March is a tough month for gardeners. Signs of spring are showing, with birds returning and bulbs emerging. Unfortunately, winter still appears and keeps us from getting carried away with planting. Regardless of the weather, there’s a variety of gardening tasks you can accomplish this month. Houseplants Pest Control At this point, your houseplants are used to being inside, but you should watch them for signs of insect pests. If your houseplants are becoming leggy, consider moving them to a sunnier part of your house or purchasing a grow light. Keeping your plants healthy will reduce pest and disease problems. […]
Category: Gardening Tips
Easy Tips For Pruning Berry Bushes
It’s hard to beat the taste and quality of homegrown fruit. In recent years, more gardeners have been growing their fruit to reap the reward of harvesting their food. Small berries have many benefits and can be grown in sites with limited space. Whether you’re growing fruit or considering it in the future, pruning is vital for a successful harvest. Why Should I Prune Berry Bushes? Pruning takes practice, but this annual habit will increase production on your plants each year. Your plants may produce fruit without pruning, but they will make less over time as their energy is used […]
Winter Sowing Garden Guide
The cold has arrived. As gardeners, we find ourselves longing for spring, when our gardens come back to life and we can spend time outside. It’s tempting to believe we can’t plant anything now, but there is a way to plant seeds for next spring. Winter sowing is a type of planting that involves planting seeds outdoors in winter. It sounds too easy, but it works! Many hardy annuals and perennials can be sown in winter to give plants a head start in spring. What is Winter Sowing? To answer this question, we’ll look at the basics of seed physiology. […]
Fall Gardening: Using Fall Leaves In The Garden
Fall is here, bringing cooler weather and chores in the yard. For many, raking leaves is an annual task to keep your landscape tidy. Fall is an excellent time to clean the yard. Still, many people miss out on the opportunity to improve their landscape using leaves. It’s easy to think we should remove any leaf clutter from our yards, but those leaves are a great source of organic matter. What Is Organic Matter In Soil? Organic matter is any carbon-based compound that stores and releases nutrients into the soil. In other words, using leaves in the garden will add […]
Extend The Growing Season: Using Row Covers & Other Techniques
Keep Growing Fresh Vegetables All Year Long! Want to extend the growing season? You can grow fresh vegetables well into the fall—or even all year long—by protecting them from the cold with a simple row cover, grow tunnel, or DIY cold frame. With all the hard work you did upfront, let’s keep your plants going strong! Learn more. Where To Grow Late Summer Or Fall Vegetables Before we talk about using season extenders, let’s take a moment to think about where you grow the vegetables you want to keep producing in the colder months. Here are some ways to use your garden’s location to your advantage: […]
An Easy Guide To Forcing Bulbs
Updated: October 24, 2024 Every year, I look forward to planting bulbs in the fall. However, waiting for them to bloom requires patience. Fortunately, you can enjoy flowers in the middle of winter without traveling to a warm climate. Many of your favorite bulbs can be forced indoors, allowing you to keep away the winter blues. Before we dive into the specifics, we’ll look at the basics of bulb physiology. The bulbs we plant in fall require a cold period to bloom, which occurs during winter. Bulbs can also receive this cold period through other means, like a refrigerator. Forcing […]
A Gardener’s Guide To Plant Nutrition
Every gardener knows that plants require several different nutrients to grow, but what specific nutrients do plants use and for what purpose? Here is a little overview and a science refresher. Macronutrients Macronutrients are those that plants need in the most significant amounts. The BIG 3, we call them. Nitrogen. Phosphorus. Potassium. These primary nutrients are represented by the letters from the periodic table of N, P, and K. Nitrogen (N) is the most commonly deficient soil nutrient plants require to produce chlorophyll, proteins, and enzymes for growth and reproduction. Phosphorus (P) is the nutrient that helps the plant regulate […]
Understanding Plant Diseases
Updated: July 2, 2024 There are dozens of different types of plant diseases that can affect vegetable gardens from coast to coast. Plant diseases should not be a mystery to most gardeners, and yet… all types of gardeners struggle with them every season. Solutions are obvious, but understanding is the first step. Plant Disease Diagnosis Plant disease management starts with proper disease diagnosis. Just like a clinical physician, the doctor will ask, “What symptoms do you have?” In the garden, we must ask, “What symptoms does the plant have?” Nowadays, you may be able to narrow down the possibilities by […]
6 Tips For Perfect Plant Pairings
Designing your garden can be a fun and creative experience. There are many things to consider during the planning phase. We have put together six tips to help you get started pairing your plants perfectly. Choose Wisely, Pair Creatively To have success with gardening we must make solid logical, thoughtful decisions, but don’t let those limit your expression of creativity. For artistic and auspicious plant pairings, first, do your homework. Observe, study, and learn about the plants you have and those plants you want to have. Be playful and relaxed about what plants you pair together but choose wisely. Work […]
Prevent 4 Common Potato Plant Problems
Potatoes are some of the easiest crops for home gardeners to grow, but this does not mean that they can’t have problems. Just like most garden vegetables, the best potato tubers come from the healthiest, well-cared-for plants. Don’t let common garden problems get the best of your potatoes. Be prepared and practice proper prevention to harvest some pretty potatoes this year. Skip The Scab Scab is probably the ugliest named garden disease, and it happens to affect several root-type veggies, but potatoes are impacted most. Scab is caused by soil bacteria called Streptomyces. There are several different pathogens but it’s […]