Bucolic Bushwick

Reading Round Up: Corn Gluten Edition

2009-09-14T02:13:00.000-04:00

Lots of interesting garden trivia here.

Maybe I should consider a career change. More and more people are hiring others to garden vegetables in their own backyard.

Hmmm, seeds or transplants? I prefer seeds, it takes more time and effort, but your options in terms of what you can grow are limitless, plus you know exactly what goes into each seedling. I'll use transplants if I don't have enough time to start from seed.

It's corn gluten meal time! I'm constantly amazed at the versatility of corn and its byproducts. I had no idea it could be used as an herbicide, you learn something new everyday.

Harvest Report 09 2009

2009-09-11T02:03:00.001-04:00

My autumn seeds have sprouted, but it was too dark to take a photo by the time I returned from work. I'll do this over the weekend.

Bell Pepper: 3.8 ounces
Average Price: $0.29/ounce
Total: $1.10

Cherry Tomato: 9.3 ounces
Average Price: $0.42/ounce
Total: $3.91

Eggplant: 12.7 ounces
Average Price: $0.25/ounce
Total: $3.18

Tomato: 5.6 ounces
Average Price: $0.22/ounce
Total: $1.23

Weight Total: 1 pound, 15.4 ounces
Price Total: $9.42

Running Weight Total: 59 pounds, 5.3 ounces
Running Price Total: $260.85

Vegetable Garden Spotter: the East River Update

2009-09-09T01:06:00.000-04:00

I visited the East River rooftop gardeners last weekend. Saturday was a beautiful day so I walked from Bushwick all the way to Union Square in Manhattan. I brought my camera with me so I could take a photo when I crossed the Williamsburg Bridge. I see several changes since my last post.

They moved everything next to the stairway bulkhead. I think this is an excellent idea. Before the plants were completely exposed to the elements, now they at least have a little shelter from the sun and the wind. They've added one new container, it looks like one they sell at Ikea, I see soil but no growth yet.

What happened to the corn? I hope they got some ears. Their tomatoes seem to be doing fine, unlike everyone else in the Northeast, myself included. The tomato supports however, look horrible, they have taken a severe beating from the elements in the last 2 months. They don't look like they'll make it to next year. I'm still not sure what's growing right next to the eggplant, but I'm leaning toward cucumbers. I see a 3rd plant that was out of view before, peppers maybe?

Reading Round Up: Small Bronze Children

2009-09-07T01:49:00.006-04:00

Happy Labor Day everybody.

The NY Times Starter Garden reveals their harvest totals. I wish he listed all his expenditures. If he continues gardening I'm sure some of the costs could be spread over several years.

Toronto gets their own urban farmers for hire.

Container gardening in the Capitol. I love how the first lady re-purposed the sidewalk plot. I hope she finds someplace place else to garden next year.

Go crazy with lawn ornaments. In my youth I used sneer at lawn ornaments, now I have a garden gnome on my Christmas wish list.

An interesting look into the history of important garden tools. What's your favorite garden tool? My favorite is the hose. If I didn't have that I wouldn't garden. Carrying buckets and buckets of water up a tight, spiral staircase every single day would have killed my desire to garden.

Harvest Report 08 2009

2009-09-04T01:13:00.002-04:00

Small harvest this week.

I originally didn't want to plant any fall crops because wasn't sure that I wanted to be on the roof during these colder months, but I decided a small crop couldn't hurt. I'm going to use only a few of the containers and pack the rest away until next year. I sowed some spinach and lettuce seeds in the container that used to hold the aphid encrusted broccoli. I also sowed some radish seeds in a smaller container that used to hold my spring snow peas.

We'll see what sprouts.

Bell Pepper: 12 ounces
Average Price: $0.29/ounce
Total: $3.48

Cherry Tomato: 7.5 ounces
Average Price: $0.42/ounce
Total: $3.15

Eggplant: 14.6 ounces
Average Price: $0.25/ounce
Total: $3.65

Hot Pepper: 5.2 ounces
Average Price: $0.34/ounce
Total: $1.77

Weight Total: 2 pounds, 7.3 ounces
Price Total: $12.05

Running Weight Total: 57 pounds, 5.9 ounces
Running Price Total: $251.43

Plant Update 6 2009

2009-09-02T01:10:00.001-04:00

With the cooler and shortening days I'm letting the plants get more afternoon light. So, as you can see in the photo, I've rolled back the reed fence. One end of the fence is fastened to the building's old, unused chimney. The other end is attached to a wooden pole I've slid into a heavy, patio umbrella base. When the fence was longer I used more supports to keep the fence upright between the chimney and the umbrella base, but those have been removed since they are no longer needed. I still have the umbrella meant for this base, but with the windy conditions on this roof I don't dare try to it use here.

Everything is still plugging along, just producing at a slower rate. I pulled out the broccoli several days ago. I'm not sure what happened while I was gone, but when I returned all the aphids were gone. Their molted skin was all that they left behind. I certainly don't miss them, but I wonder where they went.

Below are my sad looking tomato plants. I really expected them to die while I was away, but I was pleasantly surprised to find them with plum sized fruits when I returned. Let's see if they make it to maturity.

Harvest Report 07 2009

2009-08-28T01:54:00.003-04:00

If these numbers seem high it's because this report contains about 2 weeks worth of produce. It includes the big collection I did right before I left for vacation and the one I did just yesterday. I've officially harvested more than I've spent, yay!

On another pleasing note the celebrity tomatoes are surprisingly still alive. I completely thought that by the time I returned they would be dead. Not so, several little fruits have appeared and they remain untouched by the mold. I hope they make it to maturity.

So how's everyone doing? I may be back from vacation, but my mind is still wandering!

Bell Pepper: 4 pounds, 14.6 ounces
Average Price: $0.29/ounce
Total: $22.79

Cherry Tomato: 1 pound 4.4 ounces
Average Price: $0.42/ounce
Total: $8.57

Eggplant: 7 pounds, 13.1 ounces
Average Price: $0.25/ounce
Total: $31.28

Hot Pepper: 13.3 ounces
Average Price: $0.34/ounce
Total: $4.52

Tomato: 3 pounds, 12 ounces
Average Price: $0.22/ounce
Total: $13.20

Weight Total: 18 pounds, 9.4 ounces
Price Total: $80.36

Running Weight Total: 54 pounds, 14.6 ounces
Running Price Total: $239.38

Reading Round Up: Gone Fishing Edition

2009-08-17T10:04:00.009-04:00

Okay peeps, I'm on vacation right now (I could be at the beach as you read this) so this is the only post for this week. There also won't be a reading round up next Monday since I'll have limited Internet access while I'm away.

A friend will be watering the garden during my absence, but it seemed a bit much to ask them to weigh and record everything that comes out of the garden while I'm gone, so I'm just gonna let the harvest report go and start up again when I return. Be back soon!

Reduced lead levels in the White House vegetable garden.

Get your front yard edible garden in a book!

Nothing to read here, but still worth a look. Guerrilla Gardening in Abandoned Newspaper Boxes

Finally, a Queens gardening blog. It's true, until I read this article I couldn't find one personal gardening blog based in Queens. CSA's and various non-profits sure, but no personal ones. If you know of any others please let me know.

Gardening boot camp. Click it, it's not what you think.

Harvest Report 06 2009

2009-08-14T02:02:00.000-04:00

These maybe the last celebrity tomatoes you see coming from my garden. The gray mold is doing a number on the tomato plants. One plant is marginally healthier than the other one, but given how poorly the other plant is doing that's not saying much. I sincerely doubt any of the remaining fruit on the vine will ripen before the fungus gets them. I think I'll just pull them out and be done with it, there's always next year. In contrast, the eggplants and peppers are doing great, I wish everything were so easy care for.

Bell Pepper: 4 pounds, 1.5 ounces
Average Price: $0.29/ounce
Total: $19.00

Cherry Tomato: 4.7 ounces
Average Price: $0.42/ounce
Total: $1.97

Eggplant: 2 pounds, 12.9 ounces
Average Price: $0.25/ounce
Total: $11.23

Hot Pepper: 4.3 ounces
Average Price*: $0.34/ounce
Total: $1.46

Tomato: 6 pounds 10.9 ounces
Average Price: $0.22/ounce
Total: $23.52

Weight Total: 14 pounds, 2.3 ounces
Price Total: $57.18

Running Weight Total: 36 pounds, 5.2 ounces
Running Price Total: $159.02

*Not a lot of vendors are selling these items right now so this average will change over time as I'm able to to collect more prices.

Drip Irrigation

2009-08-12T00:37:00.003-04:00

The micro climate on the roof is very desert-like; hot, dry and windy. The plants go through water much faster than if they were at ground level. I water the plants everyday, but the cherry tomato plant and the eggplants exhaust their water supply before I make it home. By the time I get back from work their 1 gallon reservoirs are empty and their soil almost bone dry. I really, really don't want to water twice a day, so I had think of a way of extending their water supply.

I was on the verge of buying one of those plant sitters with the ceramic cones, but I decided to try Mr. Brown Thumb's pop bottle drip irrigation system first. I'm happy to say it's working wonderfully. With them in place I can go a whopping 24 hours without watering! As a bonus I had all the required items on hand so it cost zero dollars. Anyone looking for a low cost, slow release watering system for their garden can't do better than this, give it a try.

Free Bag O Veggies!

2009-08-10T18:56:00.008-04:00

I have a grocery bag heavy with organic rooftop vegetables that are ready and waiting for a new home. They were originally meant for a friend, but they weren't able to pick them up in time to catch their flight. I have more than enough at home so they'll go to anybody willing to come pick them up in Manhattan. They'll be in a commercial building very close to the Union Square subway station.

The winner of this contest must write a post on their blog about what they did/cooked with these veggies with a link back to my site. You could also add me to your blogroll if you're willing. If you don't have a blog then just tell all your friends about me and encourage them to visit my site.

First commenter wins. Ready, set, go!

Update: Ok, forget I said anything. I told someone in my building about the contest and they asked for the bag, so I gave it to them. I promise next time I'll actually see the contest through to the end.

Reading Round Up: Caterpillars on a Boat Edition

2009-08-10T01:10:00.001-04:00

Life is rough on the high seas, New York's Daily News has an article about life on the Waterpod.

Verticle farming at the zoo!

Here are some August gardening chores.

Gardening is a great way to extend your life expectancy. I'm not surprised by this finding. Not only is gardening a great form of exercise it's also a great stress reliever.

The NY Times reports on several NJ restaurants that grow their own produce.

Garden Gallery Shots 03 2009

2009-08-08T22:36:00.008-04:00

Jalapeno Heaven Hybrid Hot Pepper

California Wonder Bell Pepper

Golden Star Bell Pepper

Here's the aphid encrusted broccoli plant I mentioned in the last harvest report. Gross yet fascinating isn't it? I kept this photo at a high resolution for those who want a detailed view.

Harvest Report 05 2009

2009-08-07T00:34:00.017-04:00

So the neem appears to be helping the celebrity tomatoes a little bit. New flowers are finallly blossoming instead of withering away. The problem, however, is the weather. These on/off rainy, humid days are giving the gray mold a prime opportunity to spread throughout the 2 plants. I've been clearing away all the infected plant debris, but if the weather doesn't change soon I don't think I'll be getting a lot of new fruit from them before frost kills them off. And who knows when frost will come, this weather has been very strange. I think if we could get just one solid week of dry, non-humid weather they'd have a chance of bouncing back, but unless that happens these plants are bound for the garbage can.

On the brighter side of things its been weeks since I've seen aphids on the tomatoes, peppers and eggplants. Where did they go? To the broccoli! They've completely engulfed one broccoli plant, just like in NYC Garden, and are slowly spreading to the other 3. I'm glad I didn't pull them out, they turned out to be great trap plants.

Bell Pepper: 12.5 ounces
Average Price: $0.29/ounce
Total: $3.63

Cherry Tomato: 11.1 ounces
Average Price: $0.42/ounce
Total: $4.66

Eggplant: 14.9 ounces
Average Price: $0.25/ounce
Total: $3.73

Hot Pepper: 6.4 ounces
Average Price*: $0.31/ounce
Total: $1.98

Tomato: 6 pounds 6.3 ounces
Average Price: $0.22/ounce
Total: $22.51

Weight Total: 9 pounds, 3.2 ounces
Price Total: $36.51

Running Weight Total: 22 pounds, 2.9 ounces
Running Price Total: $101.84 (over the half way mark!)

*Not a lot of vendors are selling these items right now so this average will change over time as I'm able to to collect more prices.

Vegetable Garden Spotter: the Neighbors Update

2009-08-05T00:58:00.004-04:00

So the neighbors' plants have finally revealed themselves. In the 5 gallon buckets they're growing cherry tomatoes and in the laundry basket and the container beside it I think they're growing peppers. I originally thought they were main season tomatoes, but the foliage didn't seem right. The old sink remains a mystery.

If you enlarge the photo you can see they're using soda bottles to irrigate their plants. They probably bought those watering spikes you screw to the top of the bottles. I wonder if they've been able to keep their plants adequately watered, their roof isn't as high as mine, but I'm sure the environment is similar enough. I doubt it's as windy as my place, but those shiny roofs are hot and BRIGHT. Plants will go through water fast in that kind of environment. My previous roof was like that and I suspect the shininess was the cause of my bell pepper sunscald.

Next time I'll check up on the Waterpod or the East River, I can't decide who I want to visit first.

Reading Round Up: Sour Cherry Edition

2009-08-03T01:02:00.000-04:00

The NY Times series, the Starter Garden, covers some extremely low maintenance plants for your vegetable garden.

If you plan on growing some cold season crops now is the time to start the seedlings. I still haven't decided if I want to do this. I'm not sure I want to be puttering around the roof when it's cold and windy.

School gardens are on the rise.

Here's an interesting article on container gardening. It never occurred to me you could sterilize soil in a microwave. I do this all the time with the sponges we use in the kitchen and bathroom, why not soil too?

Welcome to the dog days of August!

Harvest Report 04 2009

2009-07-31T01:01:00.005-04:00

So I think I'm on track to beat my garden costs. August is just starting and I've already made back about 32% of my money. With that said however, I don't want to jinx myself, so let's just wait and see.

Cherry Tomato: 17 ounces
Average Price: $0.42/ounce
Total: $7.14

Bell Peppers: 13 ounces
Average Price: $0.29/ounce
Total: $3.77

Eggplant: 2 pounds, 7.3 ounces
Average Price: $0.25/ounce
Total: $9.83

Weight Total: 4 pounds, 5.3 ounces
Price Total: $20.74

Running Weight Total: 12 pounds, 15.7 ounces
Running Price Total: $65.33

*Not a lot of vendors are selling these items right now so this average will change over time as I'm able to to collect more prices.

Juicy Celebrity Gossip

2009-07-29T00:56:00.024-04:00

I've been so focused on watching my cherry tomato plant (which is doing fine by the way) that I've completely missed what was going on with the celebrity tomatoes. It's hard to tell from the above photo, but not a lot of new fruit has set.

The celebrity tomatoes look fine from a distance, but when you get a closer look a lot of the flowers look like the photo below.

I did some googling and I suspect it might be gray mold.

This fungus disease is intriguing in that it can cause a variety of plant diseases including damping-off and blights of flowers, fruits, stems, and foliage of many vegetables and ornamentals. It is a major cause of postharvest rot of perishable plant produce, including tomatoes at harvest and in storage. The disease can occur both in the greenhouse and in the field. Besides tomato, gray mold is of concern to other vegetables including snap and lima beans, cabbage, lettuce and endive, muskmelon, pea, pepper, and potato.

High relative humidities are necessary for prolific spore production. In the field, spores landing on tomato plants germinate and produce an infection when free water from rain, dew, fog, or irrigation occurs on the plant surface. Optimum temperatures for infection are between 65° and 75° F (18° and 24° C), and infection can occur within 5 hours. High temperatures, above 82° F (28° C), suppress growth and spore production. Dying flowers are a favorable site for infection, but infections can also result from direct contact with moist infested soil or plant debris.

There's not much I can do about what's there now, but I have some neem I can use to prevent it from spreading. Fingers crossed.

I also bought lime to add to their container, hopefully that will end the blossom end rot.

Spray bottle for neem: $4.10
Garden Lime: $4.30

Running Total: $201.90

Reading Round Up: Whistle Pigs Edition

2009-07-27T00:54:00.015-04:00

More on late blight. Have you been affected? I haven't seen any signs on mine, but I'm definitely keeping my eyes open for it.

If hail has damaged your garden here are some tips to rejuvenate hail damaged plants.

This is fun, golf clubs repurposed as plant stakes.

An unwise use of gardening tools can get you arrested. Say no to garden rumbles.

Imagine gardening in 1816, the year without summer.

Rats!

Garden Gallery Shots 02 2009

2009-07-25T14:25:00.018-04:00

Orange Belle Hybrid II Bell Pepper

Jalapeno Heaven Hybrid Hot Pepper

Broccoli Flower

July 25 2009 Harvest

Harvest Report 03 2009

2009-07-24T00:24:00.008-04:00

Right now eggplants are the most popular items at the greenmarket. I do my price checking in the morning and by the time I pass by again during lunchtime they're usually sold out by every vendor who stocks them. Most of the prices hover around $2 a pound, but some vendors are selling them for $6-$8 a pound and they still sell out.

I'm amazed at how prolific the Hansel eggplant are, they're well suited to container gardening and you get a lot of produce from one plant. If you're an eggplant lover one plant could sustain you for the entire growing season. I'm definitely going to grow them next year, maybe their sister Gretel too.

The Orange Paruche cherry tomatoes are fantastic, they mature to a beautiful, bright orange and when you bite into them there's faint taste of citrus. Delicious. The plant itself seems to be fine, after dealing with it's mineral deficencies, as chronicled here and here, I watched it like a hawk for weeks. Now I'm starting to think I'm just being paranoid about every little thing it does and need to chill out and let it do its thing.

The jalapenos are doing great. They aren't bothered by any disease or pest. In my limited experience I would have to say they're the easiest thing to grow in a garden.

Some bell peppers were ready to pick, but I decided to wait until they change color.

Cherry Tomato: 1 pound 5.3 ounces
Average Price: $0.42/ounce
Total: $8.95

Eggplant: 3 pounds, 5.5 ounces
Average Price*: $0.25/ounce
Total: $13.38

Hot Pepper: 6.8 ounces
Average Price*: $0.31
Total: $2.11

Weight Total: 5 pounds, 1.6 ounces
Price Total: $24.44

Running Weight Total: 8 pounds, 10.4 ounces
Running Price Total: $44.59

*Not a lot of vendors are selling these items right now so this average will change over time as I'm able to to collect more prices.

Vegetable Garden Spotter: the East River

2009-07-22T00:21:00.001-04:00

I see this rooftop garden everyday on the commute to and from work. It's near the Williamsburg Bridge on the Brooklyn side of the river. Apologies for the grainy photo, it's several hundred feet from where I shot it. I see tomatoes, eggplant and corn. Can anybody figure out what's growing to the left of the eggplant? I thought it might be cucumber or squash.

I think those blocks are there to prevent the planters from tipping over in the wind, I saw the corn on its side once. I assume the shiny ribbons are there to deter birds.

Do you think they'll be successful with the corn? I always thought you needed to plant a lot close together to get them to pollinate.

Reading Round Up: Food Policy Edition

2009-07-20T00:23:00.002-04:00

At the Daily Kos an organic gardener shares their pest control experience.

The CS Monitor talks about their least favorite gardening chore. What's yours? I'm not sure what mine is, I haven't been doing this long enough to figure it out, though I must say watering everyday is a pain in the butt.

The Washington Post has an interesting article on the White House vegetable garden and how it fits into food policy.

Extend the growing season with heated raised beds!

Newsday interviews Ina Garten the Barefoot Contessa. The video and slideshow show off her beautiful vegetable and flower garden in East Hampton.

Harvest Report 02 2009

2009-07-17T09:35:00.005-04:00

Okay, so here is the much anticipated 2nd update in the 2009 harvest. I wanted to post this much sooner, but I had to wait until the vendors at the greenmarket started to sell the produce I was already eating from my garden. The cherry tomatoes in the pic were immediately gobbled after I took this shot. If I didn't have to photograph them I doubt they would have made it off the roof.

Broccoli: 3 ounces
Average Price: $0.18/ounce
Total: $0.53

Cherry Tomato: 12.2 ounces
Average Price: $0.46/ounce
Total: $5.61

Eggplant: 1 pound 11.7 ounces
Average Price*: $0.34/ounce
Total: $9.42

Hot Pepper: 8.3 ounces
Average Price*: $0.31
Total: $2.57

Weight Total: 3 pounds, 3.2 ounces
Price Total: $18.13

Running Weight Total: 3 pounds, 8.8 ounces
Running Price Total: $20.15

*Not a lot of vendors are selling these items right now so this average will change over time as I'm able to to collect more prices.

More on Aphids

2009-07-15T10:10:00.000-04:00

I was doing my daily pest/disease check and noticed these white, lint-like bugs near a colony of aphids. I thought I had another pest to worry about so I trolled the GardenWeb forums for some answers. It turns out they were not new bugs, just the cast skin aphids leave behind when they moult.

When scouting a field, you will often find the white, cast skins left behind when aphids moult. They are often confused with diseased or parasitized aphids. If you are finding them on the top surface of leaves, take a look at the leaves just above - is there a new colony forming above? If you are looking at a colony of aphids on the underside of a leaf (where colonies form) and all that is left is behind are cast skins, then the aphids have probably developed into winged forms and migrated to another plant.

I was relieved to find out that I did not have a new pest to worry about. Obviously I still have aphids, but they remain at manageable levels.

Let this be a lesson to all you novice gardeners out there. If you see this on your plants the good news is you do not have a new pest to worry about, the bad news is you still have aphids and they're probably spreading to the rest of your garden.