Abundant Harvests – garden info | Change-Making.com

What’s in your El Niño garden?

Jan 7, 2016adminAbundant Harvests - garden info, Cityscape Seedslocal seeds, rain, vegetable gardening

Oh, this is the season for leafy greens and root vegetables — and an El Niño year is no exception!

They grow plenty of veggies in English gardens and (although we in So Cal may be unaccustomed to it) that’s the kind of climate we have here this winter.

Just to prove my point, yesterday evening my smartphone weather app had the same forecast for London as for L.A. … rainy, high 40s …

The thing to know about wet winters and gardens (in addition to El Niño flood preparations) is:

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What’s your get-ready-for-rain routine?

Jan 4, 2016adminAbundant Harvests - garden infodrought, rain, Rainwater harvesting, wildlife

waterbarrel We’re ever hopeful that we’ll get some rain. Here in L.A., deep into this historic drought, that still remains a big hope!

But each time the weather forecasts call for precipitation, I run around doing my routine … garden tools away, close the sheds, buckets and wheelbarrows inverted. Here are a few special ones ……

Seeding the new forest garden

Dec 27, 2015adminAbundant Harvests - garden info, Community Garden at Holy Nativityfood forest, soil building

A forest garden is a garden of perennial plants that produce food. It is often designed to look “forest-like,” with trees forming a canopy above, and smaller plants creating a “forest floor” effect underneath.

As part of the Westchester Community Oven project, we had always intended to try adding a food forest garden to the Community Garden at Holy Nativity.

Since the spot chosen was under an asphalt parking lot for at least 30 years, the first step was some soil remediation. …

Rainwater Harvesting demonstrated at the Community Garden

Dec 9, 2015adminAbundant Harvests - garden inforain, Rainwater harvesting, water saving

We have 4 different types of rainwater harvesting demonstrated at the Community Garden at Holy Nativity in Los Angeles. You are welcome to come and see them, and copy them at home.…

El Niño: Know your Big Picture

Nov 19, 2015adminAbundant Harvests - garden info, water wisdom

As city creatures, most people know streets and shortcuts. They know the municipal grid. But they are very unaware of the geologic watershed that runs beneath their feet.…

Preparing for El Nino – Nov. 7

Oct 28, 2015adminAbundant Harvests - garden info, Community events in Westchester, water wisdom

Are you ready for LOTS of rain? Sounds like it is headed our way this winter.

That’s why on Saturday November 7, we’ll be preparing for rain at the Westchester Community Oven. Come learn about water drainage, how to install a french drain, and how to correct your grading.…

Rainstorms and the cob oven

Sep 20, 2015adminAbundant Harvests - garden info, Environmental Change-Makers communitycob building

After months of drought, last Tuesday in the wee hours of the morning we got 1.79 inches of rain within about 6 hours — the tail end of Hurricane Linda.

Long story short, the Oven was uncovered during a severe downpour, and the Oven has suffered damage. …

ebook The Secrets of Soil Building now available

Aug 22, 2015adminAbundant Harvests - garden infosoil building

You can now get my new ebook, The Secrets of Soil Building, to help you in your gardening journey. At the heart of every successful organic garden is rich, healthy, ALIVE garden soil. The Secrets of Soil Building helps you build it, and become an awesome vegetable gardener. If you liked my classes at the Community Garden at…

Making the best of drought and flood

Aug 19, 2015adminAbundant Harvests - garden info, water wisdomrain, Rainwater harvesting, water saving

rain barrel overflowing

Seems like we’re getting the weather extremes this year. A summer of extreme drought, water rationing, and lawn removal. And winter forecasts are for record-breaking rains (but all that water isn’t here yet).

How do we make the best of all these extremes?…

Tis the season to be planning!

Aug 17, 2015adminAbundant Harvests - garden info, Community events in Westchesteredible landscaping

In Martha Stewart’s book Gardening, she described her gardening January as a time to curl up in a favorite chair with all her catalogs and dream about spring. Not so in Southern California!

Here in So Cal, January should be bare-root tree planting season, the beginning-of-the-peak of our cool season harvests, and time for second planting of cool season crops, if you didn’t plant them between Halloween and Thanksgiving. Instead, our “resting” season in the garden is right now: in the heat of late summer.

Now is the time to be curling up with a tall lemonade and your favorite garden catalogs. Time to dream about what you will plant this cool season, and what you will plant next spring. Tis the season to be planning!…

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Category: Abundant Harvests – garden info