Steven Trudell, PhD, and Joe Ammirati, PhD, know their ’shrooms.

Authors of the recently released Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest, Trudell is an affiliate professor of forest resources and lecturer in biology, while Ammirati is a professor of biology who specializes in mycology (the study of mushrooms). Both teach at the University of Washington.

The profs wrote this book because mushroom guides are plentiful, but they could never find one that focused on the Pacific Northwest—an area with diverse and abundant mushrooms. In 352 pages, with more than 460 photos, they cover the geographical area, fungi basics, mushroom collecting, fungus ecology and mushroom poisoning.

Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest makes a great gift for organic mushroom aficionados. It regularly retails for $27.95, but Amazon is currently offering the book for $18.45 (a 34% savings).

If you’re ready to take the organic gardening plunge, we have some great tips for you from the experts at Bonnie Plants, a green-gardening wholesaler in Union Springs, AL: 

1. Don’t be intimidated. With a little attention and effort, growing fall vegetables in a backyard garden and in planters has advantages over spring and summer plantings. Cooler weather means plants require less care, as increased rainfall reduces the need for watering. Plants will grow rapidly at first and gradually slow as the days become shorter and colder. You’ll also find fewer destructive insects, and weeds will germinate less often.
2. Shine it on. Most vegetables need at least 6 hours of direct sunlight per day, as well as a steady supply of moisture and nutrients from soil. Mix a 2-inch layer of compost into soil, or spread an organic fertilizer according to package directions. Plants will need an inch of moisture per week, either through rain or supplemental watering.
3. Start with transplants. Transplants buy you time, as plants are at least 6 weeks older when you put them in the ground. This means you’ll begin harvesting much sooner than if you start from seed. Your local garden center should offer optimum fall varieties for your geographic region.
4. Don’t fear frost. When frost threatens, cover plants with a floating row cover, cold frame or cloche. Or, you can grow fall veggies in a container and move the pot to a protected location on frosty nights. Make sure your soil is well drained and doesn’t get soggy.
5. Make room for new plants. Before planting fall crops, clear the area of summer and spring crops you have previously planted, as they may decay and encourage bacterial infection.

Photo courtesy of ARA

The hope is that community agricultural will help quell unrest between Muslims and Buddhists, and promote self-sufficiency in the local community.

Muslim residents of Thailand’s Yala province, who make up 80% of the population, say they are treated like second-class citizens in the predominantly Buddhist country.

In 2004, minor violent outbursts morphed into full blown conflict, with both Buddhist monks and Muslims being murder, forcing a strong military presence in the region.

The organic garden serves as tool to teach all of Yala’s citizens, who are among the poorest in the nation, the merits of organic agricultural and how supporting the community garden can help citizens help themselves.

Officials say that thousands of villagers and local businesspeople have attended training courses on using bio-fertilizer and composting. Buddhist army officers regularly give lessons on how to use the fertilizer to Muslims in the area.

Even though violence continues to wage in the region, members of the Military say the organic farming is an important attempt to win hearts and minds.

Community Supported Agriculture is a great way to get people working together, so maybe it’ll help on such a large-scale too.

Via Time Magazine.

Image credit: ArmyRecognition.com

It’s all over, another garbage tomato in the books. Five months ago, I planted a little tomato on a pile of smelly garbage; lots of banana peels, avocado husks, watermelon rind, corn cobs, rotten lettuce, apples core, and a lot more.

And that’s what I do every year when my tomato is all pooped out. I chop it down, dig all the very black fertile soil out, stuff what’s left of the plant in the hole, and cover it up for next year. And in the spring, this plant will be nothing but a memory.

Now to sum up this year’s growing season. I have to admit, it wasn’t as good as last year. I had only about half the tomatoes, but the weather sucked, too much rain, so it’s okay. Plus I got a little acorn squash that sprouted up out of the garbage as a bonus.

Overall, it was fun. It’s an easy way to grow organic tomatoes, and they taste awesome! As for next year, hopefully I won’t be doing another, with any luck I’ll be out of the suburbs of New Jersey, and in New York City. Fingers crossed!

If you’ve been thinking about starting an organic vegetable garden, choosing your plants initially may seem overwhelming. 

The experts at Bonnie Plants, a green-gardening plant wholesaler in Union Springs, AL, recommend these six fast-growing, cold-hardy crops for fall gardeners: 

Winterbor Kale

• A nutritious leafy green
• A vigorous producer that endures winter easily, even in very cold climates
• Cut the outer leaves so the center can continue growing; space transplants about 12 inches apart 

Georgia Collards

• Similar to kale, with a stronger, sweet-cabbage flavor
• Leaves taste best when young
• Space transplants 36 inches apart  

Romaine Lettuce

• Richer in vitamins, minerals, fiber and phytonutrients than other popular lettuces
• Heart-healthy
• Space transplants 18 inches apart 

Early Dividend Broccoli

• Popular, productive and easy to grow
• High in fiber and calcium
• Set transplants 18 inches apart 

Mustard Greens

• Nutritious, with spicy leaves that taste sweeter when nipped by frost
• Fast-growing
• Space plants 12 inches apart 

Arugula

• Fast-growing, peppery-tasting leafy green that’s great in salads
• Promotes bone health
• Especially high in vitamins A, C and K

Photo courtesy of ARA

My garbage tomato got its butt kicked this week. Just look at it. The end of days is near. Half of it is on life support, but somehow the right side is hanging tough. Those tomatoes are actually growing and getting fatter.

I’ll give them to the end of the week, but this weekend I’m packing it in for the year. I already pulled a dozen green tomatoes off the left side. I have them all lined up on my kitchen windowsill. So they’ll ripen in the coming months.

Michelle Obama has encouraged all Americans to save a little spot in their yard for growing fresh vegetables. She even brought back the Whitehouse garden, trying to make it organic, until she found out for a long time the lawn was fertilized with raw sewage. But that wasn’t enough to make her quit gardening.

On November 10th, Michelle will drop by Sesame Street to show Elmo and the gang how to grow vegetables like tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce. Here’s a sneak peek of the episode. And I guess fame has gone to Elmo’s head. He seems a little unwilling to get his hands dirty and dig into the garden too–prima donna!

Via OMG!

Image credit: Sesame Street

I doubt any more tomatoes will ripen. No big deal. I’m still going to leave them on there for as long as I can. But I did pick my freeloading acorn squash, the whole plant was dead. I gave it to my mom. She had 3 little stowaways of her own too.

Bat flowers. Lily-of-the-Nile. Devil’s tongue. Cobra lily. Black cow parsley.

Each of these plants is a lovely shade of black.

Once you open the pages of Paul Bonine’s Black Plants, you’ll no longer associate the floral color with Morticia Addams’ garden or a Goth funeral wreath. Bonine, co-owner of the wholesale nursery Xera Plants in Sherwood, OR, will have you craving a patch of “dusky denizens” in your organic garden.

Hauntingly beautiful, 75 black annuals, perennials, bulbs and shrubs are featured. You’ll find black varieties of common favorites like pansies and columbines, as well as more exotic offerings. (Dracula orchids, anyone?)

The 160-page book retails for $14.95, but Amazon is selling it for $10.17 (at press time), a 32% discount.

It was kind of a ramshackle week for my tomato. The weather was a little windy and cool towards the end, so it took a beating, but I still managed to snag a couple ripe tomatoes, with a few more on the way, like that one.

But I doubt I’ll have much more picking to do this year, most of the tomatoes are green and tiny and with the weather turning, they probably won’t get a chance to ripen on the vine. No worries, I’ve got that acorn squash to look forward too.