Spring Planting

Portland's spring weather has really warmed up a bit in the last few weeks, so it was finally time to get around to planting our veggie garden for summer and beyond. We were really fortunate this year to not only get our same raised bed over at Project Grow's North Portland Farm, but they also offered us two more beds. So, with a total of three raised beds, we can grow a lot more produce this summer. And, we even have room to grow some winter squashes for fall harvest. Plus, our two additional beds came with a surprise, a whole bunch of Fava bean plants and some garlic...not a bad surprise at all.

With three beds, we could get a little crazy this season about what to plant. Dan and I ended up spending some quality time over at our local nursery, Garden Fever, buying a lot of starter plants to transplant to the beds. And, yes, we buy starters. We have tried growing our own from seeds but we have had zero luck with that method. So, except for those veggies that we can directly sow from seed (greens, radishes, beets and carrots) with some success, we buy starter plants.

We picked the following to plant for summer harvest:

• Black Cherry Tomato (cherry variety)
• Gold Nugget Tomato (cherry variety)
• San Marzano Tomato (paste variety)
• Vorlon Tomato (heirloom variety)
• Black Krim Tomato (heirloom variety)
• Zucchini
• Black Beauty Egglant
• Rosa Bianco Eggplant
• Blue Lake Beans (bush variety)
• New Queen Watermelon

 And, since we planted 3 San Marzano Tomato plants, we are hoping to have enough to can this year. The watermelon is an experiment since we never had any luck growing them in Los Angeles. They would just grow to the size of a golf ball and then die. May be we will have better success here.

And, then for fall harvest:

• Cinderella Pumpkin (AKA Rouge vif D'Etampes)
• Baby Blue Hubbard Squash
• Lunch Lady Gourds
• Sweet Dumpling Squash

I am very excited about the prospect of growing my own pumpkins since I am overly fond of them. We tried growing pumpkins and gourds in Los Angeles but with zero success. So again, hoping for better luck here in Portland. Of course, there are no guarantees what will grow and thrive and what will not. But, that is the fun of gardening.

Project Grow and Our New Raised Bed

It's springtime and I've been thinking about vegetable gardening for many, many months now. I stopped working in our L.A. vegetable garden over this past winter once Dan and I had decided to move to Portland. It just seemed silly to keep putting in all that effort on something that we were going to have to leave behind. But, know that we are in Portland and the sun is finally starting to make an appearance, I can't help but want to get back out there in the dirt. Our new home will have some areas that are veggie garden friendly but we are not ready yet to start on that project...and it is a project. We needed something that was easier to manage and get started with so we wouldn't miss the whole spring and summer growing season.

What to do? Finding a community garden spot was the answer. And, thanks to my friend, Jana, we did just that. Jana introduced Dan and I to her nephew, James, who just happens to work for Project Grow. Project Grow is a progressive program for adults with developmental disabilities that teaches them skills so that they can develop careers in urban farming as well as the arts. Most of Project Grow's urban farming space is dedicated to growing produce for area restaurants and for a small CSA. But, they have a few raised beds available for members of the community. And, Dan and I were able to score one of those beds. It's not huge but it is definitely large enough to give us some veggies this summer and fall.

We finally got our butts over there yesterday and started pulling out the cover crop of vetch and a few stray leeks and green onions that were in the bed. And, we managed to loosen up the soil a bit as well. Now, I need to go find some northwest hardy vegetable starts and get planting.

Handmade and Local at Artisanal LA

As I suspected it would be, Artisanal LA was great. Lots of interesting and, often tasty vendors. Dan and I spent more time there than we thought we would and spent more money than we should have. But, it was great to see so many people interested in and producing local and handcrafted foods. There is more of a sustainable food movement in Los Angeles than I thought there was and that is very exciting. 

I decided to showcase some of, but certainly not all of, the vendors that we encountered at our time at this event. Above is jar of Hell Fire Pepper Jelly from Jenkins Jellies. I've tried a lot of pepper jellies before but this is by far the best one that I have ever tasted. They know how to balance the sweetness and heat. And, yes, we bought a jar. I can't wait to pair this with a nice goat cheese for an appetizer or try it with pork. 

Tried some out-of-this-world jams at the Lemon Bird Design booth. Even bought a jar of their tomato with vanilla bean jam. The acidic tomato with the lovely warmth of the vanilla beans is heavenly. This made Dan and I feel that we need to step up the creativity with our jams and preserves. Also, I have to say, that I love their logo and label design. Their booth looked great as well. Sadly, too many people to get a great shot.

Tools of the butchering trade at the Lindy & Grundy booth. This is a new butcher shop that will be opening this December over in the Fairfax area of West Hollywood. The owners and operators are two women. The shop will feature local, pastured and organic meats (beef, lamb, pork and chicken). And, they are going to offer workshops on butchering techniques. I can't wait for the shop to open even if it will be a bit of drive to get there. I have a feeling that it will be well worth it.

Super cute display of 'breakfast' ornaments at the Common Thread booth. Yes, that's a chicken, a piece of toast and a slice of bacon. Not sure why the chicken and not an egg, since there is a breakfast theme but I'm guessing it was because the chicken was cuter (yet strangely blue). This sewing studio from South Pasadena was offering a bit of crafting at the show. For a small price, you could make either ornaments or egg cozies.  

So, Dan and I could not resist the 'breakfast' ornaments. Besides, who uses egg cozies. So, for $10.00, we got to make our own set. We had a lot of fun doing this. It was a nice, relaxing break from walking around the show. Plus, we made something to bring home. Can I put that bacon ornament on a Hanukkah bush? 

Since it is time to start planting our late fall and winter garden, we stopped by the Winnetka Farms booth and picked up some heirloom Italian seeds. They also have classes and workshops on gardening with edibles and are located in the San Fernando Valley. We can't wait to see how the veggies will grow from the seeds we purchased. 

We fell in love with this group, Backwards Beekeepers. They are a Los Angeles-based collective of small-scale, chemical-free beekeepers. They also rescue feral bees and teach beekeeping skills. Bees are responsible for pollinating a third of our  produce crops as well as providing delicious and nutritious honey, so it's so important to take care of them in a sustainable and humane way. We were glad to find people teaching these skills and keeping this craft alive.

I love this flour sack towel that we got from the Miss Fruitfly booth. The towel is unbleached cotton and made in the U.S. Then Fina from Miss Fruitfly silk-screens designs and quotes onto them. I love what this towel has to say and thought it was the perfect way to end this post.

Building a Raised Bed Vegetable Garden - Part I

Dan and I have discussed building a raised bed vegetable garden since we moved to our house a little over 3 years ago. And, finally, we are making it happen. I spent most of Saturday in the backyard cleaning things up. Dan, God love him, went to our local lumber yard (no Home Depot for us...if we can help it) and procured the fir boards for the beds. Then he came home and built all four of them. We did have the help though of these amazing raised bed corners from Gardener's Supply Company in Vermont.

Now, we just need to:

• lay the weed cloth
• position the beds
• lay in about 64 cu. ft. of organic soil
• put down pea gravel on the paths
• plant veggies and herbs

Okay, it's a lot more than just that. But, may be...just may be, by the end of next weekend, we might be done. I can dream.