Urban Farm

Preserving Eggs 1860 Style

Every summer I waste eggs that I don’t get out to people in need or I can’t eat fast enough. I collect fresh chicken and duck eggs. I bring them in to the house confident that their natural bloom will…

You Rock My World

Once upon a time there were three houses on the lot that is today Mezzacello. Today there is only one that remains But the shadow of the footprints of the other two rubble foundations persist in the grass on hot…

digging into foundations
The limestone stoop to a former Greek Revival townhouse that once stood on this site.

The “Keeping Up With The Jones’” Effect

When you are doing something you’ve never done before you are doing something new. It’s easy to think that you are exactly where you need to be. What I mean when I say “Keeping Up With The Jones’” I don’t…

Seamus Patrick and Jeff Allan Marion’s gorgeous lantern garden party.

Tech, Dirt, Rain, and Security

Security is essential on an urban farm. From cameras to drones to locks I am always looking for ways to improve security. Locks are my nemesis. I forget combinations, I lose keys. So when Amazon offered up a weatherproof biometric…

A biometric fingerprint lock that does not work with muddy fingers.

Prep Your Soil, Plan Your Plantings

It’s important to plan your garden well. It’s also important to pay ATTENTION to the planting instructions that come on your seed packets. Otherwise your plants and vegetables will all go feral – literally. Take the case of the carrots…

Crazy snake carrots needed more amended soil to grow straight.

Adding a Bloom of Flavor

This year an herb garden was added to the “rooms” that were already installed. It was a compromise between Jim and I. The property and gardens are divided between ornamental for me, and pracical/productive or food for him. Actually it…

Bottles of EVOO with fresh herbs infused

How Much Food Do You Need To Grow?

If you follow our mission here at Mezzacello you know I never have any expectation of full sustainability. I shoot with confidence for 40% offset in food costs. I actually get closer to 30% with loss, pests, and poor storage…

Mezzacello Urban Farm campus diagram. North is to the left, east at the top.

Free Garden Hacks

I normally try to curate my own content. But this is some free gold. So I will save a link here and come back an amend it soon. https://www.naturallivingideas.com/garden-for-free/

Leeks picked one the fall are still growing in the winter.

The Foodist: Blueberry Galette with Rosemary Crust

A delightfully simple savory blueberry and rosemary galette that will impress ANYONE AND sell your house!

Sheds, Groundhogs, and the Opioid Epidemic

In 2017 a dear friend of mine donated an 8’ x 10’ x 12’ (2.44m x 3.04m x 3.66m) shed that was on a property he was looking to sell. So I hired a group of workers that I saw…

Our donated shed built by a workman we came to call the groundhog.