1-14-11 A New Year for Gardening
In this issue:
- January in the Garden
- Chinese New Year at Bellagio Garden
- Gardenerd Tip of the Month: Fruit Tree Pruning Help
- Gardenerd Product of the Month: 2011 Tomato Calendar
1. January in the Garden
Happy New Year! 2011 promises to be a better year than 2010. How can it promise such a thing? I don’t know, but it’s what I hear from everyone I talk to. Whether it’s true or not, people are generally feeling more hopeful about the coming year. Well, we just listed our upcoming spring classes to get you off to a great start in the garden.
In the Test Garden, broccoli is heading up and we’ve already enjoyed a meal or two featuring this tasty brassica (Thompson is the first to show, followed by Romanesco). Kohlrabi and spinach have also found their way into the kitchen, and a few snips of mustard greens (both mizuna and osaka purple) and young celery are being enjoyed in salads. The garlic and shallots are growing, and believe it or not, we’re still harvesting Christmas Lima Beans from summer. We didn’t have the heart to pull out the plant – so it just keeps coming.
We just pruned back our roses. If you need help on that, check out the Rose Pruning article in our newsletter archives to guide you through. Seed catalogs are pouring in the mail, and we’ve already picked out a few new favorites to try this spring. We’re banking on some big successes in the New year. May 2011 be an adventurous and successful gardening year for you!
Happy Gardening,
Christy
2. Chinese New Year at Bellagio Gardens
When in Las Vegas, one rarely thinks of lush gardens, unless you’re a gardenerd of course. Each year, Bellagio Hotel and Casino decks out their garden for Chinese New Year (and other events throughout the year) and we were on hand to see this year’s celebration of the Year of the Rabbit. Check it out here:
Bellagio Gardens Celebrates Year of the Rabbit
3. Gardenerd Tip of the Month – Fruit Tree Pruning Help
January is one of the best times to prune dormant fruit trees, but with all the different varieties out there, we all could use a little help. UC Master Gardeners Program offers these two helpful videos (1 hour each) that will teach you the basics about planting, care and most importantly pruning techniques for many types of fruit trees. Watch them here:
4. Gardenerd Product of the Month – 2011 Tomatoes Calendar
Forget that boring calendar that the local realtor left on your door. Get something that’s inspiring and informative at the same time – the 2011 Tomatoes Calendar. Laura Taylor put together this month by month guide to growing tomatoes that includes specific instructions for different climate zones. Top it off with some great tomato photos and you’ve got one great calendar. On sale in the Gardenerd Store for a limited time:
Stay tuned for more tips and tidbits from Gardenerd.com. Happy winter gardening!
