Berries of Northwest Alaska

As the sun begins to set in August, and us “northerners” finally experience some darkness, the berries of northwest Alaska begin to flourish. The sun sets for about 5 hours now, which is both good and bad. Good, because the berries we gather near the coast are able to turn on the afterburners, so to speak, in terms of growing. They soak up the sun during the day, and rest at night, similar to those of us who are busy all summer long. Bad, because it marks our end of Read More …

Gardening in the Snow

In April, when the average temperature hovers around 20 above, and the snow glistens in the 12 hour sunlight, arctic gardeners like to start their seeds. Throughout the year, we wash out yogurt containers, sour cream and cottage cheese containers save egg cartons, paper towel tubes, and even those clear plastic takeout containers. We start seeds because the nearest greenhouse is 600 air miles away and we can’t afford to wait for the weather. While the kids are ice fishing, my husband and I set up two folding tables next Read More …