May 21, 2009
Finally made it out to one of my favorite local (or not so local) garden centers, a fair drive away but well worth it for their good selection of herbs and vegetables. As always, I overbought and some will go to friends…
Here’s the list of today’s haul:
Rosemary (Blue Spire)
Basil
Sage
Lavender
Eggplant (Ichiban)
French Thyme
Hot Pepper Plant (Kung Pao for me, Garden Salsa for a friend)
and tomatoes, including Matt’s Wild Cherry, Better Boy, New Girl, and Yellow Ping Pong…
May 7, 2009
Kojo Nnamdi hosted an interesting discussion of gardening on his WAMU radio show today with guests Adrian Higgins (Washington Post) and Holly Shimizu (U.S. Botanical Gardens). I only caught part of it, but there seemed to be some very good discussion of the ever-rising number of vegetable gardens going these days, the ways in which lawns are giving way to alternate (and healthier) kinds of growing spaces, and more… A link to the show is available here.
February 27, 2009
…or almost here, and I’m back after an extended hiatus. The past few months have had me either spinning with other projects or escaping for soujourns abroad. But the garden season is coming and I’m getting ready to dive back in. I’m digging through the remainders of last season’s packages of seeds and considering which items, new and old, to go with this season.
Current plan: continue with tomatoes, Japanese eggpant, and chard. Skip the snap peas (not enough produced for me last season) and add other items for Asian dishes, especially the smaller varieties of bok choy and other greens for stir-fries. Am toying with getting more ambitious over the coming season (and next fall) in regard to garlic and shallots. I’m also debating just how much container vs. in-the-ground planting I want for this spring and summer… it seemed that the ground items did much better overall last season. May have to reevaluate my approach to the containers (drainage, fertilizer, and more.)
More to come as I get back to digging in…
Image: Singapore, Winter 08-09
March 21, 2008
Time to paint the shed.
March 21, 2008
I dug back into work today in getting the first bed ready, sorting out useful items from less helpful weeds, and had a good look at the soil. It’s dark, wet, fairly dense, full of worms, and with a layer of a denser clay that sits about 8-12 inches below it. I’ll be meditating on the best ways to work with it, and what I may need to add…
In the meantime, I cleared most of the weeds out from in front of the shed this afternoon, so one bed is ready and awaiting the next step. (Which is, actually, giving the shed behind it a new and much-needed coat of paint.)
Meanwhile, the caption for the pictures of the day could be “name that plant.” While weeding and clearing, I was also scouting the greens that are appearing already and which have survived from this yard’s past life, a number of years ago, as a full garden.
Hiding along a brick wall at the far end was this item… 
…while these were threading their way up through a mass of weeds by the shed. I rescued and temporarily relocated them.
Veggies are definitely the focus this season. Edibles. Though I’m also musing on what flowers to mix in (and, in fact, which flowers might also be good edibles…)
March 18, 2008
I’m slowly working at narrowing down the list of things to grow this season. The challenge? Not to get carried away…
Main attractions:
- Sugar Snap Peas
- Cherry T’s: Sun Gold, Sweet 100…
- Other Tomatoes: Better Boy or Big Beef, Lemon Boy, Early Girl…
I’m also contemplating cukes, asian-style eggplant (but may save these for next season…), and anticipating that the rest will be herbs. Basil, rosemary, parsley, et al.
I’m currently polling folks for favorites on all of the above – any items to suggest?
image by ‘Urtica’ at http://www.flickr.com/photos/49503155549@N01/35946333
March 15, 2008
Should have a warm spring season coming, a hot and dry summer following it, with lots of sunlight on one side of the yard. Mixed sun and shade on the other…
I’ve been anticipating possibilities for what to grow, and having a hard time not getting carried away. Herbs are definitely part of the mix, including basil, parsley, and rosemary. (Sage is a possibility, but often I find it too bitter.) A good bit of these, if not all, will be grown in containers. I’d like to be able to take the Rosemary indoors for the winter, when that season returns.
Tomatoes, meanwhile, are a must. There are so many varieties these days, all so attractive, it’s hard to tell which ones to go for… Possibilities here? Sungold, New Girl, Brandywine… I’m debating a balance between garden bed and container varieties. Suggestions, as always, are very welcome.
Finally, for the immediate short list, sugar snap peas are at the top of the list. I wonder how much of a challenge they may be? Time for more research…
