One great local food weekend on the way

With the weather looking downright summery and generally sunny, this weekend looks to be a great time to get out and about to sample some of the best local food in our area. Here are some ideas:

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Tags: weekend | farmersmarket |

Five fantastic farmers market finds

As more and more farmers markets are opening outdoors for the season, many of us head out to sample the best each farmers market has to offer from the variety of vendors. Each of us have our favorites, and here are five of mine:

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Mobile app to help local diners find healthy options

This morning WPSU ran a story by Megan Caldwell about an interesting new app, Undressed Foods, being developed by a Penn State alum that helps people who want to watch what they eat navigate the tricky nutritional seas of restaurant menus.

Jennifer Swistock has worked on developing the app over the last several years, pulling together a wealth of nutritional information on the various places to eat in the State College area. While the app is focused on student diets (along with restaurants it features items found at the Penn State dining halls), since it has a fairly exhaustive rundown of dishes at State College restaurants, it can be useful for everyone in Happy Valley. From the story:

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Tags: mobileapp | nutrition | healthyeating |

Location, location, location: Picking the right spot is a vital first step for new garden

If you are starting a garden this year in your yard, the first step is definitely the mot important—choosing a proper location. While having the garden close to the house makes harvesting more convenient, the absolute most important thing to consider is sunlight.

Most fruits and vegetable are sun-loving plants, and need full-sun. Full-sun means at least six hours of sun a day. For full-sun plants, sun is the most important factor for successful growth, and no amount of fertilizer can help full-sun plants if they are not getting enough sun.

Next, you want to make sure that the spot you choose has good drainage. Pooling of water is not good for plants, and can lead to problems such as disease and rot.

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Tags: gardening | location |