Three Year Gardener’s Gratitude Journal, by Chelsie Anderson and Donna Balzer (240 pages, soft cover, $28.55): An effective agent for firing up enthusiasm for a new gardening season is a lighthearted and warmly encouraging garden journal like this one.
So to be clear I am still growing on the same amount of space but I now know its limitations. My outdoor garden is largely hugelkultur which means there are branches and wood piled on top of my sketchy soil. If I try to grow carrots on this wood pile they end up all gnarled as they try to push through the piles of branches.
I had breakfast out last weekend and the potatoes were mealy and tasteless. It was a classy restaurant but I realized something important: I have become a potato snob. And now I know for sure we are closer than ever to avoiding bad restaurant breakfasts and dinners because I expect we’ll be eating our own crop of spuds by late May or early June.
Since I started tracking how and when I plant my garden I have noticed growing garden awareness. I now know my garden grows about six butternut squash per plant per year and my family only eats one winter squash a month, year-round. So I only need two butternut squash. Have you started tracking your garden hits and misses? It’s time!
Biochar is an ancient product… It was used in the Amazon to create fabulous food gardens and sustainable soil. Today’s gardeners use biochar to draw CO2 from the air; ensure a steady release of minerals to plants in soil, supply a home for microbes and amend soils physically. Biochar can also modify pH and hold water in dry periods. Use it to top-dress greenhouse, outdoor beds and houseplants.
Donna really really wanted a wood chipper so she got an Eliet Maestro on loan from the Eliet company in Europe. She loves almost everything about the Maestro…. but she quickly realized she can’t keep it…. find out why.
