Mar Vista Green Garden Showcase 2011 Review

There's nothing like a good garden tour to get your spring gardening juices flowing. Last Saturday, we set out on our bicycles to take in the third annual Mar Vista Green Garden Showcase in all its glory. This free garden tour is put on by the hard-working volunteers of the Mar Vista Green Committee, and while our house has been on the tour during the first two years, we wanted to get some inspiration and see what our neighbors were doing with their land.

With over 70 houses to see, we had ...

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Read more about the article Volunteer Tomatoes – Nature’s Slap in the Face
Random cherry tomato volunteers suspiciously in the location of a recent potluck table.

Volunteer Tomatoes – Nature’s Slap in the Face

There is either a great blessing or a humbling cruelty to the fact that volunteer tomatoes grow bigger, faster and stronger than cultivated varieties. By volunteer, I mean the little sprouts that pushed out of the soil all on their own, not planted by me, not planted in rich garden soil, and not necessarily in full sun or even near any source of water. Yet despite these conditions, nature prevails.

I have two, possibly three volunteer tomatoes that popped up in the most unwitting locations. Observe specimen number 1:
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New Tools – Christmas in…April

The tell-tale credit card statement reveals that yours truly has been shopping for gardening tools. It's spring - can you blame me? 

While up north at the San Francisco Garden Show I stumbled upon the Lee Valley Tools booth. Oh dear, be still my heart. Before I knew it, my hands were wrapped around a Clarington Forge digging fork. Sturdy, rugged, hand-made, and for those of us who appreciate a good tool when we see one, beautiful. It was the easiest sale of the day. It ...

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Gardenerd is Mar Vista’s Bounty Hunter

Gardenerd's Christy Wilhelmi became a columnist for Mar Vista Patch.com this week writing the weekly Farmer's Market report, Mar Vista's Bounty Hunter. If you love the Mar Vista Farmer's Market like we do, you can sign up on Patch.com to get the latest news about what's fresh at the Farmer's Market delivered right to your inbox.

This week's story is all about the strawberries. Even if you don't live in the Los Angeles area, you'll find some great tips about ...

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Growing Kale – Ironman of the Garden

There's a thing that happens when someone discovers kale for the first time. They become addicted to it. Well, maybe not addicted, but if their experience is anything like mine was, they can't get enough of it. My intro to kale was with Esalen's Raw Kale Salad  and I've been growing kale ever since.

What kind of kale is best?  It depends upon your preference. Many people like the color and texture of Italian kale, also known as Lacinato (laa-chee-nah-toe) or Dinosaur kale, and because it is not ...

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The Truth about Seed Balls

You've seen the news clips about seed balls being dispensed from gum ball machines and tossed lazily amongst the weeds in vacant lots, but what ever happens to them?  Do they indeed sprout and blossom into beautiful wildflowers?  Do they spruce up a desolate parkway in the midst of bustling city life? 

I needed to find out for myself. So I bought two packages of seed balls for the Test Garden.


One set of seed balls was designed for hummingbirds, with larkspur, ...

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Field Trip – San Francisco Garden Show

Question: What's more fun than planting your spring garden? 

Answer: Going to a garden show filled with gardeners and garden gear to get new ideas about what to plant in your spring garden.

I ventured up to San Francisco last week to take in a convention-center-full of ideas and gardening joys. To my delight, there was a clear focus on edible landscaping and home food-gardening that offered fresh insight for home growers. A few favorites jumped out, so let's get right to it:

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