Look at that Squash Plant!!!

A few months ago, I noticed a squash plant growing by the Eastside Market building at 3rd and Race.   I had been wanting to take some pictures of it, but never remembered to bring my camera with me.  I happened to be driving by, the morning after our first night of frost. I figured I'd find that the plant had died. Not so.  This was one hardy plant.  I went home and got my camera.  Just look at this thing.  (You can click on the images to see larger versions.)

It's taken over the entire lot.

There's still flowers and fruit, just days before Halloween.

Not even electronic waste could stop this plant from growing.

Now, I'm sure this must be more than one plant.  And it just might be a watermelon for all I know.  But these plants show us what could be done with vacant lots all around this town.  Next time you see a vacant lot, throw a squash out there and see what happens.

Guerrilla Garden on Devonshire Ave.

This is a story I've been watching develop for a while.  If you follow my Lexington's Bike Pathways blog, then you know that I am a fan of using a short-cut from Devonshire Ave to Red Mile Rd.  Devonshire Ave is a short street, 2 blocks long.  One block carries a fair amount of traffic, but the other is barely used at all.  Along this barely used portion of the street used to be a dump for someone's beer bottles and cans, each bottle and each can wrapped in it's own brown paper sack.

Here's the view down the less traveled portion of Devonshire Ave.

One day, the bottles and cans disappeared.  In their place, someone had put a pile of dirt.  Turns out that the pile of dirt was a garden bed, and now there is food growing where trash once was.  Currently, the garden contains lettuce, collards, green beans, spinach, broccoli, green peppers, and tomatoes.

I've chanced across the gardener of this plot, and he told me the food is there for anyone who wants to take it.  He also provided some tips for potential harvesters: (1) It's best to pick lettuce leaves from the outside of the plant, leaving some in the middle, so that the plant can keep growing; but if you see that the lettuce is going to seed, just take the whole dang plant, it's time is done; (2) Once the beans start growing, they need to be picked frequently, so the plant keeps producing.

I think this is a great idea.  Just today my wife and I picked some collards for our dinner.  They were GOOD!