By Cindy Naas

Several years ago a friend gave me my first garden journal notebook.

This friend is not a gardener but is a compulsive journaler, and was sure that I would enjoy keeping a journal about the garden each year.

At first I wasn’t convinced, but after using it for one season I am an ardent advocate of keeping a garden journal.

Growing Ideas

Each summer as I wander through my newly-planted garden I think about what I’d like to do differently next summer. Before I began journaling, many of those ideas just disappeared. Now, however, Read the rest of this entry »

By Cindy Naas

Part of the motivation for putting in a vegetable garden in my city garden was to show my children how their food grows.

I wanted to pass down the my father’s love of gardening to my sons, and so I have always made sure that each child gets to grow something every summer.

It’s amazing, too, how quickly a child who hates veggies will gobble down a plate of green beans if he grows them himself. Growing veggies can be good for your child for so many reasons.

Here are a few good choices for teaching beginning gardeners how to grow things they can enjoy:

1. Radishes- these germinate Read the rest of this entry »

By Michael Nolan

Second only to my love of the heirloom tomato (any variety) is my love for home grown cucumbers.

I can still remember growing up and wandering around in the wilds of my grandfather’s garden.

Every time I would meander by one of the plants that bore those little dark green oblong pieces of deliciousness I just had to grab one and eat it right on the spot!

You may have rightly assumed that I have a couple of cucumber plants in my garden for the Summer of Read the rest of this entry »

By Vanessa Richins

One easy way that urban dwellers can participate in gardening is through a community garden.

In a community garden, a group of people share plots in one common piece of land.

This is a great way for those with no space to still enjoy the wonders of gardening. You can look at the American Community Garden Association’s website, to see if there is one near you.

If there is not one nearby, you could consider starting your own. There are several steps involved in starting a community garden.

1. Planning: As with any project, you must first Read the rest of this entry »

By Michael Nolan

So, you think you know a thing or two about urban gardening?

I did too until I was directed to the website of the Dervaes family.

What this family has accomplished on a small lot in Pasadena, California makes my minute efforts pale in comparison.

Jules Dervaes started working on transforming his ordinary lot in the city back in the mid-80s with the help of his three children, Anais, Justin & Jordanne. Bringing the concept of urban gardening to new heights, they have not only Read the rest of this entry »