Chamomile has been valued since ancient times for its many beneficial properties and delicate scent (the name comes from ancient Greek, meaning ‘ground apple’). There are different types of chamomile but one, Chamaemelum nobile treneague – Roman chamomile, aka lawn chamomile, is an evergreen that grows 2 to 4 inches in height. Treneague means nonflowering … Read more
Fences that mark off property can also add to the environment and beauty of a home; especially if they’re alive. The use of hedges – shrubs or trees – in place of wood or stone constructs adds to the beauty of a yard. A living fence can serve as a wind break, sound barrier, or … Read more
Our first freeze warning has come and gone. It’s the time of the year when many start making room indoors for outdoor plants or start shopping for indoor plants to offset winter’s monochromatic view. Pets will be spending more time indoors too. This can lead to bad outcomes if pet decides plant is their veg … Read more
In a recent National Restaurant Association survey, 44 percent of chefs surveyed identified local sourcing as the trend that has grown the most over the last decade. The drive for grow local/eat local is here to stay; restaurants and stores are growing their own or buying from very-near-by urban farms (hyper-local sourcing). It’s all about … Read more
Composting is not only a great way to improve the quality of your backyard soil, but is also a terrific way to reuse kitchen scraps and other household waste. This indoor waste recycling can dramatically cut down on the amount of trash that you generate per week. We went from 4-5 bags per week to … Read more
One thing that is overlooked by gardeners is when to harvest vegetables. Obviously, we should wait wait until the vegetable is ripe, but that means different things to different people. Take squash for example. When is squash ready to pick? A yellow squash is ripe when it is about 6 inches long, but we all … Read more
For people who want to practice the organic and permaculture style of home gardening in the manner that is done on this site, it is always nice to have a few companion books to keep around the house. I decided to take a look at the top 5 best selling organic gardening books on Amazon to … Read more
Weeds. The word seems synonymous with things abandoned, lonely, unkempt, not to mention unwanted and unloved. But for Those Who Know, many plants laboring under that unhappy name are associated with words like tasty, nutritious, and just plain yummy. They come in a virtually unending supply, growing where they please and sometimes still on purpose. … Read more
According to the Farmer’s Almanac and AccuWeather, Summer 2020 will bring the Mid-Atlantic above average rainfall and lots of humidity (and a few heatwaves in July/August so brace yourself for a ‘sizzle and drizzle’ summer). The abundant rainfall will be good for gardens and other outdoor projects. All that free-falling water could mean good things … Read more
SOURCE: commons.wikimedia.com Monday, August 8 is National Zucchini Day. Yes, there is an entire calendar out there of months and days celebrating food. (August is National Peach Month.) Actually I think there is more than one. Not that it actually matters, to me, these food ‘holidays’ are just a fun way to inspire trying new … Read more