A Brooklynite's Attempt at "Self-Sufficientish"

Weekly Update 9 - Sad Sunflower Succession Planning Edition

2013-08-21T16:32:00.000-04:00

Hey y'all,
So this week, was full of ups and downs on the rooftop. On the upside, I have been very happy with the rate of production for just about every plant and have been amazed at how little I have had to deal with pests and disease. On the downside, since this was my first year growing sunflowers (which are my favorite kind of flower), I did not plan well for succession planning. I was imagining that the sunflowers would come in and then I would spend the rest of the growing season basking in their glory.

Dead? Hardening off?

Sadly, my sunflowers look a little sad. The reason could be that they are hardening off. I really hope that is the reason. When the sunflowers first blooms, pollinators come and do their magic, then the sunflowers look ugly for a little bit as the plant hardens off and produces seed. I really think that in my eagerness to fulfill my sunflower needs, that I planted too many flowers in too little of a space preventing the sunflowers to get big enough to enter the hardening off stage. As such, I should have cut them when they were at their prime.

I am going out of town (again, I know) for a little less than a week starting next Wednesday for a family reunion. There, I will review the flower seeds that I have and see if I can develop a succession plan to always have a sunflower blooming indoors under my growlight. When I return, if my sunflowers on the roof haven't developed their seeds, then I am going to have to pull them up and give some room to some of the other smaller flowers in the containers to grow.

To end on a high note, I have been able to get about 10 strawberries and 2 tomatoes a week from the current plants on the roof and it looks like they are all starting to produce way more, so that leaves me fat and happy. Please see more detailed updates of each container after the jump.

Peas,
Monti

Sweet Potatoes in DIY Container A

Everything is looking good in this container. The color seems just about right. It is interesting that the leaves coming in are larger than the older ones.

Blue Corn, Alaska Peas, and Sugar Snap Peas in DIY Container B

Resiliency!

Let the pollination begin

Finally!

So this container is bringing me the most happiness as of late. First, the corn seems to be a little ahead of schedule in terms starting the pollination process. Up top, you can see the tassel (male) coming in and this week, you can see the ear (female) developing. Soon, I will shake the stalk to ensure that pollination happens. Ideally, there would have been more than 4 stalks in the container and then nature would do it's magic. After a comedy of errors, I ended up with 3 stalks.

Below, you can see fruit starting to form. What kind of fruit you ask? I have no idea. I only have three kinds of squashes and as I did not purposely put this seed in this container, I have no idea which kind of squash it is. Currently, it looks a little too fat to be a Black Magic Zucchini or a Yellow Straightneck, so I'm thinking that it is probably a Spaghetti Squash. We will soon see.

Empty DIY Container C - Purple Passion Sweet Potatoes

Here, there seems to be a little coloration issue. Maggie, my all-knowing Farm Director says that this can be either one of two things, either a nutrient deficiency or the sweet potatoes beginning to form. The newer leaves coming in are green, though so I am not too concerned. As I didn't put as much soil in each container as I should have (being cheap typically ends up costing more money in the end), I am making a compost tea to spray on the leaves and to add to the soil for this container and most of the others. In early September, I will add some bonemeal to the sweet potato containers, as well.

Sunspot Sunflowers and Butterfly/Hummingbird Mix - DIY Container D

See above to understand the heartburn that these sunflowers are giving me. They have two weeks to show their worth!

Sunspot Sunflowers and Beneficial Bug Attractors in DIY SIP 1

Suffer through these?

Or promote these?

Same thing happening here as above. As this container is much smaller, there is more of an impetus to take out the sunflowers if they are no longer performing to allow these flowers to thrive. As these flowers are supposed to attract hummingbirds, I would really like to see if they perform as promised.

Strawberries and German Chamomile

BAM! Chamomile is in the house!

Mint is flowering

German Chamomile has to be the oddest growing plant. For weeks, it barely looked like it was growing and then over the last two weeks it has really exploded. I'm loving the home-grown Chamomile and Lavender tea at bedtime. Strawberries are still producing. I am going to start trying to capture some of the daughters so I can expand my strawberry operations for next year.

Individual Herb Containers - Lavender A

I was told that the Lavender would not flower this year, so I am excited to see that it is. I have been using the leaves in cooking and tea.

Individual Herb Containers - Lavender B

Same here as above.

Individual Herb Containers - Rosemary

I am loving this herb in the kitchen. It is growing so beautifully. I am excited to prune it in the fall to get some seedlings out of it and hopefully have something that resembles a Christmas Tree to serve as mine!

Tomatoes and Mixed French Culinary Herbs

After a little time to rebuild after the plants went a little long without water, they are back in action. The cherry tomatoes are adding about a tomato a day. As they are all really green now, I am scared that they will all ripen while I am away providing my "sous waterer" with an abundance (your welcome, Heather). I am also promoting a lot of growth with the Thai Basil as the aforementioned Heather is finding a multitude of uses for them. Before I leave for the family reunion, I will have to make sure that I carefully apply the compost tea to the leaves to promote further growth.

Pepper Section and Basil

Big container - mystery pepper, Orange container - Sante Fe Pepper, White container - Tabasco Pepper, Basil hidden in square container in the West.

All of the pepper plants seem to be doing really well. The mystery pepper is starting to fruit, so soon the mystery will be solved. The other peppers are attempting to flower, but I am picking them off daily to ensure that the plants grow taller. The Basil shows the mistake that I made. I typically like to use soil for herbs without any additive so that the leaves are compact and intense in flavor. This Basil has larger leaves with less favor. A reminder to pay attention when planting or to just plant everything in cohorts with similar needs.

Leafy Green and Mint Section

Small Container - Red Acres Cabbage, Grey Round Containers - Mint,
Back Row - Purple Mizuna, Tatsoi, Purple Mizuna

The mint does not seem to be growing as quickly here, but there might be a lot of root action happening below. Hopefully, the compost tea will speed things up. I am not sure why I have not been eating as much of the leafy greens lately, but will hopefully correct this error this week.

Kale and Purple Mizuna in DIY SIP 3

The Kale is growing surprisingly well as it is not a plant that normally thrives in the summer. The Purple Mizuna was harvested last week to serve as a bed for a dinner of lavender/thyme/rosemary roasted chicken which was delicious. I will try to include the recipe and pictures when I have some downtime during the family reunion.

Growlight

Things are going really well here. I composted much of the plants that were awaiting transplanting as I was too confused which plant was which. This time, I have each clearly labeled, so will be planting three kinds of squashes, cucumber, and two kinds of beans/peas in the near future. I am trying to get back to a system of having half the space filled with germinating plants and half with herbs and lettuces. I am slowly getting back to that mix.

Composts

Here, I am having some issues as I have not been watering the compost as much as I should so neither have been able to reach hot temperatures for more than two days in a row. I am going to find some straw to use on top to reduce some water loss, but for now, I am accepting that both piles are going to be slow piles.

Weekly Update 8 - Words Have Meaning Edition

2013-08-14T17:42:00.000-04:00

Hey y'all,

So, after missing week 6 with a well-deserved week away from farming to attend weddings, lounge on the beach, entertain friends, and generally lounge around doing a lot of nothing, I am back! I think that I needed the break to a) remember how good it feels to do absolutely nothing and fret about even less and b) gain some perspective on life. Since, I have returned, I have been spending less time grinding out the 1884879782 projects on my plate and focusing a little more on enjoying life, spending time with friends and family, and doing absolutely nothing. Hence me missing out on the Week 7 update, though those pictures will be included after the jump.

My break reminded me that with a little downtime built into my schedule I am actually more productive than grinding out 100 hour weeks and sacrificing my friends and sanity. Balance is important. I hope this lesson stays in my mind. The other benefit, is that what we put out to the universe tends to come back to us, but only if we have our eyes open to see them. While attending a fundraiser for a friend, I was able to make a contact with a woman who was looking for someone to manage her 3 acres of land upstate and create a farm to feed people in her community. EXACTLY, what I have been hoping to do for the next two years. I have my fingers crossed that there will be many updates on this venture in the future, but I'm forcing myself to only be cautiously optimist that this will work out in the end.

While I was away, I had two friends set to do some intense watering. One friend was able to do so and one friend had life intervene. As such, some of the tomatoes, all of the corn, and the squash was struggling a little upon my return. After some pruning, I'm hoping that I was not set back too far. Time will time, but I tend to be amazed by how resilient and forgiving my plants have been.

On a completely unrelated note, before my trip, I co-led a workshop on Sub-Irrigated Planters. A subject I know quite well. As I did research to create the worksheet, I was faced with a lot of evidence that the term "Self-Watering Container" is misleading. While it would be easy to be proud and continue using the "Self-Watering Container," I think that words have meanings and as such, I will use "Sub-Irrigated Planter" in the future and edit some of my DIY instructions to reflect this change.

Another area where I have re-learned that words have meaning is calling my updates "Wednesday Weekly Update" as there are times when I'm very busy on Wednesday and end up not posting later in the week. By just calling the post "Weekly Update," I can post any time in the week without feeling like a failure.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to see the pictorial update of the awesome things happening on the roof over the last three weeks.

Peas,
Monti :)

Sweet Potatoes in DIY Container A

Blue Corn, Alaska Peas, and Sugar Snap Peas in DIY Container B

DIY Container C - Purple Passion Sweet Potatoes

Sunspot Sunflowers and Butterfly/Hummingbird Mix - DIY Container D

Sunspot Sunflowers and Beneficial Bug Attractors in DIY SIP 1

Strawberries, German Chamomile, Mint and Leafy Greens

Wednesday Weekly Update 5 - Heat Wave Edition

2013-07-24T17:14:00.000-04:00

Hey y'all,
So here is a long and overdo update. As many of y'all know, I am apprenticing with EcostationNY's Bushwick Campus Farm. One of Ecostation's really cool projects is our Farm in the Sky where we use a local rooftop to expand our mission and growing footprint. I have been asked to head up this project and I'm so excited to help take it to the next level. Unfortunately, it has been taking up more time than I imagined, so while I have been able to maintain my rooftop, but have not had as much time to update this blog. Slowly, and surely, I am ironing out a schedule which will allow me to continue to maintain all my commitments.
As I am three weeks behind on doing updates, so I wanted to do one big update. Im too lazy to do a full update on each container, so I wanted to note that I ended up doing a work day during "Week 4."

After a run to a local big box store, I had some extra soil to plant out some of my seedlings. Hoo ray. One more run and I should have all of the plants in the right container. I repotted one of the tomatoes and the Purple Mizunas. They are all growing right along schedule now. The only other major news is that in my French Herb Mix there was a mystery plant which was revealed to me to be a native grass, which was sucking up all the phosphorus in the soil. That was pulled and allowed to burn on the roof before going into my compost pile.

Next week, Ill be on vacation for (hopefully) the entire week unless NYC has another heat wave. Full update after the jump.

- Monti

Sweet Potatoes in DIY Container A

Week 3

Week 4

Week 5

Blue Corn, Alaska Peas, and Sugar Snap Peas in DIY Container B

Week 3


Week 4


Week 5

Close up on the squash being pollinated

I have my hand here to give yall some perspective.

Empty DIY Container C - Purple Passion Sweet Potatoes

Sunburst Sunflowers and Butterfly/Hummingbird Mix - DIY Container D

Sunburst and Beneficial Bug Attractors in DIY Self-Watering Container 1

Strawberries and German Chamomile

Individual Herb Containers - Lavender A

Individual Herb Containers - Lavender B

Individual Herb Containers - Rosemary

Mixed French Culinary Herbs

A Pepper Plant and Marigolds in DIY Self-Watering Container 2

Paul Robeson and Brandywine Tomatoes in DIY Self-Watering Container 3 and 4

Solo Purple Mizuna Plants (3) and Mint Plants (2)

Kale and Purple Mizuna in DIY Self-Watering Container 3

Tatsoi

Mint Triage

Solo Sunflower

Various Plants Awaiting Planters

Three

Four

Checking In

2013-07-16T13:32:00.002-04:00

Hey all,
I just wanted to apologize for going so long without an update. I will hopefully be back on track with at least a weekly update starting tomorrow. My absence has been because of some really awesome things happening in my life (more tomorrow). As tomorrow's post will be chock full of three weeks of pictures and progress notes of my plants, I wanted to do a smaller post today with some other updates. So here goes:

First, I wanted to thank my friend, Miléna (y'all should follow her on twitter here, for doing a little design refresh for my blog. My design sense is very utilitarian, so it is nice to have someone who knows what she is doing to freshen things up here.

Second, the Bushwick Campus Farm where I am an apprentice is in the midst of a campaign to raise money to expand our Summer Youth Internship into the school year. If you can, you should contribute. Any amount makes a difference. You can find more information and a beautiful video here.

Thats all for now, but check back tomorrow for a massive update.

Thanks,
Monti

Wednesday Weekly Update 2

2013-06-26T19:07:00.001-04:00

Overview

Last post, I mentioned that I had put together a container with Green Onions, Cinnamon Basil, and Sweet Basil for some friends. I was down in DC for birthdays this weekend and the gift went over well. In my personal life, I have been striving to be more "present" in my life meaning to ignore my phone/text/emails/etc when Im with my friends. To focus intensely on whatever Im dealing with at that most. Ironically, by giving up the quest to do five things at once, I have found that Im happier and more productive. This weekend was a big test for me. I watered my plants on Friday and had a friend coming to water to water them on Sunday. In my head, I thought this would be enough, but in my heart, I was a little concerned. Monday night, when I should have been sleeping in DC getting ready to head back on NYC on Tuesday, I looked at the weather report and just about had a nervous breakdown looking at how incredibly hot The City was while I was away. And remember, it is always hotter on the rooftop than the surrounding area.
When I arrived home on Tuesday night, I ran up the stairs to the roof and saw a complex picture (sadly, I was too frantic to think about taking pictures). Oddly, my plants all seemed to have had a growth spurt and to be look super wilted. I broke one of my cardinal rules of only watering in the morning because I was honestly concerned that some plants in the smaller containers would not have made it until the morning. I was able to go to sleep happily listening to a gentle light rain overhead, too. So how did the plants look in the morning, lets see below. (I had the flash off this morning, so the pictures look like I have a lame instagram filter on them, but I dont. Sorry about that.)

Blue Corn, Alaska Peas, and Sugar Snap Peas in DIY Container B

Container last week

3 Stalks are baby Blue Corn all others are either Alaska Peas and Sugar Snap Peas. This week.

So, the corn stalks literally doubled in height and thickness. I am still having the issue of the peas growing faster than the corn, so I cant really train the peas up the corn. This weekend, I will stand up two bamboo stakes on the side and train the peas up them. The giant leaves with rounded edges do not look like peas to me, but I already had enough comedy of errors in the container so they will remain for now. I really hope that they are not squashes. As for the freakish growth spurt, I am not sure if it is the excessive heat, their natural growth cycle, or the fact that the soil was able to dry out completely before watering. I plan to do some experiments in the future.

Sweet Potatoes in DIY Container A


2 Beauregard Sweet Potatoes and 4 "Purple Passon" Sweet Potatoes

Something is eating my Sweet Potato leaves!

And there is a weird rust coloring around the bites.

This morning, I planted out four of the "Purple Passions" in this container. The two Beauregards that were already there seem to be doing well. Some pest seems to be munching on some of the leaves. I have checked underneath the leaves of all the plants on the roof and havent found the culprit, which means that it is probably a transient pest. I think that means that I shouldnt panic or use a garlic spray for now, but will ask the farm director (who knows just about everything farming) tomorrow at the Bushwick Campus Farm.

Empty DIY Container C - will be used to plant out Purple Passions

5 "Purple Passions" awaiting planting

On Saturday, Im going to be doing a work day and will be planting out these plants then. I wanted to wait a couple days to see if there was any issue with the ones that were planted out today. If there is, then I will be recruiting one of my expert gardener friends for help. I refuse to lose another group of sweet potatoes!

Sunburst Sunflowers and Butterfly/Hummingbird Mix - DIY Container D

5 Sunburst Sunflowers and hummingbird/butterfly mix

The sunflower plants have also had a huge growth spurt. The leaves have an interesting texture. It is kinda softly prickly versus the hard prickles of Borage. Never noticed this on a sunflower plant before. Everything else in here seems to be growing well in here. As opposed to the container below.

Sunburst and Beneficial Bug Attractors in DIY Self-Watering Container 1


Three Sunburst Sunflowers surrounded by a Beneficial Bug mix.

A closeup in the container. Many of the Beneficial Bug plants are dying out since the sunflowers are taking over.

In this container, the sunflowers have pretty much taken over. The leaves are so big that they are blocking the smaller plants below. As I have a mild obsession with sunflowers, I am going to allow this to continue and just plant two other containers with the plant mix. Hopefully, the beneficial bugs come soon as something is attacking my sweet potatoes.

Strawberries and German Chamomile

A strawberry!

As I was cutting off the flowers and runners to promote root growth on my two strawberry plants, I expected that this year I would go strawberry-less. It looks like I have a total of five so far, tho. Woohoo! The leaves on one of the plants is a little yellow, but this will hopefully be taken care of with a nice dose of chicken poop tea on Saturday. I will include the how-to then. The German Chamomile still has two plants struggling to come through, but again, I do not care much at this point.

Individual Herb Containers

Lavender A

Lavender B

Rosemary

Everything looks good here! Hoo ray for Mediterranean herbs that love the heat and actually do better when they are allowed to dry out before watering.

Mixed French Culinary Herbs

Mild discoloration on leaf.

French herb mixture

Things seem to be going well here. Again, it is a group of herbs that love drying out before watering. One of the leaves is a little discolored, which probably means a little Potassium deficiency. On my Saturday workday, I will be using a little chicken poop tea on the plants. This should handle the situation. If not, Ill feed them with a little bone meal.

A Pepper Plant and Marigolds in DIY Self-Watering Container 2

Pepper Plant and Marigolds

So the pepper plant seems to be doing really well and the Marigolds are starting to bloom. Ill be planting out some Tomatoes this weekend, and I will be digging up two of the Marigolds here and transfer them over to the new container. Given how little space the actual pepper plant is taken up in the container, I think that I might be able to fit two in one container next year. If only it would hurry up and fruit so I can figure out what kind of pepper plant that it is!

Paul Robeson and Brandywine Tomatoes in DIY Self-Watering Container 3 and 4

Paul Robeson Tomato on left and Brandywine on right

The Paul Robeson plant really thrived in the past week, too. Last night, I went through and picked off the flowers and the fruit. I will prune both of these plants on Saturday to allow for better air circulation and hopefully force the plant to get a little bit taller before allowing it to fruit.

Solo Purple Mizuna Plants (3) and Mint Plants (2)

Purple Mizuna plants in the center. Mint top and bottom.

So, Im still figuring out how to get the angles right on the photographs for the blog as you can see. These plants seriously looked completely dead last night. They have been incredibly revived over night. I have the mint nearby to ward off pests as they are still a little weakened.

Kale and Purple Mizuna in DIY Self-Watering Container 3

Jagged edges = Purple Mizuna and Bumpy leaves = Kale

As you can see here. The Purple Mizuna just grows unbelievably well in the self-watering container. Ill be planting out the other three Purple Mizunas in a container this weekend. I made a salad with the Purple Mizuna on Friday and by Wednesday this is how it looks. What a prolific grower.

Various Plants Awaiting Planters

Squashes, German Chamomile, Cinnamon Basils, Sunflowers, and more

Basil with some droopy leaves. Just about all the leaves on the roof looked like that last night.

Brandywine awaiting a container this weekend.

Paul Robeson struggling under the heat started shooting out flowers.

Flowers before picking.

All of these bad boys will be planted out this weekend.

Things look like they are going slowly but surely here. Most of these will be planted out during the Saturday workday.

Thats all for this week. Thanks for reading!
- Monti

Wednesday Weekly Update 1

2013-06-19T17:26:00.000-04:00

Since a major reason Im doing this blog is to keep a garden journal, I am going to try and keep myself on a schedule of doing a weekly update. Here goes the first one.

2 Sweet potato plants thriving

Sweet Potatoes in DIY Container A

One of the hard lessons of gardening/urban farming is knowing when to cut your losses. I originally ordered 10 sweet potato plants and after it taking a week to get to me and using too much worm compost in the soil, all but two were struggling. The old me would have spent a lot of time trying to bring the failing plants back to life. While possible, the effort isnt worth it since pests have a freakish ability of going directly for your weakest plants and attacking. Following my new thesis of ordering specialty plants from specialty providers, I ordered 15 "purple passion" sweet potato plants from http://tatorman.com/ and all but 1 seem to be doing well in sterile potting soil with a layer of rocks on the bottom to ensure that they get enough drainage this time. I plan on planting out 8 of these and giving the rest to some of my friends from the Bushwick Campus Farm. Gardening is all about sharing the love.

14 "purple passion" sweet potato plants hardening off in the tray.
Behind them are from left to right - 2 tatsoi plants and 2 mint plants.

Planned Leafy Greens Area/Purple Passions

The 2 tatsoi plants and mints that I bought from the Bushwick Campus Farm are doing really well. The leafy green plants that I had started from seed...not so much. I thought that they were big enough to be unappealing to birds who have eagle eye's when it comes to seedlings for some reason. I was wrong. The easy fix is to cut the bottom off of a 1-liter bottle and and using the top to cover the plant. Ill have a picture to show this idea next week when I have my new seedlings on the roof. As for the tatsoi and mint, I have tried a couple different parts of the roof and they seem to do well in each environment, so I will keep them here with the other planned leafy greens for aesthetic reasons. The "purple passions" will be planted out or given away on Thursday/Friday and are just hardening off for the time being.

3 Stalks are baby Blue Corn all others are either Alaska Peas and Sugar Snap Peas.

Blue Corn, Alaska Peas, and Sugar Snap Peas in DIY Container B

This container has been a comedy of errors. The first plan was to do the "three sisters" in the container. While possible, I thought it a bit too ambitious and settled on 2 kinds of peas surrounding the corn and hoping that all the peas would achieve the same effect of the squash by crowding out the weeds. All good there. Then, the errors begin. First, I wanted to slightly hill the corn a little bit, so I planted those first and the plan was to let them get up to a foot and then hill to 6 inches then plant the peas. For the first couple of weeks, the original five corn starts were doing well but growing far more slowly than I originally planned so I tried to hill them an inch and plant the peas. During that time, I made a new gardening friend who was interested in the blue corn and I gave her my last five seeds thinking that my plants were good so I didnt need them. Somehow during the hilling process 2 of the corn plants just stopped growing. Now, one is struggling and one is dead. As everything I read says that corn needs at least 4 nearby corn plants to germinate, Im nervous that Im going to have to hand-pollinate to be able to get corn if that is even possible. Here, Im leaving the struggling plant in the hope that it will pull through. As for the peas, I planted them and some sunflowers directly in their respective pots at the same time. Both started to germinate at the same time and look EXACTLY alike. As I didnt have that many sunflower seeds, I look in their containers and all the seeds I planted have sprouted so Im confused how they have also sprouted in the blue corn container, too. Thinking the pea sprouts to be weeds or magic sunflower seeds which have jumped over to this container, I pull them up and plant more peas as they have not sprouted, yet. This cycle happened one more time before I realized that I was being silly and the "weeds" I had been pulling up were actually the peas. Sigh. In the future, I will ensure to use logic and plant signs. Lesson learned.

Empty DIY Container C - will be used to plant out Purple Passions

5 Sunburst Sunflowers in the center and hummingbird/butterfly mixed plants surrounding them.

Sunburst Sunflowers and Butterfly/Hummingbird Mix - DIY Container D

The sunburst sunflowers (if everything goes right) should be able 2 feet tall with a 10" head. As I am obsessed with sunflowers, these are the flowers that Im most excited about. I have five plants here and should probably thin them down to three, but it is my first time growing them and I want to test the limits of what is possible. I have heard urban legends of people spotting hummingbirds in Brooklyn, so I have used a mix of flowers here which are supposed to attract them and butterflies. Everything seems to be thriving here and I am already fantasizing about relaxing on the roof, reading a book, and being surrounded by hummingbirds and butterflies.

Green Onions in center. Cinnamon Basil on the bottom and three Sweet Basil plants at various stages.

Green Onions, Basil, and Cinnamon Basil for friend

These are some of one of my best friends favorite herbs and as he has no green thumb, I grew them for his birthday present and will be giving them to him this weekend in DC. They have done really well on the roof and so I hope they do as well on his balcony. The Sweet Basil plants (3) were started from seed and the Cinnamon Basil was bought from the Bushwick Campus Farm. The advise that I always give friends without a green thumb for a planter this size is to stick his index finger in the soil down to his knuckle, if is feels dry, then put 4 ice cubes on the soil and let them melt slowly. This seems to work well.

Strawberries on either side and Chamomile in center. Purple Mizuna growing separately below.

Strawberries and German Chamomile

In my last post, I wrote about my insane experience trying to order strawberry plants from a certain company. A month ago, I was able to find a total of 2 strawberry plants at Home Depot so I snagged them. Originally, I wanted to grow lavender and chamomile in this container, hence all the gravel mixed into the soil, but I decided that the container didnt drain fast enough for the lavender and gave them their individual containers. As this is the first of (hopefully) five years with these strawberry plants, I had been cutting off the flowers and runners until the jiffy pots the strawberry no longer were able to be pulled out easily. I wanted the roots to set as much as possible and we are finally at that milestone, which means I might get a total of 2 strawberries this year, but hopefully many more in the future. As for the chamomile. Either, it is the slowest growing plant or something is wrong. I dont care strongly either way, so Im just going to leave it alone for now.

2 Lavender Plants

Mint

Rosemary

Individual Herb Containers

Note, to self, everyone would be better served with a closeup of these plants in the future. Anyway, all four of these plants were bought and seem to be doing well. The lavender here seem to be doing much better after I have them in their own containers with a lot of drainage holes. Now, they are a little more tricky though since I have to monitor them twice a day to see if they need watering. Thankfully, the future harvest will make the work worth it. No scent calms me more than lavender.

Sorrel, Cilantro and other herbs

Mixed French Culinary Herbs

Originally, I wanted to grow this in my kitchen. They were growing so leggy there that I transferred them to the roof. Since the container is small enough, Ill be able to add it to the table during dinner parties so the effect will still be the same I guess. Next week, Ill complete the wood pallet planter and will use that to grow a bigger collection of mixed herbs.

3 Sunburst Sunflowers surrounded by a Beneficial Bug mix

Sunburst and Beneficial Bug Attractors in DIY Self-Watering Container 1

Next week, I will be making a video showing how I make my self-watering containers. In this container, I have some plants which attract beneficial bugs like wasps to the garden to fight off some pests. They all seem to be going well here.

Some kind of pepper plant surrounded by marigolds.

A Pepper Plant and Marigolds in DIY Self-Watering Container 2

This pepper was started indoors this fall. His brother didnt quite make it. Im honestly not sure what kind of pepper it is, but am pretty sure that it is a Tabasco pepper plant. Im going to have to trim up the marigolds this week as I think this container could use some better airflow, but generally everything seems to be growing well.

Left - Paul Robeson and Cinnamon Basil. Right - Brandywine and 2 Marigolds

Paul Robeson and Brandywine Tomatoes in DIY Self-Watering Container 3 and 4

These plants were bought from the Bushwick Campus Farm and seem to be doing well. I have another set in the "Various Plants" section. They all look to be thriving at the same right, so I shouldnt worry about transferring the other tomatoes too too much, but will hopefully do it when I get back in town early next week. Will also need to add support structures for the tomatoes, too.

Two Purple Mizuna plants

Jagged edges are Purple Mizuna and Rounded edges are Tuscan Kale

Solo Purple Mizuna and Kale and Purple Mizuna in DIY Self-Watering Container 3

The three Purple Mizunas were all bought at the same time from the Bushwick Campus Farm. It is amazing to me how differently they are growing. In the second picture, I wanted to use the Purple Mizuna to take up space while the Kale grew up. I have already harvested this plant three times and it seems bigger every day. The other two solo plants are growing much more slowly, so I might have to add those two to a larger self-watering container together. For now, Im trying to test which spot on the roof allows them to thrive the most. I love experimenting. Im very very pleased at the progress of the Kale. It is such a slow grower in the beginning, but seems to be hitting its stride.

Sunflower, Texas Blue Bonnets, Peas, and several Basil Plants

2 Cinnamon Basil Plants

Paul Robeson and Brandywine Tomatoes

Various Plants Awaiting Planters

Below, I note my struggles finding containers, but these will all be planted out soon. Ill have to remember to tilt the smaller containers to maximize sunlight.

"Working" pile

"Addition" Pile

Compost Piles

The "working" pile has dramatically cooled down, so I think that it is nearing completion, which is good since my other pile is almost full. In about 3 weeks, Ill shift through the first pile and transfer everything in the addition pile into the "working" pile since it is so much easier to turn.

6 different kinds of tomatoes. 2 kinds of squash. Quinoa. Two kinds of Basil.

Tray of Plants Hardening Off

Im still searching for free 5-gallon buckets, which are turning out to be harder to find lately. The following plants are still being harden off and awaiting transplanting when I finally bite the bullet and just buy 5-gallon buckets. Ive given myself a Saturday deadline to either find or buy.

Closing Notes

Overall, Im overbudget in how much that I wanted to spend on the rooftop garden. I had always had plans of a couple financial ventures to allow the garden to partially pay for itself, so those plans will have to be accelerated. Be sure that I will be sharing my progress on those fronts in the future.

Reflections After One Month

2013-06-13T18:23:00.000-04:00

1 - Planning is important. Plans are worthless.

Dreams made during the winter turned into plans drawn out on whiteboards which turned into what I thought was my idealized plan. HA! Just about everything other than the general place each container on the roof was put has been dramatically altered. The upside is that by creating my ideal garden, I was able to make notes about which plants like which soils and what plants make the best and worst neighbors for other plants. Also, it was important to quantify how much compost was needed (I actually overestimated how much was needed) and how many containers, soil, etc was needed (I dramatically underestimated). Thankfully, the skills that I have learned allowed me to quickly adapt my plans and things seem to be back on track. Will I again fantasize and plan this winter for next year? Without a doubt, but hopefully, I will be more informed about the materials needed. Also, I should have far more of the materials (composted soil, seeds, containers, etc) already on hand cutting down on the frustration of purchasing way more items that I originally thought that I needed.

2 - This is a situation where size does matter.

A month ago, I was able to find a plot in a nearby community garden and was over the moon. I was thinking that I would be able to use that plot to grow larger items that I didnt have room for on the roof (full-blown corn and mammoth sunflowers) and plants being grown just for canning (tomatoes for chutneys and pasta sauce). In the interim, I became an apprentice at the Bushwick Campus Farm which requires me do classes/work at the farm for one day a week. Through that program, I excitedly joined the team working on a nearby rooftop to expand our farm operations. Soon after, I found another nearby community garden where there were not any plots available for me to use, but I have been helping out some of the plot farmers (Hi, Danielle!) there and am developing a neat worm composting system for their garden.
Alright, so when I sit down and think about my commitments, it is at least one day a week at the Bushwick Campus Farm. Probably, half a day a week at the other rooftop project. One day every other week at the local community garden. On top of about an hour a day on my rooftop. When I circled back to my community garden plot and stared at the dreadful condition of the plot, I just couldnt get the motivation to double-dig and rush to germinate the seeds to plant there. So, my other option would have been to just slightly till the land and invest even more money in buying plants. After some reflection, I decided to let this plot go. Now, other than my own rooftop garden, all of the other current projects are ones which I do with other people.
Before this growing season, gardening was pretty much a solo hobby for me. Having now gotten involved with other people, Im realizing that having a community brings me more enjoyment than I thought that it would, so Im going to focus my time and energy developing deeper relationships there. An added benefit being that others who garden on their roofs have volunteered their excess space so I will hopefully be able to grow extra tomatoes and cucumbers on their roofs.

3 - Shortcuts have consequences

A - Through some fluke in the universe, I had commitments which had me away from Brooklyn for the month of April (college reunion, coachella, wedding in Thailand), which turned out to be an awesome time but with consequences for my garden. A good friend of mine was able to come over about twice a week to water my plants under my growlight. Those survived well, but the seeds that I was starting did not.
B - I was enticed by an offer by a company (which will go un-named) to get $25 off an order of $50. I asked the telephone operator if their plants/seeds were organic, and she answered "of course." Later, once I was able to think clearly, it became clear that she must have been confused. I have never heard of an organic company which did not tout this. They cant just call themselves organic, there are different groups that verify every aspect of their operation for them to use this designation. So, yeah those plants are not organic, but will be grown an organic way. Next, the order was shipped weeks later and of course came while I was away. A new screwup with the postal service had the mailperson missing the note to leave the package with my neighbor. So, the post office held the package for a week and then shipped it back. So, I get back home and wasnt even able to receive my non-organic seeds and plants. Frustrated, I call the company and explain the situation. The telephone operator understood that neither party did nothing wrong, but she shipped the order again for free. YAY. Somehow that order got messed up and I got one item of 8. Four calls later, they realized the mistake and finally was able to reship the order...minus the strawberry plants as they were out of them. I was honestly seeing red at this point. I am a big believer in buying from local family-owned businesses when possible and here I went for the flashy sale price and paid the price for it. At the same time, I found another online seed company which I believe in and have had much much better interactions with - botanicalinterests.com (affiliate alert - I get a small kickback from the company if you buy from them, but I honestly believe in the product. Do note that not all of their offerings are organic if that is important to you). Also, I have had good results focusing on specialist for certain plants like www.tatorman.com for sweet potatoes (not an affiliate, but nice Southern folk with a really good product).
C - So after those two failures, it is May. Im back in Brooklyn. I thought that I would be planting out a ton of plants, but NONE were ready. I spent a little money buying some plants so that I could have SOMETHING to look at on the roof and started a ton of other plants from seed. The problem this time, I was out of seed starting soil, so I used vermicompost to start the soil. The logic being many many people swear by the magic of adding a little vermicompost into the hole that you put your seed in, so obviously germinating the seed in the vermicompost will speed the process up, right?! Wrong! Two weeks later, seeing no germination I touched the containers and realized that the worm poop is way way way too heavy for the seeds. Good seed starting mix is super light keeping the seed moist without being saturated. Lesson learned.

Now, with a clearer head and an acceptance that most of the plants will still have time to make it to harvest but some will not. Things finally seem to be on track.

4 - Work with your environment

I knew that the three main issues I was going to have to deal with on the roof were: the heat, the wind, and issues with watering. This is one area where planning was very helpful. Heat - only grow plants that thrive in the heat and use areas with a lot of shade for plants that dont like a lot of sun/heat like lettuce. Wind - use containers with heavy filler weigh them down. Water - use self-watering containers where possible to cut down on watering. The only issues here have been the torrential rains that we have been having actually forces me to dump out the water in the container water reservoirs since most plants like to dry out between watering. I wish that I realized potential for the plants flooding in their containers before I lost a tabasco pepper plant, but hey lesson learned. The wind turned out to be more powerful than I thought, so I had to remove the trays in the TOWER since a tray once flipped over.

5 - No man is an island

Another benefit of getting more involved with the larger gardening community, I have been able to find a ton of new resources. One guy in the area raises chickens, and so I have been able to get free manure from him. I have gotten over my aversion of buying plants/seedlings which I could have grown myself to jumpstart my rooftop garden. Also, others have shared many tips/tricks for rooftop gardening which I will be trying out.

Thats all for now. I hope yall enjoyed reading. Feel free to share what lessons you have learned so far in this growing season.

- Monti

How to Make a Super Easy DIY Container from a Large Barrel

2013-06-11T14:41:00.002-04:00

Since I was able to acquire a couple barrels, I wanted to make some large containers that I could use to grow my sweet potatoes and blue jade corn. I also used one of the barrels to make a composter.
Im not sure about other cities, but it is easy to find barrels of this size in NYC for about $30. It is important that it is food grade or has not been used before as you do not want to eat anything grown in something with trace toxic stuff hanging around.

Finished product

DIY Containers from A Large Barrel

You will need:

- Drill
- Saw/jig saw
- Cleaning solution
- Measuring tape
- Protective eyewear

Steps:

1 - Use a cleaning solution to thoroughly clean both the outside and the inside of the barrel.

2 - Use measuring tape to find the middle point on the barrel.

3 - For my jigsaw, I needed to drill a hole on the line where I wanted to cut.

4 - Put on protective eyewear and carefully use the saw to cut the barrel in half.

5 - Carefully, drill 1-inch drainage holes in the bottom of the containers. I also like to do a drainage hole in the lower side of the container as well for extra drainage.

Notice the drainage on the side.

Hope this helps!
- Monti

(Belated) Weekend Work Day Update

2013-06-05T11:23:00.000-04:00

I was able to squeeze in another work day this weekend. First up was filling out the larger containers that I made a couple weeks ago. This planters were made out of large water barrels and were crazy easy to make. Ill include the instructions in my next update as this one was getting a little long.

Trip to Rose Red and Lavender

I should have taken a picture of the oasis that they have, but I was a bit focused on what I needed to buy. This place had (almost) everything that I was needing to buy. And they delivered to my building for $20!
Any place that offers tea made with freshly picked herbs from their garden and sweeten with honey from their bees is alright with me! If you are looking for plants, floral arrangements, or just a really helpful staff to help you with your garden, please check them out at - -http://www.roseredandlavender.com/

Work Day over the Weekend

Three bags of soil, styrofoam to use as filler, chicken manure, blood and bone meal. Obligatory glass of wine.

The delivery guy helped me get to the stuff to the roof, so we were able to do it all in one trip.The soil was added to the planters that I made earlier and I was able to plant out the sweet potatoes and fill up some of my other smaller containers. Ill do a final workday this weekend to finish planting out the vegetables and cross my fingers that everything matures before our first frost.

Next, came filling in the planters with some of the awesome soil and topping off with a little blood meal, bone meal, and fertilizer. After mixing it all in and heavy watering, we are ready to transplant the sweet potatoes.


Adding a little bone meal, blood meal, and fertilizer to my planters.

With that completed, I was able to focus on topping off the soil in some of the other containers and transplanting other plants. Then, it was time to relax with that glass of wine and the sunset. More to come later!

- Monti

New Plants and Farmers Market Info!

2013-05-30T19:26:00.004-04:00

Clockwise: Mint, Tatsoi, Paul Robeson Tomato, Cinnamon Basil, Brandywine Tomato, and Purple Mizuna

More Plants

On Wednesday, I stopped by the Bushwick Campus Farm (disclosure, I am an apprentice at the farm) to pick up some more plants. See those beauties above. This means that Im about 50% of the way to my plant goal for the season. This weekend, Ill be picking up a lot of soil and will transplant them into containers on the roof.

Bushwick Campus Farm, Ecostation:NY, and Bushwick Farmers Market

Everything from beans to peppers to lettuce being prepped for the Bushwick Farmers Market

You can find out more about The Bushwick Campus Farm at http://ecostationny.org/BCF/ or https://www.facebook.com/pages/Bushwick-Campus-Farm/219482024759889. Better yet, come to the first farmers market of the season on Saturday, June 1 at Maria Hernandez Park. Ill be there volunteering during part of the event helping to sale our beautiful plants. You can find out more about the market here - http://www.bushwickfarmersmarket.org/.

One of the many lettuce varieties for sale from the Bushwick Campus Farm

And Then The Universe Rewards Me

After about 8 hours of back breaking work, I was crazy exhausted when I got home. I try to spend at least an hour a day on the roof communing with the world and my growing garden. I forced to go up there exhaustion and all (with a rum and coke and some freshly picked mint) and was rewarded with the view you see below. I never cease to be amazed by the universe!

See Manhattan in the horizon?

Pepper Protection with an Easy DIY Organic Fungicide Spray!

2013-05-29T16:00:00.001-04:00

One fact that every new gardener should know is that the mistake that most people make in the beginning is actually OVER-water rather than under-watering. Your plant only needs about 1 inch of water to get down to its roots every week. Indoors, this means that they should be able to go at least a week with a solid watering if you have them in an appropriate size container.

With peppers (and tomatoes and cucumbers and eggplants) the issue that we have to work out for is a fungus that emerges when the plant is in soil that is too wet. (I want to keep this blog jargon-free, but you can find a more scientific explanation and information here - http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Cucurbit_Phytoph.htm) This fungus can rapidly spread from the leaves to the stem to the root. Once it has attacked the roots, it is game over for your plant and you could discard it and the soil.

It isnt all Debbie Downer news today, though. There is something that you can do most of the time. Be PROACTIVE. A simple spraying of the stem and leaves with a basic fungicidal spray after heavy rains are advised. The one that I make for my peppers and tomatoes is a little different from most that you will find online since I add a little garlic oil to keep pests away. The reason? Pests seem to be able to sense the weakness of your plant and will attack like crazy. The garlic oil should keep them at bay. Try the recipe below and let me know how it works.

EASY DIY Organic FUNGICIDE SPRAY

Ingredients:

- 1 tablespoon of Baking Soda
- 1 tablespoon of dish detergent (an organic soap is ideal if you are going to be eating the plants in question)
- 1 tablespoon of garlic oil
- 1 Gallon of water

Directions:

Simply mix the ingredients together and add to a sprayer. Spray directly to the tops and bottoms of leaves and stems after heavy rains. Should also be used at least once a week whether yall have had heavy rains or not.

Will update with images these evening.

Enjoy!
- Monti

(Updated on May 30th, 2013 to add image)

Sweet Potatoes Have Arrived!

2013-05-28T13:41:00.000-04:00

Sweet potato plants fresh out of the box.

While the Memorial Day weekend is normally seen as the "official start of the summer" here in the US, this year it was crazy cold outside, which meant a weekend of cookouts turned into a weekend of garden projects. First up was going to the post office to get the sweet potato plants that arrived on Friday. Getting plants in the mail is always nerve-racking (will they make it in time? what if they get lost in the mail? will they be able to handle a week in transit?!), but this time they arrived looking fairly normal.

So, first we should do a little fun fact. Sweet potatoes are tropical vine which are actually more related to peppers than "regular" potatoes (fact check it! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweet_potato). As such, they will die if the weather gets below 50 degrees. Since it was crazy cold here, I decided to give my plants a little TLC before putting them out in the big bad world. Here's how I did it.

First, I separated each plant and composted the rest of the material that they were sent with.

Second, I filled up some easy DIY containers with organic seed starting mix with a top thin layer of worm compost (which, I think has magical powers in the garden). Some add sand here too as drainage is really important for sweet potatoes.

Third, just simply eased the plants into the soil and put the container under the growlight. Ive found that a super easy way to make a hole for the plant to go into is just to use a pen to make the holes.

Sweet potatoes on Day 1. Notice how droopy the stems and leaves are.

Fourth, water water and water again. When using a new container, it often takes a couple times for the water to make contact with all of the soil. I tend to water three times in 15 minute intervals allowing all of the excess water to exit through the bottom. Water is very important especially for mail order plants as they tend to be a bit wilted and the water will fix that.

Fifth, dead head the dead leaves.

Sixth, put the plants in a window sill or under a grow light.

Plant leaf on day 2. Notice that it isnt as droopy!

On Monday, we finally got a nice day outside so I took them out during the day and brought them back in at night. Ill continue doing this for the next week before I finally plant them outside.

Thanks so much for reading!
- Monti

Super Easy DIY Compost Bin Using A Large Barrel

2013-05-24T17:01:00.000-04:00

This is a situation when my hardheadedness worked against me. All of my research suggested that I have two compost bins. One for collecting compost and one to "work." Of course, I didnt listen so now I have a bin that is humming along but with about a third of the stuff new items that are going to take far longer to finish. Hence, the need for a second compost bin (and an annoying task this weekend of stiffing through the first pile to take out the newest additions.

First compost bin. I happily acquired him for no cost from
someone on www.freecycle.org

New compost bin I made in less than 30 minutes. Minus the top
and the wooden pallet below.

As I "acquired" three large barrels, I wanted to use one to make a quick and easy compost bin in less than 30 minutes.

You'll need:

Large "Food Grade" Barrel
Cleaning Solution (I use vinegar, lemon juice, and peppermint soap)
Drill
1-inch spade bit

Steps:

Acquire your barrel. Food-grade is ideal, but as long as you know what was in it before and it was not toxic then it should be able to be used. Remember that anything in this bin will end up in your soil, which will end up in what you grow, which will end up in your body. Be smart.
Wash your barrel inside and out with your cleaning solution.
Using your drill and 1-inch spade bit drill from 5 to 10 holes in the bottom of the barrel.
Drill 16 holes on the sides of the container.

5. Drill 4 to 10 holes on the top of the barrel.

6. Load up your new composter!

Final Tips:

One of the benefits of using a round barrel like this is how easy it is to lay it on its side and roll it around to mix everything around. If you are going to be using this on your roof, I advise that you elevate it in some way. Wooden pallets are always being left for trash pickup in Brooklyn so that's what I use.

Anyone else made their own bin? How did yall do it?

Happy Holiday (aka hardcore garden project) Weekend!
- Monti

My (hopefully not too) Ambitious Goals for This Site

2013-05-23T15:57:00.000-04:00

Garden Journal - It goes against just about every rule about blogging to focus on my needs instead of yours, but honestly this will be an awesome way for me to stay accountable in keeping my garden journal. Why keep a garden journal? Mainly, because my memory isnt quite as good as I think it is. There are times I put three different seeds in containers under the grow light and a week later when it germinates, Ive already honestly forgotten which is which unless I use a marker then Ive already forgotten. This goes for the garden, too. After getting tired of trying to remember where I bought the kale seeds that yielded the biggest harvest is hard, so making sure that I note that and the progress of each plant helps a lot when it is time to reorder. If you arent keeping your own garden journal, I cant recommend one enough!
Promote Engagement with Gardeners of All Levels - Im a big believer in the idea that the best way to test if I know something is how well I can teach it to others. Using this logic, I want to share what I have learned along the way to help those of you who are looking to start your own garden...particularly one on the roof, on your fire escape, etc. More advanced gardeners will hopefully benefit with the pro tips that I include along the way. And just as importantly, will share some with me that will help with unforeseen pitfalls! Through sharing, I hope that we will all walk away better off than if we didnt. On that front, you can always reach me via brooklynorganicgardener@gmail.com.
Brutal Honesty - Often I have learned more from my failures than my successes, so I want to be brutally honest here to help myself and others. Hopefully, others will be able to avoid my pitfalls. It is also important for me to be honest about who I am and let my personality shine through (yes, I really do get this excited about everything in "real-life"). The only caveat here is to ensure that we stay focused on the relevant topics (ie no politics talk) and keep it save for kids (curses will hopefully all be edited out).
Share Relevant Resources - I tend to be an information hoarder. Whenever Im interested in a new subject, I read EVERYTHING there is to read and then jump in. As such, I have a stack of 40 different books which I will share with yall. Hopefully, the tips and tricks in them will bring as much value to you as it has to me. Also, I want to showcase awesome things from around the web that have been of use for me.
Reaping the Riches! - Well, not really. I dont plan on getting Zuckerburg money from this site. But, I know that if I am successful with these goals then there will be some small monetary benefit. This will not the be way that I will measure my success, but lets be honest I would love an extra income to plunge on expanding my garden into a true urban farm.

Thanks for reading. And thanks for joining me on this journey!

- Monti

Who I am and What Im Doing

2013-05-17T13:15:00.000-04:00

Hey everyone and thanks for taking a second to stop here on my blog. I wanted to have as my first post an introduction about who I am, my goals for this site, and my personal goal for my garden for this year.

My name is Monti and I am a transplant to New York (Bushwick in particular) from Virginia. I have always been interested in great food, but ironically, never took seriously the idea about growing my own until moving to New York. I love cooking and making lavish meals from scratch for myself and my friends and this is how my interest flourished. I was constantly annoyed at after buying herbs they would go bad before I could use all of it. Now, I have two compost piles so at least I can put the rotting herbs to use, but it is still annoying. My first attempt to grow something other than a houseplant was a year ago growing cilantro in my window and I have never looked back.

Next, came growing leafy greens and some tomatoes and peppers under a grow light. While in theory, this would save me a ton of money versus buying fresh produce at the farmers marker/grocery store, it ends up being a wash due to the cost of the electricity used with the growlight, but the flavor makes it worthwhile. Now, I am expanding again by using the roof to grow a lot more produce on the roof from strawberries to thai chili peppers to sweet potatoes to beautiful flowers to attract butterflies and hummingbirds. Im so excited for this summer and can see a lot of garden parties!

There are a ton of resources out there about just about every aspect of gardening. I haven’t seen many focused mainly on growing under growlights (using soil) and growing in an urban environment on the roof. This site will primarily be a journal of my journey with a lot of tips/tricks/resources thrown in an attempt to remind myself of what works and what doesn’t and to also be a guide for you if you want to start a similar journey. I can be reached at brooklynorganicgardener@gmail.com.

Next up, will be a list of my goals for the site and garden and some pictures of my landscape before I begin. For now, I invite you to contact me to let me know of some of your tips for urban rooftop gardening or awesome resources that you have found that would be helpful. Thanks for reading. Talk soon!

A Brooklynite's Attempt at "Self-Sufficientish"

Weekly Update 9 - Sad Sunflower Succession Planning Edition

Sweet Potatoes in DIY Container A

Blue Corn, Alaska Peas, and Sugar Snap Peas in DIY Container B

Empty DIY Container C - Purple Passion Sweet Potatoes

Sunspot Sunflowers and Butterfly/Hummingbird Mix - DIY Container D

Sunspot Sunflowers and Beneficial Bug Attractors in DIY SIP 1

Suffer through these?

Or promote these?

Strawberries and German Chamomile

Individual Herb Containers - Lavender A

Individual Herb Containers - Lavender B

Individual Herb Containers - Rosemary

Tomatoes and Mixed French Culinary Herbs

Pepper Section and Basil

Leafy Green and Mint Section

Kale and Purple Mizuna in DIY SIP 3

Growlight

Composts

Weekly Update 8 - Words Have Meaning Edition

Sweet Potatoes in DIY Container A

Blue Corn, Alaska Peas, and Sugar Snap Peas in DIY Container B

DIY Container C - Purple Passion Sweet Potatoes

Sunspot Sunflowers and Butterfly/Hummingbird Mix - DIY Container D

Sunspot Sunflowers and Beneficial Bug Attractors in DIY SIP 1

Strawberries, German Chamomile, Mint and Leafy Greens

Wednesday Weekly Update 5 - Heat Wave Edition

Sweet Potatoes in DIY Container A

Blue Corn, Alaska Peas, and Sugar Snap Peas in DIY Container B

Empty DIY Container C - Purple Passion Sweet Potatoes

Sunburst Sunflowers and Butterfly/Hummingbird Mix - DIY Container D

Sunburst and Beneficial Bug Attractors in DIY Self-Watering Container 1

Strawberries and German Chamomile

Individual Herb Containers - Lavender A

Individual Herb Containers - Lavender B

Individual Herb Containers - Rosemary

Mixed French Culinary Herbs

A Pepper Plant and Marigolds in DIY Self-Watering Container 2

Paul Robeson and Brandywine Tomatoes in DIY Self-Watering Container 3 and 4

Solo Purple Mizuna Plants (3) and Mint Plants (2)

Kale and Purple Mizuna in DIY Self-Watering Container 3

Tatsoi Mint Triage Solo Sunflower

Various Plants Awaiting Planters

Checking In

Wednesday Weekly Update 2

Overview

Blue Corn, Alaska Peas, and Sugar Snap Peas in DIY Container B

Sweet Potatoes in DIY Container A

Empty DIY Container C - will be used to plant out Purple Passions

Sunburst Sunflowers and Butterfly/Hummingbird Mix - DIY Container D

5 Sunburst Sunflowers and hummingbird/butterfly mix

Sunburst and Beneficial Bug Attractors in DIY Self-Watering Container 1

A closeup in the container. Many of the Beneficial Bug plants are dying out since the sunflowers are taking over.

Strawberries and German Chamomile

Individual Herb Containers

Rosemary

Mixed French Culinary Herbs

French herb mixture

A Pepper Plant and Marigolds in DIY Self-Watering Container 2

Paul Robeson and Brandywine Tomatoes in DIY Self-Watering Container 3 and 4

Solo Purple Mizuna Plants (3) and Mint Plants (2)

Kale and Purple Mizuna in DIY Self-Watering Container 3

Various Plants Awaiting Planters

Wednesday Weekly Update 1

Sweet Potatoes in DIY Container A

Planned Leafy Greens Area/Purple Passions

Blue Corn, Alaska Peas, and Sugar Snap Peas in DIY Container B

Empty DIY Container C - will be used to plant out Purple Passions

Sunburst Sunflowers and Butterfly/Hummingbird Mix - DIY Container D

Green Onions, Basil, and Cinnamon Basil for friend

Strawberries and German Chamomile

Individual Herb Containers

Mixed French Culinary Herbs

Sunburst and Beneficial Bug Attractors in DIY Self-Watering Container 1

A Pepper Plant and Marigolds in DIY Self-Watering Container 2

Paul Robeson and Brandywine Tomatoes in DIY Self-Watering Container 3 and 4

Solo Purple Mizuna and Kale and Purple Mizuna in DIY Self-Watering Container 3

Various Plants Awaiting Planters

Compost Piles

Tray of Plants Hardening Off

Tatsoi

Mint Triage

Solo Sunflower