I've been a bit paralyzed by all the different outreach efforts and options to donate to Haiti, and I find it difficult to sort out what's legit and what's not. So because of that, I haven't felt strongly about one avenue or another for helping the Haitians recover from the disastrous earthquake that has left so many without homes or infrastructure. Until today.
I've been trying to sell my extra ...
Get your beans and peas off to a great start with this week's tip.
As a birthday present to myself, I purchased some redwood seed flats from Bountiful Gardens, the home of Ecology Action in Willits, CA. These redwood seed flats allow gardeners to start seeds very close together without the occasionally tedious limitation of trays with cells. These open "half flats" (which I purchased instead of the full size flats that are twice as large and twice as heavy) can hold up to 87 seedlings in the same amount of space ...
A recent question came in:
"Hi Gardenerd!, I enjoyed your podcast about the wildflowers, and as I already had mine purchased, I have a more specific question. Mar Vista = Clay. After weeding, can the seeds just be scattered or does the soil need amending? I bought a Xeriscape blend, and when I started weeding, I was SHOCKED by the density of clay, wet clay at that after all this rain; but, it does drain as there is no puddling. Raised beds for wildflowers ...
One of the best way to insure diversity in your garden is to start your own seeds indoors, rather than be limited to what's available at nurseries. Timing is everything and now's the time!
Get native! Your garden will love you for it. This week's tip helps you get some wildflowers and native plants into your garden.
A great question came in this week:
"Hi, I started a 8x10 garden in my backyard full of veggies and herbs this past summer, yet everything has died except for a few herbs because I did nothing when it froze here in Dallas...What should I have done if anything to have saved it and how can I start growing things now and what is best to plant. Thanx from newbie gardener.... "
You're not alone this winter. In fact, unless ...
Several years ago, when I started getting serious about Gardenerd, I met Billy Goodnick. Billy is a fellow gardenerd in Santa Barbara with... well, let's just say a lot of experience in the realm of landscaping and gardening. He was so supportive of me branching out of my own, and we kept in touch ever since.
Now, Billy has scored the coolest job writing for Fine Gardening Magazine's blog. Get this - Fine Gardening hired him because they saw ...
Get buzzing with this weeks tip, which will give you specific plants for your zone to attract pollinators.
A great question came in this week from a cauliflower gardener:
"I was so excited to have just harvested my first cauliflower! It was big, beautiful and infested with little grayish white bugs! (aphids, I think?). I couldn't salvage it because there were literally hundreds embedded just beneath the tops of the florets. I have several other cauliflower plants growing, some are new, some almost ready to harvest. Is there anything I can do to prevent future infestations?"
First of all, congratulations ...