Smoke is filtering out the sun. The hot August days are as cool as a warm day in March. Orchards, already struggling with a world glut of fruit, as the empty land […]
Smoke on the Orchards Reveals Some Structural Weaknesses in Canadian Apple Growing
I Went to the Garden to Taste What I Could See
Black Krim, Brandywine and friends. Brandywine is very, very happy this year (the big pink girl at bottom right, upper centre and peeking in from the top left.) Back in 1962 when […]
Build An Earth for Wasps? Now’s the Time!
Right in this season, right now, sales of wasp-killing products are peaking, as the yellow jackets drive everyone away from eating outdoors. It can be freaky, especially when the nests are right […]
The Day the Sky Came Down to Earth
The shallots I planted last July are blooming now, and replacing the lost nodding onions up on the hill. The sky has noticed. Welcome, Sky! These blue beauties were in the mariposa […]
Just a Mouthful, Thank You Very Much
Big sunflowers are for the birds and big apes, eh. But small ones, the gloriously misnamed arrow-leafed balsam root, are for tiny birds, who peck the tiny seeds, and deer, who munch […]
Sweet Apricot Kernels
Move over California, with your water-hungry almonds. 4.5 litres of water to grow one almond? Ridiculous! We have apricots with sweet kernels here in the north, that can grow in the shrub […]
Getting Down to Some Serious Fun in the Kitchen
There are close to 20,000 acres of wine grapes planted in the ruins of the Okanagan Valley, immensely attractive to tourists and restauranteurs alike. The wine? Well, some is fine and most […]
Still Time for Christmas Harvest
So sweet now. What a great crop this year. Merry Juniper Harvest!
How to Grow Tasteless Apples
For around forty years, the provincial government has been financially supporting this method of apple growing. Looks pretty modern and efficient, doesn’t it! It’s very seductive. Bankers and government officials love it. […]
Spigold: the apple you want to eat
I picked this single branch of spigolds today. Look at them shining! This is the kind of apple for picking from the tree and then sharing with whoever comes by, with a […]
