Leeks, Onion and Garlic

Update – Potato, carrot and escallion. The tallest potato plant is 12 inches tall. Nothing else appears to be different. It continues to grow on the surface but I guess the magic continues underground. The carrot and the lettuce died 😦 . I changed the water for the carrot every other day but it still rotted. The lettuce initially showed some potential but it also died. It could be that I placed it in the soil too quickly. I may try again, but in the meantime, I’ve concluded that it might be more practical to grow carrots and lettuce from seeds.

The escallion is now between 4-7 inches; it’s incredible! Each stalk can yield enough new growth for one meal after 1-2 weeks in either soil or water. Both approaches seem to produce the same level of growth, but I noticed that the one in the soil had a darker shade of green when compared to the ones in the water. I also prefer the soil method because the water method is too much work. To avoid breeding mosquitoes I had to change the water daily and that could not work during periods of abandonment. Now I’ve put everything in soil and left the pot under the eave. I will check back on them in two weeks.

Now unto growing leeks, onion and garlic.

Onions and garlic are a usual part of my shopping but leeks is something new. I chose it because it had roots growing from the base….these days I am more vigilant in my grocery shopping. I am happy to see roots because I may be able to regrow the produce… I had no idea how to prepare leeks so I decided to learn.

Leeks – had it in the fridge too long

Potted leeks

I removed the base just like I did with the escallion and lettuce and I potted it straight into the soil (using water to start is becoming tiresome). I am trusting that the roots that are on it are not too badly damaged from being in my refrigerator for about two weeks before being used. I used the rest of the leeks to make a shepherds pie (my first). I complemented it with red onions, cabbage, callaloo, carrots and broad beans. It turned out just great…yummy 🙂 .

Back to planting.

For the garlic, I separated some cloves and potted five of them (the biggest ones) directly in the soil. In each instance I tried not to disturb the bottom of the clove because I am hoping that’s where the roots will come out. I poured soil in a planter and placed the base of each clove down, while spacing them about 3 inches apart. I then covered them fully with more soil (about an inch). Let’s see what happens.

Garlic for planting

As for the onion, I planted about one-third of it – the bottom part which had some very dry roots; I am hoping that life will return to the onion. I’m also not sure how to plant onions and farmer Google wasn’t of much help with planting from cuttings. So, the first day I put the roots in the soil and had the top of the cut part of the onion exposed. That didn’t sit well with me, and as I thought about it in the night I decided to cover the entire thing with soil, which I did the next morning. I am hoping that a new onion or onions will emerge somehow.

For these new additions I’ve taken to watering them each morning. I’m trusting that that will be enough because they will be on their own for the next two weeks.

Poshly expanding

This week I expanded my posh farm further. My refrigerator continues to incubate my vegetables and now I’ve added two new items to my posh farm. Before I talk about them though, let me give you an update on the Irish potato, escallion, and sweet potato. I am soooo excited!

The Irish and the escallion continue to grow like a teenage boy experiencing a growth sprout; it’s amazing. In hindsight, I should have been measuring the height of the trees for the Irish at the first week, but I didn’t. It is something I’ll do next time to see how fast they grow at this stage; it is quite possible that the growth rate will change throughout the process of propagation.

Escallion in water

Escallion in soil

Growing potatoes

Sweet potato with 2 roots

It’s been 1 week for the escallion and 5 weeks since the Irish was planted. The escallion has grown 2-4 inches while the trees for the Irish stand between 8-10 inches……

The sweet potato is now showing tiny leaves and two roots….The beauty of nature. It’s exciting to see it unfold.

So, now unto my new adventures.

The Carrot Top 🙂

Don’t laugh. This is a forgotten carrot which was in the drawer of the refrigerator for about 5 months. I noticed it growing shoots and I’ve decided to plant it as well.

Carrot with base in water (just taken from refrigerator)

Like for most other farming things, I consulted farmer Google. Most sites suggested that I place the carrot in water so I did just that (after cutting off the edible bit). There are some sites that say you can grow a carrot from a cutting and some which say you can’t. I’m not sure which is correct so I’m going to try and see what happens. I don’t think I’ll leave it in the water indefinitely though. The sites say that this should lead to root development so I’ll leave it in water for two weeks and then plant it in soil.

A Head of Lettuce

Romaine lettuce was my next item (from the refrigerator en route from the supermarket). It seems far-fetched but I have nothing to lose except the base of the lettuce, so I’m giving it a try. The farmer in me can’t wait to see what happens.

Freshly cut lettuce base

Lettuce moved to soil

Like the escallion, I cut off the top of the lettuce and planted the base. I first placed the base in water and left it on the window sill. But, after a few days of having to change the water repeatedly, I figured it would either rot while breeding mosquitoes, or die of water shortage during periods of abandonment. So, I’ve put it in soil, in the same pot that once housed the Irish potatoes; maybe the magic of the Irish potatoes will lead to something here. It too is under the eave of the house where the roof forms droplets from the dew.

In the meantime, you have ringside seats to the happenings on the posh farm, and the possibilities in your kitchen. Happy Posh Farming!

Re-potting and expanding

Re-potting the Irish potato

My little one(s) are doing quite well from what I can tell. Being the novice I am, I take pride in the green leaves and growing plants. I’m not sure what’s going on underground but they look quite healthy and the plants are growing real fast. As I mentioned last week, I noticed that the plants which had emerged had doubled in size in the week since they broke the soil. By week 4 they were too big for the pot they were in, and I was concerned that if I left them in that pot, it would limit the yield. So I re-potted the plant(s) in a 5 gallon bucket that I begged from a painter (he was about to toss it).

Potato at 4 wks – too big for the pot

The bucket for the growing potato

Punctured the bottom of the bucket to allow excess water to run out

I had to be very careful because I didn’t want to disturb the growing potatoes. I must admit, I think I may have damaged a few of the more fragile sprouts but I tried my best and I think I did well; my little one(s) now have ample room to grow. I also know now to plant it in a big container from the beginning.

I must also admit that growing the potato in the container is far more interesting to me as a novice. It is also more manageable. In hindsight, I’m not sure what I was thinking taking on such ‘large scale farming’ last year :-). Anyway, it was a wonderful learning experience and I now have a new level of respect for those who till the soil so that we can eat.

Re-potted potato

Escallion (Green Onions)

Two weeks ago, a friend of mine sent me a photo of escallion that he’d gotten from his neighbor. So this week I decided to expand my posh farm by planting escallions (and anything else I find in my kitchen). Escallion is something I use a lot in my cooking. It’s very appealing to the senses and enhances the flavor of whatever it is I am preparing. I’ve always had to buy what I need, so this week when I went to the supermarket, I decided I would try growing escallion from the ones I’d bought. They had no visible roots (I assumed that if I had gone to the market I probably would have gotten better ones). Anyway, they were labeled ‘local’ so I am trusting that something will grow from the ones I have.

Escallion cut for planting

Escallion in water

I wasn’t sure of the best technique to use so I consulted farmer Google. All the sites I found recommended that I put the root of the escallion in water and place it on my window sill; it should grow roots and produce escallions. I was a bit skeptical so I decided to try two different methods; one in the water and the other in soil (I actually had to go to the hardware store for more potting soil, which I figure will come in handy later on. It came in very handy for the re-potting of the potato).

I first cut away the top parts of the escallion for use in my cooking and I placed most of the bottom parts in an unused jar I had lying around the kitchen. I placed them in just enough water to cover the area which should root. I also planted one of the bottom pieces in soil to see what would happen. I had two reasons for doing this. I wanted to find out if:

1. one of the planting techniques would yield better results, and
2. we could grow multiple stalks of escallion from a single piece.

I’m still not sure, but at the time of writing this, I am amazed at how fast the escallions are growing. After twelve hours, both the ones in the bottle and the one in the soil are showing new shoots.

Potting soil

Escallion in soil

New growth – escallion planted in soil (12 hrs after planting)

New growth – escallion in water (12 hrs after planting)

My Refrigerator – the Incubator

My refrigerator is slowly becoming the incubator for my posh farm :-); I take things home from the supermarket, place them in the refrigerator and they start growing. I’m loving it!

Sweet Potato

Earlier this week I was getting ready to scrub a sweet potato for cooking when I realized that tiny shoots were coming from one end of it. The farmer in me decided to remove the growing end from the rest of the potato and see how the process unfolds over time; of course, I ate the other bit :-).

The Irish potato had no help from be in its initial stage of propagating;  had simply left it out on the counter. This time I decided to ‘help’ the sweet potato by putting its base in some water. I’m not sure what will happen; time will tell.

In the meantime, be sure to plant something this week. Happy posh farming!