Tomatoes are a whole lot more fun to grow when they’re well-supported, easy to prune, and convenient to harvest. OK, so tomatoes are really, ridiculously fun to grow no matter what. Which is why most of us turn to the ubiquitous tomato cage at some point early in our tomato obsession to up our game and grow more of them. The thing is, cages are expensive. And they take up a ton of space in the garden....
My first forays into composting were utter disasters. Not simply failures, disasters. The first was in a plastic bin and quickly became overrun with fruit flies before I tossed the whole lot out a month later (following barely any decomposition). The second was in an open pile and grew mold before I tossed it out following… barely any decomposition after two full months. After finally getting sick of wasting my time with poorly-managed compost bins, I dug in and learned that my primary (but certainly not only) issue was one of mass....
Growing your own food inevitably means building a few things to get the most out of your space. Even in our small space, we’ve had occassion to build raised beds, custom trellises, indoor seed racks, fences to keep out pests, and more! And our preferred medium for all these projects is wood. Primarily because woodworking doesn’t have to cost a fortune in equipment (and hopefully lumber prices will keep coming down… )....
If you’re looking for a new winter squash to add to your rotation this year (or next) - look no further than the Black Futsu Squash. This interesting Japanese heirloom is in the pumpkin family and has been grown for hundreds of years in its native country. And while you’ll sometimes see it described as producing an “ornamental” or “decorative” fruit, these squashes are actually a superbly delicious addition to any food garden....
It’s tough to get excited about winter gardening. Maybe it’s the sheer challenge of growing plants in the face of cold, short days. Or maybe it’s the fact that most of our favorite fruiting crops like tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, and eggplant won’t grow. Or perhaps it’s simply the unpleasant prospect of tending the garden in a winter storm. So what’s the ambitious homesteader to do? Well, don’t opt out of the season if your goal is to grow as much food as possible for your family....