Sunday, May 31, 2009

Growing the Menu

You can use 'successive planting' to create lots of food and happy plants. Successive planting: think a constant supply of fresh greens, scallions and herbs and a long harvest of things like beans, peas, tomatoes, peppers, squash, cukes. If you keep replanting the greens and do a couple smaller plantings of beans and peas, and then plant a couple different varieties of the others, you can "extend your harvest". Above, you can see from before, the bright green lettuce is almost gone. As I take those out, I put in peppers and more baby lettuces.

Above, that beefy little tomato shares some space with those red beets on the right. I figure it'll be a while till the tomato needs that much room. And the beets are something you can eat small, medium, large, early, midseason and late.

Here a tomato shares the pot with some cukes; they'll be trained up the back of the pot and onto the pea trellis, and the tomato has its own cage.

On the left side, 2 lacy Mizuna greens with a pepper plant fill in after lettuce was harvested. The mizuna will be done by the time the pepper gets big. I can eat any leaves that get in the way! And a couple potatoes on the right. I can pull those when the pepper needs the space.

Successive: The pole beans are just coming up to follow those peas on the fence. I tucked them in here and there where the peas were thin.

A happy family of speckled red lettuce, shallots, peas and baby onions. They'll all be maturing at different times, and I can harvest as needed.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Portland, City of Roses

Founded in 1917, Portland’s International Rose Test Garden is the oldest official, continuously operated public rose test garden in the United States. In the beginning, even though World War I was raging in Europe, hybridists sent roses from around the world to Portland’s garden for testing and to keep the new hybrids safe from being destroyed by the bombing in Europe. The primary purpose of the garden is to serve as a testing ground for new rose varieties. Portland's Rose Festival, in its 102nd year, kicked off this weekend and the first roses on my porch are happenin too.

The nose knows when a rose is a rose. To me, roses aren't complete without that powerful damask fragrance, so I choose them accordingly. This red one is Mr. Lincoln and his velvety dark red petals are surpassed only by the classic fragrance---he's a keeper! Drink in that fragrance---in the 'language of flowers', roses mean love.

This one's a climber, Golden Showers, with a fruity rose fragrance and nice form. I like it because it's resistant to black spot and other foliage problems too.


True, it's not a rose, but since it's on the porch blooming right now, this pretty clematis, "Dr. Ruppel", deserves some show time too. Plus, roses and clematis just go together so well.


My prize beauty, "Aloha". A super duper fragrant pink, the fluffy petals are light on top with a darker reverse, AND, as if that weren't enough, she's also an heirloom 'own root' rose, not a hybrid. The bush on my porch came from a cutting I took off the mother plant---that's the beauty of 'own root' roses. The foliage is really healthy, and the form divine, life is good.

Get Your Tomatoes in the Ground!

No time for dilly-dally! If you've been waiting or wondering what to do next, just go do it! Just about everywhere is warm enough for all those crops you've been dreaming about--tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, squash, beans, basil, carrots, you name it. You can sow beans, cukes, squash and carrots directly; buy the pepper and tomato starts. Follow the package instructions for spacing and add a little organic food when planting. This can be liquid, powder or compost, whatever is easiest, but stick with organic, skip the Miracle-gro. See, we're actually growing soil here, the food is a delicious byproduct. That's why organic is important---we want to create a healthy environment for all the earthworms and critters who relish in making soil, the true kings and queens of the garden. Make it nice for them, and they'll take care of you.

Along the fence, I'm harvesting that early lettuce completely and following it with pepper plants, what's called successive planting. See the garlic in front, and peas are growing up the fence.

My Earth Box spinach is starting to 'bolt', go to flower and seed. I'm going to harvest it all now and replant with a whole new summer menu.

Cute little Cherry Belles from the porch, these are in a big pot with snow peas at the back so they can climb the trellis. This we call companion planting. When they're done, I might put more of the same in, or maybe something like basil.

The porch is bustin out with lush green vibes, it's amazing how fast things are growing now---moon on the rise, heading towards summer solstice, powerful time in nature, peas growing 6 inches a day and starting to flower (left foreground).

Monday, May 18, 2009

Planting Seeds of Literacy in Jamaica with Great Shape! Inc.

Some of you may already know, I love Jamaica, I love Bob Marley, and I love Reggae. I'm blessed to volunteer with Great Shape! Inc. in Jamaica where we conduct the "1000 Smiles Dental Project", the SuperKids Literacy Program, and this year, Vision Clinics. I'll be working with our literacy team in schools around Ocho Rios this year.

Last year, we brought teachers, literacy specialists, books, computers, musical instruments, love, smiles and enthusiasm to students like these at Breadnut Hill Primary School.

On our day off, a group of us went up to this tiny Basic School in Woodland, way up above Hopewell and delivered books and 'fluffies' (stuffed animals) to Andrea Brown's students. Here they are in front of their new library.

First Books supplied us with many copies of the ever popular Dora.

Aleshia, the librarian at Parry Town Primary worked with us to get their library ship-shape for the new titles we brought for our Book in a Bag program. We are committed to working with the schools to improve literacy and education for all of Jamaica's children.
Check our work at Great Shape! Inc. on the web. Great Shape's been in the mix for 20 years in Jamaica.

Monday, May 11, 2009

Into the Kitchen

All the greens are coming in full force now, this is my pick off the porch, 6 kindsa lettuce, huge spinach (6" x 5" lvs!) and the star-flowered plant in the foreground, chickweed (Stellaria media)--it's best harvest time is right now. You can also use it to make a healing salve by simmering gently in olive oil, strain after steeping, and add some melted beeswax to make it 'gel'. Read Jethro Kloss' classic, and one of my main references, "Back to Eden, the classic guide to herbal medicine, natural foods and home remedies" for more info.


I made this Green Goddess dressing with some chickweed and....

1 cup yogurt

3 T. olive oil

1/2 cup mixed herbs: chickweed, parsley, thyme, oregano and basil, all fresh off the porch

2 T. lemon juice

1/4 t. salt
1 sm. piece green scallion or some chive and a sm. piece garlic

Put it all in the blender and 'grind' on low till blended and smooth. If it's too thin, add some nutritional yeast.


Onto greater heights, fresh pickles! I'm practicing now to get my chops by harvest time when cukes will be begging to evolve into pickles. Here I blanched cauliflower, carrot, asparagus and garlic then packed loosely into jars with chunks of jalapenos. In each jar are also mustard seed, bay leaf, salt and peppercorns.


Into the heating brine of water and white vinegar, I added sprigs of dry purple basil and got this pretty color. Bring to a boil and pour into clean jars.

Here's my recipe:

12 carrot slices
3 cloves garlic
partial head of cauliflower
Blanch these for 2 minutes. What that means is get a large pot of water boiling, then throw in everything at once and time it. As soon as time's up, drain and put veggies into a bowl of ice cold water to stop the cooking, this keeps them crispy.
Into a quart jar put:
1 teaspoon pickling salt
5 peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon mustard seed
1 bay leaf
Now pack loosely into the jar(s) the veggies along with about 8 nice big fat jalapeno peppers, sliced into 1/2" chunks.
Into a pot, put:
1 cup water
1 1/4 cup white vinegar
Heat this to boiling, then pour into the jar. Put the lid on, seal, cool then put in fridge. Eat the next day, and these will keep for weeks in the fridge.
Easy breeezy!
Porch is getting crowded. It's time to put the tomatoes into the ground, but yesterday only got up to 48 degrees! Buy all the starts you want and have room for now, and start planting, 'cause May 15 is the magic date for putting in the warm weather crops we crave all winter long. You've got 2 weeks now to make it happen, so don't delay (note to self).

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Signs of Change

A quick tour of my neighborhood with spring in full swing. Most of these pix are on my walk to the garden.

Check the saddlebags of pollen on this bee enjoying the camellia; encourage more bees with hives if you can do it or small block kits for mason bees. Get info at any nursery; advocate for urban hives in your town. We need those pollinators more than ever---they've taken a big hit with all the pesticides, herbicides, pollution and development. We are allowed to keep bees here in Portland, and chickens, but no roosters in city limits.


Here my friend is making good use of deck space and nice big crocks for growing a variety of salad greens, peas and other green crunchy treats, and soon tomatoes....right outside the kitchen. Brilliant!

I like this--converting that sod by the curb to a planting of poppies in front of the painted poppy fence. Note the smart straw mulch for weed control, water conservation, and building soil, plus it's way prettier and more balanced pH than that boring brown prickly bark mulch. But that's just my opinion.

Change is here! This was just like a driveway, and now look at the raised beds they just put in, bursting with potential. Yes we can!!! I walk by here all the time---watch for progress shots.

You probably know this view by now, yep, I'm walking up to our beautiful community garden. The wild mustard in the foreground is a nice spicy wild food right now. Add those beautiful yellow flower stems to any salad or stir fry. Try some of these wild foods right now, they're so perfect in spring, and traditional blood purifiers for spring. Each wild food has its best time--it's important to know when to pick what part and how to eat it, but it's not hard to learn.