Yard Farm

In an effort to come up with more planting space in the front yard I created a bed around the dogwood and iris in the front yard. Took all afternoon, digging out the clay and sod, digging down 6-8" to loosen the soil, using a mini-tiller to break up the clods, mixing and spreading some "good" soil/amendments and mixing them in -- all for 20 square feet of garden space (4' x 5'). (Mel Bartholomew would be proud.) I had some extra plants left from the ones I bought the other day, so put two basils on the back corners and two peppers (a banana and a bell) on the front corners. In the four remaining sides I seeded beets, Siberian kale, lacinato kale, and American spinach. If time and need allow, I can keep expanding this "natural area" in the front yard (with a more flowing design instead of "square") to create a combination of flowers and edibles. The dogwood is really growing -- sending out lots of new branches. I have fed it diligently since planting late last summer.

19 Good Reasons to Have a Garden

This information is from Dr. Joel Fuhrman on the cruciferous family of vegetables that are the most potent cancer fighters. How many are in your produce bin today (or mine) or planted in your garden?

If we really want to win the war against cancer, we must improve the nutritional quality of our diet. We have all heard about the antioxidant effects our bodies derive from the phytochemicals in plant foods. However, the unique phytochemicals found in cruciferous vegetables offer superior benefits. Cruciferous vegetables contain phytochemicals that have unique abilities to modify human hormones, detoxify compounds, and prevent toxic compounds from binding to human DNA, preventing toxins from causing DNA damage that could lead to cancer. Studies have even shown that genetic defects that may lead to cancer are suppressed by the consumption of green cruciferous vegetables.

Certainly, many studies have shown that eating fresh fruits, beans, vegetables, seeds, and nuts reduces the occurrence of cancer. I plotted cancer incidence in 25 countries against unrefined plant food intake and found that as vegetables, beans, and fruit consumption goes up 20% in a population, cancer rates typically drop 20%. But cruciferous vegetables are different; they have been shown to be twice as effective. As cruciferous vegetable intake goes up 20%, in a population, cancer rates drop 40%.

• arugula
• bok choy
• broccoli
• broccoli rabe
• brocollina
• brussels sprouts
• cabbage
• cauliflower
• collards
• horseradish
• kale
• kohlrabi
• mustard greens
• radish
• red cabbage
• rutabaga
• turnips
• turnip greens
• watercress

Include them in both raw and cooked forms and eat a variety of them. These benefits cannot be duplicated by taking any one pre-formed compound or supplement.

The evidence is now overwhelming that cruciferous vegetables play a major and unique role in the widely recognized protective effects of natural plant foods against cancer--and are the most important players in this arena. The biologically active compounds from raw and conservatively cooked green vegetables enhance the natural defenses of the human body against DNA damage and they even fuel the body's ability to block growth and replication of cells that are already damaged. For those in the know, these foods are the most important nutritional factors to prevent common human cancers.

Millennial Signs

Hanging Gardens of Stallings

King Nebuchadnezzar's Hanging Gardens of Babylon were one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The Hanging Gardens of Stallings aren't quite up to his standards, but they're a start. Because I have such limited ground space in the front yard I decided to try a growing method I've read about: growing plants in hanging buckets, upside down. Yes, it works -- not sure if mine will work, but I rigged up five buckets this afternoon (need to get one additional bucket for the sixth hook). In the five are a cherry tomato, a banana pepper, a bell pepper, a tomato, and a parsley. I originally planned to hang the buckets higher, hanging directly on the hooks, but discovered they had to hang lower in order to avoid the shade of the porch overhang. If they grow and the leaves proliferate downward I'll gradually raise the height of the buckets. Problems? High winds and grass fiber string rotting. (Need to replace string with some small chains if I can.) I used some food-grade plastic liners to line the non-food-grade buckets to protect against chemical leaching. (Not pictured are a half dozen other tomatoes and three eggplant plants that I put in the side yard where the avo trees were planted.)

I have to admit I'm not wild about the way these look -- "buckets" hanging off the front porch of my house. I think it's the string and the fact that the plants are so small at present -- so they just look like buckets. Hopefully, when the plants get bigger the look will change. Ideas welcome!

Millennium Restaurant

Millennium Restaurant in San Francisco is among the oldest, most popular, and award-winning vegetarian restaurants in the U.S. It was started by Ann Wheat and her husband after Ann gained her health back through Dr. John McDougall's counsel to switch to a plant-based diet. Here's her story:


Ann Wheat from John McDougall on Vimeo.

Thank God, Sunday Came

Dr. Shadrach Meshach (S.M.) Lockridge (March 7, 1913 – April 4, 2000) was the Pastor of Calvary Baptist Church, a prominent African-American congregation located in San Diego, California, from 1953 to 1993. He was known for his preaching across the United States and around the world.

He was well known for the following two sermon excerpts, both appropriate for this Resurrection Sunday: