 at 09:54AM
Hi, Tumblr.
It’s nice to meet you.
There are lots of reasons we’re excited to be launching the Obama 2012 campaign’s new Tumblr today. But mostly it’s because we’re looking at this as an opportunity to create something that’s not just ours, but yours, too.
We’d like this Tumblr to be a huge collaborative storytelling effort—a place for people across the country to share what’s going on in our respective corners of it and how we’re getting involved in this campaign to keep making it better.
It’s possible because of Tumblr’s submission feature.
You can send us a few paragraphs about how your latest phonebanking gig went or why you’re in for 2012. Share the latest chart you saw that made you go “woah.” Ask a question. Upload a photo of 2012 t-shirts or signs you see out in the wild. Pass along jokes, particularly if they’re funny. And if you’re among the Tumbl-inclined, send us posts you’ve published on your own Tumblr that we should look at re-blogging.
There will be trolls among you: this we know. We ask only that you remember that we’re people—fairly nice ones—and that your mother would want you to be polite.
Thanks, Tumblr. We’re looking forward to getting to know you.
