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How Many Gardens?
I am not the fanatic gardener in my family. I am merely my husband’s assistant. His cheerleader. And, yes, some-times his critic. He is undeterred. He just keeps planning and …
cabbage
Don’t Bully Your Plants
Plants have feelings, just like people. So what happens when you feed one plant with compliments and another with negative remarks?” asked the Swedish company IKEA. …
My Son Jack
My son Jack is the tallest kid in his class—by quite a bit. He has an arm on him a few coaches say they’ve never seen. I first realized his …
Planted by the Mind
In my student days, I lived in a sixth-floor studio apartment overshadowed by a high-rise office. My small container garden flourished or withered depending on two things: (a) the sun’s …
Why I Didn’t Want To Go To Italy
Get in the car! We’ve got to pick up our passports before the post office closes at noon,” my husband shouted—over our teenage sons’ MP3 player. Over the high-school spring …
My Most-Hated Vegetable
For a lot of us, chances are it’s beets. Just 11% of home gardeners bother to grow beets, and professional farmers don’t do much better. …
Poor Little Hearts?
Humans have used, loved, and exploited chickens for a very long time. Originally jungle fowl from Indochina, they were probably domesticated about 2,000 B.C. The Greeks and Romans not only …
Mr. Gilfeather’s Turnip
As of July 2016, Vermont has an Official State Vegetable. It’s the Gilfeather turnip, a solid and stodgy veggie that—given a little encouragement—can grow to the size of a groundhog. …
The Great Cantaloupe Contest
Giant pumpkins were my childhood. I spent count-less hours toiling alongside my brother and father in Missouri’s summer heat and humidity, because fairy godmothers aren’t real and if you want …
To the Celery in My Life
In February I set a tray of soil on an old bathmat on the floor of my office and planted a line of tiny celery seeds. I gave the soil …
