Heather Kolankowski

These are fabulous ideas! We are in Haida Gwaii, Canada, a rain forest, just south of Prince of Wales Island, Alaska. I perused our dump and took the glass shelves from refrigerators to make the "tent" structures but also the clear plastic vegetable drawers work amazingly well turned upside down. Shallow ones, deep ones. They're light weight to move around. A small rock on top keeps them weighted on windy days. Also, the white metal shelves are wonderful for trellis, placing pots on to drain, etc. I also start everything indoors as we can go days and days and days, did I mention days? without sunshine. So far..........so good!

I live on a beautiful rock, quite literally, named Haida Gwaii 100 miles offshore in the Pacific Northwest. Our growing conditions are similar to England, however we lack soil. Given Covid19 and our remoteness, food security may be an issue. My "garden" consists of 2 12'x12' beds and a greenhouse (it's a small, steeply sloped lot with existing house and new shop) . My husband and I created the beds 'from scratch" and with the red clay, trimmings from pots, leftover potting soil, compost & kitchen scraps, seaweed and anything else organic: the beds have done quite well. Year 2 this year. Partial shade area.
Now to create a new space, on top of more rock/gravel on the narrow but sunny south side of the shop.
We trekked some river beds recently and commented on the lovely finely grained black "soil" piled up along the banks and wonder if this material might be a good start for the new beds?
Haida Gwaii also has peat bogs.
Our climate is cool year round, warmest days 20C in summer and rarely below freezing in winter. Cloudy. overcast is the norm. Similar to Seattle. We are insulated by the Pacific Japanese current, which keeps us warm and snug compared to coastal mainland British Columbia and Alaska.
Suggestions?

Guys, as a Landlady here's a few quick suggestions to avoid conflict:
1. Be sure you ask the owner of the home/unit first.
2. Putting wiring through windows, screens or walls can damage the property. Windows won't close properly and screens bent so they don't fit properly.
3. Affixing solar panels to roofs or siding can cause leaks and damage and/or create space for pests to enter. In this case the panel is free-standing.
4. Damage can also occur inside as holes are drilled in drywall.
5. Tying into the power grid can open up a whole can of worms for both the renter, but ultimately it is us, the owners, who will have to pay for any damage or fees and penalties associated with an un-approved hook up. And trust me, it can be a sizable amount. Far far far more than your damage deposit.
Consideration and communication are the keys to successful co-operation.
I personally would LOVE for our renters to take such initiatives, however the apartment we bought has all 3 suites on one power meter, therefore power is included in the rent and they simply don't care about usage.
My husband's workshop, however, as a recent build, is fully self-contained: heat & power. Water is municipal as we live, literally, on a rock. Very few wells drilled here.
So great idea and keep in touch with your landlords!

Hi There! We're located in Haida Gwaii, near the Alaska border but 100 miles offshore in the Pacific Ocean. In this neck of the woods we're constantly concerned about synthetics and what forgotten things like dryer lint are doing to our oceans and soil quality. I'd love to try growing cotton.
Purolator Courier does ship here. Canada Post, surprisingly is very reliable, considering we receive mail here only 3 days per week. I'm not sure if there are restrictions with the US Postal Service regarding shipping seeds, but up here it should be fine.
Let me know how I could connect and assist with this experiment.
Hugs and Fishes, Heather K

Very good ideas. The canal boat gardens will work on the roof of our boat. Have to be careful we don't make her top heavy so weight is a concern.  Are the canals salt water?
Pulling a "Garden Skiff" behind the mother ship is a fun idea, but my fearless Captain says that the first nasty wave would kill everything lol. Maybe if we were on a lake or calmer area. Thank you 🍅

We spend 4 months a year on a boat so space is extremely limited.
Three things to add for organization:
01. Make a comprehensive list of every area/storage bin and its contents. Save to your computer, smart phone, or in my case I keep a paper copy with other necessary files for quick reference.
02. Boats are clever, but RV's even more so. We tour RV dealerships looking for space saving ideas.
03. If you have an IKEA they have absolutely sublime storage solutions..........maybe some ideas would be had from a few laps around the store?

Question: Has anyone ever tried a "Boat Garden"? We're attempting to grow as much food as possible on board. Same challenges with limited space. Plus a few more.
01. Water/reusing it.
02. Plants that can survive some knocking around.
03. Composting.

Suggestions are most welcome, or is this a new thread?
Thank you from The Great White North aka Vancouver Island/Haida Gwaii