What's Growin' On Archives - Page 71 of 142

The cage is tall to accommodate tomato cages and pea trellises as needed.

Design: A Cozy Caged Garden

While Los Angeles may be a concrete jungle, we still have wild animals lurking about the garden. Our most recent garden installation was designed to protect new seedlings from wandering critters on the canyon slope. It's a starter garden, this 3x5 foot raised bed. Not much design involved, except that we had to make it fit on top of an existing brick patio barely bigger than that. We decided to move the bench back a foot, closer to the rock…

Post author:Christy
Post published:November 9, 2016
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
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Please go vote. Every vote counts, so make your voice heard.

Go Vote!

Today's the day we exercise our right to vote. This election cycle has gone on forever it seems, and we're all ready to see it come to a close. I just returned from my polling place, where long lines and happy dispositions went hand in hand. It got me thinking... I find that gardening crosses all borders. Political, religious, racial and economic differences disappear when you get a group of people in the room to talk about gardening. The miracle…

Post author:Christy
Post published:November 8, 2016
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
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Write it all down to keep track of plant locations from season to season.

Crop Rotation Basics

Crop rotation is an essential part of a healthy organic gardening. Why? Plants take up specific nutrients and can leave behind diseases in their wake. Moving crops to new soil each season ensures that diseases don't build up in soils, and nutrients are more evenly extracted across the garden. But we often get asked, "what is crop rotation?" Crop rotation is simply rotating crops from one bed to another each season, and avoiding planting any specific crop in the same…

Post author:Christy
Post published:November 2, 2016
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
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Bees take advantage of arugula that has bolted to seed in last week's heat.

YouTube: Honey Harvesting Tricks for Home Gardeners

It's honey harvesting time and we documented our latest harvest so you can see how it's done. We provide visual aids in this video for our favorite way to get bees out of the super you plan to harvest. We show you our harvesting equipment (handmade by our friends at Honeylove.org), and our other favorite tools to use during the process. Homegrown honey is the best. It's wild, it's treatment-free and it's raw. No heating, no filtering, just crushed and…

Post author:Christy
Post published:November 1, 2016
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
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8 different kale varieties are protected by floating row cover. No cabbage moths/worms here!

Wordless Wednesday: October Gardening

Fall gardening is in full swing. Here are a few prompts for October tasks and enjoyments. There's still much to do to get the fall garden ready, but we're enjoying the process. Happy fall gardening to you!

Post author:Christy
Post published:October 26, 2016
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
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Presenters at the Conference all have Twitter or Instagram handles to follow.

Field Trip: Gourmandise Grain Conference

When someone says "whole grains" my ears perk up. Homesteaders try to make food as often as possible with unadulterated ingredients. Whole grain baking and cooking is an ongoing effort that requires education, persistence, and experimentation to get right. Enter the 2016 Gourmandise Grain Conference. Imagine an entire day dedicated to baking, milling, and cooking with whole grains. The WHOLE grain--meaning flour that includes the bran and germ--made into pastas, grain bowls, breads, and sweet treats. Sounds like heaven, right? …

Post author:Christy
Post published:October 25, 2016
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
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Recycled ficus trees enclose a pond and seating area for contemplation.

Field Trip: MoonWater Farm

We hear more and more about urban agriculture and small farms cropping up in the middle of big cities. MoonWater Farm, the collaborative effort of Kathleen Blakistone and Richard Draut, is exactly that. But MoonWater Farm is more than just a homestead microfarm, it's a learning experience for kids of all ages. Want to learn how to milk a goat or build an inexpensive compost bin? Have a burning desire to take care of horses or create a dry garden?…

Post author:Christy
Post published:October 11, 2016
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
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Dazzling Blue Kale, the best of both worlds.

National Kale Day 2016

National Kale Day is here! It's a chance to celebrate one of the best (IMHO) brassicas in the world. Brassica? It's short for Brassicaceae, the family to which kale belongs. Along with broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, kohlrabi, collards and...wait for it...turnips, kale is a highly nutritious and great-tasting vegetable that no winter garden should be without. Kale tolerates frost (we've seen photos from fellow gardenerds of their kale growing under a mound of snow), and flavor improves with frost.…

Post author:Christy
Post published:October 5, 2016
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
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Find YouTube videos on how to prep raised beds for fall planting and more at the Gardenerd YouTube Channel.

Gardenerd’s YouTube Channel Hits 5,000 Subscribers!

Gardenerd's YouTube Channel was born in April, 2009. It sat dormant for awhile but slowly over the years we've added helpful, instructive videos to help you grow organically in your own back or front yard. Thanks to you, fellow gardenerds, for helping us grow. Yesterday, we reached a milestone: 5,000 followers. Some of our most popular videos include How to Braid Garlic, where you can take your summer harvest and turn it into a functional kitchen decoration. How to Prune…

Post author:Christy
Post published:October 4, 2016
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
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The finished keyhole and flower garden, freshly planted

Bill Mollison – Father of Permaculture

You may have heard that Bill Mollison, considered one of the fathers of Permaculture, passed away this week. He lived from 1928-2016 and saw, I imagine, dramatic changes in our ecosystem during his lifetime. This Australia native spent his life teaching the principles of Permaculture to thousands if not millions. Through his work, his legacy lives on. I never had the chance to meet Bill Mollison, nor take any of his classes (though running away to Australia for a Permaculture…

Post author:Christy
Post published:September 28, 2016
Post category:Blog What's Growin' On
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