Category Archives: Ecology-Biodiversity-Integration

A healthy environment starts with a healthy human making the best of what is available and adding to what is possible.

The Southern Magnolia Visits My Northern Garden

Many species of woody plants survive only because people move them out to new locations where they would never be found ala naturelle. They may provide a source of seeds which can be used to create additional selections. Like the … Continue reading

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The American Chestnut Revisited

Thanks to a previous generation of growers who appreciated and loved the chestnut tree for its nuts and wood quality, I was able to grow the hybrid populations on my farm. From these seedling American hybrid nuts, I was able … Continue reading

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The Alpine Strawberry Moves to Flat-Landia

One of the most common and widely available perennial edible groundcover plants is the Alpine strawberry, Fragaria vesca. I grew as many as I could find in the seed trade. Unlike regular strawberries, Alpine strawberry varieties are grown from seeds. … Continue reading

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Plants That Saw the Light of Day (Part 3)

If you love plants, it is only natural to want to try to grow something that is entirely based on a feeling. There is no objective knowledge or science involved. It is a form of appreciation of the natural world … Continue reading

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Plants That Saw The Light of Day (Part 2)

Every plant that I grew whether it was in great profusion or just a few for experimental purposes had possibilities. If it died unexpectedly or had some horticultural issues of some sort, then I want to know what happened and … Continue reading

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Plants That Saw The Light of Day

(Part 1) I do not have much of a selection process for plants. Every plant looks interesting to me. I really liked the flavor of that wild Rocket I found in the cracks of a sidewalk in Grand Haven, Michigan. … Continue reading

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Two Story Agriculture

Ground Floor and Going Up I first found the concept of Two Story Agriculture in the best selling book Tree Crops: A Permanent Agriculture by J. Russell Smith. He was an economic geographer for Columbia University and had written extensively … Continue reading

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Exploring Diversity: Creating Flavor Forests With the Species Apples

From the time I was a child, I loved to grow plants. I threw a pit of a prune near the back door of my home. A tree emerged and I quickly put it in a pot. How could this … Continue reading

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Thoughts From the Bean Warriors

Thoughts from the Bean Warriors Archaeologists                                                                               Bean Warriors Archaeologists: The jungle was inhospitable.                                                       Bean Warriors: We made it hospitable. Archaeologists: They grew lima beans.                                                            Bean Warriors: It was the protein that didn’t run away. Archaeologists: Small bushy annual … Continue reading

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The Plum From the Beach Comes to Visit and Plans to Stay

Beach Plums I always wondered about the range maps of plants found on the USDA Plants Database.  Is the line of demarcation a real and genuinely smooth line or was it purchased directly from the Sears and Roebuck botanical books … Continue reading

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