Mary Ellen Gordon

I love it! I'd never seen kokedama hanging gardens, I've been looking into it, so beautiful. There's a lot of moss that just grows in between the sidewalk here, I wonder if I could just scrape some out and then try to create a little bed of it in my shady patio area..
I know what you mean about the fear of people stealing.. although for me, I don't have much choice if I want to take advantage of the sun bc it's on the driveway... my neighbors that share the driveway said that people usually stick to the street if they wanna steal, like your car etc.haha, so crossing fingers my neighbors here in Oakland keep it cool and leave my plants be! As for yourself, maybe instead of front door, do a stand at a local farmers market? Or possibly setting up deliveries if you did an online thing.. don't know if you have time for that sorta thing..
The beads are beautiful.
Thanks again for your reply, I'm enjoying looking up the new things I've never heard of and painting a picture in my head how this garden can be created Once I start getting started I'll post some pics! cheers!

Hi Juliet,

I just bought your book! I have a book titled Grow Great Grub, for planting in small urban areas, which has served me well up to now. I think your book is my necessary next step. The title itself is exactly what I've been searching for, and it seems, all I had to do was type in container gardens here on permies. I am dreaming of the day where I have land and can call a little homestead, home. But for now, and most likely quite a few years to come, it will be in the pots! I've had a container garden in a more tropical region before, and although I'm not in the UK, I'm hoping that the weather in Oakland, CA proves to be similar enough for me to adapt to your monthly suggestions. Anyway, just wanted to let you know and say thanks, can't wait to get it in the mail

Hi there, I've just relocated here to the bay and looked up http://greenfriendsfarm.org/ and got on their mailing list. Looks like they have some pretty good stuff going on! Thanks Alder for mentioning it.
This post caught my eye bc Kevin mentioned container gardening, and in my current situation, that's what I'm going to be doing. I have maintained container gardens before, but that was FULL sun on a rooftop in Rio de Janeiro. I'm curious what success you've had container gardening and in particular, shady areas? Any tips?

Hey Charli thanks! I really like your ideas and am excited to check out the things I've never done before, like grow mushrooms and tomatillos... moss.
Do you have a place I could check out your crafts?
Cheers

Hi all,
I just relocated to Oakland, CA and in the craigslist ad it said the house had a backyard for gardening.. (my partner was in a rush to get us in a house, so he signed us up for this pad, i'm grateful, but anyway) turns out that the backyard is a north facing patio, and pretty much totally shaded out. I realize it's the solstice and darkest time of year, so maybe sunlight will trickle down there, but I don't see myself doing too much planting down there. The one place that seems like it might provide enough light, and closer to me, is the driveway that is south-east facing. The light will be only a few short hours, but I would love to have a container garden of herbs, veggies, and whatever else will grow if I can't have something in the ground. So, I ask you... has anyone dealt with a similar situation, and if so, what suggestions can you make as to what plants would do well in this area with that type of minimal light?
Thank you in advance!! Any tips or suggestions are greatly appreciated

I got a brick during the special, and I wish I had more! I couldn't be happier and more excited about sharing the cards. Awesome job

just listened to your 25 minute ramble i am also a more visual person, but with short sweet podcasts of 25minutes or less I can dig it. i'd like to hear your podcast about your project in san diego's suburban home, i'm doing a similar project, replacing front lawn with a more drought resistant garden, ca natives etc and establishing a mini food forest in the backyard..maybe plant a few fruit trees or more in the front as well.. also in response to socal/oc living, i know if i searched i would find "my people" but i'm hesitant to bc i also plan to get out of here sooner than later. although i grew up here, i haven't lived here for a long time and it's more a temporary stop over for about a year. anyway, cool to hear about your projects and excited to see your house making project start. cheers!

wow how very exciting! I dream of being an ant myself. although as I'm sure for many, it's just not in the works for various reasons right now. I'm excited to watch your videos and see what you make of it and also think it's neat you are from orange county as well.. i've worked it into my head that no one here knows what permaculture is.. so it's nice to see someone as dedicated as yourself comes from this place too. I wish you the best on your new adventure and look forward to virtually being a part of it! cheers.

chad Christopher wrote:Native grow nursery san juan Capistrano
Tree of life. San juan Capistrano
Grow native, in claremont, but only open to the public one day a month until fall.
Flowerdale, santa Ana

There is also an orange county, native plant society. Which may be some help.
Occnps.org

Thank you so much, I really appreciate it!! I look forward to exploring over the weekend. Cheers.

Ouch that sucks. My first thought was also fungi, as Paul Stamets says they can clean up oil spills, radiation etc...and I believe him- so I went to his website to try and find a detox specific product and although I didn't find one (and maybe all mushrooms would work? I don't know) I did find this book on his website, so maybe you don't want to buy the book, but perhaps it can help you on your path to cleaning up that mess. Best of luck! http://www.fungi.com/product-detail/product/earth-repair.html