Brownstone homes often located in cities such as New York, Boston and Chicago were a popular style of housing built primarily in the 1800s. Also known as row houses, brownstones were built as long rows of residences connected to one another. With no front yard to speak of, the only outdoor space available for gardening is the long, skinny yard in the back of the home. In spite of the limited space, it's possible to have a flourishing garden even in the midst of the city.
Flower Garden
Even in a yard that is considerably longer than it is wide, there is still room for flowers. Dig beds along the edges of your fence line, on one or both sides, and plant a variety of colorful blooms. If you find that the soil is less than desirable as it often is in the city create raised beds, and import high-quality soil to give your flowers the boost that they need. Choose varieties of flowers such as day lilies, pansies and geraniums that require low to partial sun as the backyard may be shaded by the height of the brownstone building and nearby trees. Built a fence around your flower garden to keep your plans safe.
Vegetable Garden
Just because you dwell in the city doesn't mean you can't enjoy farming your own vegetables during the summer months. To avoid taking up valuable outdoor entertaining space in a narrow area, situate your vegetable at the end of the yard furthest from your house. Use a rototiller to thoroughly turn the soil to a depth that is hospitable for planting vegetables. Select varieties of vegetables that thrive even in less-than-optimal soil such as potatoes, radishes, carrots and lettuce.
Rock Garden
If you'd rather not toil in the soil like Cain, why not create a rock garden in your backyard space? Use a variety of rocks to pave the ground and create an outdoor patio area. Combine a variety of gray, tan and brown stones that blend well with the exterior stonework of the row house. Alternatively, import a plethora of pebbles to create a Japanese rock garden out back. Invest in a rake, and spend relaxing time creating patterns in the sea of small stones.
Butterfly Garden
When you want to interject a touch of whimsy and lightheartedness into your hustle-and-bustle life in the city, create a butterfly garden behind your brownstone. By planting the right types of foliage, you can attract a multitude of these delicate creatures and enjoy their gentle flight during your downtime. Plant flowers such as black-eyed Susan, New England asters, wild columbine and goldenrod in pots or beds. All are known to attract butterflies and will add a touch of color to your outdoor space.
A jalapeno pepper is a mildly hot chili that is used in many cuisines and is commonly enjoyed in salsas, salads and guacamole. The pepper seeds are typically started indoors and grow into three-foot tall plants when they mature. If you grow your own jalapenos, you'll have the benefit of saving money on your grocery bill and enjoying healthier produce that is not tainted with pesticides.
1. Place your jalapeno seeds on a plate and inspect them for quality. Remove any specimens that are discolored or smaller than the rest because these seeds have less chance of germinating.
2. Fill your growing container with seed-starting soil about 3/4 full. Push your finger in the dirt about 1/8 of an inch down in each individual cell. Drop a seed in each indentation and then cover the seeds with a light layer of soil. Your jalapeno seeds should never be more than 1/4 inch down from the surface because they do not have the ability to push past a thicker layer of soil.
3. Water your seeds so that the soil is moist but not drenched. Continue to monitor this water level to keep it the same throughout the growth process.
4. Place the growing container's lid over the seeds to keep them warm. If your container does not have a lid, stretch plastic wrap over the top and poke a few holes on the top for air circulation. Place a garden heat mat underneath your container or position your container on top of a warm spot such as the refrigerator. Jalapeno seeds thrive in humid, warm conditions.
5. Watch for your jalapeno plants to emerge from the soil in three to five weeks, depending on the variety. Remove the container's lid or the plastic wrap and then position a fluorescent light about two inches over the top of the tallest seedlings so that they continue to grow.
6. Wait for your jalapenos to develop at least four leaves and then transfer to large pots that have a depth of at least eight inches. Fill each pot about 3/4 full of soil. Remove each young seedling from the cells and plant it in the pot at the depth it was growing in the cell. Water the soil to get it moist.
7. Take the jalapeno pepper pots outside for about an hour each day about two weeks prior to moving them permanently outdoors. Make sure that your area's last potential frost has passed before moving your plants.
8. Move the pots outdoors in full sun.
9. Transplant each pepper plant into a 5-gallon size pot when they have developed a good root system and achieved about one foot in height.
10. Fertilize with a formulation made for peppers at half-strength every two weeks.
