by Noel | Jul 15, 2009 | Environmental Issues, Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, Gardening
Long ago I used to have a bad attitude about ornamentals. I looked at flower gardening as an indulgence, without the necessity attached to growing plants to eat. That has changed and I now not only admire beautiful gardens, but I have great respect for the gardeners who create them. Nevertheless, I’m a hungry man, so it’s mainly the vegetable garden for me. If I had more time, I would dabble in the artsy, but now I barely have time to secure the...
by Noel | Jun 22, 2009 | CobraHead, Environmental Issues, Events
This weekend Judy and I were CobraHead Exhibitors at the Midwest Renewable Energy Association’s 20th annual energy fair in Custer, Wisconsin. It is the largest show of this type in the U.S. This was our third year at the show. We sell lots of garden tools. In fact it is a way better show for sales than almost any garden or flower show we do. The reason is the audience. MREA attracts people with interest in sustainable energy. They have a very high awareness...
by Anneliese | Apr 21, 2009 | Environmental Issues
I don’t exactly know when this happened, but I discovered it at 5:45pm today, and it wasn’t like that at 4pm when I left for the post office. We’ve had three days of pretty steady rain, and the wind has been rather gusty today, so I guess this is what can happen. We’re pretty lucky it fell in the direction it did — that tree was right next to power lines! On the plus side, now we can scratch “Chop down old dead tree” off...
by Noel | Mar 14, 2009 | Environmental Issues, Gardening
I started pepper seeds yesterday. Here’s the list: Hot peppers: Orange Fogo – source – Renee’s Garden; Red Demon – source – Renee’s Garden; Unknown 1 1/2″ long short fat tapered hot, and Unknown 2 1/2″ long fat tapered hot – source – saved seed from plants given to me by my neighbor Sheryl Jarlsberg; Feherozon Paprika – source – Fedco; Anaheim – source – Fedco; Pasilla Bajio – source – Baker Creek; Bulgarian...
by Anneliese | Jan 30, 2009 | Environmental Issues, Gardening
I’ve wanted a worm bin for a while, but it was never an urgent issue. It’s not as though we don’t have a compost pile. For as long as I can remember, we’ve composted all of our food scraps. In fact, when I was a kid, I didn’t know what a garbage disposal was. I distinctly remember visiting a friend’s house and asking where they kept the compost bucket. The way I understood it, throwing food into the kitchen sink was a BAD thing....
by Anneliese | Nov 19, 2008 | Environmental Issues, Events
The past two weeks have been quite hectic for me and Geoff. We exhibited at Green Festivals two weekends in a row, and they were on opposite coasts. It’s a tiring schedule, to be sure, but we like being busy like that. The Green Festivals are always interesting and a lot of fun. At each festival we end up making new friends, and we often see a lot of old friends, too. Two weeks ago the Green Festival was in Washington DC. A number of folks from the gardening...
