Despite my limited success with tomatoes, I have yet again found myself with a whole gaggle of seedlings. I’ve got three flats of tomatoes and peppers; I think there’s 26 individual tomato plants. Goodness knows where I’m going to put them all this year. I’m thinking of trying grow bags placed up on my black asphalt-shingled roof. There’s [Continue Reading...]
Bags Aren’t Just For Chips: The Potato Sack Experiment
April 6, 2011 by · 18 Comments
Every year I run out of room. So this year I am moving my biggest space-hogs out of the raised beds and into containers I can stash around paths and patios. I’m starting with potatoes, which I am attempting to grow in huge bags. I received my seed potatoes from Territorial several weeks ago and have been [Continue Reading...]
Seed Starter’s Roll Call
March 30, 2011 by · 12 Comments
Late March is the busiest time of year under my seed-starting lights. I’ve got assorted tomatoes and gypsy peppers up and growing right now. The tomatoes are nearing pot-up time but the peppers are slower to get up and go. I’ve also got brassicas which are pouring out and over their small 72-count cell-packs. It [Continue Reading...]
Weekend Inspiration: Growing A Giving Garden
March 4, 2011 by · 4 Comments
I am planing on planting a row for the hungry this year and donating the proceeds to my local food bank. I am excited to do this, and believe it is a small but important thing I can contribute. If you are fortunate enough to have the space, will you consider joining me in some planned giving [Continue Reading...]
What We Look Forward To
February 28, 2011 by · 6 Comments
Well, last week didn’t really feel like it in the Pacific Northwest, what with the intermittent hail and occasional snow flurry, but spring is fighting the good fight. President’s Day weekend was the traditional time to put your peas in the ground, though in my area the soil was still a bit cold. Did you sow peas outside? Did [Continue Reading...]
Heat Lovers in A Cool Clime: Tomato Dreams and Tomato Delusions
February 22, 2011 by · 15 Comments
All images in this post are the work of photographer and LA Weekly author Felicia Friesema. They are used here with her kind permission. Forget sugarplums – at this time of year it’s visions of big, juicy, vine-ripe tomatoes that dance in the gardener’s head. Tomatoes are the quintessential garden edible. The tomato is so culturally ubiquitous – [Continue Reading...]
Homemade Biodegradable Pots From Toilet Paper Tubes
February 16, 2011 by · 18 Comments
Our household generates plenty of toilet paper rolls. We’ve switched to cloth on just about everything else, but I’m not ready to make our house a TP-free Zone just yet (sorry, No Impact Man). I save up toilet paper rolls (by the simple means of not emptying the powder room garbage nearly as often as I should) [Continue Reading...]
Weekend Inspiration: Sunset Mag’s One Block Diet Blog
February 12, 2011 by · 2 Comments
There’s some great stuff coming up this weekend. Today (Sat, Feb. 12) I highly recommend you stop into Sky Nursery from 9am – 4pm for their annual prune-a-thon. Lots of great info and demonstrations of pruning. Cass Turnbull and others will be speaking. Check the Calendar for details and schedule. If you’re going to be near [Continue Reading...]
Seed Starting 101: Up-Potting
February 7, 2011 by · 1 Comment
If you are new to growing seedlings, you might want to start by reading the previous posts in this series: Seed Starting 101: Key Components To Healthy Seedlings and Seed Starting 101: A Step-By-Step Visual Guide To Growing Seedlings At Home Occasionally your seedlings will outgrow their containers before you are ready to move them out [Continue Reading...]
Seed Starting 101: A Step-By-Step Visual Guide To Growing Seedlings At Home
February 4, 2011 by · 9 Comments
New to starting seeds? You might want to start by reading yesterday’s post, Seed Starting 101: Key Components For Healthy Seedlings. Here’s how I start my seeds, step-by-step and in pictures. The eagle-eyed among you may notice that I show pictures of both 4″ pots and small muli-cell containers. The process is the same no [Continue Reading...]
Seed Starting 101: Key Components For Healthy Seedlings
February 3, 2011 by · 9 Comments
Seeds don’t ask much: give them some moisture and the right temperature and if they are viable they will germinate. They don’t even need soil, as any kid who’s sprouted green beans between a few layers of paper towel can tell you. It’s getting a germinated seed to grow into a strong, sturdy plant that [Continue Reading...]
Garden Inventory: February 2011
February 1, 2011 by · 4 Comments
Here’s how the garden is sitting as of Feb 1: Beets – we are down to just a few beets now. Brussels Sprouts – we had a nice big feed of brussels last month and stripped the five plants almost bare. There are enough sprouts left for one or maybe two more meals. I’ve been [Continue Reading...]
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