{"id":4166,"date":"2014-04-14T15:25:05","date_gmt":"2014-04-14T19:25:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gastronomyatbu.com\/?p=4166"},"modified":"2018-03-28T17:49:51","modified_gmt":"2018-03-28T21:49:51","slug":"garden-time-its-spring","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/gastronomyblog\/2014\/04\/14\/garden-time-its-spring\/","title":{"rendered":"Garden Time: It’s Spring!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"IMG_81143551818378\"<\/a>by Kimi Ceridon<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Just when it seemed winter wasn\u2019t going to give up without a fight, the thermometer finally bounced above the freezing mark.\u00a0 After a few false starts, it looks like it is going to finally stay there too.\u00a0 The days are getting longer and the sun is reaching higher in the sky.\u00a0 As if I needed another sign that spring has arrived, my yard is finally littered with white, purple and yellow crocuses. That means it is time to start thinking about the garden.\u00a0 Actually, I started thinking about starting my garden since ordering my seeds back in January, but it\u2019s time to put those seeds to use.<\/span><\/p>\n

I used to wait until the May rush and buy all my seedlings from the garden store. However, I\u2019ve been seduced by the January seed catalogs into starting my own plants from seeds.\u00a0 They offer not only an irresistible tug of springtime hope in the middle of winter, but also so many more varieties of plants.\u00a0 Just try to find 71 varieties of tomatoes or 22 varieties of pumpkins or multiple varieties of most crops in your local garden store or home improvement mega box.\u00a0 You can\u2019t, it isn\u2019t cost effective to carry more than a few \u2018favorite\u2019 varieties. \u00a0\"IMG_81260204578379\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

I start my garden from seeds in soil blocks using full spectrum lightbulbs in my basement.\u00a0 To take advantage of the short growing season here in New England, now is the time to get started.\u00a0 Don\u2019t let my set up intimidate you, it has evolved over several years of trial and error.\u00a0 All you need is a sunny window, a few small pots, some soilless seed starting mix and a few choice seeds.\u00a0 All of which can be had at your neighborhood hardware and garden store.\u00a0 Some grocery stores even care basic supplies. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"904229_10200868736497540_324741037_o\"<\/a>Starting plants from seed can seem kind of intimidating.\u00a0 Admittedly, it doesn\u2019t always go well.\u00a0 Sometimes you forget to water them and they dry out.\u00a0 Sometimes they don\u2019t get a good start and end up spindly and weak.\u00a0 Yet, sometimes they work wonderfully and produce beautiful robust plants.\u00a0 This is part of the fun of planting a garden.\u00a0 It is also why so many gardeners exhibit calmness and patience; two traits I am personally trying to cultivate from my garden.\u00a0 For many years, I would start a few of the more interesting crops from seed with plans to purchase some plants from the garden store.\u00a0 This way, if things didn\u2019t work out with my seeds, I had a backup plan.\u00a0 Besides, if you start early enough, you will know what is going well and what is not before the garden stores start stocking vegetable plants. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"IMG_81156379977378\"<\/a>As I know many of you don\u2019t have a lot of space, I also want to dispel the myth that you need a big backyard to get started.\u00a0 A sunny balcony, stoop, windowsill or countertop is enough for growing a few container plants to bring a few fresh vegetables or herbs into your kitchen.\u00a0 It is also a great opportunity to learn without a big investment.\u00a0 For example, loose leaf salad greens are easy to grow from seed, easy to care for and will make it to a dinner plate in just a few weeks.\u00a0 Fresh potted herbs are also the gift that keeps on giving.\u00a0 If you keep a few shallow pots of salad greens in rotation, you can keep yourself in weekly greens throughout the year.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"IMG_81104059567378\"<\/a>There is such an amazing world of flavor hidden in a seed catalog, I suggest trying something new, something you won\u2019t find in the grocery store or even in your farmer\u2019s market. Without starting from seeds, I would have never tasted the meaty and creamy Good Mother Stallard dried beans or the sweet and tangy Lemon Cucumber or the sweetly tart Black Krim Tomato.\u00a0 Sure, it may not feel like spring quite outside yet, but you can start getting into a springtime mood by getting your hands into some dirt.\u00a0 My seeds have just started breaking ground. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After 15 years in sustainable product design, Kimi Ceridon\u00a0<\/span>shifted focus from consumer products to food systems.\u00a0<\/span>Food is the most tangible, accessible way for individuals to reduce their impact on the planet and make a statement against an unsustainable industrial food system. S<\/span>he is active with NOFA\/Mass Boston Ferments, Waltham Fields Community Farms and has led workshops on chicken keeping, backyard homesteading, fermentation, and brewing. \u00a0<\/span>Follow her at\u00a0noreturnticket.kceridon.com<\/a>.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Kimi Ceridon Just when it seemed winter wasn\u2019t going to give up without a fight, the thermometer finally bounced above the freezing mark.\u00a0 After a few false starts, it looks like it is going to finally stay there too.\u00a0 The days are getting longer and the sun is reaching higher in the sky.\u00a0 As […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14625,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[22],"tags":[297,386,657],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/gastronomyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4166"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/gastronomyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/gastronomyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/gastronomyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14625"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/gastronomyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4166"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/gastronomyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4166\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8314,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/gastronomyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4166\/revisions\/8314"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/gastronomyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4166"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/gastronomyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4166"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/gastronomyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4166"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}