I have fallen behind in posting. The holiday season matched with Possibilitarian Puppet Shows, hosting out-of-town guests, and permaculture potlucks, and my daughter Rosemary's first birthday, and two mushroom growing workshops- well well well- it's been busy. And with this warm weather, who knows if Winter will ever show his handsome old white face. I feel this End of Days heavy now, like -what if winter never comes. Much like the song "I'm dreaming of a white Christmas, just like the ones I used to know...." - will Winter become just a dream, something I tell my children about, and show them in picture books or old photos? Is that what this End of Days is about? A new climate as we know it, for sure. Though, it feels like a constant Spring, but without that sense of renewal from recharging. I see the creeping phlox blooming purple now. The calendula still rocks on, and even the snow peas are blooming without a frost to kill. I am fully aware now of all the people wishing and hoping that the snow never comes, that it stays this warm- its "nice out." I wish it was so simple. I can feel that the mosquitos and other garden pests are resting cozy under the leaves, and they haven't died, and if this weather keeps up, they won't, and in fact, they'll be more come the real Spring. So when people wish for warm winters, they wish for more mosquitos, and more bugs, and maybe more droughts and more intense hurricanes, and so on and so on- as far as the strange unpredictable weather goes.
The weather affects the people so much, too. I can feel it particularly in this neighborhood, where warm days has people out and fussing, where cold days are quiet and still. And so as it is- another warm today, where the wind blew from the South and never once brought me a chill - the people of this street felt the warmth. And warmth meant fights. And fights meant guns. A few times fired after a scuffle on the street. Lots of yelling while Maureen and another friend played Christmas music on the piano downstairs. It was a particularly ironic moment of them playing unwittingly "Silent Night" as I heard the angry voices from the street shouting over each other. Eventually police came and looks like arrested some people. There are gunshots often enough around here- at all is too often for me, and that's how it is currently. The warm weather though... it is nothing one can keep away.
Another view of this warm weather is that perhaps this is just the necessary warmth we need to start a new. A Beginning of Days. On my walks through the neighborhood, I have been watching as over four houses are going up quick. At first it seemed they were trying to lickedy-split get the foundation in the ground before the snows....and well, no snows yet, and the ground isn't frozen....sooo up go the A-frames, and the new paved driveway and sidewalk, and the insulation, and the windows, and the siding, and roof, and its going up so so quick! And I am watching as this neighborhood is changing fast- and it's thanks to the warm weather that the development building can keep on. Perhaps it is an End of Days to the neglect here.
I can't say. I can only watch and keep working, try and keep up with Mother Nature - as if that were possible. I am sure that if I were a more industrialist gardener farmer, I'd be out sowing more seeds- experimenting with these new seasons- observing critically what and how things are changing. I noticed just yesterday a window flower box planter that I have up on my porch, that I haphazardly sowed some mizuna seeds in during mid-summer and never watered or paid much attention to- well, they just germinated and already have their first true leaf growing. It is odd, but I am glad that by accident I have planted for this unpredictable weather. We will see how long it lasts for.
And of course, the fish in the aquaponics greenhouse are happy, too, to not be too challenged as of yet by low temperatures.
Which brings me to the new mushroom bed, planted outdoors as part the Mushroom Growing workshop we had two weekends ago.... I am grateful for this warm weather because it has more of a chance (see previous post for a glimpse of the mushroom bed).
Well, I think I will leave this for tonight, as things have grown silent here now. And it is time to string up some popcorn and tie some colorful yarn on a tree.
Goodnight, I hope to keep up writing more next month!
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Mushroom Bed
Planted as a demo for of the Mushroom Growing Workshop we hosted here on Dec 15, we inoculated several layers of woodchips with Garden Giant mushroom mycelium. Though it is not the ideal time of year to create an outdoor mushroom bed (Spring is best so that is has the longest time to get established before cold), this warm weather and rain is surely helping the mycelium to get cozy and established. Here's hoping the garden giants make a home for themselves there and we see mushrooms come Summer!
Here are few photos from the workshop. (More photos to come....)
Folks making oyster mushroom bags with pasteurized straw
and Kilindi Iyi from Detroit sharing his vast knowledge of mushrooms and cultivation.
These photos thanks to Jeff Schuler.
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Friday, November 23, 2012
mushroom growing workshop Sat Dec 8th
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Monday, November 19, 2012
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
First Flurry of the Year
And here it is, so light and almost rain- but it's light and fluffy- and white, and so the first flurry arrives today. Good morning! Welcome! Hurray!
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Garden of Eden Vision
While reading the introduction of Dave Jacke's Edible Forest Garden, I happened to look out the front window to see the back of the brick Baptist church in front of me.
The back part of their lot is fenced in with a metal fence - a fence that has repeatedly had to be repaired because of kids hanging on it. A "No trespassing" sign was put up at one point after that happened, but I think that's gone now- someone must have taken it down. One of the back windows, which I imagine is connected to the sanctuary, is broken, and the two doors that go out to the symmetrical walkway are boarded up, as if the building was abandoned. But it is not abandoned. Rather, it is quite vibrant, with every Sunday lively gospel music streaming from the windows, through the brick walls into the street. Especially on holidays and Easter where you can hear the strong female voice wailing away with an organ and drum set rocking right along. On the one brick wall on the back, there is a little graffiti with white spray paint- the only thing the young kids could get a hold of, I guess. A few times during the summer season, the moment comes for the crew to come out back and mow the grass, pick up the litter, check on the fence. It seems laborious. There is a metal guard rail along the street that creates a guided pathway on the sidewalk, and the kids like to sit on that in the summertime, and bang on it with sticks when they're bored- completely unaware of really how loud that "TING! TING!" sound can be. That guard rail, I only recently learned, was put there after a car plowed through it while in a car chase fleeing the police. The man quickly crashed the car and was shot to death at that spot, after having shot a cop and driven through several people's front lawns. That all happened there, in front of my house, about a decade ago. My neighbor Mike told me about it, like it was yesterday. He said he still had the bullet hole in his upstairs window from when the cops began firing at anyone who was out or may be a possible suspect for shooting the police officer. He said, till this day, he still hasn't found where that bullet went, but he imagines its somewhere in the walls.
That all happened there. And now what to make of it. When we first moved in, it looked like a crematorium, or a factory because of its stark cold brick and tall chimney at the back. The only thing to mark it as a church is a cross, which I took to be a blessing of sorts for when we moved in- considering it was the one thing we saw when we looked out the front of our house.
In the introduction of the Edible Forests book, Dave Jacke describes the Garden of Eden- and the vision sunk in. There- at the back of the church. Where it is now a place of nuisance. It must become the Garden of Eden. At the back of the building on the North side, it functions as a perfect place to keep fruit trees, and it can be a little sanctuary spot- mostly walled in, just enough to create a safe and prayerful space and to keep it sacred and not trashed. The kids could transform their graffiti into murals of scenes from the Garden of Eden. There can be a bench, and flowers, and nitrogen-fixing plants, dynamic accumulators, plants to attract pollinators- a whole system of plants & plant guilds that will do the work of maintenance so the Maintenance workers can become Harvesters primarily.
There is a lot of work to be done before this vision can come to fruition, but when the seed is planted- it wants to grow, and so it shall!
The back part of their lot is fenced in with a metal fence - a fence that has repeatedly had to be repaired because of kids hanging on it. A "No trespassing" sign was put up at one point after that happened, but I think that's gone now- someone must have taken it down. One of the back windows, which I imagine is connected to the sanctuary, is broken, and the two doors that go out to the symmetrical walkway are boarded up, as if the building was abandoned. But it is not abandoned. Rather, it is quite vibrant, with every Sunday lively gospel music streaming from the windows, through the brick walls into the street. Especially on holidays and Easter where you can hear the strong female voice wailing away with an organ and drum set rocking right along. On the one brick wall on the back, there is a little graffiti with white spray paint- the only thing the young kids could get a hold of, I guess. A few times during the summer season, the moment comes for the crew to come out back and mow the grass, pick up the litter, check on the fence. It seems laborious. There is a metal guard rail along the street that creates a guided pathway on the sidewalk, and the kids like to sit on that in the summertime, and bang on it with sticks when they're bored- completely unaware of really how loud that "TING! TING!" sound can be. That guard rail, I only recently learned, was put there after a car plowed through it while in a car chase fleeing the police. The man quickly crashed the car and was shot to death at that spot, after having shot a cop and driven through several people's front lawns. That all happened there, in front of my house, about a decade ago. My neighbor Mike told me about it, like it was yesterday. He said he still had the bullet hole in his upstairs window from when the cops began firing at anyone who was out or may be a possible suspect for shooting the police officer. He said, till this day, he still hasn't found where that bullet went, but he imagines its somewhere in the walls.
That all happened there. And now what to make of it. When we first moved in, it looked like a crematorium, or a factory because of its stark cold brick and tall chimney at the back. The only thing to mark it as a church is a cross, which I took to be a blessing of sorts for when we moved in- considering it was the one thing we saw when we looked out the front of our house.
In the introduction of the Edible Forests book, Dave Jacke describes the Garden of Eden- and the vision sunk in. There- at the back of the church. Where it is now a place of nuisance. It must become the Garden of Eden. At the back of the building on the North side, it functions as a perfect place to keep fruit trees, and it can be a little sanctuary spot- mostly walled in, just enough to create a safe and prayerful space and to keep it sacred and not trashed. The kids could transform their graffiti into murals of scenes from the Garden of Eden. There can be a bench, and flowers, and nitrogen-fixing plants, dynamic accumulators, plants to attract pollinators- a whole system of plants & plant guilds that will do the work of maintenance so the Maintenance workers can become Harvesters primarily.
There is a lot of work to be done before this vision can come to fruition, but when the seed is planted- it wants to grow, and so it shall!
Vision
The ultimate goal of farming is not the growing of crops, but the cultivation and perfection of human beings.
- Masanobu Fukuoka, The One-Straw Revolution
We cannot solve the significant problems we face at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.
-Albert Einstein
How we garden reflects our worldview.... The ultimate goal of forest gardening is not only the growing of crops, but also the cultivation and perfection of new ways of seeing, of thinking, and of acting in the world.
-Dave Jacke, Edible Forest Gardens
- Masanobu Fukuoka, The One-Straw Revolution
We cannot solve the significant problems we face at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.
-Albert Einstein
How we garden reflects our worldview.... The ultimate goal of forest gardening is not only the growing of crops, but also the cultivation and perfection of new ways of seeing, of thinking, and of acting in the world.
-Dave Jacke, Edible Forest Gardens
Mushroom Growing Ahead!
Great News!
In collaboration with Kai Wingo & Jean Loria, Possibilitarian Garden will be hosting its first Mushroom Growing Workshop on Saturday, December 8th.
Workshop cost will be $50 for materials and preparation. Participants will leave with a growing kit ready for mushroom cultivation. We will most likely be asking for those interested to pre-register so we can get a good sense of how many growing mediums to prepare for the workshop.
More details to come. Mark your calendars and email me if you are interested at diana_sette@yahoo.com.
Looking forward to the culture growing!
In collaboration with Kai Wingo & Jean Loria, Possibilitarian Garden will be hosting its first Mushroom Growing Workshop on Saturday, December 8th.
Workshop cost will be $50 for materials and preparation. Participants will leave with a growing kit ready for mushroom cultivation. We will most likely be asking for those interested to pre-register so we can get a good sense of how many growing mediums to prepare for the workshop.
More details to come. Mark your calendars and email me if you are interested at diana_sette@yahoo.com.
Looking forward to the culture growing!
Saturday, November 10, 2012
The Frost Came
For the Records,
It was evening of Wednesday, November 7th when the frost finally came to Possibilitarian Garden. Not too hard of a frost, as the hardy ones like calendula and oregano are still hanging. But it finally knocked out the Mexican Sunflower and some of the nasturtiums and a couple pepper plants that were still left out growing. Finally can do some clean-up to put the garden to bed.
And now's the time to eat some more collards, as my neighbors swear they don't pick them till after the frost, because that's when they get sweet and tasty!
It was evening of Wednesday, November 7th when the frost finally came to Possibilitarian Garden. Not too hard of a frost, as the hardy ones like calendula and oregano are still hanging. But it finally knocked out the Mexican Sunflower and some of the nasturtiums and a couple pepper plants that were still left out growing. Finally can do some clean-up to put the garden to bed.
And now's the time to eat some more collards, as my neighbors swear they don't pick them till after the frost, because that's when they get sweet and tasty!
Garlic Sprouting
oh oh OH!
This mild Fall weather has my garlic sprouting already!
I planted it about a week before Halloween, and it is over an inch out of the ground with its sweet little green shoots.
I heard from another friend who planted her garlic even earlier in the beginning of October, that her garlic is sprouting too.
I am hoping that if I cover it up with another layer or hay it'll go back to bed for the winter and still be happy to grow in the Spring....
Ah, how the changing seasons will keep us garden farmers on our toes!
This mild Fall weather has my garlic sprouting already!
I planted it about a week before Halloween, and it is over an inch out of the ground with its sweet little green shoots.
I heard from another friend who planted her garlic even earlier in the beginning of October, that her garlic is sprouting too.
I am hoping that if I cover it up with another layer or hay it'll go back to bed for the winter and still be happy to grow in the Spring....
Ah, how the changing seasons will keep us garden farmers on our toes!
Fall Sunchoke Glory
The Jersusalem Artichokes in all their glory growing along our driveway. They function here as nice privacy wall as well as sharing beauty with us and our neighbors (since they are taller than the bamboo privacy fence), and of course, we can eat the tubers! yum!
Now they are past their peak, but it was surely a nice treat to come down the driveway and be showered by their bright yellow paired with the reds, oranges, pinks, and purples of the nasturtium, zinnias, and hostas! It was really a rainbow.
The Chickens Come Home to Roost
With the lead remmediation situation much more under control around our house, we can now, finally open the door to the chicken coop and let those ladies roam the backyard. And woowee are they happy about it!
OPEN THE DOORS AND LET 'EM LOOSE, BOYS!
this is the chicken coop, which I like to refer to as "the coop of the future" because of it's dome shape. All summer it multi-purposed as a trellis for cucumber plants which were lovely shade for the chickens. And in front where large towering sunflowers which also made some nice shade for the happy chickens.
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| Nuva the big black dog looking on as the chickens check out the scene. |
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| peck, peck, peck- stratch scratch! where are those wormies! |
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| here pictured is the lovely and friendly, Grandma, herself! |
Composting with Worms!
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| Introduction to Vermiculture (or composting with worms!) |
Time to build a worm bin! No more excuses of not being able to compost because you don't have a backyard. Even ten month old babies can have a hand at vermicomposting. It's time to partner up with the redworms!
Here's the basics on vermicomposting.
Best worm: Eisenia fetida (redworm)
-you can order them online, or get them from a vermicomposting friend
-Redworms do well with heat, reproduce well, can live as long as 4 years, and naturally live in the organic matter layer of soil- aka- leaf layers, manure, etc.
-different than earthworms or nightcrawlers (they live deeper in the soil and work to dig up and mix the soil rather than break down the top layer)
Basic Worm Bin Ingredients
-container
-bedding
-moisture
-worms
Finding the Right Container
You can use any container: buckets, plastic tuperware, etc. It is useful to have two layers of containers so that the bottom can collect any drainage from the compost. You just need to make sure you have enough space for the worms and enough air circulation inside the container.
As for space- you can use this equation to figure out how much space you need for how many worms you have:
+First find the AREA (LxWxH) of the bottom of the container
[note, for a round bucket, A: (pie)r squared and r=c/2pie]
+When you have the square footage figured out, you can figure this ratio:
1 lb of worms require 1 sq ft of surface
As for circulation, it is important to add holes in the container to create lots of air flow.
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| Using a drill, I drilled in lots of holes into the lid, sides and bottom of the top bucket layer. |
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| When drilling, I left 6-10" of the top layer bucket bottom sides without any holes, as to keep the area where the compost will without any holes. |
Making the worms a Bed
Shredded newspaper, leaves, shredded cardboard, a little soil- whatever you chose, they will all suffice for bedding purpose.
The worm bin needs to be about 2/3 Full of Bedding.
And the Moisture of the bedding should equal that of worms, which is 75-90% wet.
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| Rosemary working with the newspaper bedding. |
WORM FOOD!
Here is a basic working list:
GOOD for worms
Tea & tea bags
Coffee Grounds & non-bleached filters
Vegetables (except onion skins & garlic)
Fruit (go easy on the citrus)
egg shells (the worms like to lay their eggs in them!)
BAD for worm
meat
oil
pet waste
non-biodegradables: plastic, foil, glass, etc (duh!)
And HOW MUCH TO FEED THEM?
The amount of worms you have will depend how much to feed them, and of course, worms reproduce quite well- so this estimate will change as the months pass, so it's important to monitor as things go along.
Here's a general ratio:
1 # of worms process 1/2# of food/day (3.5# per week)
Worms:Garbage = 2:1
So, if you are using a double pickle-bucket system like seen here, it has about an area of 1 sq ft, which can hold about 1 lb of worms- so it eats about 1/2 lb of food scraps per day - or 3 1/2 lbs of food scraps per week.
Troubleshooting & Harvesting
Finally, caring for a worm bin will require some level of checking in on them to make sure the wormies are happy, well-fed, and doing what they're needed to do. Issues may arise, like odor, or fruit flies, or worm death - BUT HAVE NO FEAR! There are solutions!
This webpage of the NYC Compost (for lots of people with no land indoor composting!) is a useful troubleshooting resource: http://www.nyc.gov/html/nycwasteless/html/compost/edu_indoor_problems.shtml
On that link there are also resources for harvesting the incredibly beneficial worm castings so you can put them on your plants and in your garden!
ONE LAST NOTE:
I hope that vermicomposting is as fun for you as it is fun for us! We like to open the bucket daily and check out the worms- Rosemary is very interested. We also keep a separate compost bucket to go outside & a chicken scrap bucket- so food scraps are getting specifically allocated over here!
I was lucky enough to be given worms & an info session from the OSU (Ohio State University Extension) "Cuyahoga Composts" program that had 6 sessions. It was their pilot class for this topic, and they plan to have them in the future. If you are interested in the future "Cuyahoga Composts" classes, you can check out their website http://cuyahoga.osu.edu/ or email Nicole Wright at wright.1128@osu.edu for more info.
I didn't mention where you can purchase worms from, but if you do a quick search online, you will be sure to find something. Also, if you are in the Cleveland area, there is someone who is currently working to set up a Complete Worm Composting System called "Tidy Worms" for sale. If you are interested- contact Ryan at ryandebiase@gmail.com
Happy Worm Casting Hunting!
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Vertical Gardening
Grandma Joan just sent this photo to me. Taken on a trip to France at a local market, living walls reflect a living culture. Perhaps this is the right idea for the big South facing wall of our building!
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Josiane Keller's photos
"Sunflower and seeds," 2012
Our mammoth sunflower head
captured in process of taking the seeds out.
"Squash at night" 2012
as she walked out to her car through the garden after a night of chatting,
she spied a squash in the street light.
Photos taken by Josiane Keller
josianekeller.com
And the blueberries finally find a home.
Now in the second year of the garden, there has been a convergence of blueberry bushes amongst the land! They came from all over and have now found a home!
When we first moved here, we planted two dwarf blueberry bushes, and another two "pink lemonade" blueberry bushes. Two in the backyard garden, and two in the side lot, along the fence under the crabapple tree. The city came in the first year, and since there wasn't much happening on the lot that season- they paid no mind when they came in and weed wacked both "pink lemonade" varieties down to short plants. I looked at it as an opportunity to give them a good pruning, and give them a good boost of energy to pop up more vigorously (this was also the case for the serviceberry planted nearby).
In this second year, the black walnut tree has expanded, as we have into more of the side lot. That being said, the black walnut now has been hanging too close to the blueberries for comfort, and since blueberries are sensitive to juglone, I knew it was time for us to expand like the black walnut canopy into the side lot.
To add to this, a friend in Food Not Lawns Cleveland, was able to bargain a great deal for blueberry bushes that were near to being trashed by Whole Foods- and so she sold them to me real cheap- so how could I resist getting four more very healthy, already fruit-bearing bushes?! I brought them home without a place yet set for them, and they have sat for several weeks, just waiting for the convergence.
And as you may have it, cleaning up the garden- readying things for winter, the blueberry bed revealed itself. Where I had put the Garden Soxx that had been given to us from the Buckeye CDC through the Family Garden Initiative- there was a bare patch of soil underneath. They are also at the end of a bench, which makes a quaint place for sitting, and hopefully, in the future, a convenient place to put your basket for picking a quarts of berries!
There we had it- revealed to us. So, with the soil being still fairly clay and rocky in the lot (still in the area where a house had stood only a few years back), I sheet-mulched several layers, including compost, cardboard, very broken down wood chips, wet paper lawn bags, leaves, wood chips, grass clippings, straw, leaves mixed with pine needles, coffee grounds, soil, compost, more leaves. And in they went, all tucked in for winter. It's exciting to see them there and anticipate them in the future. They are planted nearby where I recently transplanted the rhubarb and more strawberries (making a pie section of the garden). As for the bigger picture, they are near the center of the center lot, crossing to the center of the greenhouse, and I feel they will work as creating a living barrier for the public-private gradient of the garden. This process will continue to evolve, in its hodge-podge fashion.
For now, the blueberries are transitioning into their new home- hopefully one that they will thrive in for a long time.
Mulch, Mulch, Mulch & More Mulch!
is to mulch in the Fall!
And OH! is there an abundance! This time of year, everyone is racking their leaves, or leaf-blowing them away (oh, how noisy those things are- this is one invention that I will grateful for peak oil to make null & void!), stuffing them into big brown paper bags and asking the city to take them away. Of course, if you live in Cleveland, the story is different- maybe those leaves end up in the landfill (*Did you know that it is actually illegal in the state of Ohio for yard waste to go in the landfill?). For the moment, though, I focus on all the bags of leaves lining the streets metaphorically and in actuality: the bags of gold.
Free nitrogen fertilizing mulch laying around in convenient take-away bags! I have started a policy that you are only allowed to take the car out for errands, if you also pick-up a few bags on your way home. Heck, we live in the age of cheap fossil fuel fed energy- and it may not always be here- and well, we got to take full advantage of it while we can to rebuild our soils ASAP! So bring on the biomass!
Here's to being like a tree- and MULCHING!
Saturday, October 20, 2012
The Greenhouse Winter & Beyond
With the heavy, puffy gray clouds rolling along the horizon, we meet spitting rain and gusty winds. Fall is upon us and whispering away about Winter. I wonder if it will be one filled with snow. We shall see. But for now, we are readying things for Winter. With that we turn to the aquaponics greenhouse.
The greenhouse just got a new coat- a plastic sheet covering coat, that is, and is fully weatherized (save one crack). We cleaned out extra grow bed pebbles, and some plants that were about done, and are making plans for next year. This Winter in the greenhouse will be the inaugural year of outdoor aquaponics for us, and we plan to observe accordingly. Currently, we have the fish tank filled with goldfish, and we will be monitoring the water temperature, and also the temperature inside the greenhouse. We plan to put some black plastic over the tank, as well, to help hold thermal heat and keep the water warm. As it stands now, with one water tank nested underground, the water should be able to stay above freezing (or at least, it has a longer and better chance at it). Since it is running water- every 15 minutes it is pumped from the fish tank through the grow beds- it will also increase less freezing possibilities. We can also up the pumping frequency, to keep the water from freezing, if it gets so cold that it starts to freeze in between pumping sessions. There is only one real pump that is a freezing concern- as if the water does freeze, that pipe will bust and water will spill out onto the ground and flood the grow beds. There are worse things- but another to watch for. The goldfish very well will go dormant, and so would the bacteria if things get too cold- which means also that the plants will stop growing, and potentially die. At last resort, we may heat the greenhouse if we commit to growing all our fresh winter greens out there. We are playing it by ear.
The plan for the Spring, though is to start with Tilapia. Because the fish tank takes up such a large space in the greenhouse- it seems quite silly to be using that space just for pet goldfish. So, that will begin that process! I may add in another grow bed, perhaps even a raised bed with soil that I can plant some heat loving plants in and just water with water from the fish tank (they will like this, as well)! Just trying out lots of different techniques- mix and match- see what works best.
Noah had set up two systems initially in the greenhouse- one with four grow beds connected through the fish tank and the tank underground- and a second made out of three fence posts with holes in them ideal for strawberries or lettuce patches. The latter went through the bottom tank, and worked on a syphoning system & gravity (I look to Noah to explain the mechanics the best here). This system, however, we've deemed to abandoned in this set-up, as it doesn't seem to optimally use the space, it was aesthetically pleasing, and seemed to be lacking- perhaps in proper function? So, onto the next phase of experimentation!
Another addition that I am extremely excited about- is our new worm bin! I feel this worm bin will be the key ingredient to making the aquaponic system complete! As things grew this past season, it became clear that the system lacked certain nutrients (granted, this was the first season of it up and running and it takes time for all the bacteria and system to get fully-established). We could observe this with chlorosis (yellowing of the leaves), and also some of the vegetables that came out didn't taste like much (lacking nutrients). SO! A great and quick way to remedy this is to sprinkle some of the magic substance of WORM CASTINGS!! Hurray for worms! The worm bin is just getting established, and once it is really kicking, we will be sending castings on their way to the greenhouse. Also, the beautiful thing about the worm bin is that worm eat, poop and reproduce- which means more worms! And these worms are also incredibly valuable to the aquaponic system with grow beds. We will just place some of these worms into the beds, and watch them do help to create a living food web inside the grow beds.
So many plans for the greenhouse! More fish-and edible ones at that, more nutrients which means more tasty and healthy plants, a worm party, more fully used space, and continued experimentation and observation. Also, for next summer, thinking about the potentially to really cook in there if we keep the plastic on the top, we are talking about the possibility of growing a living, edible shade cover- like hops, or groundnut, or grapevines, or hardy kiwi, or maypop (though I think I'm inclined to leave maypop's territory in the front of the house, since it likes to spread so vigorously). So many exciting things to look forward to! Hurray hurray hurray for feedback from this living system! When you listen, it is always a conversation!
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| The greenhouse at the end of the summer, prior to winterization. |
The greenhouse just got a new coat- a plastic sheet covering coat, that is, and is fully weatherized (save one crack). We cleaned out extra grow bed pebbles, and some plants that were about done, and are making plans for next year. This Winter in the greenhouse will be the inaugural year of outdoor aquaponics for us, and we plan to observe accordingly. Currently, we have the fish tank filled with goldfish, and we will be monitoring the water temperature, and also the temperature inside the greenhouse. We plan to put some black plastic over the tank, as well, to help hold thermal heat and keep the water warm. As it stands now, with one water tank nested underground, the water should be able to stay above freezing (or at least, it has a longer and better chance at it). Since it is running water- every 15 minutes it is pumped from the fish tank through the grow beds- it will also increase less freezing possibilities. We can also up the pumping frequency, to keep the water from freezing, if it gets so cold that it starts to freeze in between pumping sessions. There is only one real pump that is a freezing concern- as if the water does freeze, that pipe will bust and water will spill out onto the ground and flood the grow beds. There are worse things- but another to watch for. The goldfish very well will go dormant, and so would the bacteria if things get too cold- which means also that the plants will stop growing, and potentially die. At last resort, we may heat the greenhouse if we commit to growing all our fresh winter greens out there. We are playing it by ear.
The plan for the Spring, though is to start with Tilapia. Because the fish tank takes up such a large space in the greenhouse- it seems quite silly to be using that space just for pet goldfish. So, that will begin that process! I may add in another grow bed, perhaps even a raised bed with soil that I can plant some heat loving plants in and just water with water from the fish tank (they will like this, as well)! Just trying out lots of different techniques- mix and match- see what works best.
Noah had set up two systems initially in the greenhouse- one with four grow beds connected through the fish tank and the tank underground- and a second made out of three fence posts with holes in them ideal for strawberries or lettuce patches. The latter went through the bottom tank, and worked on a syphoning system & gravity (I look to Noah to explain the mechanics the best here). This system, however, we've deemed to abandoned in this set-up, as it doesn't seem to optimally use the space, it was aesthetically pleasing, and seemed to be lacking- perhaps in proper function? So, onto the next phase of experimentation!
 |
| Some discoloration in the calendula petals & lettuce made it clear the system is lacking in nutrients. |
So many plans for the greenhouse! More fish-and edible ones at that, more nutrients which means more tasty and healthy plants, a worm party, more fully used space, and continued experimentation and observation. Also, for next summer, thinking about the potentially to really cook in there if we keep the plastic on the top, we are talking about the possibility of growing a living, edible shade cover- like hops, or groundnut, or grapevines, or hardy kiwi, or maypop (though I think I'm inclined to leave maypop's territory in the front of the house, since it likes to spread so vigorously). So many exciting things to look forward to! Hurray hurray hurray for feedback from this living system! When you listen, it is always a conversation!
Saturday, October 6, 2012
Get a Yield & Redundancy
Peter Bane in his new book, The Permaculture Handbook, includes "redundancy" as an element of "getting a yield." I found this to be particularly pertinent when I noticed some of my collard plants this past week completely infested with aphids. One grouping of plants were pretty much all eaten up by them- or at least, about to be eaten up by them, seeing as the leaves looked fuzzy with their little powdery bodies piled upon one another.
So, to get a yield, I harvested the collard plants, and brought them right over to the chicken coop, where the protein packed plants were quickly picked apart by very happy chickens. The chickens were so excited to have such a nice little protein snack, along side the dark leafy greens. And I was happy to clear out a large population of aphids.
That being said, the redundancy factor came into play for "get a yield" by the fact that the collard grouping I had harvested was not the only one out there. With two other groupings of collard plants, we still have a steady supply, and the aphid supply has been brought in check (at least for now!) much thanks to the chickens. In this case, "get a yield" and "redundancy" were too principles that were quite intertwined. {}
So, to get a yield, I harvested the collard plants, and brought them right over to the chicken coop, where the protein packed plants were quickly picked apart by very happy chickens. The chickens were so excited to have such a nice little protein snack, along side the dark leafy greens. And I was happy to clear out a large population of aphids.
That being said, the redundancy factor came into play for "get a yield" by the fact that the collard grouping I had harvested was not the only one out there. With two other groupings of collard plants, we still have a steady supply, and the aphid supply has been brought in check (at least for now!) much thanks to the chickens. In this case, "get a yield" and "redundancy" were too principles that were quite intertwined. {}
Friday, October 5, 2012
Skill Share
Hands-on Propagation Workshop
Free workshop
Saturday, October 6
1 - 2:30 pm
led by Garrett Ormiston of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History
& Josh Koppen, Natural Builder & Permaculturalist
Learn how to create new native plants from seeds, cuttings and division
(Seed collection, storage, stratification, sowing, hard & soft wood cuttings, division)
Call (216) 281-6468 x 227 to register, as space is limited.
Workshop will be held at 2396 West 38th St, Cleveland, OH 44113
(off West 41st Street in Ohio City)
Local Food Festival
LOCAL FOOD FESTIVAL
10am-3pm, Grace Lutheran Church, 13001 Cedar Road, Cleveland Heights
Free and open to all. Come for a presentation or two (or all!), meet the local food activists who are leading the local food revolution in our area, and sample local food. Help grow the local food movement in the Heights. Family friendly, handicap accessible, near public transportation.
DOOR PRIZES! FarmShare Gift Basket and a One Year Subscription to Edible Cleveland
I'll be there with FOOD NOT LAWNS CLEVELAND:
Make your own seed balls, and meet the Heights locals who are taking an active part in creating a thriving and healthy community through suburban permaculture, reducing waste, converting lawns to organic food, rainwater catchment and reuse, seed security, and reducing their carbon footprint.
Should be a good time!
10am-3pm, Grace Lutheran Church, 13001 Cedar Road, Cleveland Heights
Free and open to all. Come for a presentation or two (or all!), meet the local food activists who are leading the local food revolution in our area, and sample local food. Help grow the local food movement in the Heights. Family friendly, handicap accessible, near public transportation.
DOOR PRIZES! FarmShare Gift Basket and a One Year Subscription to Edible Cleveland
TABLES, PRESENTATIONS AND WORKSHOPS Farm fresh food samples | Food preservation and composting workshops| Fun stuff for the kids | Urban agriculture | Make seed balls | Locally-sourced food | Network with your food-growing neighbors | Community gardening | Local Cook books | Homemade jams and jellies | Reserve a Farm Fresh Thanksgiving Turkey|Herbs
Visit these vendors throughout the day:
10:00: A Chef and His Farmer: Doug Katz/fire with Jay Szabo/Dunham Tavern Garden, Noelle Celeste/Edible Cleveland Join Noelle Celeste, publisher of Edible Cleveland as she hosts a conversation with Chef Douglas Katz of fire food and drink and Farmer Jay Szabo of Dunham Tavern Market Garden to explore the relationship between a chef dedicated to local food and the farmer who grows it
10:40: Neighborhoods, Food, and You Elle Adams/ City Rising Farm, Damien Forshe/Rid-All Green Partnership, Mansfield Frazier/The Vineyards of Chateau Hough. Inspriation and neighborhood transformation from the urban gardening and farming pioneers of Cleveland. Discover how we can build upon their efforts here in the Heights!
11:20: Hands On Food-Folk Music with Deborah Van Kleef Musical activities about food and where it comes from with rootsy rustbelt folkie Deborah Van Kleef. Fun for the whole family!
Noon: Rain Garden Dedication with David Ernat and NEOSWRD
Noon: Rain Garden Dedication with David Ernat and NEOSWRD
12:35: Preserve It with The Charmed Kitchen-Judi Strauss. Here’s the information you need to get the most out of your garden and summer produce specials. From canning basics to freezing you’ll learn how to safely store many fruits and vegetables for use throughout the year.
1:15: What Is Community Supported Agriculture? Michelle Bandy-Zalatoris/Geauga Family Farms and Sandy Kish Jordan/CityFresh/The New Agraian Center, will tell you all you need to know to about CSAs and how you can subscribe to these annual local farm services City Fresh is a program of the New Agrarian Center (NAC) that seeks to build a more just and sustainable local food system in Cuyahoga, Lorain &Erie counties.
1:55: Community Gardening in the Heights Nicole Wright, OSU Extension Service, Urban Agriculture Small grants, technical assistance, and the nuts and bolts of community gardening in the suburbs! cuyahoga.osu.edu
2:30: Composting Workshop and Bin Sale Kathleen Rocco, Cuyahoga County Solid Waste District . Learn about backyard composting, worm composting, types of compost bins, grasscycling, and other smart gardening techniques. cuyahogaswd.org. Compost bins will be available for sale.
Food, glorious food! Visit with these fine local foodies and practitioners throughout the day
Food, glorious food! Visit with these fine local foodies and practitioners throughout the day
I'll be there with FOOD NOT LAWNS CLEVELAND:
Make your own seed balls, and meet the Heights locals who are taking an active part in creating a thriving and healthy community through suburban permaculture, reducing waste, converting lawns to organic food, rainwater catchment and reuse, seed security, and reducing their carbon footprint.
Should be a good time!
Permaculture Principles & Ethics
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I am currently in a Permaculture Design Course as run through Green Triangle based in Cleveland. There are many things I'm encountering in the course that are expanding the ways I think about space and growing in it. With intention to process the various ethics, I thought I'd use this space to share experiences with Possibilitarian Garden that demonstrate clearly these permaculture principles. For now, I simply present the principles and ethics, in case the reader is unfamiliar.
These are the Permaculture Principles:
1. Observe & interact
2. Catch & store energy
3. Obtain a yield
4. Apply self-regulation & accept feedback
5. Use & value renewable resources & services
6. Produce no waste
7. Design from patterns to details
8. Integrate rather than segregate
9. Use small & slow solutions
10. Use & value diversity
11. Use edges & value the marginal
12. Creatively use & respond to change
And the Permaculture Ethics are:
Care of the Earth
Care of People
Fair Share
These are the Permaculture Principles:
1. Observe & interact
2. Catch & store energy
3. Obtain a yield
4. Apply self-regulation & accept feedback
5. Use & value renewable resources & services
6. Produce no waste
7. Design from patterns to details
8. Integrate rather than segregate
9. Use small & slow solutions
10. Use & value diversity
11. Use edges & value the marginal
12. Creatively use & respond to change
And the Permaculture Ethics are:
Care of the Earth
Care of People
Fair Share
For a visual, see:
http://permacultureprinciples.com/downloads/pc_principles_poster.pdf
Friday, September 28, 2012
Black Walnut Processing
Ah-HA! The Internet and it's endless resources!
So, I began processing Black Walnuts today for the first time. I had heard that if you take a thick piece of plywood with a whole in it, and then smash the nut that the husk & hull will come off and it will leave the nut. When I thought about that, I didn't know how big to make the hole, because the nuts seem to be different sizes, so then I just thought- hey, how have humans figured this stuff out? Well, just start smashing!
So, quickly I learned some useful things about the anatomy of the nut. How the husk is soft and on the outside, the hard shell is on the inside, and a couple nuts are inside there, tucked in. I also learned how my hands can quickly become stained when processing the husks. I was having trouble getting the nuts out whole, and also was feeling unclear about if the nuts were ready to eat at this phase (at least for squirrels), or if there was another process....
Coming in to the computer, I came across this useful resource of someone explaining the process he goes through to process black walnuts. Very thorough and accessible. So, here you go:
Black Walnut Processing
Part ONE (1st Half):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cPNn7WyPkk&feature=relmfu
Part ONE (2nd Half):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUpsaokMYBQ&feature=relmfu
Part Two:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW__UlLoyzU&feature=relmfu
AND ONE MORE TECHNIQUE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5wjt10Rmvw&feature=related
ENJOY!
So, I began processing Black Walnuts today for the first time. I had heard that if you take a thick piece of plywood with a whole in it, and then smash the nut that the husk & hull will come off and it will leave the nut. When I thought about that, I didn't know how big to make the hole, because the nuts seem to be different sizes, so then I just thought- hey, how have humans figured this stuff out? Well, just start smashing!
So, quickly I learned some useful things about the anatomy of the nut. How the husk is soft and on the outside, the hard shell is on the inside, and a couple nuts are inside there, tucked in. I also learned how my hands can quickly become stained when processing the husks. I was having trouble getting the nuts out whole, and also was feeling unclear about if the nuts were ready to eat at this phase (at least for squirrels), or if there was another process....
Coming in to the computer, I came across this useful resource of someone explaining the process he goes through to process black walnuts. Very thorough and accessible. So, here you go:
Black Walnut Processing
Part ONE (1st Half):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cPNn7WyPkk&feature=relmfu
Part ONE (2nd Half):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUpsaokMYBQ&feature=relmfu
Part Two:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW__UlLoyzU&feature=relmfu
AND ONE MORE TECHNIQUE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5wjt10Rmvw&feature=related
ENJOY!
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Lemon Cucumber & Tomato Salad!
A take on my mother's hand-me-down recipe is the Italian Tomato Salad, which includes:
-Tomatoes
-Onions
-Garlic
-Cucumbers
all roughly chopped
and then covered with Olive Oil, Balsamic Vinaigrette, Oregano, Chopped Basil (optional), and Salt & Pepper to taste.
mmmm!
Rather than what was conventionally sold in store, this Italian Tomato Salad had some fresh-out-of-the-garden Lemon Cucumbers, walla walla onions, paste tomatoes, golden sun cherry tomatoes, and our garlic (which I don't remember anymore what the variety is because it was handed down to me in Vermont and been so many years now!
mmmmmm!
Oh yes, and an important recipe note: the longer the Italian Tomato Salad sits, the less acidic the onions are, and the more the flavor has melded with the oils & vinaigrette. Best left in the fridge for at least a few hours, if not more!
ENJOY!
Aquaponics, Root Systems & Seedlings
These plants were pulled from the Aquaponics Greenhouse, while thinning/weeding. In doing so, and because there is no soil that weighs on the plants, just layers of rocks and pebbles of which the plants' roots can easily wiggle out, beautiful root systems were revealed. On the left a young watermelon plant, and on the right a bunch of young leggy tomatillos. It is interesting to notice how they create their roots... many and thin, shallow, thick and fewer, more central, long, short. We can learn a lot here to observe these root systems....
That being said, with these young plants coming out of the aquaponics growbeds so easily, without damaging any of the roots, I think about the upcoming Spring and starting seedlings and transplants. I remember Noah telling me just this sort of thing- that using the aquaponic system to start plants was a great way to use the rock/pebble grow beds with lots of substrate to move through. A-ha! So now I see it for myself. Another benefit for seedlings starting in the aquaponic growbeds, is that they will always have water at their access- an essential element in keeping young plants happy and thriving.
....Till the Spring!
Beware the Black Walnut!
The wolf in sheep's clothing, or rather, the nut in a lime citrus fruit's husk; Juglans nigra; and most commonly known as the Black Walnut.
A beautiful, rapidly growing nut tree with BIG nuts! (and did I mention hard ones to open!) Their leaves and the nuts look almost tropical with their breezy palm nature.
PLANTS SENSITIVE TO BLACK WALNUT TOXICITY
Annuals and vegetables: asparagus, cabbage, eggplant, flowering tobacco, pepper, petunia, potato, tomato
Herbaceous perennials: autumn crocus, baptisia, columbine, lily (Asian hybrids), peony, rhubarb
Shrubs: blueberry, red chokeberry, cotoneaster, Amur honeysuckle, hydrangea, lilac, privet, potentilla, rhododendron, yew, and some viburnum shrub species
Trees: European alder, white birch, crabapple species, hackberry, larch, linden, saucer magnolia, mugo pine, red pine, white pine, Norway spruce, silver maple, and some viburnum tree species
Luckily, Black Walnut DOES get along with other plants. Many of them! Check it out- if you're on this list, you've got a friendship in store:
PLANTS TOLERANT OF BLACK WALNUT TOXICITY
| TREES | ||||
| Box Elder | Acer negundo | Silverbell | Halesia tetraptera | |
| Japanese Maple | Acer palmatum & cvs. | Witchhazel | Hamamelis spp. | |
| Red Maple | Acer rubrum | Sweetgum | Liquidambar styraciflua | |
| Sugar Maple | Acer saccharum | Tuliptree | Liriodendron tulipifera | |
| Ohio Buckeye | Aesculus glabra | Cucumber Tree | Magnolia acuminata | |
| Sweet Buckeye | Aesculus octandra | Mulberry | Morus spp. | |
| Tree of Heaven | Ailanthus altissima | Blackgum | Nyssa sylvatica | |
| Serviceberry | Amelanchier spp. | Sycamore | Platanus occidentalis | |
| Pawpaw | Asimina triloba | American Plum | Prunus americana | |
| Sweet Birch | Betula lenta | Pin Cherry | Prunus pensylvanica | |
| Yellow Birch | Betula lutea | Wild Black Cherry | Prunus serotina | |
| River Birch | Betula nigra | White Oak | Quercus alba | |
| American Hornbeam | Carpinus caroliniana | Scarlet Oak | Quercus coccinea | |
| Hickory | Carya spp. | Shingle Oak | Quercus imbricaria | |
| Chestnut | Castanea dentata | Red Oak | Quercus rubra | |
| Catalpa |
Catalpa bignonioides
Catalpa speciosa
| Black Oak | Quercus velutina | |
| Redbud | Cercis canadensis | Staghorn Sumac | Rhus typhina | |
| Black Locust | Robinia pseudoacacia | |||
| Hawthorn | Crataegus spp. | Willow | Salix spp. | |
| Persimmon | Diospyros virginiana | Sassafras | Sassafras albidum | |
| Beech | Fagus grandifolia | American Elm | Ulmus americana | |
| White Ash | Fraxinus americana | Slippery Elm | Ulmus rubra | |
| Black Ash | Fraxinus nigra | |||
| Honeylocust (and thornless Honeylocust) | Gleditsia triacanthos andGleditsia triacanthos f.inermis | |||
| EVERGREENS | ||||
| Chinese Juniper | Juniperus chinensis | Arborvitae | Thuja spp. | |
| Common Juniper | Juniperus communis | Eastern Hemlock | Tsuga canadensis | |
| Red Cedar | Juniperus virginiana | |||
| VINES | ||||
| Dutchman's Pipe | Aristolochia durior | Virginia Creeper | Parthenocissus spp. | |
| Bittersweet | Celastrus spp. | Greenbriar | Smilax spp. | |
| Clematis | Clematis ssp. | Wild Grape | Vitis spp. | |
| Honeysuckle Vine | Lonicera spp. | |||
| SHRUBS | ||||
| Speckled Alder | Alnus rugosa | Exbury Rhododendron | Rhododendron hybrids | |
| Hercules-club | Aralia spinosa | Fragrant Sumac | Rhus aromatica | |
| Spicebush | Lindera benzoin | Shining Sumac | Rhus copallina | |
| New Jersey Tea | Ceanothus americanus | Smooth Sumac | Rhus glabra | |
| Fringe Tree | Chionanthus virginicus | Currant | Ribes spp. | |
| Pagoda Dogwood | Cornus alternifolia | Wild Rose | Rosa spp. | |
| Silky Dogwood | Cornus amomum | Black Raspberry | Rubus occidentalis | |
| American Hazelnut | Corylus americana | Purple Raspberry | Rubus odoratus | |
| February Daphne | Daphne mezereum | Elderberry | Sambucus spp. | |
| Euonymus | Euonymus spp. | Bladdernut | Staphylea trifolia | |
| Forsythia | Forsythia spp. | Mapleleaf Viburnum | Viburnum acerfolium | |
| Rose of Sharon | Hibiscus syriacus | Fragrant Viburnum | Viburnum carlesii & cvs. | |
| Shrubby St. Johnwort | Hypericum prolificum | Arrowwood | Viburnum dentatum | |
| Beautybush | Kolkwitzia amabilis | Blackhaw | Viburnum prunifolium | |
| Honeysuckle (most) | Lonicera spp. | Adam's Needle | Yucca spp. | |
| Ninebark | Physocarpus opulifolius | Prickly Ash | Zanthoxylum americanum | |
| HERBACEOUS PERENNIALS, SPRING WILDFLOWERS AND BULBS | ||||
| Bugleweed | Ajuga spp. | Perennial Sunflower | Helianthus spp. | |
| Hollyhock | Alcea rosea | Daylily | Hemerocallis spp. | |
| Windflower | Anemone spp. | Coral Bell | Heuchera spp. | |
| Jack-in-the-Pulpit | Arisaema triphllyum | Hosta | Hosta spp. | |
| Wild Ginger | Asarum spp. | Siberian Iris | Iris sibirica | |
| Aster | Aster spp. | Bush Clover | Lespedeza spp. | |
| Astilbe | Astilbe spp. | Lobelia | Lobelia spp. | |
| Lady Fern | Athyrium spp. | Peppermint | Mentha piperita | |
| Rattlesnake Fern | Botrychium spp. | Bee Balm | Monarda spp. | |
| Bellflower | Campanula spp. | Grape Hyacinth | Muscari spp. | |
| Chrysanthemum | Chrysanthemum spp. | Daffodil selected | Narcissus spp. | |
| Spring Beauty | Claytonia spp. | Evening Primrose | Oenothera spp. | |
| Fragile Fern | Cystopteris fragilis | Sensitive Fern | Onoclea sensibilis | |
| Toothwort | Dentaria spp. | Cinnamon Fern | Osmunda cinnamomea | |
| Bleeding Heart | Dicentra spectabilis | Summer Phlox | Phlox paniculata | |
| Leopard's Bane | Doronicum spp. | False Dragonhead | Physostegia spp. | |
| Wood Fern | Dryopteris spp. | May Apple | Podophyllum peltatum | |
| Winter Aconite | Eranthis hyemalis | Jacob's Ladder | Polemonium reptans | |
| Joe-pyeweed | Eupatorium spp. | Solomon's Seal | Polygonatum spp. | |
| Sweet Woodruff | Galium odoratum | Christmas Fern | Polystichum spp. | |
| Cranesbill | Geranium spp. | Primrose | Primula spp. | |
| Lungwort . | Pulmonaria spp | Spiderwort | Tradescantia virginiana | |
| Buttercup | Ranunculus spp. | Trillium | Trillium spp. | |
| Black-eyed Susan | Rudbeckia spp. | Tulip | selected Tulipa spp. | |
| Bloodroot | Sanguinaria canadensis | Bellwort | Uvularia spp. | |
| Stonecrop | Sedum spp. | Speedwell | Veronica spp. | |
| Goldenrod | Solidago spp. | Violet | Viola spp. | |
| Lamb's Ears | Stachys byzantina | |||
References: The Morton Arboretum website,
http://www.mortonarb.org/tree-plant-advice/article/887/plants-tolerant-of-black-walnut-toxicity.html
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