Green tomatoes and swamps

I had hoped to alternate between gardening and baking posts, but I was feeling a bit under the weather on Sunday (my usual baking day), and only managed some chocolate chip oatmeal peanut butter cookies and a lemon poppyseed bundt cake for a co-worker's birthday. Unfortunately I took no pictures of either - the processes or the final product. I will assert, however, that they were tasty.

However, Sunday was an exciting day for the garden - I found my first tomatoes on my Sweet 'n Neat plant, and today I found more on my mysterious middle ground plant (aka not Heirloom)! They look lovely and firm and I am most excited to watch them ripen!

Sunday's first glimpse!

This evening (Thursday). So many! Please don't die before you ripen, I want to eat you.

The newest tomato! On the mysterious plant. You know, I have the tag for this plant - it's just out of reach and I am too lazy to lean out the window and get it. Maybe I want to be surprised. Yes, that's it.

There has been a lull in the strawberries, with only one tasty berry last week. However, there are now several small white berries that should be ready in the next week. I am still visiting Haymarket every week for fresh fruit and vegetables, unfortunately. I think in order to use my own fruits for baking, I would need a significantly larger space. But they are a lovely addition to my breakfast!

On Tuesday, I officially gave up on my questionable container, with two strawberry plants, the pepper plant and the herbs. I walked to Trader Joe's and bought another set of herbs (the same ones - sage, rosemary, and thyme, again tempted to buy some parsley just to round out Scarborough Fair even though I rarely use it in cooking).

So sad looking. You can see the spillage in the top left corner. I'm not sure why the strawberry leaves have turned red, but I'm sure it wasn't a good reason. The rosemary that resembles a three month old Christmas tree is barely visible in the bottom right.

This evening, I got home at a reasonable hour and decided to replant. The container was in much worse shape than I realized. The soil had the consistency of a waterbed - moving the container caused waves throughout the surface. It was also RIDICULOUSLY heavy - my last five weeks of exercising had not prepared me to try to haul a dirt-filled container laden with liquid through my small window. I managed to get it in with only some splashing over the side (sorry neighbors three floors down - hope you don't actually use that little grill much. Or at least that you keep it well covered). I threw out the herbs and pepper plant immediately - they were obviously beyond saving.

The three holes where the herbs had been. When I pulled them out, it was a geyser/volcano effect. I had water bubbling up for several minutes. It was a little grotesque but also mesmerizing. I kept waiting for Ludo to explain that rocks are friends.

The whole container smelled like fresh manure (if you've been so fortunate as to experience that aroma), and I had no idea how to fix it. I want to try to save the two strawberry plants, if possible, as I have no replacements, but they desperately needed to be dried out. I tried soaking up the water with paper towels, but it quickly became apparent that I was using a bandaid on a gushing wound. It was about as effective as me trying to block LeBron James (I don't follow basketball as a rule, but there are slim pickings on network television this evening). So then I tried adding some new potting soil. I have a small bag left of unused soil - not enough to fill the container, and I had no place to throw out the water-soaked soil anyway. Also a poor solution - the new, drier soil just floated on top of the soup, and I was adding weight to the already unmanageable container. The one real puzzle in all of this is that the container is the exact same one as the one where I have my four strawberry plants, which have had no soup problems. Why is this one having such problems!? This bothers the scientist in me.

I threw in the new plants - herbs from Trader Joe's and one of my bell pepper seedlings - and started to haul it back and just hope for the best when I had a brilliant idea. Ok, more of a Hail Mary. I thought maybe the water wasn't getting out (even though, as stated previously, this is the exact same container as another one I own, from which water apparently has no issues escaping). So, how to get it out? I decided to try punching a hole in the bottom of the container. Unfortunately I have not a single nail in my entire apartment, so I ended up using a penknife to bore a hole in the bottom. Not recommended - the penknife is at least 10 years old and I'd prefer not to think about how easily a dull knife that doesn't snap into place could take off a finger or at least reach a tendon.  However, I was rewarded with lovely brown water that began dripping all over my kitchen floor. I made a second hole before hauling it back through the window (more spillage - I actually thought I lost a strawberry plant, but it hung on). This involved much cursing and a tense moment in which I realized a wet tiled floor does not provide good traction when trying to lift sixty pounds entirely with my arms. If the entire container had been filled with lead it would have been easier - at least it would have been solid and not sloshing around. Ugh. If they die this time, I'm leaving them out there. Maybe the next tenant will be a champion weightlifter.

Watching it on the balcony I didn't see any water coming out and I worried that the holes had gotten clogged. Then I realized there is no reason the holes need to be on the bottom (which was quite difficult to access anyway). So I put two holes on the side near the bottom, followed by another two and another two (I get slightly impatient - dry out already!). They are currently all dripping away, and I will check in the morning to see if I can tell a difference in the waterbed consistency. Here's hoping!

The new plants, back out on the balcony. You can make out one of the side holes I made in the bottom left. Looking at it now, I realized I planted the pepper plant WAY too close to the herbs. Of course, this will only be a problem if they all survive -the jury is still out on this, but I'm not betting on it.

PS - I've switched from the NBA to America's Test Kitchen. PBS, I love you and can I borrow your kitchen?

My dog ate my herbs

When I last posted, I expected to have to commit an entry to how my attempts to grow seedlings into real plants were a total failure. However, the herbs have unexpectedly recovered from being eaten by a dog as well as repotting, and I now have three bell pepper plants that are growing well but have no place to be set outside (anybody want one? They are from a mix, so the pepper color will be a surprise). Next year, I think I will skip the seed trays and just plant directly in the container - or skip the seeds altogether and just cop out by buying seedlings. We'll see what's available in Switzerland next spring!

I came home one day to this - apparently the organic fertilizer that comes with the seed tray is quite tasty for canines. She suffered no ill effects, which I suppose I should be grateful for.

I managed to salvage one cell of each type of basil (sweet, genovese, and lemon), a lemon balm, cilantro (the long stringy ones), and finally some very, very tiny oregano (I think - probably should've written it down).

To my surprise, this is how they looked ten days later! Not sure about the oregano on the end, but the basils and cilantro are doing well! I may have some herbs by the end of the summer. Although the labels have disappeared from the rain, so I won't know what the herbs are, specifically. It will make cooking an adventure.

These pepper plants are available for adoption! They are healthy and green, and a bit on the quiet side if that's the type you go for.

The past week has been perfect weather for the plants, although a bit humid for their human (who has a very low humidity tolerance). The pea plants have taken off, although my attempts to guide where they grow are failing spectacularly. I set the pot closer to the balcony rail and have been trying to guide the tendrils to wrap around it - perhaps it's too thick? I'm concerned that the makeshift scaffold I set up isn't actually big enough for them. Something I never thought would be a problem when I first made it! Overall, I've found that I have vastly underestimated how large the plants would be - and it's less than halfway through the summer! I'm worried that they may outgrow their pots and die before I get any significant harvest, but I think I can get them through it between frequent watering and some liberal fertilizer applications. Next year, though - bigger pots are definitely on the list.

The sugar snap peas. It's unbelievable how much they've grown in two weeks when you compare them to this post just 10 days ago.

All three tomato plants continue to be my rock stars in terms of growth and flowers. I'm surprised at how quickly they wilt (possibly because they are in almost too-small pots) even from evening to the next morning, so I am watering them almost daily at this point.

The Heirloom keeps trying to sneak into the kitchen. It may succeed by the end of the month if I'm not careful.

A closeup of the Sweet 'n Neat to give an idea of the flower blossoms. My mouth waters just thinking about the day that these will all be little red juicy goodness.

I love seeing all the green outside my kitchen window - it makes doing dishes at the sink just slightly less painful, and if I ever need a pick me up, I just stick my head out the window and take a few deep breaths. It's not the same as actually living where there are trees and grass, but it's a wonderful substitute!

I am working on some more baking posts, but I realized that my previous posts in which I link to a recipe and then talk about how I changed it is not terribly user friendly. So I will fix that in future posts, and also do a better job of getting pictures at every step. For now, I will just share pictures of what I consider two of my tastiest triumphs (the third, a blackberry lime pie, I have made twice, but haven't gotten pictures of it before it's disappeared).

Cheese herb bread. I've made it twice, and it is unbelievably delicious. It has enough flavor to be wonderful with just butter, but for an extra treat, we used it for BLTs.

Monkey bread (NOT from canned biscuits) with a lime-cream cheese glaze. It's like the inside of a cinnamon bun without any of that crappy dry crust.

 

Outings and Plantings

I made it to Haymarket this weekend, although I still haven't used the berries and limes purchased there (I had hoped to make a raspberry/blackberry lime tart but ran out of time in the weekend - the berries are surprisingly still good in the fridge, so mayhaps this evening!). However, I still wanted to share some of the pictures. It's a full city block of tents, with most selling fruits and vegetables. There are also at least two seafood tents, as well as some storefronts that face the tents and sell cheese, bread, and various meats. It was a perfect day to be there - cool and sunny. I've never been there when it wasn't shoulder-to-shoulder traffic, and unfortunately the pictures are not able to capture the noise and chaos of the place. I love going not only because it's the cheapest fruits around, but also because in my opinion, it's one of the most wonderful, lively events in Boston.

Strawberries! No more than $1.50/box (prices vary according to vendor, so it's always a good idea to scope out the entire market for quality vs. price before purchasing).

Some booths let you pick out your own, while others select for you. Obviously I prefer the former, so this is something else to check on before buying.

One of my favorite occurrences - the vendors will cut open some of the goods and put them on display, so that you can see how ripe things are. These mangoes were tempting at only $5/box, but I couldn't come up with a use for 10+ mangoes.

My first attempt at capturing some of the vendors unawares. I had quite limited success - I think they are accustomed to watch lurkers closely.

Did I mention stuff is CHEAP here?

One of the meat stores that lines the outer edge of the market. Some of the crabs were crawling around on the ice. Freaked me out, but hard to argue about the freshness.

If I ever need raw sugar cane I know where to go...

My second semi-successful attempt at capturing a vendor portrait. He had the accent of a true Bostonian and the facial hair of Seneca Crane.

Unfortunately I didn't make it back before 4 pm, at which point my plants were in shade and I wasn't sure when it had occurred. However, on Sunday I was able to determine that the first hints of sunshine hit my plants at 8:20 am and by 3 pm the sun has moved to the other side of the building (where it should be hitting my seedlings, now set in the front window). So they are just barely hitting their "minimum" six hours of sunshine, but they are making it! Good news.

I repotted my pea plants last night. As mentioned earlier, they had been growing great guns, but stalled out over the weekend. I needed to make/buy some sort of lattice, so on Friday I grabbed a few tall sticks from decorative pots on the medical campus. They had been there since before Christmas, so I figured they wouldn't miss a few. I had my camera out on Saturday morning when I went into lab to capture what I had stolen from, but the landscapers were there, removing the decorations and putting live plants in the pots. Great timing!

The tools. The colored sticks with some offshoots were much taller than I needed, but were serviceable after cutting. I do wonder what they originally were before being stuck in a pot for winter decorations.

 I was horrified when I pulled up the pea plants to repot them to discover that the roots were dripping wet. So I will be holding off on watering the rest of the tray for a few days to let them dry out. I have no idea how the lattice will work - I definitely don't get any points for presentation, but I wanted to give the plants options on where to grow.

The final product. It's a little sad looking, I know.

I checked the pea pot out on the balcony this morning and nothing has fallen down yet, so that's...good? I'll see how it holds up in the rain the next few days. I also checked the rest of my plants, as it had gotten down to just a few degrees above freezing several nights in the past week (I had read how several farms outside the city had been going to extremes to protect their crops, but luckily I am well within the urban heat island of Boston itself). I was pleased to see a strawberry with a slight pink tint, as well as at least one white berry on each of the other three plants I first bought.

Definitely pinkish. I plan to eat it as soon as possible.

I also found the first flower on one of my tomato plants (the Patio strain), although the angle made taking a picture rather challenging.

It's blurry and hard to see, but in the center there is a spot of yellow - that's a flower! I had to hang out my window at a most precarious angle and hope that I got a shot, so this was the best one.

Finally, I was thrilled to see new growth on the two strawberry plants I bought on my second trip to Home Depot, as they had been rather large question marks. So currently it looks as if all my plants are heading in a positive direction!

My two sadder strawberry plants. On the right there is fresh growth in the middle of the three leaves, while the one on the left has new growth as sprigs underneath two of the current leaves.

Growth!

This weekend I plan to return to Haymarket (this time with a plan and a shopping list) and also hopefully bake (and take pictures of) many successful foods. Also on the "to do" list this weekend - transplant the pea plants. I already had to rig one up, with questionable success.

My pea plants. The tallest had fallen over when I woke up yesterday, so I tied it to a chopstick with a broken hairband. A temporary solution at best. On the far left are two pepper sprouts - I had another emerge within the past three days! Still nothing from the English pea plants, though.

 It's been raining off and on this week, so I haven't felt the need to water the plants. I have started watering the seed trays, and just this morning I did a thinning of some of the cells, so that I have no more than three seedlings per cell (most of them only have two - I couldn't bring myself to pluck out all but one - what happens if that one fails!?). I also moved them from the bathroom to a place where they will get at least a few hours of afternoon sun in my living room. Unfortunately I don't have room on my window ledge leading to my iron patio, where they would probably get more direct sunlight.

My other seed tray, somewhat thinned. The three types of basil are on the right, and I can't remember what I put on the left. I have misplaced my seed diagram, which makes things interesting - good thing I took a picture of it!

My closet kitchen, with the window leading to the iron balcony on the left. Newly purchased (and as yet unused) garden gloves are on the windowsill. What is not visible is the dog food and water bowls that I keep below the window, making access near impossible. I am still looking for an easier way to actually reach the plants than rearranging my entire kitchen every time.

The reason for this post, though, is that when I checked my plants this morning and removed various bits of trees that had blown onto them, I was surprised to move a strawberry leaf and reveal three berries! Because of the view from my kitchen window, I hadn't known they were lurking, so I was super excited to see they all look healthy and in various stages of growth.

Hello, little friends!

I still have to find/create an appropriate lattice for the peas, which I will hopefully put into their new home this evening, so I'll be sure to get pictures of that as well as any food this weekend. The weather is forecast to be quite cold this weekend with a nightly low for both Saturday and Sunday at freezing - so I may bring my plants inside each night. I just hope my dog doesn't try to eat them.

She certainly looks innocent enough.

Rain, peas, and bees

Boston has been in the midst of a short-term drought this spring and much-needed rain finally arrived Saturday. Unfortunately, it then rained off and on for over an entire day, and I am now concerned about the lack of a drainage system for my plants. However, the sun is back this morning and the plants no longer look like part of the scenery for "All Summer in a Day." In fact, the pepper plant has definitely perked up and even the questionable strawberry plants are standing a little taller. It's so convenient when Mother Nature does my job for me.

These are not my plants. But they capture how my plants looked - I didn't feel like opening my window and letting all the wind and rain into my kitchen for what would have been a soggy, sorry picture.

New leaves on the pepper plant! Note that despite all the rain, the packing peanuts were still not completely dissolved. Hmm.

I am currently searching around for recipes to use the sage, rosemary, and thyme from Trader Joe's. I went to supercook.com and highlighted "thyme" and found a recipe for focaccia rolls that looks quite appetizing. It uses both rosemary and thyme, although I'd have to use dried basil, as I don't have any fresh. I'm not sure about how the dried/fresh herbs will mix. I have a hard time finding time to make bread, so this may be an endeavour for some unknown future date. The other possibility that is more likely to happen is to roast some fingerling potatoes with herbs and some olive oil. Unfortunately I was already a bit too enthusiastic for food this week (baking and cooking are my other escape from lab, and this week I've already made raspberry granola cookie bars, whole wheat pizza, lamb and couscous, tomato/chickpea/cucumber/feta salad, and for dessert a blend of strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries), so I'll be waiting a few days to use the herbs.

From top, moving clockwise: One portion of lamb and couscous, raspberry granola cookie bars, berry mix, and finally a tomato/cucumber/feta salad that I use as topping for the lamb and couscous. Not pictured: the whole wheat pizza with green peppers and onions (I purchased the pre-made crust dough, so I'm not sure that counts).

My seed trays are also doing well, particularly the pea plants. They are actually growing 1-2 inches a day at this point, and I'm concerned something will happen to them before I find some sort of lattice to put in a pot with them. It is exciting to be able to measure the difference each morning and night, though!

Pea seedlings! If the tray were mobile, which is currently isn't, I would have tried to avoid my lovely bathroom wall as backdrop. Oh well. The tallest one is now well over nine inches tall and definitely searching for a lattice to cling to.

This afternoon I went to a lecture that Harvard was hosting as part of a week of Earth Day celebrations titled "Urban Beekeeping." It was given by Dr. Noah Wilson-Rich of Best Bees, a Boston-based company that sets up and maintains bee colonies all over the metro Boston area as well as the cape. What is neat is that he then uses the profits from his business to fund his bee research. I loved his story as it obvious that he has truly melded both his scientific curiosity and his passion into one harmonious job. If we could all be so lucky! Since my father actually maintains several hives in West Virginia, I was familiar with a lot of bee basics. However, I didn't realize how easy it is to adapt bee hives for urban living - in fact he showed statistics showing that urban bee hives produce more honey and have a higher chance of surviving the winter than do rural hives. Other neat factoids:

1. Major die-offs/disappearances of bees have been reported for over a thousand years (including one a hundred years ago when the Isle of Wight lost 100% of their bee colonies), although it is unclear if these deaths have been due to the mysterious Colony Collapse Disorder or another issue.

2. He suggested using a tray to collect pollen that falls off the bees when they land at the hive and then mixing it year-round with tea. Why? Because by constantly exposing your body to pollen throughout the year, apparently you can lessen the severity of spring allergy symptoms. Sign me up!

3. I loved this story about the red honey of Brooklyn.

4. Finally, he had a great picture up of a hive that he had helped install in a math/geometry classroom at Fenway High. With one side of the hive entirely made of glass and the opening to the outside, it's totally safe and an awesome idea to teach students about ecology, biology, social behavior, and geometry (ever wonder why the bees make their comb in a hexagon?).