I'm leaving on the first of many trips. This one will take me to California to visit relatives. I know I've been away and promised to be here more, but been busy again with 1st block of summer term which I finished. I had joined the UVU dance team, broke up with my ex-girlfriend again, and just about killed myself in the meantime with weird accidents. I have a strange life sometimes... I have the next 8 weeks for vacations, gardening, writing, and programming, so let's see what I can do with the time.

I have had more time to play around with my old terra preta and put different kinds of plants in it. I'm also restarting my garden. I have a bunch of seeds in a humidity chamber, waiting to spring forth after I come back. The old garden is being put to rest, and will probably find its way to the compost pile in the backyard. The earthworms will thank me.

Some new plants I'm trying in home-made terra preta include a banana tree and fig tree. After a week, both of these have responded with vigorous new growth and rapid increases in size. It's almost too bad I didn't have a couple of them to compare side by side in test trials between normal potting soil and terra preta. I may do this after I get back, because I want more greenery around the house.

This is what I have planned for the new herb garden, of course, all planted in terra preta:

- Spearmint and peppermint
- Italian and Greek oreganos
- Lavender
- Italian parsley
- Basils of all sorts
- Chives
- Green onions
- Thyme
- Marjoram

I have also had some really weird ideas for gardening and amusement in my room, to keep me stimulated while I spend hours and hours writing and programming. These include...

1. "Water garden"/"Aquaculture": Creating a relatively self-sustaining ecological system, where I can keep aquarium fish like guppies, goldfish, etc., algae (which will grow anyway), Daphnia ("water fleas," which would be food for the fish and keep the water clean of algae and bacteria), and aquatic plants or floating, potted plants (which keep the water clean too). For some reason, this idea won't leave me alone. I've read about hobbyists and enthusiasts doing aquaculture, water gardens, ponds, and raising fish...and I wondered if I could do it for cheap and actually make this work. I might research this more and run some cost calculations. This appeals to the nature lover and biologist in me. I used to keep "sea monkeys" (brine shrimp) as a kid and have fond memories. This is more complicated.

2. "Mug" gardening. The last couple months, I seem to be receiving a lot of gift mugs and buying cheap mugs from thrift shops. Mugs are about the same size as small pots, usually prettier, and can cost as little two quarters ($0.50 US). A normal plant pot costs me $10-20 US, and my budget has become pretty tight as the US economy slows and gasoline prices burn a hole in my wallet. I'm trying to take pleasure with the simple and small things in life. Maybe I can find the Zen in mug gardening. I want to grow small plants in cheap mugs, and they'll go on my windowsill to bask in the abundant sunlight. I'll fill these up with terra preta too.

Like I mentioned at the beginning of the blog post, I'll be in California for a few weeks. After I get back, I'll rest for a few days and start planning some trips to southern Utah and other Western states. I've gotten the urge to wander and visit far-away places. Hopefully I won't cook in the summer heat, especially in Zion or Bryce Canyon National Parks. I think those get up to 42-43 degrees C in July to August. As I get closer to these trips and plan them, I'll write about them too.

Take care, my friends, and safe travels!