GrowBlog

Lowering the Gardening Dropout Rate

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 09:30:31 GMT

Results from a recent survey conducted by the Garden Writers Foundation found that about 7.7 million Americans grew their first food gardens last year. A similar trend is unfolding in the UK, where up to 100,000 would-be gardeners are on allotment waiting lists. (For my fellow yanks, an allotment is similar to what we call a community garden). To ease this gap, the Royal Horticultural Society’s Grow Your Own Campaign is encouraging the creation of new allotment plots at the workplace. What a fabulous idea!

Growing In the Dark

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 10:58:39 GMT

The winter months are often characterised by low temperatures, darker days and a sense of waiting for spring to start. If you planned ahead last year then your garden may still be providing supplies of root crops, brussels sprouts, kale and other winter-hardy vegetables but even so there is a distinct lack of new growth and fresh tastes during this period. Rather than wait for the lighter days of spring to start there are some plants that can be persuaded to produce a new crop in the dark, a process known as ‘forcing’. Although it sounds technical it is not as tricky as you might expect and can yield impressive results when fresh produce is scarce...

Growing Hardy Vegetables in Winter

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 08:14:41 GMT

The local organic farmers all have greenhouses, but still they talk of “waiting for the light” before they sow seeds of cold-hardy vegetables in late winter. What they mean is that they are waiting for days to become longer and brighter, which happens quickly starting in mid-February. Where I live in Virginia, each day is now two minutes longer than the one that came before. In Liverpool, Jeremy’s garden is gaining four minutes of light with each passing day. This is excellent news for the big four of cold-hardy vegetables: mache (lambs lettuce), spinach, kale, and cabbage. When given sturdy protection from ice, snow and cold winds, I have often seen these little guys survive temperatures as low as 10F (-12C). The seedlings must be started indoors because soil temperatures remain too cold to support strong germination, but enclosures that trap solar heat help warm the soil, too.

The Food Superhighway

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 08:41:26 GMT

Have you noticed the extraordinary reversal of interest in the media in recent months? Growing your own food in a natural, organic way and involving the community has become big news. Television crews are being sent to profile community supported agriculture programs, newspaper columns are being written about the need for more allotment growing spaces and politicians are proclaiming that we should eat more local seasonal produce. What is particularly amazing about this is that in any other culture and time all these things would never be considered newsworthy. Only in our crazy modern food system has growing your own food become the exception rather than the rule

Growing Seedlings Without a Greenhouse

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 07:21:47 GMT

Historically, a dowry is the booty a bride brings to a marriage, which might be money, fine linens, or a good milk cow. This tradition may take many forms. A few years ago, I entered a new relationship bringing along a cold frame and adjustable tabletop plant light. But in hindsight, Roger had me from the start. On my first visit to his house, it was hard to take my eyes off of his glowing three-tiered plant shelf, perfect for houseplants in winter and veggie seedlings in spring. It began to feel like a very good match.

Winter Salad Wonder: Growing Lamb’s Lettuce (Mâche or Corn Salad)

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 09:50:11 GMT

Q: When is a weed not a weed? A: When it is the most valuable salad crop in winter! Last year I set myself the challenge of growing salad all year round which was fine for most of the year but much more of a challenge in winter. When temperatures are hovering around freezing nothing much grows. However, there is one amazing plant that can provide fresh leaves when others are dormant: lamb’s lettuce (also known as mâche or corn salad).

Getting Started with Shallots

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 09:21:07 GMT

It’s only January and we’ve used up the last of our stored bulb onions, which would be sad if not for shallots. As I bring a bowl of these chestnut beauties up the basement steps, my mouth starts to water, because I know what lies ahead. A slow simmer in butter or olive oil transforms shallots into a dream version of caramelized onions. Whether I’m chopping and cooking shallots for risotto, pizza, or some incredible sauce, I cook extra to sprinkle with sea salt and eat straight from the pan. They are that good.

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow...

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 08:47:18 GMT

It has been an exceptionally snowy winter this year for much of Europe and America and this can have a big impact in the garden. Many late crops are still over-wintering and, whilst the snow can transform your vegetable patch into a beautiful winter scene, it can also cause problems for plants. So, what are the options for protecting crops from damage due to wintery weather?

2010: Let the Gardening Season Begin

Fri, 01 Jan 2010 06:34:49 GMT

The unspoiled freshness of a new year feels a little like spring, so it’s a great time to start thinking about your 2010 garden. Taking time to envision the season ahead is an important first step, which can be quite enjoyable and help lead you into a truly inspired season. Thinking too much about your past successes and failures will probably come automatically, and it’s not very useful during the envisioning phase anyway. Instead, try imagining your way through these guidelines. They work for me.

Christmas Vegetables - Italian Style

Fri, 25 Dec 2009 11:19:05 GMT

Italy has a well deserved reputation for culinary excellence combined with a deep appreciation of great-tasting fresh produce. So what better place to get inspiration for a Christmas feast than the country where beautiful food sourced from local markets is treasured and savored? Wendy Holloway has spent the last 14 years introducing people to the wonders of Italian cuisine through her cookery school and gastronomic tours in Rome. In this special guest article, she guides us through the essential components of a truly Italian Christmas and will be answering your questions about Italian cuisine in the comments below...

Give Snap Peas a Chance

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 09:13:10 GMT

When snap peas were introduced to the modern gardening world in 1979, some folks were impressed enough to predict that they would one day rival tomatoes in garden popularity. This hasn’t happened, but most American gardeners do favor snap peas over traditional shell peas (English peas) or snow peas (the latter are called mangetouts in Europe, which is French for “eat the whole thing”). The reason for snap peas’ popularity is all about productivity. You can feed four people with one pound (450 grams) of snap peas, but you will need to shell out twice as many shell pea pods to obtain four nice servings. Delicate snow peas (mangetouts) fall somewhere in between.

The Feeding of the 5000 (with Unwanted Fruit and Vegetables)

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 10:48:48 GMT

'You are cordially invited to a free lunch for up to 5000 people' reads the headline on the website Feeding the 5000. On December 16th 2009, campaigners are going to turn several tonnes of ‘unwanted' fruit, vegetables and farm produce into a spectacular lunch of soup for passersby in London's Trafalgar Square. The aim is to highlight the unbelievable waste of food in affluent countries. We live in a society that has largely become disconnected from the land that sustains us and I believe that gardeners have a role to play in reversing this alarming trend.