Kimberly Bryant aka 6gems
@kimberlybryant.bsky.social
Founder and CEO Black Innovation Lab http://blackinnovationlab.org
Founder Black Girls CODE
🎙️Host: Inner Garden Podcast http://bit.ly/40q9BoS
rootsandresilience.substack.com
Author~Ascending Nov '26 (Penguin RandomHouse)
💗💚💗💚
Memphis raised~BayArea made
Founder Black Girls CODE
🎙️Host: Inner Garden Podcast http://bit.ly/40q9BoS
rootsandresilience.substack.com
Author~Ascending Nov '26 (Penguin RandomHouse)
💗💚💗💚
Memphis raised~BayArea made
Good morning garden friends! This one is for the curious fermenters only because it's kind of gnarly. 😩😆 my fig vinegar is doing very well. I strained it of the pulp, picked out the mother, washed the mother gently, and added to a clean jar. Thought I killed it, but a few days later? She's back! 🌱
November 1, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Good morning garden friends! This one is for the curious fermenters only because it's kind of gnarly. 😩😆 my fig vinegar is doing very well. I strained it of the pulp, picked out the mother, washed the mother gently, and added to a clean jar. Thought I killed it, but a few days later? She's back! 🌱
My last concoction for the weekend is starting my fig vinegar batch. That floating blob in the jar is the vinegar mother from my first batch. I'm hopeful it grows a bit more so I can do multiple batches at the same time soon. 💚
October 18, 2025 at 9:21 PM
My last concoction for the weekend is starting my fig vinegar batch. That floating blob in the jar is the vinegar mother from my first batch. I'm hopeful it grows a bit more so I can do multiple batches at the same time soon. 💚
Alright garden friends this is the physical manifestation of "I'm leaving here with something"! 😩😆😂
Since I'm fighting for my life with these fig trees, I decided to harvest/clip some of the leaves today to dry for tea, make syrup, and ice cream.
Using my rose hips to infuse into oil. 💚
Since I'm fighting for my life with these fig trees, I decided to harvest/clip some of the leaves today to dry for tea, make syrup, and ice cream.
Using my rose hips to infuse into oil. 💚
October 18, 2025 at 7:38 PM
Alright garden friends this is the physical manifestation of "I'm leaving here with something"! 😩😆😂
Since I'm fighting for my life with these fig trees, I decided to harvest/clip some of the leaves today to dry for tea, make syrup, and ice cream.
Using my rose hips to infuse into oil. 💚
Since I'm fighting for my life with these fig trees, I decided to harvest/clip some of the leaves today to dry for tea, make syrup, and ice cream.
Using my rose hips to infuse into oil. 💚
Happy Saturday garden friends! I decided to bottle up the remainder of my berry vinegar blend in smaller bottles for gifting this holiday season. I think they came out very cute! 😆
Now to start my fig blend. I was waiting to harvest a few more figs but I'm fighting the critters for them. lol
Now to start my fig blend. I was waiting to harvest a few more figs but I'm fighting the critters for them. lol
October 18, 2025 at 5:38 PM
Happy Saturday garden friends! I decided to bottle up the remainder of my berry vinegar blend in smaller bottles for gifting this holiday season. I think they came out very cute! 😆
Now to start my fig blend. I was waiting to harvest a few more figs but I'm fighting the critters for them. lol
Now to start my fig blend. I was waiting to harvest a few more figs but I'm fighting the critters for them. lol
Hello garden friends! I finally bottled up the last ferment I learned how to make in my fermentation class a few months ago. This is a berry vinegar I made with raspberries and blackberries from my garden and a Concord grape wild starter.
I'll be putting this bottle in my basement to finish up. 🌱
I'll be putting this bottle in my basement to finish up. 🌱
October 13, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Hello garden friends! I finally bottled up the last ferment I learned how to make in my fermentation class a few months ago. This is a berry vinegar I made with raspberries and blackberries from my garden and a Concord grape wild starter.
I'll be putting this bottle in my basement to finish up. 🌱
I'll be putting this bottle in my basement to finish up. 🌱
Happy Monday garden friends it's officially spooky season so I guess it's not surprising that I "found" this squash (that is as big as a pumpkin), while doing some pruning and garden cleanup today. I was ripping out this overgrown squash vine and wondered why it was so heavy. 🌱
Surprise surprise 😮
Surprise surprise 😮
October 6, 2025 at 5:50 PM
Happy Monday garden friends it's officially spooky season so I guess it's not surprising that I "found" this squash (that is as big as a pumpkin), while doing some pruning and garden cleanup today. I was ripping out this overgrown squash vine and wondered why it was so heavy. 🌱
Surprise surprise 😮
Surprise surprise 😮
Hello garden friends! It's been awhile and I don't have any pics to share beyond this fig from my tree that first dropped all its new sprouts and is now doing well with deep watering.
Also my first vinegar ferment FINALLY developed a vinegar mother and I'm hella excited about that! 🙌🏾💚
Also my first vinegar ferment FINALLY developed a vinegar mother and I'm hella excited about that! 🙌🏾💚
October 1, 2025 at 10:47 PM
Hello garden friends! It's been awhile and I don't have any pics to share beyond this fig from my tree that first dropped all its new sprouts and is now doing well with deep watering.
Also my first vinegar ferment FINALLY developed a vinegar mother and I'm hella excited about that! 🙌🏾💚
Also my first vinegar ferment FINALLY developed a vinegar mother and I'm hella excited about that! 🙌🏾💚
Finally!!! Months ago I was searching for this pic I took a few years ago in Jo'burg, South Africa. Black dandyism 😍 I found it!!!
September 16, 2025 at 9:25 PM
Finally!!! Months ago I was searching for this pic I took a few years ago in Jo'burg, South Africa. Black dandyism 😍 I found it!!!
Happy Sunday garden friends! It's been awhile since I did a garden post and even this one only happened because I missed church today. 😩 I spent my Sunday in the cathedral of the garden instead. 🙏🏾💚
My plans were just to do a bit more cleaning up and turn my compost bin but a harvest was calling.
My plans were just to do a bit more cleaning up and turn my compost bin but a harvest was calling.
September 14, 2025 at 11:33 PM
Happy Sunday garden friends! It's been awhile since I did a garden post and even this one only happened because I missed church today. 😩 I spent my Sunday in the cathedral of the garden instead. 🙏🏾💚
My plans were just to do a bit more cleaning up and turn my compost bin but a harvest was calling.
My plans were just to do a bit more cleaning up and turn my compost bin but a harvest was calling.
A few pics of the pup living her best life on the pack walk today. I gotta admit I'm slightly jealous. 😆💜
September 9, 2025 at 7:20 PM
A few pics of the pup living her best life on the pack walk today. I gotta admit I'm slightly jealous. 😆💜
Good morning garden friends! It's been awhile since I shared a garden update. The rain woke me up this morning and marked the start of my fall gardening season. I still have a few things growing from the summer but still some planting left to do.
September 9, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Good morning garden friends! It's been awhile since I shared a garden update. The rain woke me up this morning and marked the start of my fall gardening season. I still have a few things growing from the summer but still some planting left to do.
Good morning garden friends! Finally decided to dig up a few random grow bags I was using for potatoes over the summer. Not a lot but enough to make a meal. Also first time picking the squash blossoms to cook all season. My fav! 🌱 #gardensky
August 25, 2025 at 5:30 PM
Good morning garden friends! Finally decided to dig up a few random grow bags I was using for potatoes over the summer. Not a lot but enough to make a meal. Also first time picking the squash blossoms to cook all season. My fav! 🌱 #gardensky
On the bright side?? At least I learned this lesson early. And I got to taste everything before my trip tomorrow. I think my favs are the grape soda and maybe the tepache. Strawberry soda is a close second but I think I'll make it sweeter next time. Cheers!
August 20, 2025 at 12:47 AM
On the bright side?? At least I learned this lesson early. And I got to taste everything before my trip tomorrow. I think my favs are the grape soda and maybe the tepache. Strawberry soda is a close second but I think I'll make it sweeter next time. Cheers!
I transferred all the others to the frig immediately and then carefully burped them and released the pressure after a few hours. Lesson learned! Ughhhhhh 😩😭
August 20, 2025 at 12:45 AM
I transferred all the others to the frig immediately and then carefully burped them and released the pressure after a few hours. Lesson learned! Ughhhhhh 😩😭
Hello garden friends! I decided to dive in and bottle my kombucha since I'm going away this week. Despite my skepticism this batch tastes great! I've never been a big fan of kombucha but mine isn't super bitter and tangy. It seems slightly tangy. I added juiced peaches + a few strawberries. 👌🏾
August 19, 2025 at 12:52 AM
Hello garden friends! I decided to dive in and bottle my kombucha since I'm going away this week. Despite my skepticism this batch tastes great! I've never been a big fan of kombucha but mine isn't super bitter and tangy. It seems slightly tangy. I added juiced peaches + a few strawberries. 👌🏾
Tepache done! Had to work this one a bit though to get the flavor to a place I like. My late flush of raspberries came in handy to cook down a syrup to add for complexity.
I think this will be good!🤞🏾#fermentation #gardening
I think this will be good!🤞🏾#fermentation #gardening
August 16, 2025 at 7:09 PM
Tepache done! Had to work this one a bit though to get the flavor to a place I like. My late flush of raspberries came in handy to cook down a syrup to add for complexity.
I think this will be good!🤞🏾#fermentation #gardening
I think this will be good!🤞🏾#fermentation #gardening
Happy Saturday garden friends! I'll be doing mostly garden cleanup today but wanted to share my wild soda batch! I have strawberry, grape/blackberry, a tropical and spicy pineapple. Letting these do a second fermentation until Sunday at the latest and putting in the fridge before I go out of town. 🌱
August 16, 2025 at 4:50 PM
Happy Saturday garden friends! I'll be doing mostly garden cleanup today but wanted to share my wild soda batch! I have strawberry, grape/blackberry, a tropical and spicy pineapple. Letting these do a second fermentation until Sunday at the latest and putting in the fridge before I go out of town. 🌱
One more thing, remember when I started this wild yeast starter 8 days ago with Concord grapes? This is how those jars look now. I've added a tbs of it to several new ferments lately and it gets the batch hella active.
Safe to say it's a winner! Now I just gotta figure out how to save it. 🤔😆🌱
Safe to say it's a winner! Now I just gotta figure out how to save it. 🤔😆🌱
August 15, 2025 at 5:30 PM
One more thing, remember when I started this wild yeast starter 8 days ago with Concord grapes? This is how those jars look now. I've added a tbs of it to several new ferments lately and it gets the batch hella active.
Safe to say it's a winner! Now I just gotta figure out how to save it. 🤔😆🌱
Safe to say it's a winner! Now I just gotta figure out how to save it. 🤔😆🌱
Good morning garden friends! I'm hoping to spend a lot of time decompressing and doing garden cleanup this weekend. My ferments are doing great. I finally bottled up my pineapple infused tibicos yesterday and it's looking great. Plus sharing two books I'm devouring now on plants as medicine. 🌱💚
August 15, 2025 at 5:16 PM
Good morning garden friends! I'm hoping to spend a lot of time decompressing and doing garden cleanup this weekend. My ferments are doing great. I finally bottled up my pineapple infused tibicos yesterday and it's looking great. Plus sharing two books I'm devouring now on plants as medicine. 🌱💚
Also decided my carrots were done after taking them through a few different stages so transferring them to to frig. This was one of my favs; still crisp and spicy after all the time and iterations. 👌🏾
August 14, 2025 at 6:24 PM
Also decided my carrots were done after taking them through a few different stages so transferring them to to frig. This was one of my favs; still crisp and spicy after all the time and iterations. 👌🏾
Good morning garden friends! Well we had our last fermentation class last night and I hustled along with the instructor to make three ferments; tepache a traditional pineapple drink from Mexico, and two wild fermented sodas (strawberry/grape), and a strawberry/grape vinegar ferment. 🌱
August 14, 2025 at 6:22 PM
Good morning garden friends! Well we had our last fermentation class last night and I hustled along with the instructor to make three ferments; tepache a traditional pineapple drink from Mexico, and two wild fermented sodas (strawberry/grape), and a strawberry/grape vinegar ferment. 🌱
Here is my second batch of tibicos which is more pineapple forward and tangy. Will start a second ferment on this one tomorrow I think. But it looks and tastes lovely already. Tomorrow we focus on wild sodas and shrubs and vinegars in class. It's our last class. 😭 #fermentation
August 12, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Here is my second batch of tibicos which is more pineapple forward and tangy. Will start a second ferment on this one tomorrow I think. But it looks and tastes lovely already. Tomorrow we focus on wild sodas and shrubs and vinegars in class. It's our last class. 😭 #fermentation
Alright back to gardening and fermentation. 😩💚
My tibicos has reached its readiness I believe so this is going into the refrigerator while I start on the second ferment of the new batch. I haven't tasted it yet but I'm expecting goodness.
My tibicos has reached its readiness I believe so this is going into the refrigerator while I start on the second ferment of the new batch. I haven't tasted it yet but I'm expecting goodness.
August 12, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Alright back to gardening and fermentation. 😩💚
My tibicos has reached its readiness I believe so this is going into the refrigerator while I start on the second ferment of the new batch. I haven't tasted it yet but I'm expecting goodness.
My tibicos has reached its readiness I believe so this is going into the refrigerator while I start on the second ferment of the new batch. I haven't tasted it yet but I'm expecting goodness.
Good morning garden friends! Today I'm playing around with my ferments on my writing breaks. 😉😆
I started this extremely large jar of carrots about two weeks ago. It's now tangy, crisp, and a little spicy probably from the peppers I added. Dropped in a Mission fig over the weekend for some depth.
I started this extremely large jar of carrots about two weeks ago. It's now tangy, crisp, and a little spicy probably from the peppers I added. Dropped in a Mission fig over the weekend for some depth.
August 11, 2025 at 9:27 PM
Good morning garden friends! Today I'm playing around with my ferments on my writing breaks. 😉😆
I started this extremely large jar of carrots about two weeks ago. It's now tangy, crisp, and a little spicy probably from the peppers I added. Dropped in a Mission fig over the weekend for some depth.
I started this extremely large jar of carrots about two weeks ago. It's now tangy, crisp, and a little spicy probably from the peppers I added. Dropped in a Mission fig over the weekend for some depth.
Decided to make a light at home brunch using my fermented cherry tomatoes as a mignonette for a nice little oyster spread. It was divine! 👌🏾
August 10, 2025 at 12:29 AM
Decided to make a light at home brunch using my fermented cherry tomatoes as a mignonette for a nice little oyster spread. It was divine! 👌🏾