Memories of Last Summer & Getting Ready to Grow!

Hi everyone, it's been somewhat quiet here on BaltimoreDIY, but there's been a lot of planning going on behind the scenes.

I've posted a photo of last summer's block party to remind me of all the work we got done last year to boost my spirits and get ready for this year. See below for some more memories of last summer! And of course, you can always click on the "Boone Street" link at the top of the page for a full chronological review of the farm and lessons we learned.

Cheryl, our farm assistant Baba, and neighborhood friend Big Willie getting things done while the sorghum grew tall...

Big Willie always asks us if we have tomatoes (even in December) and calls me Tinkerbelle.... we recently found out that he started a drama troupe at his church so we hope to have some public theater at the garden this summer!

Cheryl and I hoped to cut all this tall grass to use as straw for mulch or hay for animal feed, but we couldn't find a good scythe so we had to mow it eventually. We did cut some of it by hand with scissors but that wasn't really sustainable.

Ferb taking a photo while his brother Brian is apparently sneaking up on me as I'm getting my caffeine on! See the photo below to see Ferb among the squash...

 Ferb and the squash..

This year we plan on keeping track of the hours the neighborhood kids help us out at the farm so they can earn their "service learning hours" which will help them as they are applying to get in to Baltimore City's various high schools.

Here's all the urban homesteading fun going on this weekend!

By the way, I seriously recommend checking out the CGRN calendar if you are looking for exciting events in Baltimore related to sustainability.

Saturday

"Greening University": a medley of awesome community organizations are coming together to host workshops about starting community gardens, soil, landscaping for a healthy Chesapeake Bay, working with community associations, and more. I'll keep you all posted on the great information I learn.

After the Greening University, Cheryl and I have to sit down and purchase our seeds for the year! We also plan to set up our seedling station, since we better get rolling on planting those lettuce, cabbage, bok choy seedlings and more. We'll also buy some peas, radishes, carrots, beets, and perennial herbs.. and this is just for spring/fall planting! Summer plants are a whole other deal.

The Baltimore Foodmakers are hosting a potluck with the theme of "root vegetables" on Saturday evening.

Sunday

I already posted about the Urban Food Access talk taking place at 10:30 at the Baltimore Ethical Society.

I hope to attend, although Chicken Man and I have to stretch the rabbit skins that have been soaking in a solution of aluminum sulfate, sea salt, and water over the last two weeks, so maybe I should do that instead... I've also got some personal stuff to attend to and plan to do house chores and the like.

Coming Up

Stay tuned for more blog updates and new links across the top of the page, and our February urban homestead workshop will be announced soon!

Here is a PDF link to an upcoming farmer training class I will be taking this spring along with some fellow Baltimore City urban growers. I actually already attended this class in 2010 but feel like I could use a refresher, especially now that I am specifically working on Boone Street.

And now I will leave you all with a final photo memory of the farmer training class that I took in the past, seeing all these sprouts makes me excited and a little nervous for the growing season to come:

Urban Food Access Talk: This Sunday 1/29

Produce Contest, originally uploaded by baltimoreDIY.

Re-posted from the Baltimore Ethical Society website:

In Baltimore, the food system comes up short for many city residents – corner stores are common; supermarkets are scarce; diet-related diseases are on the rise; and healthy, affordable foods can be hard to find. We will discuss some of the factors that have led to this situation and share examples of how local faith communities are working to bring about a more just, healthy food system for those most in need.

Sun, Jan 29, 2012, 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM

Baltimore Ethical Society, 306 W. Franklin St, Baltimore, MD 21201-4517

 

“Urban Food Access in Baltimore” 

by Angela Smith Project Director, Baltimore Food & Faith 

 

Speaker bio: Angela Smith directs the Baltimore Food & Faith Project with the Center for a Livable Future’s Eating for the Future at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She has an MA in environmental studies from Brown University, where she studied religious-environmental organizations and their efforts to promote an environmental ethic among “people in the pews.” She worked on an organic community-supported agriculture farm in Baltimore County and continues to grow food at the Druid Hill Park garden of the City Farms Program, operated by the Horticulture Division of the Baltimore City Department of Recreation and Parks. Smith is a trained master gardener/composter in Baltimore City and enjoys volunteering at community gardens, school gardens, and for other greening projects in her neighborhood. 

 

Seeds (Part 2: Sprouts)

Yesterday I posted about seeds in the most literal sense of the word, as gardeners all across the region begin purchasing seeds and setting up next year's planting schedule. 

But seeds aren't just for planting! Winter is a great time for making all sorts of delicious foods with seeds.

Today we will talk about sprouting.

Special thanks to the Kitchn for this gorgeous photo and instructions for making your own alfalfa sprouts.

Click on the link to view their article and learn how to sprout away! The instructions work for making any sort of sprouts, from tiny alfalfa sprouts to spicy radish sprouts to big fat mung bean sprouts.

When produce is low in seasonal availability, sprouts are the absolute easiest and freshest way to garden indoors. All you need are seeds, a little water, and a jar! It couldn't be easier. Pop the sprouts onto a hummus or cream cheese sandwich, serve as a healthy side dish with a bit of dressing, or even drop some in soup.

I just started a batch of mung bean sprouts this morning and hope to make this soup recipe as posted in "Quick and Easy Korean Cooking" by Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee, which is one of my favorite go-to cooking books for light and relatively simple meals. Here's a link to the Amazon page if you want more information:



The soup drew my attention because it's light and healthy, and it makes use exclusively of pantry items like dried fish, seeds, and flavorings that store well over the winter. Even the green onions are seasonal, since any organic onions stored in your cold cellar or pantry have started sprouting green tops by now, which you can cut and add to the soup!

If the idea of anchovy stock turns you off, you could always substitute any other kind of broth. UPDATE: made some anchovy stock last night and it was really bitter tasting. Found out that many Koreans cut the head and intestines out of the anchovy to get rid of that off taste. 

Great info on making anchovy stock here: http://www.maangchi.com/ingredients/dried-anchovies-myulchi

Bean Sprout Soup

1/2 cup dried anchovies
3 quarts water
8 ounces sprouts*
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp Korean chile powder**
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp salt, plus more to taste
2 green onions chopped

*The recipe lists soybean sprouts, but I plan to substitute with mung bean
** I also don't have time to get Korean chile powder, so I plan on tossing in a dried chile or two from the peppers we grew at Boone Street garden this year. It's not traditional, but I use what I got!

Put the anchovies and water in a large pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 5-7 minutes. Strain and discard the anchovies. You now have anchovy stock. This step can be done ahead of time.

Rinse and drain the sprouts. Traditionally, the root ends are trimmed from the sprouts. You can leave off this step if you prefer, although the texture will be improved.

Bring the anchovy stock to a boil, if it's not hot already. Add the sprouts, garlic, chile powder, and sesame oil and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes.

Add the salt and green onions and let cook for about a minute more. Add salt if needed.

Serve in individual bowls with any rice dish. (I might use noodles instead of rice!) You could also drop in a beaten egg, chopped tofu or meat, and anything else you please to make this soup a little bit heartier.

Enjoy!

Seeds (Pt. 1)

Ah, January!

It's been wonderful taking some time to breathe from the frantic pace of day to day chores of the gardening season, to take time and reflect on last year, and plan for this year.

In the Mid-Atlantic region, now is the time to brew a cup of tea, relax, crack open some favorite seed catalogs, and make a planting guide for next year.

Interesting fact: in areas where the weather is hot and sunny year round, winter is actually prime growing season, and the hot, dry summer months are a good time for those folks to take a garden break.

The Maryland Extension is a fabulous resource for tips and tricks on starting plants from seed, from lights and growing medium to hardening off your tender seedlings before planting them outdoors.

Here are the seed catalogs I will be checking out this year:

Bakers Creek Heirloom Seeds (pictured above): gorgeous photos of heirloom varieties of all types of food crops. It's a pleasurable read and you will never look at boring, conventional supermarket varieties of food the same way again!

Southern Exposure Seeds: also an heirloom seed company, Southern Exposure emphasizes seeds that are adapted to the Mid-Atlantic region.

Horizon Herbs: an incredible resource for herb growers, whether you want to start your own medicinal tea garden, attract local pollinators, or simply read up and learn more about various types of herbs and their properties.

Also, the Washington Gardener has asked that I share a link about their annual seed exchange, which will take place January 28th in Maryland and February 4th in VA. You can learn more and RSVP here.

Stay tuned tomorrow for a post about different uses for seeds during winter months!

Boone Street Brunch Bake Sale

Thank you to everyone who came out and visited the Boone Street Garden brunch bake sale on New Year's Day!

It was so wonderful getting to see friends and having delicious treats on a nice warm day. Thanks to everyone for the support, and we earned $135 in profit which will certainly go to use in the Boone Street Garden budget. 

Here are a few photos from my friend Jon. What a pretty day! The weather was great. We had peach-apple pie filled muffins, oatmeal-serviceberry mini muffins, sausage-egg-kale-black bean bites, a box of coffee, and the bloody marys. All items were made available on a donation basis.


Billy from the Free Farm also took more photos of the make-your-own bloody mary bar so those will be posted soon. One of the visitors said she had always dreamed of doing a make-your-own bloody mary bar so now she could cross it off her list!

Here you can see our lovely neighborhood, Remington (where I live, it's not where the Boone Street Garden is located.)

Various pickles for the bloody-mary garnishes and for people to take in exchange for donation: pickled okra, pickled banana peppers, chili oil, sweet and sour zucchini relish, and pickled green tomatoes and roasted peppers. The cherry tomatoes to the far left have been soaking in vodka, which is another great way to store your summer produce and makes a great bloody mary garnish!

I plan on posting the steps soon for making the bloody marys for any of you who want to host your own party.

Happy New Year everyone!

Come Grab Some Homegrown Bloody Marys & Muffins for a New Year's Day Fundraiser!

I've been looking around at the jars of canned tomato juice, pickled okra, and pickled peppers that were preserved from the Boone Street Garden harvest this year, and realized that we grew the perfect bloody mary ingredients!

So of course I naturally am making last minute plans for a New Year's Day brunch goodies fundraiser.

Items I hope to have available:

- Bloody Marys garnished with our pickled okra and peppers
- Muffins (including some with the serviceberries I canned this year)
- Egg, sausage, and kale bites for my gluten-free friends
- Hopefully herb tea and coffee for those of you who don't want any hair of the dog! (I still have to find a thermos to keep any drinks warm)

Mmm homegrown bloody mary supplies...

Of course the eggs will be from our own chickens, and the kale from the Boone Street hoop house as well!

I will set up the table at the Remington garden since the market we had in August was so successful, and because I will only have to roll out of bed and bring all the goods around the corner.

I think 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. is a good brunch time, so I will bring my knitting and yummies and will be hanging out at the garden if you want to come visit, donate to Boone Street, and grab some delicious brunch! I just checked the weather and it looks like it will be a really nice day, almost 60 degrees.

The garden is located on 28th street, between Remington Ave. and Huntingdon Ave. Look for the parking lot next to the Sav-It liquor store, I will be in the parking lot. 

Happy New Year everyone, and I hope to see you Sunday around brunch time!

Brooklyn Homesteader

I love good homesteading friends!

Over the holiday weekend I had the opportunity to meet up with the Brooklyn Homesteader, a NYC based urban homesteader who actually hales from right here in Baltimore! Our paths crossed over the internet (the urban homesteading blog community ain't too gigantic!) and I found out that she has family here and would be visiting over the holidays. It was great fun meeting up for some delicious rye old fashioned drinks and hanging out by a fire.

I love sitting at bars screaming about the mothering habits of our doe rabbits and successful urban homesteading classes. At one point another friend remarked that our conversation sounded like complete gibberish! I can't help it though, I just love talking about this stuff, and it is always wonderful meeting people who love to talk shop with me.

You can friend Brooklyn Homesteader on Facebook or check out her website for information about upcoming classes and living the homegrown life in NYC.

All these winter conversations are definitely exciting as we look towards our Boone Street Garden plans for spring.