Garden Goals

Herbs!!!

 

I love the springtime because it brings things like sunny days, seasonal cocktails, farmers markets, and seedlings! The last two years, I’ve grown tons of everything from seeds and I always have extras. I can’t bear to leave anyone behind so I end up with over-crowded beds and containers. While it’s satisfying in May to have a large quantity of half-hearted plants, my belly is disatisfied all Summer long because I end up with something like four tomatoes and a teeny pepper or two.

Growing seedlings from scratch was not an option this year, as I lost my south-facing windows when I moved. I also didn’t want to over-stress because gardening is supposed to be fun. I decided on 3 plant categories I could work with: peppers, tomatoes, and herbs. Within those “genres” I am allowing myself to plant a bunch of different things, but I’m using a few guidelines to help me select what I grow:

• What do I use/eat a lot of?
• Is this plant high-yield? Would I get the best return for my investment of time, money, space, and energy?
• Is it annual? Would buying a hearty plant this year potentially give me many more years of enjoyment?
• Can the end product be purchased more cheaply or easily at the store or a farmer’s market?

Application of These Guidelines in 2 Examples:

Parsley: I use a lot of it when I make tabouli, pasta, hummus, whatever. In my limited experience, growing parsley doesn’t yield as much as I would like it to (especially since I use large quantities of it at a time when I cook). It also costs a dollar for a giant bunch at the produce stand near my work. For the $5 it would cost me for the container, soil, and seedling, I’m better off buying it down the street and concentrating my efforts on another plant.

Mint: This plant is basically a weed. It will grow in the winter, in a window, given the proper conditions. It will return next year overtake everything if you let it. You can cut sprigs off of it, put it in water, and then replant more mint as needed. You can dry it and make tea out of it. A $5 investement in mint, overtime, is a better deal than buying a bundle of it at the store.

Peppers-- Hot and Sweet

My Plant List

• Cherry Tomatoes
• Roma Tomatoes
• Serano Peppers
• Spicy Thai Chili Peppers
• Cherry Bomb Peppers
• Mixed Bell Peppers
• Rosemary
• Italian Basil
• Spicy “World” Basil (I think it’s a version of Thai Basil)
• Mint

My neighbor gave me sprigs of peppermint and hens-and-chicks succulents. She also pointed out the wildflowers growing in my yard, so I’m going to dig some of those up and plant them. I never understood the logic of planting flowers until this year– why would you waste your time growing flowers when you could be growing snacks? I didn’t get it– until I saw this:

Can anyone identify this flower? I think It’s Lobelia but I’m not sure.

This mystery flower is growing by the fence in my backyard. I want to dig it up and transplant it to a pot. It’s so vibrant. As a result of my aesthetic appreciation for this plant (and looking at wildflower identification websites for hours), I also got some Sundial Mix succulents which bloom very pretty flowers. It’s official! I’m a reformed flower-hater.

Spring Cleaning.

Even though it’s 30° outside, Spring is here and the world is starting to look cheerful again. It’s funny how seasons take on a physical and metaphoric presence in our lives. They both come to us and we follow them. They can be hopeful and romantic or oppressive and never-ending. Sometimes they are invigorating and renewing. Sometimes they signal more than just the passage of time.

Many people ritually Spring Clean their homes. I am an advocate of Spring Cleaning because, as a collector, I need to keep myself in check by editing down what I have, want, and can pass on. Spring Cleaning shouldn’t just be limited to tidying up your personal space. Mentally clearing room for new things should be included in our seasonal rituals.

5 Things You Might Forget to Spring Clean

1) Files On Your Computer

One of the advantages of saving items on your computer is that everything can be centrally located without taking up a large footprint. Like many people, I use my computer for everything and I admit that I am a habitual “saver.” Reference images, digital ticket confirmations, and  documents: I have a tendency to keep it all on the desktop or wherever it automatically downloads to.

Cleaning out irelevent files and duplicate mp3′s from iTunes may open more space on your computer. As convenient as the “Search All” feature is, it’s sometimes nice to know  that everything is in it’s place, even in a virtual world.

And the cleaning and organizing doesn’t have to be limited to your personal computer. You can also clean out your email or delete accounts for services you no longer use. I started having my professional emails forwarded to my personal/everyday account to alert me when I have new messages. For some people this might not be practical, but Spring Cleaning is about finding your own way.

2) Your Address Book / Cell Phone Contacts

I am not the model citizen for keeping my stuff maintained. I let many things go…for long periods of time. My brother’s last name, which is the same as my own, was misspelled in my phone for over a year.

The nice thing about updating your contacts is that it can be done while drinking your morning coffee or while waiting in a long line. Do you really want/need all the FB friends you have?

By taking a little time to go through a list of people you want to be in contact with, you can make space for those who you care about the most. I constantly miss important FB updates from close friends because some girl I met at a party keeps posting about every way she can style her hair. (Your FB newsfeed is almost sentient, you know. It’s manipulating you to interact with a completely different social circle because you “liked” something some moron said once– three weeks later, your a FBBesties with them).

3) Your Wallet

…And I don’t mean just the extra receipts floating around in there. I have a bank account that’s been open for 3 years, even though it’s only had money in it for 2. I need to close it. It’s a goal I have this week.

Some people regularly clean out their wallets. I do. It’s a small attainable goal that helps me maintain my sanity every month. But there’s a difference between cleaning out my wallet on a Monday morning and cleaning out my wallet for real. Stop carrying around $5.00 in change, some of which are Canadian pennies (which are doubley useless in a vending machine scenario).

Figure out which store-perks cards you want to carry around and put the other ones in your car or near where you keep your house keys. Buy 20 sandwiches get 1 free soda punch card? Make a commitment or get off the pot. No longer insured? Put that card in your circular filing system where it belongs.

4) Your Medicine Cabinet

There’s nothing worse than looking for flu medicine, only to find out that your out of band aids and your ibuprofen has been expired since the last presidential administration…and you’re also out of flu medicine.

Now, I’m not suggesting that you stock up on things you don’t need, but assessing your inventory is not a bad practice. You always seem to need something you don’t have– but what’s worse is thinking you have something when you don’t. My suggestion: buy a decent first aid kit. You can add or replenish as neccesary– but how many times a year do you use guaze?

5) Your Sock Drawer

Putting your clothes away is nice. Editing down your wardrobe is one better. Cleaning your sock drawer is next level nonsense that will crown you king or queen of Spring Cleaning. For some people, “the sock drawer” is symbolic of a different place (like the underwear drawer, the junk drawer, or the tool box).

Whatever catchall you use for your wayward goods, my advice is this: resist the urge to make this space your home for your “get-to-laters.” Get to it now. It will feel good.

Bonus) Your Emotional Baggage

It’s time to let it go. Whatever thing you’ve been hanging on to that still sits like a meatloaf in the back of your conciousness– it’s time to help yourself move on.

Write it in a journal. Go to a psychic or spiritual healer. Envision it floating away in a bubble. Figure out how you can make peace with your situation so you can forgive others or forgive yourself. Times are tough and more than ever we should seek to put out as much positive energy as possible. It sounds lame and new-agey (I know), but Spring is the time to move foward with new life. Doesn’t that sound so nice?