EAGLE STREET FARM

The days are long and warm now, and a friend and I spent a few hours last weekend volunteering at the Eagle Street Rooftop Farm in Greenpoint.  We prepped beds, planted seeds, painted bee hives and hauled rubble.  The farm is a 6000 square foot roof garden with a fantastic view of the city.  They have great workshops and education programs, and are on the cutting edge of organic urban farming.

The farm sells its produce to several local restaurants including Eat, where we ate breakfast before going up to the farm.  Check out New York Magazine's review here.

Here are the seedbeds.  We planted a mixed lettuce and arugula.  I can't wait to come back in May for chicken day to see how things have grown (and to learn about the use of chickens as pest control and fertilizer!)

With a newly legalized rooftop beekeeping ordinance passed, the farm is expanding their hive count.  I am fascinated by beekeeping.

Afterwards we rewarded ourselves with some tacos from El Diablo Tacos at Union Pool along with some "American" micheladas.

Some of the best tacos in Brooklyn if you ask me.

MARCH SHOWERS, APRIL FLOWERS

Spring has come and the intense rains of March followed by some very warm days (and one quite hot day) of early April weather shock sprouted the garden.  Last year's daffodils and hyacinth were out early.  I also planted some pansies and ranunculus to cope with the usual bouts of cold we still get here in the early part of the month, and I thought for a while it was an unnecessary step since we had so much sun and heat this month.  A single night of frost last week, however, killed all the non-hardy plants my neighbor put out too early.  Nature is a cruel mistress.

CALIFORNIA BIRTHDAY

It was my own big 3-0 last week... but the real fun was getting to attend my close friend Elizabeth's birthday party in Oakland, California.  She put on a beautiful little cocktail party with great food and drink, and I got to help set up and then enjoy some fun east bay shops, food and treats the day after.

The ham was my boyfriend's idea.  It was popular.

Delicious chocolate dipped potato chips.

Elizabeth served special cocktails mixed up by a local bartending legend from Oliveto... one of the area's best restaurants.

A popcorn machine rental added some fun.

Here is a gorgeous Victorian in the hostess' hometown of Oakland.  I walked around the place several times in order to fully appreciate the interesting landscape design.


Speaking of landscape design, on a tour of the area we stopped in on housewares store Lola, and I bought a great book on the work of Northern California based landscape architect Andrea Cochran.  Cochran sites some of her strongest influences as Luis Barragan and Robert Irwin, two of my favorite architects/artists, and she has does some great work herself.  Her favorite project of mine is Stone Edge Vineyard in Sonoma.

Lola was a fantastic shop.  The entrance had a copper screen door... something I would like to see more of on all the world's windows and doors.

One of my favorite home stores: Tail of the Yak.

Even more charming deliciousness at Ici ice cream shop

THE best ice cream I have ever had, with the most interesting flavor combinations.  Candied tangerine and lime!  Yum!

And, of course, the crowning glory of the east bay food scene... Oliveto.  I had my departing meal here before boarding a red eye back to New York.  Lamb crudo, an insane hen ragu, and wild boar sausage.  It did not disappoint.  Happy Birthday Elizabeth!

AUTUMN GARDEN WORK

I have been really neglectful of my little roof garden since the end of summer.  I set out this past weekend to clean up collected leaves, sort out the compost and plant some bulbs for next spring.

There were a few surprises.  First of all, blooms on things that should have long passed their peak, including this Dahlia, and the Azalea below.

I planted some Narcissus bulbs.

The warm weather over the last month has also forced last year's bulbs to start sprouting.  I buried in the hopes that I will still get some blooms in the spring.  We will see.  There seems to be an almost Mediterranean micro-climate on our roof that keeps things warm well into December, even on a normal year.

The compost was FULL of earthworms.  More interesting, though, was the new ecosystem that formed in the collected dirt and leaves piled up in the corners and behind pots.  Imagine if you left the natural accumulation for more than a season... you would have trees growing out of the roof in no time.

Cosmos still blooming.

Autumn colors.

HOUSE PLANTS

As fall sets in and the outdoor garden dies back, I focus my energies on the indoor plants that will keep the apartment feeling clean and fresh during the winter.  Cactus, furns, and some exotic tropicals are the bright green guys that keep the gray of winter at bay.

Staghorn fern.  Just soak in the kitchen sink once a week.

White cinnamon tree.  It needs lots of water in summer, and almost none in winter... just like in its native Florida.

This hibiscus is a new addition this year.  We'll see how successful it is as an indoor plant.

GARDENS IN THE SOUTH OF FRANCE

France was incredible. The weather was great and the wedding was special beyond words. So special, in fact, that I am embarrassed to say we barely left the hotel grounds (I know, terrible). Also, my camera had some technical issues, so there aren't many photos to share. That won't stop me, however, from spending a little time focusing on one of the world's most blessed places: the Cote d'Azur. Above is an image looking out through the pine forests to the town of Antibes beyond.

Here, someone else captures the feeling a little better (my "trusty" G10 is being repaired now. I missed it badly). Watching the boats drift in and out of the harbor through the trees. It was deeply soothing.

There were also huge flower gardens. This part of France is much like Southern California in that you can grow just about anything.

Nearby is the town of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, where the Villa Ephrussi Botanical Gardens are located. Enjoy...

Someday I will go back and actually see the sights. Click here for a more extensive photo tour of the gardens by Nigel Burkitt.

Images that are not mine via Garden Web, moondreamer's flickr

GARDENS OF THE MISSION

The Mission San Juan Capistrano has a beautiful series of gardens scattered over its property.

One thing the (still Catholic Church consecrated) Mission is short on is accurate history.  The gardens are so quiet and peaceful, and the presentations in the mission museum paint a romantic picture of pastoral community.  In reality, the Spanish enslaved the native population to build the place, and essentially wiped out the local Juaneno culture.  What little was left was paved over by American settlers.

Orange County has always been friendly to the forces of development, and these forces almost always win.  A recent victory against the developers, however, was the nixing of a highway that was to blast its way through a state park, treasured surf spot, endangered species habitat and archeological site south of San Clemente.  The fact that it was even proposed shows how weak opposition usually is in the face of a money making proposal.

To learn more about the native heritage of Orange County, efforts to preserve what little is left of it, and of the natural environment in Southern OC, check out the local division of the Sierra Club or the local chapter of the Surfrider Foundation.