itsatrilogy Jeff Lowenfels
Read all three of Jeff's books.

Podcast: Soil Fungi with Jeff Lowenfels

Continue ReadingPodcast: Soil Fungi with Jeff Lowenfels

We just returned from the Heirloom Expo where we interviewed eight great guests for upcoming Gardenerd Tip of the Week Podcasts. Our first guest from that whirlwind experience is Jeff Lowenfels, author of 3 books including Teaming with Microbes: the Organic Gardeners Guide to the Soil Food Web. We chat about gardening in Alaska, his newest book on soil fungi, and his project Plant a Row for the Hungry. More Than Just Fungi Read all three of Jeff's books to…

Broccoli, cabbage and more grow under lights for October planting.
Broccoli, cabbage and more grow under lights for October planting.

YouTube: Seed-Starting 2 Ways

Continue ReadingYouTube: Seed-Starting 2 Ways

Our latest YouTube tutorial comes in answer to a request for a video about seed-starting. In this video we share two different methods for starting seeds for your fall (or spring) garden. We explore the traditional seed-starting method, as well as the Grow BioIntensive method for germinating a lot of seeds in one small seed flat. Seed-starting allows you to grow plants that aren't available at the nursery. The world is your oyster when you grow from seed. It's also…

Heirloom Expo Sebright
This is probably the best photo I've ever taken. Little Miss Sebright graced me with a close up.

Wordless Wednesday: Heirloom Expo 2018

Continue ReadingWordless Wednesday: Heirloom Expo 2018

The National Heirloom Expo 2018, put on each year by Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company, did not disappoint. It continues to fill the well for me every year. Not only are there great speakers, and seed-minded people milling about, there's eye candy on a drool-factor 5 level. Check out these beautiful images from this year's Expo. Speaking of squash... Make plans to visit the Heirloom Expo next year. Take a train, plane, or car. Just get there to witness it…

Diana Rodgers
Diana Rodgers

Podcast: Farmers Markets and Flower Farms with Diana Rodgers

Continue ReadingPodcast: Farmers Markets and Flower Farms with Diana Rodgers

On the Gardenerd Tip of the Week Podcast this week our guest is Diana Rodgers. Diana is the manager of the very popular Mar Vista Farmers Market, and lives on a flower farm in Petaluma, CA. She and her partner, Tom, run Crane Creek Growers and Diana commutes to the Farmers Market in Los Angeles every Sunday (about 415 miles each way). So she is familiar with both the farmer and consumer sides of the market. We asked Diana about…

Home BioGas popcorn
Our first batch of Home BioGas popped popcorn. Oh, and we grew some of this popcorn.

YouTube: BioGas is in the House!

Continue ReadingYouTube: BioGas is in the House!

Nerd Alert: We've been working on this one for awhile, and we're so excited to share the latest self-reliance, nerdy happening at Gardenerd HQ.  What is it? It's BioGas! What is BioGas, you ask? It's fuel generated from waste, specifically animal manures and food scraps. It builds up in an anaerobic digester that creates methane gas you can cook on for up to 3 hours per day. Check out our latest YouTube video that explains it all: Cooking with BioGas…

Jessica and Christy
Learn what happens to those 6-packs and 4" pots when you put them in the recycle bin.

Podcast: Recycling and Composting with Jessica Aldridge

Continue ReadingPodcast: Recycling and Composting with Jessica Aldridge

Jessica Aldridge is a hotshot in the recycling world. Her passion for environmental education led to creating Zero Waste programs and other sustainability projects for corporations, cities, and municipalities in Southern California. In this week's podcast she shares what gardening supplies can and can't be recycled, and what happens to them when you put them in the blue bin. I met Jessica after watching her presentation at an Earth Day event, where she held up common items we often think…

Anello Beans
We received 8 Anello beans at a seed swap last year. Grew them out and here's what we got.

Wordless Wednesday: Summer’s Not Over

Continue ReadingWordless Wednesday: Summer’s Not Over

The chickens are putting themselves to bed a little earlier every night, but I refuse to believe that summer is over. Temperatures will remain in the high 80's for at least another month here in Los Angeles. Soon we'll be starting seeds for fall, but right now it's harvest time. Enjoy this Wordless Wednesday as summer fades.   Enjoy these final weeks of warm weather and sunshine. Fall will be here before you know it and cool season crops will…

Nan-Sterman-headshot
This week's guest Nan Sterman shares her best low-water garden design tips.

Podcast: Hot Color, Dry Garden with Nan Sterman

Continue ReadingPodcast: Hot Color, Dry Garden with Nan Sterman

This week's guest on the Gardenerd Tip of the Week Podcast is Nan Sterman, the host of A Growing Passion and author of the new garden design book, Hot Color, Dry Garden: Inspiring Designs and Vibrant Plants for the Waterwise Gardener. Nan shares her best design tips and ideas for a colorful low-water garden. Nan is also a passionate vegetable gardener, so we talk about her hoop house that protects her garden beds from critters. You'll hear ideas for your…

Read more about the article Review: To Catch The Rain by Lonny Grafman

Review: To Catch The Rain by Lonny Grafman

Continue ReadingReview: To Catch The Rain by Lonny Grafman

To Catch the Rain When Humboldt State University Press contacted me with a review copy of Lonny Grafman's To Catch The Rain, I couldn't resist the appeal of this nerdy water catchment book. Drought and aquifer depletion continue all over the world, so capturing water for reuse is more important than ever. Grafman's book "looks at real, practical, global experiences of rainwater harvesting on individual, financially constrained, and community based levels through academic, mathematical and practical perspectives." His work in…

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