Community Garden

Here's the community garden plan. My excitement rubbed off on several others and now there are two others with "Square Foot Gardens". Matt joked that they were "drinking my kool-aid!".

I'll post more picture from the community garden hopefully later today.

Planning Geek

In order to fully understand the Square Foot Gardening concept, I had to create a plan. I needed to know what I was planting and when each plant needed to go into the ground. You'll notice I'm not the most technogically savy (I can't even seem to get two picture to work in the same post!). The easiest way for me to create "squares" was on excel. So, here's the layout of the back yard garden.

The blue is planted earliest, followed by teal and then green. It keeps me straight as to what needs to go in the ground when.

The corn on the side of the diagram is going to be planted in earth boxes. This is another totally genius way to plant without a lot of space. It's our first year, so we'll see what we can grow!

I need a calendar, we're making progress

I'm trying to figure out how to keep track of all my crops. Lots of the seed packets indicate a number of days to maturity. This is great and all, but I have like 15 different crops to keep track of, not to mention the fact that they are all being planted at different times.

So, I'm going to do some internet research to try to find a calendar that would indicate when things would be ready.

Over the weekend, we set the blocks and had dirt delivered to the community garden. It looks AWESOME. It smells horrible, kind of like fresh manure and dirt. This is a good thing, but it still stinks.

I've started planting in my plot and will take pictures in the next couple of days to show what I've planted. The community "spirit" that this is generating is wonderful as well. We've really been able to get to know our neighbors. Just wait till this summer and we're sharing all our produce. I can't wait!

Let There Be Dirt

This weekend my brother and sister-in-law were visiting from Chicago. The boys had great plans to smoke some ribs on the grill while Abby and I were going to take the dogs for a "Easter Beg Hunt" to the businesses in the Short North.

There are lots of technicalities to smokin' ribs and therefore they require lots of attention. Sitting in our back yard all afternoon only made us think more and more about our garden. So we decided we could at least get the dirt in the boxes.

Using the recipe from Mel Bartholomew over at The Square Foot Gardener I purchased my dirt. I had to change the recipe just a little bit as they don't sell vermiculite in large bags at my local Lowes. So, I mixed 1/3 peat moss, 1/3 manure/composte, and 1/3 vermiculite and topsoil mix. We had to buy everything in bags and mix the soil in the squares.

The dirt has settled and is now ready to be "squared off" and planted. I can't wait!

Community Garden

'Cause I'm not geeked up enough, our block decided to create a community garden.

We even have a facebook page. Check it out!http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Columbus-OH/Italian-Village-Community-Garden/78234581824

Here are some preliminary pictures. More to follow along with a planting diagram.

Getting Ready

So, I've been reading my Square Foot Gardener book. The temperature is rising and it's getting closer and closer... I'm SO excited. I LOVE vegetables. This past weekend my husband and I spent a couple of hours preparing the area where we are going to put our two raised beds. This involved moving some plants around. (I mentioned before how much my husband loves it when I move plants around in the garden. He thinks I'm crazy. He's also much more decisive that I am!)

After clearing the spot we took 4 2x8x8ft boards and cut them in half. Then we screwed the ends together and created these! The stakes mark where the string will attach to create 1ft x 1ft squares for planting. Up next is dirt. I'm headed to Lowes or Oakland Nursery to buy the mix I need. On the website they recommend a mixture of 1/3 Peat Moss, 1/3 Vermiculite, 1/3 Compost. After this we should be ready to plant. Broccoli here I come!

Tulips = Spring

Check these out! How pretty! These popped up over the weekend. This just means it's getting warmer. Yeah.

Daffodils

Just another few days and I will start to get some color in my yard. The tulips and daffodils are slowly poking their heads up and soon they will be blooming. In the mean time, I'm just thrilled that something is growing. It means spring is coming!

Herbs

Last weekend we had unseasonably warm weather for Central Ohio. It was FABULOUS. At the end of each winter, I can hardly wait for it to warm up. This year was no different but it seems way worse. I'm not sure if it was because it has been SO cold, or what, but I really needed a sign that warm weather was on the way.

Last weekend did it. It was 70! There was a wonderful breeze that even allowed us to open up the house for some fresh air. It was AWESOME!

In my search for signs of all things spring I found that my chives had started to poke through the dirt. This means it's really going to happen, we are really going to get warm weather soon! I am so excited I can hardly stand it. I've been dreaming about what to plant this year and my mouth is salavating. YUM!

A major player in my garden has always been my herbs. I grow enough basil for a small army and eat it with my fresh tomatoes everyday. Umm... Drooling... Back to reality. By the time that February rolls around each year, I always forget what it is like to have an herb garden that I can wonder out to each night to pick the flavors of that night's meal.

I am working on what herbs to plant this year and am looking forward to mid May so that I can finally get them in the ground. This year I'm thinking that I'll be planting the following:

Basil (did I mention how much I LOVE basil)
The last several years I have planted a couple of basil plants right in front of my tomatoes in a little sliver of land. I don't know what's in my soil (I haven't put fertilizer in it for a few years now) but basil LOVES it. By the end of each season, I have a gigantic basil bush that is usually close to 3 feet tall. Last year I made several batches of pesto that have come in handy this past winter. I'm looking for a way to freeze the bazil on it's own so that I can have fresh tasting basil in the winter too.

Thyme
I am going to have to work on using my thyme more often this year. I always use it for fun marinades but I need to find some other things to use it with. The last several weeks I have been making a lot of salads in antipation of the warm weather. I make my own salad dressing and have been using a fair amount of thyme in that. It's yummy!

Rosemary (my other go to herb, it's awesome in a turkey marinade!),
Rosemary might surpass basil as my favorite herb except that tomatoes and basil are a match made in heaven. I LOVE rosemary, especially in foccacia bread.

Chives
I love chives because the are a great addition to lots of meals and I love the purple flower they have for summer salads. And an added bonus is they come back every year without me doing anything, love it!

Taragon
I have a love/hate relationship with my taragon. I got a start of it a couple of years ago from someone in my husband's office. It is triving in my garden, however it is also taking over my garden. I don't use taragon as an herb as much as I would like to. I have to look for some new recipes. That being said, it's beautiful in a fresh flower arrangement! I am always picking flowers from my yard for a vase inside and taragon make a great "filler" for my arragements!

Dill
I have never grown dill before, but I hope to this year. I love it in salads and hope to find lots of other uses for it this summer!

Cilantro
Due to the ridiculous amount of tomatoes that I grow and eat, my husband and I make salsa a lot. I would love to be able to use my own cilantro. However, I but a plant every year and every year within a week it goes to seed and dies. I will win this war and am going to try to plant it in a pot with sandy soil this year. We'll see how that goes.

Crocuses

Check these out!

Spring is Coming!

The first sign of spring is here!

I love it... The weather is getting warmer. I even have my windows open today! Hoorah. Planting is still almost 2 months away. But, hope is out there for warm weather.

Zinnia

Cactus-Flowered Zinnia Mix

Heirloom

Description: 4" flower heads with quilled, slightly twisted petals in scarlet, rose, orange, and yellow.

Blooms in summer

Full sun

Available at http://www.burpee.com/product/annual+flowers/zinnias/zinnia+cactus-flowered+mix++-+1+pkt.+%28100+seeds%29.do

Jewel Nasturtium

Jewel Nasturtium

Description: pleasantly fragrant and a great spice addition to any salad.

Flower in summer

Full Sun

Available at http://www.localharvest.org/nasturtium-seed-jewel-mix-C4828

Tyee Spinach

Tyee Spinach
Hybrid

Description: Semi-savoyed (crinkled) vitamin packed leaves.

42 days to maturity

Full Sun






Available at http://gurneys.com/product.asp?pn=66311&bhcd2=1235867438

Golden Bantam Sweet Corn

Golden Bantam Sweet Corn

Heirloom

Description: Broad, deep golden delicious kernels.

80 days to maturity

Full Sun

Available at http://www.burpee.com/product/vegetables/heirloom+vegetables/corn+golden+bantam+%28heirloom%29+-+1+pkt.+%28200+seeds%29.do

Four Seasons Butterhead Lettuce

Four Seasons Butterhead Lettuce

Heirloom

Description: Red tinged leaves blanch to creamy yellow.

60 days to maturity

Sun to partial shade

Available at http://www.burpee.com/product/vegetables/heirloom+vegetables/lettuce+four+seasons+%28heirloom%29++-+1+pkt.+%28500+seeds%29.do

Green Beans

Triomphe de Farcy Haricots Verts
Heirloom

Description: French style green beans that are slender, shapely, and have wonderful flavor.

48 days to maturity

Full Sun




Available at http://www.frenchgardening.com/item.html?pid=SEVE77

Silver Queen Corn

Silver Queen Corn

Hybrid

Description: Crisp, sweet, tender white kernals.

92 days to maturity

Full sun

Available at http://www.parkseed.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/StoreCatalogDisplay?storeId=10101&catalogId=10101&langId=-1&mainPage=prod2working&ItemId=5103&cid=ppp000248

Available at

Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce

Black-Seeded Simpson Lettuce
Heirloom

Description: Very tender and delicately flavored lettuce leaves

45 days to maturity

Full Sun

Available at http://www.burpee.com/product/vegetables/lettuce/looseleaf/lettuce+black-seeded+simpson+%28heirloom%29+-+1+pkt.+%281000+seeds%29.do

Carrots

Touchon
Heirloom

Description: Sweet, tender, quick to mature. Free from hard fiber and best for eating out of hand.

65 days to maturity

Full Sun



Available at http://www.burpee.com/product/vegetables/heirloom+vegetables/carrot+touchon+%28heirloom%29+-+1+pkt.+%282000+seeds%29.do

Getting the Garden Spot Ready

As I have explained in an earlier post, when my husband and I started working on our yard, we had a blank slate. Our yard was AWFUL! We've spent many long hours creating flower beds, weeding, watering, and praying for our plants to live. We are on summer number 4 and the little tiny bushes are finally filling out and our preenials are looking quite good.

However, every spring I get this itch in me to move things around! When we started planning our landscaping, we purchased some things that we thought would work. As they have matured, we've realized that they are not quite what we were looking for. So, each spring as plants grow, I get these new ideas. Hmm, what if I moved the lillies from one side of the house to the other? What if I the boxwood bush moved to the other side of the walk? What if we just ripped out that plant (it didn't grow like it said it would on the tag!)? Needless to say, I'm getting really good at moving all these around and my husband just shakes his head. One day he'll understand.

I only mention this because if I am going to have these square foot gardens, I have to move some plants around inorder to have room for the raised beds. In this bed, I currently have a few hosta plants and four large plants that have leaves that look like corabells, but they aren't corabells. These plants have a deep purple, beautiful leaf that create pretty mounds and send up little tiny white flowers.

Anyways, the reason I'm thinking about this is that I have to move these cool flowers to another location. When it's warm, my husband is just going to shake his head again, but he will soon see the big picture.

Ah, the joys of gardening!

Warm Weather Please Come Visit

As I look out the window right now, it's grey and drizzling and about 55 degrees. This is somewhat exciting as it has been an especially cold winter. It is also very depressing as I am SO ready for some warmer weather. I think the extra cold weather is what has me so geeked up about the possibility of a new garden. We still have over 2 months before I can actually put plants in the ground, but that doesn't keep me from dreaming. I've even gone so far as to create a crazy diagram indicating what I'll be growing in each square foot.

My "Square Foot Gardening" book should be in hopefully tomorrow. After I read it I'll post my future garden diagram.

Seeds and Plants

In the past, I have always purchased my tomato and pepper plants as just that plants. I have never started them from seeds inside under lights as most farmers do. I do grow heirloom tomatoes so I always have a TON of volunteer plants that spring up when it starts to get warmer, but I've never actually tried to grow anything from seed.

Well times are a changin' and it's time to grow some seeds. I've seen the seed catalogs that most people get around this time of year. My mouth always waters looking through it thinking about all the delicious opportunities there are. However, I'm a VERY small gardener, so I don't need lots of seeds, really just a few of each veggie I'm going to try to grow. So, that led me to the local garden center to check out their supply.

I've decided that due to space constraints I will probably never be able to start my seeds indoors. So, I made an executive decision yesterday that I will purchase the pepper, squash, zucchini, tomato and herb plants for my garden. Then I will attempt to grow the other contents from seed ( the lady at the garden center assured me this was acceptable, my crop just wouldn't have the "jump start" that others would have by being started inside).

I have had a lot of luck with heirloom tomatoes in the past. I love their misshapen sizes and fun colors. There tastes are unbelievable as well. Last year I grew Cherokee Purple, Brandywine, Mr. Stripee, and a yellow version that I can't remember the name. I also grow cherry tomatoes as I love to eat them straight off the vine!

When I went to the garden center to buy seeds, I also bought as many of the heirloom veggies I could. The only non heirloom variety I bought was nasturtium for my salads. So, I'm going to try to grow two kinds of lettuce, spinach, haricot verts, carrots, two varieties of corn, and maybe broccoli from seed. We'll see how it goes. I'm planning on using this blog to track how things are growing and if I had any success with the seeds.

Urban Farming

So, this is totally an experiment. I live in the city. My husband and I have spent the last 3 years landscaping a super cute backyard that we LOVE to relax in during the warm months. When we purchased the property a as "fixer uper" the yard barely had grass. We've since torn down the old nasty chain link fence that was completely ingrown with WILD growth.

We then set new posts and installed a 6' wood plank fence that encloses our yard on two sides, the third side we share a nice chain link fence with our neighbor. Our house makes up the forth side, completely enclosing our yard. The entire back yard is maybe 40'x40'.

We then laid a very rustic looking brick patio with paver stones recycled from a neglected parking spot on the side of our house. So now we have what looks like a real back yard. (The picture above is from 3 years ago, the landscaping has grown in a bit and some of it has even moved around.)

Our yard gets almost full sun, meaning we have lots of opportunites to put the yard to work and grow some veggies.

The back fence in the picture is south facing. the last 2 years I have amazing luck with a fantastic supply of tomatoes. I LOVE TOMATOES. I could eat them everyday of the summer and if they tasted good the rest of the year too! I plant the tomatoes close to the back fence and actually tie them up to the fence. It works great and the neighbor loves it when some of the branches hang over to his side because then he gets some free tomatoes!

Now comes the experiment part of this... This year I want to use the garden on the left side of the picture to start a "Square Foot Garden".

I've done some research on this concept of gardening that was developed by Mel Bartholomew. It sounds completely facinating. I'm waiting to get my copy of the book Square Foot Gardening from my local bookstore, should be here in a few days. Once I get through reading that, I'll post more on the start of my gardening adventure.

The Beginning

In an era of cutting back and watching what we spend, I have become more concious about many things in my life. One of them being the food that my husband and I eat. While I am very frugal, we eat almost no processed foods. This makes grocery shopping more and more expensive as the cost of fresh produce continues to rise and the amount of chemicals used on produce continues to grow. So, here is my solution. Let's grow an organic garden...

Many people have laughed at my idea (which I totally understand, you'll see why soon). But, I'm going to try to see what I can grow myself, and what I can freeze, dry, can, and preserve for the next winter. I did a small (very, very small) amount of this last fall and have loved being about to pull tomatoes out of my freezer to make sauce this winter and they actually taste like tomatoes!

Now most people think that anyone living on a farm, in any type of subdivision, or anyone that has a basic yard can do this. It is true, you're right. However, I don't live in a subdivision, and I don't live on a farm. In fact I live in downtown Columbus, OH. My husband and I share an old Italian style house on a VERY narrow lot. I joke that when most people buy land, they purchase acres, I own FEET. My entire lot is 40 feet wide!

So, here is my challenge. I want to be able to create a back yard garden that will produce enough vegetables to sustain me through the summer and hopefully allow some for the winter. My husband and I often attend the local farmer's market and I hope to continue to do this throughout the summer. I'm going to supplement my growing with produce purchased there and just see what I can have for next winter.