APPLES TREES—the fruit everyone thinks they want in their backyards—aren’t easy to grow East of the Rockies, as those who have tried probably noticed when they produced blemished fruit (or required multiple pest-defeating tactics on a strict schedule). And if you’re keeping track, apples aren’t native. Fruit expert Lee Reich offers up two unusual but delicious American native fruit-tree beauties that require little more than to be planted. In print or the latest public-radio podcast, how to grow pawpaws (top photo) and persimmons to perfection. [read more…]
fruit
How to prune fruit trees, growing berries, making and canning applesauce, peach and pear desserts, and more. Delicious!
growing native fruit trees: pawpaws and persimmons, with lee reich
April 29, 2013 By 2 Comments
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10 tips for growing blueberries in the backyard (win lee reich’s book and come meet him may 11)
March 25, 2013 By 339 Comments
WANT TO SUCCEED with blueberries? Ask the guy with a Ph.D. in the subject, author of all the best books on home-garden fruit growing: Lee Reich, the guest on my latest public-radio show—and the speaker at the May 11 Open Day here at my Hudson Valley, New York, garden. That’s Lee’s blueberry “gazebo” up top. All the delicious details…along with how to grow blueberries (in print or the podcast) and two chances to win Lee’s book “Grow Fruit Naturally.” [read more…]
dear gayla: the root cellar of our dreams?
March 19, 2013 By 213 Comments
DEAR GAYLA: I wanted to write immediately, because if anyone would understand this latest mad urge, it would be you. Oh help me, please, but I want a root cellar in the very worst way. [read more…]
how to grow melons (plus a podcast)
March 18, 2013 By 16 Comments
HAS A JUICY, PLENTIFUL HARVEST of melons eluded you—perhaps because your growing season feels too short up North, or because powdery mildew attacked your plants in high summer, a challenge even in Southern, longer-season areas? How to grow melons: tips for success, in print and on my latest podcast, too, with Tom Stearns of High Mowing Organic Seeds. [read more…]
on the trail of tomatillos: podcast, and a giveaway
February 18, 2013 By 319 Comments
ADD THEM TO THE LIST of plants I suddenly noticed are MIA—things I “always” grew but haven’t lately. The latest “where did they go?” crop: tomatillos. I’m determined to master a salsa recipe to can or freeze this year, particularly a green one, or salsa verde. That’s why tomatillos, which self-sowed here for a decade before disappearing who knows why or exactly when, are on the to-grow list in 2013. Some how-to—including on my weekly radio show, where I get advice from my friend Gayla Trail—plus a giveaway of a whole salsa-garden seed kit. [read more…]
