Guerilla Gardening - User contributions [en]

Selecting planting sites

2017-04-19T17:43:49Z

Wurzel:

1. The Basics of Plants and Planting

Sunlight – some plants prefer total sunlight while others prefer total shade. Assess the amount of sunlight you planting site has before choosing seeds.
Water – soil that contains a lot of organic matter (compost) will retain water
Soil – provides nutrients, water, air
Space – seeds are more likely to grow if the soil around them is loose so that the roots can spread out. Other plants
Time to grow – for most small plants it only takes a week or two for the sprout to grow. Larger plants can take 2-3 months to reach their peak productivity.
Without enough sun, water, and space, a plant will grow slowly and have a higher risk of getting a disease and dying

2. Things to consider

2.a Seasons: What to Plant When

Spring: Smaller, non fruit bearing plants that grow quickly; flowers - wildflowers; vegetables - peas, lettuce, kale

Summer: Most plants! – early summer from May to July is the best time to plant most seeds. Plant the seeds for larger plants, like fruits and vegetables, before late June because plants could take 2 months to reach maturity.

Autumn: In late Autumn plant similar crops to early spring because of the cooler weather. Bulbs that will wait underground and bloom in early spring. Flowers: hyacinth, tulips, daffodil, crocus…. Vegetables: garlic

Winter: If you want to save a plant that will die in the frost, dig up the soil and roots at the base of the plant and keep it in a pot inside

2.b Soil types

Clay: bulb-rot in winter; compacts easily; water logging; alkaline; insulator; layer with organic matter to balance; grows well: tap roots, beans

Sand: dry; loose; lacking nutrients; layer with lots of organic matter to re-balance soils; grows well: small trees, shrubs, rosemary, thyme, sage, tulips, flax

Silt: water logging; compacting; soft; erodes; grows well: tap roots,

Loam (grain mix): grows well: everything

--> Different soil types need different remediation techniques to encourage better plant growth

2.c Cultivating the Site

Lots that have been vacant for a while:
- prone to being very dry, dense and not very nutrient rich.
Once the soil has been disturbed (i.e. dig up the top soil), a cover crop of nitrogen accumulating plants like clover should be planted, sunflowers can be intercropped into the lot to create a combination of soil remediation plants.Phytoremediation plants.

5. Examples site - rain garden

Any spot where concrete meets soil is a possible rain garden.
Rain gardens are nothing more than collection pools designed with plants to not only slow the flow of water to our sewers, but to creatively use as much of it as we can.
Concrete and asphalt are impermeable surfaces, what rain water lands on them is quickly routed to the sewer system and ultimately to our rivers.
Rain gardens stand in the way of this persistent flow, giving it time to collect and be absorbed by the earth and plant roots.

6. Maintenance through the seasons

After remediation till the earth and plant your crops.
At the end of the season cut down your plants and let them lay, the smaller the pieces, the quicker they will break down.
Any opportunity to acquire organic material should be taken, leaves, grass clippings, and wood chips are available for free if you keep your eyes open for them.
Given the fact that most landscapers have to pay to get rid of this debris, you are usually doing them a big favor by taking it.

Selecting planting sites

2017-04-19T17:42:59Z

Wurzel:

1. The Basics of Plants and Planting

Sunlight – some plants prefer total sunlight while others prefer total shade. Assess the amount of sunlight you planting site has before choosing seeds.
Water – soil that contains a lot of organic matter (compost) will retain water
Soil – provides nutrients, water, air
Space – seeds are more likely to grow if the soil around them is loose so that the roots can spread out. Other plants
Time to grow – for most small plants it only takes a week or two for the sprout to grow. Larger plants can take 2-3 months to reach their peak productivity.
Without enough sun, water, and space, a plant will grow slowly and have a higher risk of getting a disease and dying

2. Things to consider

2.a Seasons: What to Plant When

Spring: Smaller, non fruit bearing plants that grow quickly; flowers - wildflowers; vegetables - peas, lettuce, kale

Summer: Most plants! – early summer from May to July is the best time to plant most seeds. Plant the seeds for larger plants, like fruits and vegetables, before late June because plants could take 2 months to reach maturity.

Autumn: In late Autumn plant similar crops to early spring because of the cooler weather. Bulbs that will wait underground and bloom in early spring. Flowers: hyacinth, tulips, daffodil, crocus…. Vegetables: garlic

Winter: If you want to save a plant that will die in the frost, dig up the soil and roots at the base of the plant and keep it in a pot inside

3. Soil types

Clay: bulb-rot in winter; compacts easily; water logging; alkaline; insulator; layer with organic matter to balance; grows well: tap roots, beans

Sand: dry; loose; lacking nutrients; layer with lots of organic matter to re-balance soils; grows well: small trees, shrubs, rosemary, thyme, sage, tulips, flax

Silt: water logging; compacting; soft; erodes; grows well: tap roots,

Loam (grain mix): grows well: everything

--> Different soil types need different remediation techniques to encourage better plant growth

4. Cultivating the Site

Lots that have been vacant for a while:
- prone to being very dry, dense and not very nutrient rich.
Once the soil has been disturbed (i.e. dig up the top soil), a cover crop of nitrogen accumulating plants like clover should be planted, sunflowers can be intercropped into the lot to create a combination of soil remediation plants.Phytoremediation plants.

5. Examples site - rain garden

Any spot where concrete meets soil is a possible rain garden.
Rain gardens are nothing more than collection pools designed with plants to not only slow the flow of water to our sewers, but to creatively use as much of it as we can.
Concrete and asphalt are impermeable surfaces, what rain water lands on them is quickly routed to the sewer system and ultimately to our rivers.
Rain gardens stand in the way of this persistent flow, giving it time to collect and be absorbed by the earth and plant roots.

6. Maintenance through the seasons

After remediation till the earth and plant your crops.
At the end of the season cut down your plants and let them lay, the smaller the pieces, the quicker they will break down.
Any opportunity to acquire organic material should be taken, leaves, grass clippings, and wood chips are available for free if you keep your eyes open for them.
Given the fact that most landscapers have to pay to get rid of this debris, you are usually doing them a big favor by taking it.

Suitable plant combinations

2017-04-19T17:39:21Z

Wurzel: Created page with "1. Ground cover species: Provide phosphorus/nitrogen to depleted soils Low-growing, reduce weeds, slow evaporation, capture moisture, slow erosion. Bulk up soil matter Cycl..."

1. Ground cover species:

Provide phosphorus/nitrogen to depleted soils
Low-growing, reduce weeds, slow evaporation, capture moisture, slow erosion.
Bulk up soil matter
Cycle nutrients
Rhysodisposition (sugar-release)
Deep roots to harvest minerals (preferable)
Pest-deterant (preferable)
Self-seed (preferably)
Post-harvest provide necessary mulch/compost
Eg: Clover, rye, hairy vetch, buckwheat

2. Phytoremediation Plants

Geraniums:

Clean the soil for heavy metals.
Geraniums are special in that they can absorb large quantities of various poisons. Toxins or metals can be extracted by the plants that are burned and the ashes melted.
Geraniums may have roots in excess of 1 meter, which is longer than most pollution penetrates.

Sunflowers:

It’s best to sow sunflower seeds directly into the soil after the danger of spring frost is past. Ideally, the soil temperature has reached 55 to 60 degrees F.
Give plants plenty of room, especially for low-growing varieties that will branch out. Make rows about 30 inches apart. (For very small varieties, plant closer together.)
Plant the large seeds no more than 1 inch deep about 6 inches apart after it has thoroughly warmed, from mid-April to late May. You can plant multiple seeds and thin them to the strongest contenders when the plants are six inches tall.
A light application of fertilizer mixed in at planting time will encourage strong root growth to protect them from blowing over in the wind.
Experiment with plantings staggered over 5 to 6 weeks to keep enjoying continuous blooms.
If you see birds scratching around for the seeds, spread netting over the planted area until seeds germinate.

Senf/Mustard:

Cleaning properties
Plant between April-October
Very uncomplicated plant
Grows without fertilizer in almost every ground or area.
Doesn’t need direct sunlight all day.

Selecting planting sites

2017-04-19T17:37:14Z

Wurzel: Created page with "1. The Basics of Plants and Planting Sunlight – some plants prefer total sunlight while others prefer total shade. Assess the amount of sunlight you planting site has befor..."

Zone planning

2017-04-19T17:25:45Z

Wurzel: Created page with "The idea of zone planning in Urban Gardening stems from a Permaculture philosophy of zoning. A basic summary of this is: – Zone 0 is the center of activity, your home or..."

The idea of zone planning in Urban Gardening stems from a Permaculture philosophy of zoning. A basic summary of this is:

– Zone 0 is the center of activity, your home or apartment.
– Zone 1 is the most controlled and intensely used part of your garden. For an urban gardener this is typically the space right outside your front door, garden space you will walk by several times a day. This zone occasionally has to be away from the homestead, urban living does not always include a yard.
– Zone 2 is still intensely managed, but typically planted with crops and flowers that do not require daily maintenance. Urban gardeners may have a blueberry patch or a few dwarf fruit trees, typically still located on the home lot.
– Zone 3 is typically unmulched, un-pruned with water only available to select plants.
– Zone 4 is semi-managed, semi-wild land. Typically non-existent to the urban gardener, depends on the amount of blight in your city.
– Zone 5 is an un-managed wild system used for observation as opposed to cultivation. Urban gardeners may have to travel to experience this zone.

To implement this for the urban gardener, some of these zones have to be slightly redefined, as by definition the urban gardener does not have of their own private garden. As such, typical and regular 'urban gardens' frequented by the gardener should be integrated into the primary zones to ensure relatively regular access and maintenance, i.e. travel route to work/school, shopping routes and nearby public green spaces.