Nesting the Journal

aloe goes to market

Aloe is taking it to the streets this month- to the Farmers Market to be more exact! If fresh, local edibles and a stroll around Trout Lake in the sunshine isn’t enough to tempt you to the Vancouver Farmers Market this spring, perhaps our mini garden workshops will do the trick.  We are super excited to be hosting DIY stations at the Trout Lake Market for the month of May/June, to teach parents and kids how to grow food at home, support our native bee population, and improve biodiversity. All you folks are invited to get your hands dirty and learn about gardening while creating something special to take home. Even some snazzy prizes to be had! Our design team will also be on hand to chat about sustainable gardening methods and offer advice on incorporating kid- and eco-friendly garden activities at home.

The Deets:

Cartoon Cress:

Learn how to make your very own container using a toilet-paper roll covered in recycled comics. Plant up cress and other quick-to-germinate edibles that offer near-instant gratification and nicely demonstrate the “build, fill, plant, water, grow” process.

May 11, 9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.Trout Lake Farmers Market DIY Station

Mason Bee Houses:

Mason bees are hard-working native pollinators that increase biodiversity in your garden. Support their population by building your own mason bee house. Assemble and take home a mason bee house constructed from reclaimed wood. You will also learn how to make nesting tubes out of recycled newspaper.

May 25, 9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.Trout Lake Farmers Market DIY Station

Canned Food:

Get your tomato and basil seedlings off to a good start by planting them in recycled cans. Decorate your tins with crayons, paper, and glue, and learn how to transfer these delicate starts into the garden when the plants are ready to grow wild.

June 1, 9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.Trout Lake Farmers Market DIY Station

Photocredit- my great grandmother is in the back center amoungst all those big watermelon, shot in oklahoma before turn of the century.

pink lovin

Hope you all had a good weekend. And only one left before back to school- eeek! We are busy this week finishing up a mega project down in english bay. Pictures to follow in a week or so. In the meantime here is a little dose of pink blooms to keep summer lasting a little bit longer. 

 

missing goat farms

 

We visited one of our favourite farms this past weekend- Missing Goat Farms. We became buds with the owners a few years ago and love to make the annual trip out there. The minute you enter the pebble driveway lined with trees you feel the sense of 'good country living' all around. Missing Goat is owned by Heather Cameron and fashions itself a 'modern farm with old fashion methods. The farm stand is open for the next few saturdays, so if your in and around whiterock/south surrey be sure to pop in. They are also part of the farm fresh circle tour. You will be hooked on this yummy jam and pretty much want to move into the shabby shack immediately. For more info on Heather be sure to check back next week when we feature her on our home grown hero page.  Until then- happy farming.

 

Lily- Heather's Daughter & Lucie cooling off with a morning pop.

The blueberry farm.

Their amazing greenhouse. 

A vintage detail in every corner. 

Some sweet sweet peas.

The veg patch.

Washing up station.

Bought some garlic and got myself some free zucchini. Gotta love the overgrown veg giveaways. 

All the details in this shabby shack are incredible. 

And the beloved jams. Seriously, every one of these preserves are bundles of summer in a jar. 

And finally a little inspired pick on the way home. Summer we love you.

feelin blue on this rainy day

How is it that summer was in fact here the other day, and now I am in my hunters with a cup of tea, kinda freezin? A little blue in fact. So, in spite of this I find some inspiration in some of my favourite types of plants- succulents. Potting up some summer arrangements of these for clients this week which is always a pleasure. There is something so fascinating to me about "blue plants" as if nature is trying to bend the rules.

guerrilla gardening & seed bomb making workshop

A big thanks to all of you who came out on a sunny morning this weekend to partake in the first of aloes workshop series. Andrea Bellamy from Heavy Petal gave a fantastic chat and demo on seed bomb making and guerrilla gardening techniques. The kids and adults seemed so stoked to get out and blast the city with some colorful flowers and edibles.

For those who couldn't make it to the event but want to make some seed bombs at home here's the goods:

2.5 cups dry powdered clay- Redart clay, which you can find at pottery supply stores.
1.5 cups dry organic compost or soil- Screen/ pick out sticks & other larger bits. The finer the better. The compost provides a growing medium for your seeds.
1.5 cups of seeds. Choose your seeds based on the season, location, and desired effect. Tinier seeds are better.

Step 1: Combine clay, compost, and seeds.
Step 2: Slowly add water, and combine.
Step 3: You want the mixture to be moist. Roll mixture into balls 1"-2" in diameter.
Step 4: Set aside to dry (use cookie sheets) for 4-5 days before storing.
Step 5: Launch! Seed balls are great for reclaiming derelict areas with thin or poor soil, making them ideal tools for guerrilla gardening. Especially useful for tossing into empty or neglected lots. Best thrown
just before a rainy spell to ensure germination. Early Spring. Get Throwin!

monrovia

This past month, O and I took a mini baby-moon down to portland- part work research, part pleasure. After a 4 day trip in the city we headed south to the country to visit the Monrovia Headquarters in Oregon. We always love visiting nurseries, especially in other areas of the world, and this one was a real treat.

Monrovia has been growing premium plants for over 80 years, and we really got to learn the special process that these growers take to ensure top quality specimens.

Some fun facts we learned on our private tour at the nursery:

• they make their own custom blended soils including aged compost, slow release fertilizer, and mychorrhizal fungi guaranteeing their plants have optimal health and a long life span.
• it is one of the world's largest producers of container grown plants, with over 2000 varieties, 200 of which are patented exclusives. 
• there is an actual area on the grounds called a "bullpen" (thats right you baseball fans) where they do trials on new plant breeds for up to 2 years. If an employee discovers an attractive mutationon plant stock they get 5 years worth of royalties. Now thats incentive.
• they are constantly exploring environmental impacts and innovative measures of water consumption by recycling over 90% of their irrigated water run-off, in turn saving over 2.5 billion gallons per year. 
• by incorporating slow release fertilizer into the soil base they have reduced the amount of nitrogen needed, a source of greenhouse gas emissions, by 75% This assists an integrative pest management regime.
• all old plant stocks, stakes and soil gets re-worked into an organic compost used to grow specimens.

After our visit we sure could tell a lot of tlc goes into each pot, which really explains the marginal difference in a higher price point for these grown specimens. There is a specific person for evey process at the nursery and the plants get pruned to exact uniformity; ensuring a quality end product at its best. We always seek out Monrovia specimens at our local nurseries (thank you Southlands and Cedar Rim!) and are stoked to be buying direct from the source in future when we need to place large orders.

 

 

 

harvest

With summer officially come to an end, I thought I would share our summer harvest. The aloe test garden (aka our own backyard), had a pretty good yield, given that summer arrived late. Like every year, there were some miracles, some disasters and some always reliable steady growers.

For me the great pleasure of the garden is not just the abundance of inexpensive produce, its also about growing, taking care of the earth and knowing all your hard work can be savored up in one tasty bite. While I am a big fan of farmers markets and fresh local produce, there is nothing quite like a pick in your own backyard.

I love that our beans creep over the fence and share the division between our neighbour, that her 30+ year old apple tree stretches its arms to share the juice with us, and that even our laneway garden gets enjoyed by all who pass it in surprise. I love sharing a meal with friends that can also enjoy the care that goes into the food we produce. And most of all I love venturing out on a quite early morning to the raised beds to see who has risen with a fresh, perky face saying: "today I'm ripe for the picking".

90% of what we consume is shipped in. The planet is warming up as a result of our demand for cheap, quick, mass produced food. Peak oil means increasing food costs. This results in soil degradation, tapped water supplies and a massive growth of monoculture. And before we know it we will have to feed even more people with less resources. So our small contribution is to grow our own. You don't need a big plot, to help the cause. Whether you are a master gardener, recreational urban farmer or simply a black thumb- get digging. I promise the rewards are endless.

4 shelled cups. 1 batch of soup. 2 servings fresh.

1 pint. fresh on vanilla ice cream.

4 lbs. 21 cloves. will last until fall.

5 lbs. 2 harvests.

7 lbs. 2 harvests.

 

Maybe 10 in total!

21 scapes. sauteed goodness.

4 large bunches. 4 harvests.

7 lbs. still going strong.

5lbs. 1 harvest.

7 minis. 1 big guy.

3 big greens. 7 sad worm eaten little reds. a few dozen from our nieghbours.

continuous harvest. 10 batches of pesto.

4 lbs. 3 crumbles. 2 batches of muffins.

10 growing. almost ripe.

2 survivors. 1 infested. questionable harvest worthy.

6 large bunches. 6 harvests.

15 pounds. fingerling and red russian.

3 limes or 3 lemons. unsure. not ripe but growing strong.

1 cup of dried beans. beautiful colors.

a whole lot of greens. 1 salad a week for 15 weeks.

dont's in landscaping 101

Every so often we stumble upon some pretty incredible front entrances. In fact biking around neighbourhoods are a major source of where us designers get our inspiration. But once and a while, among the decadent, are some serious gems. Some game breakers. Front yards that don't go unnoticed. Aka- the polite way of saying well, WOW.  Not to be a landscape design snob... but here it is. Top three spotted this summer. Vote on your favourites:

garden projects for kids

Some of my fondest and most vivid memories as a child were spent playing in the garden. I was fortunate enough to grow up in a space that allowed for a lot of play room in a great nieghbourhood with lots of other kids. I was also fortunate to grow up with parents who were avid gardeners and very much about the organic movement.

What gardening and the great outdoors teaches our kids has an extremely powerful effect on their energy, actions, interactions and feelings. Our senses are heightened when we are outdoors- lights, smells, sounds and touch. Kids learn about caring for living things and sharing spaces and food with others. This creates pride, builds self-esteem and most of all forms character. As soon as a child is able to explore and discover things on their own, a new chapter in their life begins. They are making choices, experiencing and imagining, being creative but most of all they are having fun.

Some of the challenges and ways to enable our kids outdoors are:

1. Time- Set aside time. Get your kids away from the tv and video games. Designate garden night, or back yard playtime.
2. Space- Even if your space is small carve out an area for play. Or integrate it into your overall design. When in doubt hire a designer for an hour consultation to help brainstorm and space plan.
3. Creativity- Think back to when you were kid. Put yourselves in the mind of a child. What seems fun and interesting in their world?
4. Money- In fact gardening can be full of resources that don’t require much start up fees. Recycle, reuse and trade with others.
5. Know How- Visiting community gardens, chatting with neighbours, getting involved with school programs, blogs, books, magazines.

5 GREAT SUMMER PROJECTS WITH KIDDIES:

Edible Beds- Carving out and area in your garden so that each family member has a plot to tend to. Raised beds constructed out of reclaimed wood or cedar at waist reach height are great for small hands to tend to.

A Bug House- Making a bug house will teach kids the importance of all those little critters in your soil and that not all things that go buzz are scary! 

Sand Box- While maybe not as garden centric, these structures are great for kids to play in, when you want some peaceful time of your own in the garden. If you have a small space creating a box on casters is a great way for space saving allowing you to move the structure around depending upon use of space. 

Worm Bins- Incorporating a compost system into your garden is a fantastic way to teach children about life cycles and the chores that are more fun than a task.

Think Outside Of The Box- Using unconventional methods to grow things allows for a lighter hit to the wallet and a re purpose of household goods. Think about growing potatoes in an old coffee sack. Using an old metal trough to grow herbs. Ol' Wellington Boots that no longer fit your little one to grow carrots and toilet paper rolls wrapped in comics to start seedlings in.

gardening with kids

This is the last of our 3 part summer series workshops and it is going to be a goodie! If you don't have a kid, borrow one and come on down to Walrus this coming sunday to learn about the various ways you can get kids involved with gardening. While the workshop is in progress the lovely Erin Boniferro from Collage Collage will be hosting an activity for the kiddies. Can't wait to see all you yummy mommies and hottie daddies out there! Click to enlarge.

small space edible gardening workshop

Officially Summer... well according to the calender. For some fun edible gardening tips and inspiration come and check us out  this coming weekend (see info below) at Walrus. We were super stolked on the turn out for the last workshop and the great discussion on urban farming that was generated. Click to enlarge.

organic farming 101 workshop

Busy times for us at Aloe these days. For some fun gardening tips and inspiration come and check us out  this weekend (see info below). We are so excited to be collaborating with the ever so great peops at Walrus. Click to enlarge.

seattle garden show- 2010

This has been year 5 of visiting the annual Northwest Flower and Garden Show in Seattle. The show in february always seems to mark the coming year of garden trends and inspiration for us, and often shapes our vision for the coming seasons. And this year we were so glad to see a lot more use of edibles, sustainable elements and urban farming. Some of the highlights:

1.0 Container Garden Display- What's in:

Patchwork planting

Reusable growing mediums

Mass edible plantings

Tone on tone succulents

Miniature gardens

2.0 Seminars- DIY Seed Starting:

On the DIY Stage we learned tons of great secrets from Willi Evans Galloway (editor of organic gardening & creator of digginfood) on how to build a quick inexpensive method and seed set up for seed starting indoors. Harnessing these basics was something I always lacked success at, so I am excited to get growing this season. Fingers crosses!

3.0 Show Gardens- Top 3:

Crops for Clunkers- Seattle Urban Farm Co:

An old pick up truck has been elevated to a living vessel and container for edibles. This pieces speaks as transportable garden art but also cultivates the discussion of our local food system. From rooftop salad gardens to mini orchards and from trellised berry patches to front seat egg incubators this installation was truly brilliant.

 

A Family’s Little Farm in the City- Seattle Tilth:

This Inspiring urban homestead showed how an entire family can live sustainably in the city. Used materials like urbanite, culvert pipes and recycled oil barrels have been re purposed into functioning items. Friendly goats happily nibble weeds and produces fresh milk. Chickens aerate and enrich the soil as their mobile tractor coop is moved around. Demonstrating how every resource is put to use. We were so intrigued by this design that we later visited the headquarters of the Seattle Tilth (a nationally recognized non-profit organization dedicated to teaching kids and adults to garden organically while conserving natural resources) at the Good Shepard Center in Wallingford. An old nunnery turned artist residence, municipal offices, healing centers, school garden and community facilities. We got lost in the old world building and wondered through the gardens on site. 

The City Comes Alive- SolTerra Systems:

We are always a fan of environmental systems that get woven into any garden theme. This display garden demonstrated, that with a little thoughtful planning, a home can produce positive energy, food, clean air and water while enhancing the beauty of our built environment. 

 

3.0 Demonstration Center- Re-store's Salvaged Backyard Booth:

The Salvaged Backyard Booth, although tucked in the back by the kidz zone, really caught our eye. Not only did they give 15% off coupons to the re-store (which prompted us to visit the location in Ballard the next day) but they also got super creative with salvaged reuse. From custom built dog houses, to stylish cold frames, and from funky kids sandboxes to one very cool chicken coop- lot of ideas to be had.

4.0 For Sale- Garden Goodies:

We can’t seem to leave empty handed from any garden show. Some of our favourite finds this year were:

Bamboo fabric gardening gloves, Farmer John's heirloom seeds, Sterilized olive oil tanks re purposed as 50 gallon rain barrels, Natural garden twine on birch cut offs, Mason bee homes, Text art signage and Goats... yes goats. It so has it that Seattle’s municipal code allows city residents to keep these farm animals on site. Regulations are as follows: up to 3 pigmy, dwarf or miniature goats, up to 4 honeybee hives, up to 3 domestic fowl- chickens and what not. Our cousins are renting goats for 2 months in their new home as a means to clear the blackberry brush from their back acreage. What a great house warming gift!

5.0 Beers & Eatz & Bowling Oh My:

 

After a long day inside we were ready to hit up our favourite local watering hole- Kings Hardware, for a cold one. Thanks Seattle, we hope to see you again soon!

curb appeal

Like many of you, I am sure, the front door can often act as a holding area, a passage to and from where you need to jet. Piled up with recycling boxes, milk bottles, wet shoes, and the likes. This season create some curb appeal, that will provides an all-important first impression. Not to mention the pleasure to arrive home after a long days work, to a warm welcoming, makes that step inside the start of something good.

Here are 5 creative ways to think outside of the box…without looking too Martha Stewart along the way; even though part of this photo shoot was taken direct from the source!)

1.0    Wreath It: If there is one thing that is fun to make for the holidays it is the wreath. My friends and I have a tradition that every season we get together with a big bag of green goods and crafty supplies, sprawl out on some ones carpet with the fire and christmas tunes in the background, and get to town making wreaths. It is always fun to see what others come up with. Some of our favourite past wreaths include: bay & magnolia leaves, white inspired with feathers and balls or the simple greenery (minus the tacky bow in the middle).

2.0    Contain This: When designing a front door planter arrangement; think bold impact, proportionate scale and odd numbers. The matchy match of the classical world tends to look a bit contrived. Instead for our clients, we aim for simplicity with mass plantings and feature colors. Consider texture, structure and abundance. Some great plant choices: euphorbia, corokia, golden grass, heuchera, ornamental kale, moss and twigs.

3.0    Twigs And Branches And Wood, Oh My: Some of my favourite front door displays are done with simple pieces found in nature. Winter is a great time to scavenge on a walk in the forest, beach, neighborhood, or even your backyard.  Using a vessel with ornamental twigs and branches can make a bold impression and act as a great resting spot for goodies. Uplit these can also make a statement. Another favourite, is a simple stack of wood (birch) in an old fruit box. This can stand on its own or be strung with little white lights.

4.0    The Good Old Days: Old finds from your parents garage or hunting down some goodies from antique fairs are always a fun way to generate a conversation piece as you come to a party. Think wooden red sleighs, old school skis, abandoned antlers, or vintage rainboots.

5.0    Light The Way: Consider that light is one of the most welcoming features when you come to the doorstep. Control what people see and what gets shown. But be kind on the hydro bills. We prefer minimal usage of led christmas lights in small inconspicuous tiny white bulbs. Or the simple use of candlelight on special nights when you have guests. Light the pathways with frosted vessels, ice lanterns or simple white kraft bags. You’ll be sure to warm those passing by. 

green garden tips

With all the buzz about sustainable landscaping we thought we would end the summer season with a post that pays homage to our little green initiatives. While it’s great to get outside and dig your hands into the earth and get reconnect with the land, there are many ways the average home owner can actually be doing harmful things in their own backyard. Thanks to some great city programs, educated journalist and even those big box stores (like Home Depot) we are getting better educated on eco friendly options.

What we are not a fan of: dirty ol gas powered machinery, synthetic fertilizers, mismanaged water usage, poor planting placement, annuals galore, the list goes on and on. A green garden is simply one that touches the land lightly. Keep this in mind when you are looking to change your ways- you don’t have to start over to create your own “greens-cape”, just work at it step by step. The biggest reward for all that hard work, a green garden takes care of itself, working in unison with the natural surroundings, so sit back and enjoy.

Here are some of our favourite green garden gadgets and design ideas:

1) Worm Bins- A compact self-contained unit for your kitchen scraps which gets turned into soil and the best batch of natural fertilizer your garden has ever seen. Think preschool and the good old days digging for these wiggly little guys. Worms are easiest pet to take care of. Visit them 1ce a week with your compost bucket and they will bring you great rich soil and juice for months to come.

2) Push Mowers- Gone are the days that gas powered machinery is cool. Peruse the neighbourhoods of the east side and you will find lots of cute man daddies trolling behind push mowers on a sunny weekend afternoon. You can find old funky versions of these at garage sales and second hand stores. Your lawn will love it as will the air. Statistics show that gas mowers emit as much pollution in 60 minutes as 8 new cars traveling for the same amount of time. Now that’s something to talk about. 

 

3) Rainbarrels- Rain “use it where it falls”. I read this somewhere and just love the term especially in our lovely grey/ wet climate that is Vancouver. We are pretty lucky that we don’t have to pay for water usage like our friends down south, but it doesn’t hurt to get in the habit of being water conscious. Waterbarrels are a cinch to hook up. Simply connect these to a downspout gutter off your house, garage or shed and collect the water as it falls. Hook up at the base to a hose, a sink, or an outdoor shower. Home made, store bought, skies the limit.

 

4) Salvaged Goods- Some of our favourite design projects at the Aloe Test Garden have been hitting up salvaged yards, used building supply stores and auctions for rare useable goods. A trellis from restaurant kitchen shelving, a bbq pit made of an old baseball stadium lamp, a place to grow potatoes in old coffee sacks, starting seedlings in old tomatoe tins the list goes on. Be creative, think outside the box and you will get that custom look for a fraction of the cost.

 

 

5) Veggie Beds- Grow your own food. Plain and simple. If you have land use it. Whether it is raised beds, in-place of a front lawn or mixed in a perennial border, sneak food in your design plan, as the rewards are endless. If you only have containers pack them with herbs. If you have no backyard, join a community garden, this is a great way to get to know your community and be a part of something bigger. The biggest gardening myth is that veggie gardens are a ton of work. But a good soil base, a little TLC and regular watering and voila, you have the best tasting produce right at your doorstep. Easy Peasy 1-2-3.

6) Timeless Furniture- Buy cheap get cheap. Sure we can’t all afford the ever so cool scandinavian modern piece from Design within Reach, but we can take the time to choose our outdoor furniture, just as we would our interior. We all know a home depot special when we see one, and these generally scream, well, Home Depot! Enter Craig’s List. Finding some timeless designs at second hand stores or garage sales and retro fitting them as ‘new’ is a great place to start. And when you get that bonus at work, treat yourself to that beautifully designed ergonomically correct, lounge of all lounge chairs… and sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labor, with a mojito in hand of course.

 

 

We are always curious about other people’s green gardening tips. Drop us a line and tell us your secrets. Together we can build a healthier landscape one garden at a time!