As I have been writing about for months, it seems that our apartment has a bit of a spider mite problem (though things might be under control at the moment). So far most of the approaches I have tried have failed and meant that I have had to get rid of quite a number of plants. Anyway, the result of this situation that returning to a spider mite free condition is a bit of a dream of mine. Such a condition would allow me to grow all kinds of plants indoors and maybe acquire a few more that seem interesting (coffee tree, hops vines, and a hibiscus). Until the apartment is clean I really can't consider adding any fancy plants to the environment.
At least that is what I thought until a little earlier this evening.
While looking through a Richter's seed catalogue earlier this evening I ended up coming to the tobacco seed section. As I have been interested in growing my own tobacco since at least junior high I thought I would look at the blurbs to see what they said and to see whether or not the seeds would be economically feasible. It turns out that not only are the seeds economically feasible, but that wild tobacco "is a source of nicotine sulfate, an insecticide for the control of aphids, thrips, whiteflies and mites."
It sounds as though this may be one of the few plants that might be of use to me in my battle against the spider mites.
If you are wondering, it seems that growing tobacco in a personal garden is viable but the curing and aging processes are very difficult without the proper facilities. So while I may be able to grow tobacco plants, don't expect me to start trying to sell any on the side.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Balcony Garden Update 3
It has been a few days, so I thought I would throw up a few more photos of our balcony garden. In the interim, I planted a few more seeds. I planted a few more pots worth of peas, one pot with radishes, and a few pots with sage. It is still too early for any signs of growth to be visible, though I expect the radishes to be making themselves known in the very near future.
For a fast growing vine, the thunbergia seems to be rather slow growing, or maybe I have unreasonable expectations. I guess the good news is that these plants are actually making progress after a very slow start.
The scarlet runner beans next to the column are definitely starting to take off. In the past few days a few of the runners have become tall enough to start making their way around the column. Actually, aside from only a few of the plants, most of the plants seem to be working their way along one of the two strings I have wrapped around the column for them to grow along. I guess give the slow start it shouldn't be too surprising that none of them are showing signs of blooms or beans.
The tomatoes are continuing to grow taller with every day. Also, more of them are showing things that I assume will eventually turn into blooms, though no blooms are presently visible. A few days ago a friend reminded me that there is some kind of pruning recommendation when it comes to tomatoes, so that energy is directed towards fruit production rather than stalk production. Unfortunately, I don't exactly know what I am supposed to prune. I guess I will have to head back to one of the books I have from the library about growing vegetable indoors.
The peas are growing slowly, but still growing. I think that at least part of the problem is that the soil in which most of peas are planted is less than ideal. None of the plants in this soil seem to be thriving. I wonder how much larger the pea plants will need to be before they start producing peas.
The beans in the planter seem to be growing more quickly than any of the other plants. One or two of the plants seem to be able to produce 2-3 inches of new growth on a good day. The yellow beans, though not as tall as the scarlet runner beans, are also growing quite nicely. The tall, thin pot to the left of the planter has the recently planted radish seeds. The pots to the right of the planter have the recently planted peas.
The pepper plant seems to be fine. I have seen no evidence of spider mites since I moved it outdoors and gave it a few doses of anti-spider mite treatment.
As a point of information, these photos were taken yesterday. I wasn't able to post them in the hours after they were taken, as I typically would, because we lost phone and internet service for a few hours yesterday. Fortunately, by about 1:00 AM this morning everything was back to normal and we were able to resume our web 2.0 lives.
For a fast growing vine, the thunbergia seems to be rather slow growing, or maybe I have unreasonable expectations. I guess the good news is that these plants are actually making progress after a very slow start.
The scarlet runner beans next to the column are definitely starting to take off. In the past few days a few of the runners have become tall enough to start making their way around the column. Actually, aside from only a few of the plants, most of the plants seem to be working their way along one of the two strings I have wrapped around the column for them to grow along. I guess give the slow start it shouldn't be too surprising that none of them are showing signs of blooms or beans.
The tomatoes are continuing to grow taller with every day. Also, more of them are showing things that I assume will eventually turn into blooms, though no blooms are presently visible. A few days ago a friend reminded me that there is some kind of pruning recommendation when it comes to tomatoes, so that energy is directed towards fruit production rather than stalk production. Unfortunately, I don't exactly know what I am supposed to prune. I guess I will have to head back to one of the books I have from the library about growing vegetable indoors.
The peas are growing slowly, but still growing. I think that at least part of the problem is that the soil in which most of peas are planted is less than ideal. None of the plants in this soil seem to be thriving. I wonder how much larger the pea plants will need to be before they start producing peas.
The beans in the planter seem to be growing more quickly than any of the other plants. One or two of the plants seem to be able to produce 2-3 inches of new growth on a good day. The yellow beans, though not as tall as the scarlet runner beans, are also growing quite nicely. The tall, thin pot to the left of the planter has the recently planted radish seeds. The pots to the right of the planter have the recently planted peas.
The pepper plant seems to be fine. I have seen no evidence of spider mites since I moved it outdoors and gave it a few doses of anti-spider mite treatment.
As a point of information, these photos were taken yesterday. I wasn't able to post them in the hours after they were taken, as I typically would, because we lost phone and internet service for a few hours yesterday. Fortunately, by about 1:00 AM this morning everything was back to normal and we were able to resume our web 2.0 lives.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Does this make me a paparazzo or does it just make me creepy?
Almost immediately after I awoke this morning Neil asked me if I was interested in going to see Steven Harper, Canada's Prime Minister. It seems that Neil had learned that Harper was to be making some kind of announcement with Darrell Dexter at the Pier 21 Museum. It turns out that the announcement was about the Pier 21 museum becoming the a national museum, like the Museum of Civilization or the National Gallery. If you are interested the announcement has been covered by CBC and CTV.
Given my inclination to see politicians in the flesh I decided to join him on the trip.
Shortly after we arrived at Pier 21 we learned that the actual announcement session was not open to the public. We decided to camp out across from the vehicles associated with Harper's entourage. I assumed that staying by his security personnel would give us indications about when he was likely to exit the building, an (obvious) assumption that turned out to be pretty on the money.
Unfortunately, it seems that we arrived long before people began to exit the building. We also seem to have arrived long before any of the others hoping to get a glimpse of Harper.
Eventually, after maybe an hour, we talked to a security guard who said something about seeing Peter MacKay, Newfoundland's voice in Cabinet, someone we never did end up seeing. At about the same time our local MHA/MLA, Leonard Preyra, came out and ended up walking right past us, making us feel a little awkward as we had just been taking photos of him. Presumably he was there because the museum is in his district.
A few minutes later we saw Peter Kelly, Halifax's mayor, and Darrell Dexter, the newly elected Premier of Nova Scotia, exit together. Unfortunately it was hard to get a picture of them together as Kelly was literally running towards his car. We only managed to get a snap of the back of his head, at least I presume it is his head.
Eventually things began to pick up and the motorcade vehicles moved into position near the door. The best part about this was that once they were in position they completely blocked the Lieutenant Governor's exit. She had to make her way through the motorcade to her limo, which then had a few issues with the curb. All in all, it was rather undignified and I felt that she somehow drew the short end of the stick when it came to car access. I really would have imagined that the two groups would have managed to coordinate so that everyone could make a successful exit from the building.
[Embedded Video]
Shortly thereafter Harper came out, waved, and got in his car. Within about a minute of his exit from the building he had taken off and almost all signs of the Prime Minister's visit were gone.
After the Primer Minister had taken off just about the only things that remained to indicate that something had happened were the two TV trucks that were still hanging around.
CTV's was a little smaller. We were wondering if they were sensitive about this.
The other car that we saw that was a little strange appears to be a military car, though we don't know who the guest of honour was. What we do know is that the thing above the license plate with two stars was covered until just before it picked up its passenger.
On our way home I stopped to pick up a coffee. As we were heading back to the apartment, with coffee in hand, I noticed that Mr. Lahey was standing across the street talking to some guys. As we had our cameras handy I snapped a pic of this local Halifax celebrity in his local environment.
If you can count spotting famous or influential people as being productive, today has been a pretty productive day so far.
Given my inclination to see politicians in the flesh I decided to join him on the trip.
Shortly after we arrived at Pier 21 we learned that the actual announcement session was not open to the public. We decided to camp out across from the vehicles associated with Harper's entourage. I assumed that staying by his security personnel would give us indications about when he was likely to exit the building, an (obvious) assumption that turned out to be pretty on the money.
Unfortunately, it seems that we arrived long before people began to exit the building. We also seem to have arrived long before any of the others hoping to get a glimpse of Harper.
Eventually, after maybe an hour, we talked to a security guard who said something about seeing Peter MacKay, Newfoundland's voice in Cabinet, someone we never did end up seeing. At about the same time our local MHA/MLA, Leonard Preyra, came out and ended up walking right past us, making us feel a little awkward as we had just been taking photos of him. Presumably he was there because the museum is in his district.
A few minutes later we saw Peter Kelly, Halifax's mayor, and Darrell Dexter, the newly elected Premier of Nova Scotia, exit together. Unfortunately it was hard to get a picture of them together as Kelly was literally running towards his car. We only managed to get a snap of the back of his head, at least I presume it is his head.
Eventually things began to pick up and the motorcade vehicles moved into position near the door. The best part about this was that once they were in position they completely blocked the Lieutenant Governor's exit. She had to make her way through the motorcade to her limo, which then had a few issues with the curb. All in all, it was rather undignified and I felt that she somehow drew the short end of the stick when it came to car access. I really would have imagined that the two groups would have managed to coordinate so that everyone could make a successful exit from the building.
[Embedded Video]
Shortly thereafter Harper came out, waved, and got in his car. Within about a minute of his exit from the building he had taken off and almost all signs of the Prime Minister's visit were gone.
After the Primer Minister had taken off just about the only things that remained to indicate that something had happened were the two TV trucks that were still hanging around.
CTV's was a little smaller. We were wondering if they were sensitive about this.
The other car that we saw that was a little strange appears to be a military car, though we don't know who the guest of honour was. What we do know is that the thing above the license plate with two stars was covered until just before it picked up its passenger.
On our way home I stopped to pick up a coffee. As we were heading back to the apartment, with coffee in hand, I noticed that Mr. Lahey was standing across the street talking to some guys. As we had our cameras handy I snapped a pic of this local Halifax celebrity in his local environment.
If you can count spotting famous or influential people as being productive, today has been a pretty productive day so far.
A Few Quick Notes 330
-Well, today was another rather unpleasant, overcast day. Though we didn't have too much rain during the daylight hours, we were hit rather hard last night. I imagine that all of the rain we have received in the past few days means that the local playing fields are drenched, which isn't good for our Ultimate game on Sunday, particularly as we are likely to have more rain between now and then.
-On top of all of the rain we have been getting it has also been quite humid. This humidity is making things quite unpleasant. It seems that I feel sticky and unpleasant even though it is only in the high teens.
-Amazingly, the plants seem to be continuing to grow even though they haven't received much direct sun in the past few days. It seems that the beans, those in the planter and those next to the column, are growing more quickly that they have grown so far. With regards to the beans near the column, I am hoping that I some of them will complete their first loop in just a few days.
-Neil surprised me with a purchase he made this afternoon. It seems that while he was shopping he encountered a set of port sippers at a local store. These items are designed to allow one to drink from the bottom of your glass of port to reduce oxidization, and thus have a better port drinking experience. Obviously a well stocked apartment shouldn't be without a set of these.
We decided to test them out with some Newman's Port this evening.
-A few days ago Neil surprised me with another purchase, an apron. I was quite pleased to get this apron as it should allow me to keep some of my clothes a little cleaner while cooking.
-While I was making my way through the grocery store this afternoon I decided to pick up a pound of butter. While I was checking out prices I discovered that one of the brands was on sale for $2.50, a price which is about $2.29 less than normal. I scooped us six pounds, four of which I have stashed in our freezer. I may have to head back before Friday to pick up a few more, opportunities like this don't come along every day.
-A few days ago I received a candy thermometer from my sister. Today I decided to flip through the Joy of Cooking and find a recipe to make. Eventually I settled on Turtles, which are basically pecans, caramel, and chocolate. While they don't look like much, they are quite edible. I am generally pleased with the results given that it was my first attempt at candy making in a number of years.
-I am incredibly tired. I didn't get to sleep until the sun was rising this morning and then didn't get a chance to take a nap today, and it is now past midnight. Unfortunately this means that I wasn't able to use my sleep shortage to get myself to go to bed early.
-On top of all of the rain we have been getting it has also been quite humid. This humidity is making things quite unpleasant. It seems that I feel sticky and unpleasant even though it is only in the high teens.
-Amazingly, the plants seem to be continuing to grow even though they haven't received much direct sun in the past few days. It seems that the beans, those in the planter and those next to the column, are growing more quickly that they have grown so far. With regards to the beans near the column, I am hoping that I some of them will complete their first loop in just a few days.
-Neil surprised me with a purchase he made this afternoon. It seems that while he was shopping he encountered a set of port sippers at a local store. These items are designed to allow one to drink from the bottom of your glass of port to reduce oxidization, and thus have a better port drinking experience. Obviously a well stocked apartment shouldn't be without a set of these.
We decided to test them out with some Newman's Port this evening.
-A few days ago Neil surprised me with another purchase, an apron. I was quite pleased to get this apron as it should allow me to keep some of my clothes a little cleaner while cooking.
-While I was making my way through the grocery store this afternoon I decided to pick up a pound of butter. While I was checking out prices I discovered that one of the brands was on sale for $2.50, a price which is about $2.29 less than normal. I scooped us six pounds, four of which I have stashed in our freezer. I may have to head back before Friday to pick up a few more, opportunities like this don't come along every day.
-A few days ago I received a candy thermometer from my sister. Today I decided to flip through the Joy of Cooking and find a recipe to make. Eventually I settled on Turtles, which are basically pecans, caramel, and chocolate. While they don't look like much, they are quite edible. I am generally pleased with the results given that it was my first attempt at candy making in a number of years.
-I am incredibly tired. I didn't get to sleep until the sun was rising this morning and then didn't get a chance to take a nap today, and it is now past midnight. Unfortunately this means that I wasn't able to use my sleep shortage to get myself to go to bed early.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Finally, a successful harvest
Since arriving in Halifax late last August I have tried growing a variety of plants with the intention that they may eventually provide me with some type of edible content. For the most part, this has been a monumental failure. The plants that have grown haven't really provided that much edible content, and good number of plants have become infested with spider mites and thus had to be terminated. Consequently, after almost ten months of active growing I have harvested not much more than a few sprigs of thyme and a bean or two.
Given this backdrop of failure, I am quite pleased to let you know that tonight I was able to successfully use some bean sprouts that I have been growing for the past few days. Somehow I was able to turn 30 cents worth of mung bean seeds into enough bean sprouts for a stir-fry for all three of us.
While the bean sprouts don't exactly look like those that you might purchase in a store, I was generally satisfied with their flavour and texture (though they didn't have much of either). Given the relative ease with which I was able to grow these bean sprouts I am quite certain that I will have to give this another shot at some point in the future, though only when I know I will be interested in using a batch of bean sprouts.
While I was growing the sprouts I took a few photos. The first photo is of an early stage of the growing process. At this point the beans had been soaked overnight and then had the water drained.
Twice a day I rinsed the beans and returned them to my closet. Eventually I had to move the operation from an empty jam jar to a larger container as beans had overgrown the original apparatus.
After a few days the sprouts began to look like more traditional bean sprouts, though without the same uniformity that is so common with machine grown sprouts.
This final photo is of the sprouts just before they were added to the stir-fry. All-in-all, less time/labour costs, I think I saved about $1.20 by doing in myself instead of buying bean sprouts and managed to secure for myself an immense sense of personal satisfaction.
Given this backdrop of failure, I am quite pleased to let you know that tonight I was able to successfully use some bean sprouts that I have been growing for the past few days. Somehow I was able to turn 30 cents worth of mung bean seeds into enough bean sprouts for a stir-fry for all three of us.
While the bean sprouts don't exactly look like those that you might purchase in a store, I was generally satisfied with their flavour and texture (though they didn't have much of either). Given the relative ease with which I was able to grow these bean sprouts I am quite certain that I will have to give this another shot at some point in the future, though only when I know I will be interested in using a batch of bean sprouts.
While I was growing the sprouts I took a few photos. The first photo is of an early stage of the growing process. At this point the beans had been soaked overnight and then had the water drained.
Twice a day I rinsed the beans and returned them to my closet. Eventually I had to move the operation from an empty jam jar to a larger container as beans had overgrown the original apparatus.
After a few days the sprouts began to look like more traditional bean sprouts, though without the same uniformity that is so common with machine grown sprouts.
This final photo is of the sprouts just before they were added to the stir-fry. All-in-all, less time/labour costs, I think I saved about $1.20 by doing in myself instead of buying bean sprouts and managed to secure for myself an immense sense of personal satisfaction.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 329
-For as long as I have been awake today the sky has been overcast. Only late this afternoon did things finally make the transition to full-fledged rain, which is fine, I guess, considering that we haven't really had much rain since last weekend.
Unfortunately, this weather, if the Environment Canada forecast means anything, is to be the start of a rather bad patch that is presently predicted to extend to the end of the current seven day forecast. I was particularly taken with the graphic accompanying the forecast. Talk about uplifting and inspirational.
-Neil and I are scheduled to play two games of Ultimate tomorrow, though I am little worried that the weather may interfere with our plans. If it is raining I really have no idea what happens or when we might play the games. As of right now Neil and I haven't managed to arrange for rides to the game.
-I made chicken noodle soup and corn bread for dinner. I thought that both dishes were rather tasty.
-In anticipation of the rain and thundershowers in the aforementioned forecast I have moved most of balcony garden plants from the brickwork to the floor. The idea is that the wall will protect most of the plants from strong winds. Assuming the forecast holds, the plants will likely be in this position for some number of days.
-After moving the plants I finally got around to putting up some strings for the beans in the planter. One of the plants was already tall enough to be wrapped around the string, while another one or two are quite close to being tall enough to start making their journey up the string. I am hoping that the scarlet runner beans and the string set-up will provide support for the few yellow bean plants that are also in the planter.
Unfortunately, this weather, if the Environment Canada forecast means anything, is to be the start of a rather bad patch that is presently predicted to extend to the end of the current seven day forecast. I was particularly taken with the graphic accompanying the forecast. Talk about uplifting and inspirational.
-Neil and I are scheduled to play two games of Ultimate tomorrow, though I am little worried that the weather may interfere with our plans. If it is raining I really have no idea what happens or when we might play the games. As of right now Neil and I haven't managed to arrange for rides to the game.
-I made chicken noodle soup and corn bread for dinner. I thought that both dishes were rather tasty.
-In anticipation of the rain and thundershowers in the aforementioned forecast I have moved most of balcony garden plants from the brickwork to the floor. The idea is that the wall will protect most of the plants from strong winds. Assuming the forecast holds, the plants will likely be in this position for some number of days.
-After moving the plants I finally got around to putting up some strings for the beans in the planter. One of the plants was already tall enough to be wrapped around the string, while another one or two are quite close to being tall enough to start making their journey up the string. I am hoping that the scarlet runner beans and the string set-up will provide support for the few yellow bean plants that are also in the planter.
Really, this exists?
Recently I was going through my change looking for loonies and quarters to add to the laundry money pile when I noticed that one of my loonies looked particularly new, and a little different. Upon closer inspection I learned that I was in possession of a loonie commemorating the 100 year anniversary of the Montreal Canadians, an NHL hockey team.
I am really not sure exactly how I feel about this development. In many ways I understand that the Habs and hockey hold a special place in the hearts of many Canadians. I understand that people might want to celebrate a 100th anniversary with commemorative coins and stamps. In this case the Metro chain of grocery stores also seems to be involved as the sole distributor of the coins, presumably to encourage Habs fans to go to a Metro if they want to get copies of the coin. I guess I just find interesting that official currency is being used to promote the business interests of private companies.
On the other hand, if such ventures are cost-shared between the Mint and the Habs (and Metro) this may be a way of reducing the costs of currency production for tax-payers in a rather innovative and positive way. I guess I wonder how expandable such a program is. While I, and other Canadians, might be willing to see team logos of the Habs or the Leafs on coins on important anniversaries, would I feel comfortable allowing any company or group with sufficient funds to advertise by way of buying the tails side of a coin? If you allowed such a coin for They Bay would there be much public outcry? Now that such a precedent has been set will it be harder for the Mint to turn down such offers from other enterprises, and should I worry about this possible commercialization of the currency system.
Interestingly, it seems that this is by no means the first Canadian coin with a NHL team logo to exist (though I get the sense it is the first in regular circulation). When I checked out some of the Mint's sports related collectibles I found that most Canadian NHL teams already have collector's sets. At the moment I can find no evidence of the Mint selling coins with the logos of more traditional businesses, but it just doesn't seem to be that much of a stretch to think that they could exist in the not too distant future and that it might be nice to have some public discussion of such a change before it is implemented (I don't mean to suggest that such a plan is in the works, just that it seems plausible given the current practice of putting sports logos on coins).
I am really not sure exactly how I feel about this development. In many ways I understand that the Habs and hockey hold a special place in the hearts of many Canadians. I understand that people might want to celebrate a 100th anniversary with commemorative coins and stamps. In this case the Metro chain of grocery stores also seems to be involved as the sole distributor of the coins, presumably to encourage Habs fans to go to a Metro if they want to get copies of the coin. I guess I just find interesting that official currency is being used to promote the business interests of private companies.
On the other hand, if such ventures are cost-shared between the Mint and the Habs (and Metro) this may be a way of reducing the costs of currency production for tax-payers in a rather innovative and positive way. I guess I wonder how expandable such a program is. While I, and other Canadians, might be willing to see team logos of the Habs or the Leafs on coins on important anniversaries, would I feel comfortable allowing any company or group with sufficient funds to advertise by way of buying the tails side of a coin? If you allowed such a coin for They Bay would there be much public outcry? Now that such a precedent has been set will it be harder for the Mint to turn down such offers from other enterprises, and should I worry about this possible commercialization of the currency system.
Interestingly, it seems that this is by no means the first Canadian coin with a NHL team logo to exist (though I get the sense it is the first in regular circulation). When I checked out some of the Mint's sports related collectibles I found that most Canadian NHL teams already have collector's sets. At the moment I can find no evidence of the Mint selling coins with the logos of more traditional businesses, but it just doesn't seem to be that much of a stretch to think that they could exist in the not too distant future and that it might be nice to have some public discussion of such a change before it is implemented (I don't mean to suggest that such a plan is in the works, just that it seems plausible given the current practice of putting sports logos on coins).
A Few Quick Notes 328
-Though much of today was somewhat overcast it was generally pleasant. The rain I expected to start at any time held off, though it may have lead to things being a little more humid that they would have been otherwise.
-I managed to get around to moving all of the plants from my windowsill. The area has now been cleaned and the plants sprayed with miticide. I also sprayed a few of the other plants that had been in my room. Over the next day or two I am hoping to spray most of the other house plants and completing a wash of one of the plant stands in the living room. Hopefully this more aggressive approach will be enough to take care of the spider mite problem for good (though I am hesitant to put too much hope in any of these solutions).
-I had roast potatoes and barbecued steaklets (small steaks) for dinner tonight. I really enjoyed the meal.
-This evening a friend came over and we played a few games of Monopoly Deal, a card game Neil purchased yesterday night while we were at the mall. Though the game allows for rather drastic swings from time to time, it was an overall pleasant experience and much faster than regular Monopoly. I think that we would all give it a thumbs up as a relatively relaxed multi-player game.
-Recently I have been talking about trying to grow some bean sprouts. At the moment I am in the midst of my first batch. So far things are going well. The only problem I have encountered so far is that the container I started with wasn't big enough so I had to move the operation to a larger container this evening. I am a little worried that this new container also won't be larger enough. Hopefully I will have a few pictures to post in a few days time, or whenever it is that I decide to harvest the sprouts.
-I managed to get around to moving all of the plants from my windowsill. The area has now been cleaned and the plants sprayed with miticide. I also sprayed a few of the other plants that had been in my room. Over the next day or two I am hoping to spray most of the other house plants and completing a wash of one of the plant stands in the living room. Hopefully this more aggressive approach will be enough to take care of the spider mite problem for good (though I am hesitant to put too much hope in any of these solutions).
-I had roast potatoes and barbecued steaklets (small steaks) for dinner tonight. I really enjoyed the meal.
-This evening a friend came over and we played a few games of Monopoly Deal, a card game Neil purchased yesterday night while we were at the mall. Though the game allows for rather drastic swings from time to time, it was an overall pleasant experience and much faster than regular Monopoly. I think that we would all give it a thumbs up as a relatively relaxed multi-player game.
-Recently I have been talking about trying to grow some bean sprouts. At the moment I am in the midst of my first batch. So far things are going well. The only problem I have encountered so far is that the container I started with wasn't big enough so I had to move the operation to a larger container this evening. I am a little worried that this new container also won't be larger enough. Hopefully I will have a few pictures to post in a few days time, or whenever it is that I decide to harvest the sprouts.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Balcony Garden Update 2
Given that we are now in the midst of growing season, meaning that most of the plants are actually showing signs of growth, I thought I might provide another update on our balcony garden. Not surprisingly, this, after weeks of very slow growth, really pleases me. At the rate things are going right now we might actually be able to harvest something before the end of the summer, though I probably shouldn't set my sights to high as there is still plenty of time for things to get messed up.
In honour of Newton's discovery of gravity I will start at the top and work my way down.
Last weekend I transplanted some small thunbergia seedlings into these hanging pots. Though the package advertises this plant as a "fast growing vine" I haven't yet seem much evidence to suggest that this is the case, as they are presently neither fast growing nor vine like. I am hoping that the larger pots will encourage more aggressive growth, but I think I may just be kidding myself. (Oh, and this is the pot with the bigger plants, the other four plants are pretty small compared to these).
After several weeks of being battered by stunting cross-winds the scarlet runner beans seem to be taking particular advantage of the reduced wind activity we have been having recently. Three or four of the plants are now tall enough to start making their way along the guide strings around the column. A few more are within a few centimeters of being tall enough to start making their way along the strings. I am hoping that once they start following the string the wind issue will be less significant and growth will be more regular.
While the tomato plants don't seem to be making too much upward progress, they do seem to be developing new leaves and continuing to grow in a general sense. While I have found buds on one plant, I have seen no signs that these buds are really making any movement towards the flower stage or that buds are about to develop on any of the other plants. I really think that part of my problem might be pot size and the number of plants per pot, but there isn't much I can do about that now.
The lettuce in this pot and another smaller pot seem to be slowly growing. Now that I have had a little time to think about it, I think that I likely wouldn't go for lettuce in a pot garden. It seems that there are likely better vegetables to grow given the constraints of the growing environment. Anyway, it nice to see that even a poorly chosen vegetable is making some progress.
A few weeks ago when we were in PEI I purchased some pea seeds at a Dollorama. The packaging suggests that the seeds are either for "Lincoln or Homesteader" peas, so I have no idea which type of pea I have planted. It seems that whichever type of pea they are, they are slow to start but then come on strong, or stronger. I am a little curious to see how these plants develop as I am not particularly familiar with pea plants and have no idea how tall I should expect them to grow.
The notable growth trends I mentioned earlier are the two sets of the plants that I purchased last weekend at the local grocery store. Neither the tomatoes or the watermelon (pictured below) seem to to be doing much of anything. I am hoping that this lack of growth is because they were recently transplanted, but I have no idea if this is what is going on. I guess the good thing is that they haven't died.
The bay tree, as was mentioned a few days ago, is in the midst of a growth spurt. Unfortunately, it seems that moving the plant outdoors has slowed some of the growth, which can be quite rapid indoors. Even if the rate of growth has slowed, I think that it is probably worth it if it means that the bay tree can avoid my spider mite problem.
The beans in the planter seem to be growing particularly quickly. I think they owe this to their location, which is on the floor of the balcony, largely out of the wind. In the very near future I will have to rig something for the scarlet runner beans to climb.
The pepper plant is alone because it is presently in a spider mite related quarantine. So far there have been no signs of a return of the spider mites, but I will need to keep an eye on things for a few more days/weeks. Fortunately, the plant doesn't seem to have been too negatively effected by the move outdoors.
While the broccoli, cauliflower, thyme, chives, and smaller pepper plants didn't get their own pictures they seem to be doing well, though they are all (with the exception of one of the thyme plants ) still relatively small and new.
Now you have more information that you ever cared for about our balcony garden. Enjoy.
In honour of Newton's discovery of gravity I will start at the top and work my way down.
Last weekend I transplanted some small thunbergia seedlings into these hanging pots. Though the package advertises this plant as a "fast growing vine" I haven't yet seem much evidence to suggest that this is the case, as they are presently neither fast growing nor vine like. I am hoping that the larger pots will encourage more aggressive growth, but I think I may just be kidding myself. (Oh, and this is the pot with the bigger plants, the other four plants are pretty small compared to these).
After several weeks of being battered by stunting cross-winds the scarlet runner beans seem to be taking particular advantage of the reduced wind activity we have been having recently. Three or four of the plants are now tall enough to start making their way along the guide strings around the column. A few more are within a few centimeters of being tall enough to start making their way along the strings. I am hoping that once they start following the string the wind issue will be less significant and growth will be more regular.
While the tomato plants don't seem to be making too much upward progress, they do seem to be developing new leaves and continuing to grow in a general sense. While I have found buds on one plant, I have seen no signs that these buds are really making any movement towards the flower stage or that buds are about to develop on any of the other plants. I really think that part of my problem might be pot size and the number of plants per pot, but there isn't much I can do about that now.
The lettuce in this pot and another smaller pot seem to be slowly growing. Now that I have had a little time to think about it, I think that I likely wouldn't go for lettuce in a pot garden. It seems that there are likely better vegetables to grow given the constraints of the growing environment. Anyway, it nice to see that even a poorly chosen vegetable is making some progress.
A few weeks ago when we were in PEI I purchased some pea seeds at a Dollorama. The packaging suggests that the seeds are either for "Lincoln or Homesteader" peas, so I have no idea which type of pea I have planted. It seems that whichever type of pea they are, they are slow to start but then come on strong, or stronger. I am a little curious to see how these plants develop as I am not particularly familiar with pea plants and have no idea how tall I should expect them to grow.
The notable growth trends I mentioned earlier are the two sets of the plants that I purchased last weekend at the local grocery store. Neither the tomatoes or the watermelon (pictured below) seem to to be doing much of anything. I am hoping that this lack of growth is because they were recently transplanted, but I have no idea if this is what is going on. I guess the good thing is that they haven't died.
The bay tree, as was mentioned a few days ago, is in the midst of a growth spurt. Unfortunately, it seems that moving the plant outdoors has slowed some of the growth, which can be quite rapid indoors. Even if the rate of growth has slowed, I think that it is probably worth it if it means that the bay tree can avoid my spider mite problem.
The beans in the planter seem to be growing particularly quickly. I think they owe this to their location, which is on the floor of the balcony, largely out of the wind. In the very near future I will have to rig something for the scarlet runner beans to climb.
The pepper plant is alone because it is presently in a spider mite related quarantine. So far there have been no signs of a return of the spider mites, but I will need to keep an eye on things for a few more days/weeks. Fortunately, the plant doesn't seem to have been too negatively effected by the move outdoors.
While the broccoli, cauliflower, thyme, chives, and smaller pepper plants didn't get their own pictures they seem to be doing well, though they are all (with the exception of one of the thyme plants ) still relatively small and new.
Now you have more information that you ever cared for about our balcony garden. Enjoy.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 327
-We had another beautiful day in Halifax. The sun was out, the temperature was pleasant, and it wasn't particularly windy.
-I made another batch of bread this morning. Strangely, I seem to be more productive on days when I make bread. I think it has something to do with me needing to stay awake until the bread is out of the oven. If I can refrain from taking a nap this long I am likely to be able to get some work in before catching a few more minutes of sleep.
-For dinner tonight we had black beans that I prepared in the pressure cooker. I am really starting to like these pressure cooker prepared black beans. Not only are they relatively easy, they are tasty and low-cost.
-After dinner we made our way to the Halifax Shopping Centre (the mall) to run a few errands. Unfortunately, one of the items I was hoping to buy, garden mesh, didn't seem to be stocked in any of the stores we visited. Otherwise I think I would go so far as to call the trip a success.
One of the products I am particularly pleased to have purchased is a miticide, which I hope will help me on my seemingly unending battle against the omnipresent spider mites. This product should be a little more potent than the somewhat ineffectual insecticidal soap. The downside is that apparently one doesn't want to eat any food that has been sprayed with such products.
-On the subject of spider mites, just tonight I observed that my two corn plants were infested. This meant that the plants had to be destroyed, which is rather unfortunate as one of them was just showing the early signs of the development of an ear of corn. The only good news is that this will allow me to move all of my plants out of my bedroom window and disinfect the area. Hopefully when plants are returned to the windowsill in a few weeks the area will be spider mite free.
-To briefly return to our experience in the mall, at one point we were in the paper towel/tissue/toilet paper aisle of a store. As the three of us were making our way down the aisle we passed a middle-aged woman and an employee, who happened to be stocking the shelves. Just as we were passing these two individuals I heard the woman comment that the toilet paper claimed to be made from recycled paper and then, thinking that she really found a flaw in the system, asked the employee "How do they recycle toilet paper?" Amazingly, the employee kept his composure and simply replied that the recycle material that they use comes from other types of paper, not necessarily from toilet paper.
-Watson just made the money in a Pot-Limit Omaha tournament at the World Series of Poker. The WSOP people are providing pretty regular updates and somewhat regular chip counts. Watson is also providing Twitter updates during the breaks, if you are interested.
-I made another batch of bread this morning. Strangely, I seem to be more productive on days when I make bread. I think it has something to do with me needing to stay awake until the bread is out of the oven. If I can refrain from taking a nap this long I am likely to be able to get some work in before catching a few more minutes of sleep.
-For dinner tonight we had black beans that I prepared in the pressure cooker. I am really starting to like these pressure cooker prepared black beans. Not only are they relatively easy, they are tasty and low-cost.
-After dinner we made our way to the Halifax Shopping Centre (the mall) to run a few errands. Unfortunately, one of the items I was hoping to buy, garden mesh, didn't seem to be stocked in any of the stores we visited. Otherwise I think I would go so far as to call the trip a success.
One of the products I am particularly pleased to have purchased is a miticide, which I hope will help me on my seemingly unending battle against the omnipresent spider mites. This product should be a little more potent than the somewhat ineffectual insecticidal soap. The downside is that apparently one doesn't want to eat any food that has been sprayed with such products.
-On the subject of spider mites, just tonight I observed that my two corn plants were infested. This meant that the plants had to be destroyed, which is rather unfortunate as one of them was just showing the early signs of the development of an ear of corn. The only good news is that this will allow me to move all of my plants out of my bedroom window and disinfect the area. Hopefully when plants are returned to the windowsill in a few weeks the area will be spider mite free.
-To briefly return to our experience in the mall, at one point we were in the paper towel/tissue/toilet paper aisle of a store. As the three of us were making our way down the aisle we passed a middle-aged woman and an employee, who happened to be stocking the shelves. Just as we were passing these two individuals I heard the woman comment that the toilet paper claimed to be made from recycled paper and then, thinking that she really found a flaw in the system, asked the employee "How do they recycle toilet paper?" Amazingly, the employee kept his composure and simply replied that the recycle material that they use comes from other types of paper, not necessarily from toilet paper.
-Watson just made the money in a Pot-Limit Omaha tournament at the World Series of Poker. The WSOP people are providing pretty regular updates and somewhat regular chip counts. Watson is also providing Twitter updates during the breaks, if you are interested.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 326
-We had another beautiful, if cool, day today. Strangely, even though the sun appears to be out in full force the temperatures seem to peak at about 20 (or just below), which is fine, but not as warm as I would expect given how the day looks.
-Neil and I attended a frisbee practice this evening. Unfortunately, only four members of our team made it, so it wasn't really much of a practice. While the practice side of things was lacking, it was quite nice to be outside and active for a portion of the evening.
-In the second Asian grocery store I visited today I was able to buy a few mung beans with which I am hoping to grow beans sprouts. I ended up buying all of the beans the store had available for a whopping 30 cents.
At the moment the beans are soaking in water in my closet. I guess if all goes according to plan I should have fresh bean sprouts in about 3 days, though I think that is somewhat optimistic.
-I came across an article in the Guardian today that put me on to the fact that the British Library has scanned all kinds of 19th century newspapers, some of which can be viewed for free, while others are available for a small cost. If you are interested, check it out here.
-Neil and I attended a frisbee practice this evening. Unfortunately, only four members of our team made it, so it wasn't really much of a practice. While the practice side of things was lacking, it was quite nice to be outside and active for a portion of the evening.
-In the second Asian grocery store I visited today I was able to buy a few mung beans with which I am hoping to grow beans sprouts. I ended up buying all of the beans the store had available for a whopping 30 cents.
At the moment the beans are soaking in water in my closet. I guess if all goes according to plan I should have fresh bean sprouts in about 3 days, though I think that is somewhat optimistic.
-I came across an article in the Guardian today that put me on to the fact that the British Library has scanned all kinds of 19th century newspapers, some of which can be viewed for free, while others are available for a small cost. If you are interested, check it out here.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
The return of the spider mites
After several weeks of mite free living I noticed that the pepper plant in my bedroom had quite a number of mites on one of its leaves, though only limited signs of leaf damage (indicating that the mites had not been there long).
I found this rather strange as I have been checking this plant for signs of infestation for the past number of weeks and it has always come up clean. Furthermore, the mites were on one of the highest leaves and seemed to have left most of the other leaves untouched. That the mites would have hit the top leaf and left the other leaves clean strikes me as odd. Wouldn't it have been easier to hit the leaves closer to the ground?
To mitigate the infestation I have removed the most infected leaf from the pepper plant, sprayed it with insecticidal soap, and moved it outdoors. I also moved a few more of the plants from the area (my bedroom windowsill) outdoors and cleaned the window area. I am little worried that some of the other plants in my room may now be susceptible to the infestation, which had previously not affected the plants in my window. Hopefully I caught things early enough to prevent a spread of the mites.
I am really hoping that by the end of this summer the mite problem will be resolved. If not, I really don't know what I will do with some of the plants which I presently have outside that I will need to bring indoors for the fall and winter (particularly the bay tree and the banana, but also the tomato and pepper plants). Anyway, I guess, minimally, I will have to keep an eye out for any new signs of infestation.
I found this rather strange as I have been checking this plant for signs of infestation for the past number of weeks and it has always come up clean. Furthermore, the mites were on one of the highest leaves and seemed to have left most of the other leaves untouched. That the mites would have hit the top leaf and left the other leaves clean strikes me as odd. Wouldn't it have been easier to hit the leaves closer to the ground?
To mitigate the infestation I have removed the most infected leaf from the pepper plant, sprayed it with insecticidal soap, and moved it outdoors. I also moved a few more of the plants from the area (my bedroom windowsill) outdoors and cleaned the window area. I am little worried that some of the other plants in my room may now be susceptible to the infestation, which had previously not affected the plants in my window. Hopefully I caught things early enough to prevent a spread of the mites.
I am really hoping that by the end of this summer the mite problem will be resolved. If not, I really don't know what I will do with some of the plants which I presently have outside that I will need to bring indoors for the fall and winter (particularly the bay tree and the banana, but also the tomato and pepper plants). Anyway, I guess, minimally, I will have to keep an eye out for any new signs of infestation.
A Few Quick Notes 325
-We had another beautiful day in Halifax today. It seems that things have become a little more summer like here than they were last week, though if the forecast can be considered even partially accurate, it seems that we will be back to rain and grey skies by the weekend.
-We ended up losing our Ultimate game on Sunday, though we came within a few points at the end of the game. Unfortunately, for some unknown reason, most of seemed to be playing much better during the second half than in the first half. I know that I was particularly sluggish in the first half (a problem that I have had in both games this season).
A few days ago our schedule for the next three weeks was released. For some reason unbeknownst to any of us we have been scheduled for a double-header next week. Aside from the fact that a few of our players had already suggested that they would have trouble making any Sunday evening game, a number of aren't looking forward to the prospect of playing two games in a row.
-After Sunday's game a number of went to a teammate's house for a post-game barbecue. While sipping on a beer and waiting for the food to be ready I learned that at least on member of our team presently lives on our street, another will be moving into our building shortly, and that the owner of the house used to live on our street. What is particularly impressive about all of this is that our street only a block long and by no means a major thoroughfare. I guess this says something about the desirability of our location.
-Earlier today I started thinking about bean sprouts. I am thinking that if I can find some mung beans at one of the local Chinese grocery stores I may try to grow my own bean sprouts. Fortunately the few internet sources I have read on the topic all suggest the same sprout growing technique, which is nice, because on a number of occasions I haven't found web-based sources to be so consistent.
-I am not quite sure why I have been blogging less this month, but it seems that I have been. I think it may be a sign that I am not spending enough time at my computer doing work. Hopefully I can turn things around starting today/tomorrow.
-On Monday one of the nearby grocery stores was closed for 'renovations.' When I went to the store today I didn't really noticed what had changed. Eventually I realized that one of, and maybe the only, changes was to the contents of each aisle. It seems that most of the dry goods have been re-arranged. This is somewhat annoying as now I don't know where anything is. Maybe tomorrow I will have to head back to do a more thorough search and scope out the locations of my favourite items.
-We ended up losing our Ultimate game on Sunday, though we came within a few points at the end of the game. Unfortunately, for some unknown reason, most of seemed to be playing much better during the second half than in the first half. I know that I was particularly sluggish in the first half (a problem that I have had in both games this season).
A few days ago our schedule for the next three weeks was released. For some reason unbeknownst to any of us we have been scheduled for a double-header next week. Aside from the fact that a few of our players had already suggested that they would have trouble making any Sunday evening game, a number of aren't looking forward to the prospect of playing two games in a row.
-After Sunday's game a number of went to a teammate's house for a post-game barbecue. While sipping on a beer and waiting for the food to be ready I learned that at least on member of our team presently lives on our street, another will be moving into our building shortly, and that the owner of the house used to live on our street. What is particularly impressive about all of this is that our street only a block long and by no means a major thoroughfare. I guess this says something about the desirability of our location.
-Earlier today I started thinking about bean sprouts. I am thinking that if I can find some mung beans at one of the local Chinese grocery stores I may try to grow my own bean sprouts. Fortunately the few internet sources I have read on the topic all suggest the same sprout growing technique, which is nice, because on a number of occasions I haven't found web-based sources to be so consistent.
-I am not quite sure why I have been blogging less this month, but it seems that I have been. I think it may be a sign that I am not spending enough time at my computer doing work. Hopefully I can turn things around starting today/tomorrow.
-On Monday one of the nearby grocery stores was closed for 'renovations.' When I went to the store today I didn't really noticed what had changed. Eventually I realized that one of, and maybe the only, changes was to the contents of each aisle. It seems that most of the dry goods have been re-arranged. This is somewhat annoying as now I don't know where anything is. Maybe tomorrow I will have to head back to do a more thorough search and scope out the locations of my favourite items.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 324
-Though today started off looking rather overcast, by mid-afternoon things had turned around quite nicely. By late in the afternoon one could have safely gone so far as to say that it was a nice day.
-In the last post a I documented the developments of some of the plants on our balcony. It seems that I should probably do the same for the plants in my bedroom.
I guess I might start on the left, with one of the pots that looks as though it isn't doing much. I guess this pot looks as though it isn't doing much because it doesn't seem to be doing much. I planted some corn seeds a while ago but they seem to have done nothing. I will give this a few more days and if there is no growth I will either try planting a little more corn or maybe something different.
The aloe droplets continue to grow more quickly than I would expect a succulent to grow. I think that in the not too distant future I should consider re-potting them, but I guess this will likely have to wait until I have something to put them in that is a little nicer than a margarine container.
The pepper plant's continued growth pleases me a great deal. I am looking forward to the first flowers and peppers so that I may be reminded which type of pepper plant this is (we have a few type so pepper seeds and I can't remember which I planted in this pot).
The corn seems to be doing quite well for the size of the pot in which it is growing. The plant on the left seems to have stopped making upwards progress and now stands at about 41 inches. The plant on the right, whose development has somehow been delayed, continues to grow quite rapidly. Unfortunately, neither of the plants are yet showing signs of the development of ears of corn. I am hoping that such growth will be come visible on the larger plant in the very near future.
The thyme, which, as usual, is difficult to see, continues to grow rapidly. I think that in about a week or so I might be able to harvest a little more, or I might just wait and let the plant grow until I know what I want to do with all of my dried thyme.
The pot furthest to the right has some pepper seeds, one of which sprouted. In this case I am confident that the peppers I planted are a type of pepper that are supposed to produce rather nice looking purple (which turn to red) hot peppers. Hopefully a few more of the seeds will sprout in the coming days.
-The pots in the next window over also seem to be showing signs of growth, but not quite as much as the plants I have already described.
In this row of pots the two at the far end have chives (which are just starting to show signs of growth), the third, fifth, sixth, and seventh have purple hot peppers, while the fourth pot has thyme. Hopefully these plants are at least somewhat visible in this photo.
-We have another ultimate game tomorrow. Unfortunately we didn't get a chance to practice this week because of the rain. I think a practice would have been good as a few of our players are pretty inexperienced and are still unfamiliar with all of the rules. Anyway, I am looking forward to the game (and hope that attempts to arrange will be successful).
-Some time past midnight on Thursday night I had the good fortune to pass a kidney stone. Amazingly, I didn't clue in to what was happening until it had already happened.
I can't tell you want a relief this stone was. Not only did I feel an immediate reduction in general pain and discomfort, knowing that the stone has passed has been incredibly relaxing. After a few months of somewhat regular pain and discomfort you almost forget what it feels like not to have a stone working its way through your system.
-As most of you likely know by now, the NDP won a decisive victory in Tuesday's election. Contrary to the many predictions of doom and despair, the sky has not yet fallen and, as far as I can tell, things seem to be carrying on as were in the past. I will be sure to let you know if things suddenly come to a grinding halt and the world ends.
-In the last post a I documented the developments of some of the plants on our balcony. It seems that I should probably do the same for the plants in my bedroom.
I guess I might start on the left, with one of the pots that looks as though it isn't doing much. I guess this pot looks as though it isn't doing much because it doesn't seem to be doing much. I planted some corn seeds a while ago but they seem to have done nothing. I will give this a few more days and if there is no growth I will either try planting a little more corn or maybe something different.
The aloe droplets continue to grow more quickly than I would expect a succulent to grow. I think that in the not too distant future I should consider re-potting them, but I guess this will likely have to wait until I have something to put them in that is a little nicer than a margarine container.
The pepper plant's continued growth pleases me a great deal. I am looking forward to the first flowers and peppers so that I may be reminded which type of pepper plant this is (we have a few type so pepper seeds and I can't remember which I planted in this pot).
The corn seems to be doing quite well for the size of the pot in which it is growing. The plant on the left seems to have stopped making upwards progress and now stands at about 41 inches. The plant on the right, whose development has somehow been delayed, continues to grow quite rapidly. Unfortunately, neither of the plants are yet showing signs of the development of ears of corn. I am hoping that such growth will be come visible on the larger plant in the very near future.
The thyme, which, as usual, is difficult to see, continues to grow rapidly. I think that in about a week or so I might be able to harvest a little more, or I might just wait and let the plant grow until I know what I want to do with all of my dried thyme.
The pot furthest to the right has some pepper seeds, one of which sprouted. In this case I am confident that the peppers I planted are a type of pepper that are supposed to produce rather nice looking purple (which turn to red) hot peppers. Hopefully a few more of the seeds will sprout in the coming days.
-The pots in the next window over also seem to be showing signs of growth, but not quite as much as the plants I have already described.
In this row of pots the two at the far end have chives (which are just starting to show signs of growth), the third, fifth, sixth, and seventh have purple hot peppers, while the fourth pot has thyme. Hopefully these plants are at least somewhat visible in this photo.
-We have another ultimate game tomorrow. Unfortunately we didn't get a chance to practice this week because of the rain. I think a practice would have been good as a few of our players are pretty inexperienced and are still unfamiliar with all of the rules. Anyway, I am looking forward to the game (and hope that attempts to arrange will be successful).
-Some time past midnight on Thursday night I had the good fortune to pass a kidney stone. Amazingly, I didn't clue in to what was happening until it had already happened.
I can't tell you want a relief this stone was. Not only did I feel an immediate reduction in general pain and discomfort, knowing that the stone has passed has been incredibly relaxing. After a few months of somewhat regular pain and discomfort you almost forget what it feels like not to have a stone working its way through your system.
-As most of you likely know by now, the NDP won a decisive victory in Tuesday's election. Contrary to the many predictions of doom and despair, the sky has not yet fallen and, as far as I can tell, things seem to be carrying on as were in the past. I will be sure to let you know if things suddenly come to a grinding halt and the world ends.
Balcony Garden Update 1
As some of you may have noticed over time, plants frequently have a tendency to grow. It seems that my plants are fitting in quite nicely with this world-wide trend in plant development, sometimes much to my surprise.
As you may recall, some number of weeks ago I planted a number of different types of vegetables in pots on our balcony. Amazingly, most of these have started to show some signs of growth, and some seem even seem to be flourishing.
The tomatoes in the left of this picture continue to grow, though I am sure that the pots they are in are much too small and have too many plants. I am particularly impressed that one, if not two, of the plants seem to be showing growth that look as though they will turn into blooms. The plants in the green pot were purchased today from the local grocery store gardening centre. I am hoping that the pot I have put them isn't too small, though I am pretty sure it is.
The bay laurel, though it is difficult to tell from this angle, is in the midst of a growth spurt. Amazingly, the newer of the two main branches is now taller than the original branch. I am hoping that one or two of the plants buds will soon shoot out their own branches, giving the plant a bit more of a bush like appearance.
The four larger pots of the same size all contain peas. Though the rate of growth was not originally spectacular, things seem to have picked up a little. Some of the seeds I planted in a second round of planting are already showing signs of growth, which seems much faster than the seeds I planted originally. I am incredibly pleased that the cauliflower and broccoli are both still alive and growing. Though they may never become large enough to provide us with a full meal's worth of food, I am just pleased that they are still alive.
The largest terra cotta pot has some watermelon plants that I purchased with the tomatoes. As the watermelon seeds I planted a few days ago hadn't sprouted I decided to wimp out and just buy some plants that were already alive and doing well. I am kind of curious how these plants will develop as there isn't all that much room in the pot, and, if successful, I imagine the plants will have an inclination to spread and seed stalks in all directions.
This planter has a combination of yellow and scarlet runner beans. Based on past experiences with growing beans in pots I am inclined to believe that such a large number of plants will be viable, though I realized it likely looks as though it is pretty crowded. I am hoping that eventually that I will eventually be able to provide something for the scarlet runner beans to climb and that this structure will provide support for the yellow beans in the planter. Of course if they grow at the same rate as the other scarlet runner beans on the balcony this won't be much of an issue, as there won't be much growth to deal with.
As you may recall, some number of weeks ago I planted a number of different types of vegetables in pots on our balcony. Amazingly, most of these have started to show some signs of growth, and some seem even seem to be flourishing.
The tomatoes in the left of this picture continue to grow, though I am sure that the pots they are in are much too small and have too many plants. I am particularly impressed that one, if not two, of the plants seem to be showing growth that look as though they will turn into blooms. The plants in the green pot were purchased today from the local grocery store gardening centre. I am hoping that the pot I have put them isn't too small, though I am pretty sure it is.
The bay laurel, though it is difficult to tell from this angle, is in the midst of a growth spurt. Amazingly, the newer of the two main branches is now taller than the original branch. I am hoping that one or two of the plants buds will soon shoot out their own branches, giving the plant a bit more of a bush like appearance.
The four larger pots of the same size all contain peas. Though the rate of growth was not originally spectacular, things seem to have picked up a little. Some of the seeds I planted in a second round of planting are already showing signs of growth, which seems much faster than the seeds I planted originally. I am incredibly pleased that the cauliflower and broccoli are both still alive and growing. Though they may never become large enough to provide us with a full meal's worth of food, I am just pleased that they are still alive.
The largest terra cotta pot has some watermelon plants that I purchased with the tomatoes. As the watermelon seeds I planted a few days ago hadn't sprouted I decided to wimp out and just buy some plants that were already alive and doing well. I am kind of curious how these plants will develop as there isn't all that much room in the pot, and, if successful, I imagine the plants will have an inclination to spread and seed stalks in all directions.
This planter has a combination of yellow and scarlet runner beans. Based on past experiences with growing beans in pots I am inclined to believe that such a large number of plants will be viable, though I realized it likely looks as though it is pretty crowded. I am hoping that eventually that I will eventually be able to provide something for the scarlet runner beans to climb and that this structure will provide support for the yellow beans in the planter. Of course if they grow at the same rate as the other scarlet runner beans on the balcony this won't be much of an issue, as there won't be much growth to deal with.
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 323
-We had another beautiful day today. For much of the late morning and early afternoon the sun was out in full force. By early evening it was a little more overcast, but this wasn't much of a problem.
-A few days ago when reading about tomatoes and some of the other plants I have been trying to grow I also managed to read that coffee is, apparently, an easy house plant to grow. For the past few minutes I have been trying to find a way to get seeds in Canada. So far my search, though incredibly limited has been rather fruitless.
I do think that it it would be rather cool to have a coffee tree, even if it is only likely to produce a pound a year of coffee.
-One consequence of my search for coffee seeds is that I have now signed up to receive several seed catalogues (though none of these suppliers sell coffee). I am really looking forward to browsing these catalogues once they arrive.
-A few more of my pepper seeds seem to have sprouted. Unlike some of the other peppers I have planted, these are starting out as purple plants (the stem and the leaves). I am curious if this colouration will last, or if they will turn green in the near future.
Strangely, the chives I planted at the same time seem not to have sprouted at all. I find this odd as in the past I have had absolutely no problem getting chives to grow. I am starting to think that be the age of the seeds. If I don't see any action in a few days I may have to consider re-planting or planting something new.
-Today I read a story in the Globe and Mail about blogs and blogging. In the story it was reported that 95% of blogs have not been updated in the past 120 days. This story largely confirms something that I was thinking about a while ago, which is that as far as blogs go, Montifax has had a pretty stellar track record given that we now have more than two full years of regular updates under our belt. Of course, this doesn't really mean anything, particularly when most of our posts are about domestic goings on and whatnot.
-For the first time in a few weeks I went in to the library to work in my library carrel. Of course, when I arrived at the carrel I found that the light had burned out. While I have mentioned it to the proper authorities I have no idea how long it will take to be fixed.
-As we have now passed midnight we are in election day in Nova Scotia. Though some of the more recent polls have suggested that the NDP have a large lead, I am still not exactly sure how things will turn out. For some reason I suspect that Liberal/PC strategic voting may come into play and be a deciding factor in a number of seats. I guess we will find out tomorrow one way or another.
-A few days ago when reading about tomatoes and some of the other plants I have been trying to grow I also managed to read that coffee is, apparently, an easy house plant to grow. For the past few minutes I have been trying to find a way to get seeds in Canada. So far my search, though incredibly limited has been rather fruitless.
I do think that it it would be rather cool to have a coffee tree, even if it is only likely to produce a pound a year of coffee.
-One consequence of my search for coffee seeds is that I have now signed up to receive several seed catalogues (though none of these suppliers sell coffee). I am really looking forward to browsing these catalogues once they arrive.
-A few more of my pepper seeds seem to have sprouted. Unlike some of the other peppers I have planted, these are starting out as purple plants (the stem and the leaves). I am curious if this colouration will last, or if they will turn green in the near future.
Strangely, the chives I planted at the same time seem not to have sprouted at all. I find this odd as in the past I have had absolutely no problem getting chives to grow. I am starting to think that be the age of the seeds. If I don't see any action in a few days I may have to consider re-planting or planting something new.
-Today I read a story in the Globe and Mail about blogs and blogging. In the story it was reported that 95% of blogs have not been updated in the past 120 days. This story largely confirms something that I was thinking about a while ago, which is that as far as blogs go, Montifax has had a pretty stellar track record given that we now have more than two full years of regular updates under our belt. Of course, this doesn't really mean anything, particularly when most of our posts are about domestic goings on and whatnot.
-For the first time in a few weeks I went in to the library to work in my library carrel. Of course, when I arrived at the carrel I found that the light had burned out. While I have mentioned it to the proper authorities I have no idea how long it will take to be fixed.
-As we have now passed midnight we are in election day in Nova Scotia. Though some of the more recent polls have suggested that the NDP have a large lead, I am still not exactly sure how things will turn out. For some reason I suspect that Liberal/PC strategic voting may come into play and be a deciding factor in a number of seats. I guess we will find out tomorrow one way or another.
Sunday, June 07, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 322
-While I seem to remember today being rather overcast, by this afternoon things had turned around and it was a rather impressive day. I have not idea if we will be lucky enough to see this weather continue on to tomorrow.
-The sun of the last few days seems to have helped a few of the plants continue their march onward and upward (most notably the corn). I recently noticed that the bay tree is preparing for another spurt, which will cause the new branch to be taller than the original branch.
-The outdoors plants are growing, but still more slowly than those indoors. Most importantly, I finally got around to doing a little reading on growing vegetables in pots and it seems that I have been screwing a few things up, especially regarding the tomatoes. Hopefully my new knowledge will allow me to get things back on track and encourage a productive growing season.
While I am on the subject of things that I have learned while reading gardening books, it seems that beans, peppers, and tomatoes are all capable of living more than a single year if kept away from frost. This is good to know as all of my tomatoes and peppers are in pots that I should be able to move indoors when we get closer to frost season.
-We had our first ultimate game of the season, as Neil is in St. John's he wasn't able to make it. We had a very strong beginning but weren't able to hold the other team off and ended up losing by about 7 points. Though it would have been nice to win, I think we did pretty well considering how many new players we have on our team.
-The sun of the last few days seems to have helped a few of the plants continue their march onward and upward (most notably the corn). I recently noticed that the bay tree is preparing for another spurt, which will cause the new branch to be taller than the original branch.
-The outdoors plants are growing, but still more slowly than those indoors. Most importantly, I finally got around to doing a little reading on growing vegetables in pots and it seems that I have been screwing a few things up, especially regarding the tomatoes. Hopefully my new knowledge will allow me to get things back on track and encourage a productive growing season.
While I am on the subject of things that I have learned while reading gardening books, it seems that beans, peppers, and tomatoes are all capable of living more than a single year if kept away from frost. This is good to know as all of my tomatoes and peppers are in pots that I should be able to move indoors when we get closer to frost season.
-We had our first ultimate game of the season, as Neil is in St. John's he wasn't able to make it. We had a very strong beginning but weren't able to hold the other team off and ended up losing by about 7 points. Though it would have been nice to win, I think we did pretty well considering how many new players we have on our team.
Thursday, June 04, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 321
-Today has been pretty nice so far, but it seems that in the last few minutes things have started to cloud over a little. Hopefully this doesn't mean impending rain.
-Yesterday Neil and I attended our first Ultimate practice of the season (we missed one a few days ago due to a prior commitment). Generally thing seemed to go well, and it was definitely nice to meet some of the members of the team that we hadn't met before.
Our first game is on Sunday evening. As I haven't played in a few weeks I imagine that this will really tire me out, as first games tend to.
-Neil and Rebecca are back in Newfoundland for a few days leaving Ed and I to our own devices here in the apartment. While I can't speak for Ed, I imagine that most controversial things I may do will likely relate to seed planting and our apartment's plants.
-On the subject of plants, one of the corn plants in my bedroom has really been growing quite rapidly these past few days. I am hoping that the sudden growth spurt is an indication that there will soon ears of corn will start to develop. Even though this plant is much taller than the last corn plant, I don't expect any ears that do grow to even approach full size.
The pepper plant, which is to the left of the corn, seems to be doing nicely. Unfortunately, only one of the seeds that I planted seems to have properly germinated. Two of the other seeds germinated but then became stunted as the seeds' shells got stuck on the top of the shoots and seem to have basically prevented further development. Amazingly, both of these short stalks do seem to still be alive, so maybe there is still some hope for their future survival.
The recently planted corn and pepper seeds are still showing no signs of growth. This is not particularly surprising as far as the peppers are concerned, but a little behind schedule for the corn. I am starting to think that the age of the corn seeds might be part of the problem.
-The balcony garden seems to be growing very slowly. In the past few days a few of the peas have shown signs of growth, but the number of stalks doesn't even come close to the number of seeds that were planted.
The plants that seem to be doing shockingly well, but will surely slow down in the very near future, are the broccoli and cauliflower seeds that I planted a few days ago. In many ways I am just please that they have shown any signs of growth as I really expected them to be a complete shot in the dark. On the other hand, I imagine that growing them in yogurt containers isn't really the way to ensure that they react full size.
-The hole that was cut in our wall a few days ago has received its first coat of plaster. The guy was supposed to come back last night and finish up, but it seems that no one heard him when he knocked on the door to be let in to do the work. The consequence is that I am now killing time (though I do have productive things that I could be doing) while waiting for him to return and complete the job. The real problem is that I fear I may miss the knock and have blown a good portion of my evening.
-Last night, after practice, I made my way to the grocery store before returning home. As I was picking up my purchases after checking out I overheard a woman at a neighbouring aisle, who had also just checked out, ask the cashier whether the olive oil she was holding was in a glass bottle. The incident reminded me of a neighbour kid who used to frequently ask my father what he was doing while he was in the midst of completing rather obvious chores, such as mowing the lawn or shoveling the driveway.
-Yesterday Neil and I attended our first Ultimate practice of the season (we missed one a few days ago due to a prior commitment). Generally thing seemed to go well, and it was definitely nice to meet some of the members of the team that we hadn't met before.
Our first game is on Sunday evening. As I haven't played in a few weeks I imagine that this will really tire me out, as first games tend to.
-Neil and Rebecca are back in Newfoundland for a few days leaving Ed and I to our own devices here in the apartment. While I can't speak for Ed, I imagine that most controversial things I may do will likely relate to seed planting and our apartment's plants.
-On the subject of plants, one of the corn plants in my bedroom has really been growing quite rapidly these past few days. I am hoping that the sudden growth spurt is an indication that there will soon ears of corn will start to develop. Even though this plant is much taller than the last corn plant, I don't expect any ears that do grow to even approach full size.
The pepper plant, which is to the left of the corn, seems to be doing nicely. Unfortunately, only one of the seeds that I planted seems to have properly germinated. Two of the other seeds germinated but then became stunted as the seeds' shells got stuck on the top of the shoots and seem to have basically prevented further development. Amazingly, both of these short stalks do seem to still be alive, so maybe there is still some hope for their future survival.
The recently planted corn and pepper seeds are still showing no signs of growth. This is not particularly surprising as far as the peppers are concerned, but a little behind schedule for the corn. I am starting to think that the age of the corn seeds might be part of the problem.
-The balcony garden seems to be growing very slowly. In the past few days a few of the peas have shown signs of growth, but the number of stalks doesn't even come close to the number of seeds that were planted.
The plants that seem to be doing shockingly well, but will surely slow down in the very near future, are the broccoli and cauliflower seeds that I planted a few days ago. In many ways I am just please that they have shown any signs of growth as I really expected them to be a complete shot in the dark. On the other hand, I imagine that growing them in yogurt containers isn't really the way to ensure that they react full size.
-The hole that was cut in our wall a few days ago has received its first coat of plaster. The guy was supposed to come back last night and finish up, but it seems that no one heard him when he knocked on the door to be let in to do the work. The consequence is that I am now killing time (though I do have productive things that I could be doing) while waiting for him to return and complete the job. The real problem is that I fear I may miss the knock and have blown a good portion of my evening.
-Last night, after practice, I made my way to the grocery store before returning home. As I was picking up my purchases after checking out I overheard a woman at a neighbouring aisle, who had also just checked out, ask the cashier whether the olive oil she was holding was in a glass bottle. The incident reminded me of a neighbour kid who used to frequently ask my father what he was doing while he was in the midst of completing rather obvious chores, such as mowing the lawn or shoveling the driveway.
Monday, June 01, 2009
Unexpected consequences
In a recent post I mentioned that our tub was checked for a leak but in the end it turned out that the leak was in the neighbouring apartment. At the time I thought that this was good news for us and rather unfortunate news for our neighbour. In the short-run at least, it seems that it may actually be the other way around.
This morning, in an attempt to access the neighbour's tub plumbing, building management cut a hole in the wall in our front hall.
Unfortunately, once the hole had been cut they realized that there was plywood blocking access to the desired pipes. The consequence of this mission of discovery is that we now have a rather unsightly hole in our front hall that will need to be repaired in the coming days (and the superintendent has assured us it will be). The other bad news, meaning in addition to the unneeded hole, is that if they cannot fix the leak from above our neighbour's tub will likely have to be removed for the leak to be fixed. This will surely be a rather significant inconvenience.
The other thing that this encounter has taught me is that Neil doesn't keep up with the blog as much as I expected. It seems that he hadn't read the post about the possible leak and was thus surprised to hear about the leak when they came to cut a hole in our wall this morning. This is something of a blow as I imagine that I could at least count on him to be reading this blog on a regular basis, but it seems that this is not the case anymore.
This morning, in an attempt to access the neighbour's tub plumbing, building management cut a hole in the wall in our front hall.
Unfortunately, once the hole had been cut they realized that there was plywood blocking access to the desired pipes. The consequence of this mission of discovery is that we now have a rather unsightly hole in our front hall that will need to be repaired in the coming days (and the superintendent has assured us it will be). The other bad news, meaning in addition to the unneeded hole, is that if they cannot fix the leak from above our neighbour's tub will likely have to be removed for the leak to be fixed. This will surely be a rather significant inconvenience.
The other thing that this encounter has taught me is that Neil doesn't keep up with the blog as much as I expected. It seems that he hadn't read the post about the possible leak and was thus surprised to hear about the leak when they came to cut a hole in our wall this morning. This is something of a blow as I imagine that I could at least count on him to be reading this blog on a regular basis, but it seems that this is not the case anymore.
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