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We’ve got some fruit, after a very hot and periodically dry summer. The Cannonball and Snake gourds have been productive, but the Loofah and Birdhouse plantings have failed to fruit. Plenty of flowers and bees, so I’m still trying sort out why. One guess is that we need a good bit more space between the “productive” plants and the “sterile” plants. Unproductive plant pollination could have occurred.
If you are a gourd guru, and can guess, please leave a comment or email me at: timothy dot nohe at gmail dot com.
One happy surprise… the school chickens have been cooling in the shade of the ground creeping Cannonball gourds. I’ll try to get a shot so that you can see the chooks shading themselves when we have a broiler of a day in the city.
Kids from Ms. Betsey’s class helped me to fabricate some bamboo trellises to train up the gourd growing vines. This year our varieties include: Bird’s Nest, Loofah, Sanke, Bottle and Swan. Hoping for a summer of gentle rains and a long growing season through Fall. Pictures soon.
Today I worked with kids from Baltimore Montessori Public Charter School to build 4 new raised bed planters. We used prefabricated wood composite board “I” beams recycled at The Loading Dock, my favorite source for used building materials. We blended dirt from the kids’ seed start beds with a hefty helping of chicken manure supplied by the Montessori School’s chickens (thanks ladies!).
Tomorrow we plant a nice range of gourd and loofah seeds and build a trellis for each bed from bamboo felled during the big winter storms.
Last year we had trouble getting pollinated by insects in the city, but thanks to a Parks and People Neighborhood Greening Grant, we now have two very active hives established on the campus by Denzel Mitchell. Our worm composting program has also provided us with some terrific castings, so I’m optimistic about a good harvest in the Fall.
One of four planters, in relation to the bioswale.
The compost tumbler enriches our soil, with added contributions from the chickens that live in the bioswale.
A Neighborhood Greening Grant from the Parks and People Foundation supported our bees, and the bees will promote pollination of the gourds. Denzell Mitchell, bee keeper, chef, farmer for BMPCS maintains the colonies.
A planter fashioned from recycled wood composite “I” beam sections.
Ruskin with gourd seeds.