Comments on: On obstacles to gardening

By: Katrina

Katrina — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 00:58:51 +0000

El- Well said! I get worked up about Michael Pollan too. I saw him a couple of weeks ago at Grace Cathedral in SF. He seemed more comfortable with the new book than the interview the night it was released. The room was standing room only and there was rapt attention to what he was saying. And the audience was as diverse as it gets. We are getting slowly educated about our food. (I’m having an optimistic day!)

By: Ed Bruske

Ed Bruske — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 16:36:15 +0000

Like the looks of those parsnips. Parsnips are going to be a major focus this year–I want more, haven’t focused enough on when to plant. Is soaking the seeds really necessary?

Lead is a big issue in urban gardens. Not only will children injest it by putting hands in mouth, but soil can be tracked into the house as dust. It’s very important–even if you don’t have kids–to have your soil tested.

By: Meg

Meg — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 03:18:40 +0000

Hooray! Wonderful post. I’m too tired to add anything productive at the moment, but I just wanted to say how much I love seeing productive rants like this.

By: Katie

Katie — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 01:36:48 +0000

Exactly! Fear is paralyzing, and sometimes you just have to make the jump and hope the net will appear. It usually does.

I received my copy of In Defense of Food delivered to my door today, and once I’m through reading all of these wonderful blogs, I’m off to read more Pollan!

By: Trace

Trace — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 00:09:14 +0000

I spent quite a few minutes today convincing a customer to try the local ground beef over the organic stuff from Argentina. I finally convinced them, but it left me scratching my head for a bit. Sure, it’s labeled organic, but c’mon…Argentina? The label is defeated simply by the energy is takes to get that pound of meat here and for us to keep it under refrigeration. I mean, you can drive to this other farm, talk to the farmer for a bit, pet a cow and be back again in about thirty minutes. And hey, it’s fifty cents cheaper per pound. The obstacle is in the semantics and in our minds…I’m working on the new Pollan book as well.

By: Emily

Emily — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 19:19:24 +0000

Hear, hear! Isn’t it amazing how we can take something simple and make it complicated, and yet oversimplify the complex things?

By: El

El — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 17:55:55 +0000

Hi frugalmom. There's some conflicting information out there, but the one source I saw that gave most sides of the picture out there was this one site. There are lots of people doing this, though; go look at Kelly and Meg's elaborate collection system. Then Susan at Garden Rant is also hosting a discussion about them.

By: frugalmom

frugalmom — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 17:34:43 +0000

Okay, I am wanting a rain barrel. Does the fact that I will have a brand new roof cause a problem? I have yet to do any research since we are still a ways off from moving in, but what can you tell me?

By: El

El — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 17:20:02 +0000

Good question, Ang! I think the Italians are the go-to folks for this, so San Marzanos (an Italian plum tomato) would work well for canning, but any small-is fruit would do. In general, though, if you’re canning whole or big chunks of tomatoes, it behooves you to use a pressure canner and not a boiling-water bath; you want to make sure the contents of the jars get completely hot enough for a long enough period of time to ensure no spoilage occurs.

I tend to not can my tomatoes whole or even in chunks. It’s only because I’m too lazy to peel them, though! (I cook them and put them through a food mill which removes both skin and seeds.) But I do have a lot of chunky salsa downstairs…again, using the pressure canner mostly because of the huge mix of stuff in the cans. Hope that helps?

By: farm mom

farm mom — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 17:09:39 +0000

Hi El, I have an off topic question for you. I’ve taken on some new gardeners as part of Pattie’s Victory Garden Drive and one of my newbies has a question about what types of tomatoes make the best for canning whole or diced tomatoes. Since I haven’t started canning yet, and since you’re going to be my canning mentor (right?!:) I told her I’d ask you!! Thanks!

By: El

El — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 15:51:30 +0000

Ali, you’re right of course, but again, completed soil tests (important to do more than one) will assure parents of small children of the risks of gardening (or doing anything) in their native soil. One shouldn’t simply assume all urban soil is contaminated, nor should one assume all country soil is pure: farmers are notorious for dumping things on their land. Exercise some common sense is my message, that, and get the facts before being scared off!

By: Ali

Ali — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 15:08:21 +0000

El, in general I agree with you, but one caveat. Several years ago, when I was managing a program that was developing community garden sites, we discovered that in a small city, the lead levels in backyard soil in some neighborhoods were so high it was dangerous for children to be gardening, let alone eating what came from the soil.

This happened a long time ago, and I’m fuzzy on the details, but from what I recall, if the backyard was covered in lawn, apparently it kept the soil-borne lead dust in check, but when the lawn was removed to make a garden plot, it allowed the contaminated soil to be windblown as well as exposed children working in the garden. We promptly built raised beds or moved to new sites.

If small kids are going to be around the garden, a lead check is a must in my opinion. But again, in general I agree with you; what we grow ourselves is WAY safer for us than what big ag produces.