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.