Where Master Gardeners share their knowledge.
A brief history of the origins of our favorite garden vegetables Ice on the puddles the other morning had me lamenting the fact that it was still too soon to put starts outside for the season. That got me wondering about the vast number of plants we love to grow in Alaska that aren’t native to our region. Wishing that I wasn’t at the mercy of our climate I asked myself “where do cucumbers grow in the wild?”. Within minutes my curiosity got the better of me. Suddenly, I was Read More …
I used to be so angry when summer ended and I would have so many green (unripe) tomatoes. Now I accept, and embrace the bounty of green fruit. I will share with you some tips of ripening these green tomatoes, and then recipes for the ones that never turn. The Ripening There are a few different options to ripen a tomato. You could cut your whole plant down, with tomatoes still attached, and hang in your garage or crawl space. Another option is to pick all your green tomatoes and Read More …
Climate change is no joke, and I am certainly no expert on the subject. Many of us have read various reports, observations, and predictions about the consequences of a changing climate on Alaska and Alaskans’ ways of life. This post is not intended to be a debate or manifesto on climate change, but one component of this year’s garden did get me thinking particularly deeply about the Alaska climate and weather and gardening. That component was the gift of two tomato plants and the fact that I do not Read More …
What lead me to apartment gardening: I grew up having a garden, white picket fence and all. As I became an adult and ultimately ended up living in an apartment, I realized how much I missed having fresh fruits and vegetables at my fingertips. I also remembered how much better they tasted. Not just because they were fresh but because of the amount of pride I took in being able to enjoy the fruits of my labor. Where the apartment gardening began: So at 18, living in a small apartment Read More …
Starting the Process… While being surrounded by family and friends that garden, this summer finds me having endeavored into the art of growing a small variety of tomatoes for the first time. There are so many lessons to absorb. In addition to wading through the learning curve of germinating seeds, transporting starts and watering appropriately, a quality location was needed to build a greenhouse. Having constructed our family cabin on a small plot located on the north bank of the Yukon, the most logical place appeared to be down Read More …