Loquat season is here!

...take a random example, I would never, say, help myself to someone’s giant squash. And it’s important not to be greedy. I don’t take more than one fruit from a tree at a time (or maybe two or three, in the case of loquats). But if the tree is burdened with fruit and rotten fruit is splattering on the sidewalk, it seems more a favor than anything else to take one or two. Of course, it is always best to ask the homeowner for permission. In the case...

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World’s Largest Kale

...The Franchi kale (collard?) “Galega De Folhas Lisas” I planted in the fall of 2012 has reached six feet. It’s a Portuguese variety used in a soup called Caldo Verde. Given that we have such a small yard I’ve really got to stop planting gargantuan vegetables like this and those ridiculous Lunga di Napoli squash. Root Simple is at risk of devolving into a geek with large veggie Tumblr site....

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2013 in Review Part I

...in permanent raised beds that I’ll build this winter. I’m still harvesting squash from those bales! May We attend the Age of Limits conference along with our friend John Zapf. Kelly and I blogged about our initial reaction to this doomy event but we never told the whole story–deciding instead to move on and focus on positive action. June Good news and bad news. The amazing folks at Honey Love continued their efforts to legalize beekeeping in Los A...

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Straw Bale Garden Update: Success!

...the vegetables in the straw bale garden exploded in size. The Tromboncino squash on the left, is threatening to envelop the entire yard. The tomatoes are equally vigorous and covered in ripening fruit. Zucchini is on the menu. While it takes an input of outside resources in the form of straw and fertilizer, straw bale gardening is a great solution for beginning gardeners or for those cursed with bad soil. And the skunks that have decimated my pre...

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Saturday Tweets: Eating Flowers, Peach Mustard and the Patron Saint of Dentists

...and those suffering from toothache, from her teeth being broken during a brutal attack before her martyrdom. Read more on her legend: https://t.co/HTvnmQhjm1 Yates Thompson MS 3, f. 284v #FolkloreThursday pic.twitter.com/6bBT8oJy3d — Dr Alison Ray (@liber_ray) August 30, 2018 Baby, I compare you to a kiss from a rose: A red rose is surrounded by couplets with music inscribed on two circular staves, in a choirbook produced in 1516 by Petrus de Opi...

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