Category Archives: Organic Gardening

General Gardening Wisdom, Organic Gardening, Watering

Rain Garden: A Few Easy Steps to Setting Up Your Own

 

Learn why you’ll benefit from a rain garden and how to make one

Not only that, but it can be useful to other creatures and wildlife in your local area. You will find a rain garden incredibly inspiring and beautiful if you carefully plan to set it up the right way.

In the following article you will learn the main steps and where to start. You will get to know how a rain garden works and why it’s beneficial to have one. You will learn that it’s a self-sustained system and can be a wonderful addition to any permaculture and organic garden.

It requires some preparation and work, but the result will surprise you in a pleasant way. It is a really rewarding project to complete.

Click “NEXT” below to read the rest of the article on the next page …

 

Pages: 1 2
General Gardening Wisdom, Organic Gardening

Mushrooms: Here’s How to Grow Them

 

Growing mushrooms in your own home can be surprisingly easy – here is how

Have you ever wondered if you could grow mushrooms in your garden, or in your home? There are hardly any organic gardeners who have mushrooms in their gardens, unless they live in the far north, where mushrooms grow on their own.

It is actually very easy to grow certain types of mushrooms. Some can be planted in your garden, some need to be planted in a pot. You will learn all the details of how and where in the following article. Mushrooms grow very quickly and now is the perfect time to plant some and have them fully grown in several weeks.

Click the “NEXT” button below to read the rest of the article.

Pages: 1 2
General Gardening Wisdom, Organic Gardening, Raised Vegetable Beds

Permaculture – How To Do Gardening Nature’s Way

 

Learn why permaculture is better than traditional gardening

Have you ever heard of permaculture before?  Have you ever wondered what it actually means and how that affects you as an organic gardener?

Well, facts are that permaculture is far better and many times more sustainable than any traditional gardening. If this is the first time you hear about this concept, you will be amazed at what a balanced system it is.

Having read this article motivates you to change from a more traditional approach and to employ these techniques and principles.   You will learn why traditional gardening doesn’t work in tandem with nature and quite often against it.

Click “NEXT” below to read the article on the next page:

 

Pages: 1 2
Compost, General Gardening Wisdom, Organic Gardening, Weed Control

Lasagna Gardening: Find Out Why You Should Care

Learn the steps for lasagna garden “cooking”

While it may seem confusing at first, lasagna gardening can be super helpful for both your soil and your plants. You will go right behind the curtains and learn how the lasagna gardening work. You will go through the 5 steps of preparing and “cooking” your lasagna garden and breathe new life to your plants. You will also learn when your garden is ready for planting.

 

As making real lasagna takes some time and sweating over it, so is it with your garden. Prepare for some hard work, but be rewarded many times over as you revive your soil. You’ll see a huge boost in your plants’ growth as a result.

As the name suggests, lasagna gardening or sometimes called sheet mulching is similar in concept to the cartoons “Garfield” favorite food, the lasagna. Like the food lasagna, this form of gardening follows the concept of layering different materials in the soil to make a perfect planting mix for our garden. By using carbon and nitrogen rich materials that are layered alternately one after the other, we can be sure that once our layered materials have broken down, then, the bests planting material that can be used in growing our garden will be achieved.   ……….

Click “NEXT” below to read what the steps are to make a lasagna garden.

Pages: 1 2
General Gardening Wisdom, Organic Gardening

Kale In August – The Secret to Keeping it Fresh

Learn how this organic farmer handles her old maturing kale

As we enter the late summer season in August, your organic kale will begin to mature and have a hard time protecting itself against pests. This may let you down and you may think it’s time to say goodbye to this year’s fresh kale produce, but rest assured – there’s a handy way out of this.

 

Read further to learn a quick useful method of taking care of your old kale and how to have fresh produce by the end of September. No, it’s not time for farewell! This secret trick shared by an experienced organic farmer will bring joy to kale lovers.

Is your kale patch looking like a breeding ground for Japanese beetles? A gardening friend was looking for organic solutions to this problem. I surprised him with my response: mow it down. Not the most assertive kind of pest management, but sometimes it does not make sense to fight. Come August, it might just be time to let go of your kale patch……….

By now though, the plant is mature and losing its ability to fend off the pests. With a weakened over-the-hill plant, the pests are able to dominate with an infestation. As for your kale, it was good while it lasted. ………

Click “Next” to find out what to do with your kale …

Pages: 1 2
General Gardening Wisdom, Organic Gardening, Plant Care

Expert Gardeners Share 7 Tips For Greater Yields

 

Expert gardeners share these 7 secrets for better produce and much higher yields throughout the season.

It is no secret that one of the fasted ways of learning, is to learn form an expert.  Read what these experts are saying.

You may think that once you place those seeds in the ground, they will just sprout and give you what fruits they can. This is a common but very basic mistake most first time gardeners make. A better approach or more correct way of thinking is that you still need to take special care for your plants, and they will reward you with even more and better produce.

You can improve the yield capacity of your garden soil by following these 7 great tips, shared by experienced gardeners. Your garden plants will thank you with an awesome crop!

Remember to share this with those closest to you.

Imagine harvesting nearly half a ton of tasty, beautiful, organically grown vegetables from a 15-by-20-foot plot, 100 pounds of tomatoes from just 100 square feet (a 4-by-25-foot bed), or 20 pounds of carrots from just 24 square feet. Yields like these are easier to achieve than you may think. The secret to superproductive gardening is taking the time now to plan strategies that will work for your garden. Here are seven high-yield strategies gleaned from gardeners who have learned to make the most of their garden space.

1. Build Up Your Soil

Expert gardeners agree that building up the soil is the single most important factor in pumping up yields. A deep, organically rich soil encourages the growth of healthy, extensive roots that are able to reach more nutrients and water. ……..

The fastest way to get that deep layer of fertile soil is to make raised beds. Raised beds yield up to four times more than the same amount of space planted in rows. ………..

2. Round Out Your Beds

………A rounded bed that is 5 feet wide across its base, for instance, will give you a 6-foot-wide arc above it—creating a planting surface that’s a foot wider than that of a flat bed. That foot might not seem like much, but multiply it by the length of your bed and you’ll see that it can make a big difference in total planting area……….

3. Space Smartly

……….Avoid planting in square patterns or rows. Instead, stagger the plants by planting in triangles. By doing so, you can fit 10 to 14 percent more plants in each bed.

Just be careful not to space your plants too tightly…………

4. Grow Up

No matter how small your garden, you can grow more by going vertical. ………..

Growing vegetables vertically also saves time. Harvest and maintenance go faster because you can see exactly where the fruits are. And upward-bound plants are less likely to be hit by fungal diseases thanks to the improved air circulation around the foliage…………

5. Mix It Up

Interplanting compatible crops saves space, too. Consider the classic Native American combination, the “three sisters”—corn, beans, and squash. Sturdy cornstalks support the pole beans, while squash grows freely on the ground below, shading out competing weeds. This combination works because the crops are compatible……….

6. Succeed With Successions

Succession planting allows you to grow more than one crop in a given space over the course of a growing season. That way, many gardeners are able to harvest three or even four crops from a single area…………..

7. Stretch Your Season

Adding a few weeks to each end of the growing season can buy you enough time to grow yet another succession crop—say a planting of leaf lettuce, kale, or turnips—or to harvest more end-of-the-season tomatoes.

To get those extra weeks of production, you need to keep the air around your plants warm, even when the weather is cold, by using mulches, cloches, row covers, or coldframes……….

Article Source:  Read the full article in Rodales organic Life
Image Source: Harvest To Table

Organic Gardening

Late Winter Planting: The My(a)stery of Good Timing

 

What to plant in the second half of winter

While August is the last full-summer month (for those areas with four seasons), in the Northern hemisphere, it is the opposite for those in the Southern hemisphere.  Many people think a season is over when it get closer to changing from one to the other, but there is always some crops to consider, even late in a given season. There’s room for a little more this summer for those that are keen to put in the effort.

Read the following article and you will learn which produce is best planted in August (in the Southern Hemisphere).  Learn the best practices of August planting depending on how much North or South you’re situated. For those living on the Northern side of mother earth – remember these to look at these in six months time.  Use your organic garden to its full potential.

In cool climates, the second half of winter is a time of promise. Even if it might not seem like it when the wind is howling and the woodfire is cranking to stave off the chill. Gardening is as much about anticipating the future as it is about embracing the present. ………..

In temperate climates, where Jack Frost can hang around well into October, August is the month to sow “shoulder season” crops. These don’t mind germinating in cold, late winter soil (though if the soil is very wet from winter rains, wait another month before sowing) and they like growing in the gentle warmth that builds as our arc toward the sun gets ever closer………….

Arid/semi arid, warm temperate and marginal subtropical areas aren’t as prone to late season frosts. This is a boon for growing potatoes, because it means you can get an August jump start on planting these frost sensitive staples…………

If garden space is limited, try no-dig spuds. You can use a wire cage, a purpose made potato growing bag (available online and from nurseries), or simply throw some seed spuds on compost enriched ground and cover them with enough straw to exclude light. …………

Other crops to plant now in warm climates include bush beans, basil, tomato, beetroot, cucumbers, watermelons, zucchini, okra, lettuce, and corn. For something different, try planting a flour or popcorn variety. These heirloom types are more drought tolerant than hybrid sweetcorn and with just a little supplemental moisture, do well in hot, dry spring weather.

Article Source: www.organicgardener.com.au
Image Source:  Money Crashers

Compost, General Gardening Wisdom, Organic Gardening

Get Serious About Organic Gardening – Raise Your Own Earthworms

Earthworms an asset?  Find out why serious organic gardeners all raise their own earthworms.

When you find earthworms in your garden, know that you are on the right track.  These little creatures play a very important role to keep your soil fertile.

It is hard to believe but on average, an earthworm produces its weight in nutrient rich castings every day.  Its burrowing creates many channels through the soil, which is great for aeration, drainage and general soil structure.

The following article is full of helpful tips about how to raise your own earthworms.  It also covers what food to feed them as well as what NOT to feed them.

More importantly, find out what action will quickly kill all your earthworms.

The pale red garden earthworm is often called “nature’s plow.” That’s because an earthworm pushes through soft earth with the point of its head. If the soil is hard, the worm eats its way through, forming interconnected burrows, some several feet deep. Burrows loosen the soil, admitting air and water and helping roots grow. A single acre of cultivated land may be home to as many as 500,000 earthworms, each making the soil a better place for plants.

Earthworms In Your Garden
When you add nitrogen-rich compost to your soil, you help worms thrive. However, adding synthetic nitrogen fertilizers may repel earthworms. Worms are very sensitive to physical and chemical changes and will flee the salty conditions that result from an application of chemical fertilizer.

As an earthworm feeds, organic matter passes through its body and is excreted as granular dark castings. You may see these small casting piles in your garden. An earthworm produces its weight in castings daily. Worm castings are a wonderful fertilizer, rich in nutrients otherwise unavailable to plants.

……………..

You can raise earthworms yourself using purchased redworms—a process called vermiculture or earthworm composting. Kept in a cool, dark place, such as a basement, a worm bin provides a composting system for kitchen scraps and a source of rich, fertile worm castings for the garden.

…………………………………………

If you don’t want to pay big bucks for a worm bin, you can make your own from a plastic storage bin, such as a 3 feet by 2 feet by 1 1/2-feet-deep storage bin, a modified garbage can, washtub, or wooden box. Use an awl to punch small holes in the sides of plastic washtubs or garbage cans for aeration. To keep conditions moist but well drained, make a drainage area in the bottom of the bin; use a rigid divider to separate it from the worms’ living quarters. A loose cover keeps flies and light out and worms and moisture in.

Just as with commercial bins, it’s best to fill the bin with soaked coir and newspaper.   …………….

Garden soil may also be added. Make sure the mix is as damp as a wrung-out sponge rather than wet. Then introduce the purchased earthworms to their new home. Use your purchased worms for composting only—most commercially available worms are species that live only in manure or very rich soil and will not survive in average garden soil. One exception is the enriched soil in a greenhouse bed—if the greenhouse stays above freezing, worms will do very well there.

Feed your worms well-chopped vegetable matter mixed with a bit of water. Soft foods are best for the first few days; if food doesn’t disappear in 24 hours, reduce the amount. For faster composting, run the food through a blender, since worms don’t have teeth to tear off large chunks. The population should double in about a month; after 60 days, your bin should be full of rich compost.

Source: Rodales Organic Life
Image Source: Wikipidia/commons