It's 2010 and This Plant Needs a Drink!

So it's 2010! Woo, Post Aughties!

However, with the end of the Holiday season brings some sadness - no more parties, all the decorations are taken down, trees are stripped of their lights and left for dead at the edge of the street, and poinsettias are thrown into the compost. For anyone living on the eastern seaboard (or nearly anywhere in the United States for that matter) lately it's been freezing cold for nearly the last week. January seems to rip the fun out of everyone's lives, and it can become quite the bland and bare month - all of the plants we used to decorate with for the Holidays are now gone.

Cheer up! There are some fun indoor projects one can partake in one wintery weekend to bring some life, color, and fragrance into your home with plants.

Grab the gin, this plant needs a drink!
Bulbs can be "forced" to grow before spring indoors with a little TLC and alcohol - yes, alcohol. As they grow, paperwhites have the tendency to lose their luster in the blossoms and become top-heavy. A study done at Cornell University found that by watering with small amounts of gin (in addition to water), paperwhites can stay crisp white and nicely kept. So when you're out getting some pebbles or potting soil to plant your paperwhites, be sure to stop by the Wine & Sprits store for your plants. While you're at it, be sure to reward yourself with a Gin & Ginger for a job well done!

It's (not quite) Shake n' Bake, and I helped!
From the smallest apartment to beauteous mansions, herb gardens are the perfect addition to every kitchen, whatever the size. Herbs are fairly easy to grow, so they are great for gardeners with any skill level. Seed can be found at any home improvement center, along with your potting soil and pots. Target has some all-in-one kits with some pretty chic containers to keep your herbs looking hot.

Winter is a popular time for garden centers to host educational seminars or hands-on learning sessions to get gardeners excited about spring. Dickman Farms in Auburn, NY is known for hosting session on creating your own evergreen wreaths from old Christmas trees. This month terrain at Styers in Glen Mills, PA is hosting sessions on creating your own terrarium. Visit your farvorite local garden center to see what events are being held to entertain us this winter. While you're at it, pick up those paperwhites - your house will be happier with the lovely fragrance, and you'll be happy with your plant project and martini!

Plant on and rock on,
Stephanie

Song for the Garden: Foux Du Fa Fa - Flight of the Conchords

Groove is in the Plant

Thursday marks the beginning of my absolute favorite time of year. From Thanksgiving to Valentine's Day, I am giddy with excitement, and who can blame me when you have four holidays, a birthday, and countless parties to attend. Over the years I have become one of those people who requires a birthday party/soiree/gala, and preferably with a theme. I've gone small and intimate with wine & cheese gatherings or Ugly Holiday Sweater parties; I've gone big with black tie shindigs at M1-5. However I am now realizing there was always something missing at each party - plants and flowers.

At a second look, "plants" have been present at most of my parties. When I was an RA, a Holiday celebration hosted for my floor had a "Christmas tree" that my residents cut from the top of a pine tree in the campus golf course (sorry Cornell). M1-5 had spray-painted gold and silver tree branches mixed with evergreens decorating the bar. However, these decorations didn't fit in with the band's lead singer, who was dressed in red leather pants and a Native American headdress (he was channeling the Village People and David Bowie, and no, he wasn't there on our request). Last year's Ugly Holiday Sweater party had dried eucalyptus branches in a vase that was broken by my friend Tyler - he leaned against what he "thought" was a wall. Obviously my plant & party track record isn't too high or successful.

Friends and professors of mine in the industry have also had poor plant & party experiences. A professor once hosted a Holiday dinner party and tried giving poinsettias as party favors. However, when getting ready to leave, each guest gave a different excuese for not taking their plant home. Come on, people! It's pretty, color-coordinates your Holiday decorations at home, and lest we forget, IT'S FREE!

So where is the disconnect? Why have I failed at successfully integrating plants into my own parties? Why do guests make lame excuses for not accepting a free plant as a parting gift? Is this a generational or age-level issue, i.e. am I concerned more about serving the best seasonal cocktails and looking my best than decorating or gifting with flowers? Or do I bypass the plants for the booze because there is arguably more of an 'instant" and "longer lasting" gratification with Manhattans? One thing is for sure - I have decided to pledge a more conscious effort at incorporating flowers and plants into my activities this Holiday season. So if you're attending a party of mine, or I'm visiting your apartment during Thanksgiving weekend for Big Red Hockey, expect Ice Punch the poinsettia instead of Ice Punch the spiked drink.

Plant on and rock on,
Stephanie

Song for the Garden: Let's Dance - David Bowie

Where Have I BEEN?!!!

My gosh! It has been nearly a MONTH since I last posted! Where have I been?! Actually I have been quite the busy bee, relocating, starting a career in the industry that I love, and visiting plenty of garden centers. One thing that's been on my mind lately (besides finding storage places in my apartment for all my clothes) is...

CHRISTMAS!

I know, I know, me and the rest of the Targets, Borders, Walmarts, and garden centers of the world. It appears Christmas comes earlier and earlier every year - I think a friend of mine even saw Xmas type products out on the shelves around October 16th. People, it wasn't even Halloween yet! Needless to say, with November nearly in full swing, getting ready for the Holiday Season is where it's at.

So, this weekend I will most likely post about Holiday 2009 trends and fun, easy, and inexpensive ways we all can decorate our homes and lives with plants for the holidays. Stay tuned!

Plant on and rock on,
Stephanie

Song for the Garden: Furr - Blitzen Trapper

Mmm, Mmm, Mulch

Every day I look at the calender and it amazes me that it's October - almost MID-October at that! Fall has definitely settled in, bringing its sweaters and puffy vests, mulled cider, and cold rains. If you've had a garden in your backyard like many of my friends and family, you very well have harvested your last vegetable within the last couple weeks. For many of you, this garden was your first, and you may be wondering "what do I do now?" My friend Crystal asked me that same question a while back, telling me that many "new" gardeners might not know what to do with their green patch at the end of the season. Here are some helpful suggestions.

Rake It Up!
If you planted vegetables, there's a lot of plant matter left on the ground. I suggest taking a couple rakes and hoes and remove the plant material from the garden and put it into compost. If you live in an urban area and your backyard space is limited such that you cannot have a compost pile, bag up the debris and shove it to the curb. If you happen to live in the "country," burning the pile is an option, although adding the plant matter to your compost pile is a better option, environmentally. Be sure to check your local village/city's website for appropriate inofmration about public removal of plant wast, burning laws, and composting suggestions. Getting your garden CLEAN will help prevent plant pathogens from entering the soil from the decay of dead plants. This will help keep your next year's crop healthy!

Put Your Back Into It
Renting or borrowing a router-tiller to give your garden a good mixing is a good fall activity. This will help incorporate any leftover fertilizer and plant metter into the soil, building your garden's soil oranic matter and nutrient levels - higher levels of organic matter and nutrients leads of course to happier, healthier plants! Doing so in the fall is better than the spring, when snow thaws and rains can lead to runoff of these valuable resources if left on the soil surface. But before you do bring in the machinery, be sure too...

Mulch It Up!
Mulch (either plant- or animal-based) is a great organic matter builder for any soil, and is a staple for many conventional and organic farmers. Mulch helps build soil fertility by adding nutrient resources, improving soil structure (giving roots room to breate), and brings in "good" microbes that help breakdown matter into forms usable by plants. Adding mulch in the fall will help build your garden's fertility over winter, locking in broken-down nutrients when the upper layers of soil freeze, and later preventing "plant food" from being washed away in the spring.

All of your hard work this fall will bring rewards next summer to your garden. Plus, a long day of hard work makes chick soup taste all the greater in the fall!

Plant on and rock on,
Stephanie

Song for the garden: Night By Night - Chromeo (a shout-out to Pixel - I'll miss your Wild Zeros!)

OMG! Apple Fest 2009! Part 2!

After a busy weekend of braving APPLE FEST 2009 and apartment hunting in PA (that's one of our stops shown), I finally got the chance to read the Newsweek article I posted last week - I hope you all had the chance to read it too. I posted the article because of its relevance with current trends in society to "go green." I unfortunately think too many people are "going green" because it's the "hip" thing to do, not because it can mean better environmental stewardship or lifestyle. I believe James E. McWilliams in the interview is getting at the same idea.

McWilliams makes some good points about becoming a localvore and the organic food movement, especially when talking about food miles and food waste. It makes sense to me that one has to take into consideration not only the distance a food travels to its end selling point, but also the energy, natural resource, and financial inputs necessary to produce a particular product. However, if I am able to support a small farm, regardless of whether it is under conventional or organic management, by purchasing their products at a farmers market in my town, I will because I know I am doing my part to help my local economy. McWilliams' cry for wasted food is a common problem for American families, but two simple solutions are buy less (which comes after one learns to cook appropriate proportions for one's family size) and start composting (a topic I hope to write about SOON since it's fairly easy, even for city dwellers!).

Throughout my undergrad and graduate years of schooling, I have found that conventional and organic farming are both right and wrong, good and bad - there both are double edged swords that come with benefits and downsides. My personal view and goal of my thesis has been to take the best of both systems to create a holistic approach to farming and in the end gardening. So when I read McWilliams' statements on GMOs and pest control in organics, I gave both a sigh of relief and banged my head against the wall (in my case the desk at my office). My reactions went as follows:

Interviewer: ... You also acknowledge that there are unknown health risks in consuming GM foods, but that we shouldn't stop growing them. Do you really think it's worth the risk?
Me: WHAT?! ARE WE SERIOUSLY STILL IN 2003?! [bangs head on desk] Where do I even begin explaining that GM crops are pretty much in everything that contains high fructose corn syrup...
McWilliams: 90% of the corn in the country is GM, and it's not just going to animals, it's going to high-fructose corn syrup. ...There are possible [health] concernes with all kinds of seeds that are conventionally bred as well... I've talked to too many plant biologists who said this is a technology that if used properly can serve very real environmental and humanitarian needs.

Interviewer: ... Factory farming is bad... Consequently, many people have turned to grass-fed beef.
McWilliams: Many grass-fed cows are eating grass that's been fertilized or irrigated.
Me: Well, yes and no. My great uncles have an organic beef cattle farm that is naturally fertilized with manure and rain-watered (as is everyother type of beef cattle farm). True, there are some places that do use supplemental fertilizers and irrigation, but I will vouch for the people who don't, including a number of cattle farms I have personally visited in Veracruz, MX where farmers rotate their herds through grid sections of their land every few days so the grass growths through a natural process of growth and feeding sessions.

Overall I agree with McWilliams on the point that the public should be cautious of "fundamentalist ideals" when it comes to both eating locally and organics, a problem some Ithacans currently face. My suggestion to everyone is get educated. Talk to the people behind the table/counter at the farmers market and get to know their establishment - how do they produce their food? What measures are they using on their farm to improve their environment or keep it at status quo? What lifestyle changes can you yourself make to save on waste, drive less, eat food you know was produced with the best practices in mind, whether its conventional or organic? By learning, talking with the people who produce your food, and making connections with local establishments, you will truly become a localvore.

Plant on and rock on,
Stephanie

Song for the Garden: Merrymaking at My Place - Calvin Harris
Photo Credit: 60 N 2nd St., Easton, PA taken by DPW 2009

... And now I'll get down from my soap box and down to the ground to plant those mums in the morning!

OMG! Apple Fest 2009!

I've had the hardest time thinking about a gardening/agriculture related topic to talk about this week - perhaps it's because my mind was more focused on teaching a lecture on weed reproduction strategies to a class of undergrads or writing a methods section for my thesis. All the rage on my Facebook newsfeed from Cornell friends however has been about APPLE FEST 2009, quite possibly one of the best events Ithaca has to offer. Remembering that APPLE FEST 2009 (note: all references to APPLE FEST 2009 will be in caps to represent my excitement for the event - it's that good!) is this weekend, I got to thinking about farmers markets and local foods, and subsequently "localvores" and other recently invented words that seem to be "greenwashing" our lifestyles these days. That's when I stumbled upon a Newsweek article my friend Mike posted.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/216034

Mike prefaced the posting with "Finally, someone is talking sense about local and organic farming. Though, unlike the author, I still eat meat on occasion." I am going to read the article and give a personal review and discussion here. I suggest you all do the same and meet me back here to discuss local food consumption and farmers markets this weekend. Plus, I might share some photos from APPLE FEST 2009!

Plant on and rock on,
Stephanie

Song for the Garden: Quiet Dog - Mos Def

Coffees of Latte Land

Although coffee is not necessarily a garden topic (although if you're living in the south or California, a coffee bush can be used as a nice ornamental in your yard), I find it's a fitting topic for this week's posting as it will coincide with my last days at the cafe I've worked for the last two and a half years. Plus it's a food group for all us Xers and Yers hailing a cab to work or locking ourselves in a university library. So this week let's turn on the brewer, stamp those espresso shots, and share a little coffee chat.

During my years as a barista filled with Bean Fridays, a number of our customers expressed confusion about organic vs. fair trade coffees, and rightfully so. Despite living in Ithaca, a city where the phrases "organic" and "fair trade" are part of the 2nd grade spelling lists, I myself didn't know the difference until I was educated by the Best. To break it down, not all certifications are created equal:

Organic Certified = coffee grown and harvest on a farm that is managed organically (ie: all managerial practices, inputs, and harvesting processes involve the use of products that are carbon-based or non-detrimental to the environment). Generally, if the coffee bag has an organic label shown, the farm has to have gone through rigorous certification processes to meet standards set forth by the USDA or another country's agriculture department.

Fair Trade Certified = coffee grown and harvested from farms that meet labor and trade standards to ensure fair wages and compensation for the workers and farms. Fair Trade coffee DOES NOT have to be organic but it MUST NOT include GMO coffee varieties and CANNOT be sprayed with pesticides that are deemed as noxious or banned one country or another.

With both stamps of goodness comes a price, and both are most likely a higher price than Folgers. Some may argue that this price raise is unfair or unjustified, but in my mind the extra $2.50 I pay for my bag of Fair Trade 6th Avenue Bistro is 100% worth it when it goes back to the farm to ensure better wages for workers of a back-breaking job. For the struggling grad student and unemployed graduate, to drink non-certified coffee is perfectly fine - you shouldn't feel less important than Tom sitting at the table next to yours with his organic French roast. If drinking coffee that has one or the other certification is important to you, do some research and shopping. Many big chain coffee shops (think that cafe with all the green, and the other from the same city with all the red) ensure that all their coffee blends are certified Fair Trade. Some farmers markets or coops have organic coffees that are pretty close in price to their non-organic cousins. Never underestimate the use of coffee punch cards, coupons, or other forms of rewards for bulk purchases. Bottom line, we're a thrifty group of generations and with a little effort you're bound to find a coffee that meets your budget, taste, and lifestyle choices.

It's the end of an era for me at the cafe, but my love for a dark roasted coffee and a well made cappuccino will always remain a part of my life for years to come. Cheers to you, Baristas of Latte Land!

Rock on and plant on,
Stephanie

Song for the Garden: Silver Moon - Blitzen Trapper
Song for the Cafe: Sleepytime in the Western World - Blitzen Trapper
(I imagine they're playing it throughout Terrain this season, and if not, they should!)
Photo from Wiki Commons