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The New Street Project - Springfield, IL

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The New Street Project - Springfield, IL

Postby Justin Boland » February 20th, 2009, 5:36 pm

I live upstairs in a big white barn that got remodeled about 5 times too much. I'm directly across the street from the high school track field, the streets are actually brick, and we've got a lot of drug dealers on the block -- too bad they don't carry good weed. Here's the front yard:

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Here's a closeup of the shrubbery to the left in the pic: one legacy of all the high school kids parking and walking on our street is tons of trash, which I pick off the street once a week or so. There's a LOT of embedded crap I'll have to weed out. The front yard is "property" of the downstairs neighbor who's been growing flowers for years now, but I'll still clean it up for her.

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The backyard is a war zone. About 1/3 of the space is fenced off so that downstairs neighbor A's small dogs do not get mauled or raped by downstairs neighbor B's much larger dog, who is locked up on the back porch more or less all day and thus very aggressive and crazy. The backyard also provides a great vantage point to appreciate the fact the house's foundation cracked years ago and is drifting apart:

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We're headed back to the garage now, where there's a vague clump of...something...by the door:

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I will develop that and mulch it in about a week. I won't install anything too critical, though, since there's drainage issues with the entire garage, as we shall soon see.

The garage roof is free of any rain gutters, so there's clearly etched water damage in a neat rectangle around the structure. Out toward the back lot is the very worst, because that's also where the back alley AND the neighbor's driveway drain out:

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So one of my main pet projects will be getting the water right in the back lot. Here's a side view:

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And here's a view from against the garage:

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Up next: measurements.
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Location: Springfield, IL

Assets as of Feb.

Postby Justin Boland » February 21st, 2009, 9:03 pm

Grow Light

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This consumes 14 watts, and it's got 165 red lights and 60 blue lights.

This is how it looks in the kitchen:

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I will be putting it over the fridge and growing veggies and herbs up there where cats cannot reach. Once that's done I start the more involved project of partitioning the back porch for serious cat-proof growthage.

Compost Pile

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Currently three (about to be four) smaller bins and one big-ass rubbermaid container where I stick the big stuff: apples that have gone bad, banana peels, onions and potatoes.

I'm also collecting coffee grounds as a general compost supplement + a future source of oyster mushrooms. Learn how here.

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Another benefit of the perforated lids on the bins: when I remove the lid of the big-ass container, there's always TONS of condensation underneath it. Now, instead of all that bio-organic goodness dripping all over the floor, it just drains into the smaller containers like so:

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I made the perforated lids with a screwdriver. I definitely need to pick up a more specialized tool this weekend because I'll be picking up a bigger, deeper bin, as well as converting several more kitty-food buckets.
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Re: The New Street Project - Springfield, IL

Postby dlollard » February 21st, 2009, 11:12 pm

Looks like you have PLENTY of opportunities there! I recognize your street, I ride my bike by there sometimes. And our pal Patrick lives in the apartments not far away. The worm bins look good!

Don
the screen is a prison for the body
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Re: The New Street Project - Springfield, IL

Postby Justin Boland » March 17th, 2009, 1:54 pm

THE MOTHERSHIP HAS LANDED

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Biggest added bonus of the LED Growlight system: not only is the light not "annoying" as many folks had warned me, it's actually beautiful and really relaxing. My eyes, brain and skin really like the spectrum, too, apparently.

Currently growing: 2 shoebox polycultures, one of Basil, one with Parsley, each with at least 4 different species. Both of the boxes are heavily planted because I'm going to transfer them to the back porch and cull all the runts. I'm making a calculated decision to overplant in order to select the best specimens.

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The overall cost here is about $9. Rubber/tupper style enclosure serves two purposes:
a) Keeps the demon cats from jumping up there and destroying for Satan, as they are wont to do
b) Allows me to spray water everything liberally without worrying about flooding the fridge or dripping onto the floor

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Up next: egg carton kale, some deeper containers (for carrots/tomato/basil guild with a fast clover cover crop to start it off) and building the back porch enclosure to start taking advantage of the other grow light that's 93 million miles away.
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Re: The New Street Project - Springfield, IL

Postby MindFreeza » March 31st, 2009, 11:42 pm

That soil looks pretty dense, but it is a lot of space to work with. That led grow light is badass. I just googld it and the cheapest price is $52.99. That about right? I could hook up a similar rig even with my limited space. I have a few square feet to work with in my attic/cat sanctuary/office/gym/sex laboratory.

?--kurt--!
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Re: The New Street Project - Springfield, IL

Postby Justin Boland » April 1st, 2009, 10:24 pm

Yep, that's a bit less than what I paid. Also: sat down with an electronics expert buddy to price out making our own, and it's not competitive. In terms of supplies, time and necessary equipment, it's a lot more expensive to buy bulk LEDs and make your own. This is especially true because we won't be buying in the same "bulk" as these manufacturers, who scoop hundreds of thousands at a single purchase.
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Re: The New Street Project - Springfield, IL

Postby MondayC » May 9th, 2009, 4:35 pm

Good work so far, Justin. Any picture updates?
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