I can’t believe I have to refer back to this article I wrote in February, but it’s more appropriate than ever now. While it’s comforting to see the rest of the world stand up for the planet in the absence of US participation in the Paris Climate Accord, as gardeners we have our work cut out for us. Here are some images to help inspire your spring and summer garden endeavors this month. Gardening makes a difference. Let’s garden for a healthy planet.
Volunteer Love-in-a-Mist, Calendula, and other beneficials (even a tomato!) decorate the garden and provide pollen and nectar for insects.
Fuji apples flowering and setting fruit bring hope for a delicious fall crop.
Striped Roman tomato starts to grow deep in the tomato jungle. We recently applied beneficial microbes to help protect plants against blight.
Our first Tesque chili sets fruit. Chili powder here we come!
Late-planted arugula benefits from protection under floating row cover while it gets started. Soon we’ll harvest tender leaves.
Drying down our wheat harvest (out during the day, inside at night) to protect what’s left from the rats. Heirloom sweet corn & dry beans grow in the back. Growing your own reduces your carbon footprint.
Drying down recently harvested onions. Next they’ll go indoors to complete curing before storage.
Let artichokes go to flower. We’ll save seeds from this Winnetka Purple artichoke for the Seed Library of Los Angeles.
Sweet Mittens enjoys eating the seed heads from some overgrown chicken forage mix. She killed a rat the other day. She’s a good guard cat.
Grow what you can grow. For the rest, vote with every dollar you spend. Choose companies that grow organically, and practice regenerative agriculture for the health of the planet. It’s no small thing.
