Growing Pains

This is our official birth announcement! Our health kick plum tomato plant has 6 small babies growing. We also finally have one small baby burger tomato! So far that's 2 out of 4 plants and each has at least 8 flowers, which will produce tomotoes. I can't wait to cook my homemade pasta sauce with fresh ingredients from my very own garden! Aren't ya proud Ma?



Burger tomato



Health Kick Tomatoes

Our zucchini plants had 2-3 flowers each (pictured left) but since the picture was taken, we have lost about 2 flowers each :( Soooo, I did some more research and found out that zucchini has both male and female flowers which will be cross pollinated by the bees (which means I probably shouldnt have tried to drown the bee I saw in there this morning..woops/duhh)

Also, the broccoli plants are getting bigger and I noticed that the stalk is starting to get thicker. Next, I need to figure out when these guys will start producing. As you may also notice, the leaves are still holey but the top leaves are not. I would say that means our Basil Herb Tea Spray has been working :) We have been applying it as necessary.

The carrots have also been sprouting up, we have some tall stalks which I am going to guess are around 6 inches. That means it's time to thin them out again. I'm hoping to create garden "furrows," which is basically what most people picture when thinking of a garden; rows of vegetables. Not sure why but my mind always goes to a cartoon farmer/garden?!

Goooodbye black thumb, Helloooo green!

Basil Herb Tea Spray: Here Goes Nothing!

As mentioned in previous blog posts we are trying to maintain an organic garden. This means that when bugs attack instead of using store bought solutions with pesticides and chemicals, we are going to use natural remedies. I mean, we are going to eat these veggies and the idea of all those harmful chemicals just skeeves me out.

It's a good thing I thought ahead because I checked on the broccoli the other day and this is what I found-ugh!

After waiting 10 days my basil herb tea was finally ready for use.

Ingredients: basil clippings, natural dish soap, water and plastic spray bottle.  

Ingredients

Basil Herb Tea Spray Prep

Directions: Fill container with basil clippings and add water. Place in sun and allow to brew for about 7 days. Strain out basil clippings and transfer solution to spray bottle. Add dish soap

*Recipe adjusted from: Natural Insect (Pest) Control Ideas*

Day 1 of brew



Day 10 day of brew

 

Each plants foliage was sprayed, covering both the top and underside of the leaves.  

So here goes nothing! We will be sure to update on how effective our organic spray turns out!

**Note: The recipe called for 1 gallon water and 2 tbsp dish soap. My container was 1 qt and the plastic container 1/2 quart. So we used 1+1/2 tsp soap, sprayed the plants and refilled the spray bottle (I wasn't about to waste half of my brew) adding an additional squirt of soap.

Moving Day: It's Time to Transplant!

Our veggies have grown big enough to move out and gain some independence! It's time to venture down to the bigger garden with the hopes that they will flourish and survive. Just to further explain "big enough," in my research I found that the tomatoes can be transplanted once 10" tall, (Ours were a little more than 1ft). The carrots, well they just looked like they needed more room. As for the zucchini, they were about to over flow their container and my research said they needed about 3ft spacing. The broccoli was also transplanted just for the sake of utilizing the bigger garden to maximum capacity. Our herbs will remain close to home.

First, the garden soil needed to be prepared. It was weeded and tilled by Kurt and our "friendlord," Kaveh. (It just so happened that I was conveniently working that weekend-what a bummer- heh).

The black plastic will prevent and weeds from re-surfacing.

Each veggie was planted and spaced according the the research from our blog post, Kneen St ASA: Background Check. As you can see, all like veggies were not kept together. This was a strategy given to us by Guy, from Guy's Eco Garden. The theory is that by inter spacing the veggies, if bugs or disease attack a plant it will hopefully prevent spread to the others, saving a portion of our crop.

The final product includes wire cages to help support the tomato plants. Now, the only obstacle we have  is how to water the plants. Our hose is located at the very front of the house. So, for now I will be lugging watering cans back and forth to keep these veggies hydrated.

**Update: My Basil Herb Tea Spray is coming along. It has been sun brewing for 5 days now and the directions call for 7 days. Soon it will be ready to use! Stay Tuned...