Kitchen / Garden / Sanctuary - Urban Homesteading to Nourish Body + Spirit
It even attracts beneficial kitties into the garden...
Queen Anne’s Lace! Also known as Daucus carota, or Wild Carrot. Beneficial insects are an easy method of organic pest control, and the beneficials absolutely LOVE these white, lacy, umbrella-shaped flowers! None of the other flowers I grow get quite as much attention as the Queen Anne’s Lace. (Click below to continue reading…)
Michelle Obama's Vegetable Garden (click for larger picture)
What’s a trip to Washington, D. C. without a stop at the Presidential Victory Garden And Beehive!?
While the garden itself was just a little anti-climactic because it was so far away from the fence, it was still pretty cool to see it in person. (Click below to continue reading…)
The onions have finished curing, and are ready for storage in the fridge.
I love growing my own onions and garlic. They’re such easy crops, and they store really well in the fridge. During the summer, I’m always overwhelmed with produce that must be eaten NOW, so when I harvest these crops, I’m always grateful for their long storage capabilities!
When the leaves (“tops”) have mostly died back (turned mostly brown…no longer green and growing…though there may still be some green in a few of the leaves), pull or dig the onions or garlic out of the garden. (Click here to find out exactly when to harvest your garlic.)
Thoroughly wash off any clinging soil.
Put your harvest into baskets in one layer — so that air can circulate around them — and leave them in a shed, garage, or on a covered porch for 2-3 weeks. Make sure neither water nor animals can get to them. After 2-3 weeks, cut off the dead leaves and inspect each onion for softness or mold. Expect to lose about 10-20% of your harvest to softness or mold. Transfer the rest into a bag in the fridge (or wherever you store your onions & garlic).
Harvest garlic & onions when tops have mostly turned brown. Put them into baskets in one layer (unlike the picture above!) and leave in a sheltered, outdoor place for 2-3 weeks to "cure."
After a week away, the garden didn’t look a whole lot bigger, but there sure was a lot of food in there! 10 lbs of cucumbers, 15 (!) lbs of zucchini, and probably about 5 lbs of tomatoes.
Harvest time is my favorite part of the year. It’s like Christmas! 🙂
The main garden area - raised beds
I thought I’d show you 5 garden pictures I took yesterday. [Mostly] everything is going bananas! And if you hadn’t gathered from the picture, I’ll point out that my gardening style is not so much the tidy, perfectly-spaced row look, but more the Chock-a-Block style…the “Pack-it-in-I’ll-make-it-fit-somehow” style, or just simply, “The Jungle Look.” (Click below for more pictures)
Welcome to The Herbangardener! This site is dedicated to nourishing the body + spirit, backyard organic gardening, traditional foodways, and homesteading in the heart of the city. Do come along and join me!
"There's nothing more pleasurable than making things by hand, and nothing more beautiful than handmade things."
"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are."
- Theodore Roosevelt
"Only after the last tree has been cut down; only after the last fish has been caught; only after the last river has been poisoned; only then will you realize that money cannot be eaten."
- Cree Nation Tribal Prophecy
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