Sunday, March 20, 2011

Beekman Seeds, Week 2


This past week, we finally got everything started for the garden with my Beekman heirloom seeds. Considering what it looked like before, I was happy how it turned out. Since we are in a rental and potentially moving this year, we wanted something portable that could go with us if we move. I also have not spent time learning to cultivate container gardens (other than herbs) but I have read so much lately of the ridiculously amazing things people are doing in small spaces. (A wonderful book that I found for a resource in making these things amazing is Gardening In No Time by Tessa Evelegh.)


We found these great bins at Costco that we altered by drilling drainage holes in the bottom. I put a layer of rock in the bottom to assist in drainage and then filled with dirt. Of course, I had some help:


Jack approves the dirt selection

Once everything met Jack’s approval, we planted four of the heirloom seed packets that were ready (carrots, turnips, spinach and radishes) as well as one bucket of garlic and onions and one of potatoes. Many moons ago when my boyfriend was a child, he described to me a manner of growing potatoes inside a stack of old tires. While it seems odd, the pinching off of some leaves and cover with dirt in multiple layers over time made a lot of sense. We are trying this in a container this year to see how it works.



I already have some sprouting and will put those pictures up next week. Have you planted something yet? It’s good for the soul, try it!




It does help if you have some help...even if that help is kind of
 lazy for the most part.  :)

Mango supervises the project


 Have a great week everyone!  Peace to you.

2 comments:

Ness said...

Gardening is something I always was fascinated by. My own lack of ability discouraged me from an early age on, but I admire people who succeed at raising plants. I hope everything goes well with the veggies, and that they'll adapt when you move

Queen of the Universe said...

Come on, if I am going to try knitting, you can attempt to keep something alive in a pot. If you cook at all, my way of experimenting was to just do a pot on the porch with rosemary and basil. Once that worked, I graduated to adding a tomato plant. It produced one great Roma before a voracious green caterpillar ate every single bloom and leaf because I didn’t have the heart to pick him off and kill him. I always go to the store and buy plants so this is my venture at sprouting seeds. I have tried before unsuccessfully but learned that this is one thing where quality matters. The first ones I bought were in the discount bin at the store for less than one dollar and they failed miserably. The Beekman seeds are much higher quality.