I wrote an article about Weston’s Antique Apple Orchards in New Berlin, Wisconsin, for the October/November 2016 issue of Farm & Ranch Living magazine.
Tag: gardening
Top 10 Hot Peppers
I wrote a roundup of the best hot peppers to grow in your garden for Birds & Blooms Extra Magazine.
Working Farm Vacations
I wrote an article about farms where you can stay and actively volunteer to collect eggs, feed goats and more for Farm & Ranch Living magazine.
Growing Green
Green Roofs technology article
Article about planting living roofs for Milwaukee Home & Fine Living magazine
Gaga for gardening
I’ve definitely been bitten by the gardening and landscaping bug, so I thought I’d share some photos. I still have a lot more work to do, but I’m happy with how everything is looking so far!
Invasive species
Yard work is taking over my life lately. I can’t even call it gardening. More like a brutal battle against invasive species, and I’m definitely losing.
Last week I tried to pull up some garlic mustard that is growing on our steep slope. I walked down into my neighbor’s yard and tried to climb up the hill, rather than down, so I wouldn’t fall. Unfortunately I didn’t realize the “forest” is filled with every thorny tree and plant imaginable. I did manage to pull some garlic mustard, but mostly I just ended up sliced and diced from head to toe in the process.
I had no idea what kind of trees were stabbing me, so I did a little research. I’m still not 100 percent sure about the one species with 2-inch long menacing thorns (maybe hawthorn or black locust?), but I did learn that I have a major buckthorn problem. As in, buckthorn trees are covering most of the hillside–I think there are probably hundreds of them. There’s no way I can tackle a problem this size without professional help. I did cut down about five wheelbarrows full of small saplings, and then I sprayed them with Roundup, but I didn’t even make a dent. So now my question is should I just abandon ship and let nature take its course, or forge ahead? Stay tuned.
