text: DIY gardening | Fruit from the Tree
  « I forgot to make a SPN presentation
  On Biofuels »
  April 2, 2008 by Shannon
  One of my favorite magazines to read while chillin,' ReadyMade has a new issue out, and it's now available digitally, so you can check out this issue for free (subsequent issues will not be free).
  I'm especially pleased about this article (page 58) about artist Amy Franceschini's Victory Gardens project which I saw last year at the San Francisco MOMA. Drawing on the "victory gardens" of WWII, the project uses artistic means "to provide a basis for developing urban agriculture as a viable form of sustainable food practice in the city."
  As a wannabe gardener who's had a difficult time having a successful season, I think frequently about some of the challenges I've faced in trying to garden here. They've included:
  the cool maritime climate of Cascadia means that seeds get a slow start in the spring, but bugs aren't usually killed by frost
  the hot dry summer (all four weeks of it!) catches me by surprise and scorches my little babies
  not having enough money for starts or the technical skills to build a cloche
  insecure land tenancy
  pollen allergies limiting companion plantings
  weird microclimates
  running out of time to work in the garden
  I used to be a good gardener. I planted orchards, built raised beds and rose gardens, and had a little balcony jungle- but then, I had time and or money on my side. I'm going to give it another shot this year and see how I do. If you are interested, I'll continue to post about gardening my postage stamp sized plot of earth. I'd love to hear about your experiences GWIB (gardening while impoverished and busy).
  It took me eleven years to successfully grow tomatoes here!
  Also, I'd really like to borrow some ducks. They can eat the slugs that are currently chomping on my seedlings.
  Posted in News | Tagged art, DIY, gardening | 2 Comments
  on April 5, 2008 at 7:24 pm crowinck
  My dad was big into gardening; we had a lot of home grown vegetables during the summer. This is something that I would like to do as well, but I feel I'm in the same position of being really ignorant about how to do it.
  It strikes me that once upon a time, this would never have been an issue – I would have learned all about gardening from my dad. But now that we are in a day and age that kids go to school to learn full time, it seems we don't learn as many of the practical skills our parents could teach us.
  on April 6, 2008 at 4:42 am Shannon
  Yes, I agree there, but also would like to add that relocating also plays a part in that. My family put me to work in the garden, but that was a very different climate than here in the PNW. The people at the Elizabeth Miller Horticultural Library are pretty awesome though! http://depts.washington.edu/hortlib/index.shtml
  They are a good substitute for familial gardening knowledge.
  Seattle Tilth's good too, but the peeps at ECM don't blink when you tell them you want a garden with no money. Plant Salvage, here we come!!