that's what THEY said...

I'd told someone this tidbit, and got scoffed at. "More iron than HAMBURGER? Really? HAMBURGER?"

Yep. HAMBURGER. That's what THEY said, anyway....

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chard for days!

It was time. Time to do a final harvest of the remaining summer greens and prep the beds for Round 3: Winter Planting. Coming soon, near you!

The chard had grown to monster proportions - easily 3 ft tall! In all the hubbabaloo of things, I'd failed to harvest before the week+ long vacation, and there they were, ready to bust through the anti-cat netting. I was afraid they'd be bitter, but that's the good thing about bitter greens - they don't go any more bitter than what you loved about them in the first place! These were FABULOUS, and definately the most healthy dark glossy chard I'd ever seen - grocery pickings just don't even come close!

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watching The Garden - docu drama!

I have a dinner+movie date with The Boy tonight - watching the 2008 documentary that swept the SilverDocs fest and has been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature:

The Garden a film by Scott Hamilton Kennedy

The fourteen-acre community garden at 41st and Alameda in South Central Los Angeles is the largest of its kind in the United States. Started as a form of healing after the devastating L.A. riots in 1992, the South Central Farmers have since created a miracle in one of the country’s most blighted neighborhoods. Growing their own food. Feeding their families. Creating a community.

But now, bulldozers are poised to level their 14-acre oasis.

The Garden follows the plight of the farmers, from the tilled soil of this urban farm to the polished marble of City Hall. Mostly immigrants from Latin America, from countries where they feared for their lives if they were to speak out, we watch them organize, fight back, and demand answers:

Why was the land sold to a wealthy developer for millions less than fair-market value? Why was the transaction done in a closed-door session of the LA City Council? Why has it never been made public?

And the powers-that-be have the same response: “The garden is wonderful, but there is nothing more we can do.”

If everyone told you nothing more could be done, would you give up?

* * *

The Garden has the pulse of verité with the narrative pull of fiction, telling the story of the country’s largest urban farm, backroom deals, land developers, green politics, money, poverty, power, and racial discord. The film explores and exposes the fault lines in American society and raises crucial and challenging questions about liberty, equality, and justice for the poorest and most vulnerable among us.

High on the Highline

Husband and I had a nice little get-a-way weekend to New York City. I am usually the planner who gets a little out of control and has doubled-up lunch and dinner reservations all over the town. This trip we decided to take it easy. Once place I had to see was The Highline. It's an old freight line from the 30's that was abandoned in the 80's. Now it is a public park owned by the city of New York. It's a lovely meandering walk above the city with concrete paths, trees and all types of plants. We had our pink wine at Pastis and then took a leisurely stroll through the park. Only New York could get something like this together. I was hoping to see a vegetable garden up there but it's mostly different grasses and trees. I was also amazed to see so many rooftop gardens. I would love to somehow get a tour of NYC rooftops. All in all a fabulous trip.




PS check out Palazzo Chupi - Julian Schnabel's little pink building in the West Village

Fingers O' Squash

Nice little harvest of Summer squash and Pattypan squash. I'm not getting too many of either though. They are dying on the vine even with my attempts at self-pollinating with a paint brush. Maybe not enough sun? My tomatoes are out-of-control! I've been picking nice batches of Sun Golds and Sweet 100's. They are so good! Made a lovely little salad of tomatoes, corn, olive oil and salt and pepper.

pasta toppings

Made this the night before I left for Paris - a simple pasta with garlic, mushrooms and the cherry tomatoes from the garden.

I've been gone for 9 days, and I had forgotten to put out the 'Please Water' sign on my community garden plot. I'm hoping someone noticed, and that my 2nd round plantings aren't shriveled dry husks of their former selves. Off to find out!

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French beans!

in honor of our upcoming trip to Paris, I've planted French Beans. I expect them to be robust, productive and ready to provide me the raw materials for the stolen recipes I plan to heist back to SF!!!

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Lotus-ish

Just about one of the prettiest things I've ever, ever seen. Somehow, these manage to be 'natures-mathematics' zinnia, while still having 'wabi-sabi' zen garden off-kilter perfections. Somebody please explain this to me!