FEAR NOT, COMPOST MAKER
Too Many “Don’ts”
Pity the beginning gardener who dares to read about how to make compost. (Please dare to read on, in this case, even if you are a beginner.)
Compost, good stuff for your garden
What novice could not be intimidated by the complicated instructions often given, as well as alleged. Or what about the need for exotic or hard-to-find ingredients. When I was a novice, I read too many British gardening books and almost tossed in my pitchfork and gloves in despair trying to find soil for my compost pile. Yes, soil!
True, soil is almost everywhere. But Read more
WHY NOT PLANT
I Don’t Go With My Gut
No doubt about it: Fall planting of trees and shrubs goes against my grain. Fall is when I feel like closing down the garden, gathering the harvest, and snuggling plants in for the cold months ahead. Spring is when the urge to plant becomes irresistible, when I want to contribute to the symphony of colors and scents of that season.
More mulch needed
In fact, though, fall is in many ways the better time for planting from the point of view of a tree or a shrub. Many nurseries dig bare root plants in the fall Read more
TIGER NUTS
Back to Our Roots
Every few years I grow a plant both for its flavor and because it takes me back to my — to our — roots. Digging any edible root or tubers is always something of a primal experience. This plant I occasionally grow elicits an especially strong bond to distant ancestors. The plant is chufa (Cyperus esculentus). You see, chufa tubers are not fat and succulent, the result of centuries of human selection and breeding. What I grub out of the ground are hard, egg-shaped bits of nourishment, each bit little larger than pea gravel.
As befits any primitive crop, chufa is extremely easy to grow. Just drop tubers into the Read more
