Fire in the Fens!

One week ago (4/5) a brush fire spread through the phragmites (reeds) along the Muddy River. Fortunately the garden plots in the FVG were not damaged, but the visual difference the fire has made with the landscape is amazing! I have not heard the official cause of the fire, but according to a few articles, the brush catches fire pretty frequently.

I was not able to get to the gardens until this past weekend when I witnessed the damage firsthand. I do not believe that anybody was injured. However, visiting and resident geese were definitely affected. Given that baby geese/ducks are expected soon, I sadly imagine that some nests were destroyed by the blaze.

Muddy River (Pre-Fire 2/14/2010)

Muddy River (Post-Fire 4/11/2010)

More pics of the damage:

For better or worse, I expect the reeds to be back to their 20' height in no time...

In addition to surveying the damage, I also continued with my garden tasks. I was very relieved to find my peas sprouting (after seeing little evidence last week)! They survived after all! I have now sowed peas, carrots and lettuce! I was not meticulous in planting the lettuce and carrots seeds and know that I will have a lot of thinning to do once they grow a bit more!

I also:

• added compost to my perimeter flower beds
• planted three Dwarf Sunflowers on either side of the gate

Finally, I now have another lizard (in addition to my welcome rock) to watch over the garden in my absence! I added a colorful tin lizard (a present from my mom) to the middle SVG box.

I am excited for a few important packages to arrive this week with various things I ordered for the garden...soon to be revealed! I hope this weekend's weather is good so I can get back into the garden! This Saturday is also the first

Book Review: Farm City-The Education of an Urban Farmer

This winter, during a brief stroll through a local bookstore, a book title caught by eye - Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer by Novella Carpenter. As I am not one to buy a lot of books, I immediately requested it from my local library!

I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in food, gardening, farming or wanting a good laugh! Novella's amazing memoir will inspire any city dweller with her 'anything is possible' attitude as she transforms a vacant lot in an Oakland (California) ghetto into a FARM - with geese and rabbits and bees - oh my!

To follow Novella's current adventures (and about her new book due out in early 2011) visit: http://ghosttownfarm.wordpress.com/

I also found out that there was a Boston Globe article last summer!

My Easter Celebration

...was in the garden of course! Today was about as perfect you could get for Easter Sunday-temps reached almost 80 degrees! To make the most of it I logged about 5 hours - the the most time I have spent in the garden in many months; and to top it all off it was the Red Sox home opener! People were everywhere!

I was anxious to check on the peas that I planted on 3/20 as I was afraid that the incredible rains we had drowned them or washed them away. I only saw signs of one plant breaking the surface, so I will have to keep an eye to see if the rest follow. When I planted last year in mid June they seemed to come up quickly. Maybe when planted earlier when the temps are cooler, they are slower to grow..? However, I am so happy to already be able to plant, remembering that this time last year I was 'plot-less!'

Today's garden chores consisted of:

• stabilizing the fence between my plot and my neighbor
  
• weeding the perimeter flower bed and three square foot boxes
• raking leaves
• trimming back wild rose bushes along the back fence
  
• planting lettuce (Mesclun salad mix,Buttercrunch & Salad Bowl ) & carrots (Short n' Sweet & Baby)
• drafting possible layouts for the 'addition' area which include a space for my potato box, corn and a shaded area
• adding one wheelbarrow of compost (I forgot my shovel today which made it very difficult; I will need to add more when I return with my shovel!)
  

What do March showers bring?

As the saying goes...April showers bring May flowers. But, what do March showers bring? For the third Monday in a row, New England is under major flood warnings. March 2010 is 1" short of being the wettest month in Boston's history (and we are due for 3-7" by Wednesday!) Roads have been closed, and basements, backyards and gardens flooded. I am thankful not to have a basement or backyard to worry about, and my garden appears to be fairing well. I was surprised as my plot is along the backside of the FVG close to the Muddy River. However, upon my visit last Thursday, I saw that many other plots in the are under water. Is there anything to do but wait?

The silver lining is that it is expected to get up to 80 degrees this weekend! I hope to spend most of it in the garden. I will also be able to welcome in the 2010 Red Sox season as the home opener is Sunday!

2009 Harvest Recap

2009 is where it all began for me. It was a challenging, but rewarding year. I can now honestly say that there is nothing like growing your own food! I learned a lot and ate delicious vegetables all summer long!

Spring Renewal

I am back from a blogging hiatus. The hiatus was not something I planned, but the short, cold, dark days seemed to decrease my motivation to blog [or at least publish, as I started about a dozen posts.] However, spring is officially here and I welcomed it with open arms. Being that it was sunny and 70 degrees in Boston on Saturday, it would have been hard to ignore it! Birds were singing, EVERYONE was outside and new growth has popped up around the city!

On Saturday I attended the 35th Annual Gardeners Gathering. This is a spectacular, free event open to all local gardeners. Gardeners ranged from community to container, young to old, and new to master. It was great to meet other local gardeners and share tips.

Before it started I visited my plot to check in on any spring growth. This was the first visit in well over a month. Growing were...

(Yarrow, Garlic, Crocus)

Although I missed planting peas on St. Patrick's Day, I got them planted Saturday. I planted the same variety as last year - Sugar Snap. They were just so tasty and easy - with no preparation needed to eat them! With the days getting longer I look forward to visiting more often. I still have a lot of work to do to finalize my 2010 garden plan. However, two definite new additions (and experiments) this year will be potatoes and corn!!

Movie: The Garden

I am an avid lover of Netflix and have enjoyed many recommended films, based ones that I rent. One recent recommendation, was as spectacular as it was timely. It was a documentary titled, The Garden. Nominated for many awards, the documentary shows the emotional fight of the South Central Farmers in Los Angeles, CA to hold onto land they had cultivated into the largest community garden in the U.S.

Synopsis:
The fourteen-acre community garden at 41st and Alameda in South Central Los Angeles is the largest of its kind in the United States. Started as a form of healing after the devastating L.A. riots in 1992, the South Central Farmers have since created a miracle in one of the country’s most blighted neighborhoods. Growing their own food. Feeding their families. Creating a community.

But now, bulldozers are poised to level their 14-acre oasis.

The Garden follows the plight of the farmers, from the tilled soil of this urban farm to the polished marble of City Hall. Mostly immigrants from Latin America, from countries where they feared for their lives if they were to speak out, we watch them organize, fight back, and demand answers.
Source: http://www.thegardenmovie.com/about-the-film/

For more information visit: www.thegardenmovie.com, www.southcentralfarmers.com

Thank you Campbell's..I think!

While scanning The Cheap Vegetable Gardener a few months ago I saw a posting about getting free tomato seeds through a Campbell's Soup promo on their Help Grow Your Soup site. Since I had a can of soup on hand (you needed to enter a can code), I requested the seeds...and yesterday I received about twenty tomato seeds!! Thanks Campbell's!


However, while receiving free seeds is great, these are not entirely without issues. Here is why...

• the good...free tomato seeds!!
• the bad...all I know is that they are tomato seeds...I have no idea what kind!
• the ugly...the package says I should plant by March, 2010.

Florescent lights are my only hope for starting plants indoors as my apartment hardly does not have enough natural light. However, I have not quite figured out my plan yet!

Although the seed promo appears to be over, they still have a few exciting community projects going on and even a virtual garden to test out your gardening skills during these winter months!

The White House Garden in the spotlight again...

...this time on Iron Chef America! I am not a die-hard viewer of the show but a commercial for an upcoming episode perked my ears as I heard that First Lady Michelle Obama, The White House and the White House Chef Comeford were going to turn the show into a "Super Chef Battle."

In watching the episode I was thrilled to see that the "secret ingredient" was anything from the White House garden!! Each team of two chefs collected as many fruits and vegetables from the garden as they needed!

The mission was that each team's cuisine "must inspire America to eat fresh, eat local and eat well." In addition to the ingredients from the garden local meats, eggs, milk, cheese and even honey from the White House beehives were brought in!

Another highlight to the episode were the judges: domestic goddess, Nigela Lawson (a personal fav), actress Jane Seymore and Olympic swimmer Natalie Coughlin.

If you didn't see the show tonight, I recommend trying to catch a replay. You can also always check the Food Network website for highlights. In addition to all food prepared, I was impressed with the quality of the White House vegetables and learned a few things too...like about icicle radishes, japanese eggplant and romanesco.

Bon appetit and think spring!!

P.S. The Obamas are huge sweet potato fans!

Free Gardening Workshops in Boston!

Happy New Year!!! I gladly welcome 2010 as it will provide me with another year (and chance) to grow fresh produce in the city. I learned and accomplished so much in 2009 and and cannot wait to develop my skills in 2010.

I was happy to discover that the date for the 35th Annual Gardeners Gathering has been announced! I attended this event last spring before I received my plot assignment! I learned the basics of gardening, discovered the wonderful world of vermiculture/worm composting and heard about the benefits of raised beds! Now that I have gotten my hands dirty, I cannot wait to see what I learn this year!! I highly recommend attending if you are a gardener - or want to be gardener - in the Boston area!!

Here are the details, taken from the Boston Natural Area Network website!

Saturday, March 20, 2010
11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Curry Student Center, Northeastern University, Boston
Click Here for Directions Free Event, All Welcome
Walk-in Registration

The Gardeners Gathering is an annual citywide event for community gardeners and other garden enthusiasts. Held in the spring of each year, the event is a welcome kick- off to Boston’s upcoming gardening season. The event is filled with informative and fun activities and workshops. Gardening and green space organizations are present to provide current program information. Door prizes are awarded and pre-ordered seeds (provided by BNAN) are distributed. All are invited to join more than 300 community gardeners to welcome spring.

There will be Community Gardening Workshops for Beginner and Experienced Gardeners. Networking, Door Prizes, Info Gallery, Community Garden Awards, and More!

One of the typical highlights of the Gardeners Gathering is Mayor Thomas Menino’s greeting and presentation of the annual Community Gardening Awards. BNAN is grateful to Northeastern University for hosting the event each year and to the City of Boston for its ongoing support of community gardening.