Posted in Garden on Aug 30th, 2007 1 Comment »
I got a call yesterday from an Eagle-Tribune reader named George in Haverhill, Mass.
He’s 87 years old and wanted to share a tip for a free seed catalog he really likes. It’s called The Cook’s Garden.
The book is a beautiful book. They have vegetables. They have flowers. They have vegetables you’ve never even heard of, herbs, stuff like that.
Turns out George has never actually ordered anything from the catalog, but he has an old … continued »
Share This
Read Full Post »
Posted in Landscape on Aug 29th, 2007 No Comments »
As you’ll see in this week’s Yard Dirt column, “Stirring up a hornets’ nest in the backyard,” we’ve had a little adventure with wasps.
Here’s a visual retelling:
The good news is my sunflowers are blooming.
The bad news is there’s a giant hornet nest on the side of the house …
and it’s right at eye-level with the sunflowers.
… continued »
Share This
Read Full Post »
Posted in Garden on Aug 28th, 2007 No Comments »
My zucchini plants, thankfully, appear to be finishing up for the summer. Yuck!
The tomatoes are just finally getting started. We haven’t picked any yet, but probably by the weekend they’ll be ready. These are Big Beef tomatoes that I started indoors from seed.
We’re also getting a lot … continued »
Share This
Read Full Post »
Posted in Lawn on Aug 24th, 2007 No Comments »
I’m going to do it. I’m ready to take the plunge.
It’s time to order grass seed and this year I’m buying a blend with a little bit of clover mixed in, probably North Country Organics Eco-Blend with clover.
In many parts of the country this probably doesn’t seem so revolutionary — lawns all have clover in them — but in my neighborhood clover is a weed.
But just look. This is why I think clover … continued »
Share This
Read Full Post »
Posted in Landscape, Garden on Aug 21st, 2007 No Comments »
My front yard flower garden is full of surprises.
This sunflower popped up out of nowhere among my nasturtium and calendula plants. It must have come from a seed in my homemade compost, which I used to mulch the flowers.
If that’s true, then this is a very significant sunflower. It would have come from the sunflower seeds I used to feed my pet hamster, Chainsaw II, who died about … continued »
Share This
Read Full Post »
Posted in Garden on Aug 17th, 2007 No Comments »
The zucchini post has generated some great feedback on ways to use up the extra veggies.
First, I got a family zucchini idea from Anna P.K.
Uncle Brian told me that he and Aunt Joyce used to make lasagna by replacing the noodles with strips of zucchini. They cut the zukes with one of those wire type cheese slicers, I think he said. It sounded good to me …
And also I got a call from an Eagle-Tribune … continued »
Share This
Read Full Post »
Posted in Landscape, Garden on Aug 17th, 2007 No Comments »
One of the things I love about gardening is that everybody’s garden plot is unique … and yet somehow we end up having the same problems!
Here’s an e-mail I received this week that describes a problem remarkably similar to the one I had at my house last year.
My name is Arletta Fairfield, and I live in Wisconsin, near a little town called Adams Friendship. I have grown morning glories for several years now, plant them … continued »
Share This
Read Full Post »
Posted in Garden on Aug 15th, 2007 No Comments »
I’ve already posted too may pictures of zucchini so I won’t bore you with more.
Suffice it to say, I’m not keeping up in the kitchen with what I’m producing in the garden. You can read all the gory details in today’s Yard Dirt column, “The rewards of an overflowing garden.”
If this sounds familiar, check out our features centerpiece today on dealing with excess zucchini, “Gad Zukes!”
It’s full of recipe ideas … recipes that … continued »
Share This
Read Full Post »
Posted in Landscape, Garden on Aug 14th, 2007 No Comments »
I got a lovely phone call yesterday from a woman I used to chat with years ago, back when when I was covering politics in Peabody, Mass.
She wanted to share a tip with all of us. She has discovered, on her four acres in Peabody, that thistle — the prickly weed — is great for attracting goldfinches. In the spring the thistle produces a purple flower on top that the birds pick apart for the … continued »
Share This
Read Full Post »
Posted in Lawn on Aug 9th, 2007 No Comments »
Another organic gardening workshop. This one is specifically about lawns and it’s in Marblehead:
What: Third annual Organic Lawn & Turf Course, put on by the Organic Land Care Committee of the Northeast Organic Farming Association in Massachusetts.
When: Tuesday, August 14 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Where: Marblehead High School, 2 Humphrey Street
The course presents training in organic turf management from leading experts-including Marblehead’s own, Chip Osborne, co-founder and co-chair of the Living Lawn Project … continued »
Share This
Read Full Post »
