My Urban Garden

[vincentpa]

I grew up in the city but our house which my father bought in the 1960s bordered a National Guard Armory. My grandmother "appropriated" some unused land adjacent to our property for a garden about 20'x40'. My grandmother was a farmer from Italy. She worked that hard clay into some good soil with the help of my father dumping horse manure much to the chagrin of our neighbors. Every Italian had a garden in Pittsburgh. It's a tradition I can't let die.

Now, I live in a townhouse in the middle of the city on 1/8th acre. I make due with what I have to plant something small. I have a very small patch where I can plant in the ground. The rest are in pots. When we buy a new house within the next few years (we're currently looking), I hope to find a place with more property to plant a bigger garden.

I have:
2 roma tomatoes in pots
1 patio tomato in a pot
1 eggplant in a pot
3 pots of romano bush beans
1 pot with two plants sweet banana peppers and another pot with 1 banana pepper plant
herbs in pots; rosemary, basil, parsley, tarragon, dill, sage, cilantro
2 fig trees in pots
1 blueberry bush in a pot
1 lemon tree in a pot
9 fennel plants in a a big container that aren't doing well
1 super sweet tomato plant in a hanging pot

In the ground I have:
4 tomato plants
2 hot banana pepper plants
4 green pepper plants
1 cucumber
2 eggplant
basil, sage, oregano, thyme, tarragon

[jarbo03]

Looks good. Making due with what you have, you are doing better than I have. I don't have anything planted this year. It would have burnt up anyway.

[assateague]

Vincent, your garden is way neater than mine. I may get a lot of food, but the thing is an eyesore. Your's looks sharp!

Any suggestions for green chilis/Anaheims? I have a lot of them, but didn't really want them- my neighbor started most of my plants for me in his greenhouse in exchange for me working on his truck, and some anaheim peppers got mixed in with the jalapenos. You mentioned you had lots of yellow chilis, so I thought you might have an idea. I don't really want to waste them, but as they're green, I don't think they'd have much use dried (at least not as much as if they were the hotter red anaheim variety). I don't think I can can them, either, so I'm looking for some frozen or sauce ideas if you have any.

[Redbeard]

I'm seriously impressed Vincent. You're like a little italian city farmer

[3legged_lab]

Vince, that's a nice grow for the square footage you're working with.

[Flightstopper]

Come on guys no need to boost his ego any more.


Kidding Vince, I was more impressed as the pictures kept coming. I expected about three pots and a few in the ground. Very nice.

[vincentpa]

Thanks fellas. That 5 years of trial and error. I'm still working on it. It didn't always look like that. I found a gardening method developed by the French called intensive gardening. Basically, the plants are arranged so there is very little ground showing. The plants shouldn't shade each other too much and only along the bottom foliage. It takes some trial and error to get the proper mix of plants and to get the plant locations correct.There are some small trees that are starting to block the light. I'm going to give them a good shave this afternoon.

I really can't wait to find a new house with a bigger yard. I love growing food to eat. I also want to try canning. My little garden doesn't produce enough to can anything.



@AT,
The garden is neat because I have to keep it that way. With such a small space, I can't waste even a square inch. Plus attending to the garden gets me out of the house with two screaming kids. I drink a beer or two and spend more time than necessary keeping the garden tidy.

As for the yellow banana peppers both hot and mild, I usually stuff them with either sausage or a mixture of bread crumbs, tomatoes, basil and Parmesan cheese. I rub olive oil on the outside of the skin to prevent it from drying out. Then I bake them. In fact, that's what I'm having tonight, stuffed peppers with the breadcrumb mixture. I also use the hot peppers as a seasoning and to add a little fire to the dish. I added a hot pepper to the beet tops and Swiss chard dish I made last night.

[assateague]

That's sounds good, Vincent. I think I'll try it.

I especially like your herbs. Mine look like overgrown horribleness, yours look like a Monet painting.

[goodkarmarising]

Nice garden, better than what I got going on right now.

[Tomkat]

No watermelon?

[vincentpa]

No watermelon?

I don't roll that way.

[Tomkat]

No okra, black eyed peas, or turnip greens?

How about if I send my helper over to cut you?

[assateague]

My okra didn't grow worth a damn. And the turnips just got put in. So there.

[vincentpa]

No okra, black eyed peas, or turnip greens?

How about if I send my helper over to cut you?

I live too close to the bus line. If I had that shit growing in my yard, how long do you think it would last?

[Tomkat]

You think BW and his kin would devour it? LOL

Be thankful newports dont grow on your bushes...

[broccoli]

That is a dang good looking garden and especially for what your working with.