February 2011
12 posts
4 tags
Sub-Irrigated Planters and Doing It First
There’s an unspoken rule about living in New York: whatever you’re gonna do, do it first. You about to hop in line in front of me? Not if I hop in front of myself first! You want that last everything bagel? What last everything bagel? I don’t even know what you’re talking about. Up high, down low… too slow. You want some advice? Be faster. Thinking the entire borough...
3 tags
The Wild Within
When I was 12 my grandfather gave me a bear skin rug made from a bear he shot. He was also kind enough to bring us a ziplock bag of bear meat that I’m pretty sure was on the dash of his truck for the entire drive over. For better or worse, it went to the dog, we just weren’t ready for that kind of advanced culinary thinking. My palette was only just moving from Steak-umms to Boboli...
5 tags
Bulbs and Meth Coffee
After drinking a gallon of my souped up meth coffee and watching the entire This Old House Hour I was pretty amped to do my first real gardening in months. The bulbs I got needed to be planted ASAP; they typically go in the ground in the fall. It’s not fall.
I went up to Panthy’s and surveyed the scene. I put on my pink gardening gloves and spread out a huge orange tarp and dumped...
6 tags
I Swear I'm Not Growing Weed
There’s nothing sketchy about walking down the street with a four foot long, bright yellow box that says “HIGH OUTPUT GROW LIGHT” in rainbow letters on it. Nothing at all. Totally legal. I’m not growing weed, but with all the work I’m putting into the upcoming crop, I better be able to get really high eating these vegetables.
Hard to believe, but it’s that...
3 tags
Spring Is Almost Here, Pull It Together Man!
If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably replaced the mental space taken up by Animal Hoarders with big plans for your upcoming garden. Maybe you’re even considering building this Green Roof Dog Veranda:
While your plans may be grand, let’s not forget the important stuff. Landscape designer Dan Silverstein has some tips to get your act together for spring… with...
3 tags
Panthy's Garden Internship Program (PGIP)
I’ve noticed some organic farms and local community gardens are now getting interns which I have to say, is pretty great. With literally thousands of young people left directionless after the presidential election of 2008, now is a prime opportunity to get a hold of some principled, intelligent young people who might otherwise be pursuing advanced degrees they can’t pay for.
I’m...
Brooklyn Botanic Garden: Rooftop Gardening
I was a “Special Visitor” at the world-famous Brooklyn Botanic Garden this weekend, you know ‘cause I had class. Class, like Men’s Warehouse class, but also the educational kind, Rooftop Gardening to be exact.
It was taught by a German-born rooftop garden designer Doris “Dodo” Loechle. She was not a dummy as her name might imply; she was actually filled to...
3 tags
Bombs in Buenos Aires!
The Articultores or “Arty Farmers” are taking a page from the guerilla gardening field manual and dropping seed bombs around Buenos Aires in the hopes of growing food for the masses. If you’ve never heard of seed bombs, this is what they look like; little clay and dirt “bombs” laden with seeds, ready to be tossed at will, onto any forgotten patch of city earth.
...
3 tags
Night Gardening
With today’s evolving technology anything is possible: ordering pizza on the internet, driving through toll booths at speeds in excess of 25mph and of course, wearing sneakers with no laces.
Which begs the question, why limit your gardening to the daylight hours? Why not do your pruning while your plants are fast asleep?! Why not monitor your garden’s progress in the same way new...
1 tag
Industrious Hippies with Welding Torches
One of my pals sent me this and told me it was “right up Panthy’s hole.” If you find that off-putting, maybe you should go back onto Etsy and buy yourself a crochet ski mask to hide your dumb face with.
Moving along…
When the shit hits the fan, you’re gonna wish you had these guys as neighbors. Or… if you live in Sub-Saharan Africa, you probably wish you just...
3 tags
Compost: An Idiot's Primer
Like a soon-to-be dad frantically reading about the right way to wipe a baby’s ass, I’m feverishly trying to learn about composting so I don’t blow my single opportunity to compost in my own home. This cannot go wrong.
As I troll science and gardening sites, and uh… Google, I’m learning that a good compost operation must be managed. If you haven’t heard,...
