On a recent trip to Kandy I enjoyed an evening boat ride during which I was surprised by what at first appeared to be mostly jungle on the riverbanks. On closer inspection I discovered they were actually gardens deliberately planted and maintained along the muddy banks. The crops were mostly tarrow and banana for home use, but others included green and yellow … Read More
After struggling through the monsoon seasons last year, I set out to find a green(ish) veg crop for our rooftop garden that would not suffer from overwatering as our tomatoes and pumpkins did. Enter okra, which was until recently my least favorite vegetable. I don’t know why I did not consider okra sooner because we actually eat it somewhat regularly. Popular back home … Read More
We throw away so many things every day without thinking, just to get in the car, drive to the store, buy some more of them and repeat the process. This started to drive me nuts a few years ago when I was given a lovely collection of old-fashioned lady’s handkerchiefs. I realized the sheer volume of how many tissues I would go through during cold … Read More
My favorite thing to find in the garden is fruit trees in bloom. The smell, the pop of delicate blossoms, and tiny burgeoning fruits. Unfortunately in most small gardens, fruit trees spend most of the year as thorny tangled messes whose branches lazily droop into nearby vegetable beds. The kindly gardener has to tip-toe around her lemons lest they reach out and tear her sleeve, or worse, … Read More
In our design for the Rosmead Garden we have included several espalier fruit trees to maximize production in our small space without losing much room or sunlight. We plan for one of these to be an avocado. Typically, avocado trees grow very large and cumbersome – 5 to 8 feet at maturity. This would take up most of the small kitchen garden … Read More