Gardenerd's Organic Gardening Blog

Completed garden with cool season crops planted. We left room for warm season crops, which will be planted next month.

Family’s New Vegetable Garden

A student from my Santa Monica College gardening course hired me to design a vegetable garden - a few raised beds so his family could grow tomatoes, salad greens and more. The family had moved into their house recently and were overhauling the landscaping to make it low-maintenance. The homeowners enjoyed colorful, artistic surroundings, but they wanted a clean palette to start with. Old weedy lawns, ill-placed concrete borders and invasive plant materials all had to go. I wanted their…

Post author:Christy
Post published:February 20, 2013
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
Post comments:2 Comments

U-pins hold netting in place to keep curious hens from crawling out underneath.

Wider Pastures: New Chicken Run

We were lucky. Our chickens never really discovered the garden. They simply stayed within bounds to peck and scratch the day away. Until last week. Their eyes have been opened and all the world is suddenly their oyster. I think not. Time for a new, larger chicken run to contain the birds but let them feel as though the have free range of the yard. Taking note from Omlet's chicken fence, we set out for the hardware store for stakes…

Post author:Christy
Post published:February 19, 2013
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
Post comments:6 Comments

Bring Back the Pollinators

Find out how to attract bees and other pollinators to your garden.

Post author:Christy
Post published:February 15, 2013
Post category:Blog
Post comments:0 Comments

Kale Salad ready for scarfing.

Recipe: Northern Spy Kale Salad

For winter gardeners, kale is a staple crop that we have the pleasure of harvesting all season long. It grows well in spring in cooler climates, so for those covered in snow, you have that to look forward to. While there is no shortage of kale recipes to try, the goal, in fact, is to try as many as possible. Salads, soups, stews and main dishes; the possibilities are endless. This week we made the Northern Spy Kale Salad from…

Post author:Christy
Post published:February 13, 2013
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
Post comments:3 Comments

The Edible Landscape by Emily Tepe

Book Review: The Edible Landscape

Last month I received a copy of Emily Tepe's new book, The Edible Landscape, and since I don't write reviews without reading the thing cover to cover (and I'm a slow reader), I'm just getting around to it now. The promise of the book, from the cover and my expectations at least, is an instructional guide to creating an edible landscape with fruits, vegetables and flowers. As I read through it, I realized there is very little in the way…

Post author:Christy
Post published:February 12, 2013
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
Post comments:7 Comments

Seed Depth Rules

Gardenerd provides helpful tips to plant seeds for your garden.

Post author:Christy
Post published:February 8, 2013
Post category:Blog
Post comments:0 Comments

Home made cloches work wonders for protecting seedlings.

Ask Gardenerd: What’s Eating My Seeds?

A great question came into Ask Gardenerd this week about plant protection: "It seems that every time I start seeds or plant out transplants in my raised bed, they get eaten overnight. It's so frustrating. Help!" Home made cloches work wonders for protecting seedlings. I have had the same problem over the years and I have found a few solutions that can help. The primary defense against nocturnal foragers is a physical barrier. Let's look at the options: Cloches -…

Post author:Christy
Post published:February 6, 2013
Post category:Blog Sage Advice
Post comments:9 Comments

Gardening for Geeks by Christy Wilhelmi

Announcing Gardening For Geeks Book!

I've been chomping at the bit to post this, and now that everything is in place the time has come. drumroll please... That's right, I've written a book and it's coming out in April. Back in July, 2012, Adams Media approached me to write a gardening book for them and I couldn't say no. It was a chance to put all the juicy tips and tidbits from years of growing, teaching, and blogging in one place. It's full of practical…

Post author:Christy
Post published:February 5, 2013
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
Post comments:6 Comments

Emerson Avenue Community Garden

Everything’s Better with Cob

Cob is a rustic building technique that dates back to pre-historic times. It combines sand, clay and straw, and is held together with water and an abundant supply of elbow grease. These ingredients are identical to adobe, but adobe is generally formed into bricks, then dried before application. Working with cob is essentially like playing in the mud. I had the pleasure of attending a cob workshop at Emerson Avenue Community Garden in Westchester, CA. Robert from EarthWorks Natural Building…

Post author:Christy
Post published:February 5, 2013
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
Post comments:1 Comment

Winter Pruning

January is the perfect time to do your winter pruning before sap starts flowing.

Post author:Christy
Post published:February 1, 2013
Post category:Blog
Post comments:0 Comments