Seed Starting by Sandy Swegel My first packets of seeds have come in the mail and I’m so eager to start gardening, but the 10 inches of old snow that’s still all over my garden is a real obstacle. My lights are reserved for tomatoes and peppers….but I want to Garden NOW. When I’m in this predicament, […]
Heirloom Vegetable Seeds by Sandy Swegel Two forces collided around the kitchen table this week. First I was oogling our seed catalog and indulging in winter snow day daydreams about summer gardens and how I might turn my tiny urban yard into a farm so I could grow one of everything. At that moment I […]
Why We Should All Grow a Garden This Year by Sandy Swegel From my early morning dreams: Psychics around the world predict a new rise in human global consciousness this year. In all corners of the globe, human beings awake this year and realize the true path to enlightenment is eating good nutritious food especially leafy […]
Getting Creative With Nature by Sandy Swegel As always, necessity spurs creativity in my life. I had a party to go to last night and needed to wrap a simple gift, but had no wrapping paper much less any of those easy gift bags in the house. Even though I love a nicely wrapped gift, […]
What to Give all the Animals in Your Life by Sandy Swegel After the first big cold snow of the season, I find myself drinking coffee next to the window, captivated by the Wild Kingdom drama of the outdoors…watching the many different kinds of birds foraging or lurking near the bird feeder waiting their turn, […]
Preparing for the Gardner’s Rest by Sandy Swegel It’s the week after Thanksgiving and the beginning of a month of serious holiday celebrations. In Colorado, night temperatures are getting colder…my compost pile freezes at night. I’ve given all the garden and especially the trees a good watering and turned off the irrigation system. It is […]
Doing Your Part to Save Nature by Sandy Swegel The big nature news this week was an article in the New York Times that 2013 is the first year anyone remembers that the monarchs didn’t appear in the central forests of Mexico for the Day of the Dead. It’s part of the cultural tradition there that […]
Tips for Planting Garlic by Sandy Swegel A foot or two of snow on the garden may make it seem like the gardening season is over, but if your ground isn’t frozen yet, there’s still time to plant some garlic. Fall is the best time to plant garlic (which needs a cooling cycle before growing) […]
Detecting These Foods and How to Avoid Them by Sandy Swegel We read a lot about GMO foods, but a recent reader question made me think about how little I know about which foods are genetically modified when I go shopping. I know I can avoid GMOs by eating only organic foods, but once I […]
Heirloom Vegetable Seeds by Sandy Swegel The hard freeze is upon us here in Colorado. We’re scurrying to save and process the last of the harvest. Counters are full of green tomatoes. Winter squash line the shelves of the mudroom. But fresh organic food coming in from the garden is dwindling. The time of buckets […]