Friday, May 24, 2013

Urban Farmer

I rightfully give myself the label of urban farmer. This year we have added only food producing shrubs and vines and have removed other decorative plants.

We planted two blueberries and have been picking enough to snack out in the yard but yesterday we picked enough to add to a fruit salad.


Raspberries have been ripening daily. I have to admit I am selfish and often eat what I pick right there in the driveway as that is where this vine is planted.


I now plot and plan much more carefully. Saving seeds and only buying what I need to replace each year.

Seed packets from Armstrong Garden Center
Here's a frugal gardening tip, buy the small six packs of the seedlings because you often get twelve plants instead of six. See how two are planted next to one another? I just carefully separate the roots and divide.


Here is one thing I will never grow again. Lettuce here in my garden looks great but tastes awful. Grown in winter, spring, no matter, shade or sun. It is bitter. May be my soil but I will just buy my lettuce. My gardener friend Patty agrees and lives not far. We just don't have the conditions for lettuce here.



Even these girls won't touch the stuff.



11 comments:

  1. Great tips, love the one about dividing the seedlings! Too bad abut the lettuce, ours was very good until it got too hot then it bolted and got bitter. I miss having a good salad whenever I wanted.

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  2. Elaine - good ideas. Isn't that strange that you can grow all of that stuff except lettuce? Your blueberries and raspberries look delicious.

    Judy

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  3. Your berries do look delicious!
    We've collected some black berries out in the field...but by the time you get back to the house...walking across the 4 acres--MOSTLY GONE!

    The lettuce grows alright here. And it taste pretty good. We have had some bitter lettuce though in the past, not sure why...maybe the variety?

    I tell you what grows well and is much more healthy, SPINACH...yak-KaK-kak! :)
    Have you had any luck with spinach?

    Oh...and I don't know why you haven't called yourself an URBAN FARMER ALREADY? :)

    Pat

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  4. I call myself an urban homesteader since I don't have acerage. I guess it depends on what you view as a farm- I think large dairy animals, pigz, etc. I always split up my plants too, and look for multiples in packs. Why get one when you can get 3 ? :)

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  5. I would love to have my own little garden and mainly I love the idea of eating what you grow..
    Here in Mumbai India , I live in a Apartment and so space is small plus we do not have space to have a garden but can we grow in pots..
    I love to read your blog and have you on my sidebar...

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  6. THIS gardener fell for Mother Nature fooling her with a week full of very unseasonable high temps and planted all of her seedlings she had started in the ground a few days ago. And now they are all covered with pots and pans and tupperware and throw rugs and blankets due to a hard frost. The forecast said "Patchy" but just in case, I covered everything and I am glad that I did. Serious frost last night and this morning here in Western PA! Used to have raspberries where I lived before. Loved them! :)

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  7. That is too bad your lettuce does not taste good. Here in IL it is so good in the spring...but as soon as it warms up it is not

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  8. I have the same problem with lettuce, it is bitter no matter when I try to grow it. I never thought that it might be our soil. We are saving wood to make a small greenhouse this winter, and I'm going to grow lettuce in potting mix to see if it tastes better. I am so envious of those berries! Yum yum.

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  9. I think it is a great idea to have your landscaping eatable. Everyone needs to do it. I mix veggies in with my flowers so I still get some color but also some food. Hubby mowed down all 10 of my blueberry bushes by mistake last year, so I will need to start over:( I also have raspberry bushes and they do great here.

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  10. Great tips! We have grown some lettuce and I was fairly please with the results... so I am hoping that is something we can grow since we do eat lots of it. LOVE those blueberries and raspberries... we are only second year gardeners so we have so much to add. This year, we added a concord grape vine! I am so excited to get some grapes off of it in the future.

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  11. Have you tried arugula...it grew like crazy in my garden and we put it on sandwiches? I just planted a couple of blackberry bushes and some asparagus!!!! I dont get a lot of sun because this house is a 2 story and the sun gets blocked but Im keeping my fingers crossed....asaragus is growing like nuts!!!!!

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