Life Style & Travel

The Cabbage, A Versatile Vegetable

UNITED STATES—In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, this week we pay tribute to the veggie that makes quite a few people cringe: cabbage.  What is it about this extremely heavy, green, leafy vegetable that so many people dislike?  Perhaps it’s the bitter taste.  Cabbage isn’t a vegetable that is easy to push down the throat.  Flavoring the veggie just...

Utility Cables Need Space

Since I did not make the drive up or down the coast very often, the rare silvery-gray Bismarck palm that I could see slowly climbing into the skyline near the edge of Highway 101 through Santa Barbara seemed to be slightly taller every time I saw it. It grew slowly, but enough to notice since I only saw it...

Cauliflower, The White Version Of Broccoli

UNITED STATES—The cauliflower is a big and bulky vegetable that is not easy to eat.  The first question most people ask when purchasing cauliflower is just how do you cut up the veggie?  Notably only the head of cauliflower (the white portion) is eaten, the other part is discarded.  My tip is cut away as much as possible off...

The Blackberry, Another Berry Member

UNITED STATES—We’ve talked about the strawberry, the blueberry and the raspberry.  There is one more relative of the berry family that we have yet to discuss: the blackberry. While berry is apart of its name, the blackberry is not a true member of the berry family. It’s similar to the raspberry only it’s black.  But its shape can prove quite...

Floral Fragrance In The Garden

UNITED STATES—Attracting pollinators is serious business for flowers that do not rely exclusively on wind for dispersion of their pollen. Many flowers attract pollinators with flashy color. Some reward their pollinators with sweet nectar. Many prefer to use fragrance. Most flowers use a combination of two or more of these tactics. Fragrances are designed by the flowers that use...

Broccoli, Broccoli, The Veggie We All Know

UNITED STATES—I love its raw form, but if you place a spoonful of cooked broccoli on my plate, the chance of me eating it greatly decreases. Broccoli is apart of the cabbage family.  It’s a veggie as a kid, I would always indulge in; only if it was raw.  That’s the one quality many are unaware of when it...

Raspberry, Our Rosy Red Friend

UNITED STATES—We’ve discussed blueberries and strawberries, but there is another member of the berry family we have yet to talk about, the raspberry.  How can one best sum up the raspberry?  It’s a small red, cone shaped fruit.  Its tart, not as sweet, but it’s a great snack on the go for children and adults alike.  For those of...

Protected: The Lowdown On Ground Cover

Of all the functions that the many and various plants in the garden serve, ground covers have the lowliest job description. Well, maybe it is just the lowest job; covering the ground. It is an important job though. Ground covers fill in the space between other desirable plants to obscure otherwise bare soil. They also control weeds. Some ground...

Our Colorful, Seeded Friend, The Kiwi

UNITED STATES—I am indeed a fan of tropical fruits like the mango, coconut, papaya, passion fruit and kiwi.  Yes, kiwi.  It was a staple fruit of mine growing up as a kid, perhaps because no one else liked it.  Well it appears now my nephew is a fan of the fruit as well, but there are reasons kiwis are...

Sweet Potato, Relative Of The Potato

UNITED STATES—For most of us when it comes to having a quick snack we go for the French fry which is composed of white potatoes, Idaho potatoes or Yukon gold potatoes.  Not many of us think of the sweet potato as a substitute for the French fry, but it works.  The big difference between the potato and the sweet...