Wind Plays Havoc on Tender Young Plants

What a lot of windy weather we have been having and the impact on plants can be disastrous. Newly planted seedlings can easily be damaged or snapped right off even in a stiff breeze. When plants are hardened off they are mainly acclimating to sun and a little breeze, when the wind starts to rise we bring the tender seedlings inside to protect them. Whenever a plant is transplanted to the garden they should always be staked. You don’t need to use big bamboo stakes even something as thin as a skewer, $1 for a pack of 100 at the dollar store or 36 really thick skewers. Even short plants need a little support while starting out and these are the ones usually overlooked. I always utilize a fan while growing seedlings to help strengthen the stem and get them used to light winds but I do stake all plants until they are established or if they need long term support the small stake is exchanged for a full bamboo stake that will last until harvest.

Protecting tender plants early will help to ensure a healthy plant and a productive harvest.

Pepper Tip

Peppers do well in containers and the containers can be placed in the garden beside the other plants but when it begins to cool a little they are easily brought in overnight. Peppers hate the cool and will stop growing or not fruit if they get chilled, but they can fruit through November if brought to a sunny location inside.

Water Conservation and Vegetable Plants

Watering plants that are long season varieties like tomatoes and peppers, mound up the soil in a circle around them creating a dam under the plant. This will hold the water allowing it to seep deep down instead of running away.

Another idea is to take a plastic bottle and cut the bottom off, take the cap and pierce or drill a few little holes in it and place it back on the bottle. Stick the cap end in the ground close to the plant and fill with water. This will allow the plant to slowly take in the water and let it soak deeply. I also take a bit of nylon or cheesecloth and lay a square over the open bottle end and secure it with an elastic band. This will stop bugs, dirt and leaves from getting in and plugging up the little holes.

Early Weeding

The weather is finally turning and this is a great time to get a first step into the garden. I like this time of year to start weeding the beds and preparing for the upcoming season.

In the fall the ground gets damp then it freezes over expanding in the soil as ice crystals do, in the spring the ice melts and leaves air spaces in the soil that makes it nothing short of fluffy. This is the perfect time to weed. The soil is loose and a quick pull can relieve a long root from the ground quick and easy. This is my favourite weeding time, the easy weeding time. It will not take long for rains to pound the ground and the sun to dry it out until it is pretty packed in again. So take advantage of the nice weather and start some early season weeding. You won’t regret it.

Tea Leaves and Coffee Grounds in the Garden

Tea and coffee have long been acknowledged as beneficial for the garden.

There is an old flower garden here which was long neglected, the previous owners were elderly and yard maintenance declined over the years. I can envision the couple stepping out on to the deck in the early morning and dropping their tea bags over the rail directly into the garden. I discovered many tea bags in that little garden for the first couple years. This seems like an easy and good practice, when it rains the plants will get a little weak tea water. However, for the leaves to become a part of the flora community you need to rip those bags open. The leaves need to be able to combine with the soil and compost which they can’t do unless the bag is opened before adding into the garden.

The same practice goes for coffee pouches. These are pre-measured, great and easy for a quick pot of coffee but again, rip them open before adding to the garden or the compost bin.

We take great enjoyment in our gardens and sometimes a little extra step can have an enormous benefit for the garden and therefore for us.

Planting Your First Vegetable Garden?

If you have decided this is the year you are finally going to get a vegetable garden in, start preparing now. Start with a small garden, you can always expand your plot but you don’t want to exhaust or disappoint yourself by going too big too soon.

Plant what you like. If you cook a lot of Italian dishes then go for tomatoes, oregano, sweet peppers. Try a salad garden with a variety of lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers. Plant peppers in large pots then partially sink them into the garden, when the temperature drops you can pull them out and take them indoors, they will last months longer is a sunny spot. Want vegetables through the winter with little work at preserves, plant peas and beans with a variety of herbs you can hang to dry.

A small garden with a variety of plants is a lot healthier than a large plot with rows of plants.

When you line all the plants up in rows you make them more susceptible to pest and disease. If a pest comes along and starts to munch on one of your tomato plants it will go right along the whole row chomping on each and destroying your full harvest. If you mix it up when the pest hops to the next plant it is not of its liking, it leaves and tries the next and then takes off for better pickings. Mix your veggies and herbs up just like you would a flower garden and the confused pests will take a far lower tole on your plants. A mixed up garden also looks a lot nicer than those boring rows. I call row planting Farm Gardening, farmers have to plant in long straight rows of the same type of vegetable because they use machines to plant, fertilize, and harvest. A nicely planned out vegetable garden looks as lovely as a well tended flower garden, and it is just as relaxing and calming a place to sit and relax.

So, choose well, start small and mix it up and you will have a lovely garden to enjoy your morning coffee in and healthy food on your table.

A Quick Control for Slugs and Grubs

Trying to control slugs and grubs that are in your garden munching your plants at night can be a tiresome Endeavour. To save you time and to save your beautiful plants try placing a few slices of cucumber in a small aluminum pie or tart tin and place it in your garden. The chemical reaction between the cucumber and aluminum gives off a scent grubs and slugs do not like. A quick and easy way to rid yourself of garden pests.

Stop Weeds WIth Newspaper

A great way to stop weeds around your plants is with newspaper. Rip the newspaper into strips and soak in clean water.
Dig the hole for your plant and work in any compost or nutrients you would usually incorporate into your soil and plant your plants. Once they are planted and covered with good soil take the newspaper strips and layer, overlapping them around the plant. Top off with a good mulch. The newspaper and mulch will help to retain water and keep the soil and roots moist. By overlapping the paper you form a barrier that will block out weeds.
An easy way to cut down on weeds and save you time in the garden and now is a great time to save newspapers. Just use the black and white print pages, do not use any pages with colour on them.

What better way to spend time during these cold winter days than planning your spring planting with the help of gardening events. A great event that occurs across Canada every year is Seedy Sunday. Sudbury will host its second Seedy Sunday on February 20th 10 – 4 at the Market Square, sponsored by Seeds of Diversity Canada and Sudbury Food Connects Network (Foodshed Project). Seedy Sundays are wonderful opportunities to find local vegetable and flower seeds grown in your own zone. There are seed swaps and sales with local garden enthusiasts manning the booths able to answer questions and perk your curiosity. Booths on green programs, green energy, clean up events, landscaping information and ideas, organic growing information and so much more than you may have thought was available in your community. The speakers corner has a wide variety of local experts, master gardeners, eco information, guaranteed something for everyone.
These events are worth having community support, bringing together an amazing group of diverse people and information. In Ontario, Toronto’s Seedy Sunday will be on February 13th at Hart House, Sault Ste. Marie February 19th at Sault College cafeteria, B wing West, Hamilton on February 26 at the Royal Botanical Gardens and so many more. To find a location in your area simply go to the Seeds of Diversity Canada web site to find Seedy Sundays from coast to coast.
There are also Garden Festivals in many communities. The Sudbury Garden Festival will be on May 28th & 29th at the Market Square with speakers on Orchids, Shoreline Gardening, Gardening with Native Plants, Alternatives to Pesticides, Trees and Shrubs, Gardening with Arthritis, Perennials and I will be there talking about heirloom vegetables and the importance and ease of sustainable vegetable gardens.
Search for local gardening events and if you are fortunate to have a Farmers Market check there for winter and spring events to give you the best seeds, tools, products and information and warm your mind to make your 2011 gardening season the best and most relaxing yet.

Best Stocking Stuffer Ever For Your Favourite Gardener

Every gardening season I look forward to finding new ideas, shortcuts and techniques others have lovingly experimented with. Sometimes, by stumble or sheer determination, you make a grand discovery yourself, a new method that will make life so much easier in your garden scape.
This year I discovered a common item which I put to a whole new use. Hair clips!!



In my garden I use the tiny ones and the next size up - for you fellas out there, there are probably seven or eight different sizes but you will know which will work best for you on first glance.
I use these little clips to support my plants. Whether a young tomato plant is needing a little tether to a bamboo stake for a couple weeks or a runner bean is being encouraged to grow up a stake and along fencing.



I used doweling in one of my gardens to accommodate runner beans. I placed three poles in a corner and tied twine between them so when the beans grew they filled in and made a little green corner wall. To secure the tendrils I placed them along the twine with clips and as they grew and twisted on their own I removed any unneeded clips to use elsewhere. The clips do not hinder or limit growth and I am no longer tying, twisting or replacing tight bindings. To loosely clip a thick branch to a pole I will sometimes place the clip on the pole, not around it, so the teeth of the clip actually grip the pole itself. This gives extra room for a plant to have wiggle and growth room.
These clips take the sun and rain well, when a plant no longer needs the clip I place it on the fencing or pole so I have it ready in the garden when it is needed next.
These “plant” clips are available in all department stores and hair care areas but I go to the local dollar store first and pick up a package of 10-12 for a $1. At the end of the season I give them a light wash and store them in my gardening tool bag for next year. You may choose the brown, black or dark green clips or funky up your garden with neon blues and pinks adding a little colour before the flowers burst forth. The bright ones are easiest to find at year end amongst the brown leaves and stems.
This is a great addition for stocking stuffers or gift baskets for any gardeners on your list.
This is my Big Discovery for the 2010 gardening season, a simple little clip that saves time and is gentle on my tender growing plants or taming wild runner beans. I was so thrilled with how well it worked I wanted to share it with everyone, and for those who discovered this before me… good for you, I hope you told every gardener you know!
With 9 days left 'til Christmas Happy Holidays to all.

Maintain Equipment and Save Money

While preparing tools and equipment for spring use don’t neglect the water sprinkler. If it is getting clogged with mineral deposits simply soak it in overnight in white vinegar. Place head down to make sure the holes are well covered. The next day give it a good scrub with a brush to loosen any hard buildup and rinse in clean water. An easy and inexpensive way to get the most out of a sprinkler.

Pest Control

We all struggle at one time or another with insects and bugs in the garden or in the home. There are many ways to deter pests, deal with the possibility before they become an issue, or after the fact with natural or chemical intervention.

Once again I found an article I would like to share on, well, what not to do. Sometimes an infestation can be so severe it is hard to think straight.

Uncle John’s BR 22nd edition brings us an article showing the level of exasperation a person can be brought to and the lack of common sense that may ensue.

“Tone Pina’s apartment in Citrus Heights, California was infested by thousands of cockroaches.

Because there were so many roaches, Pina got a lot of bug bombs. He said about 8 to 10; the police (I thought you would notice that) later said there were probable as many as 18. (One or two is usually recommended.) Pina set them all off at the same time and rushed out of the house.

A spark from his refrigerator (this is where I started laughing) ignited the fumes, triggering an explosion (now I was in full tears) that separated the building’s walls from its roof, caused three families to lose their homes, and cost more than $1 million to repair. Pina still has cockroaches.”

Well, what more can I say, besides the obvious, it's smart to read the directions?

Weed Removal

I am always looking for good tried and true shortcuts and tips to make the gardening season easier so more time can be spent enjoying the results of my efforts.
As well as tried and true I am also very interested in know what Did Not Work. Sometimes it is a minor “didn’t work” and I know with changes and a little alteration I can make a benefit of the method. However, the big Did Not Work’s can be a source of learning and of course, entertainment under the “Glad that wasn’t me” category.
I will let you decide which definition works best for you in the article I am including next.
According to Uncle John’s BR 22nd edition a German gardener was having an issue with weeds growing between his hedges and no doubt tried everything to control them.
“While it is not uncommon for gardeners to use a small blowtorch to clear weeds from cracks in a driveway or sidewalk, it’s not recommended when the weeds are growing among giant hedges. But that’s what this 54-year-old gardener tried to do.
The hedges caught fire….
….then the tool shed…
… then, the roof of his house.
Unable to extinguish the blaze with his garden hose, the man called the fire department. By the time they put it out, his house was so damaged that it was uninhabitable.”
I will file that under things not to do in the garden, especially during the fire ban time of a hot dry summer. Yes, a summer of sun, not rain!