Greens

According to the Farmer's Almanac, this week will be a good time to: pull plant pests, mow grass or cut hair to retard growth, perform demolition, quit smoking., dig holes, cut firewood, or write.  Have other plans?  You might want to check the Farmer's Almanac Calendar first. 

My roommates and I are doing our best to keep up with our garden's Spring growth. As we put our transplants and seeds in we have to clear out all the little weed seedlings that appeared overnight. We've also been in the process of creating new beds for uncultivated parts of the yard. Adding in plenty of compost for growing heavier feeders like tomatoes and squashes. Since there are five of us living here, and everyone acts mysteriously, it's fun to return each time to the garden and observe what new work has been done, and guess who has done it.

We have three yards around our housing with varying degrees of sun reception. In the North facing yard we are experimenting with growing greens and Brassicas and roots. I think cultivating shade tolerant native perennials would be the best bet but no one wants to spend that kind of money. Best Shade-Tolerant Vegetables Instead we are growing kale in all areas of our tripartite yard to see how they each fare as the summer rolls around. I find myself walking around the back of the house, talking to the little plant starts, praying for them because I'm not sure they even get 3 hours of sun a day. We'll see what happens.

New Weed-lot

I'm moving two blocks away to a studio beneath a house with a weed-lot in the back. The studio is street level and noisy, so potted plants out front are not likely to fare well. Unless they are super resilient. Something has to live there. Perhaps some climbing plants?

Then in the backyard it's still TBD how much light shows up. Perhaps we can install one or two raised garden beds and grow some greens, herbs or beans. Perhaps we can host some chickens. I think they could enjoy the graffiti.

There must be ways to turn this harsh urban landscape into something more nourishing.

The Mysterious Plants

Weed or not weed, what to do about all the plants I didn't plant here? I'm starting to learn the kind of weed management required to keep crop breathing. Not all weeds can go, they have all grown up here for a reason. Not all space can be cleared. That would be a waste of effort. It occured to me I don't know the names of many of the plants I am pulling, although I've heard a rule of thumb - you shouldn't remove any plant you aren't familiar with. Looking around online at the King County Noxious Weed List. It will take me forever to work over this list. Better to learn from a mentor, quicker. For now I have to settle for the Noxious Weed List. As if I should be in school for this stuff.