im going to be moving into an apartment within the next month or so, and wont be able to afford spending $20 or more everyday on food. (veggies are expensive and i eat alot of them...)

does anyone have any suggestions as to what vegetables i could grow organically (i live in minnesota), as well as ideas on how to cut back on food cost?

Yes:

1) Buy bulk seeds (like sunflower) and grow your own sprouts.
2) Grow your own little organic garden: as you suggested. With the weather warming up......harvest your greens very young....whatever you grow. Grow tomatoes or peppers if you can get some good sun reflected onto them. Water very well once daily.
3) Eat conventional and discounted/dented produce when available.
4) Ask others if they'll invite you over for a fruit dinner.
5) Wander your neighborhood and forage for Dandelions plants to harvest for greens and roots.
6) Ask your neighbors if you can pick some fruit from any trees around.
7) Get a part-time job at a fruit stand in the mornings or evenings.
8) Stick to low-cost staples like apples, bananas, cabbage, etc.
9) Shop at different locations and only stock up on sale items.

-Just some suggestions.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

i wont eat any conventional produce aside from avocados and the occasional banana. after working in a produce department..and seeing the weird way that stuff "rots" as well as reading up on the growing practices...its just something i cant take part in.
but i do live near a co-op (same one i used to work at..) and they have good deals on overripe bananas, peaches, oranges, plums...etc..all organic.

the other day i picked up some organic vegetable seeds, and hope to get a bag of organic potting soil after work today.

thanks for the suggestions

i have pots of things growing all over the place in my house (i wish i had a camera)

just keep the soil good and theres tons of things you can grow inside

i rotate stuff around all the time so they get light from the windows .. move things in and out weather permitting

i do use artificial grow lights when needed

dont be afraid to experiment

ive grown a huge zuchini plant in my living room and its just gorgeous

stuff like that you will have to help polinate as theres no bees indoors ..

use a paintbruss to transfer pollen from flower to flower

ive grown potatoes, tomatoes , leafy stuff, root stuff.. play around with it.. make it fun ..the plants will enjoy your good vibes

i hope you manage to get a place with a balcony ...if so the skys the limit ! =)

unlike conventional houseplants though you will have to keep the soil nutrient up or keep buying new soil as your crops will eventually use it up

if you get a balcony you might want to look at composting with worms theyre alot of fun and give you amazing fertilizer in return .. you can use your old soil in the bin to get recharged so to speak

plus your not adding to the garbage problem

you could invest in a simple soil test kit or just watch the plants ..when they start not doing well its a good indication the soils done.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/19/2007 04:16PM by Jgunn.

the place im most likely going to get is on the third story and has a nice big balcony...probably gets good sunlight during the day.

i love the idea of growing my vegetables inside..as it almost completely eliminates the issue of pests..

my boyfriend and i really love houseplants (hes working on starting a bonsai business), and combined we probably have over 50. (most of them are quite small..) so theres no shortage of grow lights..

if i were to compost my used coffee grounds..vegetable peelings..etc..i think that would help to add nutrients to the soil..but would it smell bad?

no compost generally doesnt smell bad (smells like sweet dirt) unless stuff like oils or fats or meat gets in it .. if you use egg shells in it just rinse them before you toss them in and the smaller their crushed the faster they break down

if you decide to try it with the worms (speeds the process up ) you wont have problems with smells or flies etc and the worms stay content in the bin munching away giving you lots of black gold (worm poo!)



lucky you on the balcony ! you probably wont have too many pests on the 3rd floor ..occaisional flies maybe

yes, you mentioned 'no shortage of grow lights.'..THAT is the biggest problem you may find, as things grown inside often grow leggy..
I know you will start your seeds very close to a grow light, which will keep them stocky.( you seem to know what you are doing, horticulturally)..but as things continue to grow, you still need to keep the plants very close to some kind of grow light set up..for big plants, this will require a large set up with 4 fluorescent/ grow light bulbs 3' across. and about 1 foot wide.

If you bring the plants closer to the window, that will be good, but since the light is not direct overhead, you will find the plants LEANING towards the light, so you will need to continually rotate them.

I know a couple balcony gardeners, and being up so high is definitely a pest deterrent.

Also , if you can, make or get some tomato / zuccini cages to help support the plant..to help keep it upright, and keep the fruits produced off the ground.

Study about how to do vermiculture (earthworm care and feeding). I had a friend who got a "worm kit", where she purchased a box which had four layers,specifically to make worm compost.
She would put food on top, with newspaper, and the worms would wiggle from the bottem trays up to the top to feed and would leave large amounts of worm castings with worm tea as a by product.
Contrary to what is mentioned in this thread, the set up DID smell.. and she did everything she could to keep it clean and sweet.

It would not be bad on the balcony, however.

you can also get untreated bamboo baskets and grow all kinds of sprouts in these..They make multiple ;bushy' gardens from alfalfa and radish and other sprouts...in individual baskets.

The original 'sproutman', Steve Meyerowitz came up with the basket idea many years ago, and gave instructions on how to make them.. Untreated bamboo baskets about 8 inches diameter are the best for this.

you can produce quite a bit of 'produce' this way.

also sunflower seed sprouts and buckwheat sprouts can be made in baskets, but the mesh needs to be bigger in the baskets, to accomodate the larger roots.

see if you can find anything by steve meyerowitz on the www.

cheerio

minneapolis is awesome.

i also read a story on the internet last night that in harvest time, he was driving around the neighborhood and saw an orchard for sale with lots of fruit going to waste. he contacted the realtor who gave him permission to pick the fruit.

needs to be organic, i realise.

cheerio
alice

i just found an awesome site which explains the basket methods of growing a whole bunch of greens for your apartment garden..

The potential of this for you all is getting better by the minute.

here is the site:
[www.universal-tao.com]


cheerio
alice

found even more information

this is conceerning meeting the lighting requirements of plants

it comes from backyard gardening or backyard gardener,...com..cannot remember which

Get Some Growlights Going

by Susan Ward

Tired of leggy, floppy seedlings or being limited to the space of your available south-facing windowsill? Get ready for the seed-starting season by getting some grow-lights ready to go.
If you've ever tried to start seeds inside before, you already know that relying on windows to give enough light in the winter and early spring is a mistake. The early season light just doesn't have enough intensity and duration. While a great many seeds will germinate well without light, once they germinate, most seedlings require 12-14 hours of direct light to manufacture enough food for healthy stems and leaves. Without this amount of light, seedlings begin stretching to find more light, thus producing leggy plants. Only growing your seedlings under lights can solve this problem.

For the home gardener, there are two types of light systems to choose from: The priciest kinds of growlights available are the High Intensity Discharge lamps (HID). They're the most expensive because they're the most efficient; one 1000 watt HID lamp can produce the same amount of light as fifty 40 watt fluorescent lamps. Both High Pressure Sodium and Metal Halide HIDs are available, most commonly in a 400 and 1000 watt size. The 400 can supply enough light for a growing area of about 16 square feet or a 4 x 4 garden. The 1000 can cover an area of about 7 x 7. Unfortunately, an HID lamp costs approximately $200.

If you can afford it, an HID light is great, but if you're like most home gardeners, there is a less expensive solution that is ideal for starting seeds or cuttings; fluorescent lamps. One fixture with two four foot lamps installed can cover two 10x20 inch trays. The standard "shop light" fixture will cost from $15 to $25; the fluorescent tubes cost $4 through $8 each. To provide the full spectrum of light to the seedlings, you should purchase both warm and cool fluorescent tubes.



Because seedlings need high light intensity, you want to keep your plants no more than 3 inches away from the bulbs. To accomplish this, I make wooden frames for my fluorescent light fixtures, attaching a six inch piece of wood to each side so it will stand on a table. Although the resulting standing fixture isn't terribly strong, this allows me to put the seedling trays directly underneath the lights where they need to be.

Otherwise, you can also build your own shelving unit and hang the fluorescent light fixtures on chains over the seedling trays. As the plants grow, the chains can be shortened to provide the seedlings with more headroom.

Once your seeds have germinated, the lights will need to be left on for 12-16 hours a day if you have no other light source. If you're starting your plants in a sunny window, you should still supplement your seedling's light supply with an additional four hours a day of artificial light.

Starting seeds inside and watching seedlings grow into strong, healthy little plants is a pleasure that you shouldn't have to forego just because you live in an area with a long dark winter. Putting together some growlight fixtures is a great way to beat the winter blues and get ready to spring into the growing season.

Susan Ward is a freelance writer living in Comox, B.C. who has a passion for gardening. She is the Suite101 Editor for Gardening in B.C. and writes for magazines such as BackHome.



Starting Hot Pepper Plants From Seed

by Joe Arditi

GETTING STARTED:


The selection of hot peppers available at the supermarket is very poor. Although the selection of plants from a nursery or store is a little better, when you start from seeds, there is a terrific variety available. And as hot pepper popularity is growing constantly, the varieties just keep expanding. One catalog, Pepper Gal boasts over 200 varieties! So for starters, pick out your selections.

MAKING THE PROCESS EASY:

Soil: There are many good seed starting mixes available at nurseries or discount stores. They work very well and I would recommend them as there is no mixing, measuring, etc. If you prefer to make your own mixture, go with 1/3 good garden soil (don't go with clay soil as it compacts badly), 1/3 vermiculite or similar growing medium, and 1/3 sand. Hot pepper plants LOVE sand as many varieties originate in areas with sandy soil. Also, it provides excellent drainage. Mix all 3 ingredients together very well.

Containers: I like plastic gro-packs for 6 to 12 plants, peat pellets or peat pots. Gro packs are especially good because you can cover tightly with "cling-wrap" after first watering and create a little "hothouse" environment. The soil stays moist longer at a higher temperature. Just remove cling-wrap when seedlings emerge. Put your soil/seedling mix into containers. Don't fill to exact top but leave at least 1/4 inch for watering or it will run off.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATIONome varieties can be finicky to germinate. I recommend soaking seeds overnight in warm water to give them a head start. Then sow seeds 1/4 inch deep 6 to 10 weeks before the last frost. Keep seeds moist, but not soaked, through germination phase. They germinate best above 65 degrees. Ideal is 75 to 85 degrees. Because most homes are not this warm, another tip is to place them on top of your refrigerator until seedlings emerge. It stays pretty warm there. Don't forget my cling-wrap tip in a sunny windowsill. Again, be patient, some varieties can take 4 to 6 weeks to germinate. Others can show up in 7 to 10 days. It depends on temperature, sunlight, soil and variety. After they emerge, seedlings prefer at least 6 hours of sunlight, the more the better. As they develop their first set of leaves I'll snip off with a scissors the weakest one. As they develop their second set of leaves I'll snip off all but the healthiest one. Once you have healthy seedlings you're ready for the transplant and growing stage, then the harvesting stage, then my favorite the cooking and eating stage.

Pepper Joe's "Best & Worst" hot pepper seed list:




Best for small gardens or container planting ..Thai, Tabasco and Pueblo.
Best for dried powder ..Cayene, Turkish Cayenne, Serrano and Charleston.
Best garden novelty ..Peter Pepper. Rated "most pornographic" by Organic Gardening magazine.
Most abundant yeild ..Bolivian Rainbow, Fatalli, Hot Lemon and Purrira.
Pepper Joe's favorites ..Golden Habanero, Barney, Jamaican and Fatalli
Hottest ..Red Savina, Caribbean Red, Orange Habanero, and Golden Habanero.
Worst..Bulgarian Carrot (Tough skin, no flesh), Rocoto (hard to grow, and a poor producer), and Mexibell (not hot at all).
Most varieties available at Pepper Joe's

smell is in the nose of the beholder i guess lol ive never had my worm bins smell indoors and ive had them for 10 years i like the smell of dirt ...if the bin smells at all sour something is not right

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist

j gunn..my friends got a worm composting kit which was composed of about four or five levels. Then they got some 'red wigglers' and inserted them as instructed, and also had newspapers, as i remember, and when they used their juicer machine,to make fresh carrot juice and other things, they would give the pulp to the wormies..It was a very sensible, ecologically sound thing to do it seems.

And worm tea has been proven to be absolutely exceptional to feed plants and flowers, fruits and veggies..It helps repel insects and promotes growth.

I did not live in their house. They kept the set up downstairs, but i do recall in winter they said tht it smelled somewhat like urine.

But there was nothing wrong with it.. The worms lived and reproduced , and reproduced , and reproduced..and made lots of castings and tea.
But they told me that it was so smelly that they wanted to get rid of it.

so they did.

Still, a balcony would not be a bad idea for one as long as it was not in full sun , would it be????

alice