Since moving to the desert, I've become enamored with the idea of homesteading. Maybe it's the pioneer mindset creeping in, or maybe it's because I (intermittently) work from home and thus have too much time on my hands. Of course, living in an apartment and not having a yard and being inherently lazy all complicate matters somewhat, but a girl can dream, right?
Recently, I decided to finally have a go at growing some vegetables, which I mentioned here. When The Husband and I lived in Massachusetts, we had some modest success growing tomatoes and a few greens on our balcony, and that was under less-than-optimal lighting conditions. Here in the Valley of the Sun, the place is lousy with solar radiation, so I figured we had a fighting chance. Initial impressions were positive, and we finally found a good use for that pesky west-facing window in our living room.
I fussed over all my little sproutlings, turning them regularly and attempting to protect them from the cat (there were some casualties, sadly, with the most prominent being my trashcan potatoes). After a few more weeks of care and love, here's where I was at:
Now, the sharp-eyed and clever among you might notice that the second photo seems to have far fewer plants. And you would be correct. In a fit of gnat infestation-induced madness, I tore most everything out. I loved my plants, but the near-constant barrage of tiny insects became too much. When you have to change your cat's water dish every day because there are dozens of dead bugs in it, something has to give. Mostly, it was the beans and peas that had to go, as they were harboring the highest concentrations of fungus gnats (and they take up a ton of space to boot). While I miss all the greenery, it's been really quite nice not having tiny winged creatures flying into our noses anymore.
Happily, the gardening gods were smiling, as I managed to upgrade from window planters to this:
Yes, a pair of mourning doves has settled into one of my windowsill planters and set up shop. On the day I planned on harvesting all the lettuce (because it's already getting too warm), I found this:
There is now a second egg, and after some confusion on the part of the parents, there has been a bird brooding the tiny egglets constantly for the past few days. Of course, this means that my lettuce and arugula are no more, which is sad because they made for some tasty salads.
Oh, well. My new feathered friends seem to be enjoying it more than I did anyway.
Recently, I decided to finally have a go at growing some vegetables, which I mentioned here. When The Husband and I lived in Massachusetts, we had some modest success growing tomatoes and a few greens on our balcony, and that was under less-than-optimal lighting conditions. Here in the Valley of the Sun, the place is lousy with solar radiation, so I figured we had a fighting chance. Initial impressions were positive, and we finally found a good use for that pesky west-facing window in our living room.
I fussed over all my little sproutlings, turning them regularly and attempting to protect them from the cat (there were some casualties, sadly, with the most prominent being my trashcan potatoes). After a few more weeks of care and love, here's where I was at:
Now, the sharp-eyed and clever among you might notice that the second photo seems to have far fewer plants. And you would be correct. In a fit of gnat infestation-induced madness, I tore most everything out. I loved my plants, but the near-constant barrage of tiny insects became too much. When you have to change your cat's water dish every day because there are dozens of dead bugs in it, something has to give. Mostly, it was the beans and peas that had to go, as they were harboring the highest concentrations of fungus gnats (and they take up a ton of space to boot). While I miss all the greenery, it's been really quite nice not having tiny winged creatures flying into our noses anymore.
Happily, the gardening gods were smiling, as I managed to upgrade from window planters to this:
Yes, The Husband and I are the proud stewards of our own little community plot! Things are looking a little bare right now, but with any luck, something edible will come of this! And hopefully I will remember that there is a beehive over by the mulch and not almost run into it again.
Also, we're raising poultry!
Well, micropoultry.
...
OK, FINE: some mourning doves have taken up residence in my lettuces.
There is now a second egg, and after some confusion on the part of the parents, there has been a bird brooding the tiny egglets constantly for the past few days. Of course, this means that my lettuce and arugula are no more, which is sad because they made for some tasty salads.
Oh, well. My new feathered friends seem to be enjoying it more than I did anyway.
