growth explosion

we have been getting a lot of rain the past couple weeks, which has helped the garden catch up to where it should be growth wise. we have been getting some crazy weather, [really hot, then really really cold] which stunted some of the plants, especially the peppers and the eggplants. the peppers went into flower mode immediately and so did some of the eggplants.

now you can actually see the little eggplants hiding amongst the other plants, they're finally more than twice the size they were when i put them in the ground. i was afraid they were permanently stunted. i may still end up with miniature eggplants if any at all, i know a couple of them had already started to flower.

...and check out these figs! i wasn't sure we would get fruit the first year, it is but a tiny tree. but the lady at the farmers market told me as long as it's well watered and fed it should produce something this season. and voila! there's about a dozen fruit started on the tree. how exciting!

the zucchini plant has to be the biggest thing in the garden by mass and volume.. the thing is just huge. the stalks are almost as big around as the finished fruit should be, and there's half a dozen fruits coming through already. the leaves are bigger than my head, and the bush has to be over five feet across. i gave it three, and i also put it in a low spot hoping the extra water accumulation would help it survive the summer heat. it also helped it to take over that entire corner of the garden..

the closely planted food polycultures are proving to work well so far. now that the foliage is almost covering the beds completely it is easy to see that the plants help one another by confusing pests, shading the soil to keep in moisture, and shading smaller more delicate plants from the harsh sun, thus allowing them to thrive in the moist microclimates amongst other palnts. this also crowds out potential 'weeds' from flourishing as there is little room left for intruders.

long weekend planting

YAY GARDEN! yes, we finally got one of the beds done. our first experimental bed started as a grassy meadow of a lawn.. the dirt and some of the grass was overturned, layered with cardboard, and then with various leaf mulch,and a blend of composted sheep manure, sandy topsoil and black earth. we are limited on funds this year so we work with what we get for cheap or free. so far we made out pretty well.. we had plenty of plain corrugated cardboard from the move.

however the move was at a time that made it hard to start seeds before the last frost, much of what we sprouted at the old house didn't survive the move. we have had better luck directly in the ground with the lettuce anyway, it already looks better than it did inside.

the main bed was planted with seedlings from the farmer's market, and some from the grocery garden centre. in between we are experimenting with making the groundcover layers of different low-growing plants from seed such as beets and turnips in a couple spots, and then lettuce mix throughout. once the sprouts start to show i will go in between where there is still space and drop some romaine or other lettuce seeds that will benefit from periodic shade of the taller plants around them.

the planter box with the already sprouting lettuce was infiltrated with carrots, beets and parsnips in patches throughout. we are experimenting with building dense polycultures, some plots we will intentionally overplant to see how much food mass a single plot can hold. this must be done carefully with attention to companion plants, root depths and how much space the plant itself will need to thrive.

tonight i think we may start some of the wildflowers and sunflowers in some peat cups so they are ready for when the ground is prepared for them. otherwise their sprouts would get lost in the meadow! also we have a few spare totes from the move so i'm thinking i will use one to make some super rich compost. Matt drinks a lot of coffee and we eat a good amount of eggs [shells!].. plus we have pulp from the juicer. mix that with some of the brown stuff from last year's leaves and a bit of water and see what we get!


in other news, we discovered quickly that this house doesn't have a hose hookup outside. i'll tell ya i've been getting a good workout going from the downstairs tub up and out to the yard a bunch, but i don't mind.. for now. by next weekend we should have our first rain barrel set up to collect off the roof. also i'm storing all of the water from the dehumidifier in a tote outside for soaking the soil. we seem to pull about 3-5 liters a day out of the air in the basement of this old house... that's a lot of humidity! keeps the basement super cool with all the windows closed too. that and a couple of air circulator fans and it's easily ten degrees cooler down here than on the main floor. love it! well there's a bunch more work to be done, ta for now!

sprouting a salad

i don't have much experience starting from seed indoors.. i've only grown peas, beans, herbs and lettuce from seed in previous years. this time i am trying a couple species of tomatoes, a bell pepper and a spicy pepper. also we were curious to see if the bean and squash seeds from last year are still viable so we threw some on the seeding trays with the peppers and tomatoes.

they lived! i wasn't sure if the beans would still be good, many of the seed packets that we were given last year we didn't get the chance to use and they weren't stored in any extraordinarily careful conditions. we were happy to see after a few days a few sprouts pushing their way out.. hopefully everything we get to sprout will survive the move and the timing, we will have to leave them outdoors in early May as there isn't anywhere indoors to keep them at the new place. we will ahve to get creative and build them something to let the sun in and keep the frost out.

our lettuce mix is looking happier and stronger each day. it will be the first fresh crop to be ready for the season, and we're eager to dig in.. i'm thinking of picking up some herbs to start next, like mint and thyme and perhaps some parsely and a few chives... the possibilities are endless. we're so grateful that we will end up having a yard this year to grow in, and we move just in time to begin after the last frost. so excited!