apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I've been "gardening for food" since I was a child. This year is no different. Burpee is full of gas.

as with hdtex, "for the first time" was when i could pull my first weed. backyards without tomatoes seem a waste of space if you've ever had a jersey tomato off the vine at sunset. mostly herbs now (no space), but i can dream...and forage. i get blackberries, wild fennel, rosemary, thyme, and nasturtium flowers in a few blocks urban walk.

I wish I had a place for a garden , I have been wishing there was a community garden space in Silverlake.
Our landlord won't let us have plants on our patios .
I intend to live someplace where I can grow my own for sure.
I think it is really important.

I've got strawberries in hanging planters, grapes on the vine, a lemon tree in a large patio pot and a watermelon plant going crazy, two tomato plants producing already and some pepper plants. All is good!

Planting my first garden as a "grownup".. Worked with my parents on their large rural garden for many years.

This year it's potatoes, tomatoes, cukes, zucchini, pumpkins, beans, peas, lettuce, carrots, corn, peppers, onions, garlic, broccoli, asparagus (for next year)

I pretty much just bought everything I saw, we'll see how it works in my climate.

Does "no" include those not considering gardening at all with those who are already gardening and therefore not for the first time?

Anyhow, I said "Yes, but not because of current events." My family did grow some vegetables when I was younger. But I didn't grow anything at all during my 20s, too much moving around, doing other things, always thought (however wrongly) of gardening as something more permanent. I'm finally starting a little container garden this summer for the first time, but it's something that I've always wanted to do.

polychrome:

Oh how I hate apartment balconies/patios. We can't have grills because they are a fire hazard, they are never large enough or have shade enough (or a view) to be functional for a table and chairs, and you're not supposed to put anything else on them either (though it seems many people use it as a kind of junk drawer). Ours is 60 measly sq feet that I would have preferred they added to my living room.

Apartment complexes could do so much better. Besides just adding the space to the living room, other options include turning it into a storage closet/"garage" for bicycles, walling it in to make a green house, setting it up for gardening (a raised bed, a compost bin), turning it into an ATV closet, etc.

Will ordinary apartments ever adjust?

Mmmm. I'm living in my first post-college place... half a house outside Boston with a decent backyard. Sadly, the yard is kid territory for our landlords' little ones, so we can't dig it up. They did let us put a fire pit out there, though.

We're using the back stoop and the paved area around it for a container garden... jalapenos, pole beans, arugula, mesculin, squash, cucumbers, tomatoes, basil, cilantro, lemon thyme, onions, chives, broccoli, sunflowers, and sweet peas. I'm looking into a container large enough to support some watermelon or cantelope, and also going to start some strawberries today!

Good point guys - I wasn't considering the urban people who have been gardening for many years (just the ones who never did and the first timers)!

You know, I also grew up gardening alongside my grandparents. I was never formally trained, just did what they did. I am considering starting a garden now that we have moved to a place with a bit of personal outdoor space. I am hoping my hands and eyes remember what I did when I was a kid.

I've gardened when I was growing up and always had gardens in my classrooms. Now that I have my own place, I garden on every outdoor inch- window boxes and a small fire escape. So far we've had enough basil for 2 nights of pesto, mojitos to try and use all the mint, and we are just beginning to bring in peppers and tomatoes.

www.libertyontenth.blogspot.com

my parents have always had huge vegetable gardens, so when I bought my house it was a natural thing for me to create. I've been growing vegetables for about 5 years here!