To till or not to till

or



When I first started planning my garden early last spring, I focused on learning how to start seeds indoors. From then I worried about planting them on time in the raised beds we made and just watered and harvested from then on out.

I didn't think of the garden as a perpetual system, probably because I knew I'd be moving sometime soon and because the lawn care people at our apartment tend to destroy my plants and "clean up" my compost pile by throwing it away- not to mention leaf blowing the entire yard so no leaves are left behind. What could I do, I rent.

Now that we have this farm in the works I've researched how to make healthy garden beds from scratch. Food Not Lawns was really the starting point for me in terms of sustainable gardening and soil health. I revisited that book last night after learning all about the lasagna gardening method on Mother Earth News.

So now I'm left with one question, to till or not to till? Knowing that we move in in early April leaves me no time to make the lasagna style bed. I won't have the materials- newspaper, leaves, compost. On the other hand, I know tilling will be back breaking labor that may destroy my virgin soil! Guess I won't know what to do till I'm actually there. Maybe my spring yard cleanup will yield leftover autumnal leaves. Maybe a neighbor has some manure or compost. Within a years time I will have a system in place to collect all this "black gold" (as my mother calls it).

The Birth of Sweetlocal Farm

For Christmas this year, I got a farm! I can hardly believe it. It isn't 100% official yet, but should be soon. Sweetlocal farm will be my biggest challenge and hopefully greatest achievement. I have bold plans and big dreams for the little 3 acre farm in Western Massachusetts.

My new home boasts a quaint farmhouse with classic farmers porch, a large red barn, and an over sized garage. There is also a koi pond surrounded by a perennial bed. Scattered across the property are wild blueberry and raspberry bushes.

I may not be able to move in until April, which will determine which crops we plan to grow this year. The fields have not been farmed in many years, so I need compost, manure, etc. I hope I get those things for free. I'll have to build fences and water collection barrels.

My long term goals include a bantam and rare breed flock of laying hens, honey bees, goats for milking and soap making, a farm stand, and perhaps a small scale CSA.

I don't want to jinx myself, so I'll post more when this is all official. Here is a picture of the barn:

I'm back!

After a long and peaceful break on this blog, it is time to update. So much has grown in the past few weeks. We are eating carrots, beets, herbs, cucumbers, and scallions. The tomatoes are doing well, still green but they should be filling in soon. We even have a baby pumpkin. My sunflowers and nasturtiums give the garden a punch of bright sunny color. Here are some pictures:

is it good? is it green?

These are the questions many of us ask about the products we buy or the services we use. Now there is a new website in the Boston area that can help us all figure out the important answers. Izzitgreen just launched and needs everyone's help filling its listings with good and green knowledge.

update from the urban farm

The end of May is here and my garden is thriving. I have countless variates of edible plants growing, many of which I acquired for free! My vegetable garden is producing enough salad greens for salad every night. The beets should be ready to harvest soon and the sugar snap peas are very tall. I bought Luke a blueberry bush the other day and planted it in a large pot. For the first year, those blueberries will be the most expensive blueberries we ever ate- but it is an investment in fruit. Here are some pictures of life on the farm:

my farm in brighton

Yesterday was sunny and not too cold, so I went for a stroll through the hood when my clothes were at the LMAT. I live on the outskirts of Boston, but still definitely the city. To my surprise I stumbled across this picturesque Greek Revival style farmhouse and barn. I'm obsessed with having my own farm in the city so this place has now become my dream property. I'm using all my brainwaves to lure it into my future....someday this will be my home:

sprouts

A miniature field of herbs and veggies has sprouted under the lights in my kitchen. We had a scare when I forgot to water the babies one day. They all shriveled up and looked so sad, but they revived. The arugula and lettuce also sprouted out on the porch, which really brought a smile to my face because I had my doubts. The spinach in the raised garden bed I planted a few weeks ago now has not sprouted. I guess I was too anxious to get some food growing. The peas planted around St. Patty's day have not pushed through the dirt, but I still have hope for them.

that's fresh!

I'm marrying an Italian boy.   I made fresh homemade vegan tagliatelle for the first time tonight.  He ate 2 helpings.  Big success! 

garden astrology

Gardening by the moon is a method of starting seeds based on the phases of the moon.  As the moon grows full, plant seeds that grow up and out of the soil.  Today the lunar calender reveals we are about a week away from the full moon, so I planted a few rows of cold hardy sugar snap peas.  If all goes according to plan, I'll be eating fresh peas by mid May.  In another moon related story, I saw this billboard....is it real?  Has the advertising world really sold its soul?

Root vegetables that grow down into the earth follow the opposite schedule.  I was looking forward to planting some early carrots, but it seems I should wait till the beginning of April for the dark of the moon.  

On my porch I started arugula and mixed lettuce.  The greens need to be harvested before our other herbs are ready to move outside because I pretty much stole Luke's real estate.  He is in charge of the herbs.  

Some of the seeds we started last week are peeking through the soil!  I've read that seedlings actually need to be "pet" so they grow strong stems.  I hope someone stops by to find me petting my seedlings!

porch makeover

I am so pleased with the way our shelves came out! I covered the storage area with an extra sheet I had laying around. A few squeezes of the staple gun later and I've got a totally functional, clean, organized space! I can't wait to get the herb garden going.

Here are the pictures:

BEFORE: really messy and disorganized





DURING: room for all of our gardening supplies and grease storage for the car.







AFTER: now I just need to spruce up the space with chairs, pillows, plants, and maybe a lantern.

brunch fit for a vegan

Every weekend we roll out of bed to get to work on our favorite part of the week- brunch. Sometimes it's vegan cinnamon french toast, or banana pancakes. Today we made a spicy and savory version of a vegan brunch staple, tofu scrambler. The best part about scrambler is you can throw in whatever veggies or spices you have on hand. This week I used onion, portobello mushroom, and banana peppers.






Luke took control of the potatoes and made them crispy and spicy as usual. Cayenne pepper is the new heat source of choice.








After brunch we tackled another big project. A three season glassed-in front porch provides the perfect spot to grow herbs. It's also a comfortable sunny place to play guitar or have breakfast. This year we will grow more herbs than in years past so we had to come up with a solution for all the gardening supplies that collect in the porch. We designed a custom greenhouse style shelf that is the same height as the window sill and added storage underneath. Soon, I will add some curtains to conceal the odds and ends. "Before and after" pictures to follow.

official start of growing season 2008

Yesterday my box of heirloom seeds arrived in the mail.  We ordered more than our little urban side yard can probably handle, but I couldn't help myself.  The varieties we chose from Botanical Interests, INC have been cultivated for over 50 years, making them "heirlooms".  

We started the seeds in biodegradable trays under a set of fluorescent light bulbs in our kitchen.  I pray my kitty won't find them!  Fluorescent bulbs seem to be the common source of light for starting seeds.  Does anyone know if CFL bulbs will work?

The big project of the day was the construction of a raised garden bed.  We put it together rather quickly, just screwing the wood together with "L" brackets.  The raised bed totals just over twenty square feet.  Even though my city's historic last frost date is still 6 weeks away, I planted some cold hardy spinach right in the new garden.  

I've always loved to grow plants, but this is my first intense year of food production.  It's a mix of ancient planting methods based on almanacs and phases of the moon but also syncing my iphone/ical to remind me to move my seeds outdoors, or to start my zucchini.  I was outside, in the sun, for a few hours today which hasn't happened in about 5 months I would estimate....and it felt good, really good.