Blog
Too Many Tomatoes?
It’s tomato time! My kitchen is overflowing in tomatoes – yellow, red, round, huge, grape shaped, gold with black shoulders (the fantastic ‘Indigo Kumquat’), and so many more. I always overplant tomatoes. Why? Because I LOVE TOMATOES! By time I plant the varieties I teach with in seed starting workshops, plus favorite varieties from years…
Read MoreI Hate to Harvest – A True Confession
I love to grow vegetables but I hate to harvest. I love to start start vegetables from seed. Even before the first set of leaves unfurl, I’m dreaming about planting each seedling in my raised garden beds. I carefully labeled everything so I can track who grows where… I visit my garden every day, looking…
Read MoreLet’s Plant! Seed Starting Workshops 2020
https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/451363110th Anniversary Series Since 2010, I’ve taught hundreds of people to grow their own vegetables, herbs, and flowers from seed In this workshop, you’ll learn my easy, hands-on methods and secret tips for growing and feeding your family wholesome, organic produce from your backyard or your balcony. I brings the seeds and supplies. You take home…
Read MoreApril is the Time to Plant Warm Climate Vegetable Gardens
Yeah! It’s time to plant summer veggies in warm climate vegetable gardens. Tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, and other summer vegetables are good to plant now, whether from seed or from seedling. Wait until the end of the month when the soil is warmer before planting basil, pumpkins, and squashes. Every year, I trial new vegetable varieties in…
Read MoreGo Gently into the Wildflowers
Southern California’s hillsides are ablaze gorgeous tapestries wildflowers – orange poppies and ground pinks, golden fiddlenecks and bluebells, and more! if you plan to go in search of wildflowers, please know that those flowers are in fragile native habitats you can destroy simply by walking through them. Watch Nan Sterman’s video about wildflower etiquette before you go, so you can enjoy the flowers without killing them.
Read MoreLet’s Plant! Seed Starting Workshops
— Join Nan for a hands-on workshop near you — Tickets must be purchased in advance to reserve your spot and supplies. March 16, 2019, 9:30 am to noon, Community Roots Farm, Oceanside, CA, Purchase tickets March 17, 2019 , 12 pm to 2:30 pm, Bancroft Center For Sustainability, Spring Valley, CA, Purchase tickets March 24,…
Read MoreKeyhole Gardens – a new take on growing vegetables with less water
A few months back, I did a garden consultation for a couple who asked me about building a keyhole garden in their backyard. Keyhole garden? It comes from Africa, they said, and it’s supposed to be a highly productive method for growing vegetables, yet uses very little water. High productivity with little water? That’s my…
Read MoreZa’atar – The All Purpose Middle Eastern Spice Mix
Did you know that Judaism is rooted in agriculture? Many Jewish holidays have agricultural roots: Passover at planting, Sukkot at harvest, Tu b’shvat marks bud break in spring, and so on. Plants and trees, fruits and nuts are woven throughout the Torah, both literally and figuratively. Many Jewish traditions incorporate planting and respect for nature,…
Read MoreThe Year’s First Seed Starting Workshop is a Big Success
it was cold and rainy, but that didn’t’ stop anyone from showing up for the year’s first seed starting workshop one evening last week at the Cosmopolitan Hotel and Restaurant in Old Town San Diego. We all knew that spring is just around the corner and with it, spring and summer vegetable gardens. I panicked…
Read MoreTurn the Water ON
This is the time of year when I’m usually telling people (in the strongest terms) to turn their irrigation systems off. Problem is, we’ve had almost no rain this winter. Our rainfall total is far below normal. While the weather is warm, sunny, and beautiful for us humans, it isn’t so beautiful for plants. This…
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