Potato Bin

Last year I saw a neat post on Pinterest that I really wanted to try.  It was all about how to grow your own potatoes in a large trash can.  Can’t be that hard right?  We had an old 55 gallon trash bin that had at one point been converted to a rain barrel and was no longer being used as such.  (That was another pinterest project that just didn’t work out for our circumstances.)  The post I read stated that you can yield 100 pounds of potatoes from just one pound of planted spuds.  We love to grow our own food and we knew we would be moving and it could be transportable so it seemed like a great idea.

First we picked up some organic potato planters at the local grow store and cut them into 1 or 2 inch chunks, making sure to leave “eyes” on each chunk.  For experimentation sake, we also left some of them whole.  We then let them sit out on a cookie sheet in a bright room but not in direct sunlight to get them to sprout for about 2 weeks.

We started with our 55 gallon trash can and drilled holes all up and down the bin to make sure there would be plenty of good drainage for watering.  Next, we filled the bottom with about 6 inches of gravel/rock so that the dirt would not get soggy on the bottom.  The next layer was 6 inches of top soil mixed with compost.  My boys loved helping with this step.

Next we put a layer of planter potatoes leaving a few inches of space all around each piece.  Finally, we covered those with another 2 inches of soil and watered them well.

It took about two weeks to see the plants sprout up but once they did they just took off.  Each time the plants got about 6 inches we filled in another 3 inches of dirt until eventually the whole bin was full of dirt.  The idea is that you get potatoes to grow all throughout the bin this way.  The plant on top was looking beautiful and luscious.  I wish I had a picture to show you but I apparently forgot to take one!

Then we moved.  We didn’t just move, we moved to the mountains where the air was thin and dry and the sun was harsh and the nights got cold.  Too cold.  Our poor potato plant just didn’t know what hit it.  We want to do another one next year and try to account for our climate.  I think we shocked our potatoes.

Even still, though the plant died after we moved, we were able to harvest about 1 and a half pounds of new potatoes.  The kids had a great time digging through the bin and finding potatoes.  We were able to have one meal with our roasted potato babies!   

Here’s to a large crop next year!

Have you ever tried a potato bin?  What are your tips and tricks?

Growing Your Groceries Update

A while back I blogged about growing your groceries.  You can read that post HERE.  Here is an update on some of things we tried to grow from the grocery store.

Lettuce

Well the lettuce works fantastic when you let it sit in water and harvest the leaves after a few weeks.  Once.  maybe twice. However, I decided to plant it in the ground just to see what it would do.  Turns out it just grows, and grows, and grows upward.  It continued to grow small leaves so I let it just keep going until it stopped producing anymore leaves and some of them fell over from the weight.  They even started budding on top and looked like pretty wild flowers!  I wanted to plant some lettuce from seed in the row they were in so I went ahead and dug them up.  I wish I would have taken a picture while they were still standing but I forgot.  Here is what they looked like and the harvest we got from them.  Unfortunately they tasted very bitter and we probably won't eat it.  Bummer!

Green Onion

Our green onions however have FAR exceeded my expectations.  We started them out in water and once they had roots a few inches long, planted them in window boxes.  We haven't bought any since! I've harvested them over and over again - at least 5 or more times each - and they keep growing!  It's an endless supply of green onion.  I'm having to find ways to cook with it to keep up!  We now have 3 boxes total and just rotate which one I cut from.

Celery

Our celery was a complete flop.  It would turn a beautiful color green and grow lots of leaves - even grow some stalks a little bit.  But ultimately it always started growing some kind of mold or fungus and then died.  I don't know if there is a trick or maybe it just doesn't work well with celery.  Either way, we were never able to harvest and eat any celery we tried to regrow.

Peppers

We love those little mini colorful peppers in yellow, orange, and red.  They don't have a lot of seeds in them but I wondered what would happen if we save them and try to grow them.  There are probably better ways to do it, but we just simply took the seeds straight from the peppers and planted them in seed starter soil in our basement.  We weren't sure if they would germinate but sure enough, in a few weeks we had foliage.  When it was time to put the rest of the plants outside, we transplanted the baby plants into a Topsy Turvy pepper planter.  While we still do not have peppers, we have lots of strong leaves and are even starting to see some buds.  Here's hoping we actually get to eat some peppers later this summer!

Musings of a Novice Organic Gardener

I have never grown anything on my own before.  No herbs.  No veggies.  Not even flowers.  In fact, my poor houseplants (which I only have from funerals I have attended and the birth on my kids) have always relied on my husband for survival in the past.  I could never remember to water them and so it has always been John's job.  When I was younger my parents did have a garden.  I remember them growing tomatoes every year and some other things like potatoes and carrots one year.  They still do tomatoes every summer.  My husband suggested a garden back when we lived in Kansas City.  The idea was great but then he told me about all the work involved and I passed.

This year is different.  This year, I am determined to feed my family TONS of fresh organic veggies which as most of us know, can get expensive.  I have suddenly found myself fascinated with gardening.  Of course I am a complete and utter novice so when my in laws were in town this last week and asked if I hoed my garden I just stood there and went, huh?  So today I got my hoe on (had to say it) and to my great surprise, realized I don't have to hand pull every single weed!!  The garden hoe does that for me. Who knew?!

Here's a few other things I've learned so far:

Plant Bug Spray

One of the first things we noticed after our plants started to come up was little nibbles on the leaves.  It could be from our many squirrel friends but I have a feeling it was due to bugs.  So how do we treat for bugs without chemicals?  I've looked into a couple of methods but the one I chose was a vinegar/garlic solution.  It's really simple.  Save your onion and garlic peels in a container with a lid in your refrigerator.  Once you have a good amount, cover with water and set the container with the lid on it outside.  After about a week, strain the pieces and bottle up the solution.  Use a spray bottle to spray it on the plants.  Bugs will be repelled but beware - when you water you will wash the solution off so be sure to spray a few times a week.  I used a hand held continuous spray bottle I bought at Walmart for about $7.  It works great!  You can spray it at any angle so you can reach the plants from where ever you're standing.

Epsom Salt Fertilizer

A lot of people might use Miracle Grow on the garden and the lawn.  When you walk up and down the lawn and garden aisles at Walmart you might get a little headache or lightheaded from the strong smells.  That's because, you guessed it, it's full of harmful chemicals.  So no Miracle Grow.  How do I feed my plants?  Do they need it?  Well, it turns out a little bag of "bath salts" is the perfect food for my peppers and tomatoes.  Epsom salt is made up of magnesium and sulfate - both nutrients that certain plants LOVE and thrive on.

Mix a tbsp of Epsom salt with one gallon of water.  Use a watering can or spray bottle to water your tomato and pepper plants.  Some people do this every other week but that may be too much.  Once a month should be just fine.

this is the same container I use for the bug spray, just rinse it out well

Compost Tea Fertilizer

Another way to feed your plants is to make a compost tea.  Take a few cup fulls of your ready-to-use compost and mix in a bucket of water.  Let it sit for a few days to "steep."  Strain out the dirt and solids using a cheesecloth and bottle up the solution.  This can be used on any plants and is not only good for the nutrients in the soil and roots, but also for the leaves themselves.

Organic Fertilizers

I confess I do not know a lot about this yet but I visited an organic gardening store and looked at tons of different organic fertilizers.  They range in ph levels so I bought one that they said would work well for my garden.  It cost about $14 dollars for the box but a little goes a loooooong way so it has lasted quite a while.  When I planted the garden I put a very small sprinkling under the seeds.  Now that my plants are growing I decided to try making a tea with this as well.  I'm hoping it will be a good way to get nutrients to my veggie plants as my compost is not quite ready to use yet.

Where NOT to plan a garden plot!

One of the lessons we have learned about our garden is to pay attention to the surroundings.  We were most concerned with sunlight when choosing our plot.  I think we did a decent job as it gets plenty of rays.  However, what we did not take into consideration was the two gigantic cottonwood trees near by!  They are losing their cotton plumes now and it is ALL OVER my garden.  Some of the plants have prickly leaves and it just won't come off of them!  I am really hoping it doesn't hurt their growth.  Too late now.

Check out that branch full of cotton hanging above our garden.  Thankfully hoeing the garden several times a week keeps it at bay for now.

Do you have a natural gardening tip or trick?  Please leave a comment and let me know!!


Our first fruits...

Gardening for the Body, Mind, and Spirit

This year for Mother's Day I had the privilege of working in the garden almost all day.  I guess it's a known fact here in Colorado that you shouldn't plant anything until Mother's Day.  This is the first year we have ever had a vegetable garden.  I always thought there was just too much work involved and didn't want to put in the effort.  That has all changed for me now.  My garden brings me so much unexpected joy.

The thing about gardening is that it's not just about the food that's harvested although that part really excites me and I hope at least something grows for us!  It's as much a spiritual thing as it is a physical thing as well.  I believe that gardening, growing my own food, is a whole body experience.

Mind

I have found that gardening is a total relaxer for me.  I like to go outside when the kids are asleep for nap time and listen to music while I piddle.  It helps to clear my mind and puts me in a great mood.  The smell of the soil and plants, the breeze rustling the spring leaves, the warm sun on my face...

Body

Growing a garden takes physical, consistent work.  My husband and I hand tilled our 15ft x 10ft patch of soil.  Do you know how many calories that burned?  I didn't either so I looked it up on caloriecount.about.com.  It turns out that 1 hour of tilling the garden by hand is about 340 calories!  But it's not just that, we have several potted plants and I have to move them from time to time.  Plus, I'm always weed pulling and removing debris from the trees.

Spirit

God has given me all the things I need... earth/soil, sun, rain, even the seeds.  It's all there for me.  His creation.    All I have to do is put in the work.  I find myself lost in thoughts about His provisions for me.  I've heard all my life that all I have belongs to God.  I believe that, I do, but sometimes I don't act that way.  I mean, my car... my money... my stuff... my time?  But when I'm in the garden I feel like it really does belong to Him.  I am excited to see the fruits of my labor because I can't wait to share them with people.  I feel like there is so much God wants to teach me through this simple act.

Yup, I pretty much am in love with my vegetable garden.  Have you planted one yet?  Maybe you should consider it.  If you have one and are looking to donate some surplus veggies, check this site out.

Dirt Cheap Yard Work

Another stop on my quest for a chemical free house.  Ok, I have to be honest - it also had a lot to do with money.  It turns out that DIY natural options tend to be much cheaper than the chemicals anyway!

A little background first.  We are currently renting so aside from not having a lot of extra cash right now, we don't really want to pour a bunch of money into someone else's yard.  There are two areas that are supposed to be rock and dirt but the weeds have taken over and it's looking kind of trashy.  Also, while the dandelions aren't horrible, there are more than I would like poking through our grass.

So here's the recipe:

Weed Spray

Vinegar - Enough to fill a spray bottle.  I used plain white vinegar but I'm told that pickling vinegar works even better.

Salt - 1/2 cup for a spray bottle  

Dish soap - just a squeeze

I used this spray bottle first but it was a lot of work for the size of area I needed to cover.  So I went to Ace to find a bigger jug. **Beware - if you spray this on dandelions in the yard, no matter how carefully, you will create brown spots in your grass!!**

At Ace they had a 2 gallon lawn sprayer on sale for 10 bucks.  Score!  A gallon of vinegar from Walmart was $2.48.  I had the salt and dish soap.  The area I needed to cover in the front and back took 3 gallons of vinegar.  My total weed killer cost: $17.48.  Zero toxic chemicals.  

All that green is supposed to be rock!  Also - the best part of chemical free is that the kids get to help!  My 2 an 3 year old thought the weed sprayer was awesome.

Try to do it on a day that the weeds will get lots of warm sunshine.  The hotter the better.  I saw results the very next day.  

Weed Prevention

Next I needed to make sure the weeds wouldn't come back.  This is only for areas where you do not want anything to grow.  Do not get it on your grass or near plants you want to keep.  It's simple.  Just spread baking soda over the area.  The salt is supposed to neutralize the ground so that nothing will grow there.  Time will tell if this works!  The kids had a blast helping me spread it around.

Pesky Dandelions

So far, the best cure for dandelions without chemicals... you might not like this... is to pull them.  Yup.  Super simple and I just take care of it while I'm outside watching the kids play.  There may be other options, but I don't want brown spots!

What are your favorite cheap yard tricks?

Growing Your Groceries

I have found many posts on Pinterest about how to grow your groceries.  So far we have tried green onions, romaine and leafy lettuce, white onions, red onions, and celery.  We have harvested both green onions and lettuce already!  It is so easy and wonderful to eat "free" fresh grown food - in the middle of winter!

This is the site that helped out the most in my experiments.

 We started a collection of glasses of water full of romaine, green onion, or celery.

After a few weeks we harvested our first batch of lettuce leaves!  Now we've replanted both the lettuce and celery in their own containers.  We'll see how long they last.  Even if they die out I'm still happy with a few free salads.