CityDiggity
A green space for urban gardenersArchive for May, 2009
Coleus: It’s not fall, but these leaves are showing their colors
Nothing turns my head faster than a pretty flower. But, lately I’ve been thinking a lot about leaves.
I’ve seen photos online of leaves with so much pattern and texture that I forgot to look for what blossomed among them. Actually, I think a leaf appreciation has been playing at the back of my mind for a while now…
A few years ago Chicago held a show downtown in Grant Park called “Garden in a City,” which featured displays of various urban garden possibilities: small yards, roofs, balconies. (Chicago is a big proponent of green roofs, so the Read the rest of this entry »
A sweet, potato project: Lazy, drizzly day perfect for vine time
Sweet potato vine is a staple in my garden; I've already picked up two for my planter boxes.
‘One potato, two potato …’ I was thinking of the children’s rhyme today when I compared two sweet potatoes that had been languishing in my larder since Easter.
One looked much like it did when I bought it, while the other had several sprouts jutting from it — purple sprouts. And, what’s more, a closer examination revealed what looked to be tiny purple leaves extending, in turn, from them.
Tiny purple leaves jut from the sprouts of my sweet potato.
The garden is great for awakening a sense of wonder. Even if it’s a long time coming. I’ve used sweet potato vine in my planters for several years now, but only recently started to ponder their relationship to, duh, sweet potatoes.
A little online research gave instructions on how Read the rest of this entry »
No small potatoes: garden herbs boost flavor of picnic side dish
Potato salad with basil pesto and dill is a tasty cookout side dish (see recipe below in post).
Memorial Day weekend marks the official opening of Chicago beaches and the unofficial start of picnic season. Besides hitting the shores, we also hit the parks — armed with grills and coolers — for our first taste of summer in the city.
It’s not as warm as it could be this year (low 60s to 70 degrees), but the heat generated by all that outdoor cooking should raise the temperature. And then, the fireworks.
Along with the meats thrown on the barbie, no picnic is complete without the full complement of yummy side dishes, and potato salad is one of my Read the rest of this entry »
Don’t forget the KISS principle when mapping out your garden
Petunia baby duck is very dependable, with adorable, small, yellow-centered blossoms.
It’s easy for me to get caught up in the wake of ambitious dreams when plotting my garden. But lest I drown in the disappointment of plans gone awry, I remind myself of the KISS principle: Keep It Simple Stupid. And yes, I’m talking to me.
Experimenting with lots of untried seeds — hoping they all sprout, hoping they don’t fall prey to my cat’s midnight munchies, and hoping they go on to grow, thrive and bloom — that’s a lot of pressure. Of course, I go into it knowing that some seeds won’t sprout and some that sprout won’t survive. What can I say, it’s a process.
That’s why I follow the simple rule of using plantlets that are already established to fill in the Read the rest of this entry »
Inside out: go with a seamless flow from interior to garden
A wrought iron chair used to add elevation and whimsy plays off similar interior elements.
Today was magnificent! Sunny, 80 degrees, with the softest of breezes playing across my balcony. Gone was the icy chill that has been hidden in the winds of recent days.
Chimes for feng shui
Sprouts, small plants, and my tabby sunned themselves outside, and as if on cue, I got an email from Burpee saying that the remainder of my plant order was being shipped and would arrive in two days. The danger of frost has past. At last.
With tonight’s low temperature forecast at a nice 60 degrees, I think that for the first time, I’ll leave things out for the duration. Except for the cat, of course. I’ve begun to envision being able to finally sit Read the rest of this entry »
Make no small plans: use time inside to enhance time outside
Lantana is one of the ready and waiting small plants I've bought to go in my balcony boxes.
My sprouts and plants are lined up like soldiers next to the balcony sliders, my cat has taken to staring wistfully through the glass while making his little bird sounds, and the empty terra cotta pots outside are stacked and waiting to fulfill their destiny. But Zone Five summers won’t be rushed, despite the impatient champing at the bit to shift into full garden mode.
When the bird sounds start, summer is on the way.
With the sunshine battling the chilly air and bouts of icy rain for dominance, we won’t get the green thumbs up until total victory over the fluctuating elements is claimed in this seasonal smackdown.
Of course, when you don’t have California weather, a good portion of your garden work is spent California dreaming — better known here as Read the rest of this entry »
Lights, climbers, action: building a twinkling, virtual garden wall
Net lights hung around the railing of my city balcony make for nighttime ambiance.
Every summer the City of Chicago puts on a festival called Venetian Night, in which a host of boats tricked out in sparkling lights drift past the city’s shoreline. Did I mention — for those who have never visited Chicago — that the beach here is ACTUALLY DOWNTOWN? What more could an urban dweller ask for?
Technically, it’s lakefront, not beachfront. But, it’s a Great Lake, so it has the aspect of a beach, without the salt water. Anyway, the magical effect of those twinkling lights is what I try to evoke on my 5×12-foot balcony.
I make my brand of magic by attaching a length of Read the rest of this entry »
Mother of all cleanup days: time for dirty job that has to be done
You can only put off garden cleanup for so long before the day of reckoning arrives.
Those of you in warmer climes probably spent Mother’s Day Sunday winding down colorful garden paths and smelling the early roses, while here on Planet Chicago I tackled the dirty job of cleaning up the debris from last year’s garden.
I promise the wooden duck and bird will stand proud again.
I know, many people choose to pull out the old plants in late fall, but for me it’s a pretty sad process at that time, since there always are a few flowers struggling to live on — if but for scant days more. I just can’t bear to deprive them of their extended moment of defiance. Cleaning up now, when I know the best Read the rest of this entry »
Color my world… with lavender – it’s a real ‘scent’-sation, too
A new lavender plant, in a well-weathered pot, is set to move out to my balcony for summer.
Lavender. If its loveliness isn’t enough to justify its existence, just wait for a gentle breeze and inhale: the aromatic herb’s knockout fragrance will doubtless seal the deal.
I have a friend who’s been a longtime lavender booster, and about four years ago I joined the fan club. And, as we’ve been discussing using herbs in the kitchen, let me say — modestly of course — that my lavender cookies have become legend.
Lavender can be used in many other baked goods, too. And, I also use powdered sugar flavored with Read the rest of this entry »
My friend was in the South of France, and all I got was this bloomin’ photograph
Well, actually, I got several photos of happy herbs with a view of the Mediterranean.
My friend Maureen called me last week from an aerie in the South of France, describing how much I’d appreciate the fact that a balcony, adorned with herbs, wrapped around the length of the place — which, by-the-way, looked out on the Mediterranean. And, of course, the weather was lovely. The photos she took bear witness to these facts.
So here I sit, staring out on a Chicago morning and longing for the Cote D’Azur… And the day when the herbs on my balcony will rival the ones sunning themselves within the friendly confines of this post. Usually, I wait and sow my herb seeds directly into their pots outside when the weather is right. But, a week or so ago I planted a few of them inside using peat pellets and the mini-greenhouse system — just to get a jump on things.
A picturesque stucco wall flanks the wrap- around balcony at the Villefranche sur Mer flat.
Marjoram, thyme, oregano, sage and spearmint got the advance treatment, while I’ll probably toss my basil seeds directly into their clay pots this week and perch them on a windowsill to sprout. I Read the rest of this entry »
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