NYCurbanGardener

07/03/2023

The reason I am into gardening at all my Grandma (Yiayia) We harvested our first tomatoes of 2023 on July 1st this year, to the exact day as last year! These beauties were enjoyed by my grandma, who inspired my whole love of gardening as a child. Thank you, Grandma, for everything. I hope this sungold tomato was as sweet as you.

06/05/2023

Collards, after a severe failure last year in the fall, this spring I got an amazing success! Another story of just keep on growing, learn and dont fret.

For whatever reason they did not take off during the heat of summer for a fall harvest last year, but boy are they thriving now. Started in March indoors to a very mild Spring. Im still blown away at how healthy these grew.

Keep on Growing, no matter what… there are too many Variables to blame yourself for any specific reason!

05/27/2023

Lets lay down some Garden TRUTHS…You may look at this picture and think that I have a perfect garden, full of colorful flowers and lush greenery.

But what you don't see are the many problems that I face every day as a gardener. The pests, the diseases, the weeds, the failures. Sometimes these problems can really bother me and make me feel like I dont know what I am doing and I should just stop. It may be hard to look past them and appreciate the beauty and successes that maybe right in my face.

Gardening is not always a relaxing hobby that we do with a smile and a stress-free attitude. It is a lot of work, a lot of patience, a lot of learning, and a lot of love. Its hard to see some of your plant babies struggle and die, but Gardening is a journey, not a destination. And I am proud to share it with you.

So next time you see a beautiful garden on social media, remember that behind every photo there is a story. A story of challenges and triumphs, of struggles and rewards, of passion and perseverance. And maybe you will feel inspired to start your own gardening adventure, or to continue the one you already have. Happy gardening! 🌷🌻🌿

03/14/2023

You dont grow anything, the plants do that! You just help provide the best conditions that you can!

03/01/2023

A couple of you have been asking what Compost tumblers I use. For people just getting into composting and want a tumbler thats not too expensive Id go with the one I started out with FCMP IM4000 https://amzn.to/3Y9yv8o formally known as the Yimby. Its good however fairly small, and fills quickly. However I REALLY love the RSI MAZE tumbler, by Riverstone Industries https://amzn.to/3YgMnNT its got so much more space and so far a really solid "mid-tier" Compost tumbler Id suggest. Check it out! Any questions let me know,

"Links provided here are affiliate links with Amazon, which means if you do end up buying something I will earn a small commission." My opinions of the products are from purchases I made myself and developed through the years of using them.

Happy Gardening!

The MAZE Two stage Compost Tumbler is designed to generate the most amount of compost over time. Constructed from a zinc coated metal frame to prevent rust and a body constructed from high impact UV protected plastic. The patent pending built in ratchet lock along with the geared rotating handle ...

02/28/2023

Great post by Bootstrap Farmer for all who have experienced some mold issues, and how to Identify and deal with it. Moisture management, is a big one! Also good germination rates too, dead seeds = rotting seeds

When you're identifying mold on your microgreens, there are some key factors to keep in mind.

Mold, often appearing as spider-web-like strands, can overtake a tray of microgreens when given the right conditions. Mold and fungi thrive without proper drainage, air circulation, and lighting.

Here are some key things to watch out for ⬇️

✔️ Offensive odor 😫
✔️ Grows above the soil and directly on greens
✔️ Slimy to the touch
✔️ Will not disappear with rinsing
✔️ Can appear as black, purple, blue spots on leaves
✔️ Trays can also fall flat due to mold, also referred to as damping-off.

When your microgreens smell bad, that's a key indicator of the presence of mold. Microgreens should smell earthy and plant-like, while varieties like onion or broccoli smell like their full-size counterparts.

However, if your microgreens smell rotten or "swampy," that's an indication that something is wrong. Those smells in a microgreen tray mean the tray is too wet - which is a perfect environment for mold to take over. If your microgreens smell rotten, you should troubleshoot the growing conditions for the future, but toss those microgreens - they have mold and are not good to eat.

02/23/2023

😳Over 1,000 fellow gardeners , growers and enthusiasts have joined us!🤯 I blinked my eyes from my last thank you post of 200 and boom some how we are 5 times that...wow.... The amount of love and support has my heart melting and seriously trying to comprehend what 1000 people gathered together really means...., just for reference together we would all pack an entire theater here in NYCs Broadway that plays the show Chicago...(great broadway show) but in my opinion we are all apart of the play not just the audience I really want to welcome you all the new people and of course thank you from the bottom of my heart for the motivation you have all given me to continue making content for all of you. Just know I really hope to continue to provide value, learning and a good sense of community to you all... but know that I LEARN ever so much from ALL of you and thank you to all who leave comments about their knowledge and experience. You make me a better gardener and collectively Id like to think we do that for each other for this amazing passion of growing food. ....I dont know how to properly convey how much gratitude I have for you all but I do and Thank you thank you thank you.

02/15/2023

SUNFLOWERS…Ever eat them? Not the seeds the actual plant! The plants juvenile seedlings are edible and very delicious. In the stores this amount of microgreens probably goes for at least 5 dollars and I grew these myself for at max 0.50

The flavor is unique crunch, nutty and full of protein, amino acids, and a bunch of minerals that are pretty concentrated in the cotyledons.

They are affordable to grow yourself as a microgreen on a tray in your own home. If you also got growlights hanging around waiting for seed starting season you can use them in the meantime to grow yourself some of these!

02/06/2023

SPRING IN NYC! 🤯First signs of Spring in NYC at the beginning of February…amazing!!

The crocus bloomed last year on March 6th…so we are an entire month ahead of schedule. Im curious to see what this entails for the 2023 growing season, I am sure theres going to be some effect of these temperatures, the ground never froze!

Lets see what happens, its always a pleasure to see my Crocus so I am happy and welcome them to 2023!! This is why I love gardening you never know what to expect. Happy Gardening and for me its the first day of Spring… happy Spring everyone 😂😂

01/31/2023

I am absolutely blown away…I want to thank every single 200 of you who have decided to follow along…its absolutely incredible and I am just so grateful you chose to follow me.

My greatest of joys is sharing and teaching what I have learned and then hearing that I may have inspired some to try something new for the first time… the best feedback ever!

Just like all of you I am learning everyday and just sharing it along with you all. I know I can also learn so much from all of you, so please share, comment, ask questions…I may not know the answers to all but some others in our group may and now we all do!!

You all inspire me to keep going, Im humbled and I am so excited as to what maybe in the future in this truly what feels like a community.

I also share my love for growing with my family and that is also pure joy.

Thank you Thank you Thank you and Lets keep growing our experience and knowledge and cultivate abundance for all!!!

Here is a photo of my daughter just lost in her excitement of pulling out our carrots from last year. I still get that face myself 😂😂 and will never loose it hahah❤️🥰❤️🥰

Love you…Happy Gardening!!

01/24/2023

One day I need to try soil blocking! Many benefits, air pruning and no pot binding. 👏👍

01/16/2023

As we reflect on Martin Luther King Jr today I reflect on this quote as an inspiration to what we do as gardeners. Happy MLK day and happy gardening!