Urban farming

[Aggie]

I've been doing more wild harvesting than farming out here, but I've planted some N. rustica and wild bergamot (from seeds I collected last fall) in the front flowerbed.  M&P have a couple of small plots fortified against the deer, and those are starting to get planted up with the usual veggie suspects.

I need to start some tulsi in containers or in flats for re-planting ASAP, and probably more rusticas as a backup and/or for planting around.

[Opsa]

How do nicotiana and tulsi cope with deer? I imagine the nicotiana repels them, but I'll bet the tulsi attracts them.

[Aggie]

The tulsi will have to be under netting, or in containers on the balcony.  The sun gets so darned hot here that it's a headache trying to keep containers watered, but perhaps it will be fine tucked in a shadier location.

It's a pretty enough plant that it would fit well in the front flower bed too, I think (under a net).

I've some lemonella balm (extra-lemony lemon balm) that I need to plant out soon, which should be deer proof.  They seem to leave the herbs alone for the most part.

[Opsa]

Ooh, I love my lemon balm, even though it goes everywhere. Sometimes I have to pull it when it gets too invasive, but it never seems to care.

I agree, the nicotiana flowers are all beautiful. I found a volunteer n.rustica growing in a bulb bed the other day while weeding, and just let it be. I have too much respect for the plant to pull it.

[Opsa]

:UPDATE:

We had plenty of lettuce for a couple of months, but then it bolted (shot skyward and began to flower, which makes the leaves go bitter), so I pulled it.

Still have basil plants, and have been making pesto.

The tomatoes have only started ripening during the past week or so. Not too many of them this year. I think I might have a tomato loving varmint around here, as I felt sure there were more on the vine.

I've only had one pepper mature. There are more flowers on the other plants, so I hope for more.

The chives, of course, are chiving along.

Got a crop of raspberries coming along, too.

I am thinking of starting more lettuces in the windowsill. I hear that they do not germinate in hot weather, but one can try starting them inside (in the AC) and they may start up, after which one may get a crop going in the autumn. They were so good, I'm going to take a crack at this.

[pieces o nine]

WHAT!

No zucchinis!

Are you some kinda commie or something?   

[Aggie]

We have a couple of zucchini plants, but the anti-deer netting seems to discourage the pollinators as well, so you'll often catch Dad out in the garden diddling the zucchinis....  

I had something weird happen with the seeds I started in pots and flats.  They refused to transition from seedlings to proper plants, after MONTHS of hanging out on the porch.  The tulsi have finally switched over but are languishing; I've only had one of the rusticas grow up.  All the flat-started bergamots have died.  I suspect it was low overnight temperatures.  The tulsi probably needed more attention; I didn't play it devotional songs (as recommended) as I did with the last batch.

I wasn't able to get any tulsi to take in the garden, but have had better luck with the rusticas and bergamot.  Germination rates were poor, but I have a few healthy plants of each, albeit far behind schedule.

[Opsa]

I am so totally a commie, after last year when the zucchinis went so rampant they tore through my rabbit fence! Capitalist pig zucchinis!!!


My pagan nicos didn't fare so well this year, either, Aggie. They were small, those that came up. I wondered if I had been too busy to give them good vibes.

[Aggie]

One of the plants that took is rocking out; it's the largest I've grown yet (the indoors were not happy plants). 

The city has kindly planted a whack of N. sylvestris this year, and I'll probably poach some for non-ceremonial uses.  As far as I know, it's fairly low nicotine.  I have some ideas on curing it.

[Opsa]

I let my n. rustica cure (that is, wilt naturally) on the plants and what little I tasted during meditation was some surprisingly sweet!

[Aggie]

For lack of a better spot, I'll use this for updates on my little garden in the little city.

I've been putting in some improptu poly coldhouses and row covers, and using a soil thermometer (actually a meat thermometer with a wide range) I've determined that doing so has boosted the soil temperature by around 7^o C at mid-day.  Today, I installed some ventilation stacks out of PVC in the row cover to help shed precipitation and to maintain airflow.  I'll post some pictures later.  The stacks use thermal convection (standpipes are wrapped in black tape) and windflow across the top of the pipes to create airflow in the shelter.

[Opsa]

Oooh, nice coldframes for the Aggie veggies!

I've got spinach, lettuce and beet sprouts. The weather has been warm, but we're in for a cool stretch. Hopefully we won't get a hard freeze, but if we do, I'll run out to cover the wee babbies.

[Aggie]

The row covers have worked well; I essentially just covered the row with plastic with bricks around the edges at first, but after I added the H-shaped vent stacks (the crossbar of the 'H' is inside the covers and supports the middle, the two upper arms protrude above) it looks quite like a little circus tent, and should shed rain and snow. I had some cement roofing tiles, so I built four tiled vents along the perimeter to allow airflow inwards.

I have no sprouts yet, but I'll be interested to see if the poly tents let me get a significant jump on the season compared to other gardens in the area.

I went to a seed swap on Thursday; it was great!  Everyone threw down envelopes and jars of extra seeds on a long set of tables, and anyone who wanted anything got to take it. I left some seeds, gave out some seeds, and got lots of seeds.  I'm going to pull out a ton of flowering perennials (for giveaway to good homes) and put in a big veggie bed. I should have a surplus of food this year to sell and give away (hmm, food bank could probably use some fresh beans).

[Opsa]

Wow, that sounds wahsome, Aggie! I should think about organizing a seed swap here.

There's a threat of frost tonight, but I think the spinach sprouts can handle it.