Urban Farming Externship - Week 10

What a busy week it's been! The vegetables I planted last weekend have been babied all week and they are doing great! One of the things I learned from Alex is that plants in Arizona really need their shade; so we put up umbrellas for the time being, but our next project is to get some shade cloth up. Here's a picture of those little guys: (kale, broccoli, Rainbow Chard, and Graffiti Cauliflower) 

This morning I woke up and headed out to Viliardi Gardens where I had the pleasure of working with the owner, Suzanne. I had a great time with her and learned a ton! I have to apologize for the lack of pictures, I got caught up in plant babies and forgot to take more. :) I labeled a few different plants, planted a couple of varieties of onion, started a few different varieties of nasturtium, and transplanted mint! 

I learned today that new mint plants can be started with just a couple of inches of root. This is why they say to always plant mint in it's own container - it can really take over your garden! I always wondered why they said that!

I also learned a bit more about Tulsi Basil. Tulsi is also referred to as Holy Basil, and it is one of the most sacred plants in Hinduism. Suzanne gave me two varieties of Tulsi - Krishna and Lakshmi - each named after an important Hindu god. It is said that they should be grown together near your home to bring prosperity to your family. I put my Krishna and Lakshmi Tulsi in the raised bed, but I'd like to get a special container for them in the future. 

Once I got home I finally got some plants in my wicking bed! I filled it with water, planted them, sprinkled a bit of organic fertilizer, then top watered them just because it was so dry. After I finished planting, I decided to top off the water in my bed. Judging by how much more water it took in, I'm guessing that the soil had already soaked up quite a bit! I'm hoping that means it's working! I'll post an update of their progress next week. 

Next Saturday I plan on working with Suzanne again. I'd also like to get some shade cloth up between now and then for the new babies. Until then, here's a picture of another happy, happy plant - my roses! All of my bushes have new growth and two of them are blooming again! I think that's the signal for the end of our summer and the beginning of fall. :)