Wow. Just wow. I think Rosalind Creasy might just be my idol in the way that Taylor Swift is to 12-year olds.
By my estimation, Edible Landscaping might just be the perfect vegetable garden book. Not only does it go into the basic mechanics of edible gardens-- light, soil, nutrients, required growing conditions for plants, etc.-- but it also goes into the complex (and fun!) world of garden design. With case studies on how real home owners planned their gardens (one is from Arlington, too!), descriptions of basic design principles to keep in mind and lots of gorgeous pictures for inspiration, this book really takes you from A-to-Z.
Now, you maybe thinking: "Um, I have a vegetable garden, not an edible landscape." And, to that I say: "Why do vegetable gardens have to be ugly?" Incorporating flowers to attract pollinators and beneficial insects is not only pretty, but practical. And, putting a little extra thought into the arrangement of your planting (like, maybe instead of rows of lettuce, maybe a checkerboard pattern), you can get some lovely results.
Furthermore, why does food have to be limited to the *vegetable* garden? In Arlington with our tiny lots, sometimes your front yard is what is blessed with sun. I have been working to make my front yard more productive already, but Edible Landscapes has given that new energy. I had been thinking about maybe a Wisteria frutescens to grow by my door, but now I'm leaning towards a grape vine. How amazing would that be?! We'd have grapes (either eating ones or ones to make juice/jam) and grape leaves! In the winter, the gnarled bark of the grape vines is striking too and perfectly front yard appropriate. I'm also going to tuck in some anise hyssop (an herb) into my cottage-garden style front plantings. She's also got some lovely ideas on how to use groups of pots to grow food which I think I'm going to try to incorporate in our vegetable garden area (which is being finished today!).
She's also written books specifically on edible flower gardening and edible herb gardening that go into more detail on those topics. I can't wait to get my grubby little hands on those.
Showing posts with label Books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Books. Show all posts
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Review: Great New Book Out with Container Gardening Emphasis
I'm a big fan of Gayla Trail, author of You Grow Girl and now Grow Great Grub. My reasons for adoration are simple: She advocates paying lots of attention to soil health & fertility, she makes gardening both young & hip, and she truly believes anyone can garden anywhere.
Ahhhhh....music to my ears. Especially the "anyone can garden anywhere" part. There are many things that work in shade, scorching hot, drought, windy, wet and other conditions. Gardening, especially edible gardening, used to be such a part of our daily life. And now it's a past time often left for retired grannies or crazy cat ladies with piles of newspaper. Thankfully, I feel like this stereotype is slowly changing; I've noticed many Gen-X & Gen-Yers are showing a "budding" interest in how things grow. I mean, frankly, if I can grow plants, anyone can. I'm pretty lazy.
Her latest book really focuses on edible gardening and includes easy-to-understand sections on soil (how to have good soil, what to use in containers, how to increase fertility, etc.), profiles of edible plants (growing requirements), garden-related crafts and recipes. All of this is put into one beautiful, interesting and fun package. Love it.
So, I bought myself a copy. Most of the information isn't new to me, although she does have several recipes, crafts and general gardening ideas I am dying to try out. I would highly recommend this book for anyone just starting out with gardening in general (would be a great housewarming gift for new homeowners that have expressed an interested in edible or container gardening, for example) or maybe someone that has "gotten their feet wet" with a few vegetable crops and wants to expand their horizons.
This book has definitely rekindled my desire to work more edibles into my ornamental landscaping. If anything good has come from the series of Snowpocalypses that we had this year, it's that some seriously ugly bushes in my front yard got damaged beyond repair. I'm going to wait to see how the light is there over the next few months (I never bothered to notice before since the bushes were mature), and perhaps replace them with blueberries and raspberries.
A line of blueberry bushes would make a lovely hedge, don't you think? Would just need to net them somehow otherwise my over-zealous robins would eat them all out of spite for me!
Ahhhhh....music to my ears. Especially the "anyone can garden anywhere" part. There are many things that work in shade, scorching hot, drought, windy, wet and other conditions. Gardening, especially edible gardening, used to be such a part of our daily life. And now it's a past time often left for retired grannies or crazy cat ladies with piles of newspaper. Thankfully, I feel like this stereotype is slowly changing; I've noticed many Gen-X & Gen-Yers are showing a "budding" interest in how things grow. I mean, frankly, if I can grow plants, anyone can. I'm pretty lazy.
Her latest book really focuses on edible gardening and includes easy-to-understand sections on soil (how to have good soil, what to use in containers, how to increase fertility, etc.), profiles of edible plants (growing requirements), garden-related crafts and recipes. All of this is put into one beautiful, interesting and fun package. Love it.
So, I bought myself a copy. Most of the information isn't new to me, although she does have several recipes, crafts and general gardening ideas I am dying to try out. I would highly recommend this book for anyone just starting out with gardening in general (would be a great housewarming gift for new homeowners that have expressed an interested in edible or container gardening, for example) or maybe someone that has "gotten their feet wet" with a few vegetable crops and wants to expand their horizons.
This book has definitely rekindled my desire to work more edibles into my ornamental landscaping. If anything good has come from the series of Snowpocalypses that we had this year, it's that some seriously ugly bushes in my front yard got damaged beyond repair. I'm going to wait to see how the light is there over the next few months (I never bothered to notice before since the bushes were mature), and perhaps replace them with blueberries and raspberries.
A line of blueberry bushes would make a lovely hedge, don't you think? Would just need to net them somehow otherwise my over-zealous robins would eat them all out of spite for me!
Friday, December 11, 2009
More Winter Information Resources
This morning, it feels like 14*F outside which is very chilly for DC. Very, very, very chilly. The kind of chilly where your nose runs and your cheeks burn if you're outside too long in the wind.
We've already discussed how I am not terribly cold-hardy. Thus, I'd rather spend most of my winters indoors with some hot cocoa, dreaming of spring. Last time, I posted about books. This time, I'm going to post about TV.
Gardening by the Yard was an awesome show. It was kind of like the Good Eats version of gardening...you know a wacky host (Paul James in this case) provides both entertainment and information in one half hour show. Sadly, the show has been cancelled. You can, however, find episodes online and reruns still show up on my DVR (I believe on Friday afternoons and Sunday mornings).
I mourned the loss of Gardening by the Yard for awhile, but then I found that Paul James had his own website with web videos. Hurray!
These are truly fantastic resources to hone your gardening skills, and add to your gardening knowledge, all while staying warm this winter.
We've already discussed how I am not terribly cold-hardy. Thus, I'd rather spend most of my winters indoors with some hot cocoa, dreaming of spring. Last time, I posted about books. This time, I'm going to post about TV.
Gardening by the Yard was an awesome show. It was kind of like the Good Eats version of gardening...you know a wacky host (Paul James in this case) provides both entertainment and information in one half hour show. Sadly, the show has been cancelled. You can, however, find episodes online and reruns still show up on my DVR (I believe on Friday afternoons and Sunday mornings).
I mourned the loss of Gardening by the Yard for awhile, but then I found that Paul James had his own website with web videos. Hurray!
These are truly fantastic resources to hone your gardening skills, and add to your gardening knowledge, all while staying warm this winter.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Winter Reading
This past weekend it really started feeling wintery in the DC area. It makes it a bit unpleasant to be outside when it's overcast and windy. Well, maybe that's because I've got thin, Floridian skin?
Anyways, I like spending most of my winter inside with some hot cocoa or tea, curled up in a blanket with a gardening book. I've found a few to read in between my books for class. Namely:
Winter Harvest Handbook. This book primarily discusses unheated greenhouses but also has a section on cold frames. My ultimate goal is to have a small greenhouse attached to our house (currently saving up for this. it's going to take awhile..) and I do have some old windows that would be perfect for a cold frame.
Designing the New Kitchen Garden. I've got a few years until my raise beds rot out, but I'm still dreaming about how I'd redesign my kitchen garden. This book (I've leafed through it) has a good mix of history of food gardens, illustrations, etc.
In Defense of Food. I'm probably the last person on earth to read this book. I'm almost done with it. I find most of it to be stuff I already know or common sense. But an interesting read, especially the part of taking food out of context.
Also? Not a book, but good garden movie watching:
Greenfingers. Let Clive Owen, as an inmate that finds a love of horticulture in prison, warm you up this winter. I mean, this movie is a little cheesy. But it's a good kind of cheese!
Anyways, I like spending most of my winter inside with some hot cocoa or tea, curled up in a blanket with a gardening book. I've found a few to read in between my books for class. Namely:
Winter Harvest Handbook. This book primarily discusses unheated greenhouses but also has a section on cold frames. My ultimate goal is to have a small greenhouse attached to our house (currently saving up for this. it's going to take awhile..) and I do have some old windows that would be perfect for a cold frame.
Designing the New Kitchen Garden. I've got a few years until my raise beds rot out, but I'm still dreaming about how I'd redesign my kitchen garden. This book (I've leafed through it) has a good mix of history of food gardens, illustrations, etc.
In Defense of Food. I'm probably the last person on earth to read this book. I'm almost done with it. I find most of it to be stuff I already know or common sense. But an interesting read, especially the part of taking food out of context.
Also? Not a book, but good garden movie watching:
Greenfingers. Let Clive Owen, as an inmate that finds a love of horticulture in prison, warm you up this winter. I mean, this movie is a little cheesy. But it's a good kind of cheese!
Friday, June 5, 2009
Blog Roll Updated
As I find new blogs that are both informative & entertaining (and garden-related), I will update the list on the right. For now, we have:
Garden Rant
Greenwalks
Moxie Gardener
Sustainable Gardening Blog
You Grow Girl™ - Gardening for the People
DC Urban Gardeners
DigginFood
It's great to learn from the experience of others (even if they are equally new to gardening! Perhaps they have encountered something I haven't...) as well as "borrow" landscape or garden designs.
Any other recommendations?
Garden Rant
Greenwalks
Moxie Gardener
Sustainable Gardening Blog
You Grow Girl™ - Gardening for the People
DC Urban Gardeners
DigginFood
It's great to learn from the experience of others (even if they are equally new to gardening! Perhaps they have encountered something I haven't...) as well as "borrow" landscape or garden designs.
Any other recommendations?
Monday, May 25, 2009
Book Review: From the Ground Up
Last month, I happened upon Arlington Library's big book sale. I checked out the gardening section (there were perplexing fewer people there) and snatched up Michael Pollan's Botany of Desire and Amy Stewart's From the Ground Up: The Story of a First Garden. I had to get the former based on everything I've heard about In Defense of Food and The Omnivores Dilemma, but I felt compelled to get the latter because of it's title. You may notice that the subhead to this blog is "gardening & cooking from the ground up" (once I get some produce, we'll talk about the "cooking" part). I thought myself quite clever coming up with that line. Apparently, I was not alone.
Anyways, I get home with my scores (for a total of $3 no less!) and put them on a table, to be forgotten until today. It's quite summery outside in the DC area now. I did all my garden "chores" Saturday & Sunday so that I would be free to do whatever I felt like today, Memorial Day, a coveted day off. And, as it so happened, I felt like reading. I picked up Amy Stewart's book and headed over to Meadowlark Gardens to sit on a bench or in a rocking chair and read outside among the flowers (we're members so it was free. Additionally, we don't have comfortable chairs to sit outside). I then realize that I have been reading Amy Stewart for months now on the Garden Rant blog! It's very funny how the stars align sometimes...
From the Ground Up is a quick, fun, and informative read. Amy Stewart describes all of her triumphs and mistakes, unapologetically, in her first garden year. Like Amy, I grew up in the South (she is from Texas, I'm from Florida) and gardens weren't really prized. Lawns ruled supreme. Sure, people did have plants & trees in their yard, but they were solely there to accent the lawn. Save my grandfather's terraced garden (which I only remember existing when I was very small. Later it became more lawn) and one summer of gardening by my mother, I don't remember anyone having "gardens." And, I didn't really think of gardening until I was older, like Amy as well. When we started looking at homes to buy last year, a space where I could plant something was put on the "Must Have" list. Also, like Amy, I had little gardening daydreams about me pulling a few weeds, picking handfuls of flowers & tomatoes, and waving at my husband inside as he worked on his computer inside (all while wearing a floppy, wide-brimmed straw hat, pink gardening clogs and purple gloves no less.).
And, like Amy, I learned that gardening is both more work and more satisfying than my daydream. In each chapter, Amy discusses a particular garden story. Whether it's cats, dirt, planning, or tomatoes, she's got a wonderful story to tell that, if you're a first time gardener, you can identify with. Promise. Additionally, at the end of each chapter Amy gives some solid gardening advice, from how to prune roses to what plants to grow to attract beneficial insects to a recipe for a gardener's bath.
Here are some of my favorite excerpts from the book:
{When talking about her father practicing his guitar & the face he got when he made a mistake, even though *she* couldn't hear it}: "It didn't occur to me that the same might be true of gardening, that gardening, like music, could demand practice, patience, a willingness to make mistakes."
{I think this point is incredibly true}: "There is an old saying that if you have a dollar and a garden, spend ninety cents on the soil and ten cents on the plants, but I hadn't heard that saying yet. I wasn't interested in dirt. I was interested in plants- big, flowering, vigorous plants- and I wanted them now."
{And, finally}: ".....how simple gardening looked. So easy. So obvious. Pull the weeds, turn the earth, mark a straight line, and drop some seeds in. Water. Wait......What could be easier? What, really, is all the fuss about?"
I feel as though Amy has written the book about my first garden. Which is probably a good thing because she is much better at the story telling!
Anyways, I get home with my scores (for a total of $3 no less!) and put them on a table, to be forgotten until today. It's quite summery outside in the DC area now. I did all my garden "chores" Saturday & Sunday so that I would be free to do whatever I felt like today, Memorial Day, a coveted day off. And, as it so happened, I felt like reading. I picked up Amy Stewart's book and headed over to Meadowlark Gardens to sit on a bench or in a rocking chair and read outside among the flowers (we're members so it was free. Additionally, we don't have comfortable chairs to sit outside). I then realize that I have been reading Amy Stewart for months now on the Garden Rant blog! It's very funny how the stars align sometimes...
From the Ground Up is a quick, fun, and informative read. Amy Stewart describes all of her triumphs and mistakes, unapologetically, in her first garden year. Like Amy, I grew up in the South (she is from Texas, I'm from Florida) and gardens weren't really prized. Lawns ruled supreme. Sure, people did have plants & trees in their yard, but they were solely there to accent the lawn. Save my grandfather's terraced garden (which I only remember existing when I was very small. Later it became more lawn) and one summer of gardening by my mother, I don't remember anyone having "gardens." And, I didn't really think of gardening until I was older, like Amy as well. When we started looking at homes to buy last year, a space where I could plant something was put on the "Must Have" list. Also, like Amy, I had little gardening daydreams about me pulling a few weeds, picking handfuls of flowers & tomatoes, and waving at my husband inside as he worked on his computer inside (all while wearing a floppy, wide-brimmed straw hat, pink gardening clogs and purple gloves no less.).
And, like Amy, I learned that gardening is both more work and more satisfying than my daydream. In each chapter, Amy discusses a particular garden story. Whether it's cats, dirt, planning, or tomatoes, she's got a wonderful story to tell that, if you're a first time gardener, you can identify with. Promise. Additionally, at the end of each chapter Amy gives some solid gardening advice, from how to prune roses to what plants to grow to attract beneficial insects to a recipe for a gardener's bath.
Here are some of my favorite excerpts from the book:
{When talking about her father practicing his guitar & the face he got when he made a mistake, even though *she* couldn't hear it}: "It didn't occur to me that the same might be true of gardening, that gardening, like music, could demand practice, patience, a willingness to make mistakes."
{I think this point is incredibly true}: "There is an old saying that if you have a dollar and a garden, spend ninety cents on the soil and ten cents on the plants, but I hadn't heard that saying yet. I wasn't interested in dirt. I was interested in plants- big, flowering, vigorous plants- and I wanted them now."
{And, finally}: ".....how simple gardening looked. So easy. So obvious. Pull the weeds, turn the earth, mark a straight line, and drop some seeds in. Water. Wait......What could be easier? What, really, is all the fuss about?"
I feel as though Amy has written the book about my first garden. Which is probably a good thing because she is much better at the story telling!
Friday, May 15, 2009
Review: Book About Bugs
I have been looking for-ev-er for a decent books about bugs. And I mean, ALL sorts of bugs: the good, the bad and those outside the garden. I scoured the library and the local bookstore. Nothing.
Well, tonight, the stars aligned. I had looked on Amazon for a bug book & found one highly rated. It looked promising. Then, after dinner, I went to a different bookstore & lo! there it was. Of course, I could have saved a few bucks via Amazon but the instant gratification was just too much for me. So I bought it: Garden Insects of North America: The Ultimate Guide to Backyard Bugs.
And, it's truly awesome. Lots of pictures. Easy understand info. The only downside to it, from my perspective, is that it's almost entirely identification information. It does not have how to get rid of bad bugs nor how to attract good bugs. That, I will have to look up elsewhere once identification is made. But, I'm stoked with it, nonetheless. There are these weird looking bugs that, thanks to this book, I believe are lady bug larvae.
Well, tonight, the stars aligned. I had looked on Amazon for a bug book & found one highly rated. It looked promising. Then, after dinner, I went to a different bookstore & lo! there it was. Of course, I could have saved a few bucks via Amazon but the instant gratification was just too much for me. So I bought it: Garden Insects of North America: The Ultimate Guide to Backyard Bugs.
And, it's truly awesome. Lots of pictures. Easy understand info. The only downside to it, from my perspective, is that it's almost entirely identification information. It does not have how to get rid of bad bugs nor how to attract good bugs. That, I will have to look up elsewhere once identification is made. But, I'm stoked with it, nonetheless. There are these weird looking bugs that, thanks to this book, I believe are lady bug larvae.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
An Awesome Garden Can be Free-ish
Sorry I've been a bit MIA lately. I've been away for work quite a bit in the past 2 weeks. However, the seedlings (almost all of them) have at least another set of leaves. Some have THREE sets of leaves now! *sigh* They grow up so fast! ;)
Today, thanks to a cancelled flight, I had the opportunity to finish reading The Green Gardening Guide by Joe Lamp'l. What it really underscored for me was that you don't need to spend a ton of money for a gorgeous garden, whether it be full of veggies, flowers or foliage. Which I knew in my heart of hearts but forget every time I walk into a garden center and am seduced by various fertilizers, specialty tools, etc. You.don't.need.all.that.crap. Seriously. Resist the urge. Save your pennies for a nice bottle of wine or a craft beer to enjoy after an afternoon in the garden.
Let's review what plants need to thrive: Appropriate amounts of light, rich soil, and water. Sun light is free. Rich soil can be free too.
Say what?!? Free awesome soil?
Compost my friends, compost. Don't landfill those veggie peels or coffee grounds or fall leaves, throw them in the compost pile! First off, nothing, not even organic matter, decomposes in our landfills so get the idea that the landfill is like a ginormous compost pile out of your head. (Which also means that you should not be seduced by biodegradable packaging or anything else. But I'll save that rant for another day.) Secondly, compost piles can be super low tech: a pile of stuff on the ground. Personally, we use a black trash can with holes drilled into it. Working compost into the worst soils, including Virginia clay, make it rich, well-draining, and awesome. Because compost is black gold. I love that Lamp'l points out that when you fertilize your plants, you're really feeding the soil. And since good, rich soil is composed of lots of microorganism, earthworms & insects, don't use a fertilizer that feeds the plant but kills the stuff that makes your soil good (like, ahem, conventional fertilizers). That's like one step forward, two steps back!
Think your soil might be deficient in something? Contact your local extension office. Often soil tests are free or cheap (like $10).
Let's move onto water. Water for the garden can be free: rain. If you build a rain barrel (or buy. This is the option we are going to do), you can dramatically reduce the extra water you purchase to water your plants. The Green Gardening Guide lists things you should consider when making/buying a rain barrel, so make sure you know that before you proceed. Want to buy even less water for your garden? Use gray water. Have a bucket in your shower that captures the water that comes out before it's hot. Have a bucket in your kitchen sink for when you're washing vegetables. Empty these buckets into your rain barrel & "VOILA! " even more free water.
Now, plants...you've got your free sunlight, soil and water...what about plants? First off, if you're wanting to garden on the cheap (and don't want to spend a ridiculous amount of time tending your garden), PLANT WHAT WANTS TO LIVE THERE. Plants are like cats...you're not going to be able to get them to do anything they don't want to do. If the plant likes full sun, don't put it in shade, it will be more prone to pests, won't perform very well, and you'll be constantly fighting an uphill battle. Instead, plant something that thrives in shade! You won't have to deal with pests (plants are also like people: if it's healthy, it can fight off an invader better than if it's sick) and it will be almost maintenance free. I mean, there are not pesticides going on in the rain forest & stuff seems to get growing well in there...
Trust me, I have learned this the hard way. Spending a lot of time trying to convince a dahlia it might like part-sun, only for it to be covered with powdery mildew and produce all of 2 flowers before it decided to die was not fun. It was frustrating, in fact. And time consuming. So, if you don't have full sun in your yard, don't even wander over to that side of the nursery. Embrace your part-sun (or shade) -ness!
And, you can get free plants. How do I know? I just got some last weekend via Freecycle. In spring & fall, you'll see lots of posts from people dividing their hostas, liriope, daffodils, etc. or riping up bushes they don't want. You may need to dig them up, but that's a small price to pay for free plants! So, join your local Freecycle today!
Another idea? Starting plants from seeds. There might be a bit of start up costs if you're not blessed to have a sunny window or a warm climate, but those are just a one-time thing. Wanna go even cheaper? Seed swap with friends and neighbors. Or exchange cuttings. Many plants (basil & mint definitely come to mind) can be propagated by placing cutting in water (like what I did with my ivy trellis project).
In short, getting down to the "roots" of gardening, really organic gardening, isn't expensive. In fact, it can be waaaaayy cheaper than conventional gardening since you depend less on fertilizers and pesticides, both of which can be pricey AND it can be waaaaayy less time consuming since you're planting what will grow in a spot rather than what you WANT to grow in that spot.
Food for thought.
(hahahhahhahahaha! I crack myself up! hehehehe)
Today, thanks to a cancelled flight, I had the opportunity to finish reading The Green Gardening Guide by Joe Lamp'l. What it really underscored for me was that you don't need to spend a ton of money for a gorgeous garden, whether it be full of veggies, flowers or foliage. Which I knew in my heart of hearts but forget every time I walk into a garden center and am seduced by various fertilizers, specialty tools, etc. You.don't.need.all.that.crap. Seriously. Resist the urge. Save your pennies for a nice bottle of wine or a craft beer to enjoy after an afternoon in the garden.
Let's review what plants need to thrive: Appropriate amounts of light, rich soil, and water. Sun light is free. Rich soil can be free too.
Say what?!? Free awesome soil?
Compost my friends, compost. Don't landfill those veggie peels or coffee grounds or fall leaves, throw them in the compost pile! First off, nothing, not even organic matter, decomposes in our landfills so get the idea that the landfill is like a ginormous compost pile out of your head. (Which also means that you should not be seduced by biodegradable packaging or anything else. But I'll save that rant for another day.) Secondly, compost piles can be super low tech: a pile of stuff on the ground. Personally, we use a black trash can with holes drilled into it. Working compost into the worst soils, including Virginia clay, make it rich, well-draining, and awesome. Because compost is black gold. I love that Lamp'l points out that when you fertilize your plants, you're really feeding the soil. And since good, rich soil is composed of lots of microorganism, earthworms & insects, don't use a fertilizer that feeds the plant but kills the stuff that makes your soil good (like, ahem, conventional fertilizers). That's like one step forward, two steps back!
Think your soil might be deficient in something? Contact your local extension office. Often soil tests are free or cheap (like $10).
Let's move onto water. Water for the garden can be free: rain. If you build a rain barrel (or buy. This is the option we are going to do), you can dramatically reduce the extra water you purchase to water your plants. The Green Gardening Guide lists things you should consider when making/buying a rain barrel, so make sure you know that before you proceed. Want to buy even less water for your garden? Use gray water. Have a bucket in your shower that captures the water that comes out before it's hot. Have a bucket in your kitchen sink for when you're washing vegetables. Empty these buckets into your rain barrel & "VOILA! " even more free water.
Now, plants...you've got your free sunlight, soil and water...what about plants? First off, if you're wanting to garden on the cheap (and don't want to spend a ridiculous amount of time tending your garden), PLANT WHAT WANTS TO LIVE THERE. Plants are like cats...you're not going to be able to get them to do anything they don't want to do. If the plant likes full sun, don't put it in shade, it will be more prone to pests, won't perform very well, and you'll be constantly fighting an uphill battle. Instead, plant something that thrives in shade! You won't have to deal with pests (plants are also like people: if it's healthy, it can fight off an invader better than if it's sick) and it will be almost maintenance free. I mean, there are not pesticides going on in the rain forest & stuff seems to get growing well in there...
Trust me, I have learned this the hard way. Spending a lot of time trying to convince a dahlia it might like part-sun, only for it to be covered with powdery mildew and produce all of 2 flowers before it decided to die was not fun. It was frustrating, in fact. And time consuming. So, if you don't have full sun in your yard, don't even wander over to that side of the nursery. Embrace your part-sun (or shade) -ness!
And, you can get free plants. How do I know? I just got some last weekend via Freecycle. In spring & fall, you'll see lots of posts from people dividing their hostas, liriope, daffodils, etc. or riping up bushes they don't want. You may need to dig them up, but that's a small price to pay for free plants! So, join your local Freecycle today!
Another idea? Starting plants from seeds. There might be a bit of start up costs if you're not blessed to have a sunny window or a warm climate, but those are just a one-time thing. Wanna go even cheaper? Seed swap with friends and neighbors. Or exchange cuttings. Many plants (basil & mint definitely come to mind) can be propagated by placing cutting in water (like what I did with my ivy trellis project).
In short, getting down to the "roots" of gardening, really organic gardening, isn't expensive. In fact, it can be waaaaayy cheaper than conventional gardening since you depend less on fertilizers and pesticides, both of which can be pricey AND it can be waaaaayy less time consuming since you're planting what will grow in a spot rather than what you WANT to grow in that spot.
Food for thought.
(hahahhahhahahaha! I crack myself up! hehehehe)
Monday, February 16, 2009
Free Issues of Organic Gardening Magazines!
Google books has uploaded back issues from Organic Gardening magazine!
To pass the time until the soil thaws out...
Enjoy!
To pass the time until the soil thaws out...
Enjoy!
Sunday, February 8, 2009
What I'm Reading
The promise of spring has started; today was 67*F and sunny, ie unseasonably warm and lovely. This means that I'm starting to dream about planting gorgeous heirloom tomatoes, picking tulips, and enjoying longer, warmer days.
But, since most of that is, um, 2-4 months away, I'm just left with reading about all the hard work ahead and all the potential rewards!
I am a novice gardener. When I was 3 I apparently had my own cherry tomato plant that I tended. Last year we (Mr. Radish & I) moved into our first house & I was able to produce a few tomatoes & herbs. Other than that and managing to keep shade-loving, drought resistant houseplants alive, I have no other significant tending-the-earth experience. I do, however, have a desire to know where my food comes from and how, exactly, it's grown. So this is where I start my journey. And, since I'm a bit Type-A and bookish, this starts with reading, namely:
You Grow Girl : The book has good, basic information and fun/fabulous craft projects. I'm especially loving the chalkboard clay pots. Brilliant!
Rodale's Garden Answers: Vegetables, Fruits, and Herbs : A novice gardener's must-have book! It includes everything from germination to seasonal care to harvesting to common pests (and how to deal with those). Basically, everything you need to know. In one book.
Virginia Gardener's Companion : To get background information on gardening in my area.
But, since most of that is, um, 2-4 months away, I'm just left with reading about all the hard work ahead and all the potential rewards!
I am a novice gardener. When I was 3 I apparently had my own cherry tomato plant that I tended. Last year we (Mr. Radish & I) moved into our first house & I was able to produce a few tomatoes & herbs. Other than that and managing to keep shade-loving, drought resistant houseplants alive, I have no other significant tending-the-earth experience. I do, however, have a desire to know where my food comes from and how, exactly, it's grown. So this is where I start my journey. And, since I'm a bit Type-A and bookish, this starts with reading, namely:
You Grow Girl : The book has good, basic information and fun/fabulous craft projects. I'm especially loving the chalkboard clay pots. Brilliant!
Rodale's Garden Answers: Vegetables, Fruits, and Herbs : A novice gardener's must-have book! It includes everything from germination to seasonal care to harvesting to common pests (and how to deal with those). Basically, everything you need to know. In one book.
Virginia Gardener's Companion : To get background information on gardening in my area.
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