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Compost at the Ready?

All the spring garden questions are coming into Ask Gardenerd this week.  Here’s one now:

“Hello! I’m about to start spring planting so I need to amend my soil a
bit. I have a barrel of compost that has been doing its thing for about
10 months. It’s mostly done, but there are still some chunks of leaves. Should I use this compost now or do I need to wait? thanks!“

I’m guessing that your compost set up has been one where you add material to it and let it sit, correct?  This would be considered cold composting (which is a misnomer …

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Spring has Arrived

Spring has Arrived

Sunday was the first day I was able to walk around outside without a jacket on.  In fact, I brazenly put on a tank top and walked to the farmer’s market.  It was heavenly!  The spring sun is officially warming our skin and soil. The smell of that subtle change in the air lets us know, at least here in Los Angeles, that spring has finally arrived. 

We often take it for granted in Los Angeles, given that the weather’s subtle changes often go unnoticed.  We are admittedly accustomed to consistent weather – sunny and warm all year …

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Organic vs. Non-organic seeds

Another great question came in to Ask Gardenerd:

“I don’t understand what the difference is between organic seeds and
regular seed packets.  Are there any benefits of purchasing organic
seeds?  Can I buy regular seeds and just grow them organically with the
same results?”

The short answer to your question is yes, you can essentially get the same results with regular seeds as with organically grown seeds.  Here, for the record, is the difference:

Organic seeds are just that – organically grown.  In other words, grown using sustainable methods from start to finish.  No pesticides, no chemical fertilizers, all on land …

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White Fly Control

The questions have really been coming in lately.  Here’s one selected for this week’s post:

“How do I control white flies? I tried using bugs that would eat them,
but they arrived in the mail dead. Is there anything else I can do? All of my plants died last summer and we had clouds of white flies all over
the place.”

Such a bummer about those white fly predators showing up dead.  Take solace in knowing that you are not alone.  Others have suffered the curse of the white fly.  In fact, you might even check out a previous blog entry about …

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Saving Money through Gardening

This morning an article appeared in my inbox from Kitchen Gardeners International that I thought I would share. It felt appropriate to post it because the main question that was asked of those of us who participated in the recent Nightline interview was, “Does this save you money?”  While I couldn’t really summarize the ways in which home growing saves me money, this article really nails down an concrete answer.  Enjoy!  

…

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Television Shoot for Gardenerd

Television Shoot for Gardenerd

Today was an unusual day.  I got up and put on makeup.  That doesn’t happen much these days, since the broccoli doesn’t care how I look in the morning.  The reason for the makeup was because in an hour or so, four guys and a camera were going to be staring me in the face.  ABC News: Nightline was coming to shoot a segment on Victory Gardens. 

We started out visiting a garden that belongs to one of my clients.  Tommy Rosen (whose garden was recently featured on the Gardenerd Blog) was in full force.  He …

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Epsom Salts

A gardener wrote in recently asking if Epsom Salts are organic. 

I think we should break this question down into two questions:

1) Are Epsom Salts organic?
2) Are Epsom Salts safe to use in organic gardening?

The short answer to both questions is yes, but for the sake of clarity, I’ll explain a little further.

Microsoft Encarta defines Epsom Salts as the following:

“Epsom Salts, common name for colorless or white crystalline salt (magnesium sulfate hepta-hydrate, MgSO4·7H2O) found in the minerals kieserite and epsomite and in mineral waters. Epsom salt was first prepared at Epsom, England. …

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Sour Blackberries

A gardener wrote in recently:

“I have thornless blackberries bushes, but every year the berries are sour. What can i do to sweeten them up?”

I don’t have personal experience with thornless berries, but in my research I found two common answers to this question. 

1) The berry bushes may be old and apparently there’s nothing to be done about it.  Time to get new berries. 

2) It’s important to wait to harvest the berries until they are no longer shiny.  They will have passed from the dark black, shiny stage into a duller black stage and should come right off the vine …

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