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Even a small rental lawn, regulated by a homeowners association, can grow food and invite wildlife. Photos by Alexandra Dovel. “Little boxes on the hillside, Little boxes made of ticky-tacky, Little boxes on the hillside, Little boxes all the same…” You may remember these lyrics from the theme song of a television show called Weeds, a mid-2000s satire of suburbia. Manicured lawns, beige-on-beige conformity, homes that looked like copy-paste jobs. It was funny because it was true. But the song actually dates back to 1962, written by folk singer Malvina Reynolds — a protest tune disguised as a jingle. And sixty years later, not much has changed in many middle-class housing developments. But what if a front yard wasn’t just something to maintain, but a space with purpose? A place that offered food, habitat and seasonal beauty alongside curb appeal? That shift in perspective changed how we viewed our own yard. We stopped seeing it as something to manage and began treating it as something alive. As owners of Bluebird Growers, a small horticulture-forward landscaping business in Northeast Florida, my husband Nick and I can implement this philosophy in others’ yards as well. We focus on sustainable, native and edible gardens — plantings that support both people and pollinators. We’ve helped homeowners rethink what a yard can be, but when it came to our own front yard at a home we rented, the project felt different. Without the freedom of ownership, we leaned on ingenuity. Could a small rental lawn, regulated by a homeowners association, grow food, invite wildlife and shift the way we lived? We decided to find out. We live in St. Johns County, where lawns are often better regulated than natural ecosystems. Our neighborhood is quiet and tidy. Irrigation systems run on timers, hedges are trimmed to code and deviations tend to raise eyebrows. But beneath the order lies soil — and soil is full of possibility, especially in Florida’s generous growing zones. We started small, expanding beds slowly. We improved the soil with mushroom compost, pine fines and alfalfa. Then came the plants: native pollinator magnets like salvia and coreopsis, mixed with herbs, greens and edible blooms, including parsley, fennel, lemon thyme, arugula, society garlic and chives. We tucked in papalo and roselle, grew pumpkins by accident and added fig and banana trees along the sunny side yard. Our choices reflect what thrives in Zone 9B’s subtropical climate: plants that can take the heat, bounce back after storms and give back more than they take. That was just the start. The garden continues to evolve. It’s part design, part improvisation and completely alive. There’s a misconception that ecological gardening is chaotic or high maintenance. In truth, it often asks less of you than a lawn. No pesticides or synthetic fertilizers. Less mowing, less watering. Just healthy soil, thoughtful plant selection and time. This once plain patch of red mulch and boxwoods has become a living classroom. A reminder that you don’t need ideal conditions or acres of land to grow something worthwhile. Because even in a row of little boxes, one yard will always find a way to misbehave.

A refreshing low-alcohol spritzer that layers delicate vermouth and sherry with bright citrus and strawberry notes. Photo by Amanda Rosenblatt. Makes 1 cocktail Ingredients 2 strawberries 1 ounce sweet vermouth 1 ounce Lustau Fino Sherry ½ ounce Ritual Aperitif Alternative 1- ½ ounces grapefruit soda (such as Jarritos, Ting, or Squirt) 1 -½ ounces prosecco Lemon and orange peel, for garnish Instructions Muddle the strawberries in a mixing glass. Add the sweet vermouth, Lustau Fino Sherry and Ritual Aperitif Alternative. Shake everything except the soda and the prosecco and double strain into a wine glass over cubed ice. Top with grapefruit soda and prosecco. Garnish with a lemon and orange peel.

A balanced non-alcoholic aperitif that combines herbal amaro notes with bright black currant and warming ginger. Photo by Amanda Rosenblatt. Makes 1 cocktail Ingredients 1-½ ounces Ritual Agave Alternative  ½ ounce The Pathfinder Amaro ½ ounce Monin Black Currant and Ginger Syrup ½ ounce lemon juice 2 to 3 dashes All The Bitter Non-Alcoholic Aromatic Bitters Fresh mint and dehydrated citrus, to garnish Instructions Shake all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Strain into a double old-fashioned glass over crushed or pebble ice. To serve, garnish with fresh mint and citrus.

A sophisticated non-alcoholic whiskey cocktail that balances bright blackberry and tart lemon for an elegant sipper. Photo by Cole LoCurto. Makes 1 cocktail Ingredients 1-½ ounces NA whiskey ½ ounce blackberry puree ½ ounce simple syrup ¾ ounce lemon juice Lemon wheel and blackberry, for garnish Instructions Add all ingredients to a shaker and shake well. Strain into a rocks glass with a gentleman's cube. Garnish with a lemon wheel and a blackberry.

Dark and moist, with chewy currants, these are flavored with cinnamon, clove, ginger and rich molasses. They are so versatile – cut them in bars or triangles. Not too sweet, so you could even eat them for breakfast (we won’t tell!). Photo by Amy Robb. Makes 2 dozen Ingredients 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking soda 2 teaspoons ground ginger 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cloves 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened 1 cup light brown sugar 1 egg 1/4 cup unsulphured molasses 1 cup currants For glaze 1-3/4 cups powdered sugar, sifted 3 tablespoons milk 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract Instructions Preheat oven to 375°. Combine flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves and salt in small bowl. Beat butter and sugar in bowl on medium speed about two minutes, or until light and fluffy. Scrape bowl, then beat in egg. Add molasses, then beat until well blended. Scrape sides of bowl. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture until well combined. Stir in currants. Divide dough in half and shape each half into log about 1-1/2 inches in diameter and about 12 inches long on ungreased cookie sheet. Dough will spread to about 4 inches wide while baking. Bake 15-18 minutes until logs are golden brown but still soft to the touch. Tops of logs will crack while baking. Cool logs on cookie sheet. To make glaze: Whisk ingredients in small bowl until well blended. Drizzle over cooled logs. When glaze is set, cut logs into desired shapes.

This cake, with just a hint of cocoa, makes a spectacular finish to a holiday celebration. Photo by Stefanie Keeler. Serves 12-16 Ingredients 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 2 tablespoons ground ginger 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder 3/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup brewed coffee 3/4 cup molasses 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 3 large eggs 2 tablespoons finely grated fresh ginger For miracle Frosting 1-1/2 cups granulated sugar 3/4 cup vegetable oil 1-3/4 cups sugar 5 tablespoons all-purpose flour 3 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch 1/2 teaspoon salt 1-3/4 cups milk 3-3/4 sticks unsalted butter, softened 1 tablespoon vanilla extract Chopped crystallized ginger for garnish, optional Instructions Heat oven to 350˚. For a 2-layer cake, grease and flour two 8-inch round cake pans and line bottom of pans with parchment paper. (For a 4-layer cake as pictured, use four 8-inch round cake pans)*. Sift flour, cocoa, ground ginger, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, pepper, and cayenne together into a large bowl. Whisk coffee, molasses and baking soda in second large bowl until combined. Whisk in sugar, oil, eggs and fresh ginger until smooth. Whisk the coffee mixture into flour mixture until smooth. Divide batter among prepared pans. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, or until a toothpick poked in center of cake comes out clean. Remove from oven, and let cakes cool in pans on wire rack at least 10 minutes before removing. Continue to cool completely out of pans before frosting. To make frosting: Whisk sugar, flour, cornstarch and salt together in medium saucepan. Slowly whisk in milk until smooth. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until mixture boils and thickens, about 6 to 10 minutes. Transfer mixture to a wide shallow bowl, cover surface with plastic wrap, and cool completely, about 2 hours. Using a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat softened butter on medium-high until light and fluffy. Turn off mixer, add cooled milk mixture and vanilla and beat on medium until combined, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Increase speed to medium high and beat until frosting is light and fluffy. * I used the 8-inch round shallow cake pans available at Dollar Tree to bake four perfectly even layers, no trimming required. The frosting makes 6 cups, enough for a 4-layer cake.

Turn your leftover holiday roast into this Tex-Mex breakfast favorite. Ranchers and cowboys of Northern Mexico air-dried beef with chilis and regional spices so it would be preserved, machaca. The key to achieving that texture is finely shredding and crisping the beef. Photo by Nick Hogan. Serves 8 - 10 Ingredients 10 ounces leftover cold prime rib Vegetable oil 2 teaspoons ground cumin 1-½ teaspoons chili powder 10 ounces Pico De Joy (or another pico de gallo salsa) 5 eggs, beaten 8-10 tortillas Sliced avocado for garnish Refried pinto beans Instructions Slice the prime rib into thin strips. Using a food processor, finely shred beef strips to attain the texture of traditional machaca. Cover the bottom of a cast-iron skillet with oil and heat to medium high/high. Add shredded beef to skillet and stir. Add cumin and chili powder and cook until meat is crispy - you may need to add more oil to get it really crispy. Once the meat is crisp, add Pico De Joy and stir until the salsa has soaked into the meat. Before all the juices evaporate, add the eggs and fold into the mixture until softly cooked. Remove from heat and allow eggs to finish setting so as not to over brown the bottoms. Serve with tortillas, sliced avocado and refried beans.

This traditional French cake is in the shape of a tree branch - the name means Christmas log. It makes a unique addition to your holiday dessert table. Photo by Amy Robb. Serves 10 Ingredients For the cake 3/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 3 eggs 1 cup sugar 1/3 cup coffee-flavored liqueur or water 1 teaspoon vanilla For the filling 1 cup heavy (whipping) cream 1 tablespoon sugar 2 teaspoons instant espresso powder For the frosting 1/3 cup cocoa 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 2 cups powdered sugar 2 teaspoons vanilla 1 to 2 tablespoons hot water Instructions Preheat oven to 375°. Prepare towel for cake rolling step by sifting a generous amount of powdered sugar on top of clean kitchen towel. Grease a 15-1/2 X 10-1/2 X 1-inch pan, then line with waxed paper or aluminum foil and grease again. Combine flour, baking powder and salt, then set aside. On high speed, beat eggs in small bowl until very thick, about 5 minutes. Pour eggs into larger bowl and beat in 1 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time. Reduce speed to low and beat in vanilla and coffee-flavored liqueur or water. Add flour mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing just until batter is smooth and all flour is incorporated. Pour into prepared pan, making sure the batter is spread to corners. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until light brown. Loosen cake from edges and invert onto prepared towel. Remove waxed paper or aluminum foil. While still hot, roll cake and towel from narrow end. Cool on wire rack for 1 hour. When cake has cooled, prepare filling. Beat heavy cream, 1 tablespoon sugar and instant espresso in chilled bowl until stiff peaks form. Unroll cake and remove towel. Spread whipped cream over cake and re-roll. Place cake on serving platter. To form log, cut off a 3-inch diagonal slice from one end and attach to one side of cake using frosting. Frost the rest of the cake. To decorate and create bark effect, use tines of fork and gently slide along top and sides of cake so it resembles a tree branch. To make frosting : Sift cocoa, then beat beat with butter on medium speed until creamy. Sift powdered sugar, then add to cocoa mixture, beating on low speed. Beat in vanilla and 1 tablespoon hot water, mixing until smooth. Add up to 1 tablespoon more hot water until frosting is of spreading consistency.

Who should we thank for some of our most beloved local dishes, like shrimp and grits, collard greens and Hoppin' John? The Gullah Geechee. There are several eateries in Jacksonville making an intentional effort to preserve the foodways of the Gullah Geechee people. Photo by Sindy Gonzalez. The Gullah Geechee (also known as simply Gullah or Geechee, depending on the region) are the descendants of West and Central Africans enslaved on the plantations of the Lowcountry, the coastalregion stretching from Wilmington, North Carolina to St. Augustine. On the Sea Islands and creeksides, Gullah Geechee developed a discrete culture, language and foodways. After emancipation, many Gullah Geechee families flocked to cities for new opportunities. While Savannah and Charleston are the more famous meccas, Jacksonville ultimately surpassed both. “Jacksonville, being the largest city in the Lowcountry, actually has the largest concentration of Gullah Geechee descendants in the U.S.,” says Ennis Davis, a Jacksonville historian, co-owner of TheJaxson magazine and a Gullah Geechee descendant. “We've got a very unique culture.” According to Davis, food is one of the main ways Gullah Geechee culture has been preserved. The cuisine can be described as cooking rooted in West Africa, with some Native American and European influence, using ingredients available in the local environment. Common Gullah Geechee dishes include shrimp and grits, salmon or crab croquettes, she-crab soup, smoked mullet, collard greens and Hoppin’ John (a rice and peas dish). Another widely known Gullah Geechee dish is the seafood boil, which generally combines shrimp, potatoes, corn, sausage and seasoning. Jacksonville is the epicenter of one variant of this, garlic crabs (blue crabs in garlic butter sauce), sold at dozens of crab houses across town, especially on the Northside. Gullah Geechee cooking is rooted in the plantation era. Rice and grits were common rations given to the enslaved. To stretch things out, families might cook up a big pot of grains, and supplement it with local herbs and vegetables grown in the garden and proteins from the region’s fertile waters. “One of the things about the Gullah Geechee is that people live off the land and environment,” says Davis. “The creeks here, there's lots of shrimp, there’s lots of fish, there's lots of oysters, so something like grits could be supplemented with shrimp to create a wholesome meal.” Fresh, seasonal ingredients and community sustainability are key elements of Gullah Geechee foodways, says Saundra Morene, president of the Jacksonville Gullah Geechee Nation, an organization working to preserve the community’s traditions. Morene grew up in Jacksonville’s Eastside, a historic neighborhood steeped in the traditions of its Gullah Geechee founders. Her family grew vegetables in the community garden and traded for what they didn’t grow. “The house had a lot of flavors going through it,” she says. “Whatever was in season is what we ate.” Among those Morene has worked with is Brandon Byers, who learned much about his heritage from her. Byers' restaurant in Jacksonville, “[The Cookbook] is a prime example of how Gullah has blended into the community,” she says. For Byers, preserving traditional cooking is a family affair. He spent years in the local food industry before opening The Cookbook in 2017, and his parents owned BJ’s Grocery in the Durkeeville neighborhood northwest of downtown Jacksonville for more than 20 years. His aunt, Marsha Dean Phelts, compiled a much-lauded cookbook celebrating a famed local Black historical area. “If you know a lot about Gullah Geechee, you’ve probably heard of my aunt,” he says. “She started The American Beach Cookbook where a lot of my family's recipes came out of.” Byers strives to incorporate his Gullah Geechee heritage throughout The Cookbook. He patronizes local farmers and markets for the freshest ingredients, and even grows spices at the restaurant. “We started in a small way over here with our own jalapeños, bell peppers, red hot chili peppers,” he says. “And we have herbs, like our chocolate mint, that we'll pull for teas.” For spices they don’t grow, they head next door to Auntie Peaches, a neighborhood apothecary. “We try to keep everything local and to recycle that dollar back into our community,” he says. Unfortunately, Jacksonville’s deep Gullah Geechee heritage is underknown even among descendants. One reason is that Gullah Geechee dishes are ubiquitous, staples of the city’s Southern and soul food restaurants. “Shrimp and grits is something you can find all over town, though I don't think people know that it dates back to slavery,” says Davis. Morene agrees. “It now has been so deeply embedded into the fabric of Jacksonville that you have to first be able to identify what is Gullah and Geechee and what isn't.” Thanks to folks like Davis, Byers and Morene, Jacksonville’s Gullah Geechee heritage is starting to get its due. In the meantime, what the city lacks in marketing and food tourism, it makes up for in quality. “I’ve traveled to Savannah and Charleston, hit up the Gullah Geechee restaurants,” says Davis. “I will tell you if you want to go to a place and overpay for a thing of Hoppin’ John or field peas and fried chicken, go for it.” It’s Jacksonville that offers a more authentic and affordable experience. “You can find a lot of this stuff all over town and it tastes a lot better than what you're going to find in some of the more touristy areas.”

Jacksonville is the Garlic Crab Center of the World, only most of its residents don't know it. Soft shell and blue crabs are boiled in a blend of seasonings with a lot of spices and garlic. Photos by Jesse Brantman. “Famous in Jacksonville.” That’s how Akam Sorany, manager of on MainStreet in North Jacksonville, describes a local delicacy: garlic crabs. Though not as famous as its culinary cousin Mayport shrimp, Jacksonville is the epicenter of this distinctive dish, which is served up at dozens of crab shacks and restaurants across town. Garlic crabs are a variant of the traditional Lowcountry seafood boil, in which shellfish are cooked in a pot with potatoes, sausage, corn and eggs. The distinguishing element of garlic crabs is the use of a rich garlic butter sauce. Both dishes originated with the Gullah Geechee people, the descendants of West Africans enslaved in the coastal Southeast from St. Augustine to Wilmington, North Carolina. Traditionally, native blue crabs are the main protein, but especially when they’re out of season, softshell crabs, snow crabs and other shellfish like shrimp, crawfish and mussels are also on the menu. As Sorany says, “pretty much anything we can get our hands on from the sea.” Downtown Jacksonville’s Greedy Spoon specialized in garlic crabs, and owner Marilyn Craig comes by her love for seafood honestly. Her great grandfather was the first African American to own a seafood distribution company in Mayport, and her grandfather and father were commercial shrimpers. Her brother, a fisherman currently based in Tampa, was Craig’s main supplier. “Seafood has been my whole life,” she says. “That’s all I’ve ever known.” Growing up, Craig’s family moved with the fishing seasons between Mayport and Louisiana, and she loved learning recipes from both regions. As a child the family would boil crabs or crawfish over their backyard fire pit. “When you said crab boil, it wasn’t a one-person thing, a crab boil was like the whole family,” she says. “You’d sit around with your nice cold drink and just eat out of the pot.” Craig’s garlic crabs are from a recipe passed down through the generations. “The garlic sauce for the crabs, that’s my mom’s recipe. Mostly everything in here is my mom’s, and she got it from mygrandmother.” Her recipes are an inheritance, and she takes them very seriously – only real butter forher crabs. “We like to boil in a blend of seasonings, like the old way, with a lot of spices and garlicactually boiled with the crabs,” she says. “It's just delicious.” Sorany at Seven Seas Crab House also has his own recipe for garlic butter sauce, which is so popular that customers buy it on the side to use at home. “We call it a signature kick sauce,” he says. “It has a tingle of spice in there, a little kick to it. Each tray, we mix it all fresh.” Before opening Seven Seas in 2013, Sorany, like Craig, discovered his passion for cooking crabs “in the backyard.” Of his decision to open a restaurant, he says, “really I just like to play around with food. It’s a love, that’s what it is.” Within Jacksonville, many don’t appreciate the city’s status as the garlic crab center of the world. Elsewhere, however, the reputation is firmly established. In Charleston, the renowned Charlie Brown’s Seafood Kitchen has “Jacksonville-style garlic crabs” on the menu. Says Craig’s sister Christine Khabir, “in Georgia we have several places that do them, but my daughter will come all the way here [to Jacksonville] to get them.” Hopefully Northeast Florida will lean into celebrating garlic crabs as a signature local dish. They’re delicious, they’ve got a deep local history and the ingredients are ubiquitous in the natural environment. “Anybody can get crab in Jacksonville,” says Sorany. “Basically, in the St. Johns River,all around us everywhere is the blue crab.”

Fresh winter citrus, like grapefruit, makes for the perfect addition to seasonal cocktails. Photo by Amy Robb. Fresh is Best. Maybe. Some say squeezing fresh citrus immediately before use helps retain aromatic compounds and flavor. However taste tests have shown that flavors of lemon and lime juice may actually improve by letting them sit for four to 10 hours. Why is that? Bitter limonoid compounds, like limonin (in limes) and nomilin (in lemons), tend to develop when the juice is exposed to air, reducing the sourness of the citric acid. Orange juice, however, is best used right after squeezing. Shaken, not Stirred. When using citrus juice in cocktails, it's best to shake it up. When you shake a cocktail, the ice cubes start to break apart and add air bubbles into the drink. This is beneficial to help dilute some of acidity of the citrus, making the cocktail light and refreshing. Twists are A-Peeling. Whether you cut a thick or thin slice of peel, make sure to actually twist it to rupture and release the oils found in the fruit’s skin—this is where the majority of a lemon or lime’s aroma is stored. If the fruit has been washed, you can leave the peel in the drink. For an easy way to remove the skin from the fruit, use a vegetable peeler. Homemade Limoncello. After juicing lemons, save the peels and infuse them in vodka to make your own limoncello. Using the peel from organic lemons, add to 100-proof vodka and let sit for four days to one month (the flavor is stronger the longer you infuse the lemons). Then strain off the vodka and mix in simple syrup to sweeten.

Looking for ways to cook together as a family? This classic comfort food makes great use of seasonal produce and will become a mealtime staple. Added bonus – any leftover meat can be used in tacos or sandwiches, and the chicken bones make a superb stock. Photo by Amanda Lenhardt. Serves 4-6 Ingredients 1 whole chicken (3–3½ pounds) 2 lemons 5 cloves garlic - 3 minced, 2 cut in half 4 sprigs fresh rosemary - 3 chopped finely, 1 reserved 1 large onion, thickly sliced 2-3 turnips, thickly sliced 4-5 carrots, thickly sliced 3 medium potatoes, thickly sliced 4 tablespoons butter Salt and pepper, to taste Instructions Preheat oven to 475°. Melt butter in small bowl; add minced garlic, chopped rosemary, the zest of the lemons and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside. Place vegetables in bottom of Dutch oven. Reserve some of the onions for stuffing into the cavity. Prepare chicken by removing giblets from cavity, rinsing off and patting dry. Liberally season the cavity with salt and pepper. The butter mixture will have hardened slightly by now. Using your hands, slather the mixture liberally over every part of the chicken and under the breast skin (being careful not to tear the skin). Place in Dutch oven on top of sliced vegetables. Stuff the cavity with quartered lemon, onion, remaining garlic halves and rosemary sprig/stems. Tie the legs of the chicken together tightly using kitchen twine. Roast chicken for 15 minutes at 475°, then reduce heat to 350° and cook for approximately 20 minutes per pound, or until internal temperature reaches 165°. If you want to, baste the chicken approximately halfway through cooking process. When finished cooking, allow chicken to sit for 10 minutes before slicing.