Beginner Gardens

What We’re Eating this Winter

Beginner Gardens

It’s been a mild winter this year, so far.  We have had several freezes, including a light snow, though, and in spite of this, we’re still eating from the garden, here on the last day of January. Savoy Cabbage A second crop of broccoli sprouts Mache Red Leaf Lettuce Beet greens Turnips Kale Tatsoi Leeks [...]

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Building a Hugelkultur Bed

Beginner Gardens

First, of course, what in the world am I talking about? Hugelkultur (from the German, hill culture) is a method of building a garden bed.  It hails from the permaculture world and means building a bed either by piling up wood and branches on the surface of the soil or digging a hole (or trench) [...]

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Bacillus Thuringiensis

Beginner Gardens

I love cole crops.  Brassicas. Of course I’m not alone.  Brassicas are considered the most important edible species out there.  Broccoli, turnips, rutabagas, mustard greens, kale, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, cabbage.  Yum. And also of course, bugs love ‘em, too.  Lepidoptera, unfortunately.  Pretty bugs.  Moths and butterflies lay eggs on the leaves of brassicas, and the [...]

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Giveaway–Gaia’s Garden by Toby Hemenway

Beginner Gardens

I think Gaia’s Garden is an essential book for anyone interested in sustainability, gardening, particularly edible gardening, and also–nice writing.  Check this out: “Watch how nature works in a forest . . . By the time the heat of summer arrives, the canopy is nearly closed, and only a few dancing sunflecks shimmer on the [...]

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Gaia’s Garden

Beginner Gardens

It is no exaggeration to say that the way I will garden from now on has been revolutionized after reading this book. It’s the sort of book that has me torn between reading the next chapter and rushing outside to make changes based on the chapter I just read. Because of this book, I’ve already: [...]

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