I've just finished reading a wonderful book,The Quarter-Acre Farm: How I Kept the Patio, Lost the Lawn, and Fed My Family for a Year by Spring Warren, 2011.
I'm hoping to read more from this witty and informative writer. The book reads very much like a blog/journal with each chapter a new conquest in home farming. The recipes are amazing, and her recount of the geese, the bunnies and the kids is hilarious. Some of her garden antics are so funny they had me laughing out loud.
I was so inspired by her story I immediately started weeding out my own veggie garden. Only a few years ago it was a lovely patch of fenced in gravel and antique brick-bordered beds of homemade compost, flowers, and vegetables galore.
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| 2010 |
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| 2010 |
It has since fallen way way to the wayside.
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| 2013 |
Even if I can't grow anything edible in my garden of weeds, I still took a couple of cues from Ms. Warren this week. Instead of letting the beautiful organic peppers I spent an arm and a leg for in Shoprite rot away in the refrigerator drawer, I decided to cut them up and pack them in the freezer. I also indulged in incredible homemade sun dried tomatoes. Every crispy juicy sweet and savory bite was well worth having to heat up the house all day with the oven for! While I was at it I roasted some sweet potatoes and zucchini with breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese.
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| Cut up fresh tomatoes 1/4" thick. Spread out on pans (these are lined with parchment paper). Sprinkle with salt, pepper, olive oil and crushed red pepper (optional). Bake at 250 degrees for 3-4 hours. |
For more inspiration, check out Food Not Lawns, a global community of avant gardeners turning yards into gardens and neighborhoods into communities.
http://www.foodnotlawns.com/about-us.html
