I’m giving a short 30 minute presentation tomorrow evening (Tuesday) for the University of Toronto Community Garden Group as a part of “Alternative Frosh Week.” As a former poor university student I just love the fact that University campuses now have community gardens. Homegrown, fresh food sure beats kraft dinner. I’ll be speaking about my …
I spent yesterday afternoon multi-tasking between a series of deadlines and making fall treats: pumpkin pie, and green tomato chutney. The chutney recipe can be found on page 154 of the You Grow Girl book. Since the oven was blazing, I also threw in an assortment of tomatoes for roasting, and an over-sized zucchini. My …
Ann Slater of the Ecological Farming Association of Ontario takes on CropLife Canada, a trade association for the manufacturers, developers and distributors of pesticide and GMO products that has been working on a smear campaign targeting organic food production. Why is CropLife Canada so keen to smear organic? According to their survey of Canadian women, …
What: Knit or crochet up beautiful, warm woolies for charity. Mittens, arm warmers, hats, and scarves are all fantastic. A YGG forum member suggests keyhole scarves as anything that wraps around the neck can be uncomfortable and even unsafe for women coming from violent experiences. New items made by you only please. To Support: Redwood …
I am a strong believer that gardening does not, and should not, require a lot of “stuff”. Container gardeners especially can get along with their hands, or a fork, spoon, and kitchen shears if need be. However, the right tool can make you feel like you’re ready to kick some ass even when the only …
At a Toronto area You Grow Girl meet up last week we discussed our gardening successes and disappointments of the last year. Beth, a rooftop container gardener mentioned that she was most disappointed by her container-grown ‘Chinese Five Colour’ (or color for the Americans) Hot Pepper plant, stating that the plant was boring and the …
My passionflower vine grew a passionfruit! This may seem like small hat (or other small things) to those of you living in the warm, Southern regions of the world, but it’s a BIG deal to a Northern gardener like me. I have grown passionflower vine many times in the past. In fact I grew one …
Guest post by Renee Garner
Guest post by Amy Urquhart This article in today’s Toronto Star is interesting. It’s about people harvesting from neglected or owner-less trees in the city. It made me think about an apple tree that is sitting off the side of the exit ramp I take every day on my way home from work. It’s just …
It’s mid September and sadly most of the container-grown tomato plants on my rooftop are on their last lap. A few green stragglers remain and the vines are starting to yellow and fade. Thankfully I’ve got another crop still running over at my community garden plot where the plants aren’t subjected to the intense sun …
Because you asked, here’s a photo of the inside of the ‘Black Pear’ tomato. I ate another one yesterday afternoon. They really are soft, dense, sweet, and rich. Whether or not they beat out my #1 ‘Black Krim’ or ‘Purple Cherokee’ (I can’t tell the difference in taste or appearance) remains to be seen. I’ll …
Update: The first of the next batch has ripened. I had both my neighbour and my spouse do a taste test and we all agree that while it is tasty, it doesn’t stand up to the black indeterminates like ‘Black Krim’ or ‘Black Plum’. My final verdict is that it’s a great mid-sized determinate perfect …