Watering 101

July 2, 2013

...hands and your common sense to figure it out. There is no formula. In the picture above, you see the surface of the soil in one of our raised beds. This is imported soil, the kind that comes in bags. It doesn’t hold water in pools like clay soil does, it doesn’t sink in fast as it would in sandy soil. It’s actually pretty tricky to water because it seems like it should sop up water well, but I think all the organic matter in it actually slows abs...

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Radish Surprise

Mrs. Homegrown

July 1, 2013

Gardening, Miscellaneous, Permaculture, Vegetable Gardening

15 Comments

...it all day, every day. It has become one of the queens of the garden. The picture below is horrible. The radish plant really is quite pretty, the equal of any ornamental flowering shrub–but as bad is the picture is, it gives you some scale. See the bales of our straw bale garden behind it? I think it must be pulling water from there, which accounts for its size and longevity. It’s gone a little past its prime now– a couple of weeks ago the blooms...

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How to Keep Squirrels and Birds From Eating Your Fruit

Mr. Homegrown

January 25, 2013

Fruit Trees, Gardening, Pests

14 Comments

...ect water inside. They can be washed and stored and are durable enough to last several seasons. After they serve their duty, they can be put in the recycling bin. Noel is the person who sent the picture of all the winter fruit he grows in Florida that we put on the blog on Sunday. Judging from that picture he’s got a handle on critters issues. Thanks Noel!...

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More on our gardening disasters

Mrs. Homegrown

January 21, 2013

Gardening, Mistakes, Thoughtstylings

15 Comments

...ey were a wonder and a marvel to me. Somewhere we have a fourteen year old picture of me holding my first cabbage, grinning my head off. That, folks, is why we should garden. Not to get woo-woo and people away, but I think there’s a spirit to the garden, and it responds to our intentions. This is not to say that good intentions alone can make a good garden. You need knowledge, the cooperation of the elements, and the willingness to put in the work...

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Interview With Apartment Gardener Helen Kim

Mr. Homegrown

August 27, 2008

Gardening, Herbs

1 Comment

...ts were supported by steel mesh baskets and lashed to building with 50 lb. picture wire. I never heard back from him and he was replaced by another in a long line of building managers. Several years of walk-through inspections have come and gone, and nobody has mentioned it since. While I still wonder as to what the actual law is on windowsill plants, I’m not about to stir the pot by clarifying it with the management here. HE: You’re an amazing ch...

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