Progress Report: Still Alive!





Strawberry: Sequoia



Herb Pot

 

Sunflowers: Solar Eclipse and Incredible 

Sugar Daddy Snap Pea

 

Sugar Daddy Snap Pea

Sugar Daddy Snap Pea

Sugar Daddy Snap Pea

Nasturtium: Milkmaid

Corn: Martian Jewels (1 of 5 pots)

Bean: Blue Lake Bush

Bean: Blue Lake Bush

Bean: Scarlet Runner Pole

Bean: Scarlet Runner Pole

Bean: Scarlet Runner Pole

 

Zucchini: Dark Star

 

African Marigolds

Phaseolus coccineus (Scarlet Runner Pole Bean )

This beautiful edible and most ornamental pole bean is a sight to behold. My 3 pots worth have weathered several storms, been near frozen, windwhipped, and brutalized by mother nature. I had actually reseeded the pots assuming certain doom was upon them. While barren of leaves in a few spots, they are thriving despite their abusive welcome to the world as they emerged from the soil. It is my wish that the later planted seedlings beneath their beat up brethren will fill in the "holes" and give us a grand display of both colour and foliage.

I have to admit, gardening in a pot is not necessarily difficult, but terse in moments.

As We Make Our Way Out to the Sun

EWWW! Even the baby snails ran for high ground during all those weeks of rain. This is the top of the sliding glass door-disgusting.   I was really just fighting my way out of the door to clean all the glass.  It gets a little mottled after such a lengthy deluge of rain. 

They are smashed properly disposed of now. While the slugs were mowing the carrots, we wondered what tiny thing gnoshed tiny holes in the center of the nasturtiums.  Now we know!

These guys are not nearly as gross (or intriguing) as the giant African snails in Hawaii--just saying!

Break over--I just wanted to share the gross out of my current heebie jeebies! This is definitely not what one wants to find when cleaning all dirty rain spots off the glass!

Off to assess the rain damage to our little green friends. . .

Late Italian Garlic

Variety: Late Italian Garlic
Sown: 12 APR 2013
Germinated: 18 APR 2013
Photos: Garlic Pot #1 - 10 May 2013 and 19 May 2013

Again with the "never grown before" in my world... Again with the especially never grown in a pot or container of any type before...

This garlic was ridiculously simple.  Within the week, the garlic hard broken ground and was off and  running.  We don't expect to see glorious and chunky bulbs.  We may even end up with rounds, but we do know now that we live in the 4th largest garlic producing county and our weather is apparently just right for growing softneck garlic. So far, so good! We hope to be as productive for our little plot of dirt in a pot.

However, it is Spring.

Sow in the fall. Next year for certain with the Spring yield.

The temptation to use these for cooking was tremendous.  I'll say that I'm looking forward to the harvest, braiding this garden to hang in my pantry, and definitely looking forward to using it a great many dishes.  Next year, I will probably quadruple the number of pots for this garlic, alone!

Yes! That good!

I'd love to grow hardneck, but not sure it is possible in our "neck" of the woods.  If for nothing less, for the garlic scapes alone. More research to do!

Green Onion Renewal: Who Knew!

I don't want to call this "recycling" as green onions are a living thing!  But that act is exactly what it is--recycling.  Imagine my surprise when I discovered that one could not only recycle the green onions, but propagate an equal amount weekly! For free!  Amazing! As we would say in Hawaii, onolicious, too! I've been buying those weekly forever! As of my discovery, I do not plan to purchase green onions in the future. Like, ever. Not again.

It only takes a bit of the white end of the green onion to renew itself.  As long as there are roots and enough of the base onion to hold those roots whole, it is as easy as snipping and placing in a cool glass of water in a window sill.  I change the water every couple of days because, ewww, don't want to eat something that has been sitting in rank water for long.  I've even left them for 3 days and water appeared fresh and not slimy.  One only needs enough water to cover the roots. The nub needs enough white with roots to proceed.

After two harvests, I planted the original cut onions (which I also cut long to test this recycling deal) into soil, so I have a glass tumbler (a mismatched leftover of a bygone era) holding up my onion stems in the kitchen window and a pot of onions outside.  I plan to rotate them every so often because I cannot find any information as to whether growing in water will maintain full nutritional value. An educated assumption of reason tells me that after some time, the nutritional value may weaken due to lack of renewed nutrients. 

Then again the new onion is well,  renewing, so alas, this question begs an answer.

The onions we harvested this way were perfectly pungent (perfect aroma/oils for a green onion) and were crisp and juicy.  Very impressive.  I cannot even recall the last time I had green onions that fresh or tasty.

My poultry shears are getting a little dull, so I highly recommend a nice sharp pair of shears for harvesting. I will be getting a new pair or using a dedicated pair for this purpose.  After these first few weeks, I am absolutely thrilled that I have garden fresh green onions at my whim!

Luckily, the last grocery store green onions we purchased were organic.  I do have green onions growing from seed after two failed attempts that are now thriving.

Variety: Evergreen Bunching Onions
Sown: 1 APR 2013 (first attempt totally indoors-frail and weak)
Germinated: The current thriving batch: end of April - 4" long as of this writing.

Luffa! Loofah!

As you can tell by now, my return to the garden also brought with me a few bit necessarily unique, but 'unique' side items.  A friend of mine mentioned growing loofah, while my education is fairly well rounded, who else did not know the "rough scrubbie" (not the soft squishy sponge for afterwards) was borne of a gourd instead of from a pineapple under the sea?!

Me.

I've used these silly things since I was a small child--both the luffa/loofah and sea sponge to exfoliate and smooth. It's not often that I am taken aback with new information, but more so I am taken aback that I just never thought to think more about it.  What I do know, however, is that cheap plastic scrubbies tear the skin and often leave lacerations (I recently got married with a small scratch on my forehead to illustrate this point).  While one can certainly do the same with a natural luffa, the likelihood of leaving a wound is far less is moistened appropriately before use. 

It's all good now! I've got a packet of seeds and a handcrafted masterpiece of a bamboo cane arbor I lashed together in only 5 hours!  (See post here: The Art of Handcrafted Trellis Architecture ).

The seeds were quick to germinate, seedlings quick to grow.  The luffa did not go through the hardening process well.  While one plant transitioned to the outdoors with ease, the other wilted slowly with the change.  As with all of my indoor starts, I plugged a couple of seeds in the soil when they stayed outside permanently.  A short week later, the surviving plant wilted.  It is still hanging on, but we are now relying on the upcoming starts originally planted directly outdoors.

More on growing and harvesting soon!

Variety: luffa aegyptiaca (H)
Sown: 08 APR 2013
Germinated: 15 APR 2013

The Art of Handcrafted Trellis Architecture

Art? Handcrafted yes, artful, not so much. Simple? Yes! Effective? Yes! Architecturally precise? To be determined.

Materials: 1/4' and 1/2' bamboo cane and twine (jute, sisal, and an unknown kitchen twine (likely cotton)).
Purpose (Arbor): 4' x 4' (3x4 once set in soil) The arbor is specifically to hold up a Luffa gourd vine and the (hopefully) abundant produce.
Purpose (Trellis): For Sugar Daddy snap peas.
Purpose (TeePees aka little oil derricks): Beans, beans, and more beans!  While these are only 4', I am going to have to wrap the 6' over the 4' this weekend to provide enough climb space.  Already the vines are scrambling for more.

Lashing bamboo is simple and so simply complicated. . .

I lashed that bamboo as close to authentic as possible.  The joints were remarkably stable.  I used a (too) long doubled up twine and ended up with the pretty solid and thick joints, but better that it holds up together rather than with so much less, right?

My fingers at the end of building these were simple and complicated, too. . . Oops, I meant, the faintest of blisters from winding so much of the prickly twine had all but failed to prudce the grandest of blisters.  Had I any smarts, I would have purchased simple arbors, trellises.  nah, this was much more fun and my family will not know what to do once I remove that little arbor from the kitchen and set it to action!

The Arbor: Seedling is not yet tall enough to utilize, but looking forward to the transition! It is sized to fit particular pots and tied at a slight angle which straighten with the soil pressure. Works beautiful!

The Trellis styles: The snap peas are loving it so far.

The Plain ol' sticks: Place in dirt, guide vine.  Not very effective on the pole runners.

The Lay of the (Pot) Land (PreStage)



Plot A Full sun from morning until dusk.  The shadowed corner receives at least 6 full hours of spring sun in the morning. Not quite 2 foot wide. The patio is @ 25 foot if not a bit longer, and there are lots of unused spaces receiving full sun from noon to dusk for the heat lovers and long day growth  (once the majority of the pots are placed in the sidebeds).



Plot B - Full sun in the morning  - @ 3 hours and several mismatched hours (3 +/- later in the afternoon. (@ 6 hours of sun, total). Just shy of 3 foot wide. I really would have wished for this side to be the sunny side due to width and more elbow room for developing and expanding plants. But the partial and short time full sun plants should enjoy it.  Thinking lettuce, spinach, brassicas, etc.



Plot K (for Kitchen) Full sun from noon to dusk (@ 7-8 hours).  2.5 feet wide.



About the (Organic) Contrary Pot Garden



It's been years, oh yes, years (12 to be exact) since I have grown a vegetable garden. Being in Hawaii did not lend space nor time to tending veggies, especially with the vast number of legged and winged creatures that abound on island. Our house plants grew really awesome both inside and out and I will eternally miss my huge fanned white bird of paradise. Alas, I love gardening. I love plants. With a two year old running loose and inspectors constantly crawling around our house, I have not "restocked" the jungle. It is oddly barren for me. I am having green withdrawals. Flower withdrawals. Living things that don't poop, kine withdrawals.

With a two year old with those old medical things in the background, we try to keep her food as clean and healthy as possible and supplement with occasionally through the drive through, lol. She doesn't get sweets too often (rare) or other crap though that girl loves her some good breads in huge ways (I think she's a carbohydrate freak).

However if any of you buy organic, we all know it's financially impossible to eat that clean without breaking the bank (and personally, I will never ever pay $17 for freaking juice, I don't care how pure!). So, we are giving our hand at this organic garden, and if it gets tainted, well--it is still better and fresher than the grocery store produce.

I recently checked the local food coop for what used to be known as a crop share program. Where you pay a set amount and get a large take every week of the seasonal produce from local farmers. Unfortunately, times change and the farmers are charging the same as the store, if not more. Many (5-6) hundreds of dollars for 18 weeks of stuff we may or may not use and without any bulk to freeze or can. (I freeze--I'd be scared to kill someone with a bad canning job, lol). Not such a good deal anymore and that's too bad--one it's not worth it and two, I can grow it myself at half the price for countless times as much. What we can't use, freeze, store, share, or give away will go to the local food pantries as they accept produce from home gardeners.

Being that we lease, we can't really till up the back yard (though it could use it--the one thing they cheaped out on building this house was the back lawn!) So we are going to step into the adventure of container gardening, which most amuses me to call it the "Contrary Pot Garden" while others prefer "_______ (insert last name) Farm."

Our plot is unique--we've got a great patio and at least 80ish feet of river-rocked, (50' full sun, 30ish, partial sun and shaded) sidebeds on which to set some 50+ good sized pots (update: will be over 70+ pots). We just plan to intersperse the pots with veggies and flowers. Wish us luck that the soggy Pacific Northwest weather works with us (zone 8a, region 2, which apparently was once upon a time, zone 7). Right now, my kitchen island looks like a bench in a potting shed! I planted totally against the moon and season on April Fool's just after midnight.

I was thinking then, I may regret this--within the day, we were busting soil top and now, a week later, have 2 and 3 inch seedlings and almost everything has broken ground. I did not imagine having to tend to these things for a couple of weeks, but we have seedlings doing incredibly well already. Everything from asparagus to zucchini and a good handful of herbs we use on a regular basis (ok, the watermelon is a stretch due to shorter season, but worth a shot! (I've never been able to grow one larger than a softball in any previous decade (ok, only a couple)! It is definitely worth the seed to try though). We've got jellybean tomatoes with all the normal fare. I've already learned that such a late decision meant I am paying the same price for seed for a fraction of the seed had I had the forethought to get it direct from the seed companies. *facepalm*

How many of you have ever organic container gardened aside from tomatoes on the balcony, patio, walkway, driveway, corner of the lanai? If you've done any large scale container gardening and have any additional ideas, please share! While gardening is not new, whole pot gardens, are.  I am trying to keep it all companion planted and insect beneficial--so far, so good!