Veggies & Fruits for Shade, and other great questions

Continue ReadingVeggies & Fruits for Shade, and other great questions

A new gardener wrote in this week:

"Hi Christy, I have 2 questions for you. Well a lot of questions, but
I'll limit this to 2.   First question: I'm getting ready to build 2
4'x8' raised beds in my backyard. The spot I'd like to use would have
one of the beds be in full sun, but the other one would be in shade for
the first half of the day. Are there veggies that would do well in part
shade, or should I have both beds in full sun to maximize my options
and production? I live in San Jose, so it's ...

Compost at the Ready?

Continue ReadingCompost at the Ready?

All the spring garden questions are coming into Ask Gardenerd this week.  Here's one now:

"Hello! I'm about to start spring planting so I need to amend my soil a
bit. I have a barrel of compost that has been doing its thing for about
10 months. It's mostly done, but there are still some chunks of leaves. Should I use this compost now or do I need to wait? thanks!"

I'm guessing that your compost set up has been one where you add material to it and let it sit, correct?  This would be considered cold composting (which is a misnomer ...

Read more about the article Spring has Arrived

Spring has Arrived

Continue ReadingSpring has Arrived

Sunday was the first day I was able to walk around outside without a jacket on.  In fact, I brazenly put on a tank top and walked to the farmer's market.  It was heavenly!  The spring sun is officially warming our skin and soil. The smell of that subtle change in the air lets us know, at least here in Los Angeles, that spring has finally arrived. 

We often take it for granted in Los Angeles, given that the weather's subtle changes often go unnoticed.  We are admittedly accustomed to consistent weather - sunny and warm all year ...

Root Down LA

Continue ReadingRoot Down LA

This event came across my desk this week, sent by a student from my Santa Monica College class, Lise Matthews.  Root Down LA is striving to reduce the number of kids with obesity in the city buy helping to create "healthier school food communities".  A very worthy cause...   


We're
RootDown LA and we're on a mission to help tackle the obesity crisis in
South LA by engaging youth at Manual Arts ...

HR 875 – Organic Consumers Association’s take on it

Continue ReadingHR 875 – Organic Consumers Association’s take on it

In an effort to read more into the recent rumor (or 'myth' as the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) has put it) about HR 875 and the idea that it would ban organic farming, I found that the OCA website has been either hacked or blocked by every major search engine out there.  It smells of conspiracy, since they are the voice of the people when it comes to organic standards and food safety.  Not that I'm a conspiracy theorist, but I thought it was uncanny that while e-mails are flying around about this bill, the ...

Organic vs. Non-organic seeds

Continue ReadingOrganic vs. Non-organic seeds

Another great question came in to Ask Gardenerd:

"I don't understand what the difference is between organic seeds and
regular seed packets.  Are there any benefits of purchasing organic
seeds?  Can I buy regular seeds and just grow them organically with the
same results?"

The short answer to your question is yes, you can essentially get the same results with regular seeds as with organically grown seeds.  Here, for the record, is the difference:

Organic seeds are just that - organically grown.  In other words, grown using sustainable methods from start to finish.  No pesticides, no chemical fertilizers, all on land ...

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