Until about three years ago, I always thought that having a green thumb was inherited or somehow a God-given gift. Then my perspective changed - I had kids. I realized that to keep things alive I actually had to take care of them. Just like I couldn't set my kid out on the windowsill and expect her to thrive, I shouldn't expect a store bought plant to live after a week of neglect. If you're just getting started or want new gardening tips, two great books I would suggest for urban gardeners are by Gayla Trail, "You Grow Girl" and "Grow Great Grub".
Urban gardening is gaining a resurgence of followers who want to bring a little bit of green to the city. Community gardens, green streets, courtyard planters, container gardens, rooftop decks, windowsill herbs, and even the fire escape have great potential to be an urban oasis. My daughters and I started working our garden last week, which consisted of churning up the dirt in our outdoor pots, pruning the perennials, and even planting some cold loving seeds that can be sown as soon as the ground thaws like Bloomsdale spinach, dark red beets, arugula, and fennel.
Right now is a great time to get certain seedlings like tomatoes or herbs who need a long growing season started indoors. Don't feel pressured to purchase expensive seed trays or greenhouses to do this - clean yogurt containers, empty tin cans, or recycled take-out containers do just fine. Just make sure to poke or drill holes in the bottom for drainage and place the lids under the containers to catch water run-off. Fill your pots with organic potting mix and plant seeds according to the seed directions. Transplant the seedlings to a larger container well after the last frost and when the weather is consistently warm.
Gardening is a source of inspiration and joy to me, and I love seeing how spring gardens inspire NYC artists!
And because I'm always the mommy blogger, an absolutely amazing book for kids about gardening is "The Gardener" written by Sarah Stewart and beautifully illustrated by David Small.
May your gardens be bountiful and bring joy to the city!
Karina
6 comments:
Thanks co much for featuring my new scattered flower tee! And great book recommendations! It is so zen to me to have an indoor herb garden and feel like i can connect a bit more with what i am eating.
I like this post because it shares the informative and creative ideas which help me to increase my knowledge for my garden.
Oh, you Grow Girl looks great book. Maybe this spring I'll give an indoor garden a try.
ahh! i love seeing the first signs of spring growth :)
fab book ideas...thanks! (i can hardly wait to get my hands dirty in my veggie garden again...come on sunshine!!!)
Oh, every year I forget to plant things ahead of time - thanks for the reminder! Will have a windowsill herb garden by the summer :) Thanks for featuring my sweet peas!
You give me hope that I can turn my brown thumb into a green one!
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