Spring 2014

Been ignoring this blog for months, today I update a lil bit especially for gardening part.

Spring is coming! I am so excited and at the same time, worried. I might not have enough time to take care of this year' plants. But the weather is nicer compared to last year. So? 

Bref, I already planted some herbs as follows:

- chives (the last year's plant was regrowing but then getting ill - dead! A new one bought at Parc Floral)

- basil (big green leaves, bought at Parc Floral; citron, sowed from seeds)

- cilantro (sowed from seeds)

- mint (regrowed by itself)

I am still observing some plants: the origan, the lavender and the thyme. They look miserable but I don't know for sure whether they're dead or not >_<

Adopted from Salon des arts du jardin at Parc Floral:

- the basil & the chives mentioned above

- the Kale bleu

- the Jiaogulan (a new thing for me!)

Adopted from Botanic Orléans:

- cocktail tomato plant

- yellow cherry tomato plant

* this year, trying new varieties of tomatoes!*

Last week I sowed some other seeds like spring onion, marigold, Asian spinach, and... I already forgot the rest :( This year I don't take a note for what I planted/sowed. Terrible. Considering my poor memory, I should take some notes like before. 

Anyway, I'm glad that our Charlotte strawberry plants are nicely regrowing & now giving some flowers. Keep healthy, girls! (Charlotte is a girl, right? :)

PS. Photos will be uploaded soon after I come back home.

Some Potatoes

Two days ago, I harvested some of my potatoes from my garden (read: balcony). I got some yummy potatoes for the next day's cooking... Love!

Salad! And potatoes...

Our first green salad harvest!

 And these are some potatoes I harvested today. Small. I think they are not ready to be harvested but the plants were already broken because of the heavy wind. 

Garden in July

It's finally summer... I think.

My plants are more or less happy. But I saw that some could not stand the heat. Yeah, dilema gitu... Dingin bingung, panas bingung. For sure, due to the weather, I lost some of my gardening spirit *syahh...* I just keep watering them, taking care of some dried leaves, moving them to a shadow area if they look "tired" of the heat (just for those in small containers - I could not move the big planter).

• My Aster grew so fast after I moved it to a bigger container.
• Lettuces from my father-in-law... Growing so nice, nice, nice... 
• My marigolds are blooming... Pretty!
• My tomatoes are coming! Yey! Some of their leaves are yellowing, I do not know for sure what is happening. It was started since couple months ago.
• My radishes are growing well. Some premier leaves are yellowing too :(
• Last photo, from the left: bitter melon plant, I-do-not-know plant (received it last year from a friend), strawberry plants, anthemis (white flowers), basil (store bought - almost die again), etc (small plants).

• Basilic citron (citron basil) is finally growing but is disturbed by some cilantro babies (I don't even remember when I dropped those cilantro seeds)
• Kale, oregano and thym plants. Kale plants are mixed between those I bought at the nursery and those I grew from seeds.
• Lavender and mint plants. Love that lavender's appearance. Jolies...
• Chives! Mixed between those I bought chez Botanic, those that regrew from last year and those from father-in-law's garden. I love chives!

Bitter melon, surprising me... From 8 seeds that I received from my friend, five were growing in different timing. But this one was the best seed, I think, because it was growing first and stay alive during couple of cold weeks outside. I keep another bitter melon plant, growing in an empty milk bottle. The rest, I threw them because of not growing well after couple of weeks. See, my bitter melon plant is having some flowers... Happy!

***

I still have some potato plants but their leaves are yellowing. I tried to check if some of them were ready to be harvested. But from the potatoes that I got, I did not think so. They were so small.  Now I start to realize something about its soil... Yea...

I also still have some chili plants that are still small >_< And I let two lettuce plants growing until they are tall. I just want to know the seeds that they will produce.

This week, I tried to grow some pak choi (chinese cabbage) seeds, some Indonesian spinach seeds (again) and some more cilantro seeds (because I often need cilantro leaves). I also planted... some green bean seeds that I received from d'Aucy. Yes, they sent me... I think they sent to everyone that participated in the last year contest. For this year contest, see here: CLICK

Gloomy Weather

Passing midnight! It means we are already in June 2013. It's supposed to be warmer outside. But, no. It is still cold and raining. My plants are so pale. They need more sunlight. Some of them, the baby plants, are suffering from aphids. I tried to treat them as natural as possible. It worked for my cilantro plants. But I am not sure yet for others.

The good thing is, my strawberries are coming. Although I can not guarantee they are sweet (considering the lack of sunshine). But, the red color makes me happy. I am also surprised with my bitter mellon plant (pare, paria) which is growing nicely. Of course it is still indoor. The potato plants are also growing well. Mint and cilantro are fine, chives and basil are not fine. Well, I can not type more... Let's see the pictures.

I did not put all of my plants on the pictures above especially my plants that are ill, like spinach and lettuce (strange... I harvested some couple weeks ago and they were fine. Now they are ill *crying* ).

I hope sunshine will come soon... Please come... please...

Vide-Jardins Dunois

Got 6 plant containers in various size for only 3€. Secondhand, of course :) Got a cache-pot (what's that in English?) medium size for only 1€. And... adopted one aloe vera plant (3€).

>_<

Bon, this event was quite interesting because some people sold their unused gardening things in cheap prices. For plants, there were some professionals that came to sell herb, flower & fruit plants. So, in term of the price, more or less the same with those in the gardening stores.

Six containers, plus three that I got from Emmaus the day before. Nine. Where can I put them?

The Kale Project

Kale is a superfood! I read some information about Kale in Super Baby Food book by Ruth Yaron. And according to Wikipedia, "Kale is very high in beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, and rich in calcium. Kale is a source of two carotenoids, lutein and zeaxanthin.] Kale, as with broccoli and other brassicas, contains sulforaphane (particularly when chopped or minced), a chemical with potent anti-cancer properties."

Unfortunately, it is not easy to find kale in France. So I was happy when I found kale plants in this nursery, Plantes Aromatiques. (check the category "Les Légumes Anciens"). But then, I was happier to find someone that sells kale seeds! Go to this blog The Kale Project to find out about the seeds that they sell on Etsy (shipped from Paris).

I received my seeds last Saturday and I got some interesting gifts: a recycled tote bag, stickers and a recipe (in two languages - french and english). Yummy...!

Troc Plantes 20 April 2013

Some photos...

New Members

We got new members. Anthemis & lavender from a nursery near my parents-in-law's place, Les Jardin de Saint Eloy, adopted in April 18, 2013. And, four plants adopted from Troc Plantes event (by ASELQO, Orléans): aster, myosotis, chlorophytum & oregano. I also got one package of flower seeds. In that Troc Plantes (April 20, 2013), everything was free alias gratis...

Anak makin banyak...

Welcome back, mint!

Setelah periode tidur panjang selama winter, tanaman mint saya tumbuh lagi...

* photo was taken in April 16, 2013

Nursery plants' shopping

Hari Minggu kemarin, toko Botanic ramai. Spring spirit :D Semua orang semangat menanam. Seperti yang direncanakan, saya membeli tanaman tomat ceri & strawberry. Basilic citron kebetulan tidak ada di toko itu (adanya 2 jenis basil yg lain) jadi saya ambil benihnya saja.

Yang bikin tambah senang adalah semangat si kecil dalam membantu saya mencari tanaman tomat (yg posisi raknya berubah, tak sama spt tahun lalu). Dia sibuk menunjuk2 tanaman dan terlihat senang sekali saat kami sudah menemukan rak tanaman tomat. Sempat juga dia meminta saya untuk membeli tanaman bunga berwarna pink. Pokoknya pink. Hmm...

Inilah anggota baru... Tomat & strawberry...!

Gardening, Early April

Sudah memasuki musim semi tapi cuaca masih saja dingin. Terkadang ada hari dimana sinar matahari bersinar dengan indahnya, masuk melalui jendela-jendela besar di ruang utama, menyinari tanaman-tanaman kecil yang tentunya sangat senang menerimanya... *sok tau :D *

Benih cabe rawit yang saya semai bulan lalu mulai memperlihatkan daunnya. Tadinya saya pesimis karena lama bangettt euy tumbuhnya... compared to others seeds yg saya semai berbarengan dgnnya. Saya pikir benihnya udah jelek jadi ngga mau tumbuh.

Dan, ini beberapa foto terbaru, tertanggal 3 April 2013... Cilantro, spinach, chilli, lettuce dan chives. Kale bleu masih hidup, aman. Tapi kemarin itu ngga ikut foto karena malu * :p *. Kalau citronelle yg saya tanam tahun lalu, masih sehat juga... Kapan2 difoto.

This weekend: beli tanaman tomat dan strawberry...! Yuk!

Tambahan:

• Yang sudah disemai tapi belum tumbuh: kangkung tanah, kacang panjang (tapi nanti akan dipindah ke kebun mertua kalau udah agak tinggi), edible capucine dan bayam Indonesia.
• Yang akan dibeli (nursery plants): tomat ceri, strawberry dan basilic citron
• Vide jardins dekat sekolah si sulung: Place Dunois 28 April 2013. Dicatet!

Gardening 2013, Let's start it!

Penyemaian benih pertama kali dimulai saat liburan sekolah Februari kemarin. Yang disemai adalah biji cilantro hasil tanam tahun lalu. Kemudian saya mulai mempersiapkan tanah di beberapa pot (dicicil ya... maklum...) dan menyemai beberapa benih yang lain (lettuce, radish, spinach, cabe rawit). Baby chives tumbuh sendiri dari bekas tanahnya yang tahun lalu. Cukup mengagetkan karena saya sudah menghancurkan tanah dalam pot tersebut. Berhubung saya cinta sekali dengan chives dan sering masak dengan herb itu, jadi saya tetap membeli lagi baby plant-nya di Botanic.

Tahun ini saya mau mencoba menanam strawberry. Kemudian, saya juga mau mengganti tanaman basil sebelumnya (basilic grand vert) dengan citron basil. Rencananya sih hanya itu yang baru. Namun ternyata kemarin saya tidak tahan untuk membeli Kale Bleu 3,5 EUR di Foire aux Plantes Orléans. Kalau melihat di google, Kale Bleu ini mirip dengan Rape Kale. Sempat juga melihat tanaman goji seharga 10 EUR. Tergoda tapi tidak beli *bangga atau menyesal?* :D

Selain itu, tahun ini saya juga harus mempertimbangkan apakah harus rotasi lokasi/pot tanam khususnya utk jenis tanaman yang katanya "makannya" banyak, seperti tomat dan kentang. Cuma repot juga karena sebenarnya saya ngga punya cukup banyak pot atau planter yang besar. Thinking about buying 2 new pots with the diameter of 30 cm. Tapi nanti dulu deh... Harusnya tahun ini ngga ngeluarin dana utk tools and equipments.

Catatan dari hasil kunjungan ke Botanic dan Foire aux Plantes kemarin: tanaman tomat dan basil belum dijual. Kalau mengingat tahun lalu, rasanya sih bulan April baru ada. Kl tanaman strawberry, di Eric Deloulay http://www.aromatiques.fr/ (pépinière di dekat Orleans) sudah ada pas lihat mereka jualan kemarin di Foire. Tapi jenis strawberry yang mereka jual itu masuk kategori légumes anciens. Saya maunya yang biasa aja...

Yuk, mulai lagi berkebun...!

January Sewing

Well... After couple weeks of my "sewing hibernation" because of my uncomfortable hormonal condition and my pregnancy loss, now I could restart again. I need to move on and focus on creative things. I have to be busy *this might be my self defense mechanism >_< *

I continued my plan to make some new cloth diapers but only for sewing tutorial purpose. I posted my first cloth diaper sewing tutorial in Indonesian language at Cloth Diapering Parents Indonesia's blog (milispopokkain.wordpress.com). It was using RRP free pattern. I hope more Indonesian mommies can make cloth diapers for their sweeties.

Then I made one nightgown for my little E because she needed it. She liked the cupcakes print on it (she's so "gourmande"). During this cold weather, she is wearing the nightgown together with a pair of leggings. Ah yes, I used the pattern of Sadie Grace Nightgown by Seamingly Smitten. It's a simple pattern and great for a beginner.

At my sewing group at ASELQO, I was learning to make a "valisette", a kind of bag. It's not finished yet. I will continue it next Thursday.

And... Couple days ago I received more fabrics from my mom (thank you again, mommy :*). Love them all and I'm very excited to plan some more projects. Have I said that I got a Lisa Lam book? Bought it from Book Depository UK. It's the latest book of Lisa Lam. I wanted to have it since a long long time ago... Finally I bought it *yes*. I think some of fabrics that I've just received can be transformed into some cute bags, especially those Vera Bradley fabrics :)

Ah, I almost forgot something. I got one big happy day when I saw my face on one local newspaper. It was an article about my winning at the balcony gardening contest (I wrote about it at my previous posts). Gosh... It was really a good timing, right? A fantastic mental booster (I don't know why I chose those words >_< ) during stormy days... The article also mentioned about my passion on sewing :) The online version of the article can be found in here, but we can not read the full article unless we subscribe.

Ok, me, cheer up... And happy sewing to all of you...!

First Potatoes

Only 3 little potatoes that I harvested :D But I am happy because the planting itself was just an experiment (I planted one little part of old potato that I had).

I want to plant some more on the next spring. Semangat!


Btw, I love to see pictures in this blog, about growing potatoes.

Une Surprise

Yesterday I was so excited because of the official announcement from d'Aucy about me winning the contest. Did I mention it before that I joined a contest? It's about balcony gardening. The details can be seen in www.daucyculture.fr.

My intention to join that contest was more about sharing my joy & happiness of knowing & learning a new knowledge. Yes, balcony gardening of course. I was happy to find that contest (in Facebook). I think the idea of making "Concours Potager de Balcon" was very good. Somehow it could motivate more people to try planting edible plants & making mini bio/organic garden at home, even if they live in the apartments. Some people will notice that it's possible. Totally possible. There are many benefits of having our own garden.

So, I won. The juries picked my photos. They picked me. Me! *still too excited*

I won a cooking class worth 240€. It's a cooking class for 4 persons. I will take my husband, that's for sure. He's a good chef in our home. And he always wants to improve his cooking/baking skill. In addition, my husband has been supporting me a lot in my gardening activities. He always listened to me everytime I shared good things or bad things related to my plants. He gave me some advices. He also learned together with me. Thank you, dear husband...!

So, two others will be... *thinking*

Home Sweet Home

Finally we came back home! And finally I sew again... :)

Thinking about a little bag or pocket or whatever to keep my laptop cord. I lost it many times *grr...* Once I lost it for more than a month so I could not use my laptop (no battery). I know it was my mistake. I didn't remember where I put it *my poor brain*

Today I sewed one bag to keep the cord safe :) by using a fabric scrap from the bed sheets made by my mom.

Then, I checked my plants and realized that my carrots did not grow so well. However, I had to harvest them before the weather becomes colder & freezing.

And this is the biggest carrot I got...

More tomatoes!

Junebug Dress, done!

It took me hours to sew this dress. Then it took me days to find the buttons that I wanted. Finally, done!

One fine day... Harvesting some petit pois and wearing this dress :D

Panen Kacang Polong

Bener kan ya namanya kacang polong? *eh, malah nanya*

Ini green pea plants yg benihnya dapat dari d'Aucy dlm rangka concours alias kontes berkebun di balkon. Seru ya... Semua peserta dapat benih yg sama yaitu green peas atau petit pois. Dan setelah kurang lebih sebulan dimana sempat seminggu dititipin ke teman & kemudian kena penyakit (daun bernoktah putih trus mengering), akhirnya hari ini saya memetik green peas yg sudah matang. Menurut buku, kalau body si green peas sudah terasa solid & keras maka sudah bisa dipanen.

Hasil petik hari ini ada 10 pods. Masih ada 2 pods lagi to kelihatannya belum cukup solid.

Mengingat penyakitnya, apakah ini termasuk yg harus dihancurkan? Who is the expert?

Well, sebelum mendapat jawaban, saya posting juga foto segerombolan tomat ceri *yang sudah ditanyain terus oleh si kecil: "Boleh dimakan?" 😓*