By thegardenergal on June 6, 2011
I’m an organic gardener…. would I use nonorganic mulch on my garden? Only if hell froze over. Yeah, I said it. My mulch of choice for the flower garden is wood chips, preferably from a local source. It’s not that there’s anything wrong with mulch from outside of my zone, but why would I want to take a chance on introducing pathogens that are not native to my area? I guess I’m a mulch snob and I didn’t even realize it until just now! Continue reading »
Posted in Conservation, Country Lifestyle, Ecology, Gardening, Green living, I recommend these..., Kansas, Kansas farm life, Kansas weather, Teaching, Tips, Tricks and How-tos
By thegardenergal on April 23, 2011
More than once in the last two weeks, I have explained the difference between compost and mulch to two different people in two different states. Today, when a third person asked me, I figured this deserves some explanation. They are not the same thing, although one can be the other, sort of, in a way. Confused yet? Continue reading »
Posted in Conservation, Earth Day, Ecology, Gardening, Green living, I recommend these..., Kansas, Teaching, Tips, Tricks and How-tos
By thegardenergal on April 17, 2011
I have some experience teaching children about gardening, as I’ve taught several classes at the Kids’ College presented by Butler Community College every summer. Kids make great gardeners and any child who shows an interest should be encouraged, even if the parents or caregivers aren’t as enthusiastic as I am. Continue reading »
Posted in Gardening, Green living, Kansas, Teaching
By thegardenergal on April 14, 2011
To those of you that know me – remember back when I wanted desperately to be a college English teacher? Well…. I’ve had a bit of a rethink on that goal. A recent gardening experience was a real revelation to me. And it all happened while lecturing about one of my favorite topics. Continue reading »
Posted in Gardening, Green living, Kansas, Teaching
By thegardenergal on August 25, 2010
Did you ever have so much to say all at once that you just didn’t say anything at all? That’s what’s been happening to me. I have a million things I want to blog about, but I’m exhausted and overwhelmed and I haven’t said a word in weeks! Continue reading »
Posted in Butler Community College, Gardening, Green living, Kansas, Teaching
By thegardenergal on July 20, 2010
I have tried and tried to remember all of the things that I was asked about last Saturday when I spoke at the Augusta Public Library in Augusta, Kansas, and this is all I can remember. Continue reading »
Posted in Gardening, Green living, I recommend these..., Kansas, Teaching, Tips, Tricks and How-tos
By thegardenergal on July 14, 2010
Organic gardening isn’t for the squeamish. My husband and I have, in the last three days, viciously murdered about 40 tomato hornworms in our vegetable garden. They make a most satisfying pop when you step on them. Continue reading »
Posted in Gardening, Green living, Kansas, Teaching, Tips, Tricks and How-tos
By thegardenergal on July 11, 2010
I will be speaking at the Augusta Public Library on Saturday, July 17th at 10:30 a.m. about water conservation in the garden. (Click on the date on the calendar on that page to read more about it!) Continue reading »
Posted in Butler Community College, Gardening, Green living, I recommend these..., Kansas, Teaching, Tips, Tricks and How-tos
By thegardenergal on July 10, 2010
Here’s the recipe for cinnamon butter, which was a crowd-pleaser this morning at Cooking with Herbs class. I served it with whole wheat bread, the recipe for which is elsewhere on this blog. This is pretty good stuff. Enjoy! Continue reading »
Posted in I recommend these..., Kansas, Recipes, Reducing sodium intake, Teaching
By thegardenergal on July 9, 2010
I’m presenting “Cooking with Herbs” again on Saturday, July 10th at Art of Life Chiropractic in El Dorado, and I’m featuring these foods: Corn Salad with Basil and Pea Salad with Mint. Mmmm….. you do not want to miss out on this! You already missed out on Chicken Lemon Tarragon salad, which was served at Thursday night’s presentation. It was awesome! Recipes follow. Continue reading »
Posted in Gardening, Green living, I recommend these..., Kansas, Recipes, Reducing sodium intake, Teaching, Tips, Tricks and How-tos