Tuesday, May 25, 2010

New Growth - Pass It On!


Last week I took a quick Field Trip to get some herbs and veggies for container plantings. I do this every year because the righteous veggie garden will not happen until Phase 3 of the Front/Backyard Master Plan. To give you some perspective, we haven't started Phase 2 yet. So old-fashioned, in the ground plants will happen, but not just yet. The most exciting part was that this year was the first time I had my own finished compost to add to the pots! That Black Gold rules and more composting tales will come...


When we were living in Switzerland, I grew some herbs in a cheap little plastic container on the terrace. It was better than nothing. It was a success, so I brought the cheap plastic container home with me, as I consider it good luck. This year, it became the home of a new veg for me - lettuce! My lettuce needs a little extra good luck because my neighborhood has a ridiculously high squirrel population and I am sure they will make a snack of it sometime. But for now, the lucky plastic container houses lettuce and is perched, hopefully above squirrel realm, on the BBQ grill shelf. Nothing beats the taste of local lettuce, I know this from the yummy PA Dutch stuff I buy at the Lancaster Farmer's Market in Wayne. Hopefully my new addition will taste good, too.


The potting bench is also part of Phase 3. So I had to improvise and use chairs and a metal doormat. It all worked just fine! Everything is all potted up now. The future harvest will include my tried and true chives and jalapeno peppers, some serranos, Patio and grape tomatoes, rosemary, parsley, lettuce and another new addition of leeks.

I learned to love leeks in Switzerland, where they were always available and very inexpensive, unlike here. So I will take a stab at growing my own. Years ago, I had a big, traditional veggie garden, when I lived in the land of uber-fertile Western New York. The minerality of the soil did great things for my garden, but I didn't like leeks then, so I have never grown them. Should be a good experiment.

And a friend was kind enough to give me 2 adorable little basil plants, presumably clipped from her own or someone she knows. I can never have enough basil! Let me just emphasize how nice it is to get plants or produce from friends and family. Not only do cuttings from one's own garden make great gifts, it is sustainable. You can reuse the old nursery container to give it in. And it keeps a healthy, thriving plant alive and creates a wealth of new goodness for the recipient. Thank you!

Along the same lines, I plan to raid my sister's rhubarb patch next time I see her. I have the fruits of her harvest in my freezer now, but hope to get a plant next time. And eventually, I will also have some plants to pass along, but that will have to wait until Phase 3, for now!

No comments:

Post a Comment