Extreme weather edibles

Hot weather vegetables
Ginger, Inhame, beans, squash, tomatoes, tomatillos, peppers...

Dry weather vegetables
...

Cold weather vegetables
Swedes, Kale*, Parsnips*, brussels sprouts, hardy cabbages*, winter radish, chard and also lettuces, spinach, endive and chicory, celery, scorzonera and salsify, beetroots, Jerusalem artichokes, leeks...

(still to complete...)

Culturas - Março

Rabanetes já a formar o bolbo comestível; ervilhas trepando rapidamente com uns 25cm; também bem desenvolvidas estão os grão-de-bico; lentilhas e os nabos mais pequenos mas crescendo bem; alfaces bem vistosas, à espera de as transplantar devido ao seu volumoso crescimento (uns 20cm); cenouras ainda bem pequenas: alhos com alguma necrose talvez devido à excessiva chuva; das ervas aromáticas tudo bem e verdinho, as hortelãs e juga crescem rápido; as camomilas também e bastante; uma floreira nova de morangueiros ficou inundada assim como a de endívias devido à intensa precipitação. Nas flores, narcisos de um belo amarelo e de aroma apimentado, jacintos já perfumam toda a cozinha em fortes cores de roxo e amarelo, anémonas, túlipas e muscaris com os primeiros botões florais (pelos vistos prontos a despontar com a chegada da Primavera dia 21!). Noutros vasos, os bróculos crescem saudavelmente com uns 20cm, rodeados por hissopos e oregãos (consociações que impedem o aparecimento de pestes e doenças), tenho uma pequena arruda e vários pequenos tomilho, uma segurelha muito aromática pa chás, um vaso de agriões que já uso para salada e outro de salsa que também uso. Os benefícios da fertilização natural com urina diluída são evidentes e espectaculares.

Early March: Radishes have already its edible bulb, fast growing lettuces are very notorious (20cm), beautiful brocculi with around 20cm high surrounded by oregano and hissop which avoids appearance of pest or diseases, several well-growing aromatic herbs, cress and salsa that I already include in salads, flower buttons on several spring bulb flowers!, some with pretty colourful ones already, some 'flooded' pots due to heavy rains, and just a dying garlic due to the excessive humidity (in Portugal we have heavy raining mild winters and very dry hot summers), slow growing carrots, well growing turnips and chick peas, and fast growing peas. Also a rue, some thymes for spicing and a savory for making tea. The benefits of natural fertilization with diluted urine once a week are spectacular.

Urban Permaculture Homestead

Peas pots and cabbages of the neighbourhood


Brocculi and oregano. Green cover of the soil


Spring flowers section and a small pot of different thymes


Chick peas, lentills/radishes and turnips


Several aromatic and medicinal herbs


Perspective from balcony with compost and peas on left side


Small carrots and a garlic and strawberries to the left

I decide to implement some news on the blog. First I included an english translation, then I decide really to turn it into a nearly-daily journal, on the path to a more sustainable, natural, simple and full of love life.
I had some ideas on my balcony yard. Starting by thinking of saving the run-off of water from the pots after watering them (there are already containers to catch litters of rainwater). Second, maybe create a protection above and aside the tops from hard rains and winds. And maybe even create a bed of soil and plants on the balcony itself. But first I set to create more trust and link with the onwer that rents us our student house. I also thought of asking him to cultivate a little bit of his medium size yard into which we have no access (but he provided us already some soil and extra fruits from it). Other ideas I had were to put a filter on the tap water (to make it more cleaner and reduce its flow), buy a solar pannel (its quite expensive for my pocket but maybe this year I'll give a try), to create natural soap from ashes and saponaria plant (as an alternative to the one created from sodium lye and olive oil). I shall say that this week I was greatly inspired by Path to Freedom and Plants for a Future projects!

Ainda o PFAF (Plants for a Future) e o Path to Freedom

Continuo a sentir-me maravilhado com estes dois projectos de permacultura.
O primeiro, plants for a future, por nos dar a descobrir no imenso catálogo/base-de-dados de pesquisas das quintas deles que plantas são comestíveis, selvagens ou cultivadas ou ornamentais, como as cultivar, que efeitos medicinais têm, para virtualmente qualquer aplicação: http://www.pfaf.org
E http://pfaf.org/leaflets/med_uses.php
Acrescente-se a este a excelente base-de-dados http://www.ars-grin.gov/duke

O segundo, path to freedom, por nos ensinar que a autosuficiência pode ser possível e até desejável mesmo num ambiente urbano. Com muitas dicas, fotografias e pensamentos ao longo dos anos do percurso deles: http://www.pathtofreedom.com
Procure-se "permacultura" na wikipedia

Plants for a Future and Path to Freedom
Two fantastic and inspiring websites/projects, namely plants for a future http://www.pfaf.org, a useful and wide database of more than 7000 edible and medicinal species and the awesome urban home-made permaculture project http://www.pathtofreedom.com
Also have a look for information on chemicals and effects in plants in http://www.ars-grin.gov/duke