The weather here has been great for things like lettuce, peas, kale and chard. Not so for the tomatoes, peppers and basil still waiting inside. Greens like lettuce LOVE this weather. It's prime growing time for them. This year we are investing a little more in greens like chard and kale. As dark green, leafy veggies, they are full of good vitamins and tend to keep producing through the summer even when it gets hot. We love lettuce, but once the heat hits it slows down and bolts. I move the lettuce and mesclun plant boxes into the shade when it gets really hot.
If you've got fencing, you've got room to grow greens. We have a low chain link fence around our plot and the addition of fence boxes makes it look nicer. Another plus is that if you've got ground critters (we do) like groundhogs and skunks, putting the greens in boxes on the fence puts them out of reach. Nothing is more annoying than planning a salad and finding that the groundhog has beat you to it!
I received an interesting email about a new product, The Garden Tower. It combines growing with composting and growing plants vertically. I've watched their video and was impressed. The Garden Tower uses about 7 cubic feet of potting soil and looks suited to urban gardening where space is short. Here is their information:
Garden Tower Project is a socially responsible company located in Bloomington, Indiana. Our mission is to help change the way our world grows its food. Visit our brand-new website www.gardentowerproject.com.
You can follow our progress on facebook at Garden Tower Project and read our daily Garden Haiku on twitter @gardentowerproj. I also have a blog at http://gardentowerproject.wordpress.com/ in which I ruminate on matters vegetative and provide updates on our various Tower experiments."
I'll be following this company to see what happens, as it looks like has potential for city gardeners.
I ran across this and it looked pretty interesting. If you are near an empty lot in an urban area and have a hankering for growing things try this site. URBAN FARMING COURSE.
Mission: To create a movement of urban farmers to build communities, resilient local food systems, and income to support their families.
Your Guides: Curtis Stone, owner and operator or Green City Acres, a 3/4 acre pedal-powered urban farm in Kelowna, BC ($60,000 sales in his second season) and Luke Miller Callahan, founder of GroAction, a hub for social entrepreneurs.
With the economy the way it is and gas going up, this makes a lot of sense.
Gardening in the City Blog
