Food Fun On a Snowy Spring Day

I remember eating many a grilled cheese sandwich and tomato or chicken noodle soup after a morning of sledding or playing in the snow as I grew up.  Later, left to my own devices I can remember the ease of boxed mac and cheese - warm and delicious and easy.

I am also a fan of cheese crackers, like cheez-its.  So how amused was I reading an article about comparing the two nutritionally!  No spoilers here, but here is the link!  Enjoy

http://www.motherjones.com/blue-marble/2013/03/kraft-mac-cheese-dye-annies-cheez

Urganic

As I perseverate over each year's Farm and garden design I reflect over past year's successes and failures and consider the decisions that may have played a role.  Losses that are created by lack of nutrients, or bad bugs, or disease, or weeds drive me nuts.  And I've always cared about the environment as well as food safety and have looked at balancing it all.

A while back I wrote about coining the term and idea of Urganic, which I also call our Farm and gardens.  I thought that even though we don't use pesticides or herbicides that an occasional dose of a non-organic fertilizer would be okay.  And, I've changed my mind.

The experiment this past growing season didn't produce the results I hoped.  There was no band-aid.  Problems around lack of production or sickly plants or well performing plants had nothing to do with any use of a non-organic fertilizers - which, truth be told, I didn't really do to a great extent.

My fortified belief, through reading and past and current practice, is that production and sustainability in agriculture is created by first growing great soil.  After that it is about controlling the critters and diseases.  Obviously sun and water and pH and temperature and balanced nutrients for the plants are still a key factor too; but no quality soil, no great food production and the further creation of an unbalanced growing environment while contributing to an unhealthy environment.

A great artist needs a well prepared canvas if her work is going to last.  A farmer's canvas is soil, which is truly a diverse living organism.

I'm keeping Urganic in our name (cause we are still an Urban farm and garden oasis) and going back to all organic practices while spending more time growing great soil.

Happy growing!

Potatoes in a Bag

There are many exciting additions and expansions coming to the GSB Farm and Gardens this year.  One crop which is new to me is potatoes and I plan on growing them in bags this year.  There are many ways to grow potatoes and growing them above ground in bags is one of them.

There are commercial potato bags, there are trash bags, and there are potting soil bags.  This year I will experiment with all three.  Six bags, two of each kind, three different potato crops.

I'm excited.  Stay tuned.

Oh!? No Snow!

Well that worked out well.  Seems the French forecast was more accurate than ours!  Ooo, la, la - Au revoir!

Oh no, Snow!?

Just as I was writing about early spring flower sitings, the weather folks start talking about a mid-week snow storm with possible significant accumulations. (Anything I have to shovel is significant in my book!)

I vote no snow.