Dukan stuff first…
I GOT MY SCALE… errrr, luggage delivered yesterday! So it was true… woo hoo!!!
Daily Weight: 147
Goal Weigh: 155
And now on to gardens… My friend Krystn posted this picture on Facebook this morning…
And it got me thinking… there are multiple gardens on my short, 1 mile walk, to work. So… I left early this morning and took pictures of my neighborhood… and how the gardens grow in this urban city of 7 million people.
These two pictures are taken from my kitchen balcony. I live on the 9th floor and this is on the roof of the 2 story structure in the front of and attached to my building…
When this first appeared, I thought it was a sandbox for the kids to play in… it’s a planter with a growing garden š
I then bought my tea eggs and headed down the sidewalk that is on the street in front of my building. About 2 months ago, or so, some people set up a tent along this part of the land between the wall and the sidewalk… I had no idea what they were doing, but they were there for 4 days and were using a tiller… this is the result…
This is about a block down from my neighborhood… I think it’s pumpkin… maybe my gardening friends will know.
This next garden is wedged between a wall guarding a construction site and an alley. They’ve been growing stuff here all year long…
Corn and lots of greens
And finally these are 3 pictures from inside the walls that guard the construction site… there used to be a little village in here and the government buys them out, tears down the homes, sells the land to developers and the community is dispersed… it actually makes me really sad… BUT… the villagers continue gardening on the land until the construction takes over. They are building a mall on this property, but every night on my walk home I see the villagers in there tending their gardens and it’s a huge garden… often they come out with their veggies for dinner… it’s pretty cool to see!
You can see the cranes in the background… they are building the underground parking garage at this point. My guess is that the villagers will have 18 months to 2 years more with their gardens.
Lots of greens, garlic, onions and more.
Finally… I took two pics here at work this morning. One is my requisite monthly picture of me and Vivien, since it’s the 26th of the month and my 9 month anniversary of working here…
Vivien has on ridiculously high heels today!!!
And the second is the meal I ate this morning. It’s called Dragon Zongzi… it’s a special meal celebrating the Dragon festival from this past weekend. One of the doctors brought it in, and since I’m doing so well with my weight I decided to try it… O.M.G. was IT GOOD!
Dragon Zongzi… pork, sticky rice, peanuts and chinese dates… oh my!!!
Ooops and one more picture. My boss gave me this HUGE box of apples to celebrate the Dragon Festival. I had one this morning… good thing I ran this morning š
Locally grown apples…
How does your garden grow? Are the neighbors planting next to the sidewalk where you live?!?! I think it’s pretty darn cool!
Ciao!
Flamidwyfe's Blog 
Have you heard of the guerilla gardening movement? It’s all about seeing patches of lovely disused ground which may be looking a bit tired, and swooping in stealthily to do something about it when the council’s not looking. My favorite are the seed bombs… š
http://wenchwisdom.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/this-just-in-guerilla-gardeners-spread.html
I ABSOLUTELY believe that growing vege in inner cities is the way of the future. My greenhouse tomatoes are at waist height now, and we had a salad last night from home-grown lettuce!
Cxx
I had heard the term, but didn’t know what it was! Thanks for the link… what an awesome concept! Here in China, they use all available space, even the sides of the highway! Hope this finds you well! xoxo
YAY for all those gardens. It’s amazing what will grow in even very small spaces. Guerilla gardening is all the rage these days…People taking back the power to feed themselves, what’s not to like?
*anna
Amazing what people can do! I like the idea of growing your own plate of food.
I would like a guerilla to come and garden in my yard and take care of it!!! I do NOT have a green thumb! Still a great idea! Glad your suitcase arrived!!
I’m not a green thumb either. I’m hoping Anna will give me tips š
No luck with my gardening. The squirrels eat everything I grow. Maybe if I had a guerilla ,he would chase them off. LOL
Ver punny mom š
I think our Grandmothers would smile at this news … mine always tsked tsked me for not having one. Does supporting the local Farmer’s Market count? I sure hope so š
MJ
I would say supporting your local Farmer’s Mkt definitely counts! When I’m home in the States I try to buy local as much as possible.
Oh wow gorgeous gardens… I want my lawn to look like the first picture!
Oh and sweetie, I nominated you for The Kreativ Blogger Award! š
xoxo
-Constance
AKA Dukan Dietress
Thanks! I love your new blog, btw š
Hey, Constance, check out my front “yarden” in “Late Bloomer.” Hope to see you there!
Hey, LOVE the photos of gardens. The Chinese know what’s what. It’s governments (everywhere) that do us in! Unfortunately, that rich topsoil that is producing so well, will be displaced and the permaculture destroyed when the parking garage is built. Governments don’t think of dirt as a living, breathing thing. Dirt did not even come from this PLANET, and it sustains life for us. So, where’s the gratitude? The people have it. Governments don’t. – Kaye
They do an amazing job of planting wherever they can here. I love it! I did get some cucumbers from a sidewalk garden a few weeks ago, the farmer was there and offered. I tried to give a few quay, but he refused. Delicious š