Ahira's Hangar

A little early to do much here yet this spring, other than "winter" veggies that love coolish weather and fruit trees.

Went to a nursery today and found a couple of pussy willows. One has the usual gray catkins and the other has pitch black catkins - a color I never even knew existed in that plant. We will plant them later this week. For now they are sitting on our front porch in their pots.

We also priced fruit trees. We want another cherry or two, and are thinking about perhaps planting a couple of dwarf pear and/or peach trees.

No garden. But my acacia bonsai are losing their leaves already...(the serissa has leaves all year round).

--A

Alas, the new apartment doesn't even have a balcony, so all my gardening efforts for the forseeable future will involve pots on the windowsill. Altho at least the new place faces east (which I discovered the first morning I woke up there ), so I'll get morning sun -- a nice change from the old place, which faced sort of northwest.

I keep seeing these rooftop gardens in magazines. Are you allowed a rooftop garden in your building, ali?

I doubt it, altho I suppose I could ask. I don't think we have a rooftop deck, either. Which is probably just as well, as we're also on the Pentagon's flight path; I saw a helicopter fly directly over our building when I got off the bus last night....

I suppose the county has garden plots available, but if their program is anything like Alexandria's, there's probably a waiting list. And a whole plot would be a little too much for me anyhow. I'm good with a couple of planters on the balcony/patio, but a whole veggie patch would be somewhat daunting -- not to mention a lot of work.

Garden plots? Must be something like the Brits have...allotments, that's what they called them. Little patch of land somewhere other than your house if you live in apartments or those rows. Nothing like that here.

--A

Ann Arbor has those - they are called community gardens. One of my friends who lives in AA though about getting one, but changed her mind because the plots are just too big for one person to grow a few tomatoes and peppers - plus they charge quite a bit of money to use it. So she will be going with a few plants in pots route as usual.

We call them community gardens here, too. Not sure how much it costs to rent one each year. The city parks and rec department oversees the program, so it's probably not too expensive.

I have a brown/black thumb.
Seriously, I kill any plant I try to grow.
What I want to do is join a CSA.
But the price of shares, even half-shares, is prohibitive for us right now...

Ann Arbor turns over the ground for you? I think the renters here have to do all of that themselves...

If Hyperception was still officially enrolled at UF, they have fantastic plots available right next to the Bat House. The soil is rich, rich, rich from guano. Something definitely not common with the sandy soil of Florida.

And oh wow. That page says while they are last in priority, community members not affiliated with the university can apply for plots. Land is tilled and rent is only $30 for the year. hmm...

Go for it, Menolly!