I have been studying my new 2010 Veseys Seed Catalog as it’s kinda cold for gardening outside at the moment. With a foot of snow and sub zero temperatures outside here in New Brunswick Canada it’s kinda tough to get any seeds to germinate so we brought things inside for the winter.

Okay, I was just kidding about trying to garden in my backyard during the winter.

I have set aside an area in our basement that is now going to be our own little indoor greenhouse. We will be able to start the seeds we buy from Veseys and from our local nurseries. That is going to save us a bundle of money.

I like the idea of being in control of my gardens, right from seed if possible. It’s a great feeling to know we started from seed and the money we save is pretty cool.

In the past couple of years, since we started gardening a little late in the season and had to buy most of our vegetables and flowers already planted and growing but this year we are already ahead of the game.

It’s not too late to order your own free Veseys Seed Catalog so git over there and get it on order today. No I’m not a salesperson, just a happy customer.

Connie Asks: After I prune a diseased plant, I feel that I should sterilize the pruners to prevent spreading the contamination.  What is the best way to do this?

Well Connie, by all means, the pruners should be sterilized after such use and after any use at all, healthy or sick plants involved. They should be sharpened each spring so that the cuts they make are straight across and not a squished mess. The ‘blood vessels’ of a plant go through the stems so you need a clean cut straight across.

When pruning diseased branches such as those with fireblight, sterilize the tools after each cut. Dip blades in rubbing alcohol or a solution of one part bleach to 10 parts water.

If you’ve decided to start vegetable gardening this year, then you are among the 7 million households that are beginning their first gardening experience too. More and more Americans are looking for fresher, safer, better quality and cheaper food that can be cultivated right in their own backyards. Tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, beans and carrots are some of the most popular varieties. Before you begin, here are some gardening tips on planning, implementing and maintaining a bountiful garden.

The first step in designing a vegetable garden is picking the ideal size and location. First, make sure your site gets as much sunlight as possible. The majority of vegetables must have around six to eight hours of direct sunshine every day for the best outcome. If you have a less well lit area, you can plant your lettuce and spinach there. As you evaluate your property, be sure to take into account the shadows cast by the deciduous trees and the house during particular times of the day.

Ideally, the garden will be handily situated close the kitchen, so you can tend to it with less effort and gather your crop without hiking long distances. The perfect soil will be full of nutrients and drain correctly, so you might need to add organic compost and use the right tools to aerate the earth before you start.

When choosing what goes into your garden, you’ll need to consider how much space the crops you want take up. Vegetable gardening items like corn, winter squash and tomatoes tend to take up a lot of room, so you’ll need a 20 x 20 garden at least. If you want to grow a few herbs, peppers, cucumbers and greens, a 12 x 16 plot should be sufficient. Garden guides from the National Gardening Association recommend growing plants in succession in three foot wide beds with 18-inch paths between each row. It’s also a good idea to add a few flowers (such as marigolds) into your garden to add some beauty, deter pests and attract helpful pollinating bees.

Over the years, you’ll begin to fine-tune your vegetable gardening. You may find some crops do extraordinarily well, while others are a flop. You may decide to add new veggies to the mix or plant more of a certain crop that worked very well. Once your cool season crop finishes its season (like peas), you can try planting a warm season crop (like zucchini). You may also try a technique known as “interplanting,” which involves planting a quick-maturing crop like lettuce next to slow-growing broccoli. The idea is that you’ll harvest all your lettuce by the time the broccoli is looking to stretch out. Try growing plants from several different varieties to increase your chance of success and to find the best performing types.

Eating healthfully doesn’t have to be expensive when you plant a vegetable garden. From permaculture gardening to vegetable garden layouts, you’ll find the information you need at the Vegetable Gardening Site.

Looking for just about any suggestions on growing vegetables in containers? For those just starting container gardening.

Good for you. It is a great way to produce good, healthy fresh food in a small space, with some care.

Get large containers; those 1/2 wine barrels are great. Lay an inch or two of gravel in the bottom, making sure not to cover the drainage holes in the bottom. Broken shards of pots curved over the holes keeps them from being sealed.

Buy a good organic potting soil from a nursery or garden center. Do not use your garden bed soil, unless you do not want to spend the money. Also, buy those six packs of vegetables. Pick ones which the labels state a shorter height. Corn and zucchini are out of the question! Tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, carrot, green and wax beans, and lettuce are good choices.

Moisten the soil until water drains out the bottom. Space the plants according to the directions and grow in full sun.

Give them fertilizer for vegetables after they are established. Feed well every two to three weeks and make sure the water is plentiful, especially during the hot spells.

Keep dead and yellow leaves off and watch for bug attacks. Let me know if anything appears. Allow the fruit to ripen, but not to the point where they blister or crack in the sun. Herbs are also wonderful to grow in containers.

Enjoy and do not hesitate to ask me concerning their growth as the season progresses.

Small Space Gardening

I live on a very small plot of land, less than 1/3 acre. I also have NO backyard, but I enjoy gardening so I am looking for some fruits or veggies I can plant that will look decorative enough to be in the front yard, yet produce fruit or veggies we can eat.

Here’s What You Can Do

For your front yard, dwarf fruit trees would be ideal. Get them from a local nursery and they will bear for you in maybe two years. Large terra cotta containers or halved wine barrels with cherry or regular tomato, onions, herbs of many sorts, leaf lettuce, and bell peppers would be beautiful. In garden beds, try various potatoes, carrot, green bean, radish and jicama. The squash family would get too large and rambling.

Salsa Garden Sets

Jim writes~ I once saw on the net how to plant everything you need to make salsa in one planter—can’t find it now. Can you give me any clues, ideas, or how to go about doing this ? ….Love salsa

A. What a super idea! I want one too. Here is one I found for you. Hmmm, might get myself one, too, though they are easy to assemble. Make sure that you buy seeds of tomato [or tomatillo], jalapeño, cilantro and onion bulblets.

Garden Set Salsa Price 15.00

Recreate the “cantina experience” in your own home.  Your Salsa Garden pairs the rich flavor of cilantro and tomatillo to form a simple dip for chips, a topping for tacos or a key flavoring in soups, rices and stews.  The “spirit of cantina” suggests the air of relaxation, friendship and good food.  Complete growing instructions and salsa recipes included.  Each salsa garden contains a decorative planter with drip tray, organic soil, seeds for cilantro and tomatillo, and complete growing instructions with recipes included. 4″ h x 9.5″ w

http://www.arizonapottery.com/Item.asp?IID=657

The above is for salsa verde, but you can use red tomato seed in place of the tomatillo, or plant both! I find the concentrated Roma or plum tomatoes work well.

Eggplants are something you need to aquire a taste for and if it’s not done correctly you may never like Eggplants and there for you likely won’t want to be growing them, so you need to know how to prepare them.

Eggplant has been known in India for  a few thousand years or so.

Eggplants likes a sandy loam soil for best crop, maybe they don’t want to get hard boiled. Clay is too heavy and must be amended. Add sterilized pulverized steer manure down 6″ to enrich any soil. Space the well-established seedlings 2 feet apart, in rows 3 feet apart. June 1st is a good day to start them growing outdoors, hopefully with a good root system.

They are fussy about moisture. If it has too little, leaves turn yellow, become spotted and drop; if too much, flowers will not set fruit. Roots are shallow, so carefully cultivate around them to keep down weeds.

Fertilize them weekly with a 20-20-20, but use a lighter concentration for the first month. Switch when flowering begins to a food highest in the middle number, to push for more flowers and fruit.

Cut the fruit from the plant when it is 4″ in diameter. Larger ones tend to get bitter. Plants bear profusely. Keep in a cool place until ready to use, but not much longer than 5 days.

One family’s trash is another family’s treasure.

Backyard composting is a simple and effective way to help the environment and improve your Backyard Wildlife Habitat site. Composting is a natural process that turns organic waste from your yard and home into valuable nutrients for your gardens and indoor house plants, while at the same time reducing the amount of trash you send to the local landfill.

March is the perfect time to start a backyard compost pile since many people are spring cleaning their yards. Once you choose a proper site for your compost area and create the starter pile, there is little maintenance required. Read on to find out how to create a simple backyard compost pile in your yard!

1. Choosing the site for your compost pile or bin

Choose a convenient place for your compost pile. You are more likely to use a pile that is easily accessible. Choose a level spot near a water source and preferably out of direct sunlight. Do not build your compost pile against wooden buildings or fences because it will eventually cause the wood to decay. Your compost pile should be about 1 cubic yard (3′ wide by 3′ long by 3′ tall). This size will ensure it is large enough to hold heat, but small enough to allow for proper aeration.

2. To bin or not to bin

Unless required by local ordinances, bins are not necessary for successful backyard composting. Composting bins may save space or look neater, but quality compost can be produced using either bins or open piles.

3. What to compost

A mixture of yard waste and select kitchen scraps creates a healthy compost pile. Start the pile with a 4-inch layer of leaves, loose soil, or other coarse yard trimmings. Always mix kitchen scraps with yard trimmings when adding them to the compost pile. There are two types of materials that can be added to your compost pile – “greens” and “browns.” Fresh “green” materials are high in nitrogen and dried “brown” materials are high in carbon. Both types of materials are necessary for the composting process. A good rule to follow is one part “greens” to three parts “browns.”"Greens” are fresh plant materials and kitchen scraps such as: green weeds and leaves, houseplants, fruit and vegetable scraps, and other kitchen scraps such coffee grounds (and filters), tea bags, stale bread, and egg shells. Certain types of manure (cow, horse, pig, chicken, and rabbit) are also considered “green” and appropriate for your compost pile.”Browns” are dry and dead plant materials such as: straw, dried weeds and leaves, wood chips, sawdust, and shredded newspaper.

4. What NOT to compost

There are many items that should never be added to a compost pile or bin. These items may attract pests, produce a bad odor, or transmit diseases to humans, pets, or wildlife. Avoid adding these items to your compost pile: chemically treated wood products diseased plants weeds with seeds exotic invasive plants human wastes pet wastes or used cat litter meat/fish scraps or bones oil, grease, fat dairy products.

5. Maintaining your compost pile

Compost is created by billions of microbes (fungi, bacteria, etc.) that digest the yard and kitchen wastes you place in your compost pile. In addition to the nutrition you provide through the compost ingredients, you must also maintain an adequate level of air and moisture in the pile for these microbes. You will need to “turn” the compost pile every few weeks to circulate the air and distribute the moisture. The pile can be turned with a pitchfork or shovel. Don’t be surprised by the heat generated from the pile or to see worms living in it – both are part of the natural decomposition process. Ideally, the pile should be as moist as a damp kitchen sponge. If there is too much moisture, the compost materials will be too heavy to allow air to circulate. Simply cover the pile with a trash bag or tarp until it dries out. If there is too little moisture, add water with a hose or bucket.

6. Now for your reward… How to use the compost In warm climates

The compost is ready to distribute within three to six months when it becomes a dark crumbly material that is uniform in texture. This nutrient-rich material can be used as potting soil or to enrich the soil in your gardens and yard beds.

For more information about backyard composting, you can order this simple, easy to read book entitled Backyard Composting: Your Complete Guide to Recycling Yard Clippings. Copyright © NWF

http://www.nwf.org/backyardwildlifehabitat

A. This is not an area which I know anything about! But, I did some searching and have some websites to recommend where you can obtain information on various groups of composting from home gardens to larger scales of manure composting:

The Composting Process
Composting Methods
Management of Composting
Land Application of Compost
Issues and Options

All above at: http://www.ianr.unl.edu/pubs/wastemgt/g1315.htm

BioCycle — Published since 1960, BioCycle is America’s foremost magazine on composting and recycling.

Compost Resource — Covers the full range from home and garden composting to vermiculture to large-scale operations. Includes discussion forums.

Cornell Composting — Master composters and novices alike will appreciate this site’s explanation of the composting process and helpful management tips. Includes easy-to-use forms for calculating an ideal mix.

Humusphere– A growing hub for a broad range of composting information from home-scale to commercial. Composting news, links, vendor and product directories.

All above at: http://www.ibiblio.org/farming-connection/links/compmanu.htm

A. I am glad you asked. I do not want you to add these leaves as they most likely have a fungus growing on the leaves. This can overwinter even a harsh climate and the spores blossom out in the warmth and moisture of next spring.

Then, you will introduce them to your new plants in the garden beds, as small veggies and flowers, which are most susceptible to attacks when young.

Never add anything at all that looks suspicious. It is great that you thought about this subject, as everyone reading this should go through all which you add to your compost pile regardless of when, to inspect closely for anything that appears weird. if in doubt, please discard into a garbage can and have removed as soon as you can, so it will not spread.

This is also a great way for insects to overwinter and attack your plants next year.

A. I have never bought a composter, so had to do a little research for you. I have located these sites. The first one has an entire inventory of various models well worth looking at before any purchase. Click on each one for a description and price. There you will be able to decide which is best for your particular needs.

Garden composters and tumbling bins: http://www.composters.com/main.shtml

Gardener’s Supply Company Innovative Earth-friendly solutions www.gardeners.com

Composters www.buychoice.com

www.garden-tips.com

www.ecopatio.com/shop/composter.html

www.avalongarden.com/for-the-garden-composters.html

shop.store.yahoo.com/cleanairgardening

Gardeners Supply www.vg.com

The ideal compost heap is like a layer cake:

Layer 1: Straw.
Layer 2: Green (fresh kitchen wastes, grass clippings, etc.).
Layer 3: Brown (dried grass, dead leaves, old cornstalks, etc.).
Layer 4: More green.
Layer 5: More brown (or straw).

And so on…

Add an “icing” of soil on top of each green layer.

All your plants will love this “compost cake”!

Gary, San Francisco, CA

A. Compost for years have been made with organic wastes from a household or yard. They include vegetables, skins, rinds, dead leaves, coffee grounds, stems, anything which is free from organisms. Do not put old, moldy, sick materials in the pile, nor anything which is diseased or insect-infested. The breakdown of the tissues releases minerals and elements quite beneficial for plant growth. Heat from the composting [decomposition] will speed the breakdown. That is why a forest ground of dead needles, leaves, bark and stems produces such healthy seedlings for the following generations. Do not use any compost until the following year, giving it time to age and complete its cycle.

Vegetables can be grown practically any time of year if you use greenhouse vegetable gardening plans. Cultivating them in a greenhouse is similar to growing vegetables in the garden in summertime. You simply need to take a few added measures in order to artificially provide what they would get in a natural situation.

There are two different methods of making use of a portable greenhouse. One is known as the cold greenhouse method and that is when just the sun during the day gives the greenhouse its heat. The temperature at nighttime typically goes down to about 45 degrees at the coldest and heat does kick on when it gets very cold outside. No growing takes place in this type of greenhouse, but you can maintain many plants that will come back in the summertime such as rosemary.

Cultivating vegetables throughout the wintertime necessitates warmth so the warm technique is the one to use here. Garden greenhouses must maintain a temperature of at least 55 degrees F in order for the plants to grow and have need of a heating unit. Heating devices can be gas, electric or propane.

There’s barely a vegetable that can be grown in a garden that can’t be grown in a greenhouse. Look in seed catalogs to find seeds explicitly developed for greenhouse use. If you cannot find those get plants that maintain a compact size or that can be cut back to be smaller than the outdoor plants. There’s little room in a greenhouse and you don’t want it to be taken up with only a few kinds of vegetables.

An important natural activity that has to be undertaken artificially is pollination. Insects, especially bees, don’t dwell indoors. An example of pollinating a vegetable effortlessly is done by pollinating tomatoes. Tomato vines need to be tied to stakes made of bamboo and when the flower is ready the stakes need to be tapped both in the morning and at nighttime. You will know the flower is ready when the petals begin to curve backwards. Pay close attention to this since there are only three days that the flowers will be producing pollen to pollinate the vegetable.

Since there’s not a good deal of sunlight throughout the wintertime you have to add sunlight by making use of grow lights. Most vegetables need no less than eight hours of light a day. Needless to say, the plants will also have to be watered and fertilized on a regular basis.

Raising vegetables in a greenhouse in the wintertime may be a somewhat more difficult and time consuming, but the results can be astonishing. Just think of going out to the greenhouse mid January and harvesting a tomato right off the vine. You will have a small taste of summer in the dead of winter.

If you are interested in prolonging the life of your gardening tools and care about preventing injuries, then that it is very important for you to learn how to correctly use and maintain these tools. For example, properly uncoiling a hose will prevent you from tripping or catching your foot in the coil. Another example would be leaving your backyard rake out so you could step on it and have it come up and whack you in the face, or have one of the tines go through your foot.

Tools must not be left where their edges or point may be hidden by grass, leaves, or other material. Keep your fingers away from the blades of the lawn mower: merely hitting your hand against the blades can lead to a brutal injury. If you have a shovel or a hoe or some other backyard tool with a wooden handle that has a small crack in it, you can expect crack pretty easily just by wrapping some black tape around it real tight. It works pretty well and will help it to last quite a bit longer. The tape that is made out of glass filament works pretty well also.

If you have a shovels or rakes with wooden handles, or any other tool with a wooden handle for that matter, and it has splinters and it then you can easily remedy this by just using some sandpaper and sending them smooth. Not only will this sanding process prevent the splinters from going into your hand but it was also prevent the splinters from growing into full-blown splits and cracks which will end up giving you a broken handled tool.

A nice way to preserve a wood handle is to apply numerous coats of quality lacquer or to paint it. You can definitely paint the metal parts on your tools as well, and when you do just make sure that you apply a coat of primer and a couple of coats of exterior paint on top. However, any metal part which goes into the ground should not be painted.

Making the tool last longer shouldn’t be the only intent on your painting the tools as when they are painted the appropriate colors they are much easier to keep track of. SO make sure that you paint your tools in bright colors which will make them easy to spot when they are laying on the ground, like red, or blue for instance.

The metal edges of shovels, hoes, rakes or other yard tools may become nicked. These may be smoothed with a metal file. By using an abrasive material like steel wool or something similar you can effectively get rid of any of the rough surfaces that sometimes occur on the metal parts of tools that are not properly maintained. By using a simple mallet you can easily pound out any dents that your tools may have. Any break in a wheelbarrow whether in the metal parts or the wood, you need to make sure an repair promptly. If you want to protect your wheelbarrow for a little bit longer period of time, you can easily do so by painting it as this helps to preserve the wood. The parts on your tools that move or turn need to be oiled on a regular basis for guaranteed smooth operation. Make sure that you keep your tools and a dry spot throughout the winter so your tools aren’t harmed by moisture. Wipe all tools clean of any dirt or grass before being stored. It is always a good idea to coat the metal parts on your tools with a mixture of petroleum jelly and light oil in order to prevent any rusting while in storage.

Caring for your yard tools will help them last year after year!

Another way to appropriately take care of your tools is to keep them organized. A garage tool organizer is a wonderful way to do this, and you can read more about my visiting http://gardentoolorganizer.org

Home gardening is a general term that covers not only plant cultivation but landscaping, lawn mowing, watering and soil fertilizing too. There are many reasons why gardening is such a popular hobby: it’s relaxing for some, while others want to enjoy the beauty of harvesting crops or they just try to go organic. In starting your herb garden, there is much more to be said about motivation, but it usually differs from case to case.

An attitude that’s earth-friendly finds expression in home gardening more easily. When you do home gardening to cover the needs of the household, it goes without saying that the use of pesticides and insecticides will be minimum if not inexistent. As for flowers they can always promote beauty to the house.

In local department stores, you can find a lot of equipment for home gardening. You don’t have to buy all the tools imaginable. Just keep the activity simple, pleasant and comfortable. These are the most important aspects of all. Even shoes and gloves have their role in protecting the gardener by enhancing the comfort level. The actual tools should be chosen depending on whether you grow vegetables, herbs or flowers.

Make a list of supplies before you go shopping and then go to the house and garden store or search online. For the landscaping, you may need to shop around and achieve the best offers there are. Magazines, web sites and online forums could make viable recommendations for home gardening, and it doesn’t hurt to take a look. On the average, such materials will solve all of your problems.

Making your herb garden can be as simple or as complex as you choose. You can have just one bed to look after or you can cultivate the entire garden. Yet, not every house owner chooses to garden on the property. You can hire someone to trim the hedges and cut the grass as you may not have the time or the disposition to ‘get dirty’. The only conclusion here is that home gardening is an occupation you love . Whether productive or just enjoyable, starting your herb garden could be the perfect refuge from a stressful world.