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By Kimberly Sevilla
Christmas comes a few days after the Winter Solstice, which falls on December 21 or 22. Ancient Romans, Egyptians, Celtic Druids, and Vikings decorated their homes and temples with evergreen branches during the solstice season as part of celebrations dedicated to various gods for the days becoming longer and spring returning. Objects like gold and silver balls, candles, and fruit and nuts were used as part of the decorations.
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on May 13, 2010. We’re re-publishing articles in this series so that we can share the wonderful Kimberly Sevilla’s knowledge and experience with you, because, hey, it’s spring! Again!
Photo by Jessi Bautista
Q: I’d like to create a garden, and I have a small balcony, what can I grow?
By Kimberly Sevilla
Owner of Rose Red & Lavender, and life-long gardener
I remember my first “rooftop garden,” in a walk-up on Avenue D in Manhattan. I attempted to grow some tomatoes in five gallon buckets, nothing fancy, and certainly not pretty. I quickly discovered that on hot summer days tomatoes drink a lot of water, and over a long weekend vacation, get destroyed. Hauling water up three flights of stairs and hanging out on a hot rooftop was no fun. My first year as a rooftop gardener was a big disaster, and I learned that no amount of love can revive a crispy tomato plant. I retreated, to my terrestrial garden, where the elements were a little more forgiving, and put my rooftop endeavor on hold for a few years.
Valentine’s Day Donations to Benefit the North Brooklyn Composting Project (NBCP).
Thanks to two anonymous Brooklyn donors, ioby will be running a dollar-for-dollar match campaign on Valentines Day for all Brooklyn projects.
All donations up to $200 (the cap is to encourage small donors) will be doubled, for today only. So give $5, $10, $20 and your donation will have DOUBLE the impact. We are using the money raised to give worm classes and bins to local schools this winter!
By Lisette Johnson
Of the 250 million tons of trash generated by Americans in 2008, only 83 million of it was recycled or composted. Yard trimmings and food scraps—stuff farmers have used to enrich their fields for generations—constituted over 25 percent of municipal solid waste nationwide in the same year. The idea of recycling has become ubiquitous to most New Yorkers; fines are issued for failure to comply and public recycling bins are starting to pop up around the City. And though New Yorkers can count themselves as some of the most Earth-conscious urbanites on the planet (New Yorkers statistically have some of the tiniest carbon footprints in America), most of us do not compost.