Certified Wildlife Habitat
Tips for Certified Wildlife Habitat
Let artichokes go to flower. We'll save seeds from this Winnetka Purple artichoke for the Seed Library of Los Angeles.
Wordless Wednesday: Gardening for a Healthy Planet
I can't believe I have to refer back to this article I wrote in February, but it's more appropriate than ever now. While it's comforting to see the rest of the world stand up for the planet in the absence of US participation in the Paris Climate Accord, as gardeners we have our work cut out for us. Here are some images to help inspire your spring and summer garden endeavors this month. Gardening makes a difference. Let's garden for…
Flowers appear at the tip-top of our tree kale plant.
Guess What! Tree Kale Does Go to Seed
I've heard colleagues say that tree kale never goes to seed, that it can only be propagated by cuttings. Well, my 10-foot tree kale would beg to differ. It's gone to seed after falling over in a wind storm (probably stress-induced) while it continues to produce tasty leaves. Tree kale is a perennial vegetable lauded by the permaculture community because it forms deep roots (obviously deep enough to withstand falling over in a wind storm). We propped that baby back…
Food grade barrels are best for use in vegetable gardens.
Being Prepared
A building caught fire in our neighborhood recently, leading to a power outage for two hours. The lack of internet and electricity, even for a short time, reminds us how dependent we are upon these modern conveniences. A recent article in the LA Times about Dr. Lucy Jones and her research of earthquakes and the San Andreas Fault brought even more clarity to the fact that we are SO not prepared for a natural disaster. Sure, we've got camping equipment…
The vertical garden is planted with spring and summer crops.
Design: Vertical Patio Garden Delight
We recently created a tidy vertical garden for a busy business woman in Marina del Rey. Her condominium patio didn't allow room for a full-sized garden, and tight quarters limited her sun exposure to one wall. Her patio housed a collection of random containers, some with leggy plants long overdue for re-potting. We took steps to unify the patio to enhance her new vertical garden. Our first step was to re-do the patio to remove infiltrating tree roots. The client…
Getting Rid of Fungus Gnats
Tips for Getting Rid of Fungus Gnats
Ask Gardenerd: Protecting Blackberries
We got a good one from Ask Gardenerd this week: "Hello, our blackberries are thriving this year, probably because of all the rain we got in SoCal, but I am afraid the birds will get them before us, like they did with our blueberries. Do you have any tips and tricks for proper bird netting installment over blackberry bushes? Any brands or techniques you could recommend? - Micky" Good question, Micky. There are several approaches and bird netting is one…
Benefits Of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)
Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) changed the way farmers do business. No longer do they have to go through a middle man to reach the consumer, they can sell direct. It means a larger share of profit and a stronger relationship with the consumer. In many cases, the CSA model has saved the farm. If you can't grow your own, join a CSA. Here's some interesting info on the history of CSAs, and a few tasty recipes for this season's veggies.…