Leaf Litter

...reduce water usage by preventing evaporation, prevent weed growth, inhibit soil erosion and may even stop acid rain from penetrating soil. For these reasons SurviveLA says banish your leaf blower! In fact, when planning a garden around permaculture principles you may want to consider plants that produce mulch, and placing them where the mulch will benefit your landscaping. Remember though that some trees such as black walnut and eucalyptus produce...

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The problem with polar fleece: it’s in the ocean, it’s in sea creatures, it’s on our plates

...rs here at our house we’ve sent a good deal of these stray fibers into the soil around our house, since we’ve been using a greywater system. I’m not sure what to think about that. I doubt that the fibers are as disruptive in the soil as they are in a marine ecosystem, but still, it’s not good, and I don’t like it. Thinking about my own household, I’m targeting certain items for disposal. I have some very old fleece in my life: a 15 year old bathro...

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Saturday Tweets: Open Kitchens, Weedless Gardens and Copy Cats

...less garden and better soil? Try this: No-Till Gardening: If You Love Your Soil, Ditch the Tiller https://t.co/NGsTi7BrgF — Joe Lamp'l (@joegardener) July 9, 2017 What’s the best way to find common ground in public spaces? – https://t.co/VMwwwFY0dw via @aeonmag — Thomas Rainer (@ThomasRainerDC) July 13, 2017 Flat-Pack Mobile Architecture: This Building Will Self-Construct in 8 Minutes | Urbanist – https://t.co/7brPubdJf2 — Eric Rochow (@Garden...

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Fifty Shades of Gray Water

...“probably from Anglo-French *sollage, *suillage, from suiller, soiller to soil.” While I like the link with soil, “sullage” appears to be used interchangeably with “sewage.” There is, of course the confusing problem of “gray” vs. “grey” with “gray” being more common in American English. “Greywater” is used by two out of the three American experts: Brad Lancaster and Greywater Action (the artists formerly known as the Guerrilla Graywater Girls). A...

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Straw Bale Gardening Update

...least ten spindly, diseased specimens hiding in backyards. Without careful soil stewardship, just the right amount of water and diligence about not growing tomatoes in the same place every year TDS will visit your household. Since I’ve had tomato disease problems for years I decided to grow them in straw bales this season as I did, successfully, back in 2013. Unfortunately, my straw bale tomatoes succumbed to one of three possible problems: Improp...

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