The last weekend in February, and I'm looking at seed catalogs and gardening magazines! The first day of spring is 21 days away, but I can get a head start on my summer garden, even in fickle Colorado, with a couple of easy steps.
First I'm going to take stock in the state of my trees and shrubbery. We haven't had any BIG or heavy snows (comparatively), but I know there's some winter 'kill' out there that should be attended to while they are still dormant. This will reduce the chances of disease and bugs from entering the cuts. We're supposed to have sixty degree weather this week, so it should be a perfect time to stroll around the yard and do some trimming.
The second thing that I'm going to do is that while I'm walking in the garden, I'll be wearing Lawn Aerator Shoesto aerate the lawn. These will help air and moisture get to the roots of the grass for a good head start on the growing season.
The third thing I'm going to do this month is check the soil in my garden and designate an area where I can sow some cool-season vegetable seeds. As soon as the soil can be worked I'm going to toss down some spinach, lettuce and Swiss chard seeds right into the garden. Peas and radishes can also be sown at this time, as all these plants will survive frost and flourish in chilly weather. And since my soil has so much clay, even though I've been amending my garden soil with compost for years, I may opt for sowing these vegie seeds in my raised garden bed. Another option for those of you out there who do not have raised beds is growing spring crops in large containers. Salad days, here we come!
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Fall Cover Crops for Better Spring Soil
With a good 1 to 2 inch layer of organic compost over your garden bed, and a cover crop of green manure planted from seed in the fall, you will be on your way to improving your garden soil for next year's planting. Sown from seed, cover crops germinate very quickly and will grow all winter long. Then simply till the cover crop in once it flowers in spring. The cover crop's foliage will help protect the soil from getting compacted, which can happen in constant winter rain or from blanketing of snow. And when you till it in, the foliage adds organic material that will improve soil structure, increase nutrients and help your soil retain moisture.
Plants in the the legume family, commonly known as the pea family, bean family or pulse family, include soybean, alfalfa, vetch or fava beans. These are some of the best cover crops available (check online seed companies and nurseries). Legume plants are special in that they will retain nutrients that will then be returned to the soil when tilled in, thereby providing nutrients for your spring and summer crops next year. These crops have assertive root systems, which are helpful in breaking up hard soils. They are also very hardy and frost tolerant.
Cover crop seeds can be broadcast in mid-October right over that one to two inch layer of compost and all around the fall crops that are currently growing in your garden. Fall cover crops will grow quickly and reduce weed problems, but won't grow tall enough to overwhelm existing plantings.
Making organic compost for your fall cover crop is easy with tumbling composters. Look for models with more than one section inside: one for new compostable materials and one section for completed compost. If you live where there are temperature extremes, consider one of the Jora tumbling composting machines. They are manufactured in Sweden, and insulated to withstand temperature extremes.
Happy Composting!
Plants in the the legume family, commonly known as the pea family, bean family or pulse family, include soybean, alfalfa, vetch or fava beans. These are some of the best cover crops available (check online seed companies and nurseries). Legume plants are special in that they will retain nutrients that will then be returned to the soil when tilled in, thereby providing nutrients for your spring and summer crops next year. These crops have assertive root systems, which are helpful in breaking up hard soils. They are also very hardy and frost tolerant.
Cover crop seeds can be broadcast in mid-October right over that one to two inch layer of compost and all around the fall crops that are currently growing in your garden. Fall cover crops will grow quickly and reduce weed problems, but won't grow tall enough to overwhelm existing plantings.
Making organic compost for your fall cover crop is easy with tumbling composters. Look for models with more than one section inside: one for new compostable materials and one section for completed compost. If you live where there are temperature extremes, consider one of the Jora tumbling composting machines. They are manufactured in Sweden, and insulated to withstand temperature extremes.
Happy Composting!
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Preparing for Winter - Reviewing Your Garden Journal
I wrote in June about keeping a Garden Journal, which might include a map of your garden, what was planted and where, how often it was watered, even details about amounts of sunlight it received and the temperatures it experienced. Written down should also be information on the yields you've experienced from your vegetables, what you liked and what you weren't so crazy about. These bits of information can help you prepare your garden for winter.
Preparing your garden for the winter should include planning for next year. It doesn't have to be exact, but a general idea can help you decide where to put the bulk of your compost. Plants should be grown in different areas of the garden every year, most especially tomatoes, as they absorb different nutrients from the soil. But most will benefit from a fresh place in the garden. Plants that need more fertilizer and water should be grouped together for most effective use of both; an example would be peppers and tomatoes; squash and beans.
After pulling up annuals and weeding, the next step is a good layer of compost to condition the soil for next spring's planting. Our tumbling composters have been busily making nutrient rich organic compost all spring and summer, so we have plenty of compost to spread around. We'll put down a two inch deep layer of compost to enrich the soil and act as a mulch, conserving moisture and reducing the odd winter weed. We use our Fold-A-Cart to get the compost where it's needed. It's pretty easy to park our Fold-A-Cart under the compost machine, dump the compost in and wheel it to wherever in the garden we need it. This cart is especially nice because it is so easy to clean up afterwards, and it has two ten-inch pneumatic rubber tires that give it a great center of gravity and prevent tipping like our old wheelbarrow used to want to do. When we're done spreading the compost layer, we'll give everything a good soaking to provide the moisture that our garden worms need in order to do their jobs. Another spray with the hose and the Fold-A-Cart is ready to be folded down to 20% of its usable size and hung in the garage.
Even though I still have lots of vegetables in my garden (the warm weather still hangs on!): tomatoes, beets, beans, chard and spinach, I'll be updating my garden journal this weekend on what worked in the garden and where I need to move things next year. When we finally do get cold weather, all the refuse from the garden will go back into the tumbling composters to help make more compost for the spring planting.
Happy Composting!
Preparing your garden for the winter should include planning for next year. It doesn't have to be exact, but a general idea can help you decide where to put the bulk of your compost. Plants should be grown in different areas of the garden every year, most especially tomatoes, as they absorb different nutrients from the soil. But most will benefit from a fresh place in the garden. Plants that need more fertilizer and water should be grouped together for most effective use of both; an example would be peppers and tomatoes; squash and beans.
After pulling up annuals and weeding, the next step is a good layer of compost to condition the soil for next spring's planting. Our tumbling composters have been busily making nutrient rich organic compost all spring and summer, so we have plenty of compost to spread around. We'll put down a two inch deep layer of compost to enrich the soil and act as a mulch, conserving moisture and reducing the odd winter weed. We use our Fold-A-Cart to get the compost where it's needed. It's pretty easy to park our Fold-A-Cart under the compost machine, dump the compost in and wheel it to wherever in the garden we need it. This cart is especially nice because it is so easy to clean up afterwards, and it has two ten-inch pneumatic rubber tires that give it a great center of gravity and prevent tipping like our old wheelbarrow used to want to do. When we're done spreading the compost layer, we'll give everything a good soaking to provide the moisture that our garden worms need in order to do their jobs. Another spray with the hose and the Fold-A-Cart is ready to be folded down to 20% of its usable size and hung in the garage.
Even though I still have lots of vegetables in my garden (the warm weather still hangs on!): tomatoes, beets, beans, chard and spinach, I'll be updating my garden journal this weekend on what worked in the garden and where I need to move things next year. When we finally do get cold weather, all the refuse from the garden will go back into the tumbling composters to help make more compost for the spring planting.
Happy Composting!
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Thinning and Transplanting Purple Bearded Iris
Two weeks ago the tops of my Purple Bearded Iris were cut back to about 4 inches above the ground. They were ready, I was ready...they were overcrowded and not producing flowers like they used to. Also, the rhizomes were snaking out of the ground. The root systems were so bunched up that the roots were pushing the rhizomes to the surface. So today was the day for thinning and transplanting them. One large bunch had been planted in river rocks, thus all the rocks needed to be moved first (and continuously, since many seemed to have burrowed their way into the ground). Using a garden fork, I loosened the soil around the rhizomes, then removed the clumps of rhizomes in as large a bunch as I could handle. I carefully brushed the excess dirt off of the roots so they could be inspected, and placed the rhizomes in my folding cart.
It's important that you check the iris rhizomes for root borers or for softness and throw away any that are diseased or bug damaged. Luckily all my rhizomes were healthy, and I have enough to share with neighbors and co-workers.
I kept rhizomes with leaf fans that were each in pieces about 3 - 5 inches long for replanting. Four spots in my garden were selected that had the right combination of room and light. Holes deep and wide enough for groupings of 3-5 rhizomes were dug, then the rhizomes were placed just below ground level and facing away from each other with the roots spreading out. Next came a covering of organic compost over around the roots and over all in a mound that covers the leaves. Finally the mound was watered well, and will be watered with my garden drip until first frost. They'll get some moisture throughout the winter with snow melt and some BiOWiSH™ Crop to promote good absorption of the nutrients in the compost. My Purple Bearded Iris are set for roots to re-establish themselves in preparation of a glorious springtime bloom across the expanse of my back fence. Happy Composting!
It's important that you check the iris rhizomes for root borers or for softness and throw away any that are diseased or bug damaged. Luckily all my rhizomes were healthy, and I have enough to share with neighbors and co-workers.
I kept rhizomes with leaf fans that were each in pieces about 3 - 5 inches long for replanting. Four spots in my garden were selected that had the right combination of room and light. Holes deep and wide enough for groupings of 3-5 rhizomes were dug, then the rhizomes were placed just below ground level and facing away from each other with the roots spreading out. Next came a covering of organic compost over around the roots and over all in a mound that covers the leaves. Finally the mound was watered well, and will be watered with my garden drip until first frost. They'll get some moisture throughout the winter with snow melt and some BiOWiSH™ Crop to promote good absorption of the nutrients in the compost. My Purple Bearded Iris are set for roots to re-establish themselves in preparation of a glorious springtime bloom across the expanse of my back fence. Happy Composting!
Sunday, September 12, 2010
The Benefits of Nurturing Your Soil
Nuturing your soil by adding organic matter is the number one foundation of gardening the organic way. Adding organic nutrients to the soil simulates what happens naturally. One of the best ways to provide organic nutrients to the soil is by adding mature compost.
This critical step to growing food organically by maintaining a supply of nutrients ready for your plants to take up as they need them is easy to do with a tumbling composter. Just add your organic kitchen scraps, yard refuse and BiOWiSH™ Compost Boost to your tumbling composter, give it a turn or two and plan where you'll be using the wonderful, rich compost that will result. Using organic compost, your plants will grow healthy and vigorously, which helps prevent attacks of pest and disease. You will also enjoy larger yields and quicker growing times.
Some of the other benefits from nurturing your soil with organic compost include:
1. It will improve the ability of your soil to retain moisture
2. Compost releases nutrients evenly and slowly
3. Your soil's microbiological activity will increase
4. Improved conditions and structure of your soil will mean a better environment for earthworms and healthy micro-organisms
5. It helps dispose of your organic waste
6. It reduces the loads on landfills
7. Composting will also reduce your water consumption
A tumbling composter will provide you with the above benefits and a continual supply of organic compost with which you can nurture your soil and plants. It's easy, healthful and cost effective, too. Stop by www.BestComposters.com and pick out a composter that will fit your budget and your gardening needs! Happy Composting!
This critical step to growing food organically by maintaining a supply of nutrients ready for your plants to take up as they need them is easy to do with a tumbling composter. Just add your organic kitchen scraps, yard refuse and BiOWiSH™ Compost Boost to your tumbling composter, give it a turn or two and plan where you'll be using the wonderful, rich compost that will result. Using organic compost, your plants will grow healthy and vigorously, which helps prevent attacks of pest and disease. You will also enjoy larger yields and quicker growing times.
Some of the other benefits from nurturing your soil with organic compost include:
1. It will improve the ability of your soil to retain moisture
2. Compost releases nutrients evenly and slowly
3. Your soil's microbiological activity will increase
4. Improved conditions and structure of your soil will mean a better environment for earthworms and healthy micro-organisms
5. It helps dispose of your organic waste
6. It reduces the loads on landfills
7. Composting will also reduce your water consumption
A tumbling composter will provide you with the above benefits and a continual supply of organic compost with which you can nurture your soil and plants. It's easy, healthful and cost effective, too. Stop by www.BestComposters.com and pick out a composter that will fit your budget and your gardening needs! Happy Composting!
Monday, September 6, 2010
Readying the Garden for Fall
This was the perfect weekend for preparing my garden for fall. Today's temperature hovered around 70 degrees, with a little breeze and the bluest sky. I've harvested the lettuce and the beets, and a bush bean that hadn't done so well. Now I have room and cooler temperatures to allow for some more spinach and chard. But the soil looks like it needs a lift. It's a good thing that we've been composting all summer, putting into our tumbling composter all our kitchen scraps, some shredded newspaper and alittle hay. Now I have plenty of organic compost to amend my garden soil. As a mulch, it will retain moisture, so I can water less. It will also keep down the weeds that have sprouted up so prolifically in my walkways and rocks this year. Need I mention the nutrients that my organic compost will provide to the vegetables I'll plant? I can hardly wait for some fresh spinach salads!
I'm convinced that the biggest reason that we've been so successful with our composting is because we've used BiOWiSH™ Compost Boost regularly. It's kept the temperature of the compost at a regular 130 degrees to allow the organic matter to decompose at just the right rate. With all it's powerful enzymes, BiOWiSH™ Compost Boost has also prevented the odors that sometimes accompany compost. It doesn't mask the odor, but actually digests it.
Check our website for a variety of tumbling composters, paying particular attention to the Jora models for year round composting. And don't forget to order some BiOWiSH™ Compost Boost for your own compost piles for faster, better smelling, 100% organic compost for your garden. Happy Composting!
I'm convinced that the biggest reason that we've been so successful with our composting is because we've used BiOWiSH™ Compost Boost regularly. It's kept the temperature of the compost at a regular 130 degrees to allow the organic matter to decompose at just the right rate. With all it's powerful enzymes, BiOWiSH™ Compost Boost has also prevented the odors that sometimes accompany compost. It doesn't mask the odor, but actually digests it.
Check our website for a variety of tumbling composters, paying particular attention to the Jora models for year round composting. And don't forget to order some BiOWiSH™ Compost Boost for your own compost piles for faster, better smelling, 100% organic compost for your garden. Happy Composting!
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Growing Hydroponically and BiOWiSH™
Growing interest in hydroponics led me to review a study that had been done by BiOWiSH™ Technologies and a lettuce farm that had shown dramatic results. The farm in question had seven greenhouses with a variety of lettuces, all grown on Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) tables.
The lettuce farm used BiOWiSH™ Crop to treat the water that was flowing through the dripper lines, micro-tubes and NFT gulley floors. BiOWiSH™ Crop was a no-brainer for these purposes, since it increases the nutrient availability in water flowing to the plants' root systems. More nutrients mean better absorption, and more nutrients absorbed means bigger, healthier plants. That is, in fact, what happened. In the six week growth cycle, the farmer had lettuces that were double the usual size, all other factors being equal. And don't we all love bigger, healthier plants?! Especially when growing space is limited...you want to as large a crop as possible in the space available.
BiOWiSH™ Crop is 100% natural, biodegradable and safe for use in a wide range of consumer, commercial and industrial situations. With over 18 years of research and development, BiOWiSH™ products accelerate enzymatic reactions over a thousand times faster than normal speed. These enzymes breakdown all non-living organic matter, so in addition to increasing the hydroponic grows water nutrient availability, it also prevents sludge build-up and scaling in the water lines!
BiOWiSH™ Crop is now available at www.BestComposters.com. It should definitely be part of your hydroponic grow!
The lettuce farm used BiOWiSH™ Crop to treat the water that was flowing through the dripper lines, micro-tubes and NFT gulley floors. BiOWiSH™ Crop was a no-brainer for these purposes, since it increases the nutrient availability in water flowing to the plants' root systems. More nutrients mean better absorption, and more nutrients absorbed means bigger, healthier plants. That is, in fact, what happened. In the six week growth cycle, the farmer had lettuces that were double the usual size, all other factors being equal. And don't we all love bigger, healthier plants?! Especially when growing space is limited...you want to as large a crop as possible in the space available.
BiOWiSH™ Crop is 100% natural, biodegradable and safe for use in a wide range of consumer, commercial and industrial situations. With over 18 years of research and development, BiOWiSH™ products accelerate enzymatic reactions over a thousand times faster than normal speed. These enzymes breakdown all non-living organic matter, so in addition to increasing the hydroponic grows water nutrient availability, it also prevents sludge build-up and scaling in the water lines!
BiOWiSH™ Crop is now available at www.BestComposters.com. It should definitely be part of your hydroponic grow!
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