Our first year of growing experimental goji berries comes to a close and we actually have something to show for it. Some readers may recall that we won two goji berry plants at the Garden Writers Association Symposium in 2015. It took a year for the plants to get established and 2017 was the first for fruit production. This week we harvested and dried our own goji berries. Here's how: The Harvest The harvest was small, but enough to claim…
A question came in to Ask Gardenerd from Jeff Bremer this week: "This is a two-part question: 1. I save seeds from each year's tomato crop to plant the following year. I can never get all the "meat" of the tomato off the seeds. How do you clean these seeds? 2. Can early blight be transmitted through tomato seeds? Thanks, Jeff " Great questions, Jeff. Let's start with saving tomato seeds. Saving Tomato Seeds Saving tomato seeds is relatively easy,…
A question came in from Karen at Ask Gardenerd this week: "During these very hot summer days, what's the best time of day to water my vegetable garden?" Irrigation is key during hot weather in climates where rain is scarce. Here in Los Angeles, where days are topping 108° in the Valley and other inland areas, and rain is non-existent, it's important to water regularly to keep plants happy. But when? It's a good question. Ideal watering times Watering is…
Several questions came in all at once from David this week. He asks, "How do I get rid of flies that like to hang around in my back yard and bask in the sunlight? Also, why would my tomato plants not produce any fruit? The flowers just shrivel up and die. AND, what can I do to prevent the worms from eating my tomato's and apples? Thank you." Those are all great questions, David, with varied answers. Let's start with…
A troubling question came into Ask Gardenerd this week from Jennifer: "I'm a new gardener (4 years), and EVERY SINGLE YEAR, vine borers eat my zucchini plants. But I keep planting them because they are my favorite!! None of my friends have this problem. I don't understand. I've moved them in the garden, planted marigolds, used DE, used foil at the bases, done "surgery" on my plants...and nothing works. Every June they all die and I am devastated. What else…
We got a good one from Ask Gardenerd this week: "Hello, our blackberries are thriving this year, probably because of all the rain we got in SoCal, but I am afraid the birds will get them before us, like they did with our blueberries. Do you have any tips and tricks for proper bird netting installment over blackberry bushes? Any brands or techniques you could recommend? - Micky" Good question, Micky. There are several approaches and bird netting is one…
As we look into the corner of the Gardenerd Test Garden, we see the need for blackberry pruning. Someone else in the Gardenerd community did the same thing and asked: "I believe you mentioned it is time to prune blackberries, but what's your method? My Seattle friends say they all cut the plants off at ground level and tear out the runners invading new territory. My plants are 2 years old. What is best pruning method for the maximum yield…
Here's a question urban gardeners ask themselves at least once while standing next to a garden hose as the smell of chlorine wafts across the yard. George from Wisconsin proposed it this week on Ask Gardenerd (edited for length): "Hi, A few years ago I noticed that my garden never looked as good after I watered it with tap water as it did after a rain. At first, I attributed it to laziness: maybe I was stingy since I had…
I do believe my favorite question to date just came in to Ask Gardenerd from Jeff Bremer: "Hi Christy, How do I encourage volunteers? Over the years in my tomato garden, a few volunteers would appear each season. Last year, in hopes of getting a lot of volunteers (for this year) whenever a tomato was damaged or half-eaten by some critter, I buried it in the soil. However, this year, not one volunteer arose. Is there anything I can do…
This terrific question came in from an inquiring mind this week: "Last spring I had a very tasty crop of Broccolini. I was impressed enough to save seeds at the end of the season. I've since learned that Broccolini is a cross between Italian Broccoli and Chinese Broccoli (a form of Kale). Was my seed saving a waste of time? If I try and plant these seeds, will they revert to one of the two parent plants? - Ed Callahan"…