DIY Drip Irrigation System
An Interview with Tom Bressan, Founder of the Urban Farmer Store by Margie Siegal Setting up a drip irrigation system for your vegetable garden is an excellent DIY project. It takes a minimum of tools, information is available, the components are not very expensive and there is even an item known as a “goof plug”...Continue reading→
Transforming a Lawn into an Edible Paradise
by Stefanie Leto Consider the lawn. If well-maintained, it requires a lot of water, weeding, and mowing. It’s also usually a monoculture. You can free yourself from the lawn, and enjoy fresh produce from the same area. My current house presented me with three lawn areas. More fun, more work, more opportunity. I also found...Continue reading→
My Love Hate Relationship with Bermuda Grass
by Margie Siegal Bermuda grass, whose Latin name is Cynodon dactylon, is native to Europe, Africa, Australia and much of Asia and is found both world wide and all over my yard. The blades are a grey-green color and one to six inches long. The grass blades grow on erect stems, which can get a...Continue reading→
A Farmer in the Making
Alameda Sun – Thursday, March 10, 2022 Alameda Backyard Growers (ABG) invited a youth at Farm2Market to share their perspective on gardening. Oliver Stouffer, a 17-year-old senior at Encinal High School, accepted their offer. My name is Oliver Stouffer. I am 17 years old and a Senior at Encinal High School. I have lived in...Continue reading→
Compost Happens and It Matters
Alameda Sun – Tuesday, February 8, 2022 by Alison Limoges, Board member of Alameda Backyard Growers and Master Gardener As humans, we all eat. Some of us grow our own food, but mostly we buy, prepare food, and then dispose of the leftovers. Unless we have pigs or goats to consume our scraps the best-case...Continue reading→
Growing Asparagus
by Linda Carloni, Master Gardener and ABG Board Member For me the very best reason to plant asparagus is because it’s delicious. It also grows well here by the Bay, thriving in cool, humid summers. Asparagus is a perennial plant, so you plant it one year and with luck it will produce harvests for up...Continue reading→
January is Seed Season
by Birgitt Evans, Master Gardener and ABG Board Member It’s the most wonderful time of the year! No, not the holidays, silly. Seed season. All your seed catalogs have arrived, the nurseries are chock-full of seeds and it’s time to get out some Post-its and start making your choices. This January, I have harvested broccoli,...Continue reading→
Planting Bare Root Fruit Trees — January is the Time!
Alameda Sun – Thursday, January 13 2022 by Linda Carloni, Board member of Alameda Backyard Growers and Master Gardener Fruit trees can be planted in fall, winter, or spring, but only in winter are bare root trees available. Back in the day, bare root fruit trees were the only way to purchase and plant fruit...Continue reading→
Wreath Making – Fun All Year Round
Alameda Sun – December 9, 2021 by Alison Limoges, Board member of Alameda Backyard Growers, Master Gardener There are many ways to make attractive, decorative wreaths year-round. The variety of possible shapes, sizes, backings, decorations, and attachment methods allow for great creativity. Wreath making provides excellent opportunities to recycle and reuse man-made items and natural...Continue reading→
Sunset Magazine’s Whole Orange Cake
(via Food 52) Marla Koss suggested this recipe as well – it’s a revelation, as well as filled with Vitamin C! Ingredients: 2 sticks (225g) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the pan 1 1/4 cups (250g) sugar 3 large eggs 2 oranges (about 1 pound/450g), ends trimmed, then cut into chunks and seeds removed...Continue reading→