Christy, Author at Gardenerd

Ask Gardenerd: Starter Advice for Container Gardening

I love when questions like this come from fresh gardenerds:

"I just stumbled on your website and am interested in gardening classes. I started gardening this spring by using pots and hanging pots. My veggies and herbs did extremely well. I put seedlings in potting soil, watered occasionally, and voila! I'm an Ocean Park farmer! But now I'm excited and want to learn the basics. Can you provide me with upcoming class information and recommend an introductory book? Thanks, Bob Meepos"

Hi Bob,

I'm glad to ...

Post author:Christy
Post published: October 5, 2011
Post category:Sage Advice
Post comments:0 Comments

Pistachio Heaven

The latest edition of Mar Vista's Bounty Hunter is ready for your perusal. Find out where to get organically grown pistachios in Los Angeles, and try the mouth-watering sweet and savory recipes:

Go Nuts with Organic, Kosher Pistachios
...

Post author:Christy
Post published: October 3, 2011
Post category:What's Growin' On
Post comments:0 Comments

Fabric for the Garden

Floating row cover (or garden fabric) helps protect your newbies while they grow. This week's Tip Of The Week explains the benefits.

Post author:Christy
Post published: September 29, 2011
Post category:Blog
Post comments:0 Comments

Experimenting with Biochar

Ever heard of biochar? Maybe the term "Terra preta" rings a bell? Back in 2008 National Geographic published an article about a discovery of man-made nutrient-rich soil in the Amazon. Yes, man-made. It appears that by layering soil, charcoal, pottery sherds (yes, that's the correct spelling), and plant and animal wastes, the soil was transformed from nutrient-poor, desolate soil into the fertile ground that grew sustenance for ancient jungle inhabitants. I remember reading about it and thinking, "Hey, this could save ...

Post author:Christy
Post published: September 29, 2011
Post category:What's Growin' On
Post comments:6 Comments

Pesto Madness

This is the time of year when the abundance of basil in the garden can often overshadow the need in the kitchen. What's a gardener to do? Make pesto, of course.

Whether you preserve pesto by canning or freezing, you can make the flavors of summer last a long time. To start off the pesto season, I took a field trip to Pesto Madness, the Learning Garden's annual fundraiser.

David King, the illustrious leader of the Learning Garden, was giving a ...

Post author:Christy
Post published: September 28, 2011
Post category:What's Growin' On
Post comments:4 Comments

Eggplant Enliven Fall Dinners

The lastest post from Mar Vista's Bounty Hunter is up and ready to give you great ideas for using eggplant (which is in season right now) in your weekly meals:

Fall Dinners Come Alive with Versatile Eggplants
...

Post author:Christy
Post published: September 27, 2011
Post category:What's Growin' On
Post comments:0 Comments

Cleaning Tomato Cages Repeat

Cleaning your tomato cages is one extra step you can take to prevent the reintroduction of blight back into the garden next spring. Learn how with this week's tip of the week!

Post author:Christy
Post published: September 22, 2011
Post category:Blog
Post comments:0 Comments

Fall Clean Up – Cleaning Tomato Cages

With another tomato season drifting into the past, it's time to clean up the cages and put them away for the winter. If you are one of the fortunate few whose tomatoes were not struck with blight and plan on surviving into January, ignore this post. For the rest of us, here's what to do:

1) Pull off all plant debris

2) Set your tomato cages in the sun away from your growing area

3) Hose down the cages with water
...

Post author:Christy
Post published: September 21, 2011
Post category:What's Growin' On
Post comments:2 Comments

Harvesting Watermelons

Just in the nick of time, our watermelons are ready to harvest before summer ends. How do you know they're ready? Consider this post to be a companion piece to our watermelon Tip of the Week Podcast, visual aid style, that illustrates the tell-tale sign that watermelon is ready for harvest.

There are old wives tales about the sound that watermelons are supposed to make when ripe. You can also look at the underside of the melon to check whether ...

Post author:Christy
Post published: September 21, 2011
Post category:What's Growin' On
Post comments:9 Comments