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Gardening Life

How to Slice an Onion without Tears

Picture this: a family secret passed down from my father, to me, and now to my sons, both of whom are kitchen maestros. It’s not a recipe for a mind-blowing lasagna or a revolutionary method for baking the perfect cake. No, it’s the mystical art of how to slice an onion without shedding a single […]

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Gardening Life

Craving Summer Flavors on a very Wintry Day

I don’t know about you, but for me, although February is the shortest month days-wise, it always seems to take the longest for me. Being a leap year, with an extra day, just makes it feel like torture. February, to me, feels like a time of endless winter. The sun struggles each day to just […]

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Gardening Life

Parker the Protector

Ah, Parker the Protector, that’s what I’ve come to affectionately call our plucky pug with a heart of gold. You see, Parker’s journey as the guardian of our inkberry bushes began shortly after Gail and I moved to picturesque Plymouth a few years ago. Nestled between our yard and our friendly neighbor’s property, a row […]

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Gardening Life

Starting the New Year off with a Bang

I am a creature of habit. I like having the same rituals and traditions year after year. My town has a cute New Year’s Eve tradition called “Starry Starry Night.” This has been my family’s New Year’s Eve tradition for years now. This is an event that the local businesses all get together to sponsor. […]

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Gardening Life

Eating Vegetables from the Grocery Store Could Kill You

When I first started gardening, I had this idea that grocery store produce was safer than my own. I suppose I knew that birds pooped on blueberries in the fields too, and lettuces were likely thrown in large bushels much less carefully than I’d hack down my own, but for some reason, I imagined some […]

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Gardening Life

A Year in Vegetable Gardening: Harvesting Memories and Planting Dreams

Today is the perfect time for fruit and vegetable gardeners to reflect on the past year and look ahead to the next growing season. The journey of nurturing plants from seed to harvest is a profound one, filled with lessons, surprises, and a deep connection to nature. Let’s take a moment to cherish the memories […]

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Gardening Life

From Battlefields to Botany

I have great admiration for plant hunters, each one a botanical Indiana Jones. They sailed with Captain Cook on his first great voyage in 1768 and still today they are exploring remote corners of the world, seeking out rare plants. Back in 1892 one casual explorer was Baron Walter von St. Paul. Walter, full name […]

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Gardening Life

10 New Year’s Resolutions for Gardeners

Next week as we welcome the dawn of a new year, fruit and vegetable gardeners have the perfect opportunity to set meaningful resolutions that will not only enhance their gardening skills but also yield a more bountiful and sustainable harvest. Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or just starting out, these ten New Year’s resolutions will […]

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Gardening Life

Spreading love, joy and warm chocolate chip cookies

The holiday season is upon us, and I am flooded with memories. My children are grown and on their own now, but all I can think about is their years of growing up and the lovely traditions we created. My favorite one is leaving cookies for Santa on Christmas Eve. Not because I got to […]

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Gardening Life

The Rise of Food Gardening in America

In the heart of America’s heartland, where endless fields of corn still stretch as far as the eye can see, there is a quiet revolution taking root. It is a story that began with a simple statistic – the number of American households cultivating their own fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices had swelled by a […]