Friday, November 6, 2009

The Post-mortem (aka Requiem for a Garden 2: Electric Boogaloo)

We had the first frost a few weeks ago (somewhere around 10/15) and the first killing frost last night (11/5) ah, corresponds to Guy Fawkes Night. That's easy to remember then "Remember, remember the fifth of November". I think its actually earlier this year than normal considering I never rake my leaves until after Thanksgiving, not Halloween. The anti-climate change people love this, and the lack of hurricanes, but one year does not global cooling make.

Anyway, this is really for me to remember for next year. Well, considering no one really reads this but me, its all for me to remember. I usually plant around Easter, and I guess harvest should be around Halloween. Funny how it works out that way, why is the pagan calendar so accurate? Hmmm, I have no idea. ;)

Funny thing, the tomatoes and peppers are still flowering and setting fruit, but they are so stunted. I'm sure this probably changed all that. I'll check tonight.

On with the pics:


The Main Garden right before I pulled the carrots. Not as lush as it was since the sunflowers went to seed, but its still impressive for the first year I did this on this scale.



The sun has set for these sunflowers. They were tasty but small, but that sure didn't stop the birds. The Mason bees LOVED these guys, that's why they will be replanted and why I bought the mason bee nest. They went to seed around mid September.



The stunted tomatoes. I'll just plow these back under or compost the fruits. These plants were really tenacious.



The corn that wasn't. Sooo close. Well at least I got some actual ears, and I know what to do next year.



The empty potato bins. Worked very well, we'll see those again.



The disappointing Ye Olde Pumpkin Patch. Hmmm. Next year, its war with the Slug Sappers.



The Front Garden. I didn't expect anything here really, but the tomatoes actually grew. From the amount of clover that grew here I think it needed some nitrogen. As as a matter of fact the tomatoes started really working after I fertilized. There may still be issues with not enough sun, but at least I know something CAN grow there.



The rain barrels ready for the winter. I had a REAL problem with mosquitoes here even though the holes are all screened. I assume the larvae got in though the downspout. I have no idea how they got out, but they did.(maybe thru the outlet hose) The last barrel (the one on the left) was FULL of swimming larvae when I decided to dump the three to prevent an actual health hazard. I'm going to have to seal them all off from the environment next year, so that the only way in or out is through the main hole to the downspout which I have already double netted. Also, I need a pump to get some more pressure for them. I'm researching submergeable pumps, and power supplies for it. I may actually have to get those solar panels.



The mason bee apartment. No residents yet, but I assume that they all found other accommodations for the winter. I have so many in the yard, I'm sure I'll have some come spring.



The implement of destruction. The Black and Decker CMM1200. Yes, I know, no panels. Nice if I actually walked the walk huh? Its a great mower, takes small passes though, so I need to walk a little more. Not like I'm on my feet all day or anything.



The compost bin. Its insane, I just keep putting veg in and it drops into a black hole. I have yet to have it be full for more than a few days, and its been up since march. I have worms in it too, which must have hitch hiked in as eggs on garden waste. Works for me. They get upset when I tumble it, but for the most part they are warm and happy with PLENTY to eat.



In the bin. That's grass clippings not the worms, and I think those are apples that went bad. I may have to move the bin into the sun for the winter, but that bad boy is heavy. We'll see if I need to. A frozen mass of compost is no fun.

That's it on The Post-mortem. More on the future expanded garden soon. And maybe some more product reviews (since they are the most popular read on this blog) if the Littlest Giant and the Higher Mind of New England let me get some time.

Thursday, October 8, 2009

Yes I know, its October

And I haven't made a post since July. I know, I have been a bad giant. The Littlest Giant, now a whopping 20lbs. has taken up all of my spare time. Also my prostration to the Higher Mind of New England has taken what was left. Since it is the end of the season, I'll run down a rapid-fire update, with pictures (which are huge, I will make smaller ones when I get a second)!

Sadly, I have not gotten any pumpkins this year out of Ye Olde Pumpkin Patch. I think the main problem was that I did not fertilize the patch early enough. By July they still had not grown very far out of the patch, once I did fertilize, they went insane with growth, but a new enemy reared its head: Slug Sappers. I pretty much took care of the Bambi Brigade, and the Squirrel Squadron wasn't bad at all (took 2 cornstalks but that was about it) but the slugs were just insane. I even found one in my dining room! Anyway, the explosive growth that came about due to the organic fertilizer was basically like ringing the dinner bell for the slugs. The pumpkin vines were just eaten to the stems from these little sinister slimy assailants. So no pumpkins. I have purchased some slug repellent for next year, we'll see how it does.

Similarly, the corn stalks and bell peppers didn't make it either. I assumed the bells wouldn't make it as I only planted them in the Front Garden (which did eventually get tomatoes), that only had English Ivy in it before. The corn, which had grown super fast, basically stopped in mid July. It was a combination of dry weather and lack of fertilizer. A few dried ears (which I have pics of) then they just wilted away. I fertilized in mid August, and everything that was left went INSANE!!! I had to cut back the tomatoes, and the Jalapeno and 'Chinese Chilies' grew through the deer fence. Its a thing of beauty.

What have I learned?
  • Fertilize when you prepare the ground.
  • Fertilize at least a month later, then do it again. (so that's at least 3 times)
  • Don't let the corn dry out, ever.
Ok, now on with the photos!


Carrots! It seems that you need to leave them in the ground for a while and THEN they get big. ;) As you can see, they are as big as my hand, and I have some pretty large meat-hooks. There are still a bunch in the ground that I will take out occasionally until the first frost. They are very sweet tasting. This was taken 2 days ago.


These potatoes were harvested from the potato bins in the back of Ye Olde Pumpkin Patch. I think they did fairly well. They aren't huge by any means, but they tasted very good. I harvested around the first week of August. The plants had yellowed and fallen over by then, so I didn't think I was going to get any new tubers out of it.



Here are mashed potatoes that I made. Very tasty, the skins left a sweetness to them. Wish I had more. :)


Ahh, tomatoes. Now these worked with no problem! Started getting tomatoes around the 1st of august and have been getting them ever since. I'm not a fan of raw ones so I can't tell you how those tasted, but cooked into spaghetti sauce they are great! You can taste the freshness. I know its a cliche, but you can.

Sauce made with the tomatoes, the chunks are turkey meat, tomato chunks, and chilies. :) Good stuff, The Wife loves it!


Chilies, chilies and more chilies! Good friends of mine identified what I refer to as 'Chinese Chillies' (this top photo) since I got them from my mother in law. I know they aren't Chinese, in fact, they are Mexican. I just can't remember the name. Serrano maybe? If anyone knows, please educate me. There are a slew of pics of them. BTW Spicy!!!! and I like spicy chilies, and these are really are. I have yet to see a red one on the plant, drying though, they turn orange-red.

Jalapeno from the top down. This plant is still producing red and green ones. Very hot, not really spicy though. NOTE: don't test the Scoville rating by popping one of these guys in your mouth fresh off the vine. Thought I was gonna choke to death.


Chinese Chili plant, this pic was before I fertilized, the plant is poking though all the holes now. More chilies than I know what to do with. I'm going to harvest and tie them together an dry them in a batch.


More of them, that plant is sooo small compared to what it is now.



The one ear of corn that I managed to get. It was already dried like that on the stalk and was the only ear on that stalk. More fertilizer and water.

Here's one of the sunflowers that I eventually brought into work. These guys were crazy! Even without fertilizer they grew to at least 8-9 feet. The Bees, and the birds LOVED THEM!! The heads are all empty and brown now. The seeds were very good, but too small to be worth harvesting. Next year, I plan to plant these again, but as a natural fence. I will also plant the yellow, single head variety which has better seeds.

That's it for the sofar update. I have other pics that I will add to this as well. The requiem will be next. Also my Mason Bee nest, the new mower, and the plans for next season.

Monday, July 20, 2009

Update on the Garden

Yes, I know, still no solar panels for the lawnmower. The Littlest Giant takes up all my time these days. When I get a second that I am not changing diapers, I'll send for them. :)

The garden is coming along well. The most visible progress is in the Main Bed, where the sunflowers are at least 9 FEET tall. Yes, even over The Giants head. The flower heads have flipped over and the petals are this really cool burgundy color. I think my wife wanted that.



The corn is still only up to my shoulder, but each stalk has at least 2 ears on it. I can feel the kernels below the husk, so I know they are there, at least as long as the squirrels stay away from them.



Yes Virginia, you CAN grow tomatoes in my backyard! ;) They are all green at the moment, and one mutant 3 flower tomato had to be culled, but there is some progress. *crosses fingers*





Ok, I was getting a little impatient and pulled a carrot, seems to have a little while longer to go though.



Also, a potato(e) check. This one is not ready for prime time either, but its sooo cute! One of my cat hair providers adding to the supply IN the carpet is in the background.

Monday, July 6, 2009

The battle begins

*sigh* 3 cornstalks taken by Squirrel Squadron. One as I was looking at the little bugger gnaw though a stalk. Went right under the deer fence and took it. I flew after it in a rage, yet again, and it got tangled in the fence. It made its way out before I got to it though, but at least I scared the hell outta it.

So my next tactic in this accelerating war, was to sprinkle cat hair around the base of all the remaining stalks. I have an unlimited supply thankfully. :) Its a desperate attempt, but apparently they don't like to hang out around a place if they can smell predators. I should just let the cats loose next time, but I don't think my wife would approve.

If that doesn't work, I cut my losses, and next year, 10 foot chicken wire cage. Its a bit extreme, but they have a WHOLE TREE full of apples that they can take whenever they want.

As an update, tiny tomatoes have started on my newly caged tomato plants. These are pretty high off the ground, so lets see if they escape notice.

The pumpkins are crawling away and moving out of the patch, no fruit yet, but I don't expect it until the vines get at least 25 feet long.

In Memoram:
My cordless Black and Decker CMM1000, which has been hanging around in limbo waiting for a replacement board (after raiding mice pooed on it) has been left for dead. It served us well for 6 years and will be missed. I just don't have the time to wait for a board that is always on back order. I have already bought its replacement: The CMM1200 A slightly cooler design, some changes I like, some I don't. Next payday, I get the solar panels for it.

Monday, June 22, 2009

Rise of the Pumpkins

Ok its been a long time since I have written here. The arrival of The Littlest Giant has taken up all of my time. In her honor, I present a picture of the first flowers of the vines grown from the seeds of her namesake:



I promise that she will always have a Pumpkin Patch planted just for her. :)

With all the rain that we had been getting in the last 2 months, the garden has almost been growing like a weed. It seems that in the past 2 weeks there has been an explosion of growth. The ground is no longer barren and waiting.

The Main Bed as it stands now almost 2 months since it was seeded:


The reverse angle:


A lot less plants grew than I had planted. I didn't have time to do a second planting, and the weather was so cool and wet that I think the bed took a long time to heat up. So far, I have put organic compost down twice, once right after planting, and another time when the plants emerged enough that I could tell them apart from the weeds. You will see the dark soil in the close up pictures. Note the sticks that hold up the deer fence. So far, the Bambi Brigade has been thwarted. It was this time last year that the assault began and I lost my entire crop of corn. So far, so good. My biggest fear actually, is when the sunflowers come in, then I have to not only worry about Squirrel Squadron, but "The Wing". Blackbirds regularly patrol Suburbia. The bird feeder that The Wife insists on keeping (I know, the baby will learn so much with it there) will hopefully give them enough to ignore my crop.

The tops of the sunflower plants, roughly 4 feet from the ground:


Just in front of the sunflowers, corn that is also 4 feet tall. I know the expression is "knee high by the 4th of July" but what does it mean if it is chest high by June 22nd?:

I decided to mix the space set aside for the tomatoes and corn. I know that next year I need to rotate the crops so tomato worms don't get a foothold. I think of the garden as one of those puzzles that has a single piece missing. Or maybe I won't till the soil to support that whole eco-system/perma-culture approach. So many decisions. :)

The tomatoes in their own space. No flowers yet. My neighbors already have fruit, but they bought theirs already planted from the Home Despot. I'm sure they aren't organic either:

In this corner, weighing in at maybe a pound, the makers of juice, providers of vitamin A, and favorite food of Bugs Bunny: Carrots!

Lastly in the Main Bed, 2 types of chilies. Regular Bell Peppers, and these chillies that I got from my Giant-in-Law. They are "Chinese" peppers, but I think they are just Jalapenos. Again, my neighbor's have fruit, but they aren't organic either.


Ye Olde Pumpkin Patch breathes Again
I dunno, looking at these photos, I kinda like the fallow state that Ye Olde Pumpkin Patch was in before I planted. Probably because it reminds me of autumn. Anyway, I planted red potatoes that I bought from Whole Foods into the potato baskets I bought from Gardner's Supply Company. The blue ring is part of the cat tower that our fearsome, house Tigers completely ignored. Next to the potatoes are the pumpkins. Since its can't be Ye Olde Pumpkin Patch without pumpkins right?

Closeup of the potato bin's. These so surprised me, they are growing so fast that I could potentially harvest next month.

And of course, last but not least, the pumpkins themselves. They are flowering, but the vines are just making it out of the patch. It will be a while until they are long enough to start setting fruit. I will watch them like a hawk again. I know that the Bambi Brigade and the Squirrel Squadron are just biding their time.




This blog seems to be turning exclusively to gardening, but I assure you it is not the case. :) I have received my LEED AP certification just before the Littlest Giant was born. I haven't been able to make much of it having been on leave and with the economy slowly limping back, but there should be more in the future.

Next up: solar panels to charge the electric mower.

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Rain Rain Go away

8 days, eight days of rain! My garden is doing well, but I'm almost worried about the roots of the plants rotting. Everything has spouted. The ground is so muddy that I can't put up the deer fence without worrying about sinking into a quagmire and drowning. I know that the 3rd rain barrel I ordered will come when everything finally stops. *sigh*

I'll take pictures as soon as I it doesn't look like a swamp.

Monday, April 27, 2009

A Garden Reborn

Here it is, the moment you have all been waiting for...well some of you have been waiting for...well, the one I have been anyway. :) The garden in all its glory is being reborn from the ashes of its former self. As stated in my other entries, the garden has been moved from the old spot to a new one on the north side of my house. I have also decided to replant pumpkins in the spot they were last year and plant only with some potatoes. Hopefully this will keep the Bambi Brigade away from that particular patch in the hopes that the pumpkin vine's will remain un-accosted and I can get a good crop to celebrate the arrival of their namesake. I have taken a few pictures to document the progress, I also have documented the rainwater harvest system that I have set up. I have not yet taken pictures of the Front Garden. Maybe I will get to that tomorrow.




These are the rain barrels I promised I would document. No, you don't see the fact that the shutters really need to be painted. The barrels are Greek pepper barrels that I bough from this site. Pretty much the same barrels as seen on TV. The terra-cotta colored barrels hold 50 gallons each (that's 400 pounds of water each, for those of you keeping score.) The hose between the two of them is the overflow that allows one to flow into the other, filling them up in succession. The black hose coming out of the top of the left barrel is the extra overflow that keeps the water from just pooling on the top if it rains too much. The green hose coming from the bottom of the left barrel is the connector to the drip irrigation system that I laid out in the Main Bed. The barrels are directly across a little brick path from the Main Bed.

These barrels fill up fast! They went from completely empty, to overflowing in a day of light to moderate rain, without a very large roof surface area. I might get at least one more, just in case the summer is really hot, which it looks like it might be. Not pictured on the right barrel is another hose that I used to fill the water can with. It was much easier than to unscrew one of the plugs and have the water shoot out all over.


The Main Bed, as it lay bare. Who's that Giant with that rake?

The Main Bed as being prepared by me (photos provided by my lovely assistant, The Wife). The soil is very clay-y? clay-like? clay containing? In the Suburbia area. Soils class is a little vague to me at the moment, but I seem to recall something about the Piedmont being like this. The soil, and the bricks, are leftovers from the construction of my porch, so it probably should not be a surprise that there isn't a heck of a lot of organic matter in it after 50 years of being unproductive.




My drip irrigation laid out, with me getting the sunflower seeds ready to go. We found this in the local Home Despot, its a Vigoro drip irrigation hose. I think they might be discontinuing it because I can't find it online anywhere now, and I bought the whole length for $10. It works well, but since it is drip, it has to run for a few hours to get even 2 gallons of water out. Great to turn on and walk away, easy to forget about.




Irrigation with the approximate location of the plantings.

The list of vegetables panted in the Main Bed (Sounds like Main Belt Asteroid. I know, only I would get/make that joke):
1) Sunflowers: the red, multi-bloom variety
2) Corn, yes corn again, Bambi Brigade be damned
3) Tomatoes, Squirrel Squadron be damned.
4) Carrots
5) Green Bell Peppers
6) Jalapeno Peppers
7) Some Chinese peppers that I don't know the variety of. Yes I know, not local, but the Giant's Mother-in-law is too cute to deny sometimes.


The Main Bed, seeds, irrigation, covered lightly in sand to break up the clay.

It's not evident in this photo, but I have already hit Whole Foods and grabbed some organic compost and spread it over the top. The sand is there to keep the water from just running off the clay. I'm crossing my fingers as to whether this will actually work or not. The soil has so much less organics than that in Ye Olde Pumpkin Patch. Ideally I should have mixed compost in with the sand and clay and tilled everything together. If I get bad results this year, I think that will likely be the culprit. Ye Olde Pumpkin Patch, and the Front Garden have more organics, so it will be interesting to see the results. *puts down pencil and clipboard*




Ye Olde Pumpkin Patch, in its glorious fallow state. The site of the Original Garden (may Gaia protect it.) Ahh, the possibilites!




Ye New Olde Pumpkin Patch. 4 mounds, each seeded with MANY seeds I recovered from our pumpkins that were not carved into Jack-o-lanterns last Samhain. Like the Main Bed, these mounds were covered in sand to aid drainage. The soil is much more organic at this part of the yard (which is within sight of the Main Bed). As of yesterday I have seen 4 sprouts poking thought the sand. This tells me that, so far, Ye Olde Pumpkin Patch is the most productive section of this garden complex. Who knows what the future may hold? The space to the left of the mounds is reserved for potato baskets which are due to arrive any day.

Next up, the Front Garden and potatoes in a bag.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Front lawns and the power of "looking nice"

Ah, spring is here. Its warm and sunny and everything is green and growing fast. Well, somewhere it is, but not in my neighborhood at the moment. Things are still pseudo-dormant and we keep getting frosts that preclude me from planting directly into the ground. Yes, yes, I know, I should have started indoors etc. Bad Giant.

Anyhoo, for YEARS, I have railed against the uselessness of lawns. They consume resources in water, fertilizer, time, gasoline (for those who don't have electric mowers), all that, and all I get in return is grass that I can't utilize unless I had a flock of sheep. (yea, try selling that in Suburbia). I've wanted to plant wildflowers, but that is considered a nuisance since they go too seed in the fall and might impinge on others lawns. Can you see that? "Damn beautiful flowers in my monochrome green wasteland! Lowering the property values, that is!!!!"

So, the last option of course: grow food on the lawn, at least that will be productive use of the space. This is a mantra I repeat almost every time I mow the lawn. Of course the best sun on my entire parcel of land is the front of the house, but of course people consider that 'bad' or 'unsightly' or even 'low-class' to actually grow your own food in your FRONT lawn! "Gasp! what would Bitsy and Theodore say????"

Now being the kind of person I am my answer to those kinds of questions is ALWAYS - "screw 'em." However, massive changes to the abode has veto power by the Giant's Wife. For the longest time she wouldn't let me do it because it would "look bad." I.e. overgrown plots, no structure, Velociraptors waiting to pounce on hapless passers-by. It took weeks just to convince her to put the first garden in the backyard. (see requiem for a garden for details) But then it was easier to convince her to move it to the north side. Easier still was getting the two rain-barrels I have (which I have been remiss in documenting, again Bad Giant), but those went over well because she saw them on Living With Ed. Ah she needs to see it and that it CAN be beautiful! Eureka! So last night we see a news report on ABC about people "eating their lawn" and BAM! she's on board. I can't find the report, but here is something similar. Could not have been better timing really, this week the bed of English Ivy in the front of the house gets ripped out (I know its pretty, but its an invasive species and it breeds mosquitoes. Damn those Tigers!) Originally to be replaced with just a butterfly garden, but now will be host to vegetables as well!

OK lots of plans, I promise I will keep it documented.

Friday, February 20, 2009

Painting the Cave: A low-VOC paint review

Note, this post was written before and after the arrival of the Littlest Giant, see if you can tell where the break is. :)

As some of my loyal readers may know (thank you for being so loyal) The Giant and his wife are expecting a Little Giant, a "barely enormous" one if you will, "merely huge". Which is partially the reason why I have been so remiss in my blogging as of late. Suffice it to say, The Giant's days are filled with preparations; registering for goods and services, teaching the grand-giants how to use Skype and Cam *gasp*, and painting the Little Giant's future cave.

Of course, when the newest of the clan arrives, I'd like to make sure that the Littlest Giant has as much of a chemical-free existence as possible, since so much of the environment has already presented such a body-burden to the average person. So, with decorating comes painting, with painting comes days of eye-watering, headache inducing, nausea inflicting chemicals to be thrown on the walls to make the place look "nice". Meanwhile loading the body with VOC's like formaldehyde, butyraldehyde, benzaldehyde, and what-the-hell-I-won't-even-attempt-to-say-it-dehyde. (although cinnamaldehyde gives cinnamon its flavour. Mmmmm tasty VOC). So what to do? As The Giant has frequently stated, the post-WWII chemical/industrial complex has a pill for everything and a chemical to make everything "brighter, whiter, cover in one coat" etc. As is the point of this blog, nay my existence at this point, The Giant must eschew all of those "Modern Conveniences" but still not make my paint from milk and clay. (Seriously, check it out)

I know, I know, am I just green-washing myself here? If I were truly green, I would have gone for the milk. But, as in all things balance is key and this blog is about being green without having to resort to reverting to the 1800's. Also, as much of an artist as I like to claim myself to be, I'd screw the process up and have the wife and the Littlest Giant ridicule me to the end of my days. But I digress.

So, what did I choose? Well, milk would have been awesome, but not feasible, I'd still be painting the room. I would have liked to go to a local store for low-VOC paint, but alas none in my region of Suburbia had such a product. I am sure that specialty stores exist "In the City", but I was under pressure to get the cave finished asap as I had other tasks to accomplish. Sadly, as usual, the Home Despot was my destination. It was the only place, at the time, that offered no-VOC paint, and it was exactly what I wanted. The product: The Freshaire Choice, part of the Despot's Eco Options line.

A lot of information is on the website, so I will just give you my impressions. The base for the paint is the standard latex/titanium oxide combo. No surprise there, this is what makes it not milk based paint. Now there could still be issues with people with Latex allergies, so its not completely 'harmless' but neither are CFL bulbs and we still call them 'green'. The pigment is made with clay and sodium aluminosilicate (essentially aluminum salt, that you put on your armpits non-green deodorants). No petroleum bases anywhere. Well, maybe the latex, unless it came from a rubber tree, which I doubt. The base is mixed with the pigment, which is just a package of the clay that dissolves in the base. The whole thing is closed up and put in that big martini shaker that blends it ever so nicely. I got 1 gallon of the wall color (Arbor Vine, think sea-foam green), 1 gallon of flat ceiling white, 1 gallon of primer, and 1 gallon for trim (Poetic Light, *cue heavenly music*).

Upon opening of the cans, the smell was mostly mineral-y, with just a small hint of latex. The paint poured out of the can quite easily. Not super-viscous like the watery petroleum based products, but more like melted ice-cream. Honestly, the Poetic Light *cue heavenly sound* looked like melted vanilla.

The paint flowed very well onto the brush. It seemed to have this characteristic where it would warm up during use. I'm sure that wasn't the case, but the more I worked with it, the better control I had over it, and the easier it was to cut in on the ceiling and priming the walls. The roller brush took the paint well, and transferred to the ceiling quite easily. Granted, the ceiling was already white, so I could have missed a few spots. Priming took 2 coats as I expected. The walls were already baby-blue and thus took some extra effort to conceal. There was also one of those wallpaper boarders running along the top (the ones so popular in the 90's) that I refused to steam off, so that took an extra 2 coats to cover effectively.

I used to paint professionally when "I Was a Teenage Giant", and usually would develop a headache within a few minutes of working with a product. The ceiling and primer were done, and I felt fine. I did have the window open, but even with that and regular paint I would have a vomit-inducing migraine.

Thus ended the first day.

The next day Arbor Vine took its place on the walls. As with the ceiling paint, it went on smoothly with the same viscosity as melted ice-cream. Again the same smell, but slightly more mineral-y. I was amazed at how fast the paint dried. At first, I thought it was just the fact that it had been years since the room was painted, and it was just being sucked in. Within an hour I was applying the second coat. Again, it dried quickly. By the time I got to the end in the 10x10 room, the first wall was already dry. I needed a third coat to fully cover the blue (which turned into a really sickly color emerald with only 1 coat of Arbor Vine on it.)The Poetic Light *heavenly music* that went on for the trim was the same cut-in madness that reminds me of why I quit painting professionally when I Was a Teenage Giant. I'm not a details Giant, so one more window pane that needs to be cut in is one too many. Eventually the trim was finished and I beheld my work.

Well, at least I wanted too, I had to clean the brushes and get to bed, cuz it was already midnight.

Clean up: Just like standard latex paint, but it seemed slightly easier to remove. There wasn't the stickiness that petroleum paints have. Cleanup with warm water, really meant that this time.

Behold, the cave is painted

The next day I was able to move furniture in, the walls completely dry. The mineral smell was still present in the room, and the walls felt warm as latex drying is usually an exo-thermal process. The next day, the walls were cool to the touch but the mineral smell persisted. WEEKS later, I could still smell the mineral pigment. It wasn't pungent or offensive by any means, and it certainly didn't give me headaches or burn my nose like VOC paint does. Almost like you have a new stoneware, or new bricks, and that the surface is oxidizing. Slowly, the smell faded, and by the time the Littlest Giant arrived, the smell was gone.

Would I recommend The Freshaire Choice *plays fan-fare*? Absolutely, I already have. Is it more expensive than "normal" paint? You bet, $25 a gallon compared to $12 I saw from some of the other brands. Does it apply like other latex paint? Yep, almost easier to use in my once professional opinion, mineral smell is 'different' but better. What would I change? Less pretentious names like Poetic Light *heavenly music*