Monthly Archives: November 2011

Andean Vegetables

The first frost arrived a couple of weeks ago, damaging the leaves of the Bolivian sunroot (also called yacón) – no surprise there.  I’ve grown this plant for years – I like the tubers, which have a subtle flavor that … Continue reading

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Alliums, And Lots Of ‘Em

Some of my favorite food plants are in the genus Allium.  Garlic is one of my favorite garden plants (read about it here, here, here, here and here), and I have it in the garden proper and the food forest. … Continue reading

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Creep Year

The first year they sleep The second year they creep The third year they leap So goes the old saying about perennials. This has been the creep year (year 2) for a number of perennials in my garden.  Two that … Continue reading

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Critical Mass

I have sort of come to the conclusion – inasmuch as I can come to a conclusion this early in the process – that where I garden, building a food forest is about critical mass.  It’s a very different aesthetic … Continue reading

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Misery?

Mountain misery (Chamaebatia foliolosa), also know as bear clover and kit-ke-dizze, is one of the native ground cover plants throughout this part of the Sierra, and I have it in abundance on my property, including throughout the very sunny parts … Continue reading

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Feed Your Soil, Not Your Plants: Cover Croppin’

Cover cropping is, in my view, one of the best things you can do for your soil, and one of the easiest. Here’s how it works: You plant some seeds – I usually use a mix of legumes (vetch, bell … Continue reading

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