ENVR My city grown crops

[gillmanNSF]

O.K., I know this ain't nothing compared to you guys in the country, but I started my container vegetable garden to see what I can grow here in the middle of San Francisco on the east-facing slope of Twin Peaks.

So far, everything I planted is doing quite well even the herbs I planted in a strawberry pot. The containers are located in an area that gets the most sun, but also the most wind. Still, the tomatoes, artichoke, eggplant and zucchini are coming along fine! If they all make it to maturity, I plan on making an Italian vegetable medley saute later this summer.

Maybe next year, I'll expand my production. Who knows!

 

[Norma]

COOL! Thanks for sharing.

Norma

 

[Deep Blue Dragon]

Your plants look great. You must have a green thumb!

 

[Fred]

Very nice stuff! Is that an Ichiban eggplant I spy? Those things ROCK. Easily the best eggplant we've ever had.

 

[duchess47]

You're doing a lot better than this country gardener You have tomatoes on your plants, mine are still trying to decide if they are going to bear at all this year.

 

[Hermit]

Looks good .... that medly sounds great, I'd make a big pile of rice and top it with all that!

The good thing is that you can grow pretty much year round, frost is very rare in SF .... though someone did mention to me that he'd seen some on top of Twin Peaks.

 

[Garand]

Thanks for sharing Gillman, they look healthy!

 

[iboya]

How beautiful!
How big are the containers?

 

[gillmanNSF]

Thanks! My green thumb is all thanks to Miracle Gro potting soil and some really hot days in May and June and July. We don't normally get hot spells until September/October, but the plants loved the heat. It's been pretty cool this last week, even getting down into the 40's at night, burrrr.

We don't normally get frost but temps can dip down into the 30's. Lost a potted Protea plant that was really growing well but then died after a cold spell last winter. I'm at about 525 ft. on the hill which tops off at around 912 ft., so I can imagine frost might form easier at the top during winter.

We get lots of bumble bees that seem to do all the pollinating and, so far, no pests that I can tell. I'd love to have a plot of land to till, it is my childhood dream, even drawing pictures of a farm and barn and outlining where things would be planted. I guess I haven't wanted it bad enough, but after growing these plants and taking some pictures, I'm getting a real hankering for the farm of my dreams. Oh well, maybe some day.

A couple more pictures I took including my herbs in a strawberry pot. The eggplant is a japanese variety, although right now it is the size of a chili pepper.

 

[Amazed]

Gill, everything looks awesome. I just had some Eggplant Parmesan from one of my Ichiban eggplants and it was to die for. I have to agree with Fred, best eggplant ever.

 

[etdeb]

IT looks great, better than my country garden. I had no bees this year, bean made beatiful vines and blooms, no beans. Squash made big plants and lots of blooms, but no squash and then the squash bugs hit and killed them all. I have had some tomatoes, what I beat the green grasshoppers to. My very favorite cream crouders, less than a bushel from the whole patch.
I think I will container garden this fall.

 

[Double_A]

Looks good Gill. That artichoke looks like it's thriving.

I heard on the radio that they are tearing up a section in front of SF city hall to plant a community garden.

They mentioned was that during WWII, home garden's veggie amount to 40% of fresh veggies consumed in the city.

 

[BaywaterRoss]

Looks great, Gill! Keep up the good work!

Be sure to protect those tomatoes if the temps drop to the 40s. They don't like the cold very much.

-Ross

 

[Glowy SC]

Gillman, how about making a box frame out of 2X2's and covering it with clear plastic or even a teepee shape out of bamboo covered in plastic to put over the plants. Remove it on warm days it would really extend your growing season.

 

[gillmanNSF]

Gillman, how about making a box frame out of 2X2's and covering it with clear plastic or even a teepee shape out of bamboo covered in plastic to put over the plants. Remove it on warm days it would really extend your growing season.

I was thinking I might set something up next year to start seedlings earlier in the season. We might have mild winters, but it can still get cold and this year it was cold into March and April.

 

[JIL3]

Beautiful photos of some beautiful vegetable plants.
I love the artichoke photos.

 

[k-man]

Very nice.

 

[Barry Natchitoches]

You're doing a lot better than this country gardener You have tomatoes on your plants, mine are still trying to decide if they are going to bear at all this year.

Do you have little yellow flowers on your tomato plants?


If so, you can help the process along by gently tapping the back of the flowers -- not hard enough to bend or damage the flower, just enough to shake up the flower's pollen.


This will pollenate the plant, and soon you will be watching little green tomatoes mature.


Tomatoes are self-pollenating, but if there isn't any wind, sometimes we can lend them a gentle hand.

 

[Barry Natchitoches]

Gillman,


Your garden looks GREAT!


Soon you will know the joy of eating food that you have grown by your own hand. Food from your own garden always taste better....


Thanks for sharing your pictures with us, and make sure to let us know when you enjoy your first dish out of that container garden!

 

[Warandra]

Fantastic! Great work and photos.

 

[Usually Curious]

Beautiful! I never thought about growing artichokes.