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Archive for the ‘Gardens – Vegetable’

Vegetable Garden Rehab!

January 24, 2012 By: Bob Alexander Category: Gardens - Vegetable

My back hurts, my arms ache and I’m sunburned. With the soil warming up to temperatures favorable to seed sprouting, the farmer in all of us is ready to take hoe in hand and test the hortacultural waters. I’m planting a garden this year and it’s hard work.

Planting and weeding a garden is not for the faint of heart, or maybe it is. Part of my rehabilitation from recent heart surgery, is the exercise I’m getting from working my little plot of soil. My doctor gave me his permission to do this as long as I didn’t grow Broccoli. He says there is enough of that plant in the world already.

My garden is on a friend’s property; mine has a line of trees, practically all shade and no sun. His property is large, but not as gigantic as it was before the Civil War as one of the largest plantations in Alabama, encompassing thousands of acres. (more…)

Growing Blueberries In The Home Garden.

January 13, 2012 By: Timothy Samuel Category: Gardens - Cottage, Gardens - Vegetable, How To Grow...

Blueberry fruit is also low in calories and sodium, contains no cholesterol, and is a source of fiber. A major constituent of the fiber is pectin, known for its ability to lower blood cholesterol. In studies blueberry contain measurable quantities of allergic acid, which has inhibiting effects on chemically induced cancer in laboratory studies blueberry juice also contains a compound that prevents bacteria from anchoring themselves to the bladder, thereby helping to prevent urinary tract infections. Blueberries could make a good fruit crop for home gardens since they require small space. At present, blueberry plants are not common in home plantings because the plants require highly acidic soil conditions for best results. The grower of blueberries must, there fore, make extra effort to acidify the soil before plant establishment. Then, the acidity level must be maintained over the life of the planting. Due to the special concerns associated with the rather demanding soil requirements of growing the crop, the soil must be amended with organic matter and the pH must be corrected before proceeding to establish the planting. (more…)

Easy Tomato Growing Tips

November 17, 2011 By: Dave Tee Category: Gardens - Vegetable

Many of us can struggle with growing tomatoes. For such a seemingly easy plant to grow there can be many problems that hinder the development of tomatoes as they grow. Here are a few tomato growing tips that should see them doing much better.

Firstly it is extremely important that if you are a smoker you never touch the plants with your hands unless they have been thoroughly washed before. You should also never smoke near to the growing plants. This can very easily cause problems and the tobacco mosaic virus is very virulent. You can totally ruin your crop if you do this. (more…)

Growing Raspberry Bushes

October 22, 2011 By: Timothy Samuel Category: Gardens - Cottage, Gardens - Vegetable, How To Grow...

Pruning raspberry plants does more than just keep your plants under control. To insure that light and air can get inside the plants and to facilitate pruning, keep your raspberry plants controlled in a row. To force your ever bearing raspberries to produce only one crop in the fall, prune back the entire raspberry bush in early spring. Make sure you don’t let them grow no more then 12 to 18inches. Knowing what to look for when buying raspberry bushes for your garden is very important to their success. New Heritage Raspberry plants produce huge berries without constant maintenance. Heritage Raspberry plants are a newly developed berry bush, bred and they produce huge, delicious berries. Also they have long season of fruiting. You’ll enjoy these delicious berries from June until winter much longer than most berry bushes, also they are better disease and drought resistance. Flavorful raspberries of the highest quality can be grown right in your own backyard. Raspberry bushes running riot are not only a nuisance, the taste and amount of the fruits will decline. Two years are required to establish a raspberry plant, but once established the planting can remain productive for several years if given good care. I do suggest you be careful of those poison ivy plants that may be growing next to the Raspberry plants. (more…)

Gardening Sunflowers As A Hobby

October 04, 2011 By: Jenny Styles Category: Advice General, Gardens - Butterfly, Gardens - Container, Gardens - Cottage, Gardens - Flower, Gardens - Herb, Gardens - Japanese, Gardens - Other, Gardens - Rain, Gardens - Summer, Gardens - Urban, Gardens - Vegetable, Gardens - Water

Have you ever wondered if what you understand Sunflowers And Your Garden is accurate? Consider the next paragraphs and associate what you know to the latest data on Sunflowers And Your Garden.

Sunflowers indeed stars of the gardening world. It is hard to neglect the beauty of sunflowers place tall, each on their own or stitching a bed of more traditional plants. Few who have seen these stunning beauties can deny their stunning beauty and attractiveness.

The family of sunflowers, known scientifically as group Helianthus, includes both yearly and perennial varieties of sunflowers. As their name implies, sunflowers normally wish thorough sunlight, so it is important for gardeners to take the sunniest part of their plot when planting these stunning plants.

It is also important to take the adult dimension of these plants into account when planting them, and to plot them accordingly. Most varieties of sunflowers are wholly large, so it is important to cosmos them normally so they will not crowd one another out and compete for nutrients. (more…)

Growing Vegetable In Your Garden

September 28, 2011 By: Juliet Spalding Category: Gardens - Vegetable

I can examine you thoughts that you have no idea about emergent vegetables. The veracity is that you can simply learn enough to be emergent nifty crops very swiftly, and each gathering depleted in your backyard teaches you even more. You will learn much that is rare to your own state, such as native soil conditions, your particular outlook relative to the sun, and oddities that relate to your local microclimate. You will learn most of this by receiving out and bountiful it a go.

The feel of home adult vegetables is vastly bigger to that of the commercially grown crop. Have you heard people object the tomatoes no longer have any judgment? They will have when you grow your own – you will never test better. The require of drink with the commercial crop is not all the criticize of the growers, as they are under pressure to emit a crop, of regular magnitude and colour, to the schedule of the extensive bazaar, and ultimately the supermarket. You set your own schedule.

The airiness of your own crop is a big bonus. Vegetables I have bought from the supermarket, and stored in the refrigerator, have happening to become revolting after a few living. I have had home grown products still light in the refrigerator after 2 weeks! (more…)

Adding Vermicompost to Your Soil will Increase Vegetable Gardening Success

September 18, 2011 By: Michael Podlesny Category: Compost Needs, Gardens - Vegetable, Soil Needs

Vermicompost is the end result of organic material such as food waste after it has been digested by some species of earth worm. Commonly referred to as worm castings, vermicompost contains water soluble nutrients and bacteria that make a great organic fertilizer for your garden.

The process in which you feed a worm organic material and turn it into vermicompost has an actual name called vermicomposting.

Although every worm produces worm castings, the worm best for the job to produce quality vermicompost for your garden’s soil is called Eisenia foetida or the red wiggler earthworm. Most of North America will use this species of worm, but if you live in a tropical part of the world, look towards Perionyx excavatus (Blue worms) and if you have a more acidic soil then use Eisenia hortensis (night crawlers). (more…)

Tips for Preparing a Planting Bed

September 12, 2011 By: Michael McGroarty Category: Gardens - All Season, Gardens - Butterfly, Gardens - Cottage, Gardens - Flower, Gardens - Herb, Gardens - Other, Gardens - Rain, Gardens - Summer, Gardens - Urban, Gardens - Vegetable, Gardens - Water

You are welcome to use this article on your website or in your newsletter as long as you reprint it as is, including the contact information at the end. Website URLs must be active links. You are welcome to use this article with an affiliate link, http://www.freeplants.com/resellers.htm

If you are preparing beds for landscaping around your house this article should simplify the process for you. I say that because of everything that is written about this subject, some of it is accurate, some of it is just plain wrong, and much of it is much more complicated than it needs to be. I like to think of myself as Simple Simon. I find the easiest, yet most effective way to do things, and they work.

Let’s assume that the area where you are planning your bed is now planted in grass. How do you get rid of the grass? Chemicals or no chemicals? Chemicals are easy, so we’ll look at the chemical method first. (more…)

Gardening: Gardening In Organic

September 10, 2011 By: Nicholas Tan Category: Gardens - All Season, Gardens - Butterfly, Gardens - Container, Gardens - Cottage, Gardens - Flower, Gardens - Herb, Gardens - Hydroponics, Gardens - Indoors, Gardens - Japanese, Gardens - Other, Gardens - Rain, Gardens - Summer, Gardens - Urban, Gardens - Vegetable, Gardens - Water

Organic gardening is the exact same as regular gardening except that no synthetic fertilizers or pesticides are used. This can make certain aspects difficult, such as controlling disease, insects, and weeds. Organic gardening also requires more attention to the soil and the many needs of plants. Organic gardening starts with the soil. Gardeners must add organic matter to the soil regularly in order to keep the soil productive. In fact, compost is essential to the healthiness and well being of plants grown organically. Compost can be made from leaves, dead flowers, vegetable scraps, fruit rinds, grass clippings, manure, and many other things. The ideal soil has a dark color, sweet smell, and is full of earthworms. Some soil may need more natural additives than regular compost can give, such as bonemeal, rock phosphates, or greensand. A simple soil test will tell you the pH balance and which nutrients you will need to use.

One thing that makes even gardeners that are very serious about organic gardening reach for pesticides is insects on their plants. The best way to defend plants against insects is to take preventative measures. One thing that can be done is to make sure plants are healthy and not too wet or dry because insects usually attack unhealthy plants and if healthy, they can often outgrow minor insect damage. A variety of plant types is a good idea to keep pests of a particular plant type from taking out the entire garden. (more…)

How to grow chilies

September 08, 2011 By: Richard Allen Category: Gardens - Vegetable, How To Grow...

How to Grow Chilies? Warning! Not only are chilies hot, they require love and attention, and whilst hardy they do need regular care. Ideally sown in January or February but can be sown year round if you have the right climate or grow them indoors.

Chilies require ongoing warmth for the best results. Some people do grow the outside in soil once the younger plants have developed, but I have found that for best result they just love compost and a nice greenhouse. Most chili seeds have a very good initial rate of germination. Regular feeding with a good fertilizer throughout their life will reap benefits.

Sowing and planting your chili seeds – If you have one sow your chili seeds in a propagator, I use plastic food trays, washed out and filled with good compost. (more…)

Companion Planting in Your Garden

September 07, 2011 By: Dayelle Swensson Category: Gardens - Vegetable

Companion planting is all about planting things together in your garden that get along and benefit each other. One important benefit of companion planting is pest control. One plant can hide another plant from pests or produce odors that keep pests away. Some plants can be used to attract pests away from other plants. Another benefit is pollination where one plant attracts insects, like bees, which help pollinate the other plant. Some plants add needed nutrients to the soil that benefit their companion plants.

Companion planting has been done since the days of the Romans. Native Americans are known for their technique called the Three Sisters technique in which they planted corn, pole beans and squash together. The beans would climb up the cornstalks and the beans would provide nitrogen for the corn. The squash spreads along the ground preventing weeds and add mulch which retains moisture in the soil. Companion planting became popular in the seventies when the organic farming movement began. There is still limited science to support its benefits in large scale farming but home gardeners espouse its benefits.

Marigolds are a popular companion plant particularly for tomatoes. The smell of the marigolds keeps pests away because they don’t like it and French marigolds are known to keep nematodes away. Nematodes are microscopic worms that can harm plants. There are good and bad nematodes located in soil. The bad ones attack the roots. They are parasites and suck the nutrients out of the plant. It is hard to detect but if the leaves of your tomato plants are yellow you could have nematodes. Next year consider planting French marigolds near your tomatoes to protect them from nematodes. (more…)

Learn About Vegetable Culture

August 16, 2011 By: Juliet Spalding Category: Gardens - Vegetable

As a directive, we take to grow concealing beans somewhat than shaft beans. I cannot make up my mentality about whether this is from sheer laziness. In a city patch the tall varieties might perhaps be a conundrum since it would be stubborn to get poles. Nevertheless these running beans can be qualified along old fences and with little urging will run up the stalks of the tallest sunflowers. So that settling the baton grill. There is an ornamental bank to the bean trouble. Suppose you factory these tall beans at the excessive rear end of each vegetable row. Make arches with limber tree limbs, strip them over to form the arch. Train the beans over these. When one stands facing the backyard, what a gorgeous limit these bean arches make.

Beans like abounding, cozy, filthy soil. To help the soil be surefire to dig truly, and work it over thoroughly for bean society. It never does to factory beans before the world has warmed up from its give chills. There is another lead in early digging of soil. It brings to the outward eggs and larvae of insects. The birds eager for food will even chart the plough to pick from the soil these choice morsels. A little emerald worked in with the soil is obliging in the cultivation of beans.

Bush beans are planted in maneuvers about eighteen inches distant, while the propel-bean rows should be three feet distant. The drills for the lodge limas should be farther distant than those for the other dwarf beans say three feet. This quantity of legroom gives opportunity for cultivation with the hoe. If the running beans climb too high just pinch off the mounting outermost end, and this will have back the upward abscess. Among hide beans are the dwarf, shout or series beans, the wax beans, the bush limas, one kind of which is known as weak beans. Among the push beans are the staff limas, wax and scarlet contender. The scarlet contender is a beauty for decorative things. The flora was scarlet and are beautiful against an old fence. These are somewhat lovely in the flower patch. Where one desires a bury, this is good to bury for one gets both a vegetable, lively flowers and a show from the one hide. When planting beans put the bean in the soil sideways with the eye down. (more…)

How to grow your own onions

August 09, 2011 By: Richard Allen Category: Gardens - Vegetable, How To Grow...

Growing onions from seed can be hard and frustrating for those new to growing their own vegetables, particularly in the cooler areas of the United Kingdom, which is why so many of the shop bought one come from Spain.

The alternative solution is to grow them from what are know as “sets”. Basically “sets” are small immature onions already partially grown by a specialist wholesaler from seed one year, and available for sale to be planted by gardeners the next year to grow into mature plants with out the need to grow from seen.

Whilst all plants require good quality, well drained soil, sets are nowhere near as demanding to grow ideal for those new to gardening and growing their own vegetables.

They are well suited to growing in raised beds and like soil with a lot of well-rotted manure in it. Once the manure is dug in then you need to rake the top soil into a fine a tilth as possible. Then you need to firm down the bed by walking all over it or standing on a plank to firm up the soil. (more…)

How to grow Broccoli – Growing Brocolli

July 19, 2011 By: Richard Allen Category: Gardens - Vegetable, How To Grow...

Grow you own Broccoli – It is easy as it grows well in most soil types. It prefers a sunny position though but can tolerate a shady area just as well. The soil is best if well manured before hand, and ideally needs to be well drained in order to prevent plants rotting.

Sowing Broccoli – As always read the seed packet but as a rule of thumb, for green broccoli sow outside in early May. For Purple and White varieties sow mid-April.? Sow the seeds about 7cm apart in rows 60cm apart. Cover the seeds with 1-2cm of compost of fine soil, watering well. They should begin germination in around 10 days. When they shoots appear, thin them out to around to 20cm apart. (more…)

Grow your own cucumbers – Growing your own cucumbers

June 24, 2011 By: Richard Allen Category: Gardens - Vegetable, How To Grow...

Growing Your Own Cucumbers They prefer a sunny position out of strong winds for good results. The soil should be rich, and drain well. Dig a hole approximately 30 cm wide filling it with a mixture of peat compost mixed in with well dug manure. Make the compost and manure mix into a small heap. Each heap should then be spaced around 40-50 cm. Given the high numbers yielded, you will not need to make up too many heaps.

Sowing them. Sow 2-3 seeds at a depth of no more than 3 cm in the center of each heap, then cover lightly with compost and water well. They should then be spaced around 10-15 cm apart in the heaps for the best results. Once germinated thin them out leaving only the strongest seedling. (more…)

Things You Need to Know About Organic Vegetable Gardening

June 16, 2011 By: Jonathan Gonzales Category: Gardens - Vegetable

Organic vegetable gardening is the way of growing vegetables and fruits with the use of things only found in nature.

Why would one want to indulge in organic gardening?

1.One can easily make compost from garden and kitchen waste. Though this is a bit more time-consuming than buying prepared chemical pesticides and fertilizers, vegetable gardens certainly help to put garbage to good use and so saves the environment. (more…)

Create A Beautiful Landscape With Vegetable

June 04, 2011 By: Juliet Spalding Category: Create & Plan..., Gardens - Vegetable

Landscaping is makeup’s peak form of art. It is one form of enhancing the usual finery of a particular example of land. It combines the different facets of creativity into one giant making of art, beauty, utility, and practicality.

Shade foliage afforded protection against the brilliant ardor of the sun, where leaves can actually drench up almost 85% of the sun’s ultraviolet reheat. Some people do not know that landscaping can also be a good informant of food.

Most patch-lovers think that beauty in character mendacity in the flowers and ornamental plants. What they neglect to notice is the vegetables can make a kind exhibit in the scenery as well.

Vegetable gardeners contend that the clear golden paint of the sunflower under the heat of the sun is as magnificent as the resonant green redden of lettuce. The best thing about it is that these vegetables do not just nosh one’s eyes but their stomach as well. (more…)

How to grow asparagus – grow your own asparagus

May 25, 2011 By: Richard Allen Category: Gardens - Vegetable, How To Grow...

How to grow Asparagus – Whilst Asparagus is considered a hard vegetable to grow due to the length of time it takes to come to fruition, it is best grown from one year crowns, ordered via mail order seed, for spring or autumn planting. If you sow from seed your crop will be take around 2 years to grow.

Asparagus likes well drained soil, dug in with manure the previous year. It is best suited to grow in raised beds, with their warmer soil. (more…)

Growing Tomatoes from Seed :)

May 23, 2011 By: Dayelle Swensson Category: Gardens - Vegetable

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Vegetable Gardening Ideas

May 17, 2011 By: Jonathan Gonzales Category: Gardens - Vegetable

Vegetable gardening has lately become just as popular as going to the grocery store for produce. Vegetable gardening can produce vegetable that are usually cheaper than store bought, and vegetables from a home vegetable garden definitely taste better by far. Vegetable gardening is no different than growing herbs or flowers and if the proper steps are taken and the plants are give the proper care they will flourish and produce very tasty vegetables.

First you must decide what size of garden you wish to plant and then select a place for it; somewhere that has good drainage, good air flow, and good, deep soil. It also needs to be able to get as much sunlight as possible. Because vegetable gardens have such tasty rewards, many animals, such as dogs, rabbits, deer, and many others will try and get to your veggies. One way to prevent this is to surround your garden with a fence, or put out a trap to catch mice, moles, and other animals. (more…)