Monthly Archives: December 2012

It’s the beginning of a New World-Thank you, Mayans!

December 28, 2012 4

 
Seasonal Cooking with Rita Calvert~The Local Cook
Some believed the world would end Friday — on 12/21/12 — which is when an important phase on the ancient calendar of the Mayan …

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Got Something in your Garden to Paint?

December 26, 2012 Comments Off on Got Something in your Garden to Paint?

Finally, some winter weather, my favorite time to dream up changes to my garden for next year.  I love poring over photos of plants in books, old magazines and the catalogs that started arriving in …

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Great Local Scenes of the Holidays

December 24, 2012 Comments Off on Great Local Scenes of the Holidays

Here are some scenes you might enjoy this Christmas week, starting with the famous ones in Washington – at the White House, the U.S. Capitol, Union Station and the U.S. Botanic Garden (where you …

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Holiday Brunch “On the Run”

December 20, 2012 Comments Off on Holiday Brunch “On the Run”

 
 Seasonal Cooking with Rita Calvert~The Local Cook
This time of year we are especially on the run-way too much to fit in those short daylight hours. These recipes for a lively …

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More Great Books about Ornamental Gardening

December 19, 2012 Comments Off on More Great Books about Ornamental Gardening

Time for the final four new or newish gardening books that gardenwriters are recommending these days, for yourself or someone you love who’ll loan you the book.
Why Grow That When you can …

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Best Garden Photos in the World are Sometimes Local

December 17, 2012 Comments Off on Best Garden Photos in the World are Sometimes Local

It’s mid-December, there’s bad news everywhere, and I bet we could all use the calming influence of nature, especially when it’s at its most beautiful.  That’s what has been compiled for us by judges for …

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Hobnobbing with our Local Sustainable Farmers

December 14, 2012 Comments Off on Hobnobbing with our Local Sustainable Farmers

 
Seasonal Cooking with Rita Calvert~The Local Cook
I was asked by my co-author, Michael Heller, to prepare a recipe I had created in our cookbook for the Maryland Grazers Network annual …

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Great New Books about Ornamental Gardening

December 12, 2012 Comments Off on Great New Books about Ornamental Gardening

Last week we recommended some favorite new books about vegetable gardening and next up are popular new books about ornamental gardening.  That means woody plants, perennials, annuals, and so on – everything except edibles.

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To resurface your outdated fireplace, contact a landscaper!

December 10, 2012 Comments Off on To resurface your outdated fireplace, contact a landscaper!

Are you tired of your sad-looking old fireplace?  The old fireplace in the photo above was ready for a facelift and the owners came to our Landscaping Department to make that happen.  The next …

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More Holiday Entertaining from Homestead Gardens

December 6, 2012 1

Seasonal Cooking with Rita Calvert~The Local Cook
Onward and upward we go to the second set of recipes for the holidays along with some charming platters and trays to serve them.

Savory Rosemary Parmesan …

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Now’s the best time to do landscaping. Seriously.

December 5, 2012 2

Most people wait until spring to even THINK about improving their yards and they look pretty incredulous when I tell them that NOW is the best time to do the major things to your garden.  …

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Books for Veg Gardeners (and Cooks, too)

December 3, 2012 Comments Off on Books for Veg Gardeners (and Cooks, too)

I’ve search the gardening world for favorite new veg-gardening books and have culled the list down to three highly recommended ones.  (And a similar list for books about ornamental gardening is coming next week.)  These …

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