"garden" news and stories

Using fresh herbs in your recipes is a sure way to brighten up your favorite chicken dish or add some dimension to a rice pilaf. The flavors from fresh herbs are more vivid and complex than those from dried herbs. Once way to obtain said herbs is by choosing bunches of fresh at your local market, but growing them at home is going to be more convenient and less expensive than buying them every time you need a few tablespoonfuls. These garden-in-a bag kits are perfect for anyone interested in trying to grow some fresh herbs who doesn't have the space - or gardening abilities - to handle something bigger. The indoor-friendly options include organic chives, mint, basil and lavender, along with a variety of flowers. To get your herbs to grow, all you need to do is stir the included seeds and water into the bag, full of already primed soil, and wait. Germination takes a few days and, depending on what you're growing, you'll have fresh herbs within a couple of weeks.

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Depending on how you look at it, the Nation Trust's ugly vegetable competition is either a good idea or a bad one. On one hand, it gets kids involved in growing their own fruits and vegetables, which could start them with good habits for later in life. On the other hand, the sight of some of the "winners" could put them off veggies for quite some time.

The contest isn't just for children, though. It started as a way to cultivate some appreciation for ugly fruits and vegetables, most of which are underappreciated in the kitchen. There are multiple age categories: under 5, 5-7, 8-11, 11-16, 25-65 and over 65 years old. In each range there was a winner and this parsnip, grown by Mrs Hilary Nellist in the 25-65 group, took home the grand prize for the ugliest vegetable of the year.

There were no winners for the 16-25 category, which either means that they are all exceptional gardeners and can't grow ugly veggies or that gardening isn't exactly a cool past-time for that age group.

[via growabrain]

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You don't have to be gregarious or adventurous to start or be part of a community garden. If you're lucky enough to live in a neighborhood with an available spot of ground, say 80'x80', you have the beginnings of a great social experiment. Here in Boulder, this was inclusive to the development plans in my neighborhood so procuring growing space wasn't a problem. I thought getting people to sign up and rent plots (this wasn't my job) would be an issue. Not so. It was what should be grown that got thorny. Most wanted veggies and flowers. Some wanted only flowers and vice versa. In the end it was an even mix. We even had edible flowers: I ate carnation petals right from the plant, and later steeped in sherry. The point is, a typical 9-5 person doesn't have time to tend a large garden. When folks come together and each grow their specialty, we all get to cook the many varieties of squash, cabbages, onions, roots and shoots. I never cared for Zucchini but my neighbor three houses down traded me some zukes for a futures claim on my pumpkins. The zucchini bread was eaten in one sitting; she plans to make pumpkin bread next month. It may sound corney, so to speak, but growing food with people you didn't know really brings food into focus. At least that's been my experience.

Our garden's first year was a success. Nothing was poached and there was a healthy competitive nature to the venture. The only "failure" was the tomatoes. Hard to grow at altitude with minimal care. Other than that, if you have the opportunity, you might start here.

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If the store is out of the question and even the farmer's market is getting to be too far away, there is a growing trend of "delawning" and replacing the "useless" grass front lawn with a garden of entirely edible plants. Edible estates is a throwback movement to times in the early 20th century when yards had to be used for gardening and not for recreation. It is also a mission for its founder, Los Angeles architect Fritz Haeg, who has made connections to start several Estates all across the country, in addition to the ones currently operating in Salina, KS and just south of LA in Lakewood, CA.

The conversion process involves ripping out everything in a flat, sunny front yard and replanting it with up to 195 varieties of fruits, vegetables and other edible plants. The yards must be tended by their owners 7 days a week, and since no pesticides are allowed, the maintenance can become a second job. And with that many plants in a limited space, the foliage can become rather aggressive, making it even more of a standout from neighboring homes. Incidentally, neighbors aren't too thrilled when one of these springs up on their block, saying "what happens in the backyard is their business, but this doesn't seem...to be a front yard kind of a deal."

Check out the edible estates website if you're interested in learning more. I think I'll stick to the various markets in my area. I like to garden, but the only point I'm trying to make with it is part of my dinner, not one about eco-polotics.

By the way, the family in LA has a blog about their gardening that is quite interesting.

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I know that it has been a while since I first mentioned my pineapple plant. If you recall, I was having some difficulty growing it because I followed less-than-wonderful directions when I began my quest. Thanks to the support of several excellent commenters, I decided to give it another go. Unfortunately, after the first few weeks, it looked as though the plant might not make it. I had it potted and outdoors in a sunny place, but it was first met with unseasonable cold then a massive heat wave. Some of the leaves began to brown and I figured that I had yet another failed plant on my hands.

I failed to pay close attention to it for a few weeks and, when I looked closely yesterday, what did I see? New growth at the center of the plant! You can see the contrast between the new leaves and the outer ones in the picture.

Who knows if it will ever bear any fruit for me, but frankly I'm pleased just to know that I don't have a "brown thumb" when it comes to pineapple growing.