Entry bubble Ready? Set? Garden!

By: Joanne | March 24, 2009 | Category: Home and Family

three open pea podsThere’s something special about March, and I’m not talking about college basketball. March is when I start gardening. I ordered seeds before I left for South by Southwest Interactive and they arrived while I was gone. Now I’m home and eager to get dirty.

It’s still too cold to plant most things, but I can start seeds indoors, go out and turn some manure into the soil, and I can also plant that half pound of snap peas. Can you believe I plant a half pound of peas and never have any to freeze? My kids devour them.

You should think about planting some veggies this spring. If you don’t have much space, or if digging is a problem, you can do amazing things with container gardens. My mother has great luck with tomato plants in big flower pots on the side of her house.

We all know that growing your own vegetables is a tasty and nutritious hobby, but it also saves energy because your food doesn’t have to travel hundreds of miles in a truck to reach your table, it saves money, and you get some fresh air and exercise. Another benefit is that when you grow your own food, you know where it came from. In these days of industrial food factories, and processing, and salmonella, and E. coli, I like to control the safety of my food.

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Entry bubble Think Spring! Time to Buy Seeds for your Garden

By: Joanne | February 19, 2008 | Category: Home and Family

Last week I injured my back (again) shoveling the snow. When will it end? It seems like these injuries only make me intent on spending more time with my face in the garden catalogs. I’ve already selected 5 different types of sunflowers and still need some more—perhaps a Jerusalem artichoke? You see, I like some diversity in my garden. I don’t design with great architectural precision in mind; I like to see lush diversity.flowers, potatoes, and carrots fresh from the garden

To that end, I stay away from the seed packets found in most stores. I don’t like the commercial hybrids because I think they’re overbred to make them bigger or prettier or pesticide resistant. I like heirloom seeds. I think plants are really just fine the way mother nature made them. It’s been my experience that heirloom seeds are vigorous, taste wonderful and will often go to seed and come back as volunteers next year. I really don’t even have to buy tomato plants any more—they just spring up!

I’m always on the lookout for interesting varieties and I was happy to see that the Department of Agriculture offers a list of sources for all types of plants and seeds. What’s your favorite garden catalog? I’ve got lots of work to do this summer!

| View Comments [5] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: biodiversity   garden   heriloom   joanne   seed