Posts from — May 2008

A friend of mine, a good friend in fact, said “Twenty-Minute Jim, you’re a big fat liar! There’s NO WAY you plant that garden of yours in only 20 minutes a day.” I wasn’t offended. I didn’t even puff out my cheeks or stamp my feet in protest. I knew for a fact that this year, we’d spent quite a bit more than 20 minutes a day so far in the garden. But I don’t think our experience so far this year essentially disproves our hypothesis (i.e. that a lovely organic, urban kitchen garden can be created by two folks working 20 minutes a day.) Here’s why: [Read more →]

If you’ve ever owned or seen a neglected raspberry bush, you might note that they still produce berries. They may look messy and unkept and even dangerous with the thorns and all, but they will still grow and flower and make berries. So, other than for neatness’ sake, why trellis raspberries?
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Stuart Robinson, the host of the nifty gardening website Blotanical, has an inspiring post on the 20 minute theme. If you are feeling unmotivated or overwhelmed or too tired after a day at work to take on the garden, you might find that a quick glance over his list could provide the jumpstart you need to get a little something done.
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Over Memorial Weekend, the temperature in southeast Michigan reached 80F. We wore hats and sunblock while gardening. We paused to rest and stop sweating in the shade whenever convenient. In the evening, I had to get the box fan from basement storage so that we could cool our bedroom down enough to sleep.

Then yesterday we had overnight Frost Advisories in effect, a full week after our “last frost” date.
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If you have read more than a couple entries on our site, you’ll have realized that we are mulch advocates. We talk about mulch all the time. Maybe you’re wondering what exactly we mean by mulch. Maybe you are wondering, “Where do I buy mulch and how much should I get?”

The answer to those questions is “No.” “No, no, no, no, no.”
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