Image credit: Ruth Temple @ Flickr Gardening can be tricky even when you are graced with good soil, but what if you’re dealing with unpleasant growing conditions? Or does the very idea of endless weeding give you a backache? Starting a straw bale garden this spring may be the answer to all your gardening prayers. This method of gardening uses bales of straw...
Credit: Todd Anderson New York Times, Orlando couple will now be able to keep vegetable garden Florida passes law saying cities can’t stop people from growing food on their own property, even in their front yards. State lawmakers in Florida have told cities they must respect citizens’ property rights, and seemingly even more basic right to grow their own food. They...
One thing you may have noticed about a plant-based diet – it’s expensive! Growing your own Keto garden and these five low-carb vegetables can save money while providing you with fresh, local produce for your family. After all, you can’t get more local and fresh than your own backyard! Tips for growing in container-growing, too, for you small space gardeners. Five...
Walking or gardening for just 10 minutes per week could cut the risk of death, new research suggests. Even low levels of physical activity are linked to a reduced chance of dying from cancer, cardiovascular disease and other illnesses, according to a study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. The researchers said spending just a little time on active...
Plants are big business in Florida. According to the University of Florida Institute for Food and Agricultural Sciences’ most recent survey, sales related to the environmental horticulture industry accounted for over $10.7 billion in 2015 of which native plant sales were estimated at $427 million. Nurseries employ over 19,000 people around the state. More people...
Gardeners should leave at least a strip of their lawn un-mowed this summer to help halt the decline in bees, experts have said. Perfectly manicured grass is depriving the crucial pollinating insects of the wildflowers they need to feed on, according to the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH). A major study by the organization, published on Tuesday, shows wild...
Gardening saved Mary Lou Heard’s life. In the 1970s, Heard, who would later become known as Orange County’s patron saint of cottage gardens, went through a divorce that was so devastating she was hospitalized. On the grounds of the hospital, there was a small neglected garden. Mary Lou got down on her hands and knees and, for the first time in a long time, she...
Who hasn’t seen those pesky yellow weeds pop up in the garden from time to time? Yet try as you might – from picking them to poisoning them – nothing keeps them at bay for too long. Perhaps it’s time you embraced the tenacious dandelion and all the benefits it can bring? The Health Benefits of Dandelions Dandelion has been used throughout history to treat...
Did you know that tomatoes hate cucumbers? While they might taste great together in a salad, tomato plants actually dislike growing in close proximity to any member of the cucurbit family, which includes cucumbers. Tomatoes love carrots and basil, however – so planting these together will actually make them each grow more vigorously! Planting your veggies in neat...
Organic food and farming have seen a huge increase over the past ten years, and for good reason. Farming and gardening techniques that use fewer harmful, synthetic fertilizers and pesticides are better for the environment and better for human health. Permaculture methods of growing food reach far beyond these benefits. Growing food organically is just the starting...
Scientists have revealed for the first time the natural weapon used by marigolds to protect tomato plants against destructive whiteflies. Researchers from Newcastle University’s School of Natural and Environmental Sciences carried out a study to prove what gardeners around the world have known for generations — marigolds repel tomato whiteflies. Publishing...
Spring is the short, simple title we give to the complex and drawn-out awakening of the natural world after winter dormancy. We declare the season underway next week, but the natural stirring has been going on for some time, although probably unnoticed unless you grow camellias or witch hazels or keep honeybees. The process of rebirth lasts well into May, when most...
“A warm day in March can inspire a kind of madness in gardeners. It can cause them to burst out the door, desperate after months cooped up by cold and snow, and start work way too soon. “Be careful what you do right now,” said Sharon Yiesla, plant knowledge specialist at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle. “There are things it’s just too early for.” Here...
“Not everyone has a green thumb or an eye for landscaping. Some people don’t even get to try because they’re so busy. Others watch HGTV over and over again and still never achieve the yard of their dreams because it’s easy to forget most of what you learned by the time you get outside. But since you can take your phone with you when you walk...
Compottery is a simple solution for reducing household food waste while growing fresh produce. This happens through a process called Vermicomposting. What is Vermicomposting? Vermicomposting is the process of transforming organic waste into fertilizers with the help of nature’s gardeners- composting worms! Learn more about Compottery on KICKSTARTER,...
Spring will officially be here on March 20th and whether there’s still snow out where you are, or it’s already feeling like summer… Spring is a great time of year to start working on a few things in the gardening department. In March, in addition to starting seeds indoors, gardeners with cold frames (see season extension techniques) may use them...
During the partial federal shutdown in December and January, news reports showed furloughed government workers standing in line for donated meals. These images were reminders that for an estimated one out of eight Americans, food insecurity is a near-term risk. In California, where I teach, 80 percent of the population lives in cities. Feeding the cities of the nine-county...
Family-owned farms are decreasing as community gardens and urban agriculture find their footing in a world of food ethics. In Arizona, it is not atypical to see farmland sold for urban development. Arcadia, a neighborhood located 10 miles from ASU’s downtown Phoenix campus, was originally known for its citrus groves before the land was sold for development. Similarly,...
Home-grown vegetables are only as good as their soil and environment. For urban gardeners, that can be a challenge. “In food deserts and other areas where people don’t have access to food, they take matters into their own hands through urban gardening,” said Ahkinyala Cobb-Abdullah, an associate professor of environmental science and ecology at Virginia...
TEMECULA – City dwellers may once have thought that gardening was a hobby for suburbanites or those living in rural areas. But urban gardening has grown in popularity as more and more city folk have looked for ways to increase their access to healthy, low-cost produce. Urban agriculture may seem like a relatively new idea, but according to National Geographic,...
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