After a lifetime spent playing other people, Drew Barrymorehas created a new career—and a home line—based on being herself.
21.07.2023 - 23:07 / awaytogarden.com
NO VEGETABLE IS MORE COMMONLY GROWN by home gardeners than the tomato (Lycopersicon lycopersicum), but that doesn’t mean you should grow the same common varieties year in and out. More than 100 kinds are available in specialty catalogs as plants these days if you don’t have seeds around to start right now (and I mean right now) for transplanting outdoors the first week of June. Don’t settle for the mundane; sow seed before the end of the month or order plants for delivery after Memorial Day. Want to know which nurseries have a really great selection?Although ‘Sweet 100’ and its later sibling ‘Sweet Million’ probably dominate the cherry-tomato market, even among these little tomatoes there are outstanding alternatives to be had: ‘Chadwick’s Cherry,’ carried as seed or plants by Bountiful Gardens, is an ample, golfball-size with good tomato taste; ‘Sungold’ (shown, next to two red ‘Sweet 100’ fruits) is tangerine-orange and very tasty. Your local nursery should have this.
For novelty in a salad tomato, try ‘Black Prince’ (mahogany brown and juicy inside) or pink-fleshed ‘Oxheart’. There are better paste tomatoes than the standard ‘Roma’, too, like ‘Super Italian Paste’ and ‘San Marzano’ (both large-fruited).
I have not even scratched the surface, of course. Territorial Seed has more than 80 kinds of tomatoes as plants for mail-order, including many, like ‘Stupice,’ rated especially for their productivity in short growing seasons like mine.
I have long used the cages of all cages (and my other tomato advice). [Update: A tomato breeder suggests that staking and pruning, rather than caging, may be a better choice to help combat tomato disease if you’ve had issues.] More to come, of course, closer to planting time. Promise.
CategAfter a lifetime spent playing other people, Drew Barrymorehas created a new career—and a home line—based on being herself.
Though located in a stately pre-war building on New York’s Upper East Side—a neighborhood not generally associated with laid-back, loosey-goosey vibes—the sunny three-bedroom, three-bath apartment that Drew Barrymore shares with her two daughters, Olive, 10, and Frankie, 9, is anything but uptight. Her two cats and two dogs make themselves at home on the sofas, her girls regularly spread out their messy art supplies all over the dining room table, and even Jeremy, the family’s bearded dragon (who, by the way, is female), is allowed to roam free.
Today we’re back in the Forest Park, Illinois, garden of Enrique Zuniga and Christian Altman, a space they transformed from a blank piece of turfgrass into a beautiful garden that attracts pollinators and is enjoyed by them, their three dogs, and their friends alike. We saw some of the garden yesterday and are back to enjoy more of it today.
A quick way to clean the algae out of a garden water feature after a long, dark, and wet winter is to use a power washer. It only takes a few minutes to dislodge the long mats of algae, and the low volume of water that blows out of the nozzle doesn’t disturb even the smallest of rocks. Start at the top of where the water flows and work your way down to the bottom of the feature. This is a lot easier and more effective than grabbing the strands by hand and then using a brush to clean the rest away. You can see the difference in these “before” and “after” photos. I enjoy this a lot more than power washing the patio.
My grandmother taught me that you cannot just take from a garden; you must always give back and care for the soil. This is a lesson I apply to any garden that I tend. No matter the soil type, adding organic matter will improve soil structure and make more nutrients available to plants.
Non-alcoholic beer, wine, and liquor have been staples for years for those who are sober, sober-curious, pregnant, or even just want a night off from drinking. But for those who still love to indulge in a buzzy beverage now and again, the latest and greatest alcohol trend has emerged: low-proof alcohols and low-proof cocktails. Why is this new option catching the eye of so many, and how can you make a low-proof cocktail at home? Here’s everything you need to know.
Pass the cocktail sauce, because when it comes to trendy seafood, shrimp is leading the charge. While this shellfish has been a family favorite for decades as the most consumed seafood in the U.S., more and more restaurants—including many popular chains—are highlighting this protein as an affordable luxury. What’s all the hype about? Is this inexpensive shrimp as wholesome as it seems, or are there other factors you should be aware of before making plans to hit up the peel-and-eat buffet?
It’s the end of June, and my vegetable garden looks rough. The heat and the insects have wreaked havoc on my once beautiful Garden of Eden. This is the perfect time to rejuvenate some of the crops using a technique call ratooning.
The tomato is a fruit from the nightshade family native to South America. The Spanish first introduced tomatoes to Europe, where they became used in Spanish and Italian food.
Last week I was making a grilled London broil and baked potatoes for dinner (Yum!). I was also planning to grill some seasoned zucchini as our vegetable with dinner. When it came time to prepare dinner, I decided I wanted something a little different from grilled zucchini. I looked at the ingredients that I had on hand and developed this recipe for Italian Zucchini and Tomato Gratin. It was fast and easy to prepare, and my family loved it. I can’t wait to make it again once I have some home-grown tomatoes and zucchini to use! I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do!
I PUT MY BEANS UP ON A PEDESTAL because they are one of the crops that’s finally producing here in the Year of Big Rains. In fact, I just planted another whole row of bush beans, along with more collards and kale, among many things. Welcome to Week 3 of the cross-blog Summer Fest 2009: Beans and Greens Week, a perfect time (if you hurry) to fine-tune the vegetable garden and eke out some produce for late summer, fall—and beyond.