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Ladybugs – Nature’s Aphid Brigade

For some unknown reason, my Swiss chard is covered – no, make that enveloped – with aphids. I have fed the plants with worm castings and compost and worm tea. I have sprayed them off with a strong
hose blast. I have squished the aphids with my bare fingers. I have pleaded and begged for them to go away, to no avail.

My next plan, as a last resort before pulling out the chard, would be to try laying down a layer of tin foil around the base of each plant, to reflect …

New Year’s Resolutions for the Gardenerd

I’m generally not a big fan of New Year’s Resolutions, but rather like to make “gentle intentions” instead. It just feels kinder and gentler, and less likely to fail. This
year, however, I’m feeling a little more assertive, at least where the garden is concerned. So without further adieu, here are a few New Year’s Resolutions for the garden in 2011:

Heal the Sick – I will diligently …

Growing Popcorn

If there’s an inherent addition in my family, it’s popcorn. Start at the top of the bowl and eat until you hit bottom. That’s how it goes. My father went so
far as to buy the top of the line popper, special popcorn salt, and yes, even figured out to how keep buttered pop corn fresh until the next morning (hair of the dog).

As part of an effort to grow more compost crops we decided to try …

Quick Garden Refresher

Have you ever planted mint, thinking that it would be a nice addition to your vegetable or herb garden, only to find that in no time at all
it had taken over your garden and choked out your veggies? Well that’s what happened to Joan Wilner in Beverly Hills. She called me up to rescue her waning vegetable garden from the claws
of the overwhelming mint patch a couple of weeks ago.

…

Redwood Seed Flat Fun

As a birthday present to myself, I purchased some redwood seed flats from Bountiful Gardens, the home of Ecology Action in Willits, CA. These redwood seed
flats allow gardeners to start seeds very close together without the occasionally tedious limitation of trays with cells. These open “half flats” (which I purchased instead of the full size
flats that are twice as large and twice as heavy) can hold up to 87 seedlings in the same amount of space …

White Grubs in the Garden

A gardener wrote in recently:

“Hi, I am trying to learn how to Organic Garden. My 25 x 5 raised garden bed has a major grub worm infestation. Every foot I dig, there are 10 or more grub worms. They
destroy any seed I plant. I applied milky spore all over my raised garden bed. What else should I do? I would love to be able to grow onions and beets this spring. I will greatly appreciate any
and all suggestions or advise for …

Malibu Vegetable Garden Delight

I had the good fortune to be introduced to Shalane Respondek and her world of LEED certified property development. She brought me in to design a vegetable
garden for her new Malibu property over the summer. They were still finishing the house and major landscaping projects, so it would be awhile before we could start on the garden, but the ideas
were flowing from the beginning.

I saw …

Adventures with City Mulch

Awhile ago, my husband and I decided to put a hold on our backyard design project until the economy levels off. This of course took place after we had ripped out most of the existing plants and installed drainage and irrigation materials. So we had a lovely expanse of dirt we were perfectly willing to live with (which many students have seen if you’ve come to a class at the house and test garden).

Of course, what happens when you have a large expanse of dirt? You get weeds.

We needed mulch to cover the dirt. Lots of …