I have a theory on why individual raspberry plants are so expensive. Who is willing to pay $30 for a single plant at D&B? I would never be able to afford my raspberry habit! I think they are priced to save overzealous gardeners from themselves. They will TAKE OVER. My…
Long before I knew anything about square foot gardening or permaculture, I heard about the Native American gardeners and their historic companion planting – corn, beans, and squash. They called it the three sisters. Planted in the same mound, each one compliments the others and provides a better growing environment…
Let’s take a greenhouse tour. In this area it is hard to grow tomatoes, peppers, and longer-season without some help. That’s why there are so many different greenhouses! I’ve never lived anywhere where so many people put time, money, or cleverness into these structures. I’ll start in our backyard. Toby’s…
Hoarding food is a fun new activity we’ve gotten into. It started last summer when we took turns obsessively canning, freezing, or drying everything we harvested from the garden. I am embarrassed to say I had never canned anything before the summer of 2015! I had helped family in the…
Welcome to the Timber Garden! Toby and I purchased our first home on 3 acres outside of McCall, ID in October of 2014. We couldn’t wait to put in a permanent garden and fruit trees! We had both grown up gardening with our families and tried to grow something wherever…
It’s February in McCall, which means there is 3 feet of snow between me and any garden soil. To keep our spirits up, a bunch of my fellow gardeners brought their seed stashes over for an exchange. There was a lot of seed swapping! I ended up with four different…
Edible flowers have always seemed like a nice idea. Grow a few pansies to throw on top of a scoop of ice cream and delight your friends. It’s exotic. Still tastes like a flower though. Nasturtiums are different. Every part of the plant is a spicy adventure, not for the…
It’s the middle of February in Idaho. In some places, that is early enough to start thinking about the snow melting and the sun shining and greenery pressing up through the ground. Here, the snow might not melt until May and the greenery knows better. My fellow gardeners and I…