In 1957, the Soviet Union launched the first man-made satellite. It was called Sputnik, and it looked a lot like a kohlrabi. Now, with so few people familiar with kohlrabi, the vegetable is often described as looking a lot like Sputnik, which is not far from the truth. The flattened globe rests just above the […]

Buy it, grow it, love it, and definitely eat it! Kale may seem like it appeared out of nowhere a few years back, but it’s been around since ancient Greek and Roman times. And you can get fresh kale most of the year, even in cold climates it will over-winter, and with a hoop house, […]

If you stroll through just about any farmers market, you’ll see signs announcing leafy greens you’ve probably never heard of: Tuscan black kale, mizuna, komatsuna, mustard greens, turnip greens, even wrinkled, crinkled, crumpled cress. The odd names and odd look of these greens put some people off, but don’t let them deter you! Greens come […]

Besides being different colors on the outside, there’s not much difference . . . after all, they’re just beans, right? Henry David Thoreau, and anyone who has ever grown their own, or had fresh-picked beans from a local farm, would beg to differ. In Walden, Thoreau writes about his “singular experience” of “planting, and hoeing, […]

A plant that thrives on cold winters and humid summers, the gooseberry may just be the ultimate Illinois fruit. The season is short, but it can be extremely prolific, with a single bush being capable of producing several pounds of fruit. And the fruit can be harvested at almost any stage–meaning you can pick it […]