Plantings (35)
Progress Journal (18)
Wish List (3)
We live in an apartment about a mile inland from the port and get the seabreeze directly. Our climate is Southern Mediterranean: mild winters, and humid, hot summers.
Our balcony faces west and gets sun from noon onwards. It’s rectangular about 15×4ft. walled at each end. On the shadiest end, there is a round garden table, used as a potting table. A white gardenia sits on it, visible from the bedroom window. Underneath, we have started a compost bin. The compost is a mix of coco shavings, vermiculite, kitchen scraps, guano, waste water and regular soil too. We run the kitchen scraps through a food processor so they compost more quickly.
On the opposite sunny end of the balcony, there’s the spigot for a drip watering system I hope to have ready for summer. The water supply comes from my air conditioning unit runoff hose. Inside the collector recipient below it, a small fountain pump will help the water move along through tiny tubes around the balcony to the plants. Soon, climbing plants will hide the spigot area, climbing nasturtium and passifloras, now seedlings in the coldframe.
Along the front railing of the balcony, on glass blocks, are 2 4×1ft planters, divided for square-foot gardening. They hold tulips, carnations, rosemary sage, carrots and recently transplanted tomato plants.
At the sunny end, near the door, in a large square planter there is a grouped planting of young cypress, fir tree and heather. Beside it is a second planter holding an upright growing blue juniper. These will be moved to the shady end in May when there place will be taken by a rosebush.
On the iron balcony railing hangs one lonely planter with parsley, crocus and newly sprouted lettuce seedlings. Later planters will be hung all along the railing as more flower seedlings are transplanted from seed pots.
On the back wall, a make-shift cold-frame, composed of leftover glass blocks placed in a rectangular against the wall , is covered by small hinged window frame unit. This will be dismounted before summer and replaced with long planters for green peppers and tomatoes against that very sunny wall.
The balcony is accessed through double full glass doors at one end of the back wall. The area is tiled.
Plantings
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Violettes
Viola x williamsiana
Sown on 18 Mar 09 Sown from seeds bought last year.
- 0 journals
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Lettuce
Lactuca sativa var. crispa
Sown on 18 Mar 09 Red sails lettuce sown from packet purchased in...
- 0 journals
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Rosier Louis Funès
Rosa
Purchased on 24 Feb 09 Mis en terre rosier Louis Funès, rosier à grand...
- 2 journals
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- 0 comments
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Bulbs
Tulipa
Transplanted on 09 Jan 09 Planted tulip bulbs, hyacinth bulbs and daffodi...
- 1 journals
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Tomatoes
Solanum lycopersicum
Transplanted on 09 Jan 09 Transplanted 3 tomato plants grown from seed in...
- 1 journals
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Lettuce
Chicorium endiva
Transplanted on 09 Jan 09 Tranplanted 10 escarole lettuce plants grown fr...
- 2 journals
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Jonquilles - Daffodils
Narcissus
Transplanted on 09 Jan 09 Yellow Daffodils
- 2 journals
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Hyacinths
Hyacinthus orientalis
Transplanted on 09 Jan 09 Hyacinth bulbs planted after 4 weeks in the ref...
- 1 journals
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Spinach
Spinacia oleracea
Sown on 19 Oct 08 Sown in Fall, harvested in March
- 1 journals
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Alicante tomatoes
Solanum lycopersicum
Sown on 24 Sep 08 tomato seeds, sown in Fall, first flowers in March
- 1 journals
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Parsley
Petroselinum crispum var. neapolitanum
Sown on 24 Sep 08 parsley grown from seed.
- 1 journals
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Carrots trials year two
Daucus carota subsp. sativus
Sown on 13 Sep 08 Sown a row of carrots in the planter against th...
- 1 journals
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Climbing Nasturtium
Tropaeolum majus
Sown on 24 May 08 Climbing variety of nasturtiums
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Delphinium
Consolida ajacis
Sown on 24 May 08 various color delphinium seeds
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Green onion
Allium fistulosum
Sown on 24 May 08 green onion annual seeds
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Herbe à chat
Avena sativa
Sown on 24 May 08 cat grass
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Lettuce May
Lactuca sativa
Sown on 24 May 08 reine de may lertuce seeds
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Passionflower
Passiflora caerulea
Sown on 24 May 08 Climbing purple passion flower vine seeds
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peppers
Capsicum annuum var. annuum (Grossum Group)
Sown on 24 May 08 bell pepper seeds
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Strawberry
Fragaria x ananassa
Sown on 24 May 08 strawberry seeds, sow for havest in 1,6 years.
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Thyme
Thymus vulgaris
Sown on 24 May 08 thyme herb seeds
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Marigolds
Calendula officinalis
Planting Out on 20 May 08 planted in balcony railing planters for flowers...
- 1 journals
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Impatience
Impatiens
Planting Out on 20 May 08 Grown in balcony planters for flowers
- 1 journals
- 0 faves
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Petunias
Petunia
Planting Out on 30 Apr 08 Planted in balcony railing planters for flowers
- 1 journals
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Petunias
Petunia
Planting Out on 30 Apr 08 Planted in balcony railing planters. Purple and...
- 1 journals
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Hibiscus
Hibiscus coccineus
Planting Out on 30 Apr 08 Red flowering hibiscus bush in large planter on...
- 1 journals
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Strawberry
Fragaria x ananassa
Purchased on 30 Apr 08 Strawberries in planters for fruit. Get started...
- 1 journals
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Gardenia
Gardenia jasminoides
Planting Out on 01 Mar 08 White gardenia in pot on balcony for scented fl...
- 1 journals
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Rosemary
Rosmarinus officinalis
Planting Out on 02 Feb 08 Rosamary bush in balcony herb planting group fo...
- 1 journals
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Rosemary
Rosmarinus officinalis
Planting Out on 02 Feb 08 Rosamary bush in balcony herb planting group fo...
- 1 journals
- 0 faves
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Sage
Salvia officinalis
Planting Out on 02 Feb 08 Sage bush in planter with herb planting group f...
- 1 journals
- 0 faves
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Heather
Erica carnea
Planting Out on 14 Nov 07 Grown in evergreen grouping planter for greener...
- 1 journals
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Fir
Picea abies
Planting Out on 14 Nov 07 In evergreen grouping planter on shadier end of...
- 1 journals
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Cedar
Thuja occidentalis
Planting Out on 14 Nov 07 Planted in evergreen group planter at shady end...
- 1 journals
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First season
Juniperus
Planting Out on 14 Nov 07 Upright juniper, grown for intimacy from facing...
- 1 journals
- 0 faves
- 0 comments
Buzz buzz buzz!
Listen in on the Grapevine
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