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Archive for the ‘Gardens’ Category

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Garden Survival Tips for a Scorching Summer

Friday, July 30th, 2010

In case you missed it, Anne Raver wrote an insightful piece in yesterday’s New York Times about how New Englanders can care for their garden during this unusually hot summer. The tip I am going to apply asap is to add compost to a few of my potted plants (Raver correctly reports this helps plants retain water and air, and increases microbial activity).  I was amused to learn we share the joy of ridding our gardens of those pesky leaf eating bugs with orange (I think mine are more red)-and-black-striped shields.

In case you decide, as I have, Raver is a delight to read check out this article on porch living in Manhattan.  If I could have a green roof (like the one in the article) above a loft in TriBeCa I would have to reconsider my decision to not move back to New York City.

Photos NYT.

Posted in Gardens | No Comments »

Urban Farm Fermentory in Portland Maine

Wednesday, July 28th, 2010

When I hear about a former warehouse with a rubble-strewn back lot and a mess of Japanese Knotweed being turned into a container garden with bee hives, a greenhouse, vertical garden and compost I think two things - doesn’t everyone dream of this and someone is doing it!  Maine based entrepreneurs Eli Cayer and David Homa call it Urban Farm Fermentory.

Did I mention this sprung up in a mere three months?

Cayer and Homa’s unique vision could help (further) reinvigorate Portland’s Bayside neighborhood where UFF is based, while helping more people make smart, sustainable choices. As advocates for eating locally grown food they are turning waste into things that are sustainable, nutritious, and educational. By positive problem-solving and sharing resources with local producers, including one that produces kombucha, Urban Farm Fermentory will help preserve a way of life our Founding Fathers practiced and which some days seems to have almost been lost to food industrialization.

For starters they are offering classes Tuesdays 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. at 200 Anderson Street in Portland Maine. $15 suggested donation. Phone 207.633.7406 for information and the class schedule.

Read all about UFF in this article.

Photo Avery Yale Kamila, Portland Press Herald.

Posted in Do Good, Gardens, Local Flavors, Portland Maine | No Comments »

Backyard Vegetables

Thursday, July 22nd, 2010

During the past three years gardening has become one of my favorite pastimes. Vegetables not flowers. I love growing my own food and giving produce to friends. Even with the access I have to fresh foods from my CSA, farmers’ markets, and friends farms it is nice to know I personally contributed to my table.

My enthusiasm for backyard gardening is only encouraged by the trials each summer brings in the form of pests, disease, and the whims of Mother Nature.  Last week I was a sight in my pajamas after dark flashlight in hand seeking out beetles eating the leaves of my basil and sage plants.  I smashed a few and for a few days the leaves did not seem to be as full of holes, but the beetles are back so I will be out with my flashlight again tonight doing due diligence. The week before I did the tomato plant shuffle - bringing one of my two tomato plants in during the rain, out for sun…the leaves have turned a little greener but alas no tomatoes.

I continue to learn not just about caring for growing things, but about patience and value. The vegetables and herbs I contribute to my meals bring a delicious fresh quality and the food tastes far better than anything made with conventional ingredients from a major supermarket.

By keeping a garden, I am cutting down on waste.  There are not cardboard or plastic containers transporting my fresh vegetables around. Less gas is spent shuffling between the market and home with fresh herbs.

I am, as Michael Pollan wrote about in his brilliant book In Defense of Food, taking control of my food from the food scientists and processors, and I know exactly what is in it.

A couple baby tomatoes on my healthy (for now!) backyard tomato plant and a glimpse at what is slowly becoming a large cucumber plant.

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baby-cuke

Posted in Do Good, Gardens, Local Flavors | No Comments »

Good Food

Wednesday, July 14th, 2010

Different people have varied opinions of what good food is. To me it is basic dishes with fresh and local ingredients. Thanks to a growing movement of people who want to minimize the distance their produce travels from field to table, fresh ingredients are often available via farmers’ markets, CSAs, and farm stands. Websites such as Local Harvest make it easy to locate them and so much more. That said, on this summer day I discovered not one! but two!! tomatoes growing in my backyard and began picking up goodies from my CSA.  Okay, I may also have dropped by a local bookstore to pick up a paperback copy of this book so I can make some jam this weekend (between all that pleasure reading I hope to do).  Life and food are good today.

Check out my little tomatoes!!  The cucumber plants are completely out of control.  In a few weeks I may well need to begin giving cucumbers away. Photos of those plants forthcoming, going to have to get out the macro lens for those babies.

my-first-tomato-plant

Posted in Books, Gardens, Local Flavors, Portland Maine | No Comments »

First Day of Summer

Monday, June 21st, 2010

Today is the first official day of summer. Yay!!!  Summers are short in Maine so I plan to make the most of every warm dry day. What fun things will you be doing this summer?

What I am most looking forward to doing this summer.

Evening walks and staring up at the stars (I love this year round).

Wearing bright summery dresses and my denim shorts.

Sipping margaritas and eating chips and salsa outside.

Reading in my backyard. At the top of my pile are Irene Nemirovsky’s Dimanche and Lost Trails, Lost Cities by Colonel P.H. Fawcett.

Standing up on a surfboard. (I will actually be content catching waves and not getting hit by the board again and again :)).

A weekend on Isle au Haut with friends. This pretty much involves eating, hiking, eating, biking, eating, star gazing. I feel it is my obligation as a guest to eat as many shrimp puffs and chocolate truffles as humanly possible. Wouldn’t you!?

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Making pesto with the basil from my garden (I throw in parsley and walnuts). With any luck I can throw some of my backyard tomatoes in with the (homemade) pasta later this summer.

Digging my toes into the dirt.

A week in Midcoast Maine swimming in the lake and attending faculty slideshows at the Maine Media Workshops.

An overnight trip aboard the Schooner J. & E. Riggin where I will be surrounded by four of the people I love most in this world - as much for their genuine compassion as their zest for life - Annie, Jon and their absolutely magical daughters Chloe and Ella whose curiosity thankfully knows no bounds .

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Top photo The Year in Pictures. Bottom photo by Elizabeth Poisson.

Posted in Friends, Gardens, Local Flavors, Midcoast Maine, Photography | 1 Comment »

Happy Earth Day

Thursday, April 22nd, 2010

A pretty urban gardening post for today from from frolic!  Book review: Garden Anywhere by Als Fowler.

Garden anywhere

Garden anywhere 2

Gardenanywhere_04A

Posted in Books, Gardens | 1 Comment »

Household Food Garden

Monday, April 12th, 2010

Margaret Atwood wrote “In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.” Oh, Margaret I do at least my hands do. A few weeks ago I started seeds for tomatoes, kitchen herbs, leeks, and salad mix in a little greenhouse on my front stoop. Sunday morning I opened up the greenhouse and found my lettuce coming along beautifully and other tiny greens slowly emerging from the soil.  Once it warms up a bit more, probably in early or mid-May, I will start seeds for bell peppers, radishes, cucumbers, and eggplant.  About the same time I do this I will transplant my seedlings into large (also outside) containers.

Witnessing the life of these greens is inspiring, and the time and patience involved force me to slow down. Every tomato eaten off the vine, each radish dipped in salt I will have grown myself with love. This summer the foods I grow will be enjoyed with produce from the local farm where I am a CSA member, locally caught fish (unfortunately not by me though I am open to an invite to go!!), honey and goat cheese made by friends, and homemade jam.

baby-mesculun-salad-paris-market-mix

Baby Mesculun Salad Paris Market Mix

french-baby-leeks

French Baby Leeks (if you look really close you can see a tiny green sprout or two!!!)

french-rosemary-and-italian-peso-basil-kitchen-herbs

French Rosemary and Italian Pesto Basil (tiny sprouts here and there)

Posted in Gardens, Local Flavors, Portland Maine | No Comments »

Radishes

Wednesday, November 11th, 2009

My neighbor Tai and I enjoyed radishes from our garden yesterday. Just when we thought all we had left was sage, we found these. What a delicious surprise!

radish-in-tais-hand

radishes-in-dirt

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Winter Garden

Sunday, November 8th, 2009

The deck garden my neighbors and I’ve maintained since the spring is now in its final growth stages. Angelia got some wonderful micro greens and radishes, the latter which she is cooking up with breakfast. Broccoli plants are a question mark. A good amount of purple and pineapple sage is left. It smells soooo good!! I’ve been adding it to dishes here and there and taking a bundle with me for Thanksgiving dinner.

winter-garden-overview

purple-sage1

pineapple-sage-two

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Composting an Effective System of Nutrient Cycling

Monday, August 24th, 2009

This week is about doing good starting with composting at home. By composting the organic waste created in your household, you will be helping cut down on garbage going into your community’s rapidly expanding landfills.  If you do it right there will not be a lingering odor, cloud of flies or vermin signing up for a club membership. There is no reason to be intimidated, this is not rocket science.

If you are not already composting the following information might help you.

Judith Layzer, an Associate Professor of Environmental Policy at MIT, is one of my neighbors. I live in a unique community in which my neighbors are friendly people I find interesting and like to hang out with. Judy has been a great addition bringing her savvy eco-friendly ways into our complex. Green rooftop plans, solar plans, composting advice, do’s and don’ts on recycling, community programs, the list goes on and on.

Judy’s Basics
You can actually compost just about anything, but if you want to make sure you don’t attract animals and/or have odors, don’t add animal/dairy products.
The ideal ratio is about 3 parts brown (carbon) for every 1 part green (nitrogen).
Cut/tear stuff into small parts to maximize the surface area.
Put the composter in the sun; heat is a catalyst.
Keep the compost moist (like a sponge), but not too wet.
Turn the compost about once a week to aerate.
Remember that compost is not soil; it’s a soil amendment.  So when it’s “done,” you should add it
to existing soil, but don’t use it alone as a growing medium.

What Can Be Composted
Shredded paper , cardboard (i.e. pizza boxes that are not greasy)
Wood chips (nothing treated or containing toxins)
Yard trimmings (old plants, wilted flowers, leaves)
Vegetable and fruit scraps (nothing that has been cooked and chopped down so pieces are no bigger than a lemon)
Coffee grounds and tea leaves

For more information on composting, including programs in your area (some cities provide free bins or at a great discount) check out the EPA’s site online.  A fun and informative site for people who live in Manhattan/Brooklyn is NYC Compost Project.  Amazon has several bins for sale and of course check out your local hardware store.

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Yesterday Judy and I put together a Tumbleweed Compost Tumbler, a pretty rugged compost bin made of 100% post-industrial recycled plastic.
Ready to compost

Ready to compost

Posted in Do Good, Gardens | No Comments »

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