One Hundred Dollars a Month - Page 1737 of 2143 - I am your typical housewife living in high maintenance suburbia. I have a handsome husband, 2 kids and a flock of pet chickens. I try and feed my family with $100 a month. With the help of coupons, gardening and bartering I am able to squeeze the most out of our grocery budget and still manage to have a little fun along the way.

Garden Sphere | Tacoma, Washington – Reserve Your Chicks Now!

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By Mavis Butterfield on January 5, 2013 · 7 Comments

If you are a local, and are interested in ordering some spring chicks this year, you’ll want to give my friend Lisa over at the Garden Sphere in Tacoma a call. Garden Sphere GUARANTEES their chicks to be hens and they even offer classes for first time chicken owners.

Will YOU be getting chicks this year? If so, what variety are you thinking about?

The Girl is already talking about how she is going to sneak a few Blue Cochin’s chicks past her dad this spring.

WAhoooo!

~Mavis

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Easy Apple Recipes – Apple Pie Jam Bars

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By Mavis Butterfield on January 5, 2013 · 7 Comments

A few days ago my friend Mama JJ posted a recipe for cranberry crumble bars that made my eyes grow big. I decided right then and there to make a batch. But when I went to freezer, I realized I had used all our frozen cranberries over the holidays. So I improvised.

Armed with her recipe for a rich and buttery crust, I went to the pantry and grabbed a pint of apple pie jam.

These apple pie jam bars were so incredibly delicious, I know I’ll be making them again real soon. Perfect to enjoy with a cup of tea, or a scoop of vanilla ice cream if you’ve got it.

Ingredients

3 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
2 sticks butter, sliced thin
1 egg, beaten
1 pint apple pie jam

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Place all the ingredients except the apple pie jam in a food processor or mixer and combine until nice and crumbly. Divide the crust mixture in half. Put half of the crumb mixture into a parchment paper lined 9×13 pan and spread the mixture out evenly over the bottom of the pan. Using your fingers, make a firm crust.

Spread apple pie jam over the bottom crust and use the remaining crumbs to cover the jam. Bake for 30 – 35 minutes or until the jam is bubbling and the topping is lightly browned.

Cool, slice, and serve.

Missed out on the recipe for Apple Pie Jam? Head on over HERE for the recipe.

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Laguna Beach California – Laguna Nursery

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By Mavis Butterfield on January 5, 2013 · 13 Comments

If you ever find yourself in Laguna Beach, California you should make a trip to Laguna Nursery. It’s about a mile and a half from Main Beach and oh boy is it an eclectic oasis of garden goodness.

The Girl and I stopped by the store while we were on our mini Christmas vacation and spotted tons of different citrus trees and cactus’s around the back of the store. I totally wanted to buy on of the lemon trees and bring it home.

Do YOU have a lemon tree? I totally want a Meyer Lemon tree, BIG TIME. I wonder if I could overwinter it in the greenhouse, or would I have to bring it indoors? The HH would freak if he had to walk by a lemon tree every morning on his way to make his coffee.

Does anyone know what kind of a plant this is? I LOVE it! I neeeeeeed it.

Spotted orchids.

Art and Antiques.

Copper rain chains. {Super cool if you ask me}

Abalone shells.

They even have antique sinks for the backyard garden if you have an extra $23,000 laying around.

Oh and stuffed badgers. We can’t forget about those, I hear they are all the rage these days.

And let’s not forget, tulip bulbs. No respectable nursery would be without bulbs.

I LOVE THIS PLACE! Even if it’s a wee bit out of my price range.

Laguna Nursery
1370 South Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, CA 92651
949 . 494 . 5200

Looking for a cool garden book to read this winter? The New York Times 1000 Gardening Questions and Answers: Based on the New York Times Column Garden Q & A is awesome. I own it, and Amazon currently has it in stock.

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Mavis Garden Blog – Getting the Greenhouse Ready for Spring

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By Mavis Butterfield on January 5, 2013 · 21 Comments

When we had the greenhouse installed last spring, I originally thought I would be growing food year round in it.

But growing 2,000 pounds of vegetables can be exhausting, and by the end of the season I found myself needing a break. So I threw in the towel, cleared almost everything out of the greenhouse, closed the doors, and didn’t look back.

Until yesterday. I had gone outside to feed the chickens, and before I knew it, I found myself scrubbing the glass walls, removing pine needles from the tiny gutters, and emptying the giant feed tank I used to grow my green zebra tomatoes in. Today I plan on scrubbing down the breathable fabric flooring.

Some how, some way, I’ve got to figure out how I’m going to grow 2 tons of food this year. I want to be able to maximize my 10′ x 14′ glass greenhouse it it’s maximum potential, but I’m not too sure where to start.

Right now I’m thinking about growing tomatoes and peppers in there during the summer and early fall months, and lettuces in the spring. But beyond that, I don’t have a clue.

Have YOU ever grown anything in a greenhouse before? Do you have any suggestions?

~Mavis

This post may contain affiliate links. These affiliate links help support this site. For more information, please see my disclosure policy. Thank you for supporting One Hundred Dollars a Month.