Sustainable Green and Me

Back to Basics: Beginner tips for starting an urban garden

2011-04-13T19:22:00.001-06:00

I'm new to this organic/sustainable gardening thing and I'm still finding my own way but I thought it would be nice to post about a few basic and cheap things that anyone can do to start their own garden.

1. Start Composting!
   Compost is a super cheap and healthy alternative to commercial potting soil mixes. While at the advanced levels some farmers and gardeners prefer to add special nutrients to their soil, it really isn't necessary if you are just starting out. Some of the benefits of composting on your own includes always having a supply of potting soil for planting, reducing your impact on the planet by recycling organic waste and lastly, a cheap supply of good soil that you can use to repair your yard. Here are some instructions for starting a basic vermicomposting (composting using worms) bin of your own:

   1. Get a large plastic bucket, the kind used for storing kid's toys. It should be about 2' wide by 3' long and 2' high, with a lid. You will also need a pan or send lid to put beneath the bucket for the brown water the worms excrete. This water is a super fertilizer and can be added at a ratio of about 1/2 cup to a gallon of water to make a nice treat for your plants. Cut or drill small holes into the bottom of the bucket.
   2. Fill the bucket with a layer of damp cardboard (slightly wet but not soaking). Then mix together some organic waste and potting soil that does not have weird chemicals in it. A third of the way full should be enough for your worms to live in and leave space for more soil. Acceptable organic waste can include yard clippings (avoid weeds and pest plants, which can end up seeding your lovely soil with nasty weeds), egg shells and plants waste. The plant waste can be cooked or not but do not use anything that has had contact with oils or animal fat, which can make the compost stink. Do not put meat, fat or excrement in your compost bucket. Excrement can be used in an outdoor compost heap, but it tends to smell in a small vermicomposting bucket.
   3. Get your worms. Many people simply give them away, particularly on sites like Freecycle. Just ensure that they are they right kind of worms: Red Wriggles. These worms are also available to buy from fishing stores and online. However, I personally wouldn't waste the $25-40 people are charging to mail the worms. I'm not an animal rights freak but I also feel that it is cruel to the worms, so I suggest you only mail order worms if you can not find them else where.
   4. Park your compost bin next to your regular trash to remind you to use it regularly and take a moment to move the earth around every time you add more waste. You should also keep in mind that this is just an intro to vermicomposting and you should research more on how to keep your worms healthy, happy and producing.

2. Use What You Got!
   I know, every time you open one of those delicious gardening books or magazines you see dozens of beautiful pictures of plants in cute planters. But do you really need them? You can easily use 2lt soda jugs, gallon milk jugs or juice containers to make a hanging gardening. Basically all you need to do is cut the bottom off of your jugs and slip a small plant into the jug from the bottom. Cut holes into the sides to hang it from strings and fill the jug the rest of the way up with soil, then hang it in an appropriate corner.
   Another easy project is to use left over PVC pipes to make a hydroponic garden for plants like herbs and lettuce. You can find projects like these and more at www.instructables.com (personally one of my favorite websites EVER) for free.

3. Plant What You'll Use!
   I know how tempting it is to plant those beautiful radishes just because they are easy and look so great in a basket but resist the temptation if you know you aren't going to eat it or give it away! There are hundreds of amazing and gorgeous plants that are also tasty and easy to grow. Don't grow something just because you think you should. The only reason you should break this rule is because you know someone who will eat it or make something from it. For example, a friend of mine hates tomatoes but her mine loves them. On top of that, she loves spaghetti sauce. We've decided to grow small cherry tomatoes to give to her family and make into all kinds of delicious sauces.

Check out some of the following products to help make your first garden more easily:

Make Your Own Natural Cleaners

2011-03-31T10:34:00.000-06:00

I know absolutely nothing about making all natural cleaners although it is something I'd like to learn more about. A favorite room mate of mine from a few years would absolutely not let me use commercial cleansers of any kind within the house and insisted on using vinegar to clean things. The house was a bit of a wreck so I never saw that the natural route was perceivably better than just buying standard cleaners but I'm willing to give it another try. These recipes are quick, easy to make and cheaper than standard cleaning supplies. I plan to pick up the ingredients when I go shopping this weekend.

Check out the recipes here. Are you going to try them?

The Cherry Tomatoes You Want to Grow This Season

2011-03-31T10:27:00.000-06:00

I have been looking for a sampler like this one for AGES:

The sampler includes Snow White, Green Grape, Koralik, Black Cherry, Yellow Pear, and Red Fig. Check it out and tell me if they grow well for you and where you are. I will be buying this for my grandma to grow in the cool mountains of Puerto Rico.

Food Dyes are Bad News? Who DIDN'T Know??

2011-03-30T12:01:00.000-06:00

So apparently the food and drug administration has finally caught up with... well, everyone and realized that food coloring in kids food is bad news, particularly for kids with ADHD. Check a link here and read about my own experience with dye after the jump.

For those that don't know, I have a type of autism called Asperger's and have been working very hard on it for a few years. Thanks to a LOT of work, including changes in my diet, I have managed to make my autism virtually unnoticeable to most people. One of the things I did was eliminate artificial food coloring from my diet as well as more or less following a GF/CF diet. It's NOT a cure and shouldn't be used as one but it has helped me quite a bit. Removing the food coloring from my diet has had an amazing effect on my ability to focus and comprehend while reducing my aggressiveness. Removing most sources of cassien (milk products) has also helped by almost eliminating the gastro-intestinal issues people with autism are known for having. Gluten products make me extremely lethargic and sleepy.

I'm not at all strict about my diet and I firmly believe that a diet is useless if someone doesnt want to follow it, but since being on vacation in Puerto Rico and not having access to the types of products I am used to, I have really seen just how effective my new eating style really is. Since I've been eating rice for most meals I feel exhausted all the time. I am also eating a lot of canned food like Spaghetti-Os and I feel like I've become correspondingly more aggressive in the past few weeks.

I have finally found an outdoor farmers market (disregard the date on the pic, it's not accurate) where I can by some fresh fruits and veggies. I'm a bit stuck for meat so will just have to hope I find a decent grocery. Unfortunately I just cant resist some good cheese and ice cream! However, good cheese is hard to find here although there is some amazing fresh fruit flavored ice creams (and they DONT use artificial food dyes or coloring, just pure fruit juice!). I guess I will just have to accept a tummy ache.

Free organic seeds

2011-03-30T11:34:00.002-06:00

Seeds of Change, the awesome people who are trying to stock pile organic seeds to ensure that we ALL have a healthy future, are giving away 100 million seeds in an effort to get more people growing organic. Individuals will receive 25 packets of varied fruits/veggies, herbs and flower seeds while non profits, schools and community groups will get 100 packets. You do have to pay shipping and handling but it's $5 (within the 50 states) which is less than the cost of 2 seed packets in most places. Even if you do consider the cost of shipping, it comes out to only 20 cents per pack of organic seeds. Click the link below ASAP to get in on this offer while you still can :)

http://www.seedsofchangefoods.com/sowingmillions/sowingmillions.aspx

You should also check out this article to find out more on why you should choose organic seeds over the kind you usually find in stores. One big reason is Monsanto and companies like it which now own the vast majority of seed companies. Another great reason to check out the article is for the instructions on saving tomato seeds. Now I know why only 3 of my small organic heirloom tomato seed collection actually started growing!

Musings on constitutional rights

2011-03-30T11:29:00.000-06:00

Before I start I just want to let you readers know I will be messing around with the template today so it may be hard to read or access a few posts.

So today I was skimming through my Facebook and found an interesting link on my wall to a survivalist blog, not the sort of thing I read regularly. But I decided to skim it because it was supposedly written by a police officer who has been attending training given by the Department of Homeland Security.

What really caught my attention was the writers description of what police officers are now being told to look for: "These people grow their own food, raise livestock and plot attacks on commercial food production facilities" The "these people" the text refers to are supposedly "domestic terrorists." What do you think about this development, where knowing how to grow your own food is now a cause for suspicion? Do you think the original post is nonsense or is it troubling to you? Personally I am not in the least surprised. There have definitely been signs of this coming for a long time now. My question is, how do we combat this view that growing your own /"stockpiling" (canning) is scary/dangerous/threatening/possibly terrorist activity? How do we show people that it is simply common sense? Relying on food from other countries provided by big businesses is not in our best interests. Every earthquake, tsunami, drought causes ripples along the global food chain. Removing our selves from that chain is, in my opinion, the only safe way to ensure that we will always have what we need. This is also why I think farming and gardening should be a community endeavor. One person with a food garden is an anomaly. A neighborhood with a garden is a community.

What are your thoughts?

Useful green living sites

2011-03-07T02:24:00.001-07:00

Today I wanted to post a few useful sites that I think everyone interested in sustainability should check out. Besides gardening sites quite a few have to do with sustainable design and building (in no particular order of preference):

http://www.thedailygreen.com/

Daily Green focuses on green living trends but it has some pretty fun posts and useful information although it is not as in depth as it could be. Check it out if you are interested in buying green products more than learning to make your own. Their blog roll also lists some of the best green living and sustainability sites I’ve heard of.

http://permaculture-media-download.blogspot.com/

This blog has a little bit of everything: give aways, gardening, education and more. It is extremely in depth and also features some excellent interviews. Check it out if you want to learn more about permaculture.

http://webecoist.com

Webecoist, a blog from the same folks who brought me my favorite design blog (dornob), is a sort of best of/list blog with pictures. It is a vast store house of images and links and should definitely be in your bookmarks.

http://ofrf.org

The website of the Organic Farming and Research Foundation sponsors organic farming research, education & outreach projects.

http://www.urbanorganicgardener.com

This is one of my favorite sites and one of the few I check faithfully. The guy who writes this fun instructional blog originally started his first urban garden on a fire escape in the middle of New York. He has since moved but still lives in relatively small apartments and faithfully documents his adventures growing food in planters.

http://planetgreen.discovery.com

This is the green living related section of the discovery TV shows website. Pretty cool, mostly science related info like research, studies and more.

http://www.gardening-guides.com/index.php

Basic gardening how-tos for the rest of us (ie: the ones with black thumbs or unwitting plant assassins). Easy to follow, clear instructions, general gardening info on everything from flowers to exotic decorative plants. Not a very good liking site though, if that matters to you.

http://www.dinnergarden.org/index.html

This site is another gardening site, but strictly devoted to all things food-growing related. Very good info on safe/natural fertilizers and pesticides as well as recipes. Another one of my faves, particularly because of their focus on education and out reach.

http://www.earthshiphomes.info/

This blog is NOT the original earthship site (you can find the original at earthship.net) but it does give readers a more in depth look at how an earth ship is designed, as well as having videos of the actual building process for those who want to learn.

Please tell me about any sites you like or think I should check out by leaving a comment below.

15 foods that are safe to buy

2011-03-04T15:03:00.010-07:00

Check out the Daily Green’s post on 15 foods low in pesticides so you won’t need to buy organic.

This sweet little list lets you know what is safe to buy at your local grocery if you can't afford organic produce (like me!). Ideally you are already growing them in your own garden but in case you aren’t, these plants are safer to buy:

http://www.thedailygreen.com/healthy-eating/eat-safe/Save-on-Sustainable-Gallery-44032808?src=syn&mag=tdg&dom=tdg&link=rel

While you're at it you should also check out the rest of the Daily Green. It's a pretty awesome site. And in the meantime, try picking up some of these seeds to grow. You never know when you can use the fruits in your kitchen, plus the plants are freezable and cannable as well as organic, and delicious! (My enthusiasm is cheesy, I know ;D)

My Beginner organic farm plan

2011-03-03T19:47:00.000-07:00

Hi readers! I’m sorry it has been so long since I have updated here. First winter came and killed off my sweet peppers right on the vine, although my cherry tomatoes lasted a little longer…

Anyway, since the last time I updated here a great deal has changed in my life, most importantly that I am moving to China. I have given away all of my plants in Albuquerque and made a small kitchen garden for my brother with some of my seed stash. Currently I am visiting my family and friends in Puerto Rico before flying to Changchun, China.

This is all part of my new 5 year plan, the end result of which I hope will be to develop an organic farm here in Puerto Rico. My plan is relatively simple at this stage: Go to China, save mucho dinero, come back and buy a convenient chunk of land, build an Earthship style home and begin growing organic and heirloom foods. The specifics are a bit more complex…

Puerto Rico simply does not have a sustainably minded culture yet. So little in fact that when my friend and I asked the bartender to reuse our plastic cups for the next drink, he looked at us as though we were mocking him and threw them out. My family is presently quite confused about this goal. They understand in theory that it can be done, they just do not believe it can be done HERE. I am inclined to agree with them. Puerto Rico does not have a barter culture either. To get around these problems my current plan is to resort to sites like couchsurfing.org. I plan to offer people a free place to stay here in lovely tropical PR in exchange for helping me do some predetermined project such as putting up solar panels or building a wall. My old roommate seemed pretty excited about this idea since she is studying architecture, so she will be able to go crazy with the design. As for building materials, I will probably use soda cans filled with local clay, glass bottle for interior walls and cement in place of adobe/cob since it is quite rainy here. I think I will be able to get the majority of the building supplies for free or very cheap by offering to haul trash for people. However I will still probably have to buy the interior building supplies like cabinetry.

I plan to visit some rice patties in Guillin, China to try and learn how they build the platforms since I think a modified version could work really well since I want to buy cheap, steep mountainside land. Instead of having water filled platforms I would have well drained platforms to avoid dengue mosquitoes and landslides (PR is a rain forest so water will be a problem). Then I plan to plant a variety of local plants and non invasive heirlooms; mostly organics. Local food I plan to have include green pigeon peas (gandules verdes), plantains, ajies dulces, bananas, various tubers and starchy tree fruit, coconut, papaya and pineapple as well as herbs such as recao and cilantro. The more standard stuff would be carrots, peppers, onions, various potatoes, tomatoes, lettuce, mesclun, legumes, cantaloupe, watermelon and more along that line.

Besides all of this, I hope to have at least a few animals, like chickens, a pig and maybe a few goats. It would be really cool to learn to make goat cheese. My bro the cheese freak would really love that, especially if I could make blue cheese.

Anyway for now I estimate it will take me between 18-24 months for me to save enough money to do this, although if the US $ stays as low as it is or gets lower I may be able to come back sooner than planned.

What do you think of my ideas? Have any suggestions? Know anything I should consider? Tell me about it! And in the meantime check out these books:

News and updates!

2011-01-20T22:28:00.000-07:00

Hello followers! I want to apologize for not updating more regularly. I'm having a bit of upheaval in my life right now and have moved from the house I was living at. I was offered a teaching job in China so I am presently dealing with the issues of getting my passport, visa, medical check ups and so on. I plan to revamp this blog to be about urban farming in a major Chinese city (including how to smuggle in your hierloom tomato seeds!) and about green farming and hunting practices of China. I hope you stick with me despite the wait! I will start writing again in March, from Changchun, China, in the Jilin provence, a few hundred miles north of North Korea.

Fall...

2010-11-01T05:55:00.001-06:00

So, I recently discovered that the leafy branches on tomato plants will grow into new plants if you keep them in water (They're genetic clones of the original plant). I'd heard of that with other plants but never seen it in tomatoes so I tried it out with all the leafy bits (I pull off all the leafy bits and leave mostly just the fruit bearing parts. So I've got about 6 little things in a tiny jar and they are growing like crazy, some of them are even putting out flower pods!!! And I just keep them under a regular lamp, nothing special and not outside cuz it's too cold...

Anyway, besides this I'm growing some green onions from shoots I had cut the tops off and I got some broccoli sprouts from my room mat. Dunno if those will grow since they were refrigerated tho. I'm hoping to get a grow light this week and am planning what to plant. I'm gonna use one of those shoe racks you hang on the backs of doors, I'll hang it on my closet so it gets light from the lamp above and some from the window.

So my already grown tomato has a bunch of canary yellow cherry tomatoes (some kind of hybrid) almost ready to harvest (I started it really late) and the potatoes have died back. The peppers stayed green but the leaves started dying so I pulled all the fruit anyway. I'm thinking of planting a couple of things in the shoe rack: some orange seeds, pomegranate and plums on the bottom, some lettuce and herbs, tomatoes, peppers and, well, whatever I come across :)

How was your harvest? Are you winter plantng? What are you growing?

PS sorry I haven't had time to post much this October. I plan to write every day this week to catch you all up ANNNNNND! have pictures :D expect them in the next few days...

Fuel a film by Josh Tickell

2010-09-16T20:50:00.001-06:00

I'm currently watching a documentary called Fuel. It's about the United States' dependence on foreign oil and what can be done about it. Basically it discusses the physical and human cost of oil production and the ecological damage done by oil. I just learned that European bio-diesel cars can go as far as 150 miles per gallon. Unbelievable. Apparently diesel cars do not need any modifications to run on old vegetable oil either (I have to verify this) which is just amazing to me. Honestly, this subjects is so fascinating to me but I need to research it a bit more to give you guys an accurate review but for now I'm very intrigued about the possibility of making a diesel engine run moped or truck. Fascinating....

I've added a link to the movie here in case you are interested in learning more. I've definitely added this to my favorite documentaries list.

Potato potahtoooo part deux

2010-09-12T07:43:00.002-06:00

Sorry if I'm not my usual entertaining self, I've been writing all night.
Anyway, Valery brought me my plants a few days ago. Leon was super excited and mosied on off with a small tropical tree and a drying out fern. I thought I heard him say "this is so great, it's like a swamp" as he left, which I found hilarious. I basically ran out of room for everything so there is a small ficus living in a corner near the door on the living room floor and even plants in my room and the new vacant room.
But what was most excited about was the worm bin. I had tossed a few potato plants into it for my friend to plant in her yard but she never did. She also never took them out of the worm bin. I am sad to report that I saw only 2 lonely worms in the bin (and a random slug) but if they are in good health 2 should be enough so fingers crossed. The potatoes on the other hand were amazing. The regular potatoes dropped their leaves ages ago though the stems are still green. But they have started growing little potatoes! squee The sweet potatoes on the other hand, are still growing like crazy. Strangely the leaf shapes are completely different from the potatoes Stella is growing out front,, which is kind of cool. I wonder if they will taste different? Anyway, it way obvious

I couldn't leave the potatoes in the tiny worm bin not if I were hoping for survivors or healthy potatoes so I filled the huge blue bin my brother gave me with a combination of planting soil, local dirt and compost and buried the potatoes it. I was worried about ruining my potatoes so I didn't even cut them up or separate them as planned because the roots had completely over taken the worm bin and it was all stuck together in a root filled square lump. With leaves.
Anyway, here is a picture of the bin for your viewing pleasure. I will post again later today I think.

Introducing..... moi

2010-09-12T07:23:00.002-06:00

I thought I'd take a moment to introduce you all to your host (moi) and what we are working with, just so you kind of know what I am talking about in later posts, so this will be a bit of an introduction, if you will.

This is our awesome compost heap, with random bits of other junk thrown in cuz I am laaaaaazy. The chicken wire is to keep out the dogs who for some reason LOVE eating dirt. We also have a vermicomposting bin but it is currently home to my potatoes, but I will cover that in another post.

This is the backyard as it looks right now. I spent 2 days last week hacking down Elm tree saplings. They are an invasive species here. As you can see, I have not managed to finish the weeding as promised. um...

These are the chairs I scored off Freecycle.org. I don't think I've written about them yet so for now I will just say that I'm going to spray paint them bright orange or peach with a neon pink fade on the legs and a super glossy sealant. The seat covers are hideous so they are all coming off to be replaced by something prettier. I do love the corset style lacing in the back though.... The table is an earlier piece of mine and you can see Evelyn's collection of junk in the background.

There you can see Leon's grill and the rest of the yard. That little cutey in the middle is Evelyn posing. :D

This is Leon's BMX course in the very back of the yard. Pretty cool, hu?

Here's the other side f the course.

This is where the evil Nightshade lived. It was pretty much all weeds. I did pull all the weeds but I didnt bother with the grass or picking up the dead plants. We still dont know what to do with this side so if you have a suggestion let me know.

Here is the half finished right side. You cant see it but there is a bed right in front growing herbs. The first one you see here has tomatoes and peppers.The next one contains corn and sweet potatoes. We ran out of landscapers cloth and haven't figured out how to clean the rocks before covering the cloth since hey are currently full of humus.

Close up of the midget corn and potatoes.

The porch. That's one of my paintings to scare off missionaries and the bike leaning against the wall is mine. The one under the tree is Stella's. Weirdly all three of our bikes are the exact same color. Someone gave us that bad ass ivy. Isn't it amazing?? And you can see the hanging pots here as well.

Yeah so... that's the end of the tour for now. I took a cute picture of Stella with Evelyn but she won't let me show it :( oh well, maybe next time...

Potato, potahto

2010-09-09T14:24:00.003-06:00

My friend Valery has been taking care of my plants for a few months since I've been rambling. Next Friday we are going to participate in a forum together so she is coming in to ABQ and bringing my lovely plant friends and worm bin home to me (I wonder if the worms have survived? I have a new home for them:). I'm most excited because I had a bunch of sprouting potatoes, sweet potatoes and big baking potatoes. Anyway, if you haven't seen a growing potato, they are gorgeous. Sweet potatoes have sort of lovely purple shoots with flowery things at the tips. The regular potatoes look more like tentacles heheh.

Anyway, there are a couple other plants too, but they are decorative, so the potatoes are my big interest. I am going to try to find a large barrel on Freecycle or at ReStore and fill it with dirt. I will ask Stella to make me something to set it on and put it out front over the Nightshade hiding rocks.
Then I will take the sprouted potatoes, cut them into small pieces and bury them in the barrel. Hopefully there is enough time for them to grow until October or so. I'll put more in the back where it's hotter just in case that will help them grow faster.
If you are going to do this you may not want to use potatoes from a chain grocery. They are more likely to have rot or been exposed to pesticides. I got mine from Pro's Ranch Market (www.prosranch.com) which is a huge Mexican grocery here in ABQ. They have very fresh fruits and veggies. The potatoes that I let sprout were accidentally left in a dark cupboard for a few months and got very wrinkly until the eyes sprouted awesome tentacles.
I'll let you know how they taste in a month or so.

oops, that WASN'T a tomato... am I gonna die now?

2010-09-09T14:18:00.001-06:00

Silverleaf nightshade poisoning in livestock (Progress report / Texas Agricultural Experiment Station)Troublesome silver-leaf nightshade susceptible to leaf-gall nematode (The scientists tell me)&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=0967045118&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=0811733653&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=1889538744&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=0970501609&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=1555610021&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=0470371889&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;
There I was, water on full blast (and yet it was a pathetic little trickle) trying to save my roommates plant beds in the front yard. There are a couple that will probably make it but one of the tomato plants might be beyond the pale. Anyway, I turned around to turn off the water and had to walk through the other side of the yard. This side has a couple of nice shade trees but its full of the same strange weeds as the backyard.
As I'm walking back to the knob I see a couple of random plants along the walk that are being smothered by weeds so I give them all a drink and start looking more carefully. Thats when I saw them. They looked like weird tomato plants, kind of short and squat. The leaves were narrow, about an inch and a half long and a sort of silvery green. There seemed to be two types, one with bigger thorns, yellow fruit the size of cherry tomatoes and scalloped edges to the leaves, the other had fruit that was green. It looked sort of like small watermelons. That plant had strait leaves and smaller thorns. They smelled good.

I got all excited thinking "OMG we have a whole yard full of cute little tomatoes or maybe watermelons!! This is so great."
I was so excited I texted Stella with the good news. Then I got a fruit of each color and brought it inside. I cut them open to see the inside. The yellow one looked like a typical tomato except with green pulp, the green one had sort of arrow head shaped leaves. I got even more excited thinking of watermelons.
At this point I'm googling tomatoes and watermelon images like crazy but the leaves all look wrong and the leaves are the major identifier. Suddenly my phone rang. It was my friend Valery, artist, foodie and plant lover. (See her website here: http://www.fluxfire.com) So I start describing the plant to her. She's all "hmm, I dunno, that sounds odd, lemme think" when out of nowhere she gets all excited and starts yelling "DONT EAT THAT" at me "I know what that is" she says "that's Nightshade and it's poisonous." I was like "holy shit, I licked it, am I gonna die??" And of course started googling the heck out of nightshade but I couldn't find any pictures that looked like what we have until I landed on an Australian government site. The plant is called the Silverleaf Nightshade. It's poisonous and possibly deadly to children and animals (particularly livestock, although fortunately less so to dogs cuz Evelyn has been popping the berries like they are candy 0_o), invasive, can live dormant underground for up to 15 years and will grow from any bit of root. Ack. Apparently our evil invasive weeds in the backyard may actually be dormant (non seed producing) off shoots of the Nightshade (I may be wrong here, but it looks alike except for the lack of fruit). The info I read suggests it may take 3 years to remove them if it isn't completely impossible. Our yards are infested. I went all the way around the perimeter even to the back and they are all around the edges in the shaded areas.
Some of the sites suggest growing a larger plant and hacking down the nightshade until the crop plants are well established but we aren't going to grow barley in the front yard! I'm also concerned about the neighborhood kids. The fruit looks great and the flowers are gorgeous. What if some little kids get into them? Urg.
The roommates and I have decided to rip all the weeds and Nightshade out on Sunday. Then we are going to cover the area with landscapers cloth and rocks. It should look ok, it'll save on water and it should keep the Nightshade dormant until the house's owner decides to do something about it, or the next tenant does.
Anyway, Nightshade is a very odd plant. Here is more info on it if you are interested in learning more or need to remove it from your own yard:
http://www.nwcb.wa.gov/weed_info/Written_findings/Solanum_elaeagnifolium.html
http://www.santafebotanicalgarden.org/subpages/LCWP%20Naughty%20Ladies.html

Dust Storms

2010-09-09T14:03:00.001-06:00

Fruits and veggies nom nom nom

2010-09-09T13:54:00.001-06:00

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=B0013BV798&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=B001UE71FC&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=1893910474&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=0865715319&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=1598588443&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=B002SLCHPU&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=B001JBAZQS&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sustain020-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=B000ND38KS&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" align="left" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;On Monday I got the project itchies and decided to go on an adventure. After rampaging about on my bike for a few hours, hitting the library and borrowing 10 DVDs and a similar number of books and stopping at Talin, a local "world food" market for coconut water, I somehow ended up at Walmart (oh no I just looked up and there's a giant spider crawling up my wall 0_o it has a yellow stripe down it's back). Now I knooooow that Walmart is a bastion of unethical corporate behavior but..... they do have cheap products.... So I wandered in through the gardening section.&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;Basically I went nuts. I only had about $30 left on me but I left with 54 cents. I ended up getting some potting soil and a bunch of plants. Two decorative water lily type things (not sure what they are called), basil, an orange bell pepper plant, some kind of hybrid yellow cherry tomato plant and a strawberry plant. Also a bunch of red lettuce sprouts. I bought larger plants to make up for starting so late in the season. Luckily this is New Mexico so it should be reasonably warm until November.&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;So... there I was trundling out with my purchases. I rolled the cart up to my ride.... passerby pointed and laughed (not cool) while I carefully loaded the plants into the super adorable white detachable basket (convenient!) hanging from the front of my bike. I managed to get all the plants in front without squishing any leaves. The sack of soil I squashed up as small (ooh alliteration win) as possible and bungy corded to this thing on the back (not sure what it's called) that I think is intended for baskets. So at this point I was finally able to free my bike and care straddle it by climbing over the soil using a bolder. And I rode home wobbling from the awesome weight of all I had managed to attach to myself. The basil smelled amazing fyi.&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;I managed to get all the way home without mishap and lean my bike against the wall. After extricating myself&amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;gt; from my backpack I tried to shove it into the house while avoiding being gnawed on in welcome by a certain overly excitable puppy who goes by the name of Evelyn. About this moment is when my bike randomly decides to take a flying leap off of the porch. BANG. Basil leaves everywhere. Also 2 caterpillars and a bunch of aphids (I guess the fall was a good thing then). So as I rushed around trying to save poor plants and repot them I suddenly realized... I FORGOT THE POTS. dang. and then I remembered those awful expensive hanging tomato baskets at Walgreens.&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;I raided my room mates recyclable materials bag. She has one full of glass bottles and another filled with plastic. I snitched two 2 lt soda bottle and two milk gallon jugs. Then I cut the bottoms off of them all and punch two holes on either side through which I strung some old shoe laces. Then came the hard part: getting my rescued plant babies into their new homes... They were too big and fluffy, too many sprouts and leafy bits. They just wouldn't fit. Sooooo I wrapped the leaves up as tightly as I could without crunching them, then slowly and carefully pulled firmly through the holes in the bottles. It was especially hard on basil and she came out much worse for the wear. (Before this I had already removed each plant from it's pot and loosened up the roots. I think if the roots are smaller you could put the plant in roots first or even start it growing in the pot and cut off the bottom when it's big enough to hang.) Afterwards I filled my makeshift pots with dirt and hung them outside.&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;Currently my plants have healed from their jarring experiences and after only 5 days they are already growing upwards towards the sun&amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;gt; shine that hits them from the west. I water them until they seep out the root hole every evening to prevent them drying out.&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;Unfortunately I couldn't do this with the lettuce and I haven't yet found a solution. A gardening article I read suggested making a hydroponic planter for lettuce out of PVC tubing so I will tell you about that later.&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;On Monday I got the project itchies and decided to go on an adventure. After rampaging about on my bike for a few hours, hitting the library and borrowing 10 DVDs and a similar number of books and stopping at Talin, a local "world food" market for coconut water, I somehow ended up at Walmart (oh no I just looked up and there's a giant spider crawling up my wall 0_o it has a yellow stripe down it's back). Now I knooooow that Walmart is a bastion of unethical corporate behavior but..... they do have cheap products.... So I wandered in through the gardening section.
Basically I went nuts.
I only had about $30 left on me but I left with 54 cents. I ended up getting some potting soil and a bunch of plants. Two decorative water lily type things (not sure what they are called), basil, an orange bell pepper plant, some kind of hybrid yellow cherry tomato plant and a strawberry plant. Also a bunch of red lettuce sprouts. I bought larger plants to make up for starting so late in the season. Luckily this is New Mexico so it should be reasonably warm until November.
So... there I was trundling out with my purchases. I rolled the cart up to my ride.... passerby pointed and laughed (not cool) while I carefully loaded the plants into the super adorable white detachable basket (convenient!) hanging from the front of my bike. I managed to get all the plants in front without squishing any leaves. The sack of soil I squashed up as small (ooh alliteration win) as possible and bungy corded to this thing on the back (not sure what it's called) that I think is intended for baskets. So at this point I was finally able to free my bike and care straddle it by climbing over the soil using a bolder. And I rode home wobbling from the awesome weight of all I had managed to attach to myself. The basil smelled amazing fyi.
I managed to get all the way home without mishap and lean my bike against the wall. After extricating myself
from my backpack I tried to shove it into the house while avoiding being gnawed on in welcome by a certain overly excitable puppy who goes by the name of Evelyn. About this moment is when my bike randomly decides to take a flying leap off of the porch. BANG. Basil leaves everywhere. Also 2 caterpillars and a bunch of aphids (I guess the fall was a good thing then). So as I rushed around trying to save poor plants and repot them I suddenly realized... I FORGOT THE POTS. dang. and then I remembered those awful expensive hanging tomato baskets at Walgreens.
I raided my room mates recyclable materials bag. She has one full of glass bottles and another filled with plastic. I snitched two 2 lt soda bottle and two milk gallon jugs. Then I cut the bottoms off of them all and punch two holes on either side through which I strung some old shoe laces. Then came the hard part: getting my rescued plant babies into their new homes... They were too big and fluffy, too many sprouts and leafy bits. They just wouldn't fit. Sooooo I wrapped the leaves up as tightly as I could without crunching them, then slowly and carefully pulled firmly through the holes in the bottles. It was especially hard on basil and she came out much worse for the wear. (Before this I had already removed each plant from it's pot and loosened up the roots. I think if the roots are smaller you could put the plant in roots first or even start it growing in the pot and cut off the bottom when it's big enough to hang.) Afterwards I filled my makeshift pots with dirt and hung them outside.
Currently my plants have healed from their jarring experiences and after only 5 days they are already growing upwards towards the sun
shine that hits them from the west. I water them until they seep out the root hole every evening to prevent them drying out.
Unfortunately I couldn't do this with the lettuce and I haven't yet found a solution. A gardening article I read suggested making a hydroponic planter for lettuce out of PVC tubing so I will tell you about that later.

Sustainable living, recycling and the green revolution...

2010-09-09T13:49:00.000-06:00

"Sustainability" "urban farming" and "green living" are quickly becoming meaningless buzzwords. I set out on a mission to discover for myself what it means for me to live "green." I may have cheated slightly by beginning this project well before I started this blog but I will try to keep my related experiences as factual as possible.
Many people have gone out of their way to tell me how silly I am for wasting time on this subject and learning about things like composting toilets and container housing but I am firmly of the opinion that every aspect of living is related and effects other aspects of your life. The food you eat effects your energy and health which effects the type and quality of work you can do which effects the amount of money you make which effects where you can live and on and on. In a way I could say that this is my mission statement, to discover whether I can maintain and improve my lifestyle by living "green." For now I will give myself one year to chronicle my experience.
Thanks for dropping by!