Up Close
24 Tuesday Jun 2014
Posted in Garden, Why I Garden
Tag Archives: chersonskaya
A Few Last Moments
06 Friday Jun 2014
My daughter has four days left of school. Four short days. Due to a twist of circumstance, my son has been in preschool five mornings a week instead of three for the last month. These mornings, this time to myself has been a gift, the quiet before the storm. I see the end of this school year as an end of an era, a short era, but one none the less. In the blink of an eye I will be swimming in lesson plans and first day of school jitters. The quiet mornings to myself will be fewer and farther between. Continue reading
Where the Road Takes You
30 Wednesday Apr 2014
Posted in Food Politics, Garden, Why I Garden
Tags
cabin pl tomato, chersonskaya, food justice, food politics, garden, gardening, sustainable living, winter fare beans
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
Emergence
16 Wednesday Apr 2014
Posted in Garden, Wordless Wednesday
In Transition
27 Saturday Apr 2013
Posted in Garden
Well, I have finally succumbed to the urge to pull, pull, pull. Much of the winter garden is gone, and, on its heels, come the delights of summer. I have 12 tomato plants in the ground, plus a tomatillo and a ground cherry. I have lots of tomato starts left and might squeeze in a few more. I want to make sure I have enough tomatoes to roast and freeze, dry, and make into sauce. Enough to see us through to next summer. A tall order, I know. Continue reading
Adventures in Chersonskaya: Parts 3 & 4
02 Saturday Feb 2013
Chersonskaya on the vine – Summer 2012
Chersonskaya squash. There seem to be a fair number of people out there wondering about this variety because the top two search terms that bring people to my blog are “chersonskaya” and “chersonskaya squash.” Or, maybe I am one of the few people on the internet writing about it. Whatever the case, people are itching for some information, so I will provide a bit more.
Action is as Small as a Seed
26 Saturday Jan 2013
Posted in Food Politics, Garden
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.
- 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.
Adventures in Chersonskaya: Part II – Pie
24 Saturday Nov 2012
First, I have to say, I do not consider myself a pie maker. I have made as many sweet pies as I have roasted turkeys. Two, maybe three. But, as I prepared to host the feast holiday in my home this year, and upped the ante by inviting a few guests beyond my family, I planned on making a pumpkin pie that my husband nor my son would be able to eat due to egg allergies. Then, two things happened to steer me from the traditional pumpkin pie. Did I mention that I love pumpkin pie?
Adventures in Chersonskaya: Part I
17 Saturday Nov 2012
Tags
Early this year, while looking for new varieties of squash to try out, I spotted the Chersonskaya in the Seed Saver’s Exchange catalogue. More than anything I was attracted to its appearance. Their dusty blue color were nothing like I had seen before and I wanted them among my winter squash collection.
I planted the mammoth Chersonskaya seeds along side Burgess Buttercup, Dakota Dessert, and Thelma Sanders and waited. At times I wondered if I should have planted the very reliable Butternut, just in case.
Growing Up in the Garden 