$upplements – are they really what they say?

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$upplements – are they really what they say?

Do you buy supplements? I do, and I used to buy a lot more until I recently read a little bit about the industry. The more I read the more it felt like one of those holiday scams; you know, “Oh no Sir, this is real ruby, special price for you”, he said holding up the orange piece of glass, or “We powdered the saffron to preserve it and so you have more,” he said holding a vial, the contents of which smelt like sawdust shavings. 

Only, those scams seem to have a modicum more honesty...

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Elemental disorder – tu much jin?

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Elemental disorder – tu much jin?

In this second instalment of the Chinese five elements posts, we'll talk about 土 (tu, earth), the most commonly-used medium for plant growing, and mineral nutrients (including metals, jin, 金).

Plants can be temperamental little things and getting the right pairing can be important. Then there are fertilizers and nutrients to consider. Your average garden center can be quite daunting on first visit with the array of soils and supplements. So where do you start? 

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Growing & eating cheat sheet

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Growing & eating cheat sheet

Hello there, I've been playing around with some formats showing how you might grow plants. I started with a popular salad staple across the world, arugula (or 'rocket' as we Brits call it). What I need to know is whether the designs below would be of any interest or use to you? If not, could you let me know why? And if you do like them, what else would you like to see?

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Healthy herbs - part one

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Healthy herbs - part one

In previous posts I’ve extolled the virtues of growing herbs in small spaces. Beyond the culinary benefits they bring to most dishes, and the potential money you save not buying a few overpriced sprigs from the store, many pack a mighty nutritional punch.

This and subsequent posts will focus on a few herbs (and spices) that you can grow at home, examining what’s been written about their nutritional properties. As highlighted in my previous post, Nutrition Attrition, there are contradictory articles. This is not a scientific analysis, nor is it detailed enough to cover all perspectives. What I’ve sought to do is identify consistent comments in both Western and Eastern sources about these herbs’ potential nutritional (and wellbeing) benefits.

For more on the various nutrients mentioned see the nutrient summary in our ‘eating guide’.

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Elemental disorder

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Elemental disorder

In this, the first of four posts, I will look at the traditional Chinese five-element theory. So, why four posts for five elements? One of the elements is wood (木), which I take as a proxy for the green things we’re looking to grow using the other elements. 

Those elements are: water (水), fire (火), earth (土), and metal(金). 

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Seed capital

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Seed capital

When starting your urban farm one of the areas that can be a little overwhelming is the sheer variety of seeds. I’m not talking about all the plants you could grow, just the seeds for one plant you wish to grow. To prove the point, type ‘lettuce’ into most online seed stores; on one very popular US store they have 151 pages (15 seeds to a page) just for lettuce and associated salad stuffs. That’s before we’ve even got into the debates about genetic modification, heirloom seeds, hybrids, purebreds (plants that will produce viable seeds once matured) etc.  We’ll leave that for another blog, but for now, keep it simple!

One of the most fun ways to get started is to look at what you’re already eating and grow from what you’d normally dispose of.  

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Nutrition attrition

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Nutrition attrition

When I see the endless column inches espousing healthy living I understand why they exist, but question whether preaching is the best medium. Can’t we just decide for ourselves? Yes…

…But, a few minutes of research will show you that there is great discord in the many articles devoted to the subject of nutrition in fruit and veg. 

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Bird and the Bees (and vibrating toothbrushes)

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Bird and the Bees (and vibrating toothbrushes)

Despite the title, this isn’t an urban legend about college initiation ceremonies, but it does get a little fruity! Today children, we’re going to talk about reproduction… in this case fruit and veg.

One of the challenges for many urban farmers is ensuring the flowers that will turn to fruits or veg pollinate. Insects are our friends here, with bees first amongst equals. 

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Angry Aquaponics

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Angry Aquaponics

Aquaponics is growing plants and fish together. The theory is the waste the fish produce is fertiliser for the plants, who return the favour by keeping the water clean. I’ve seen this work on a large scale on a recent course I attended on all things ending ‘ponics. There I saw tilapia (a fast breeding and growing freshwater fish) being farmed in tandem with various Asian green veg. Lacking a room I could turn into a pond, I thought I’d have a go on a much, much smaller scale, learn from mistakes and adapt. 

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Welcome to the farmerly

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Welcome to the farmerly

Urban Farming means different things to different people. My definition is simple: growing food in an urban or confined setting.  I’ve done this in various locations with diverse conditions. Throughout this process I’ve experimented and made plenty of mistakes, and enjoyed some successes. One of the reasons I make mistakes is because farming can be hard. As Brian Breet put it, “Farming is a profession of hope”. But people with hope are good people to be around.

The other reason I make mistakes is I’m a man, and therefore not given to reading instructions properly. In my defence I would argue they’re often quite dry and dull. I will endeavour to not go down that (garden) path. 

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