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8 Seed Companies With More Than Great Packaging
Read MoreSeeds are miracles. The seed of a giant sequoia blows out of your hand in a light breeze. But, that seed contains all the genetic material needed to make the largest living organism on the planet. You wouldn’t notice a tomato seed on the ground and in fact eat hundreds of them regularly without a […]
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How to Make a Probiotic Ginger Beer With Homegrown Ginger
Read MoreIn the Middle Ages one pound of ginger cost the same amount of money as a live sheep. It was desired for its medicinal qualities and rarity. Ginger is still a valuable herb but there is no need to trade any livestock for it. Instead, keep reading to learn how to grow ginger and how […]
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How to Make Sauerkraut From Your Garden Cabbage
Read MoreIt is common to enter the world of fermentation through sauerkraut; It is easy, requires only simple equipment and the end product will be tastier and healthier than anything you will find in the store. Sauerkraut is alive with beneficial bacteria and I like putting it on just about everything. My favorite is to put […]
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How to Make Tomato Juice from Your Own Garden Tomatoes, Then Turn it Into a Bloody Mary
Read MoreEvery home gardener grows tomatoes for good reason. Stores often sell tomato varieties that ship well and look pristine with taste as an afterthought. They arrive at the store after a long journey in a refrigerated truck that turns their flesh mealy and their true taste undeveloped. A tomato from the garden however, has a […]
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Grow, Harvest and Cook With Amaranth
Read MoreAmaranth is an ancient grain with a history steeped in the Aztec Empire. The Conquistadores attempted to eradicate the plant. However, due to the perseverance of subversive farmers and of the plant itself, amaranth survives today. Read about amaranth’s history here. Although not a grass like the true grains, amaranth seed is often considered a […]
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The Conquest of a Plant: A Brief History of Amaranth
Read MoreColonization raises many weapons at the targeted. First, there are swords and guns, weapons that kill. Then, there are more insidious slower working weapons. Weapons that alienate people from skills that their ancestors have passed down for centuries. Weapons that make people forget what plants provide medicine and which ones poison. These weapons aim to […]
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Grow Your Own Basil Cocktail
Read MoreAn ancient myth held that if left under a pot, basil would turn into a scorpion. Medieval legends claimed that a patch of basil sprouted where Jesus’ blood fell during his crucifixion. As a medicinal herb, basil has been used as an antidote to venomous bites. While courting women, men have worn a necklace of […]
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Inviting in the Bugs: 11 Plants to Increase Garden Diversity
Read MoreThe Good, the bad and the ugly. Gardeners talk about bugs like they are characters in a Western; ladybugs in a white hat, aphids in black. Ecology, however, is much more complicated. Earwigs, often considered ‘bad bugs,’ are predators and scavengers. They eat the fallen detritus in our gardens providing a valuable nutrient recycling service. […]
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What I’m Reading: Insects and Gardens
Read MoreWe do not see most of the interactions in our gardens: ladybugs and ants wage war, aphids give virgin births and wasps lay their eggs on the backs of caterpillars. When we see evidence of the little creatures carrying out these interactions, a chewed leaf or sickly plant, we are culturally trained to intervene. We bring […]
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