Small things add up: Coffee grounds for the garden.

For the past 3 years, I've been collecting coffee grounds from work, home, and occasionally from Starbucks. Sometimes I add them directly to the soil (as in Winter or Spring when I'm digging around in the garden), sometimes to the worm bin, and sometimes to the compost pile.

Some simple calculations:
I buy a 5 pound bag of coffee beans about once monthly (for my use only). 5 pounds X 12 months = 60 pounds (dry weight) per year.

At work, I collect the grounds from my small section of the office, also for the compost pile or garden. That's about 1/2 pound daily (wet) for 4 days per week, or 2 pounds per day. So, about 100 pounds per year.

COffee grounds make for good compost or soil amendment. They are similar in soil nutritional value to manures, but without the salt and antibiotics that go into animal agriculture.

There are about 298 million people in the United States. Per capita coffee consumption is 4.4 kg (9.68 pounds) per year. 298 million X 9.68 pounds / 2000#/ton = 1.4 million tons per year.

So, from that little cup of coffee per person, a couple of cups daily, it starts to add up.

I'm sure that there are better calculations, from more accurate data out there, but the bottom line is, it's still "a lot". Collecting coffee grounds for the garden is good for the soil, and good for the environment.

More about ginkgo trees.

This is quoted from China Daily News:
December 2003

"Nomenclature Right for 1,000-year-old Trees to Be Auctioned

The Office of Old and Rare Plant Protection in Shanghai has announced it will auction the nomenclature right for 50 ancient and famous trees. The minimum price tag will be 10,000 yuan, and the maximum 300,000 yuan for one year for the No. 0001 Shanghai Old and Rare Tree, a 1,000-year-old ginkgo tree in Anting Town... proceeds from the auction would go toward taking care of and preserving these old and rare trees. Their sponsors will be included in the Sponsors of Old and Rare Trees Archives."

Click here for the article from ChinaToday

The ginkgo links in the side bar also provide information about ancient ginkgos, apparently over 3000 years old and still alive.

And this site is about someone 'getting rich' in China, selling ginkgo trees:

Ginkgo fossils in China.

Google translated from German (better than I can) article with nice photo of Ginkgo fossil.

Click here for information about ginkgo "nuts"

More first leaf Hardy Chicago fig 'trees'

More trees from the same origin as the one that I just posted. These will be 'adopted' out when dormant. They came from a Garden Web member.

It was once common for gardeners to trade slips, starts, seedlings, and divisions from their favorite varieties. I remember, when I was growing up, that family members or neighbors would pass on starts from their yards and gardens. This doesnt happen as much now, but it would be a great tradition to revive. A successful locally grown variety would have a good chance in another local yard; it is much less costly to start your own (the cost of a 'free' fig tree is only the cost of the potting soil, and they can be started in the garden soil if there is no hurry).

It is even possible that locally grown varieties can adapt to the local growing conditions - as 'sports' and genetic drift occur, if the more successful local varieties are propagated, then it makes sense that regional varieties would be different from nationally distributed ones.

Hardy Chicago (also called Chicago Hardy) can be purchased at lots of places - this is one: http://www.raintreenursery.com/catalog/producttype.cfm?producttype=FIGS

Of course, these cuttings are not of local origin - in fact, are from a Garden Web member who I will be sending them back to as rooted trees (as well as one of my locally found trees). Hardy Chicago is not thoroughly tested here, so this is a chance to see how some 'new blood' (or should I say, 'new sap') will do. So there is a place for local varieties, and new varieties, as well.

Hardy Chicago cutting with first little figs

This cutting was started in January 2005 as a cutting from dormant wood. It had one or two nodes (I forget, I think it was just one node) and was started in a yogurt cup size container in seed starting soil. Six months later, here is is, with 2 beebee size little figs.

It's now in a commercial organic potting soil mix. The pot is wrapped in foil to prevent overheating, which occurs even in the Pacidic Northwest's usual cloudy weather.

Hardy Chicago apparently came from a mountainous area in Sicily, and arrived in Chicago via New York where it had become known as Bensonhurst (I think). I'll look for a link to post with better information.

Vancouver Brunswick Fig Tree

This is the first fig tree that I grew from a cutting. It was started during the winter of 2003-2004, from a 'found' pruning. The variety is tentatively identified as "Brunswick", which is also called "Dalmatian" and "Magnolia" and some other names. Since figs grow easily from cuttings, their names tend to morph as a tree's origin is forgotten and new trees are grown from local trees of unknown heritage.

This tree has delicious, large, figs. The first crop was about 1/2 dozen figs , main crop, last year (while in it's second 'leaf'). It has 2 breba now, and I'm starting to see suggestions of embryonic main crop - which I'm hoping will result in a bowl full of tasty fruit.

It is treated with the same soil amendments as the Petite Negri fig.

Petite negri fig with breba crop

This is the first fig tree that I attempted to grow. It was purchased from a mail order catalog and was about 6 inches tall, in 2001. I didn't know anything about growing figs, but as a midwestern native, the thought that one might grow in my yard seems exotic and interesting.

This tree has grown about 1 foot per yer, so now it's about 5 1/2 feet tall. Last year it bore about a dozen main crop (fall crop, which forms on this year's growth) figs. During the Winter, it was mulched wtih several inches of leaves; then in the Spring a couple of inches of leaf compost were added. It also received generous amounts of coffee grounds, and crushed eggshells (that, when added to the grouns, look a bit like perlite).

This year, it looks like it will reward these offerings with a couple of handfuls of breba (summer crop, which form on last year's growth) figs. Now it also has a layer of bark mulch to keep the roots moist and cool. It has produced about 1 foot of new growth, which I pinched back after the 4th to 6th new leaf, to encourage fig production and shape the tree compactly. The tree is starting to respond with tiny, embryonic figs and buds that I dont know yet if they will be new stems or figs.

Figs have an amazing biological, geographic, botanical, and social history. Apparently they originate in western Asia, and have been carried by various civilizations westward and eastward, so that now they grow in all mild temperate areas of the world. They are under-appreciated, because the fruits don't keep well enough to ship long distances, and they dont ripen after being picked. They are best eaten fresh, right off the tree or in 1 to 2 days. Most people dont know when to pick them, so it takes some guidance to learn when they will be at their peak, and most tasty.

As small trees, figs in the yard dont require chemical fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides. They require little maintenance, although careful grooming will keep them more compact. Once planted, the garden doesn't need to be dug up again. It seems like they could be ideal as edible landscaping, and their net effect on the environment is to improve it. By taking care of the fig trees, they improve our environment and nourish us with exotic fruits. They are a link to our own history, and can be a heritage that we leave to those who care to follow.

I didnt know it when I started this first fig, but fig trees are usually grown from cuttings. Many varieties grow very quickly using this method, nbearing fruit in 1 to 3 years. It's very similar to the method for starting grapes. There are many variations of the method, but some will start from dormant prunings, kept in a platic bag in the refridgerator over the winter, and planted in moist garden soil in the early Spring. Faster growth occurs by using a similar method, but starting them indoors during the Winter. I've started about 1 dozen new fig trees using this method, and it is a way to pass them on to friends, neighbors, or relatives.

Baigo and his grape arbor

These grapes were started in 2003. The arbor was built in 2004. It was designed so that, during the summer when the vines are actively growing, they will cover the arbor and shade a sliding door on the south side of the house. This way, in the summer, the vines keep the room cool, and in the winter, they let in the light and let the sun warm the room.

The grapes are Interlaken, Venus, and Canadice. They are easy to grow from cuttings, although I didnt know that when I bought the vines. I have started several vines, as cuttings from these vines. All it takes is some winter prunings, about 1 foot to 18 inches long; store in cool, moist frost free place over the winter, and in early spring stick them up to the top bud in the ground. Every vine cutting, that was given this treatment, grew.

Last year, there were several bunches from Interlaken and Canadice. The Venus was in its first "leaf", and did not bear.

This year they do have some powdery mildew. I'm trying to control it using neem oil. Maybe it will work, and maybe it wont. It looks like the mildew is stopped, so I'm hopeful. There are dozens of bunches hanging from the top of the arbor, with tiny 'embryo' sized grapes.

Even if they are not successful at growing grapes, they look nice, they provide a shady place to sit outside in the summer, and they cool the house. Since the deck, which they cover, was already there, they take up virtually no yard space.

Grapes should not be fertilized with chemical fertilizers. Their roots grow deeply, seeking out nutrients deep in the soil. Too much nitrogen, and the vines are rampant, but few grapes form. I used leaf compost to help build the soil, and have mulched them wtih some bark dust.

Grapes were grown by ancient Greeks and Romans. Sweet varieties were also grown by ancient Arabs. These varieties are descended from both the old world, and the new world varieties, melding flavors and ability to grow in local soils and climate; and ablity to survive local plant pathogens.

Charlie and his Ginkgo tree

This ginkgo tree was started from a seed in about 1999 in a flower pot in Chicago. The parent tree was shown to me 40 years ago in Quincy Illinois, by Herman Deege, a former German refugee from WWI. He told me that ginkgos were the most ancient type of tree. They occur as separate male and female. Fossil ginkgo leaves, fruits, and wood, are found around the world, including in Washington State. The seeds are used in certain Chinese foods. The leaves are used in herbal products tom improve memory. After the glaciers from the ice ages receeded, ginkgos were once limited in range to a small area in China, but there are some trees, hundreds (maybe over 1000) of years old, in Korea and Japan.

This particular tree traveled 2000 miles in a small flowerpot, 5 years ago, from Chicago to Vancouver, Washington. It was planted in its present location in 2003, where it has flourished. The dogs use the area around it as their special 'bioremediation' area, so it may be overnourished, but it hasnt seemed to mind, and is reaching a size where it should become more resilient to the world's insults.

Maybe it will have a long life. Trees remove CO2 from the air, storing it in their wood cellulose - so the more that we plant, and the fewer that we cut down, the better they will take care of us in return.

Why a garden blog?

The world is getting warmer. We need to reduce CO2 emissions from driving and using petroleum products.

The world is becoming more hectic and stressful. We need to find a source of peace and solitude.

Our food products are becoming more processed and less nourishing. The flavors are becoming more bland. We need to find ways to add more flavorful, more nutritious foods to the table.

We are losing touch with our own social history, forgetting where our food comes from, and how it came to exist. The garden is a way to connect with our past, our familys' past, and our social heritage. It can also be something to pass on to whoever follows, if they are interested. The garden can also be a way to stimulate that interest.

The garden is a resource for all of these issues, and more.

Even just thinking about the garden makes me feel more peaceful. Since I cant be out in the yard all day, every day, maybe this blog will provide aother outlet for 'puttering meditation' in the garden.