Picture Sundays: Do You Believe In Magic?

...I really like this mural that just appeared in our neighborhood near the corner of Sunset and Coronado. Bunnies tumble out of a magic hat and there’s a silhouette of a coyote and crow (common urban wildlife here). The text, “do you beleav [sic] in magic” brought a smile to my face as I waited for the bus. My day had been re-enchanted by this symbolic bit of street art....

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Row Cover as an Insect Barrier

...eds carries Agribon row cover in lengths as short as 50 feet–plenty for an urban or suburban garden. I’ve used both PVC pipe and chain link fence tension wire as support. I secure the row cover down with pieces of rebar and bricks to keep out skunks. What cabbage worms become. It’s not a plug and play solution, however. If it gets hot I have to remember to pull the row cover off. And the added humidity can cause outbreaks of aphids. But overall, i...

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Saturday Linkages: Sedum Stumps, Chicken Steadycams and the End of the World

...ated Community http://nyti.ms/Ut6Tb5 Modest Student Micro-Cottage is a Mere 12 Square Meters | Designs & Ideas on Dornob http://dornob.com/modest-student-micro-cottage-is-a-mere-12-square-meters/ … Emergency Shelters http://lloydkahn-ongoing.blogspot.com/2012/11/emergency-shelters.html#.ULPceX88vHE.twitter … Read and Relax in the Sculptural Bookworm Chair | Designs & Ideas on Dornob http://dornob.com/read-and-relax-on-the-sculptural-bookworm-chair...

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Garden Amendments as Placebos

I just finished writing an article for Urban Farm Magazine on the subject of aerated compost tea (ACT for short). It proved to be one of the most contentious subjects on which I’ve ever tried to, as Mark Twain liked to say, “corral the truth.” It got me thinking about other controversial soil additives popular in organic gardening and farming circles right now such as rock dust, mycorrhizae additives, and biochar. Now I prefer not to touch these...

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