Save the Tomatoes?
Tomatoes need temperatures above 70 degrees to set fruit.
Proven Winners plants came to the door one day.
Proven Winners Winner
Not to brag or anything, but apparently that's what I am: a Proven Winners winner. I won 8 plants from Proven Winners and a set of Corona pruners at the Garden Writers Association Symposium back in September. Rather than ship the plants in spring (which is what they usually do) I convinced Team Proven Winner that perennials are best planted in Southern California in the fall. They were game. So last week I opened the door to find a box…
The new raised beds are still in a little bit of shade, but in the sunniest part of the yard. Surrounded by fruit trees and native plants.
Design: Front Yard Veggie Garden
We've been hard at work helping people get rid of their lawns in favor of edible front yard landscapes instead. Our latest garden is located inland where temperatures are high in summer, but large trees create a lot of shade; two conditions less than ideal for growing food. This new front yard veggie garden works around all that. The homeowners, both rabbis, wanted to incorporate as many of the Seven Mystic Fruits of Israel into their garden as would fit.…
What to Plant with Onions
Tuck green onions in between other crops, grow shallots next to your chard.
Jade is hard to kill.
Ask Gardenerd: Winter Care for Succulents
This week's question is a good one: "Hi and thank you in advance for your help. I live in Texas and have a lot of succulents in pots (20) and other things in the ground like cannas. Question is: how to keep them alive through winter? Get some kind of tarps or bring them into the house or invest in a small greenhouse if so what kind? Thanks!!" Winter in Texas can be brutal, and like many places, you may…
All-blue, russet and red potatoes are jewels from the garden.
The Martian and His Potatoes…and Mistakes
Everyone, I mean everyone told me, "You must see The Martian. He grows potatoes on Mars." So I went. It was well done, except for a couple things: 1) No one could possibly stay that positive in those circumstances, and 2) His potato-growing experiment most assuredly would have failed. Walking out of the theater, my husband asked how accurate the potato farming was. After counting on my fingers the errors made, his first words were, "They should've asked you." Let's…
Plant Native Plants Now
Plant native plants now for them to flourish in the Spring
Artichoke hearts sold fresh, floating in water.
Field Trip: More Italy!
There's nothing quite so exotic as a farmers market in a foreign country. You get to see the staples of the local diet on display. Here in the US, we see peppers and eggplant and tomatoes just like in Italy, but the varieties are different and there's so much more. Radicchio, fennel, porcini mushrooms and chestnuts are readily available at Italian farmers markets right now. Just remember, the rules there are different: don't touch the produce, tell the vendor what…
Once those eggs hatch, the worm grows from tiny (above) to fat and juicy. They'll destroy your plants in a day.
Fall Planting is Here!
It's still hot here in Los Angeles, but there have been a few cooler days that we took advantage of to plant out our fall brassicas. If you're ready for fall planting, now is a good time. Seeds will germinate more quickly in warmer weather (if you keep the seed bed moist) and you'll be picking salad greens in no time. Here's what's growin' on right now in our Test Garden. Potatoes, onions, brassicas, spinach, celery and more: Seedlings grown…
Harvesting Sweet Potatoes
Learn how to roast and prepare squashes this fall