Crumb Trail

Borders Has It...

...and so does Barnes & Noble in their Fort Wayne Stores.  I found a copy of Hobby Farm Home Magazine at Borders this weekend and purchased a copy.  It's contents met all of my expectations and more.  I found particularly interesting the article with instructions on harvesting and drying your own herbs, as herbs are the most important part of my personal garden.  I also really appreciated an article entitled "A Salute to Self-Sufficiency" which recounted the history of Victory Gardens, and included information on: dehydration as a method of food preservation, valuing our seeds, and rethinking our expectations.

When I called Barnes and Noble, I was told that they carry it there also.  So, if you want to take a look at an issue before subscribing, it is available at least at those two stores. Definitely make the effort to pick up a copy, peruse it yourself and see what you think.

Square Foot Gardens

Now here is a concept I have totally fallen for.  The idea is that your build a 4 foot by 4 foot square box and this becomes your container garden.  Almost everyone of us could handle that.  You fill the box with a combination of 1/3 compost, 1/3 peat moss, and 1/3 coarse vermiculite and then divide the top of the box with a 1 foot by 1 foot square grid giving you 16 squares.  This is an easy to manage size garden that can be filled with flowers, herbs, vegetables, or any those combinations.  Each square foot contains one variety of plant.  This method was developed by Mel Bartholomew and you must check out Square Foot Gardening which gives step by step instructions in building this type of garden along with illustrations and amazing pictures of the end result with his garden and others. 

This is just such a sensible and easy way to go, especially for beginner gardeners, without a great deal of investment in space, soil preparation, and with no weeding involved.

"Victory Garden" free seminar

Mark you calendar, Ricky Kemery an educator with the Purdue Horticulture Extension Office, is offering a free gardening seminar.  "A How-To Guide to Establish a Vegetable Garden during Tough Economic Times."  This is being offered at the Aboite Branch Library at 6:00 pm on Monday March 30th.

This sounds like a great opportunity for anyone thinking of starting a garden of their own this year, no matter how small or how much previous experience you may have.   I will be there!

Hobby Farm Home Magazine

I just came across a magazine that I, and maybe some of you, may be interested in, Hobby Farm Home Magazine.  It is published six times a year and contains articles providing information on gardening skills, recipes utilizing seasonal "home grown" produce, journaling your garden's progress, edible landscaping, and much, much, more.  For more information, visit their web site hobby-farm-home and check out all they have to offer.  For the $15/year subscription, I think it would be money well spent to keep me educated, focused, and encouraged in my personal efforts to make a difference in my life and in the lives of those I feed.

Presently the magazine is not available in our library, but I have placed a request for the library to subscribe to it.  All magazine orders by the Allen County Library are submitted in the summer and the subscriptions start at the beginning of the following year.  If our library okays my request, the magazine would not be available until 2010.

The First Day of Spring!

Well, I promised to be back writing again in the Spring, and here I am again in front of my computer.  What a glorious day Spring has bestowed on us.  It is clear, cool, breezy and sunny in Fort Wayne this morning.  Makes me want to tackle some of those clean-up jobs that are waiting for me.

This year I've decided to grow my own herb seedlings just for the fun (work?) of it.  I have chosen the herbs that I use most and that I know do well potted and placed on my patio.  How successful each of  these varieties will be in the process from germinating, to thinning, to potting, to acclimating, will be educational and enjoyable to me as I struggle through my first attempt at this process, on this scale.  I am going to try this with parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, tarragon, and basil.  None of them might survive the "ordeal", but I will certainly learn a thing or two.

If any of you have any hints to help me along the way, please pass them on to me.  Otherwise you might see me later this Spring in one of the markets purchasing one or all six of the above herbs, well-started and ready for me to transplant into my patio pots. 

Great to be back!