upper peninsula
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Winding Down, Sorta
It’s mid September. When you ask a gardener how it’s going, they’ll answer 1) Things are really winding down or 2) I’m over it or 3) Both. In some ways I feel like we just got started. Growing season is… Continue reading
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‘Tis the Season
Deck the counter with peppers and potatoes, fa la la la la, la la la la.Beans, and corn and ripe tomatoes. Fa la la la la, la la la la. It’s the most wonderful time of the year for gardeners.… Continue reading
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Prepping for Corn
When the corn starts taseling, the Boss starts drooling. It means the time is near — Sweet Corn Season! When corn season hits, that’s all he will eat for dinner the entirety of the season. His goal is a 300-ear… Continue reading
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Garden of Weedin’
“What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson I wanted to title this post I hate weeding, but hate seems like a harsh word to use for gardening, so I’ll just say,… Continue reading
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Marathon May
May is a butt kicker of a month for gardeners. Yes, I know it is June and that is my point. We were already rolling in abundance when we completed our eastward migration. YES! Cold frames filled with spinach. Three… Continue reading
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Copious Corn Consumption
Corn. That’s what happening around here. The Boss has been waiting for this all year. He’s been carefully planning since browsing the seed catalog in February. Three hundred seeds. Three hundred opportunities for bi-colored deliciousness. You know corn season is… Continue reading
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Awesome Amazing Abundant August
August is the best month! “Sun is shining, the weather is sweet,” – Bob Marley. The weather is perfect. Abundant with sunshine and well-timed rain (the kind you can take off all your clothes and dance in). It’s warm enough… Continue reading
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Re-branding the Cucumber
Is your garden overrun by cucumbers? Is the farmers market giving away free cucumbers with every purchase? Are your neighbors foisting their excess cucumbers on you? Sick of pickles? Then I’ve got a solution for you: spa cucumbers. Cucumbers have… Continue reading
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The War on Bugs
When you are a gardener, something is always trying to destroy all your hard work. It’s frustrating. Seems like most of my conversations with other growers involve commiserating about the shit that’s eating our garden and brain storming about how… Continue reading
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The Robin Whisperer
It started a few years ago when the robins built a nest in our pear tree. Dum dums. It’s not that we don’t like robins, it’s just that the birds built their nest too low. Too low for what? Snakes.… Continue reading
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Orach is the New Black
When I look into my purple gazing ball, what does the future of vegetables look like? Orach. Move over kale, there is a new veggie trend and its purple. These ancient little leaves are packed with nutrients and are much… Continue reading
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Planning for Abundance
We migrated back to the Eden of Garden three weeks later than usual this year. This typically would not be a big deal to me — May in the UP sucks. May in the UP is like going back in… Continue reading
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Willy-nilly
Willy-nilliness will absolutely not be tolerated in the Eden of Garden. And this is a source of many a tense moment between the Boss and me. He is a carpenter and a builder with the mind of an engineer and… Continue reading
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Austere Times in the Eden of Garden
Six months ago we packed up the truck with loads of home-grown veggies and canned goods and headed West. A week ago we traveled back across the highline loaded with cases of empty mason jars and crates filled with goodies… Continue reading
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Eating Season
Gordy sleeps with his tomatoes. At least that is what he told me. That way he can feel what the tomatoes are experiencing. Are they getting too cold? Too wet? Maybe too lonely? He plants them six feet apart. His… Continue reading













