I am attempting a few vertical growing projects this year. I started Tristar strawberries in a pallet and today constructed a trellis for Delicata squash. Mostly I'm trying to be as productive as possible in between the cloud bursts that are hitting Portland today.

I have to say keeping a garden journal is an essential tool to successful gardening. This is the third year I've kept track of what I've planted. 

Some ideas of what to write in your journal: When you start seeds, how much soil you ordered and where you got it i.e.: 4 yards of compost from Grimm Fuel. I also keep track of the when my hops starts to show, what birds I see at the feeder and any construction projects I do that are garden related. Once you get started it really helps plan year round gardening.

Also record what varieties produced well to help your seed ordering and troubleshooting for the following year. i.e.: Planted Black Prince, yield was poor, must move to sunnier place. 

I love being outdoors and gardening goes along with that love. My partner has a degree in horticulture, but I tend to feel more in touch with the natural world because I slow down to observe it. I know what the charts say about best planting dates, and the gardening books, but I also know what is already springing to life because I observed it in someone else's yard.

Yesterday, despite the rainy weather, I spent several hours constructing another garden box. I needed one for the quinoa seeds I purchased. I bought a variety that is supposed to do well in the Pacific Northwest and I am eager to see how it does.

 

This is pallet wood and a few fence boards I salvaged for this project.

The dimensions are 3 ft. x 4 ft. I kept a small path in front, wide enough for the wheel barrow. I used plastic, lids and sheeting, to keep the soil from touching the house and prevent rot. 

 This is the bed at the end of the day. There is a layer of straw and compost under the soil. I planted Red Headed Quinoa from Uprising Organics.

Today I was on an urban hike and collected plant materials on the way. I picked up an unusual looking pine cone. The tree was massive and full of cones but I only found one on the ground.

So on the left is a regular, typical pine cone and on the right is the cone I picked up today. After checking the  web I was able to determine that the cone is from a tree commonly called Atlas Cedar (non native?). It is a very dense cone much heavier than the dried out pine cone. It has lots of sap on the end and I can probably guess that it'll burn very well. -R

Currently I am actively seeking blacksmithing tools. I need tongs, a cross peen hammer and something like an anvil to beat on. I have a forge that can be modified to operate well enough to get started. I also am collecting scrap metal. I have a few railroad spikes and rebar pieces and have searching the internet for basic beginner projects.

                                       This photo shows a forge that is similar to the one I own.

• http://lib.store.yahoo.net/lib/yhst-17797617870419/tentstakes.pdf  
• http://www.incandescent-iron.com/smithingtips.html  projects for beginners
• http://artofmanliness.com/2011/07/14/blacksmithing-primer/   good article
• http://blacksmithsupplies.net/category/blacksmith-tools  this site seemed to have a lot of useful info.

I will update with more later. -R

D.I.Y. Tent Stove

Today I set out to experiment and create a small tent stove using a metal container.

Supplies you will need: Tin snips, hammer, pliers, nail, four bolts, socket wrench, empty cans, high-heat duct tape, or high-heat glue, safety glasses, leather work gloves, and a file.

• Step one: Empty out your container as best you can and get rid of all the plastic. I chose to use a food grade metal container. *Galvanized steel should not be burned.

•  Step 2: Cut a big opening for feeding the fire. Use the pliers and the file to curl down sharp edges.

•  Step 3: Punch Air holes. (I added more later). I didn't take a photo, but I put four bolts in the bottom for feet.

•  Step 4: Take stove outdoors to burn off pollutants. The chimney is not attached yet.

•  The fire was not receiving enough oxygen so I punched four more holes on the both sides towards the bottom.

•  After I added more holes the fire was much better. It is top heavy, however I think I can solve that by adding some side supports. This project took about 3 hours.

• In a small space it gave off adequate heat. The temperature was in the 30's here in the Pacific Northwest. For the test run I burned this little stove in a well ventilated shed. I will update as I improve the stove and/or make a bigger one.

Overall this was a fun project. -R