On the Many Frustrations of Gardening: Pierce’s Disease

July 5, 2009

...survival of the fittest. Work with evolution by selecting for immunity to pests and disease and you’ll harvest the rewards. Resistance is futile. More info at piercesdisease.org. If any of you readers know of a comprehensive list of resistant varieites for California please leave a link in the comments! So far I’ve been able to find lists for Florida and Texas. Update 7/6/09: Reader Anduhrew sends an amazing link about a home remedy involving inj...

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Butterfly Barrier Failure

Mr. Homegrown

November 21, 2012

Gardening, Pests

21 Comments

...biodiversity option the best. Planting a bunch of brassicas is like opening an all you can eat buffet for cabbage leaf worms. Our backyard has more biodiversity and fewer problems with pests. I used better (homemade) compost in the raised beds in the backyard, thus the soil in these beds also has greater microbial biodiversity...

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Saturday Linkages: Hiding Spots, Bedbugs and Rodents of Unusual Size

Mr. Homegrown

April 13, 2013

Saturday Linkages

2 Comments

...ugs in Their Tracks http://nyti.ms/12H9HDI Gardening All About Gabions : Cheap Retaining and Other Garden Features http://shar.es/JHCQS New killer compost problem–Imprelis: http://ow.ly/1UWcBj How to protect plants from frost: http://ow.ly/1UMWLG Farmers tackle pests with colas: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3977351.stm … Rodents of Unusual Size – a documentary about 20-lb rats in Louisiana – Boing Boing http://boingboing.net/2013/04/09/ro...

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Nopales Season

Mr. Homegrown

March 27, 2008

Food, Foraging, Gardening, Vegetable Gardening

6 Comments

...on to the food it provides, is its ability to survive drought and fend off pests. Sadly, it’s not as indestructible as it seems. The cactus moth, Cactoblastis cactorum was introduced into the Caribbean in the 1950s and has slowly worked its way to Florida and Mexico. It may soon reach Texas and California. The USDA is hoping to halt the spread by releasing sterile moths. And speaking of Texas, for the next two weeks Homegrown Evolution will be in...

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Top Ten Vegetable Gardening Mistakes

Mr. Homegrown

September 3, 2013

Gardening, Mistakes, Vegetable Gardening

39 Comments

...Carrots don’t like clay soils and warm temperatures. Cabbage gets lots of pests here. Some veggies are best to outsource to the professionals at the farmer’s market. 4. Not having a plan My brain, to put it politely, is non-linear. If I were to overcome that cognitive flaw and plan out how much and where things should be planted I’d have both a steady supply of produce as well as a more attractive garden. 5. Not labeling plants What kind of okra...

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