Just a few weeks later, it was looking like this:
It was so fun to walk a few feet from the kitchen and snip all the fresh herbs we needed for all our culinary experiments! The bottom of these grow boxes holds many gallons of water which is wicked up into the soil, so I only needed to replenish the tank once a week or so, and everything grew beautifully. In the hottest part of the summer the very largest plants drank a lot more water and needed the tank filled more often, but most of the time they needed very little attention. I love these boxes!
Today I went out to do a little garden grooming in the boxes. Here's how it looked in mid-winter. Not too pretty, but hey! The parsley is coming back in the middle of the clump and I still have thyme and even a tiny little cilantro (which you can't see in this photo because of the messy old plant material all around)! It looks like the chives are starting to come back, too. The green in the far container is spinach. I didn't take an "after" photo, but if I did you would see that the boxes are now clean and trim, and ready for new plants around the remaining survivors.
Which brings me to the "Bottles" part of my blog. Yep, I planted some seeds in these plastic liter bottles on my bedroom windowsill. There's Chard, Kale, and more cilantro. As soon as they come up I'll put them outside to harden off, then into the boxes they will go so I'll have an early crop of greens in a few weeks. Hopefully. That's if Winter doesn't pack a surprise punch and freeze everything beyond repair. Chard and Kale are quite cold hardy, though, so they stand a very good chance of surviving. Later on, when it really warms up, I'll get more herbs going. I can't wait!
7 comments:
There's something about this deep, dark part of January that gets us all itching for spring and light and warmth, I think. I don't have your green thumb, but I sure admire all the wonderful results!
I assume your bottles have a "lift off lid" feature? Surely you didn't plant those seeds with tweezers, like the old "ship in a bottle"?
If you look closely just above the soil line you can see where these bottles have been sliced almost all the way around (except for a small one inch "hinge"). After the seeds are planted the "lid" is taped to the bottom portion... that's the dark square you see (it's duct tape). Planting in this manner keeps the soil moist while the seed germinates, and outside, it protects the seedling from wind and frost. It's a mini greenhouse!
Ooooooh. I was just about to ask, but I saw your explanation. Good luck!
Where did you get the self watering boxes? They look like a great idea!!
Here:
http://www.agardenpatch.com/home.php?cat=354
I saw a similar product locally, but it cost nearly twice as much. We ordered three of these online and they were delivered within a week. The boxes have done so well (and of course they will last for years!) that we are considering getting more.
Maybe we can get a group together and get 10 as a group. It looks like that is the best deal. I would love to get two myself.
Well, if you want to make some inquiries, sure. I have room on my deck for one more...it's the only place that is safe from deer! :)
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