the urban field guide

I spend a lot of my time as a city dweller thinking about when I get to step out of the bubble and see what else is out there. I’m taking a short trip up to Sequim, Washington this weekend where I’ll get to visit with family and check out all of the herb farms. I’m arriving a week before the huge Lavender Festival and am hoping the lavender is showing off already. I’ll post pictures when I return!

I’ll try and publish posts while I’m gone but if that fails d/t technological breakdown I’ll be back around on the 7th. Hope you all have a good long weekend!

There are times that Berkeley amazes me. Every last Friday of the month the Ecology Center pairs with the City of Berkeley to give away free compost. I’m not talking tiny bags either – I’m talking, back your pick-up truck in and start shoveling until it’s full of dark, rich compost. Yes, amazing.

photos: G Bucciarelli

It’s chaotic, happy, hopeful and hard work all at once. When G arrived 10 minutes after the gates opened, there were about 50 people there ranging from landscapers to front yard gardeners. Some were shoveling like mad loading their trucks and others were filling up whatever they could get their hands on and shoving it all in their car.

There was enough so that I was able to amend almost every bed in the yard and still have enough left over to give a neighbor. Berkeley has given (more…)

I know I should eat every last artichoke. But I am so in love with the artichoke flower with it’s neon purple glow that I have to let a few bloom every year. See why?

So many of us committed city dwellers are left without a lot of growing space indoors or out. So we have to get creative. Why stop at African Violets? These Etsy sellers are featuring terrariums in their shops and I think that they’re beautiful. I love the idea of getting to peek inside a complete biosphere whenever I want!

by beadstyle

by madebymavis

by Greenbriar

I had a clinic shift in the herb room and thought I would take some pictures to share. The herb room at my acupuncture school can be a mystifying, beautiful and spine tingling place all in one. From self heal flowers to cicada husks – it’s all there.

One entire wall are drawers of herbs and then there is another  wall lined with shelves of gallon size jars. I had time to take some pictures in between filling out prescriptions. Here’s a peek into some of the jars:

The snakes are called wu shao she and are used for wind disorders. (more…)

I came across this organization today that links up urban gardeners who may not have access to any land, with those who have land but are willing to share or collaborate with other gardeners. Another effort to make our cities as green as possible! I wonder if there’s anything like this anywhere else… Click on the picture to go to their site.

Originally I am from NJ, you know – ‘The Garden State’. Now, I’m not knocking NJ there are many, many things I love about it but when I first came to California I could not believe what I was seeing. Nature is huge out here, whether it’s the Pacific Ocean with enormous boulders jutting out or whether it’s plants that are growing wildly in almost every yard. This brugmansia is one of my all time favorites/I-can’t-believe-it exists-it’s-so-damn-beautiful plants. Totally amazing what grows in this climate. This particular plant is growing over the sidewalk around the corner from my house and it forms a tunnel that is intertwined with roses and kiwi vines. A lovely urban arbor. I also have this plant in my yard right under my bedroom window so I can go to sleep and wake up to the amazing scent of its flowers. It’s really very easy to propagate… (more…)

I’m so careful this time of year to keep all my senses alert to being near a nest. Is there a bird nearby fussing? Can I really see the whole area that I’m pruning? Just this past week I found a nest hidden in the grape vine with three perfect blue eggs inside. Here are some Etsy artists featuring nests, please click on the pictures to check out their shops:

by Gennine from Mexico City

by Carrie M Becker

The NY Times posted a pretty inspiring article yesterday on rooftop gardens in NYC and SF. The picture above is from the garden at the amazing Glide Memorial Church in the Tenderloin District. I had just recently heard about this garden project and wanted to write a post about it. They have workshops so I’ll go and take some pictures soon. The name of the garden is ‘Graze the Roof’. Which, of course, I love. Enjoy the article! (Just click on the photo for the link over!)

I have a friend who is an amazing ally to the honeybees. Not only does he plant his gardens with them in mind, but he is a gifted (and seemingly fearless) beekeeper. He has 48 different entries on his blog that you can check out to learn more about the bees and his journey in learning about and from them. This was his post yesterday and it provoked a small scream to come from me so I thought I’d share it here.

photos by Eli Wadley

Look at that perfect design the bees are making! The swarm was 3 feet long and 1 foot in width. (more…)