Leaves in wire cylinder will decompose into leaf mold–a soil conditioner and mulch. Leaf mold is shredded flakes of partially decomposed leaves and tree litter. It is brownish black and on its way to becoming humus, one of the building blocks of great soil. Leaf mold can be used as a soil conditioner or as
The health of a plant depends upon its roots. The yield of vegetables and fruits depends upon roots. Roots supply water and nutrients to a plant. Roots also support and anchor a plant to the soil. A root originates at the lower portion of a plant embryo or seedling. Root tips and tiny root hairs—which
Asparagus requires a carefully chosen site. It’s a perennial crop that is going to grow in the same spot for up to 20 years. To produce a crop that will give you plenty of spears each year, you need to plant a whole bed of asparagus at one time. (Plant ten plants for each person;
Establishing a seed planting calendar is one of the oldest and wisest gardening maxims. The success of many vegetable and flower sowings is getting the seed started at the right time of the year for germination, growing, and harvesting. Mark on your garden calendar when seeds should be sown and when you actually sow them.
Plant rhubarb in late winter or early spring. Rhubarb is a perennial so choose a spot where it can grow and thrive for up to 10 years. Three or four root crowns will produce all of the rhubarb you can eat. Bare-root rhubarb rhizomes are most readily available for sale in nurseries in late winter
Rhubarb is among the first crops of the year–along with asparagus and radishes. Use rhubarb that is firm like celery, not limp. You may want to “string” the rhubarb stalks before cutting them. Just hold the end of a stalk between your thumb and a paring knife and pull the strings down the length of
Seed packets and seed catalogs can help you decide which crops and varieties to grow in your garden. The front of a seed packet or a seed catalog entry will picture the plant at maturity. The back of the packet will describe the plant and where it will grow. Here are common seed packet and
Young strawberry touched by the last spring frost. Vegetable garden planting is simply based on the premise that cool weather crops need cool weather to mature and warm weather crops need warm weather. Most vegetable gardeners need a year or two of trial and error plantings and attentive record keeping to know when is the
February is a busy month for the vegetable gardener. In many regions, indoor and outdoor sowing and planting will begin. Gardeners in warm regions already have seed in the ground. In cold regions, where there is snow on the ground, February is still time for making plans and preparing for spring. Here are some tips
Make pumpkin soup with sweet, sugar, pie, or cheese pumpkins (small baking pumpkins). Add onions and potatoes for a sweet-savory flavor or substitute tart apples for the potatoes for a sweet-tart soup. Small pumpkins are sweeter, meatier, and have less fibrous flesh than larger ones. (Varieties to grow next year include: Sugar Baby, Baby Pam
