The Greenest Thumb! Contest: Uma, Michael & Ana's Garden Escape

Name: Uma.Michael.Ana
Location: Park Slope
Size: 4' x 8'
Favorite Resource: GRDN, ZUZU's petals, Farmers Market...irresponsible friends.

Pitch:

""OUR GARDEN ESCAPE" is one of the most important places of our home. At roughly 4ft x 8ft its technically a fire escape, but to us it's the perfect place to find enlightenment and tranquility, read a book or have a private conversation. Its also a great spot for chats with neighbours while they BBQ and look up with a smile...." [more below]

Some of our plants have been rescued from friends that are not up for the responsibility, while others were bought locally from places like GRDN or ZUZU petals. Our rubber tree, which has been with us for over 4 years is only getting stronger from the rich Brooklyn sunshine and it will soon be joined by our Bamboo plant that we brought home on the same day.
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This year we are supporting The Prospect Park Farmers Market (SATURDAYS) were we get great stuff.
I did attached 3 pictures but to pick only 3 pictures is impossible. Since I can't leave the others behind here is also a link to MORE at FLICKR.

Comments (2)

My fire escape is about 7x12, it's pretty large for a fire escape. I live in a converted warehouse building in Bushwick/East W-burg, and even though we're on the 2nd floor, there are no stairs or ladder leading from our fire escape to the ground level. I guess if there was a fire, you'd have to jump off our fire escape and break a leg on your way out... so everyone in the building with the fire escape has converted theirs into a patio of sorts.

I've never heard the landlord complain about chairs, plants, etc on the fire escapes so if anyone commenting on this is worried about this, I'd advise checking with your building super. We have a glider swing, plants, and thee more garden chairs on ours! :) I'm planning on constructing a better blockade on our stairwell - right now we have the bottom four steps blockaded off from the rest of the staircase with a piece of sheet rock. I want to get iron or wooden fencing and hang it instead

A neighbor whose apartment is in the front of the building was told by the Fire Department to get everything off the fire escape. That was about 10 years ago. Now, for the past approximately 8 years, on the very same block, there are neighbors in the front of buildings who have plants, storage bins etc. on their fire escapes but, not one of them have been told by the NYFD to get rid of them. Needless to say, those of us in the back of the building have never been told to remove items from the fire escape.

I've installed window boxes in metal window box holders over the fire escape railing so there isn't any problem with blocking walkways. Also, if you keep plants segregated to small corner of the fire escape away from the walkway, I cannot foresee that being problematic in case of an emergency.

For those of us without the luxury of a patio or garden or penthouse, sitting out on the fire escape in the spring and summer with a cool drink and a bit of greenery near us is a very relaxing experience, providing you don't have neighbors with backyards where the smoke from barbecues wafts into your asthmatic lungs. Thankfully, those neighbors moved away.