Last week in the garden I noticed that some of the newer leaves on my tomatoes and peppers were puckering and misshapen. At first glance I thought maybe spider mites, but there were no signs of infestation. Maybe it could have been a mosaic virus, but no, the leaves weren't curled or discolored in any way – just puckered. Only one way to find out – research!
No matter how we try to use up green onions from the garden, we always end up either with too many in the fridge or overgrown, leek-sized onions taking up space in the garden. This week we did something about it. Now that the days are longer, we hauled out our trusty solar food dryer to put it to work for the season. In addition to making delicious flax chips again, we've christened the solar dryer this year with our…
And now for a moment of shameless self-promotion... For those who missed it, I was a guest on 89.9 KCRW's Good Food with Evan Kleiman on June 1, 2013. It was a dream come true to sit across from Evan and chat about gardening and soil testing. There was more to the interview than what aired, of course, including a moment where I revealed that I'd never baked a fruit pie because my mother is so good at it, there's…
This week we have a guest post from Michael DeHart, the Getty Central Garden Supervisor, as an enticement to visit the Getty's new exhibit, Gardens of the Renaissance. Take it away Michael: The Getty Central Garden as an Ever Changing Eden With the opening of Gardens of the Renaissance in the North Pavilion of the Getty Center, visitors’ thoughts are directed to things horticultural and growing. In the exhibit many flowers are displayed in intricate detail with precise placement and…
Sweet corn is climbing toward the sky this time of year and while it's easy to grow, it isn't always easy to know when to harvest. How can you tell when it's time to pick it?
A few weeks ago, we harvested a frame of honeycomb from our bee hive. We've enjoyed eating thin slices of comb and chewing on it to extract the honey. What you're left with is like chewing gum, but in this case you can either spit it out or swallow it (it's technically a fat, not a wax, so it's safe to ingest). Regardless of whether that grosses you out or not, it's a fascinating experience. Still, we wanted honey to…
Two years ago we dug up a blackberry runner that had wandered over from a neighboring plot at the community garden. We planted it in a pot and year later it took over the place, diving down through the drainage hole and sending up shoots a few feet away along the back wall. Now it's safe to say we are in full production. Eating seasonally is a particular joy when you get to harvest blackberries and make something that would…
This week’s tip is for a worldwide protest against Monsanto and GMO crops.
I had the pleasure of attending an event last night called Getting Wasted, which focused on how much food is wasted in our country. From farm to table and from table to trash, we throw away a lot of food. A gathering of experts shed light on the subject. It was enlightening and informative, and I'd like to share some highlights with you. 40% of all food in the U.S. is wasted. What? How? My first thought was, sure - farmers…
We garden for many reasons, but whether it's a hobby, habit or homesteading way of life, gardening has a purpose. It feeds us. What's more, it gives us the opportunity to control where some of our food comes from. I do it to avoid pesticides, to assure that the methods used to grow my food are sustainable, and to reduce my carbon footprint (fewer miles from farm to table, less pollution from chemicals, lower water usage through bio-intensive planting methods).…