Balag ng Kamatis

Ipinagtatayo ng balag ang mga halaman ng kamatis dito sa Italia. Mahaba o mataas ang karaniwang katawan ng kamatis na umaabot ng mahigit isang metro. Kung hahayaan lang ang halaman ay gagapang ito sa lupa, at kapag nasa lupa ay maaaring hindi makatanggap ng sapat na init at liwanag ng araw ang mga bunga nito. Maliban dito, maaari ring maakit ang maraming insekto at amag na bubulok sa halaman. Habang tumataas ang halaman, ang mga sanga nito ay itatali sa kawayan.

Mulch Works!

Had I laid enough mulch, less or no grass at all would have invaded the spaces between my onion plants.

Slugs

A quick tour in my vegetable garden this afternoon gave me the chance to observe some tiny slugs (about 5mm) devouring the tender leaves of my carrot plants. And they eat only the carrot leaves(!) ignoring the grass which has grown prolific next to the carrots. A very humid and rainy week with temperatures ranging from 10°-20°C has given life to many organisms in the garden, including them. Maybe I would have discovered other pests around have I stayed longer.

Slugs are gastropod mollusks without the shell (hubad na atol o islàg?)They like humid environments and appreciate most the tender shoots of many plants. As a gardener though who expects to benefit from the culture of these vegetables, I would like to eliminate some of them, before they wipe out my future meals(!). I should try to set some beer traps (they are drunkards!), or mock beer traps because they like the smell of malt yeast. Or, I can opt to use diatomaceous earth (a powder of silicon origin) also used in the disinfestations of animal fleas and seed devouring insects, or crushed eggshells or coffee grounds, all of which function because they can stick and wound the slug's slimy body.

Salad

An unusually rainy spring has produced early plenty of salad leaves. Salads are very nutritious and very easy to prepare - just wash them thoroughly, add carrots, carciofi, olives, also cheese, tuna... anything!!... dress with the classic olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper, and the meal is served! Spring time is always a busy period and a quick but delicious meal is all we need.

Some Vegetable Plants

Some of my vegetables: a mix of salads, fava (Vicia faba), carciofo (Cynara cardunculus), patata (Solanum tuberosum), cipolla (Allium cepa), and sedano (Apium graveolens).

I have mulched the ground with grass cut nearby, and also with dried leaves. The mulch keeps the ground moist, discourage growth of weeds, prevent soil erosion and compaction, and will eventually enrich the soil when decomposed.

Compost Pile

I pile leaves, small branches and cut grass. I need not put them inside a bin since they are not "humid" wastes that attract flies. Whenever I need some rich soil for my flower pots, I just gather them from under the pile (or get them from under the compost bin). I do the same thing at the start of the planting season, in spring, if I need them.

I also ask my neighbors to pile their organic, non-humid wastes on my compost pile. They ask me a lot of questions and perhaps find my gardening techniques strange. I don't mind at all. For the moment they do all the contrary of my domestic waste management. This only confirm my theory that not all people born and raised amongst farmers know the importance of organic matter. I just hope that someday they get to understand what organic farming is.