I'm usually here early in the morning so there aren't any urban bees but later in the day, I usually find there's a bee in each flower, literally.
Friday, April 6, 2012
Boysenberry flowers greeting spring
Funny how the vernal equinox triggers growth. I've noticed each year how my boysenberry gears up big time after the vernal equinox, producing flowers at nearly every node. I like to think they are ready to face the world after dormancy.
I'm usually here early in the morning so there aren't any urban bees but later in the day, I usually find there's a bee in each flower, literally.
I'm usually here early in the morning so there aren't any urban bees but later in the day, I usually find there's a bee in each flower, literally.
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
First tomato of 2012
The SunGold cherry tomato, planted 1/24/2012.
I'm going to grow this one on the balcony, the first time I have done so. Our balcony gets approximately 3-4 hours sun max, which is pushing the boudaries for tomatoes. But in the spirit of adventure, I will give it a go. I'll be successively transplanting this into larger containers until I reach a 15 gallon size. Right now, I think it is in a 1 gallon pot.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Starting Tomatoes for 2012
This year, I started my tomatoes from seed on 1/23/2012 and 1/24/2012. I chose these dates taking into consideration that last year, I had started in March, which was simply too late. The year before, I started in December, and that was way too early.
I also chose the tomatoes very carefully, taking into consideration our cool temperature climate; this year, they are Black Krim, Momotaro, SunGold and Pineapple. No others because I find I have too many seedlings each year and not enough space. The Black Krim, a cooler climate tolerant tomato, should be perfect for our one block from the beach climate. As for the Pineapple, I think it won't do that well since it seems to prefer sunnier and warmer places so this is my challenge for the year. SunGold does well, since it is a cherry. The Momotaro does okay but I like this tomato and don't want to give up on it.
I harvested the Black Krim and Pineapple seeds directly from the tomato. The Momotaro and Sungold are hybrids and came from the Kitagawa seed company.
This year, I decided to soak the seeds in water for an hour, a new step but I don't know if it made a difference.
Germination rate was 100% except for the Pineapple seeds (50%).
I plant the seeds into small containers.
As the seedlings grow, I transplant into larger containers. Since I grow the seedlings indoors in my window, I find I need to cold-acclimitize the seedlings before taking them outdoors else they do not grow well. Our outdoor overnight temps drop to 50 F, which I think is pushing the comfort boundaries. The Black Krim have been slowly acclimitized outdoors overnight over a two week period.
Of the six Black Krim seedlings, one has already been given away, one will be given away to a local group, and the rest will be planted in my garden.
This Black Krim has already been planted into the ground.
I follow the instructions from here for the most part.
I also chose the tomatoes very carefully, taking into consideration our cool temperature climate; this year, they are Black Krim, Momotaro, SunGold and Pineapple. No others because I find I have too many seedlings each year and not enough space. The Black Krim, a cooler climate tolerant tomato, should be perfect for our one block from the beach climate. As for the Pineapple, I think it won't do that well since it seems to prefer sunnier and warmer places so this is my challenge for the year. SunGold does well, since it is a cherry. The Momotaro does okay but I like this tomato and don't want to give up on it.
I harvested the Black Krim and Pineapple seeds directly from the tomato. The Momotaro and Sungold are hybrids and came from the Kitagawa seed company.
This year, I decided to soak the seeds in water for an hour, a new step but I don't know if it made a difference.
Germination rate was 100% except for the Pineapple seeds (50%).
I plant the seeds into small containers.
As the seedlings grow, I transplant into larger containers. Since I grow the seedlings indoors in my window, I find I need to cold-acclimitize the seedlings before taking them outdoors else they do not grow well. Our outdoor overnight temps drop to 50 F, which I think is pushing the comfort boundaries. The Black Krim have been slowly acclimitized outdoors overnight over a two week period.
Of the six Black Krim seedlings, one has already been given away, one will be given away to a local group, and the rest will be planted in my garden.
This Black Krim has already been planted into the ground.
I follow the instructions from here for the most part.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Using CDs in the garden
The local birds have gourmet tastes, and they love my mesclun lettuce. Here's a shot of some their work in my garden.
My solution was to try this old CD trick. I dangle a CD on a string so that it rotates freely in the wind, reflecting sunlight all around. Not the most aesthetically pleasing solution but it seems to work for now. I plan to eat the lettuce soon to make room for tomatoes.
My solution was to try this old CD trick. I dangle a CD on a string so that it rotates freely in the wind, reflecting sunlight all around. Not the most aesthetically pleasing solution but it seems to work for now. I plan to eat the lettuce soon to make room for tomatoes.
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Boysenberry in bloom
I'm sorry to have dropped out of sight. I needed to find a new photo host site for this blog since I had maxed out my Flickr site. I'm currently using Photobucket and we'll see how that works. I'm not sure if I like the quality of the photos. In the meantime, I will be experimenting with how Photobucket works. If any of you have suggestions, please leave them in the comments. Thanks!
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