Category Archives: Malabar Spinach

It’s about time

Mea culpa.   Your blogger has no good excuse for his long silence.   Here is an update in three parts:  fruit, vegetables and horticulture. 1.  Fruit Report What a difference a year makes.   The previously parsimonious Moonglow pear, offering … Continue reading

Posted in Alpines in the Secret Garden, Apples, Biodiversity, Blueberries, European Pears, Malabar Spinach, Nectarines, Non-edible Bulbs, Non-edible Perennials, Peaches, Pears, Potatoes | 2 Comments

Awesome

In the world of ornamental horticulture, perhaps because of the pervasive influence of our British cousins, etiquette demands a certain reticence when discussing one’s own garden.   Pausing with guests before a spectacularly rare and difficult Tricyrtis, one might be allowed … Continue reading

Posted in Asian Pears, Berries, Blackberries, Blueberries, Chard, Fruit, Grapes, Malabar Spinach, Nectarines, Peaches, Photos, Strawberries, Tomatoes | 1 Comment

Après le déluge

Plants on rooftop gardens are far more exposed to the elements than their ground-level cousins.   With Hurricane Irene heading directly for lower Manhattan, it was alarming to hear the experts explain that 75 mph winds at ground level translated to … Continue reading

Posted in Design, Failures, Malabar Spinach, Nectarines, Peaches, Photos, Roses, Structure, The Visionaire, Tomatoes, Weather | 4 Comments

Autumn Harvest

The roof-top garden continues to produce copious quantities of tomatoes, carrots, Malabar spinach, Erba Stella, parsley, peppers, beets and greens.  The late season lettuces and spinach are gaining size, and the first broccoli florette of the fall crop has made its appearance.   A … Continue reading

Posted in Broccoli, Greens, Lettuce, Malabar Spinach, Photos, Spinach, Tomatoes | Leave a comment

Columbus Day Rooftop Garden Dinner

Perhaps it is climate change, or perhaps the normal vagaries of the weather.  But October 11 featured a 76 degree afternoon, and at 5:30 six guests gathered for the final al fresco roof top garden dinner of the season.  The … Continue reading

Posted in Apples, Basil, Beets, Chefs, Cooking and Eating, European Pears, Greens, Herbs, Lettuce, Malabar Spinach, Meals and Menus, Pears, Potatoes, Root Vegetables, Spinach, Tomatoes, Vegetables | 2 Comments

Malabar spinach

Basella alba, or Malabar spinach (also Phooi leaf, Red vine spinach, Creeping spinach, Climbing spinach) is a perennial vine from the tropics.  It grew in the summer of 2010 up a south facing screen, and was the picture of health, … Continue reading

Posted in Greens, Malabar Spinach, Spinach, Vegetables | Leave a comment

September 21, 2010 — Breakfast

21 September 2010 — Breakfast  As Michael Polan reminds us, humans are nearly unique in the animal kingdom in having to ask themselves the question, “What shall I eat?”   I have taken the approach, at least at breakfast, in letting … Continue reading

Posted in Cooking and Eating, Green Beans, Malabar Spinach, Meals and Menus, Raspberries, Spinach, Tomatoes | 1 Comment