Seedlings and sproutings

Even though spring had arrived to Tokyo since last month, it was still a little cold. But not any more, May has brought us warmer temperatures, which are great for having the seeds sprout. Over the past week almost all of the seeds and bulbs I had on the ground started coming out. It is great seeing the garden growing like that, I can't wait to see them all developed.

All the seeds just sprouted!

The first seeds to take off were the komatsuna and the bekana. Those are some of the strongest greens I know, they always sprout very fast and easy. I even have to take care or they overrun the lettuces completely when I put them on the same planter.

On the veggie planters all of the companion plants are out and growing. I sowed some basil and zempazuchitl to go along with the tomatoes and to go along the greens, I planted some beans. They all seem to be doing well, specially the flowers, which already are on their second set of leaves.

This basil was given to me by Diana

Also, the seeds I got from Diana from Kebun Malay-Kadazan girls are sprouting. I put all of the flowers on one same pot, so I am not sure which ones are what, but I am sure they will all grow nicely.

To add to my bulbs basket I got a very nice dahlia, which I plant right between the tulips. It just came out of the ground at the same time the tulips started to dry off and fade. Also, getting ready for the bulb basket, my calla lily bulbs are growing very well too. Hopefully they will put a nice show, just like last year. I even got some new bulbs on different colors, but they are leftovers and are very small, so I am not sure if they will flower yet.

The second batch of calla lily

The latest to pop out were the pumpkins seeds I collected last Halloween. I was a bit worried because they took too long, so I sowed all of my seeds, now there are so many seedlings, definitely much more than I can grow.

I am still waiting for a couple of chilies, but I trust they will sprout soon. I even have some backup plants that I am not sure I can keep if they all grow successfully.

No idea if these beans will fruit

My only concern now is if the beans and the pumpkins will be able to give fruit. I got all of those seeds by collecting them, and I have no idea if they are hybrids or not. I guess I don’t have a choice but to wait and see.

Also, while we are on the topic of seeds, I wanted to do a giveaway this spring, but now is a bit late in the sowing season. I think, maybe I can still get some seeds in time to those living close. So, anybody living close to Tokyo, please send me an email or a twit.

For those of you who live abroad, I will make a proper giveaway later, just need to sort a couple things around.

The zempazuchitl seedlings are out

I don't have a big quantity, but I do have a good selection of "very hard to find in Japan" seeds. Here is what I have available:

• Chile ancho
  
• Chile pasilla
  
• Chile chipotle
  
• Chile guajillo
  
• Chile poblano
  
• Zempazuchitl (mexican marigold)
  
• Mexican mixed varieties cactus

And I also have a lot of extra thyme seeds and pumpkin seedlings

If you want to start your garden, or expand your existing one feel free to ask

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Aphids on my Komatsuna!

Aphids! they are back on my little garden. After I got rid of them last time with help from the ladybugs, I hoped they will stay away at least until the warm months, but no luck.

The komatsuna started turning orange

I had been noticing a couple of leafs on the komatsuna going brown and orange lately. Strange, but not that worrisome because the plants still looked healthy enough.

At first I thought they where just a bit dehydrated. . The wind usually takes away all the moisture on the upper planters and the days have been quite windy. So I just water them more and hope they will get better.

After a couple of days I noticed the leafs are still changing colors, so I blamed it on the cold. They are in the upper corner meaning they get extra wind and therefore cold. I wasn't worried because I have a lot of seedlings growing on the coldframe and also it will be time to change plants soon. I will have to harvest them anyways.

I wonder if I can still eat some after this, It still looks tasty

But then the other day, while I was sniping away some dead flower heads, I decided to take some komatsuna in to cook. There I found them. Aphids, a lot of them, going wild on the planter. Now I must get rid of them before they spread to all the other pots.

Lesson learned: I should have started paying a bit more attention from the beginning. I didn’t really check the plants until the end.

There are so many aphids in the komatsuna plants

Also, I found the guilty carrier this morning. I have been hearing some strange sounds on the outside lately but I wasn’t sure if it was just wind or what. Today I saw a big crow picking through the komatsuna. My guess is that the crow takes some leaves for making its nest and must have brought the aphids form some other place it visited.

Anyone with some recipe for getting rid of aphids?

Coldframe V2.0

I had been wanting to upgrade my coldbag, because even it works really nice, the little seedlings could have even more advantages. In particular I wanted something that would let more sun to the little seedlings. 

The new seedlings are doing great

So I started scavenging for materials to use. I didn't wanted to build one out of wood and glass, because my goal was keeping the portability and cheapness of the cold bag. I considered using a cardboard box, but I knew that on the first rain, or with the water pouring out from the little started planter, I would end up with a cold frame soup in no time.

Then I remembered that here, at some grocery stores, they always leave all the plastic boxes from the food, all cleaned and ready for people who need them to pick them up. So, one day I went grocery shopping, I took a small look at their little recycle corner. There I found the perfect box. It was a deep, thick expanded polystyrene box, in perfect condition.

Building the new coldframe

The build was very simple.

1. I carved a small window on the cover of the box to leave only a frame. Being sure to leave a small edge


2. Cut apart a transparent plastic bag to have two sheets to use as "glass".


3. I taped one of the transparent sheets to the edge I had left and cover the hole in the frame.


4. Turn around the lid and tape the other sheet from the inside. This will make the window a sandwich of plastic, air and plastic.


5. Finally use little pieces of tape to cover any hole in the borders. The more airtight the better

I used two plastic sheets, one in each side of the cover. That way the insulation will be much better. The air in the middle will work as the insulator. The same way a double glass (double frame) windows work better than a single glass window. 

So far it has worked beautifully. The little seedlings growing there sprouted in no time, they have even reached the size of the ones in the coldbag already.

From back to front: Bekkana, Spinach, Komatsuna, Lettuce

The first to grow were the Bekana and the Komatsuna, then the spinach and finally the lettuce, coriander and the chives. I was surprised the chives and the lettuce sprouted, they are supposed the be past their season. They must really be very cozy and warm in there. I hope they all keep growing nicely, I will post more about how they develop later.

Now, the only setback is that the new coldframe has such a good insulation that every morning the inside screen appears all damped because of the condensation. I have to dry it a bit and clean it up so it will let the sunshine in.

I recommend anybody who wants to have a nice cheap planter at their homes to use old expanded polystyrene boxes. First, because is much better to reuse them than throw them to the garbage. Second because they are great planters. Expanded polystyrene is a great ecofriendly material, even though it certainly doesn’t look like it. It is a great insulator, and has an amazing endurance for such a light weight. It definitely won't mold and It will not degrade easily, so I can last lots of gardening seasons.

The first seedlings sprouted in 4 days

One more thing about polystyrene. It is highly recyclable, but it very hard to do it because it has to be sorted away from other materials, which is a very troublesome task. This causes a big problem because it is usually thrown with normal garbage and pollute instead of being recycled. So, if you can rescue some polystyrene from going to the dumpster, and give it some more years of use please do.

The seeds sprouted, the coldbag works!

Today, I found some komatsuna and lettuce seedlings already showing enough strength. I plant them last Saturday afternoon and the first ones started poking out from the soil the morning of Wednesday. I'm very surprised they sprouted so fast, I thought they will take at least until next week.

The first sprouts from my coldbag!

I am planning on letting them a bit longer on the coldbag, until they get some more strength. Although not much because they are already fairly tall. I don't want them to reach the top of the bag and get hurt.

Komatsuna is so easy to grow, and very tasty too

The only ones left to come out are the chives. I wonder if they will come out at all, because their season has been over for a while. I'll keep my hopes high though.

Komatsuna and lettuce seedlings

Also here is a picture of the pumpkin seeds I will try next year. I took them out of a little pumpkin I carved for Halloween. I have no idea if the seeds are viable. Sometimes the products they sell are hybrids, so even if they do sprout and grow into a full plant, I have no idea if they will give any new pumpkins at all. It is going to be a fun experiment.

My pumpkin seeds drying with the sun

For now, there is only step one, letting the seeds dry, then store them on one of my seed jars until next year. I hope they succeed.

My lettuce and Komatsuna

One of the good things about having my little balcony garden in japan, is that I have been able to try growing a wide variety of plants. So many different ones that, so far, it has been a continuous exploration and learning experience. I find it very exciting to see how every new part of the garden is doing and see the way each one grows and develops.

The excitement and satisfaction one gets when a plant has sprouted, bloomed or even just got a couple new leafs is, well enough, a very good reward for anyone growing a garden. However, there is one more very nice prize for those who venture on the tricky task of growing edibles. That is, you get to eat something you are completely responsible for. The taste of a fruit, vegetable or anything that you have grown yourself would be much better if it has all your effort, patience and care as a background.

A little of my lettuce and komatsuna harvest.

Since I was a kid, back at my country, my garden has always had some edibles that my family enjoyed happily. I was always happy to pick and eat a papaya or an orange, and I always felt proud and accomplished by having them. But, even though I always had an active role on growing that garden, the main responsibility was always on my mom or my dad. Many times they had to tell me to go water the plants, or pick the lemons that the wind took down, otherwise the plants will dry or the fruit would go wasted.

I think it was not until now, when I have a garden that is only my responsibility, that I have truly understood fully the responsibility and the accomplishment of eating my own grown food. Eating my own strawberries or my own tomato has given me very nice feeling of success that I must recommend everyone to try, at least once in a lifetime.

Only half more to go, It really has been a nice harvest.

One of the experiences I have had with this is growing lettuce and komatsuna. This is the first time I have ever grown lettuce or any greens on any of my gardens, so, mostly my method was a "wing it" approach. Luckily, as always in my garden, they have been growing well, too well in fact. Right now I have two planters so full that I must, either thin out or cut out as soon as possible.

It all started because, in my eager to have a nice harvest, I put too many seeds in the first (the big)planter. They sprouted nicely, and continued growing with no problems, but soon was obvious that they were overcrowding the pot. I didn't wanted to waste any so decided to eat a little at a time to keep them at bay, however my appetite was no match for their fast growing and then the big planter really got out of control.

In here there is plenty of komatsuna and lettuce,
there is even some cilantro too

Now, even when I decided to thin them out, is too late. They grew so much that the leafs got tangled and now is very hard to take one without hurting the next one. I decided the only option is to cut them all and start again. I hope they can still catch the season and I get to reset the big planter.

Also, having learned my lesson a bit to late, I did the same on the second planter, I put too many seeds. Now it is almost at the point of no return, when I must thin out or risk another tangled mess. I will rescue this little planter before that happen.

Salad tastes better when you grow it yourself.
I grew the lettuce, the komatsuna and the basil, I hope someday I will grow the carrot and onion as well.

Still, because I don’t like to waste, I have been having a lot of salad every day. It is no problem, because I don’t get tired of it. It really makes a difference to have truly fresh vegetables. Is not only because they are my own grown, but I have to say, this greens are very good. They are really delicious, flavorful and tender, even the stem tastes great.

Like i said before, I really must recommend to anybody out there thinking about trying some gardening, to just try it, there is nothing like having your very own little garden.

My Seeds

Part of the fun of having a garden is all the planning involved on it. Being able to decide what we would grow next and where it would go is very exciting. One of my favorite parts is choosing among the infinite varieties of plants to grow.

My seeds box

I always get carried away imagining how it would be to grow this and that, and I always want to add a new plant to my garden. The only problem is that here in my little garden in Japan, we only have the very restricted space a balcony garden can provide.

Of course, this didn't stop me when getting seeds. Adding the ones I brought from Mexico and the ones I got here, now I have ended up with way more of what I would be able to have. I really doubt I can fit even a quarter of all this in my little garden. So, I am sure there will be very tough decisions to make next year, when I would have to choose what to sow.

I like to keep my seeds in jars instead of envelopes

Here is a peek into my seeds box for this year. That way you can help me decide.

• Chives. I just got this ones, I will sow them this week, hopefully they still can catch the season.


• Thyme I cave in to my impatience and I bought the plant, so probably I won't need these after all.


• Alyssum I have the plant too, but I doubt it will stand the winter, so they are my back up plan.


• Cactus A little bit of Mexico's flavor, but I have three bags, so I will give some away.

Komatsuna, Cilantro and Chile de arbol

• Chile I have chile serrano, chile ancho, chile guajillo, chile pasilla, chile poblano, chile de arbol y chipotle. It will be impossible to pick only one.


• Zempasuchitl The Mexican marigold, with a much stronger scent, I like this flower and it is very good for the garden, so this one is a keeper.


• Epazote An annual herb, good for condiments.

Alyssum, Cactus and Lettuce

• Komatsuna The one I am growing now is doing very well. So I think it can be a keeper for next winter as well.


• Cilantro Must have for Mexican food.


• Beans The beans I had this year didn’t do well. Even when they flower they did not got fruit. I brought some from Mexico, hopefully they can do better.

Chamomile, White flower and Beans

• Lettuce Another of my winter vegetables that is going great.


• Chamomile This one might go well on a planter with the Epazote, It would be a nice addition to the herb corner.


• Unidentified white flower I picked this one up from a sidewalk in shibuya, no idea what it is.

Beside all of this, I want to grow some pumpkin, some tomato, possibly blueberries. Also, I know there will be more plants that I won't be able to resist next year.

It is definitely too much for me, anybody want some extra seeds?

My new herbs

I have been having a crave for herbs lately. So, this weekend I made a quick trip to the garden center and got a load of new herbs to go with the ones I already have.

It all started when I was reviewing online about how to grow the thyme seeds I brought from Mexico. I learned that thyme usually grows slow at the beginning, that together with the fact that I need to sow my seeds until spring and also since I am a bit of an impatient gardener, made me decided on getting a grown plant for the winter.

Then this Friday, when I was taking a stroll at the supermarket's gardening section, I saw they have a bunch of herbs for sale. I could not resist and bought a lemon thyme there, and definitely wanted more. So, I made a plan to get some new herbs and also took a trip to Tokyo to buy some wooden pots I know would fit the herbs perfectly. Then yesterday got the new herbs.

My new herbs with their planters

They had a great selection, and it was sure hard to pick which ones to buy. In the end of course, I ended up buying more than I should have, but no regrets.

The new herbs I got in my little garden in japan

From left to right in the photo above

• Dill No idea how to cook with this but I love the flowers


• Oregano For pasta, and for some Mexican sauces


• Lemon balm For some good tea


• Lavender I have always wanted a lavender


• Rosemary This one is still blooming


• Aloe I got this one from Mexico, more about that other day


• Lemon Thyme Its smell reminds me of my lemon tree back at home


• Cool Peppermint A nice addition to my current mint collection


• Thyme The one that started all

I hope they will grow nicely, I still have to set them up in their planters, but I can do that over the week when I have time. There is much to do in my garden, and they are so many new plants.

I also got a much needed rack to hang some of the planters up the rail, because I already run out of space on the floor. I choose to put there the planter that used to have the strawberries and now has lettuce and kalanchoe sprouts. Today I set it up and it works like a charm.

My new rack all set up with the lettuce seedlings

Back in Japan

Finally I am back in Japan and back to the screen.

It was a very good trip, sort out the things I needed to do, spend some time with my family eat tons of good food and had lots of fun. The only problem was that I neglected the blog a little, but I learned my lesson and I will try to get more organized for next time. I'm sorry I didn't post anything or commented on other blogs.

Also I haven't forgot I promised a post on my garden in Mexico, but don’t worry I do have a lot of photos I took, and I will post them next.

For now a little getting back on track and looking how my garden stood. I left them in very good hands so this time I had no casualties and everything's seems to have continued to grow nicely.

I do have to do a little tidy up and some sort around, because some plants need some trimming and also because I need to make space to organize what I brought from Mexico.

I had a very pleasant surprise when I got back, remember the lettuce and the komatsuna I just sowed before I left? Well they certainly have been growing when I was away, now I have too many, I must thin them out soon.

Komatsuna and Lettuce overload

On a side note, Komatsuna seeds are one of the most interesting seeds I have seen. I have seen a lot of seeds with very different colors and shapes, but I don’t remember other seeds with a color like this, It is a very nice blue/aqua with a glossy finish, they look great when they are all together in my seed jar.

Komatsuna and Lettuce seeds

Lettuce sprouts

Back to gardening topics, here is a quick post.

The week after leaving from Tokyo I had sown some lettuce and some komatsuna. I was wondering if it would be able to sprout since those days the weather just started to change, luckily they came out just some days before I left. Right now they continue to grow nicely.

Komatsuna sprouts

I went a little crazy putting to many seeds on the planter, and now I have too many plants, so I will have to thin them out when I get back, but I think is better to have too many plants than less. I hope they keep on surviving these days.

The lettuce and the komatsuna keep on growing nice, a bit too many though

The only problem is that I'm not sure how to do that, should i just pluck out some? or, is there any special method?  any suggestions?

Also, I'm still trying to get around the garden here, I will probably do some work this week.  

The tulips are set!

Today it has been quite rainy, I wanted to go to the garden center to see if the strawberries are out, but I guess I will have to wait until this weekend. Still, to fulfill my gardening quota I did work on the balcony a bit. I tidied up, cut some dead branches, checked on the strawberries (they are technically dead, but some green remains so I will wait and hope), and moved things around to make more space. All normal balcony garden work.

Ready to go to bed

Also, because I have been a little busy this week I hadn't set the tulips yet, so today I finally did it. It was interesting to think they will be all alone there, and I have no way of checking if they are well or not. It Is going to be hard, I think bulbs are hard to grow because they are pure gardening patience.

Take care tulips, see you next year

I remember when I set the calla lily this year, I got so desperate because they took so long to grow, that I dug a little to check and I broke the tip of a growing stem, fortunately nothing bad happened the calla lily grew with no problem, but still it was a bad idea. I will have to restrain myself very hard to keep me from getting desperate, it will be a great exercise to develop some patience.

Now, my next assignment for the garden will be sow the lettuce and the kalanchoe that I have. I bought the seeds last month, but I haven't sowed them yet. Last week I took my time preparing their bed, I put some fertilizer, stir it around, and gave time so it wont burn the seedlings. It should be safe now, although now I am worried because this days have been much colder, I wonder if it is still cold enough for them to germinate.

My next assigment, to sow the lettuce

I hope they all grow well and I have lettuce for the winter and the tulips give out beautiful flowers next year.