Happy Sunday, welcome to my blog.
Following up on my previous post about my gardening activities - planting of ugu (pumpkin), maize and okra seeds, plus the yam head, I'm here to share the update on the crops with you, twelve days after.
So, I'm happy to announce that all the seeds germinated, and they are growing well.
I had my concerns about them germinating because after the day I planted them, the rain ceased for a week. Unfortunately, I couldn't water them because I was away. Even at that, I was hopeful that they would germinate since I had them soaked in water overnight before planting.
I'll give them another 14 days or thereabout, then I'll apply organic manure - ash and poultry droppings. I've already asked my mom for some and she promised to make them available soon.
The yam head I planted, plus the previous ones are growing well too, and needed to be staked so I did just that. The idea of staking is to provide support for the vines to climb on as they grow. This will help the plant spread out and access more sunlight, which can aid in its growth and development.
You can see from the image below how I staked them. I didn't have twine so I used plantain fibers instead. These fibers are quite strong and durable and we often use them to tie firewoods and vegetables harvested from the farm.
Plantain fibers
I got the idea to use plantain fibers for staking the yam vines after I saw that they were what my dad's used in his own garden. This is one out of the many hacks that I've learnt from my dad.
My dad's garden
In addition to staking the yams, I planted more yam heads. I've kept them for some weeks now hoping the vines would come up more before I plant them, but they haven't grown any further.
So I thought the best option would be to just put in the soil and have them grow there instead.
In addition to my direct-soil crops, I've been nurturing some seedlings in bags. As a minimalist, I need to maximize every little space around my home, hehehe.
There's spinach, turmeric, and okra. I also have Aloe vera and miracle leaf (Kalanchoe pinata) planted in bags too.
Spinach
Okra
And finally, my lush greenery waterleaf. Soon they'll be cooling off in my pot of soup. Lol.
I love gardening and I'm grateful to have these small spaces where I can get my hands busy and dirty. That way I would enjoy fresh farm produce thereafter. 😅
Meanwhile, I made a video of my garden and I'm excited to share it with you. I hope you'll enjoy watching it.
Till when next I blog about my gardening, take care and best regards.
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