Garden 2010
7:46 AM Edit This 13 Comments »
Nice title, huh? Kinda sounds like Apocolypse Now. But lookit! Look what I got in the mail. For FREE! Heirloom seeds for my garden. Free. Did I say they were free? From www.dinnergarden.org. I ordered them quite awhile ago and they came and they've been sitting in their little envelope, waiting for me to lovingly gaze at them and study them. The organization that I got them from is all about helping people feed themselves and teaching them that they can garden in any container - pretty much anywhere. So go donate if you're not poor like me.
This is THE NOTEBOOK. The one where I will study up on my seeds.
The original plan is here. I still need to buy some things when the time comes. I won't grow my tomatoes or peppers by seed. The growing season is too short here and I don't have what it takes to start them inside - what with the cats trying to eat everything around here and peeing wherever there's dirt.
I started studying up last night. I got seeds for something called Fenugreek. I had no idea what that was, and I'm not sure I do yet. It's an herb. And you can eat the greens, but mostly people use the seeds for tea and "infusions" and "poultices." I may just turn into a witch doctor. It would suit, no? It's also supposed to help bring in your milk if you're breastfeeding and/or make your boobs bigger. I do NOT need help in either of those areas.
The seeds I got were heavy on the greens. I'm not sure I'll use all of them. I may give some of them to Cowgirl, who knows more about such things. I got arugula though! And I was planning for arugula, so that was a super nice surprise. And I got seeds for parsnips, but not turnips as outlined in the original plan. And even though I wanted to grow Easter Egg Radishes, I got seeds for Daikon instead and I think that will do just fine.
This is THE NOTEBOOK. The one where I will study up on my seeds.
The original plan is here. I still need to buy some things when the time comes. I won't grow my tomatoes or peppers by seed. The growing season is too short here and I don't have what it takes to start them inside - what with the cats trying to eat everything around here and peeing wherever there's dirt.
I started studying up last night. I got seeds for something called Fenugreek. I had no idea what that was, and I'm not sure I do yet. It's an herb. And you can eat the greens, but mostly people use the seeds for tea and "infusions" and "poultices." I may just turn into a witch doctor. It would suit, no? It's also supposed to help bring in your milk if you're breastfeeding and/or make your boobs bigger. I do NOT need help in either of those areas.
The seeds I got were heavy on the greens. I'm not sure I'll use all of them. I may give some of them to Cowgirl, who knows more about such things. I got arugula though! And I was planning for arugula, so that was a super nice surprise. And I got seeds for parsnips, but not turnips as outlined in the original plan. And even though I wanted to grow Easter Egg Radishes, I got seeds for Daikon instead and I think that will do just fine. See? I googled and wrote notes and studied up on things like soil and growing seasons last night until 10 p.m. And I NEVER stay up that late! Garden. It makes me happy. But I need help with this composting thing. How do you get started with that? What goes in there? I do not understand this.
13 comments:
Fenugreek is a favorite in Northern African and Middle Eastern dishes, and is one of the few spices that is usually used in powdered form even in Indian curries. But the seeds need to be roasted, otherwise they're bitter and unpleasant. The best thing to do would be to roast and grind them.
Composting 101:
Only use vegetable and fruit waste, egg shells, coffee grounds, hair, grass, paper - do not use meat products or manure from meat eating animals (no, you can't use cat poo :-)
Now then, you will need a starter if this is your first composter. And a container for your waste. I have an old pickle barrel on a spinner. You need to either stir or spin your compost pile in order to aerate it and mix it. You can get starter (hot mix) from gardenerssupply.com - after you initially start it you just leave some of the composted material in the compost heap and it renews itself. The starter is good microbes that start the decomposition. You may not get compost until next year though - it is a long process.
On the other hand, you can add coffee grounds, banana peels and egg shells directly to the garden. Egg shells help build sturdy stems, banana peels add nitrogen for good flower heads and the coffee grounds are good for the soil. (I don't know why, I forget that one, but I add them and they are good).
You can use newspaper for controlling weeds, just lay down several layers in your rows and wet it down with a hose. Most inks are soy based now so that's good for the soil and the paper will naturally degrade.
I'm excited to start on my garden too. Happy planting!
Mary, Mary, quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
Wait, you're not Mary!
The only thing I can grow is toenails.....
I'll have Silas email you as soon as he's home from school. He may be in kindergarten, but they're doing a garden and have already composted or are composting or something to that effect.
I have no idea how to do it either. I believe it involves potato peels, coffee grounds and egg shells.
I started carnations inside along with green beans and one lonely sugar snap pea plant...the rest of the sugar snap pea seedlings started to mold so I threw them out.
Sounds like you will have a fruitful (and vegetable) summer! =)
I think you should move in with me. I have a huge garden that I hate taking care of - I love planting, but not the weeds and bugs! You could also be my nanny - Jack's half way through the terrible 3's (much worse than the terrible 2's), which just might make you glad you don't have a child yet (notice I say yet - still some fertile years left for you).
Love ya!
Fenugreek is supposed to help mothers who are *trying* to breastfeed (I took some when I was nursing Dahlia, but it didn't help - nothing helped). ANYHOOo -that is AWESOME! You're going to have such a cool garden.
I agree with not starting tomatoes from seed. It's way too hard in these northern climes!!
I really want to grow some things this summer!
We had to find fenugreek lately. We use it for a lentil & rice dish. Yummy! We thought it was funny it was supposed to help with breast milk production.
that is SO cool. i want to grow some things now.
I think you'd make an excellent witch doctor.
My soil is prepared now and today I plant my first crop - peas! I'm so excited.
You seem like a very happy, positive person! Good for you. This picture is a good one.
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