Entries by Lee Reich

A GARDEN PEST OF HUMANS

Yellowjackets are often in a garden, and they are pest. So are they garden pests? Yes, to you and me. But they also attack plant pests. What to do, to keep them at bay? What to do, once they’ve attacked? For more about yellowjackets, see:

FIG SEASON

[Even in cold winter climates, such as here on the farmden, figlets line the stems of our fig trees. Baby figs near the tops of the stems, fatter ones and riper ones lower down. The ripe figs are sweetly delectable — but only if picked dead ripe. In my latest blog post, I explore fig ripening as well as ways to hasten ripening, and what to do with the ripe fruit. Read about all this here:[Even in cold winter climates, such as here on the farmden, figlets line the stems of our fig trees. Baby figs near the tops of the stems, fatter ones and riper ones lower down. The ripe figs are sweetly delectable — but only if picked dead ripe. In my latest blog post, I explore fig ripening as well as ways to hasten ripening, and what to do with the ripe fruit. Read about all this here:

A WILD AND CULTIVATED BALM

I long admired bee-balm and wanted it more close at hand also. But was it bee-balm I admired? No matter. Now it and a close relative grows happily in my garden and the field. Want to know more?

THE VERY BEST TOMATOES

The best-tasting tomatoes are not (necessarily) home-grown tomatoes. Find out which tomatoes taste best, then go about getting them for next year and years to come. All this is detailed in my latest blog post:

EASIER MEADOW PREP

I went against all my previous suggestions in planting — or should I say encouraging — the meadow here on the farmden. That was 25 years ago. How did I do it, how did I maintain it, and how has it fared? Read about all this at:

MEADOW BEGINNINGS

Ah, to look out on a meadow. You can have this vision — but you need to plan and prep before planting, a topic I cover in my latest blog post:  

ANTI-SOCIAL WEEDS

Some of my worst weeds keep mostly to themselves, which — I guess — is good. But, being worst weeds, they do need to be reined in. Do your weeds socialize? Which are worst? Mine, and how I rein them in, are . . . well, it’s all in my latest blog post:

PLAN(T) AHEAD

Plan(t) now and you can greatly increase the effective size of your garden — without increasing your garden’s actual size. In my latest blog post, I recount 3 commitments I make for a fall garden and then go on to describe what to sow, and when, for that whole other garden — in the same space as my present garden. Read about it here:

AND THE BEST PASTE TOMATO IS . . .

For the richest, most flavorful sauce, just any old plum tomato won’t do. A few years back I decided to try the best of them (according to various sources) for side by side comparison. You can read about the good, the bad, and the ugly — well, not the ugly — in my latest blog post:

PLANTS FOR TEENS

The teen years are turbullent years. And what’s a parent to do? Here are a couple of plants that should ease things along. But how? You’ll have to read the whole post.