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Monthly Gardening Tips To Do List
Dec 28, 2009
Free Gardening Calendars For 2010 Now Available!

It's that time of year again and we have finished putting together our beautiful gardening calendars for 2010.

Each free gardening calendar comes with a colorful picture and two to three pages of gardening tips and "to dos" that are appropriate for that time of year including what to plan, plant, prune, maintain, plus weed and pest control and fun projects.

Print out as many as you want!

Just go to: Free Gardening Calendars

If you like them, make sure to share them with your family and friends.

Enjoy and Happy New Year!

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

Have great week!

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Posted: Dec 28, 2009 4:26am
Blueberry Look-A-Likes and Taste-A-Likes
Dec 11, 2009
If you love blueberries, but just can't grow them because of their acidity and other requirements, you might want to try juneberries.

Juneberries (Amelanchier spp.), also known as serviceberries and saskatoons, are one of the easiest berries you can ever plant and grow.

Unlike blueberries, they grow in any type of soil, so you can plant them just about anywhere as long as they get full sun.

Juneberries produce sweet berries that taste very similar to blueberries and can be eaten fresh right off the shrub, used in baked goods, cobblers, dried and stored, or made into jams and jellies.

Because they naturally contain quite a lot of pectin, you don't need much thickener when cooking them into jam. The Indians, who used them like blueberries, dried them and added them in stews and pemmican.

They have seeds like a blueberry, but they are softer and have a mild almond flavor. When they are cooked, the taste is so similar to blueberries they are hard to tell apart.

Another great aspect of these shrubs and small trees is that they are very disease resistant and not susceptible to any insects.

Juneberries are not only tasty, but they are very ornamental with showy white flowers in the spring and red leaves in the fall.

Depending upon what variety you plant, they can be grown as shrubs or small trees, and each plant will produce large quantities of fruit.

Here are two varieties that do very well:

1. Juneberry / Serviceberry - Regent Saskatoon
Amelanchier alnifolia 'Regent'

Regent Saskatoon Serviceberry, (Amelanchier alnifolia 'Regent'), is a multi-stemmed shrub that displays multitudes of white flowers in spring and produces small black-purple fruits that are sweet; excellent for fresh eating or making jelly. Birds love them too. Since it flowers early in spring, this plant provides food for many pollinating insects. The gray-green foliage turns yellow to red in fall and is attractive to bees, butterflies and/or birds. Amelanchier 'Regent' is very winter hardy and has healthy foliage that is not bothered by insects or disease. It is drought tolerant but water regularly; do not over water.

Mature Height 4 - 6 feet (1.2 - 1.8 m)
Mature Spread 4 - 8 feet (1.2 - 2.4 m)
Soil Type Widely Adaptable
Moisture Widely Adaptable
Mature Form Mounding
Growth Rate Moderate
Sun Exposure Full Sun
Flower Color White
Fall Color Yellow to Red
Foliage Color Gray Green
Zones 2-7

2. Juneberry / Serviceberry - Shadblow
Amelanchier canadensis

Shadblow Serviceberry, (Amelanchier canadensis), is a large upright shrub that contains beautiful snowy white flowers in the spring before the foliage appears. The Shadblow produces sweet red-purple edible fruit that can be used in pies and jellies. This shrub spreads by sucker growth from the roots and the blue-green foliage turns yellow to red in the fall.

Mature Height 20 – 25 feet (6.0 - 7.6 m)
Mature Spread 10 – 15 feet (3.0 - 4.6 m)
Soil Type Widely Adaptable
Moisture Widely Adaptable
Mature Form Upright
Growth Rate Moderate
Sun Exposure Full Sun
Flower Color Snowy White
Fall Color Yellow to Red
Foliage Color Gray Green
Zones 4-8

Click Here: To purchase or get more information about Juneberries / Serviceberries

Other Helpful Articles:

How To Successfully Grow Wonderful Berries - Part 1

Successfully Grow Berries - Part 2

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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Posted: Dec 11, 2009 3:53am
4 Best Ways To Use Fall Leaves In Your Garden
Nov 18, 2009
The tree leaves that accumulate around your yard or garden can be a valuable natural resource for you to use because they provide a good source of organic matter and nutrients.

Leaves don't always seem like a good thing however, especially when you have a lot of raking to do, but if you can, be thankful and hang on to your leaves.

Leaves contain 50 to 80 percent of the nutrients a plant extracts from the soil and air during the season, so if you can, use and recycle your leaves around your property rather than raking them up and throwing them away.

Here are 4 of the best ways to use leaves in your yard, garden, or landscape:

1. Leaf Uses - Mowing
Mowing leaves that have fallen on your lawn area is most effective when a mulching mower is used, but if the leaf drop is light, a regular mower will work just fine. In fact, during times of light leaf drop, or if there are only a few small trees in your yard, simply leave the shredded leaves in place on the lawn. They will act as a beneficial mulch and compost and will help your lawn.

2. Leaf Uses - Mulching
Leaves can be used as mulch in vegetable gardens, flower beds and around shrubs and trees. The best way is to rake the leaves into a pile and then shred them with your lawn mower or a shredder if you have one.

It you have the option, use a lawn mower with a bagging attachment because it is a fast and easy way to shred and collect the leaves. Leaves that have been mowed or run through some other type of shredder will decompose faster

Leaves that are not shredded won't decompose as well and will only smother what they are put on. Try and never let leaves remain on a lawn without raking them up or they can smother the grass underneath.

  • Apply a 3 to 6 inch (7.5 to 15 cm) layer of shredded leaves around the base of trees and shrubs making sure not to put any right up against the trunk or main stem of trees or shrubs.

  • In annual and perennial flower beds, a 2 to 3 inch (5 to 7.5 cm) mulch of shredded leaves is good.

  • For vegetable gardens, a thick layer of leaves placed in between the rows work both as a mulch and as an all-weather walkway that will allow you to work in your garden during wet periods.

3. Leaf Uses - Soil Improvement
Leaves that have been raked and shredded can be worked directly into your garden and flower beds. A 6 to 8 inch (15 to 20 cm) layer of leaves tilled into a heavy, clay soil will improve aeration and drainage. The same amount worked into a light, sandy soil, will improve water and nutrient holding capacity.

Note: A basic strategy for using leaves to improve soil in vegetable gardens and annual planting beds is to collect and work them into the soil during the fall. This allows sufficient time for the leaves to decompose prior to spring planting. Adding a little fertilizer to the soil after working in the leaves will hasten their decomposition.

4. Leaf Uses - Composting
Leaves are great to add to your compost pile or bin. Once again, shredding them first will help them decompose faster, but whole leaves can be added in as well.

Other Helpful Articles:

The Complete Guide To Mulch

Mulching - How Much and How Deep?

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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Posted: Nov 18, 2009 3:24am
Keep Tulip Bulbs Cold!
Oct 30, 2009
One of the most common problems with tulip bulbs is that they don't need that much warmth to start breaking dormancy and begin growing.

So it's not unusual to see tulips growing in the middle of winter during a brief warm spell only to be killed or ruined by a heavy frost or snow a few days later.

To avoid this problem, keep your tulips as cold as possible - as long as possible.

Here's What To Do:

1. Tulips need to be planted in cold soil so they don't send up shoots. Tulips planted in warm soil, or even soil that gets a lot of sun during the day where it can warm up won't do as well.

2. Plant tulips deep! Plant them 8 to 10 inches (20 to 25 cm) deep because if they are planted too shallow, it can lead to premature growth. Deep planting also will produce large, uniform flowers for many years, plus deep planting also makes the bulbs less susceptible to mouse and squirrel damage.

3. Mulch the soil - but only AFTER THE SOIL FREEZES. A 2 to 3 inch (5 to 7.5 cm) layer of shredded leaves, wood shavings, or compost in the winter will keep the soil consistently COLD (not warm).

Other Helpful Articles:

How To Buy Flower Bulbs

Confidently Forcing Bulbs - The Best Ever!
Professional tips and insights into forcing bulbs

The First Flowers of Spring
Five delightful plants that flower well before other, more popular spring bulbs

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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Posted: Oct 30, 2009 4:45am
Late Fall Tilling
Oct 22, 2009
Tilling your soil in the late fall can be very beneficial, but there can also be some drawbacks.

Benefits:

1. It can help control insects, such as corn borer, corn earworm, cucumber beetle, squash bug, slug eggs, and vine borer because it exposes overwintering insects to winter conditions.

2. It can also make spring soil preparation easier because by adding organic matter now, your soil will be in better condition in a few months and will be easier to dig and plant.

3. Tilling in the fall allows a large amount of organic matter such as guano, compost, bark, and manures to be turned into the soil. This organic matter will start decomposing because the microbes are active currently and ready to start breaking everything down.

Drawbacks:

While all of the above are very good benefits, tilling in the fall should be done with some thought.

1. Soil erosion can be a problem if your area gets huge rain or winds during the fall and winter months. If that is the case, think about the tradeoffs of losing good topsoil to waiting and doing your tilling in the spring.

2. Be careful not to ruin your soil structure. Never work wet soil, especially clay. You may ruin the soil structure for years to come. Here's how to best determine How To Care For Your Soil Structure with this step-by-step article: Care For Your Soil Structure

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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Posted: Oct 22, 2009 6:08am
Prehistoric Plants
Sep 11, 2009
This summer has been a good time to visit various botanical gardens and zoos and to notice that many plants that are used in these public displays today, are actually prehistoric plants.

Interestingly enough, one of the more popular themes within a zoo or botanical garden is the one that grows prehistoric plants.

Well, you can grow some of these exciting specimens in your own yard.

Some prehistoric plants which date back from 150 to 270 million years include:

Dawn Redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides)

Maidenhair Tree (Ginkgo biloba)

Katsura Tree (Cercidiphyllum japonicum)

Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum)

Bayberry (Myrica pensylvanica)

Boxwood (Buxus)

Larch (Larix)

Ferns

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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Posted: Sep 11, 2009 5:19am
How To Start Cool Fall Crops During Warm Summer Days
Sep 4, 2009
The best time to start fall crops is in late summer for a late fall harvest. The problem however, is that the soil and the daytime temperatures can sometimes still be so warm that it can be hard to get cool-weather crops to germinate and grow.

Here is a way to get around that problem!

1. Dig a shallow trench that is about 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5 cm) deep.

2. Line the trench with come good garden soil or compost.

3. Put your seeds in the trench, and then cover them shallowly with more compost or garden soil. Don’t worry that the seeds aren’t planted as deep as may be mentioned on the seed packet. Just cover them shallowly.

4. Water the trench and seeds in carefully, but thoroughly.

5. Cover the trench with boards or very thick cardboard. The trick here is to keep the heat out and keep the seeds in the trench cool and in the dark. So the thicker the material you use the cover the trench, the better.

6. Check under the boards regularly, and as soon as you see small pale seedlings growing, remove the boards.

7. Grow your seedlings as usual now that they are started.

This trick works great with several fall crops like broccoli, cabbage, carrots, lettuce, and cauliflower.

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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Posted: Sep 4, 2009 3:01am
Pepper Plants Have No Fruit
Aug 11, 2009
One of the most common complaints heard about pepper plants is that the plant itself is beautiful, but there is no fruit!

The reason is over-fertilization.

Pepper plants don't need a lot of food to grow and do well. They only need about one teaspoon (5 ml) of 5-10-10 at planting time, and another teaspoon at the flowering stage.

If you have fed your peppers more than that, you risk the plant putting all its energy into growing leaves, and not producing any fruit.

How to Fix:

Spray the plant with Epsom salts at the rate of 1 teaspoon (5 ml) dissolved in an old window-spray bottle of warm water. That's about 4 cups (1 liter) of water.

By doing this, you will give your pepper plants a boost of magnesium that is required by these plants at flowering time in order to produce fruit.

Spray them again 10 days later and in a few weeks you will have peppers that you can eat!

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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Posted: Aug 11, 2009 6:56am
Grow Melons In A Water Well
Jul 2, 2009
To grow the best, juiciest melons, one of the most important things you need to do is to make sure that they get enough water.

By growing them in a "water well" you will ensure that they will.

Here's what you do:

1. Make sure each "well" is 5 feet (1.5 m) apart.

2. Dig a hole that is at least 4 inches (10 cm) deep and 18 inches (45 cm) wide.

3. Fill each hole with compost or good rich, loamy soil.

4. Water the compost in thoroughly and let it sit for a day or two.

5. In each composted hole, plant 6 to 8 seeds.

6. When the seedlings begin to emerge, apply a surface mulch of compost and then thin the seedlings to 3 plants per hole.

The compost-rich hole that you have created is retaining moisture much better than regular garden soil and is providing the melon roots the moisture they require to produce juicy, delicious melons.

During hot, dry days, make sure you water the melons deeply when the compost begins to dry out, which could be every day, or every few days depending upon your area.

Either way, make sure the that the soil moisture remains high, which the composted "water well" will greatly help you do.

Other Articles of Interest:

Grow The Juiciest Melons Ever

The Wonders of Mulch
A Complete How To Use Mulch Guide

Mulching - How Much And How Deep?

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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Posted: Jul 2, 2009 5:07am
Microgreens - Grow Your Own!
Jun 18, 2009
If you've never grown microgreens such as culinary herbs, edible flowers, baby lettuce or specialty greens, you really should, because they are a great way to garden year round.

Microgreens are a delicious base for, or an addition to, salads, entrees, and appetizers, plus they can easily be grown, giving you access to fresh greens any time of the year.

What Are Microgreens?

In the old days (like back in the 50s-60s-70s) what we called growing alfalfa sprouts has now developed into "microgreens" because the entire concept has really progressed to the next level.

The microgreens that are available now are the super nutritious, but immature stage (between sprouts and leafy greens) of vegetables, herbs and some edible flowers, and they are mass produced by specialty growers for organic markets, specialty chefs and restaurants, whole foods producers, and online delivery.

The great thing is that even though they are small, they are big on flavor and can be grown just about anywhere - even on a windowsill - because they are basically houseplants you can eat.

Popular Microgreens To Grow:

Peas
Kale
Cabbage
Arugula
Radishes
Beets
Clover
Mustard

What makes microgreens so easy to grow is because they don't need a lot of light, and they’re only going to be grown until the emergence of the first leaf (the cotyledon) stage, so a windowsill or sunny kitchen counter is a ideal location.

Also, each microgreen has an individual flavor, so you can grow your own microgreen "blend" if you want.

Note: If you want to grow a blend of microgreens, just keep in mind that it's important to plant those that have similar germination rates together so you can harvest your greens all at once.

Here's How To Grow Your Own Microgreens:

Supplies:

1. Shallow trays with clear domed lids (available at garden supply stores)

2. Potting soil

3. Seeds

4. Paper towels

Growing and Harvesting:

1. Create a seed bed by filling trays with soil. Be sure the soil is spread uniformly and that the surface is flat

2. Sow seeds by taking handfuls of seed and sprinkling them liberally across the soil surface

3. Press gently on sown seeds to be sure they have contact with the growing medium

4. Place a paper towel over the seed bed - 1 layer thick

5. Water using a kitchen sprayer, or a spray bottle, and thoroughly soak the towels until you are sure the soil beneath is wet

6. Cover trays with lids and place in a location that is not exposed to direct sunlight, but rather an area that gets very little light at all

Note: The lid on the tray will help keep moisture in and stimulate germination, but make sure that the paper towel stays moist during the process. If it dries out, wet it again.

Note: On the other hand, the lid can sometimes create a 'green house effect' so monitor your trays carefully. If the seeds seem to be getting too hot inside, remove the lid slightly to allow for ventilation and some air circulation.

7. Once the seeds fully germinate, which can vary based on seed type used, you'll notice the towel starting to lift off the soil. When this happens, remove the lid and paper towels from the tray and place the tray in a location that gets bright, but indirect sunlight

8. Continue to water gently as needed. Remember that over-watering can be just as damaging as under-watering, so allow the plants to dry slightly between waterings

9. Harvest microgreens any time after the emergence of the first leaves by cutting the stems with sharp kitchen scissors

10. Wash the greens by placing them in a container such as a small, plastic dish pan, and then dry them on a towel

11. Use your microgreens immediately, or store them in a resealable bag in the refrigerator

That's it! Pretty simple. And if you're a salad eater like me, this is a wonderful way to add new zest and zip to your lunch or dinner salads, so give it a try!

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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Posted: Jun 18, 2009 4:45am

 
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