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Growing Up in the Garden

Growing Up in the Garden

Category Archives: Food Politics

Where the Road Takes You

30 Wednesday Apr 2014

Posted by Jessica Y in Food Politics, Garden, Why I Garden

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

cabin pl tomato, chersonskaya, food justice, food politics, garden, gardening, sustainable living, winter fare beans

IMG_4482

The membership card is printed on nothing more than heavy paper, perforated for me to carefully tear out and store somewhere. It arrived a few days ago and I felt so excited to officially be a part of Seed Savers Exchange. I had been meaning to join for some time – mostly because I support what they do and how they go about doing it – but maybe now because I find myself growing three distinct and rare vegetables in my beds this season: Cabin PL tomatoes, Chersonskaya squash, and Winter Fare beans. Each of these has a story of how they came into my possession, and it was not planned that they would all end up in my garden this year or that this was the season I would become and seed saver – officially. But, it was bound to happen. It makes sense. It is a small act that encapsulates how I feel about food and our access to it. It is not a showy act – but is a lifestyle choice that reflects a part of who I am and what I believe in. Continue reading →

There Goes the Lawn

01 Saturday Feb 2014

Posted by Jessica Y in Food Politics, Garden

≈ 28 Comments

Tags

California drought, garden, gardening, lawn removal, sustainable living

IMG_3741

I have always secretly, or not so secretly, wanted to do away with the lawn in our backyard. This is not to say I have not enjoyed it over the years. It has served as a good picnic location, a runway for leaping over sprinklers, and as a soft place to land while practicing cartwheels. But, alas, it is so hard to justify in Southern California’s semi-arid climate. Now, with the a severe drought looming, it seems almost absurd.

Continue reading →

“This is What Democracy Looks Like”

25 Saturday May 2013

Posted by Jessica Y in Food Politics, Garden, Label GMOs

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

activism, food justice, food politics, garden, gardening, GMOs, Monsanto, sustainable agriculture

MAM Flyer Single

Right now, today, there are people marching all over the world. Marching to change our food system. As I drove to the farmers’ market this morning, I was a little remiss about not being able to attend the march in downtown Los Angeles, but then got realistic about taking both my little ones on the train ride down there, walking many more blocks than my 5-year-old could endure, and then coming home, possibly having to walk back to where we started to pick up the train again, all on my own. These could be seen as excuses, I guess, but in the this long haul of healing our food system, self-preservation is important.

(If you are wondering why people care so much about opposing Monsanto and GMOs, check out this post by Stacey at Slow Foods Mama. She gives a very good and thorough overview of GMOs and the big business behind them).

Marches are important, so important. They grab media attention, inspire people, create momentum, and hopefully make enough noise to get some people, who may have not been listening before, to notice. Continue reading →

Earth Day and Action

22 Monday Apr 2013

Posted by Jessica Y in Altadena, Food Politics, Garden

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Earth Day, food justice, garden, gardening, Next Course Pasadena, sustainable food, sustainable living

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Today is Earth Day and this past weekend was filled with all kinds of festivals, lectures, classes, etc. to commemorate the day. I am glad that we have a day to celebrate the earth, to raise awareness, to bring people together around common interests and to educate. This is good. However, I think most of us agree that it takes an everyday commitment to honor our planet, and by doing so, we make changes within our own lives and hopefully are getting creative and working hard to create change on a larger scale.

I walked through a beautiful Earth Day festival to attend the first of a series of meetings where the attendees will try to do just that. Continue reading →

When Apples No Longer Taste Like Bubble Gum

27 Wednesday Mar 2013

Posted by Jessica Y in Food Politics, Garden

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

garden, gardening, sustainable agriculture, sustainable living

Farmers' Market Apples

“Mommy, is it getting too warm for apples?” asked my daughter as we ate lunch a few days ago.

“Well,” I replied. “I think most apples ripen in the fall. Why do you ask?”

“They don’t taste like bubble gum anymore,” she answered.

I agreed, “I know, they are not tasting as good as they did a few months ago.”

Continue reading →

Muir Ranch: A Vibrant School Farm

25 Monday Mar 2013

Posted by Jessica Y in Altadena, Food Politics, Garden

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

Altadena, food justice, garden, gardening, Muir Ranch, school gardens, sustainable agriculture, sustainable living

Muir Ranch Chard

I arrived at Muir Ranch, just after 9:00 a.m. on a Monday morning. Their indoor space was already stacked with boxes and crates full of fruit and vegetables waiting to be split up into that day’s CSA shares. Students trickled in and began bagging peas, lettuce, and broccoli. A couple of women were there parsing the 10 half shares they would be taking back to their school. Before 10:00 a teacher from a local elementary charter school arrived with her students to harvest kale and then put together the CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) shares that would be distributed on their campus.

Continue reading →

A Year Goes By

16 Saturday Mar 2013

Posted by Jessica Y in Altadena, Food Politics, Garden, Label GMOs

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

blogging, food politics, food systems, garden, gardening, Proposition 37, sustainable food, sustainable living

Eggplant

A year can be marked by what is growing in the garden, birthdays, the start of school, by anniversaries, by so many things. A blogging anniversary is a milestone, especially the first year. I started this blog not really knowing what to expect. It was a completely new endeavor. I like to write, but need “assignments” to motivate me to actually do it. Blogging seemed like a good way to give myself assignments, and gave me a forum to write about something I am very passionate about.

Continue reading →

Action is as Small as a Seed

26 Saturday Jan 2013

Posted by Jessica Y in Food Politics, Garden

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

chersonskaya, food politics, garden, gardening, heirlooms, seed saving, sustainable agriculture, sustainable living, tomatoes

When I began this blog I shared with my readers that I was going to plant everything from seed in 2012. It would be a first. And, with the exception of three pepper plants, everything in my garden was grown from seed last year. Making the promise to grow everything from seed motivated me to expand my seed buying options, and I turned to seed companies that grow and sell heirlooms.

Pink heirloom potatoes picked up at the farmers' market. Delicious and a great color to get one particular child to try them ;).

Pink heirloom potatoes picked up at the farmers’ market. Delicious and a great color to get one particular child to try them.

Heirlooms are far more interesting than the typical varieties you find in the grocery stores. Grocery store veggies are often grown from hybrids that produce fruit and vegetables that can withstand mechanical harvesting, are stronger for transport, don’t blemish as easily, or are resistant to certain pests. Genetically modified crops are designed to resist particular pesticides or herbicides. These varieties are not bred for a particularly rich flavor or color. They are bred for mass production, transport, and a good shelf life at the grocery store.

Continue reading →

Breaking Down the Deception: No on Prop 37 T.V. Ads

14 Sunday Oct 2012

Posted by Jessica Y in Food Politics, Garden, Label GMOs

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

California's Right to Know, food politics, GMOs, Monsanto, Proposition 37, sustainable agriculture, sustainable living

My spirits around Proposition 37 came crashing down earlier this week when I saw the results of the opposition’s media blitz against labeling GMO’s. The latest poll conducted by Pepperdine University shows that support for the initiative has fallen by almost 20 points. Astounding what a few weeks of television ads can do!

I felt so demoralized. How could we possibly compete with the almost 35 million dollars donated to the No campaign (7 million of which came from Monsanto)? I wallowed in it for about a day, and then decided we would continue to fight the good fight. So, since the television ads seem to be doing an enormous amount of damage to the Yes campaign, I am going to take a moment to expose the deceptiveness of the claims made in the ad I have seen most often. This ad is titled “Arbitrary Exemptions.” Take a look.

Continue reading →

When Big Ag Has Got Me Down

06 Saturday Oct 2012

Posted by Jessica Y in Altadena, Food Politics, Garden, Label GMOs

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Altadena Farmers' Market, food politics, gardening, GMOs, Monsanto, Proposition 37, RIPE Altadena, sustainable agriculture, sustainable living

We don’t watch much live television in our house, so it wasn’t until last night (during the presidential debate or some time after) that I saw my first No on 37 television ad. I only half listened, but was mortified by the twisting of information and the purposeful absence of the whole picture. I hate campaigns. Even the Yes on 37 campaign can be annoying at times. But, seeing that ad reminded me just how powerful large corporations are and how far they will go to prop up our broken food system (and their bottom line).

I got my very first yard sign on Monday, and finally got it in the ground a few days ago. It was this act, poking the steel rods into the soil, that reminded me what is growing, what will continue to grow, whether or not Proposition 37 passes. Continue reading →

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