Ideas...Ideas...Ideas...
We have some many ideas on things to add on for our triple island project! These are just a few of many we came up with. More to come though!
Monday, July 1, 2013
Saturday, June 22, 2013
Sunday, June 16, 2013
Saturday, June 15, 2013
Grocery Store Gardening
MNN (link)
Which seeds and pits will work
In the seed category, you can save seeds from heirloom
(open-pollinated) tomatoes, peppers, melons and squash. Most legumes and
pulses and grains (especially quinoa and amaranth) will grow
marvelously in the garden. Intrigued by the color pattern on Jacob's
Cattle beans? Take one or two from the bag and plant them!
Now, you probably wouldn't want to waste (that is, not eat) any part of
a $6 tomato. But if one happens to go bad, that's great! Tomato seeds
need to be fermented (which means they need to rot) in order to become
viable. With plumbing, fermenting is pretty gross. With some seeds, it
is necessary for germination.
For dry pulses, just plant them about an inch deep and water. Quinoa
and amaranth generally do well sprinkled over soil, or lightly covered
with soil, and watered. Melon and squash seeds can be planted as they
are. For excellent information on saving and planting all kinds of
seeds, refer to Suzanne Ashworth's guide "Seed to Seed."
Of course, you don't have to limit yourself to seeds. Pretty much every
tuber you can buy will grow in your garden. Some that I've enjoyed are
horseradish and Jerusalem artichoke (sunchoke). Others that will work
are ginger, potatoes and yams. Especially when these tubers have been
sitting around too long, have become shriveled and started sprouting
roots or stems, why not plant them and maximize your returns?
Garlic is another one that will take well to the garden. Each head of
garlic can be composed of 10 or more individual cloves and each clove
can be planted and will grow a whole new head of garlic. Just remember
that garlic is usually planted in the late fall when temperatures are
going down, for a summer harvest.
Common spices like dill seed, mustard seed, caraway and nigella sativa
will grow as well, if you want to grow them. The main limiting factor is
age — how long have these spices been sitting on the shelf? They may
have lost their viability.
In the world of tree fruits, you're usually discarding the seeds
anyway. Growing them, however, can be a mixed bag as many fruits, like
apples, will not grow true (which means if you plant a Pippin apple
seed, it will probably grow a crab apple. If you plant a Red Delicious
seed, it will probably grow a crab apple. You get the idea.). Growing a
fruit tree from seed could be an edifying experience, but if you want
good fruit-bearing trees it's better to buy good young stock from a
nursery.
Making your own island - 1
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