Rajesh Chaudhary 
Last summer, my neighbor Maria had a bumper crop of green beans. More than her family could possibly eat. She blanched and froze about 30 pounds of them. “I feel bad feeding my kids frozen … Read more
Last summer, my friend Rachel called me in a panic. Her golden retriever, Duke, had gotten into the garden while she wasn’t watching. He’d eaten several fallen fruits from the ground—some safe, some not. “I … Read more
Last summer, my neighbor Elena came over looking defeated. Her entire vegetable garden had been wiped out by an unexpected late frost. Months of work—gone overnight. Her tomatoes, peppers, and green beans were all destroyed. … Read more
Every December 31st, my Tita Rosa spends the entire morning arranging her fruit display. She’s been doing this for over forty years. Last year, I watched her carefully place each orange, each grape cluster, and … Read more
Three years ago, I watched my neighbor Marcus stare at his garden bed in complete confusion. He’d planted broccoli, cabbage, kale, and Brussels sprouts—all in the same raised bed. When I asked why he grouped … Read more
I’ll never forget the morning I walked out to my lettuce bed and found a disaster. The beautiful butterhead lettuce I’d been babying for weeks looked like Swiss cheese. Holes everywhere. Some leaves were completely … Read more
Want to know the easiest vegetable you can grow that actually makes you look like a pro? It’s kale. Seriously. Last spring, my neighbor Maria—who had never grown anything beyond a struggling basil plant on … Read more
My neighbor Jim started growing raspberries three years ago after his doctor told him to watch his blood sugar. He’d been eating bananas every morning, thinking he was being healthy. Turns out, one medium banana … Read more
Have you ever tried to grow carrots here in Florida? You get all excited. You plant the seeds. You wait. Then you pull up these weird, forked, stumpy little things. It’s so disappointing. I can’t … Read more
You know that snake plant in the corner of your living room? The one thats been thriving even when you forget to water it for a month. What if I told you that one plant … Read more
Have you ever picked a pepper too early? It looked big and green. But when you took a bite, it was bitter and had no flavor. Or maybe you waited too long. Then you found … Read more
I was at a job in Brookside last fall, looking at a huge, beautiful maple tree in a client’s backyard. Its leaves were fire-engine red. The homeowner asked me, “Why does this one turn red, … Read more