Sprout Magazine

A little dirt never hurts

Composting Organic Composting Put fall leaves to work

Gardening Indoor Gardening Vegetable and Herbs Grow your own carrots

Pest and Diseases Good bugs for your garden Chipmunks in the garden Common ower diseases

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CONT E N T S W SPROUT Spring Issue 4

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How lowers get their names Origins of the Dutch Bulb industry

All about Composting Compost your coffee grounds Put fall leaves to work

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How to grow Orchids The best indoor herbs Choosing a grow light

Good bugs for your Garden Chipmunks in the Garden Tree fruit diseases Common lower diseases

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Growing your Beets Growing Garlic is easy Grow your Carrots Growing Onions is easy The many uses and types of Basil

Growing Strawberries Growing Blueberries Growing Lemon trees

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How to keep water clear in Fountains and Ponds plus Building Healthy Soil.

Gather Gifts from Garden Grow Seeds in Egg Shell

Gardening History

Indoor Gardening

Vegetable & Herb Gardening

Landscape & Lawn

Organic Composting

Pests & Diseases

Trees and small fruits

D.I.Y. Projects

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Gardening History

By Dr. Leonard Perry

G K In this article: How lowers get their names The origins of the dutch bulb industry

ardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants as part of horticulture. In gardens, ornamental plants are often grown for their lowers, foliage, or overall appearance; useful plants, such as root vegetables, leaf vegetables, fruits, and herbs, are grown for consumption, for use as dyes, or for medicinal or cosmetic use. Gardening is considered by many people to be a relaxing activity.

Gardening ranges in scale from fruit orchards, to long boulevard plantings with one or more different types of shrubs, trees, and herbaceous plants, to residential yards including lawns and foundation plantings, to plants in large or small containers grown inside or outside

K How � l owers get their names from the Brazilian petun or tobacco, to which this plant is related?

The scientiic name for annual geranium (Pelargonium) is from the Greek pelargos for stork, referring to the beak of the fruit.

Yes, geraniums in nature do produce fruits or seeds although we seldom see them in today’s cultivars. Impatiens is the Latin for impatient, referring to the violent seed discharge. Dianthus is one of those compound words from the Greek, meaning the lower (anthos) of the god Zeus (Di).

Nicotiana — the genus for flowering as well as smoking tobacco — is named after Jean Nicot (1530-1600), the French ambassador to Lisbon who introduced tobacco to France. Begonia is named for Michel Bégon (1638 to 1710), a governor of French Canada and patron of botany (which means he probably supported it inancially with plant explorations). Zinnia flower is from Johann Gottfried Zinn (1727 to 1759), a professor of botany in Göttingen, Ger Germany. per What about the perennials?

The genus for Russian Sage (Per (Perovskia) is named after V.A. Per Perovski (1794 to 1857), a Russian general. Hosta (plantain lily) is named for Nicholaus T Tomas Host (1761 to 1834), physician to the Emper Emperor of Austria. And Monar Monarda (bee balm) is in honor of Nicolas Monardes (1493 to 1588), physician and botanist of Seville.

Going back even further in time is the peony (Paeonia) in honor of Paeon, a Greek physician to the gods. Most of us studied the explorers Lewis and Clark in school and their expedition to the Pacific Northwest. A small alpine

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Flowers, just like all other plants, have both common and Latin names. While common names vary with region and country, the Latin ones are universal worldwide. Common names, also, can be confusing as with conelower. This could refer to either of two very different plants, but using a latin name (Echinacea) you won’t confuse this with the other conelower (Rudbeckia).

Scientiic names basically are composed of a genus name, followed by a species name (and then often cultivar or variety names). These Latin names aren’t nearly so perplexing and foreign if you know a bit about their origins.

Many names are descriptive. They may refer to color such as xantho or yellow, virens or green, nigra or black, or alba or white. You may see a word, too, such as lac meaning milk and referring to white. The name for lettuce (Lactuca) is named for the milky white sap. ds may be combined with plant Color words parts such as canthus or spine, not to be confused with anthus or lower. Carpus refers to oot. Combined you might fruit and rhizus to root. oot, rubrifolia or have xanthorhizus or yellow root, red leaves, lactilorus or white- lowered. efer to shape, Other descriptors may refer such as stella for star; size, such as macr for long or big, lept for thin or slender; numn long textur ber, such as poly for many; feel or texture, wooly So what does lasiocarsuch as lasi for wooly.

Y pus mean? How about macranthus? You’re right—wooly fruit and big spines. mor fascinating when To me it’s even more names refer to someone or something inter interesting about the plant. For annual flowers, did you know that petunia is

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plant not hardy in this area (Lewisia) is named for them.

Then there are the descriptive perennial names. Primula is a medieval contraction meaning irstling of Spring. Astilbe is from the Greek “a” (without), and “stilbe” (brightness), referring to the dull leaf color of the species. The goldenrod genus is from solido meaning to make whole, alluding to its reputed healing properties.

the garden of author Stephanie Cohen in Pennsylvania, while the related cultivar "David" is named for a person associated with the Brandywine Conservancy in Pennsylvania where this plant was found growing wild. The perennial geranium ‘Rozanne’ is named for the British person Rozanne Waterer in whose garden it was originally found. More such origins can be found online for some worthy peren-

nials (perrysperennials.info under Plants of the Month).

There are hundreds more scientiic names too numerous to mention here, but which can be found in Stearn’s Dictionary of Plant Names for Gardeners. This handy reference guide was written by William Stearn and published by Cassell Publishers, London.

Look for it in your local library or from used book sellers.

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Lysimachia ysimachia is Greek for “ending strife,” hence our common name loosestrife.

Lythrum from the Greek “lythron” or blood refers to the lower color; Lupinus from the Greek “lupus” or wolf refers to the erroneous thought that this plant destroyed soil fertility.

Cultivar (cultivated varieties) are often named for people and places. The tall garden phlox ‘Shortwood’ is named for

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¢ Origins of the Dutch Bulb Industry To understand the origins of the Dutch bulb industry, you need to know about Carolus Clusius. And you need to know about his friend, Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq.

Busbecq, a keen gardener, was the ambassador of the Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I to the Ottoman Empire (now roughly Turkey) in the mid 1500s. Traveling to Constantinople (now Istanbul) in 1554, he noticed many lovely lowers in the Turkish gardens. Many were called “lalé” by the Turks, which his interpreter likely mistook as being like a “dulban” or turban. This was further corrupted as “tulipam” leading to the name “Tulip” of this genus.

Meanwhile, Busbecq had used his inluence to have Carolus Clusius appointed as head of the Imperial Gardens in Vienna in 1573. Born in France in 1526, Clusius had traveled widely and acquired medical

and botanical training by the time of his appointment. He had produced several botanical works. It is to Vienna that Busbecq sent the irst tulips and other bulbs to Europe. The Fritillaria or Crown Imperial takes its name from these imperial gardens of Vienna.

The irst tulips were long-stemmed,redlowered cultivars. They were illustrated by the German naturalist Konrad Gesner in 1559, and have since borne his name in the species gesneriana.

Although Busbecq introduced these bulbs to Europe, it is Clusius that populaized them. After fourteen years of spending at the Viennese Imperial Gardens, he moved to Leiden in the Netherlands.

Here he founded the Hortus Academicus the irst botanic garden to focus on ornamental plants rather than medicinal ones.

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In his gardens Clusius developed a private tulip collection, from which he sold specimens for outrageous prices. Unwilling to pay these, yet desirous of the plants, local gardeners broke into his gardens stealing many of these specimen tulips. It is from these that the now famous Dutch bulb industry developed. About 93 percent of all

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bulbs in the world come from the Netherlands.There are over 52,000 acres of bulbs produced there by about 2,700 growers, with about 20,000 employees.

The average bulb farm size is about 20 acres.Over nine billion bulbs are produced annually, one third of which are tulips.

These three billion tulips, if planted four

inches apart, would circle the globe at the equator seven times!

Other important bulbs are lilies, gladiolus and narcissus. Many of the 3,500 different tulip varieties and other bulbs can be seen at the world famous 70 acres at Keukenhof every spring. One other interesting bit of history, which occurredin the early 1600s,

was “tulip mania.” This sprang from the tendency of tulips to be infected with a virus, resulting in odd yet often attractive colored streaking in the lowers. These variants, called “broken” tulips, became prized, sought widely, and worth many guilders (money). This led to widespread trading, speculation, and then as most

such fads sudden market collapse in 1637.

These lovely tulips have remained to this day, however, depicted in the art of the Dutch masters. For this reason, similar ones today with such streaking of various colors yet without any virus are called “Rembrandt” tulips.These are only a few of the fascinating facts on the history, ori-

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e, and naming of one plant. If you gins, lore, e about other plants and want to learn more ence is The Gargardens, an excellent reference dener’s Atlas by Dr.. John Grimshaw.. More mation onDutch bulbs can be found at information mation Center the Netherlands Flower Information website (www.bulb.com).

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Organic Composting

By Kathy LaLiberte

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In this article: All about Composting Compost your coffee grounds Put fall leaves to Work

uilding and maintaining a compost pile is the surest, easiest way to become a better gardener. Not only will you be producing the best possible food for your garden, but by watching leaves, eggshells, orange rinds, and grass clippings become transformed into rich compost filled with earthworms and other soil creatures, you’ll be learning what healthy soil is all about.

Compost improves soil structure. Most gardeners don’t start with great soil. Whether yours is hard and compacted, sandy, stony, heavy, or wet, adding compost will improve its texture, water-holding capacity, and fertility. Your soil will gradually become luffy and brown — the ideal home for healthy plants.

Compost provides a balanced source of plant nutrients. Even if you are lucky enough to have great soil, you can’t expect that soil to remain rich and productive without replenishing the nutrients that are consumed each growing season. No commercial fertilizer, even one that is totally organic, provides the full spectrum of nutrients that you get with compost. The nutrients are available gradually, as your plants need them, over a period of months or years. The microorganisms in the compost will also help your plants absorb nutrients from fertilizers more eficiently.

Compost stimulates beneicial organisms.

Compost is teeming with all kinds of microorganisms and soil fauna that help convert soil nutrients into a form that can be readily

absorbed by your plants. The microorganisms, enzymes, vitamins and natural antibiotics that are present in compost actually help prevent many soil pathogens from harming your plants. Earthworms, millipedes, and other macro-organisms tunnel through your soil, opening up passageways for air and water to reach your plants’ roots.

Compost is garden insurance. Even very experienced gardeners often have soil that is less than perfect. Adding compost moderates pH and fertility problems, so you can concentrate on the pleasures of gardening, not the science of your soil’s chemical composition. Unlike organic or inorganic fertilizers, which need to be applied at the right time and in the right amount, compost can be applied at any time and in any amount. You can’t really over-apply it. Plants use exactly what they need, when they need it.

Can a gardener have enough compost?

It’s doubtful. Compost is the perfect thing to spread around when you are creating a new garden, seeding a new lawn area, or planting a new tree. Compost can be sprinkled around plants during the growing season or used as a mulch in your perennial gardens. You can add compost to your lower boxes and deck planters. You can also use it to enrich the potting soil for your indoor plants.

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Next time you order a latte at your favorite coffee shop, ask if they save the grounds from all the coffee they brew. Coffee grounds are an excellent addition to the compost bin. When I go to my local coffee shop, I often come out with more than a cup of coffee. Near the door, they have a bin with free bags of used coffee grounds.

Like most avid gardeners, I ind it impossible to resist free food for my garden!

In the spring, I spread a handfull of coffee grounds around my acid-loving

plants — azaleas, blueberries, rhododendrons. The grounds are slightly acidic and besides helping to lower the soil pH, they foster the humus-rich soil texture these plants really love.

In late summer and fall, I dig coffee grounds right into the vegetable garden after removing early-season crops such as peas and spinach. In the winter, I add the grounds to my compost pile. They’re a good source of nitrogen at a time of year when that can be a little dificult to come by.

Browns and Greens Browns (3 parts) Corncobs Cornstalks Paper Pine needles Dry leaves Sawdust Straw Wood shavings Woody vegetable stalks

Greens (1 part) Coffee grounds Eggshells Fruit trimmings Vegetable peels and leaves Grass clippings Feathers or hair Green leaves Seaweed Fresh weeds Rotted manure Alfalfa meal

Eficient composting depends upon a well-balanced mix of ingredients, which generally fall into two categories: browns (high carbon), and greens (high nitrogen).

The list at right gives examples of both types of ingredients. The ideal ratio is 25:1 (brown to green) but most people ind three parts brown and one part green works quite well. Remember to layer your ingredients, keep the pile moist (like a well-wrung sponge) and turn it occasionally to incorporate a fresh supply of oxygen for the microbes.

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Put fall leaves to work

The leaves of one large shade tree can be worth as much as $50 of plant food and humus. Pound for pound, the leaves of most trees contain twice as many minerals as manure. For example, the mineral content of a sugar maple leaf is over ive percent, while even common pine needles have 2.5 percent of their weight in calcium, magnesium, nitrogen and phosphorus, plus other trace elements.

Since most trees are deep rooted, they absorb minerals from deep in the soil and a good portion of these minerals go into the leaves. See the accompanying chart for an analysis of the nutrient elements in fallen leaves.

Actually, these multi-colored gifts from above are most valuable for the large amounts of fibrous organic matter they supply. Their humus building qualities mean improved structure for all soil types.

They aerate heavy clay soils, prevent sandy soils from drying out too fast, soak up rain and check evaporation.

A lawn sweeper is a good machine to use for collecting leaves. Using a sweeper is much faster than hand raking, and a better picking-up job is done. Neighbors will be happy to have you sweep up their leaves and you will add to your supply of leaves.

Composting Leaves Some people complain to us that they have no luck composting leaves. “We make a pile of our leaves,” these people say, “but they never break down.” That is indeed a common complaint.There are two things you can do that will guarantee success in composing leaves: 1. Add extra nitrogen to your leaf compost. Manure is the best nitrogen supplement, and a mixture of ive parts leaves to one part manure will certainly break down quickly. If you don’t have manure and many gardeners don’t have nitrogen supplements like dried blood, cottonseed meal, bone meal and Agrinite will work almost as well. Nitrogen is the one

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factor that starts compost heap heating up, and leaves certainly don’t contain enough nitrogen to provide suficient food for bacteria. Here is a rough guide for nitrogen supplementing add two cups of dried blood or other natural nitrogen supplement to each wheelbarrow load of leaves.

2. The second thing to do to guarantee leaf composting success is to grind or shred your leaves. We will deal with this in detail later on, but let me tell you right now that it will make things simpler for you in the long run. A compost pile made of shredded material is really fun to work with, because it is so easily controlled and so easy to handle.

A compost pile can be made in almost any size, but most people like to make rectangular shaped piles, because they are easier to handle. It is a good idea to put the material in the heap of layers. Start with a six-inch layer of leaves, either shredded or not shredded. Then add a two inch layer of other organic material that is higher in nitrogen than leaves. Try to pick something from this list: manure, garbage, green weeds, grass clippings or old vines from your garden. You can add low-nitrogen things like sawdust, straw, ground corn cobs or dry weeds if you put in a nitrogen supplement such as described above. It is important to mix leaves from packing down in a dry mat. Keep the heap moist, but not soggy Turn the heap every three weeks or sooner if you feel up to it. If you can turn it three or four times, before late spring comes, you will have ine compost ready for spring planting use.

Turn autumn leaves into something special by shredding them with the electric Leaf Mulcher. The close of the gardening season is always bittersweet. Though there are few more beautiful places on earth than Vermont in the autumn, I just hate saying goodbye to all my plants and trading this lush, green world for one that’s cold and white.

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But there are also plenty of good things about fall. The weather is cool and the humidity is low. Once we’ve had our irst killing frost, the frantic pace of the harvest season is over. It’s time for apples and potatoes, pumpkins and mums. And, it’s time to reap the season’s most abundant crop leaves for compost.

The longer I garden, the greater my appreciation for the value of organic matter.

And one of the very best sources of organic matter is autumn leaves.

Leaves are packed with trace minerals that trees draw up from deep in the soil.

When added to your garden, leaves feed earthworms and beneicial microbes. They lighten heavy soils and help sandy soils retain moisture. They make an attractive mulch in the lower garden. They are a fabulous source of carbon to balance the nitrogen in your compost pile. And they insulate tender plants from cold.

Here are a few easy ways that I’ve found to put leaves to work in my garden. First, shred up as many of them as you can. I don’t have a leaf shredder, though I’m considering purchasing one. Instead, I let the leaves pile up on the lawn and then

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drive over them a few times with the lawn mower. Shredding one leaf into ive or ten smaller pieces does several good things. It increases the surface area, giving microbes many more places to work. It prevents the leaves from packing together into layers that won’t let water or air penetrate. And it reduces the volume dramatically.

Once the leaves are shredded, I rake them up. Most of them go into plastic trash bags that get stashed in the barn for next spring when I’ll use them as mulch in my perennial gardens. In time, shredded leaves become something called leaf mold, which makes a fabulous mulch. What’s more, it does wonders for the soil, and I like the look of it.

As for the rest of the shredded leaves, some get put aside for a month or so to be used for mulching my garlic, tender perennials and roses. The rest get carted over to the vegetable and cutting gardens.

The beds in these two gardens are permanent, so it’s easy to focus all my soil-building energy right in the growing zone. As the beds get cleaned out, I cover the soil with a layer of shredded leaves and fork that in a bit. On top goes some granular

organic fertilizer and — if I have any — some compost. By spring it’s all a crumbly mix that plants would be crazy not to love.

To mulch the asparagus bed, I irst cut the fronds down to about 12 inches. The bed gets a good helping of granular fertilizer and is then covered with a 3-inch layer of shredded leaves.

Not all the leaves in my yard get shredded, though if I had the time I’d probably do so. By November, I’ve usually run out of steam and simply pack the rest of the whole leaves into my compost bin. I add these leaves to the working compost pile throughout the year to balance the food scraps and other materials that are usually high nitrogen. The leaves also keep the pile from getting compacted and soggy.

For me, keeping busy is the best way to fend off the blues, which is how I sometimes feel as winter approaches. Raking and hauling and digging and spreading keep me moving and my gardens just get better and easier to care for every year.

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PHOTOGRAPH BY JAZMIN

Indoor Gardening

By Ann Whitman

j In this article How to grow Orchids indoors The best indoor herbs Choosing a grow light

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mprovements in plant lighting have helped indoor gardens grow by leaps and bounds. Today it’s possible to produce fresh veggies and beautiful lowers in your own home year round!

Here, we discuss the latest tips and information from how to grow orchids and how to choose a grow light and the best herbs to grow indoors to make your indoor growing experiences blossom.

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PHOTOGRAPHS BY HENRIETTE

L How to grow orchids The beauty, complexity and incredible diversity of orchid flowers are unrivalled in the plant world. These exotic beauties comprise the largest family of flowering plants on earth, with over 30,000 different species, and at least 200,000 hybrids. Orchids can be found i n t h e e quato ri al tropics, the arctic tundra, and everywhere in between.

The reason for this diversity lies in the orchid’s amazing ability to adapt to its given environment. With so many different orchid varieties that thrive in so many different growing conditions, it is relatively easy to find an orchid that is well suited to the conditions that you

can provide — whether it is a kitchen window or a full-size greenhouse.

Most cultivated orchids are native to the tropics. In their natural habitat, they attach themselves to the bark of trees, or the surface of other plants. Their thick, white roots are specially adapted to absorb moisture and dissolved nutrients. Because these tropical orchids usually grow high in the trees, rather than on the forest loor, they are accustomed to good air circulation and plenty of light. They prefer a 12 hour day, all year round, and require a high intensity of light — about the same as midsummer conditions in temperate regions. Are the orchids dificult to grow? Many of them are.

In fact, some are almost impossible to keep alive, much less bring into bloom — even for professional growers. But there are dozens of varieties of orchids, and hundreds of hybrids, that are perfectly happy growing on a sunny windowsill or under lights.

For your best crack at success, start by choosing one of the less fussy varieties that is adapted to the type of growing conditions you can provide. Buy the most mature plant you can afford (young plants are much more dificult to please), and, if possible, buy it in bloom, so you’ll know what you’re striving for.

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light is high, so they should be placed in a sunny, south-facing window.

High-altitude orchids, such as masdevallia and epidendrum, grow in the cloud forests where average temperatures are 60° to 70°F, and humidity is very high.

These orchids prefer iltered light that is not too intense.

Caring for Orchids

How Orchids Grow Orchids are usually grouped into two broad categories that characterize their growth habits. Monopodial orchids have a single, upright stem, with leaves arranged opposite each other along the stem. The lower stem appears from the base of the uppermost leaves. Orchids with this growth habit include the phalaenopsis and vandas.

The more common growth habit is sympodial. These orchids grow horizontally, sending out new shoots from the old rhizome. Leaves and lower scapes form at the top of the new shoots. Many sympodial orchids form pseudobulbs, which are swollen shoots that store water and nutrients to help the plant survive periods of prolonged drought. Sympodial orchids include cattleya, cymbidium, oncidium and dendrobium.

Orchids can also be classiied by their native habitat, which gives an indication of the temperature, moisture and light levels they prefer. Orchids native to the humid tropics, such as phalaenopsis and paphiopedilum, prefer daytime temperatures of 73° to 85°F, with 80 to 90 percent humidity.

They are happiest in an east or southeast window where the light is not too intense.

Warm climate orchids, including cymbid-

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iums and dendrobiums, are accustomed to an average temperature of 55° to 70°F, a steady supply of moisture, and good air circulation. They are generally happy in a south — facing window, though they may need a little shading during high summer.

Cattleyas and some oncidiums grow where days are dry and relatively cool.

They are able to tolerate a long dry season with temperatures of 80° or 90°F, followed by a distinct rainy season. Their need for

With 30,000 different species of orchids, it is impossible to give general care and cultivation instructions. However, how an orchid looks can provide clues to its preferences for light, water, and growing medium.

If the plant has few leaves, or leathery leaves (like most cattleyas and oncidiums), it’s likely the plant needs a high light environment. If the leaves are soft and limp (like some phalaenopsis and most paphiopedilum), the plants are probably very light-sensitive, and should not be placed in a sunny south-facing window.

If the orchid has fat pseudobulbs, it should be watered sparingly, and should be grown on coarse chunks of bark or lava rock. If the orchid has no pseudobulbs, it may require more frequent watering, or should be grown in a more moisture-retentive growing medium, such as sphagnum moss.

Light: As a general rule, orchids are light-hungry plants. For best results, they should get 12 to 14 hours of light each day, year-round. In a tropical environment, the duration and intensity of natural light does not vary as it does in temperate climates.

For this reason, you may need to move

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your orchids around, and supplement with artiicial light to keep them happy during the winter months.

South and east facing windows are usually the best spot for orchids. West windows can be too hot, and northern ones are usually too dark. If you don’t have a good window location for your orchids, they will be perfectly happy growing under artiicial lights. Orchids should be positioned no more than 6 to 8 inches away from a set of 4-foot luorescent bulbs. Opinions vary as to the beneits of cool white, warm white, and grow light bulbs. The new full-spectrum bulbs are probably the best all-around choice. Some orchids with very high light requirements, such as vandas and cymbidiums, may need high-intensity discharge lighting in order to lower. For more information, read Growing Under Lights.

Growing media: Terrestrial orchids, such as paphiopedilums and some cymbidiums, grow in soil. But most tropical orchids are epiphytes, which means that they grow in the air, rather than in soil. Their leshy roots are covered with a layer of white cells called velamen, which acts as a sponge to absorb water. The coating also protects the

roots from heat and moisture loss. An orchid growing medium must provide good air circulation and permit water to drain very quickly. It must also give the roots something secure to cling to. Depending on the type of orchid, they can be happy growing in peat moss, ir bark, dried fern roots, sphagnum moss, rock wool, perlite, cork nuggets, stones, coconut iber, lava rock or a blend that combines several of these materials. Some epiphytic orchids

can also be wired onto slabs of tree fern or cork. As a general rule, ir bark nuggets are the most popular growing medium.

Watering: Most orchids can tolerate drought far better than they can tolerate excess moisture. Nothing kills an orchid faster than letting it sit in a water-logged pot. Without adequate air circulation, the plant will suffocate and die.

As a very general rule, orchids should be watered once a week. The growing medium should be allowed to dry out between waterings, and excess water should not come in contact with the roots or the growing medium. After being re-potted, most orchids will not resume active growth for several months. Water very sparingly during this readjustment period.

Humidity: Most tropical orchids prefer humidity levels of 60 to 80 percent. With the winter-time humidity level in most homes hovering closer to 30 percent, orchid growers often use a humidiier, or set their orchids in special humidity trays or gravel-illed trays. Some orchids also beneit from being misted.

Fertilizer: Orchid-growing mediums provide very few nutrients, so orchids must be fertilized to sustain healthy growth.

Use a liquid fertilizer, and dilute it more than you would for other plants. Fertilizer should only be applied when plants are in active growth. This means that most orchids should not be fertilized in midwinter, or right after they have been re-potted. Many growers use a 30-10-10 fertilizer, though others prefer 10-10-10 or 10-10-30. Misting your orchids with ish emulsion or seaweed extracts will provide micronutrients.

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Potting and re-potting: Orchids are usually happiest in a relatively small pot.

Plastic pots are preferred because when it’s time to re-pot, the roots can be more easily detached, or the pots can simply be cut apart. To ensure good drainage, you can ill the bottom inch or two of the pot with foam “peanuts.” Suspend the orchid over the pot, and gradually ill the pot with ir bark chunks or whatever other growing medium you are using. The crown of the plant should be just a bit below the top of the pot. Sometimes it’s helpful to use a bit of wire to secure the plant until its roots get established.

Some orchids should be re-potted every year. Others may be happy in the same pot for seven or more years. As a general rule, don’t re-pot your orchid unless necessary.

Orchids resent being disturbed. Re-pot if the growing medium has started to break down enough to reduce aeration; if the roots are creeping out well beyond the pot; or if new growth has unbalanced the plant.

Propagation: Propagating orchids from seed is quite dificult. Unlike the seeds of

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other plants, orchid seeds do not contain nutritional storage tissues. To grow, the seed must land where it will ind a particular kind of fungi that can penetrate its root system and convert nutrients into a usable form. To overcome the odds, an orchid seed capsule typically disburses millions of microscopic seeds, which can be carried hundreds of miles from the mother plant.

To propagate orchids from seed, you must work in sterile conditions. The seeds must be grown in a gelatinous substance that contains nutrients and growth hor-

mones. You must also be very patient.

It takes months for the irst leaves to develop, and, even then, they will only be visible with a magnifying glass. Roots appear even later. It will be at least three, and possibly as many as eight years before you see a bloom.

It is far easier to propagate orchids by division. But remember that dividing a plant means forsaking blooms for at least a year.

Also, the larger the orchid plant, the more lowers it will produce. Small divisions take many years to mature.

B on many herbs. What to look for? Aphids and scale create sticky droppings around the plant. Spider mites make ine webs on and between the leaves. If you ind these pests, you can wash them off temporarily with tepid, soapy water, but it's best to start with a pest-free plant. To prevent problems, avoid crowding the plants. Try to ensure good air low around each one.

Where Can I Grow Herbs?

The Best Indoor Herbs Keep your kitchen supplied with fresh herbs all year with varieties that thrive on a sunny windowsill orunder grow lights.

For best results, give each herb its own pot so that you can customize care and give it room to grow.

Which herbs can I grow?

Perennial herbs, such as ,oregano,thyme,chives, bay laurel , rosemary and mint are easiest to grow from young plants that you PHOTOGRAPH BY TANALEE

buy at a garden center. You can also use small plants dug from the garden. Many herbs can be started from cuttings, too.

For instance, basil and mint are easy to root in a glass of water. Some herbs, such as basil,cilantroand chervil, are best started from seed and replanted throughout the year.

Warning: Before buying plants (or bringing them in from the garden), check for pests.

Aphids,spider mitesandscaleare common

Natural light:South-facing windows have the brightest light and most hours of sun during the short, cool winter days. Good choices for these locations are plants that come from tropical and semi-tropical climates, such as rosemary, thyme, basil, bay laurel and oregano.

East- and west-facing windows receive bright sun for about six hours in the morning or afternoon, but east windows remain cooler. Good choices include mint,parsley, chives and chervil, which thrive with less intense light and prefer the cooler temperatures.

Grow lights:Full spectrum growlights are ideal for all herbs. Place plants within a foot of the bulbs or follow the instructions provided with your lights. Start by having the lights on for 12 to 16 hours a day for bright-light plants and adjust as necessary.

Watering: Many herbs, especially those native to the Mediterranean climate, must have loose, fast-draining soil. Soggy soil, especially in cooler winter temperatures, can be fatal to these plants. Plant rosemary, thyme, oregano and bay laurel in a blend of equal parts of cactus mix and regular potting soil. Let the soil dry a bit before watering. Other herbs grow well in regular potting soil. Keep soil slightly moist, but not soggy. Fertilize once or twice a month with a liquidhouseplant fertilizer.

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Basil: A critical herb for cuisines around the world and a favorite pairing for tomatoes, basil is easy to grow indoors. Pinch off individual leaves and add to salads, sandwiches and sauce. Make your own pesto.

Plant seeds or purchase small plants and pot them in rich, organic potting soil. Basil loves heat and bright light, so give it a southern or western window or use a grow light. Avoid cool, drafty spots, especially in the winter. Basil is not a long-term houseplant. You can expect to keep and use it for several weeks, until the stems start to grow woody. To ensure a steady supply, plant a new batch of seeds every few weeks.

Bay laurel: The thick, lavorful leaves of this Mediterranean shrub are essential ingredients for soups and stews. Pick individual leaves as needed or harvest a few from larger plants and dry them for storage. The oldest leaves have the strongest lavor. Plant in fast-draining soil, and place in a bright east- or west-facing window. Good air circulation helps prevent disease. Watch for shield-like scale insects on leaves and stems. Be ready with neem oil to control outbreaks.

Chervil: One of the four herbs used to make the traditional French fines herbs blend, chervil is an annual with an anise-parsley lavor. It’s an essential ingredient in Béarnaise sauce and pairs well with ish, potatoes, steamed carrots and eggs.

Snip fresh leaves for salads, steep in white wine vinegar for dressings, or add them at the end of cooking to retain their lavor.

Start chervil seeds in moist potting soil in deep pots to give their tap roots room to grow. After sprouting, keep plants cool (60 to 70 degrees F) and give them moderate sun. Replant every few weeks to keep plenty of fresh young leaves on hand.

Chives: The spiky leaves of this onion-lavored herb add a mild kick to eggs, soups, and salads, and make pretty garnishes. Use scissors to snip off individual leaves or give the whole plant a “crew cut” to keep loppy leaves tidy. Leave at least 2” of growth so that plants can resprout. Start with a purchased plant and pot it in rich, organic soil. Chives grow best in bright light, such as a south-facing window.

Mint: With dozens of lavorful varieties available, you could devote your entire

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garden to mint. Choose from peppermint, spearmint, chocolate, orange, apple, banana and more. Snip leaves and sprigs for tea and mixed drinks, salads and desserts.

Mint plants usually grow rambunctiously and their trailing, fragrant stems make them attractive houseplants. Keep the soil moist and give them moderate to strong light. Most are hardy perennials that can tolerate temperatures into the 30s.

Oregano: A must for Italian, Mexican, Central American and Middle Eastern cuisines, oregano is member of the mint family. Strip the leaves from snipped stems and add to tomato sauces, meat, casseroles, soups and stews. The dried leaves are more pungent than fresh. Grow oregano as you would other mints. Water when the surface of the soil is dry, but don’t let it dry out.

Give the plants moderate to strong light.

Parsley: Choose curly or lat-leaf, but do give one a place in your kitchen garden.

More than just a garnish, parsley adds bright color and lavor to soups, salads and fresh sauces. It’s essential in tabbouleh, and delicious in pesto, stufing, chicken, ish and vegetable dishes. Harvest individual leaves by pinching stems off near the base.

Grow in a deep pot with rich, organic potting soil and provide strong light.

Rosemary: On a cold, wintry day, the earthy fragrance from a few crushed rosemary leaves can transport you to warmer climes. The needled leaves are among the must-add herbs to chicken, pork, lamb, soups, potatoes and olive oil. It’s also delicious in tomato & cream sauces.

Snip 1 to 4inch sprigs & toss into soups, or strip the leaves and mince. Rosemary tolerates hot, sunny, dry locations in the summer months, but prefers cooler temperatures (40 to 65 degrees F) in the winter, as long as the light is strong.

Thyme: The versatile lavor of thyme — and its many varieties — make it a key ingredient in nearly every cuisine of the world.

Its tiny leaves and trailing stems give it natural houseplant appeal, too. Pot thyme in a fast-draining soil mix and place it in a warm, sunny window. Water when the surface of the soil is dry, but don’t let it wilt.

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Choosing a grow light When starting seeds indoors, one of the most important factors is light. Sure, you’ll want to choose a good seedstarting mix and establish a good watering routine, but proper lighting is crucial for healthy, stocky seedlings. The good news is that grow lights, when used correctly, can give seedlings all the light they need to thrive.

Light Intensity:Seedlings require lots of bright light, and when they don’t receive enough of it they get weak and leggy. In most cases, even the sunniest windowsill will not provide the intensity of light they need. The best solution is to grow your seedlings under specially designed LED or luorescent grow lights.

Growing plants under lights lets you control light intensity in two ways.The brightness of the bulb and how close the bulb is to the plant’s foliage. This means you can provide high light intensity by positioning the bulbs just 2 to 3 inch above the foliage. LED grow lights are especially good for seed starting because they give off very little heat. They also use half the electricity, last 5x longer than luorescent bulbs, are mercury free,

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and won’t shatter like glass. Regular incandescent bulbs are not used for growing seedlings because they give off too much heat and can burn tender foliage.

As your seedlings grow, raise the light ixture about once a week to keep the lights a few inches above the foliage. A light stand with one or more adjustable ixtures makes this task easy.

Duration of Light:Most vegetables are “long-day” plants, which mean they require 14 to 18 hours of sunlight (or artiicial light) each day. A rest period is equally important for healthy growth, so be sure your seedlings also get at least six hours of darkness. Using an automatic timer is the best way to ensure that the lights are on for the right amount of time each day.

Color of Light:Natural sunlight is the ideal light for starting seedlings, but with full-spectrum light bulbs, you can come pretty close. Both LED and fluorescent full-spectrum bulbs produce a balance of cool and warm light that replicates the natural solar spectrum.

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Pests & Diseases

By Leonard Perry

Q In this article Good Bugs for your garden Chipmunks in the garden Tree fruit disesses Common lower disesses

I

dentifying the problem is the irst step in inding an earth-friendly way to reduce — or even eradicate — the damage caused by garden foes. Check the list below for the most common causes of garden problems. Among the hundreds of thousands of bug species, not all of them are bad for your yard. Learn the good bugs

for your garden and ind out how to attract then to your yard.

Good gardeners know the beneits of good bugs. Most insects, spiders and the other invertebrates that get lumped together into the generic “bug” category can really be beneicial in the garden. Take a look at why you want these in your yard.

Good bugs for your garden

Attracting good bugs into your garden perform vital functions in the environment Let's see the good bug lists here

Spiders These arachnids are some of the most helpful garden invertebrates, but they’re also among the most maligned. All spiders are predatory and feed on insects, whether they hunt using skillfully woven webs (argiope and orb-weaver spiders), by ambush (tarantulas and trap door spiders) or by stalking (wolf and jumping spiders).

Predatory Beetles and Bugs Among the hundreds of thousands of species in the Coleoptera (beetles) and Hemiptera (true bugs) insect orders are many predatory creatures, which dine on their plant eating kin. Tiger, soldier, ground and ladybird beetles, along with assassin and pirate bugs, are just a few you should welcome to your garden as residents.

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Bees, Wasps and Ants All bee species are important pollinators, which are largely responsible for the seeds, nuts, berries, fruits and other plant foods that form the bottom of the food chain, feeding both people and wildlife. So don’t be so quick to shoo them away. You’ll want to welcome wasps and ants as well. Avid predators, they’re constantly patrolling, picking your garden clean of pests.

Dragonlies and Damsellies These aerial acrobats are a double threat.

In their adult phase, they feed on all manner of lying insects, from mosquitoes to biting lies and gnats, but their aquatic larvae are no slouches, either, devouring the larvae of the same pests.

Caterpillars

Butterlies and moths are attractive and they are also important pollinators. Even better, their caterpillars attract birds. More

than 95 percent of backyard birds rely on caterpillars as a primary food for their young.

Attracting these insects to your garden essentially means attracting more birds.

How to attract them First of all, plant native species, which can support 60 percent more native insects than some of the more exotic ornamentals.

Second, don’t be too tidy. A natural garden design will provide hiding and hibernation spots, as well as food and places to nest.

Finally, stop using pesticides. This can be tough to do if you rely on them regularly, but they kill beneicial insects along with the ones you don’t want. And in the long run, they disrupt the natural order, making it more likely you’ll have overall pest problems.

Chipmunks in the Garden One form of wildlife some like to watch outdoors, but many would rather not have in our gardens, are chipmunks. knowing a few facts about chipmunks may help prevent them from eating bulbs, damaging young plants, or causing more serious structural damage.

A wildlife publication from Penn State University provides a concise summary of chipmunk biology, as well as control methods. From this I was interested to learn that chipmunk burrows may extend 20 to 30 feet. There is no soil around the openings because chipmunks carry it away from the burrows in their cheek pouches and scatter it away from the openings. The burrows

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are complex, usually with chambers for nesting, food storage, side pockets and escape tunnels.

Usually there are two generations of chipmunks borne a year, with two to ive in early spring and again in late summer.

So if your landscape seems to have many, this is why. They may range over about a half acre, but only defend about 50 feet around their burrow opening.

Chipmunks gather and store food, often seeds, throughout the year. If you have seen clumps of sunlowers coming up in lower pots or the lawn, or small bulbs blooming far away from where you planted them, you

can thank a chipmunk! This is one of their purposes in natural woodlands to sow seeds for forest regeneration. Although chipmunks mainly eat seeds, berries, nuts, insects and mushrooms on the ground, they also can climb trees to gather these or to prey on young birds and bird eggs.

Chipmunks do not hibernate during fall and winter as woodchucks do, but remain rather inactive, subsisting on their stored food. You may see them active on warm, sunny days. In addition to their damage in gardens, chipmunks can cause structural damage from burrowing under stairs, retention walls, or foundations.

Chipmunk may kill the flowers from burrowing under them.

Exclusion can be used to keep chipmunks from buildings and some lower beds. Fill openings at building foundations, ill and caulk openings, or use one-quarter inch mesh hardware cloth. Cover annual lower beds with this hardware cloth, at least a foot past the edges. You can cover the wire lightly with soil to hide it.

Where bulbs may be damaged, if planting a whole bed, irst dig out all the soil.

Then line the bed with similar hardware cloth before reilling and planting. Cover the top with the mesh cloth until spring

when the bulbs emerge. If planting bulbs in individual holes, place some sharply crushed stones or shells in each hole before reilling. This will help deter their digging. Such products often can be found, just for this purpose, at feed and garden stores and supplies.

Habitat modiication may lessen chipmunk damage. Try not to continuously connect, through vegetation and plantings, wooded areas with garden beds and homes. Such areas, wood piles, and debris provide protection for them, plus their openings are hard to ind under such cover.

Spilled bird seed from feeders is a common attractant for chipmunks, as around my own home. Place bird feeders 15 to 30 feet from buildings or gardens.

Keeping grass cut short around such areas will provide little cover for them and encourage them to burrow elsewhere.

Taste repellents, such as those for squirrels, can be used for chipmunks too and may be a good irst line of defense. These can be used on bulbs, seeds, and foliage not meant for human consumption. These need to be reapplied, can be expensive over time, and generally don’t provide complete control even though Trapping is an effective means of control around homes and gardens. Common rat snap traps are used by some. If using these, place boards or a box over, with small opening for the chipmunk, to prevent children, pets, birds or other non target wildlife from getting caught.

Many prefer to use a live-catch wire mesh trap, then transport them several miles away so they don’t return. While relocating chipmunks is not illegal in Vermont (as is the relocation of most larger wildlife), it is in some states. This generally is not recommended, though, as they may not adapt well or even survive in a new site. Another alternative for live trapped chipmunks is to

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humanely euthanize them. If relocating to a property other than your own, make sure you have the landowner’s permission.

If using traps, a variety of baits can be used including peanut butter, seeds, raisins, or breakfast grains. Place traps in areas, and along routes, where the

chipmunks are seen. You may want to ix the traps open a couple days to condition the chipmunks to them, before setting. Check traps often to remove captured chipmunks and to release non target animals such as birds from live traps.

Tree fruit diseases Fruit trees are a great asset to any garden or landscape. They provide shade, lowers, a yearly harvest, and a great talking point.

But they can also be very vulnerable to disease. Keep reading to learn more about the identiication of fruit tree diseases and fruit tree disease treatments.

Fruit trees are very diverse, but there are some common fruit tree diseases that can be found in many of them. The best thing you can do when preventing fruit tree diseases is to prune the tree(s) to allow sun and air through the branches, as disease spreads easily in dark, damp environments. Peach scab and leaf curl PHOTOGRAPHS BY HENRIETTE

Peaches, nectarines, and plums often fall victim to the same problems, like peach scab and peach leaf curl. With peach scab, the fruit and new twigs are covered in round, black spots surrounded by a yellow halo. Remove the affected parts of the tree. With leaf curl, the leaves dry and curl up on themselves. Apply a fungicide before the period of bud swell.

Brown rot is an especially common fruit tree disease. Some of the many trees it can affect include: peaches, Nectarines, Plums, Cherries, Apples, Pears, Apricots and Quince.With brown rot, the stems, lowers and fruit are all covered in a brown

fungus that eventually mummifies the fruit. Remove the affected parts of the tree and fruit, and prune to allow for more sunlight and air circulation among the branches. Bacterial canker Bacterial canker is another disease that can be found in virtually every fruit tree. The particular disease symptoms in fruit trees include holes in the leaves, as well as new shoots, and even whole branches dying off. It is mostly found in stone fruit trees and trees that have suffered frost damage. Cut off the affected branches several inches below the disease and apply a fungicide.

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Apple scab, brown rot, and black knot are common fungal diseases on tree fruits in New England. Being ready for these if you have crabapples, lowering cherries, and fruit trees, and knowing cultural controls, will help you have better fruit with the least harm to the environment. A New England website of Extension services (pronewengland.org) provides some photos, information, and further resources on these and other garden problems.

Apple scab disease causes velvety brown lesions on apple and crabapple leaves in spring and summer.It causes corky scars and splitting on fruit in late summer and fall. There are similar scab diseases which attack peaches and pears. Watch for the most apple scab after rainy, cool spring weather.

Since infected leaves drop and produce spores the following spring, which spread the infection, one method of control is to keep such leaves raked in the fall and destroyed. There are fungicides that may be used, but if doing so be sure and follow all label directions. Perhaps the best control if you are considering planting apple trees, or replacing old ones, is to plant varieties that are resistant to this disease. These, and highly resistant crabapples, can be found in a Cornell University lealet under (plantclinic.cornell.edu/Factsheets).

Brown rot disease kills blossoms of peach, cherry, plum, and other stone fruits in spring.

It causes a soft, watery rot on fruits in summer. These infected fruits eventually dry (called “mummies�) and produce spores for the following spring. So one of the best controls is to prune such dried fruits from

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trees and burn or bury them deeply. Insects create wounds on fruits for the disease to enter, so controlling insects in summer helps to minimize damage. Since most stone fruits are susceptible to brown rot to some degree, fungicides often have to be used for optimum control. Check your local garden store for these, and follow all label directions.

Black knot disease is found on plum and cherry trees. Spring infections lead to an inconspicuous swelling on current year growth during the fall. These swellings turn into green and soft knots the following spring. By the second fall these knots turn hard and black, from a half inch to over a foot long. Since this disease takes so long to develop, it is often overlooked until it is hard to manage.

Prune out branches with such knots during winter, before spring bud break. Make sure to cut the branch at least six inches below where you see the knot, in order to remove all the disease. Remove such knots in any wild plums or cherries that may be nearby as well. Pruning, planting resistant varieties, and not planting trees on sites with the problem (abandoned orchard or infected wild trees adjacent) usually will keep this disease under control without fungicides.

Other diseases to be aware of on apples include cedar apple rust, ireblight, and powdery mildew. Other diseases on stone fruits include botrytis blight, brown rot, cytospora canker, and powdery mildew. More on all these can be found at the above Cornell factsheet website.

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Common lower diseases Mid to late summer is the time diseases get a hold and become noticeable in gardens and landscapes. Powdery mildew, gray mold (Botrytis), and black spot on roses are some of the more common diseases to watch for on your flowers.

Powdery mildew, as its name suggests, resembles a white powdery mildew on leaf surfaces of plants. It also may attack stems and lowers if severe, according to a University of Vermont Extension lealet.

Leaves eventually turn yellow, then brown, then die. Although not fatal to plants, it makes plants unattractive and may weaken plants over several years. Annuals that may be infected most commonly include zinnias snapdragon, and verbena. Perennial lowers that may be infected commonly include delphinium, lungwort, and garden phlox.

Choosing cultivars (cultivated varieties) resistant to this disease is one of the easiest methods of control.

Unlike most such fungus diseases spread by microscopic structures called “spores�, this one actually is inhibited not promoted by

rain and wet leaves. High humidity will favor this disease, so keeping plants spaced properly will promote air circulation and lower humidity around plants.

Chemical controls also can be used. Make sure to read and follow label directions on all fungicides for best control, and for your safety and that of the environment. Least toxic controls shown effective in research at the University of Vermont and elsewhere include horticultural oil and baking soda.

Least toxic sprays closely related to baking soda are registered for use on this disease.

Make sure and begin applications at the onset of the disease, often in late June or July, and every two weeks after.

Gray mold is perhaps the most common disease of lowers, attacking many species under conditions of high moisture and cool temperatures. It too is well named, appearing as a gray mold on any plant parts but primarily appears on the old and dying leaves and lowers. It begins as water soaked spots, then grows into the gray fuzzy coating on the parts of the plant.

The spores on this disease as with most fungi are spread by wind and splashing water. So one control is to prevent splashing water, such as watering near the base of plants with drip irrigation. Water early so the foliage can dry during the day and not go into the night wet. Allow plenty of air circulation around plants, and remove any diseased lowers or leaves.

Roses are one of the most popular and widely grown lowers of all time in temperate areas, and black spot is one of their most important and common diseases. According to a University of Maine Extension lealet, this disease begins as black spots and so the name. These are most prevalent on upper leaf surfaces, and are up to onehalf inch across. Leaves turn yellow around the spots, then all yellow and fall off. Spots may also appear on rose canes, irst purple and then turning black.

The black spot fungal disease requires at least seven hours of wet conditions for infection, and is inhibited above about 85 degrees (F). So although you may not

be able to keep plants hot in the garden, if you can keep them dry through proper watering and air circulation you can minimize the disease. Grow plants in an open and sunny location. Avoid watering during cloudy weather. Allow plenty of space between plants for air circulation.

Black spot overwinters in fallen leaves and infected canes, so pruning out infections and raking up leaves at the end of the season also will go a long way towards providing control. Fungicides can be used during the growing season.

Cultivars vary in their resistance, so choose resistant ones if possible. This should be indicated on plant labels, or ask professionals at your local nursery. Some of the shrub roses resistant to this disease, as well as to powdery mildew, include some cultivars from the Meidiland, David Austin, and Explorer series. Many other shrub and old-fashioned roses are resistant as well.

More on these and other diseases, pests, and controls can be found at an extensive online website (ProNewEngland.org).

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Vegetable & Herb Gardening

By Leonard Perry

I } In this article Growing your Beets Growing Garlic is easy Grow your Carrots How to grow Onions Many uses for Basil

f you already grow some vegetables, or buy fresh local ones, you know the muchimproved lavor over ones shipped from afar. In addition to better lavor, some of the reasons gardeners cite for growing their own vegetables include better health, food safety, saving money, helping the environment, and having a better quality of life.

Changes continue to be made in both varieties of vegetables and their post-harvest handling, resulting in improved lavors than in older varieties and past years. Yet if you've tasted fresh produce compared to that in stores or frozen, you don't need research to tell you the difference in lavor.

Nutritional quality of vegetables is generally higher as well when freshly harvested.

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Grow your own beets Beets are one of the easiest vegetables you can grow. They are almost never troubled by pests or disease. They don’t need staking, pruning or fussing. Just sow the seeds and let the plants grow for about 6 to 8 weeks.

You can harvest the roots at any time between midsummer and late fall.

Beets should be planted from seed, directly into the garden. Each beet seed is actually a hard little cluster of 2 to 4 seeds.

It takes several days or even a week for the outer seed coat to soften and allow the seeds inside to germinate. It’s important to keep the soil consistently moist during this period. Once the seeds have germinated, you will need to thin out (and eat!) some of the extra seedlings. Ideally you’ll wind up with about nine plants per square foot.

Like most vegetables, beets prefer growing in full sun and they like to get about 1” of water each week. Beets are cold tolerant, so they can be planted in early spring, several weeks before the last frost date.

To keep the soil consistently moist during germination, cover the area with row cover until the seedlings break the soil surface.

Beets can be harvested at any time.

For baby beets, harvest when the root is

no more than 1 or 2 inches in diameter.

Cook the leaves as well as the roots — all parts of the plant are delicious. If you want the most food for the garden space, wait until the root has illed out to several inches in diameter. Depending on the variety, most beets will still be tender and lavorful, even when the root measures 4 or 5 inches across.

Early season crops such as lettuce and peas can be replaced by a midsummer planting of beets. A fall crop of beets will tolerate temperatures down to about 20 degrees. As temperatures continue to fall, you can cover the area with row cover fabric to prevent the roots from freezing. Beets can also be harvested and stored indoors for a month or more. Trim off the leaves, keeping a ½” tuft of stems at the top of the root. Gently brush off any soil, put the beets into a plastic bag (do not seal it up), and store them in your refrigerator crisper.

Beets can be boiled, baked, roasted or pickled. They’re also delicious grated raw into salads. For variety, try planting both red and yellow beets. Choggia beets, which are spiraled with red and white, are another delicious option.

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Growing your own Garlic Garlic is more than just a flavoring for foods, having many health benefits.

Studies have shown that garlic has antioxidant properties, promoting the health of the heart and immune systems.

Allicin is the chemical produced when garlic is chopped, chewed, or bruised is a powerful antibiotic. Garlic even has been shown to reduce cholesterol. Successful growing of garlic starts with choosing the right “seeds”, and giving the correct growing conditions and culture.

Garlic is related to onion, leeks and shallots, only it has a “bulb” composed of individual wedges called “cloves”. It is one of these cloves that you plant in the fall, soon after the irst frost (32 degrees F) but ideally before the irst hard frost (28 degrees F or below). This will give time for roots to form before the ground gets too cold. Cloves are planted in the fall, as it is the winter cold that is needed to form the side buds the following year that will grow to make the new cloves that you’ll harvest next summer. Plants cloves about four inches apart and two inches deep, the pointed side up.

There are three types of garlic varieties.

The elephant or great headed garlic is related closely to leeks, a mild lavor between garlic and onions. It has a large bulb and few cloves. More common are PHOTOGRAPHS BY HENRIETTE

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the stiffneck or hardneck varieties, with cloves surrounding a thick central stem that curls as it grows. These have a mild lavor, are the most cold hardy, but don’t store as well as the more common varieties. The varieties includes Rocambole, purple striped, and porcelain types. Rocambole types are popular as they adapt to changing weather conditions, and are very easy to peel.

Most commonly seen are the softneck varieties, named from their stems or “necks” staying soft when harvested. These are the ones you’ll see braided, and may be called Italian or common garlic. They include the artichoke types you ind in supermarkets, and the silverskins with their very white outer skins and strong lavor.

There are dozens of varieties among these three main garlic types.Buying locally adapted varieties, either from a local source or based on reliable local recommendations, is the irst key to success. Garlic traditionally has been grown in hot climates, and you’ll need varieties bred for and adapted to cold climates for northern gardens. Bulbs from grocery stores shouldn’t be used as they may not be the right varieties, and may have been treated to prevent sprouting.

Plant in well-drained weed-free soil, such as in low raised beds. Slightly dry soils are best, with a pH of 6 to 7. Incorporate plenty of compost in the fall, and you may not need to fertilize in spring. Or, you may apply a general garden fertilizer along rows as shoots emerge in spring, then again 3 weeks later. Don’t fertilize after early May to avoid delaying bulb formation.

Water deeply as needed, especially on sandy soils. Stop watering a couple weeks before harvest. Garlic roots are near the surface so, if cultivating for weeds, hoe shallowly and use care. Be careful to avoid injuring plants.

To avoid potential diseases, don’t plant where other onion crops have been grown during the past 2 or 3 years. Proper soil, mulching, and crop rotation will lessen the chance of any diseases. Garlic has few, if any, insect problems.

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Large cloves produce the largest bulbs next year. Separate the cloves from bulbs, keeping the papery husks on, and plant with tips pointing up. Plant 2 inches deep, 4 to 6 inches apart in rows, with rows a foot apart. You can plant small cloves closer, or in patches to harvest the tops as garlic greens. Figure that a pound of cloves that you plant this fall may yield 7 to 10 pounds of bulbs next summer.

Although you won’t see growth until spring, roots will begin growing. Mulch heavily to at least 6 inches deep, such as with weed-free straw, to keep the soil warmer in fall and winter. Remove mulch in spring, leaving some for weed suppression. Planting soon enough in fall, and mulching deeply, will help prevent the cloves being heaved out of the ground with spring frost.

Garlic is harvested in mid-summer, early to mid July in the north, but stage of growth not the calendar is the indicator of when to harvest. You should start checking the bulbs when the foliage begins to die off. You need to check the bulbs, not just use the tops dying, as yearly climate conditions can affect the tops and not the bulbs.

The bulbs are of course not solid like a lower bulb, but rather have the cloves encased in several papery layers called “sheaths”. Harvest too soon, and the cloves won’t be segmented yet. Harvest too late and the sheaths will have come off, leaving just the cloves that are hard to get out of the ground or they may even begin growing. Ideal harvest is when there are 2 to 4 sheath layers present, which occurs over about a two weeks period.

Once harvested, wash the bulbs and allow them to dry for a week or so, out of direct sun. Then trim off the roots, remove the outer dried sheath layers, and then braid if you wish for storage. Cool (50 to 65 degrees F), dry, and well ventilated are ideal conditions for storaging the garlic. Check monthly to discard any soft bulbs that may be rotting internally.

Set aside the largest cloves for planting again in the fall.

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Grow your own carrots Carrots are loved by many, useful in many recipes, are nutritious, and store well.

They’re also one of the top ten most economically important vegetable crops in the world. Follow a few cultural tips, and carrots are easy to grow in home gardens. For the best results, pay particular attention to good bed preparation, proper spacing and watering, and keeping up with weeding.

I grew up as many did with the advice to eat your carrots to improve your vision.

While the Vitamin A from the beta-carotene (the name coming from carrots) in orange carrots does aid overall eye health, it won’t give you night vision as some believe if you eat lots of them. However, eating an abundance of carrots can make your skin turn yellowish. Back off on the carrot intake for this to go away in a few weeks. Studies also have shown that carrots provide many health promoting antioxidants.

In choosing a site to grow carrots, avoid planting them in the same bed where they or related family members celery, dill, fennel, parsley, or parsnip were grown in the last year or two. Crop rotation among plant families helps to maintain soil fertility, and to lessen problems with pests and some diseases.

One key to good growth and yields with carrots is proper soil — one high in organic matter that is loose and well drained.

Add an inch of good weed free compost

and work into the top half foot of soil.

Don’t work the soil when it is still wet in the spring, as this will form clods which don’t lead to straight roots. Dry, crumbly soil worked to a foot deep (you can just loosen it with a spading fork) is best.

If you have a shallow soil or container, choose shorter varieties.

Don’t use fresh manure or excess nitrogen on carrots. This can cause roots to be forked, split, and rough or hairy.

(Roots are also can become fork shaped from too much water.) I like to work in an organic vegetable fertilizer prior to planting. Carrots prefer moderate levels of nitrogen, and low levels of phosphorus and potassium in soil.

Check your soil acidity (pH) if you haven’t, or not for a couple years. Kits are available at garden stores and local extension service ofices. The soil pH should be between 5.5 and 7.0. This is important for making nutrients available to the roots.

Carrots are grown from seeds, directly sown in to garden or raised beds beginning in spring. They also can be sown into large fabric grow bags or containers.

Germination takes about a week if soil temperatures are 70 to 75 degrees (F), up to three weeks if much cooler, with little to no germination below 45 degrees. A good time to sow is when you’re sowing pole beans or planting tomato transplants.

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You’ll see many methods offered for sowing, but I like to sow (and have found subsequent maintenance easiest) when sown in rows 5 to 7inches apart. Plants should be 2-inches apart within rows. You can sow more densely and then thin seedlings, but thinning the small seedlings is rather tedious and can damage ones you want to leave.It will take longer at the beginning to carefully space and sow seeds one at a time, an inch or so apart and then thin as needed, but this results in much less thinning and work later.

When you do thin seedlings, young carrots can be tasty in salads.If too densely sown, cut those not desired with scissors to avoid damaging those that you’re leaving to grow on.If you want young carrots, sow successive crops every 2 to 3 weeks early in the summer.

Make sure to keep the seedbed watered (daily or twice daily if needed) until seeds are germinated and the seedlings are growing.Less water, but more applied more frequently, is the key at this stage of growth. As the carrot plants are growing, water less often and with less water this encourages longer roots.Then, toward the end of the season as roots are enlarging, water less often but more heavily when you do water this encourages roots that taste and store better. If you aren’t able to provide ideal watering don’t worry, you should still get carrots just not perhaps prize winners at the fair.

Carrots will grow best with soil temperatures of 60 to 70 degrees. The tops like to be warm, and the roots cool. You can achieve this, once they’re up and growing, with grass clippings or straw. Warm soil (much above 70 degrees) and roots will be small and taste bland, perhaps even bitter.

Mulching also helps to minimize weeds.

Another key to successful carrot growing is to keep them weeded.

You can harvest carrots at most any stage of growth, depending on the size desired.

Brightly colored carrots will have the best lavor and texture, the sugars then turning more to starches over time. Warm days then cool nights cause plants to make sugars, then store them in the roots, so this results in sweeter carrots. Since the sugars are stored in the carrot core, thicker carrots with thicker cores often are the sweetest.

Harvest by gently pulling from the soil, if soils are loose.If tops break off, then loosen the soil irst with a garden fork. Discard any

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that are split, injured, or rubbery. Wash and scrub any carrots you’ll eat soon.

Otherwise, cut the top off about an inch and above the roots. Store carrots in damp sand or sawdust (95 percent humidity is the ideal), as cool as possible, but above freezing. They easily should store good for at least 6 months. If you don’t have a place for storage, they may be left in the ground, mulched, until the ground freezes.

By growing your own carrots you can save some money, know their history and what has been (or not) used on them for chemicals, just enjoy watching them grow, have really fresh food you grew yourself, and try different varieties than you usually ind in stores and markets.

There are dozens of carrot varieties you’ll ind in catalogs and store seed racks, mostly orange but also in white (as White Satin), purple (as Purple Haze), red (as Atomic Red), yellow (as Yellowbunch), or a blend of these colors. These and the traditional orange carrots fall into one of ive common types based on root shape.

Chantenay (as Royal Chantenay) are

conical with broad shoulders (root tops) and rounded tips. Being sweet they are good eaten fresh. Danvers (as Danvers Half Long) are cylindrical and thick.

Having high water and low sugar content, these make good carrot juice. Nantes (as Purple Haze) also are cylindrical or cigar shaped, but are sweet and crispy. Imperator (as Yellowbunch) are long & tapered, typical of those you ind in plastic bags in grocery stores. Miniature or baby (as the stubby Atlas) are just that — they are not just long carrots that have been cut smaller, as some believe.

The word carrot comes from the Greek word (karoton) for horn, referring to the horn like shape of the carrot taproot. To learn more about carrots, their history, and their many uses (even medicinally and as musical instruments), visit the World Carrot Museum online (www.carrotmuseum.co.uk).

Each year the National Garden Bureau chooses a vegetable of the year, with carrots being their choice for 2016. Visit their website to learn more about other popular vegetables and lowers (www.ngb.org).

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Grow your own onions Most people are familiar with onions (allium cepa), the edible bulb in the allium family.

Their strong odor makes them a favorite of chefs in various cuisines. Growing them in your home garden takes some patience, but you’ll be rewarded with onions that taste and smell better than the ones you buy at the grocery store.

How Onions Grow Early in the season, onions send up tubular, hollow leaves, before beginning to form bulbs. Most onions are biennial, so you will seldom see an onion flower. Multiplier onions or Egyptian walking onions are a perennial variety that sends up a lower stalk with a clump of tiny bulbs or bulbils on top. When the top becomes too heavy to stand, it falls over. The bulbils take root, forming new plants and giving the perennial onion its description of walking.

Onions are actually biennials, but they never make it to their second year unless you plan to save seed. They are grown as annuals.

Both the size and shape of onions varies by type and growing season. Bulbing onions are greatly affected by day length, as described below. The bulb size is related to the size and number of the leaves. Each leaf translates to a ring of onion. Larger leaves make larger rings.

So choosing the right type of onion for your day length will give your onion tops time to form before the onion bulb begins developing more leaves, more bulb. Onions need a spot in full sun, to develop properly.

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Harvesting Onions The time required for the bulbs to mature depends on variety and whether they were started from seed. You can harvest onions at any stage. The plants you thin from a row can be used as green onions.

However, onion bulbs are ready when about half the tops have fallen over and the bulbs’ skins have a papery feel. Bulbs allowed to remain in the ground until 50 percent or more of the green tops have fallen over will store longer.

Once you see half the tops are down, very gently coax the remaining leaves down, without breaking them off the bulb. Then allow the bulbs to sit in the ground and cure for a couple of days before you lift them. You’ll have better luck digging the onion bulbs, rather than pulling. You don’t have to go deep, just enough to loosen the remaining roots.

Shake and brush off any loose soil and let the bulbs inish curing in a warm, dry place with good air circulation. Leave the leaves on. You can use fresh onions at any time now.

For storing onions, wait until the outside onion skins dry and the neck — where the leaves meet the bulbs — starts to shrivel.

Then you can store them in a cool, dry location, like your basement. Onions keep longer in cool temperatures (under 40 degrees) but should not be allowed to freeze.

Store onions in mesh type bags or by braiding the tops together and hanging.

Just make sure they are not piled on top of each other and not getting any air.

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Suggested Varieties If you are buying transplants or sets, you will ind types suitable to your area in any good nursery, although they will sometimes only be labeled as yellow or red.

Onions are categorized according to day length; how much daylight there is when onions stop forming tops, or new green leaves and start making bulbs.

Short day onions: Begin forming bulbs when the day length is 10 to 12 hours.

These varieties tend to do better in the southern and western U.S. Granex: Large, globe shaped, sweet onions sometimes called the Vidalia onion.

Early producer.

Texas Grano 1015Y: An improved strain of Yellow Grano with treat disease resistance and good storing ability.

Cipollini: Flat, doughnut shaped onions.

Store up to 5 months.

Long day onions: Begin forming bulbs when the day length is 14 to 16 hours.

They tend to do better in northern states.

Italian Red Torpedo: Heirloom onion, Reddish purple with an elongated in shape.

Can also be grown as a short day onion.

Redwing: Red color holds up really well.

Nice solid bulb. Late season onion, so best from transplants.

White or Yellow Sweet Spanish and other Spanish types onion: Long season varieties. Includes walla walla and the earlier Olympic (F1) varieties.

Growing Tips Choose a site with at least 6 hours of direct sunlight. Onions can be started three ways, by sets (tiny bulbs), transplants and direct seeding. Though planting onion sets are the most popular way to grow them, you'll have better results transplanting seedlings you start indoors ahead of time.

Starting Onions from Sets Onion sets should be about the size of a marble. Larger sets don’t always adjust well and could bolt or split. For similar reasons, don’t buy sets that have already sprouted.

And as with all bulbs, onion sets should be irm and healthy looking.

Sets can be planted early in the season, before the last frost, but after the soil has

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dried and warmed a bit. Plant onion sets pointed end up and cover with about 2" of soil. Depending on the mature size of your variety of onion, space about 3 to 4" apart.

Transplanting Onions Transplants generally result in larger onions than sets. You can buy transplants or start your own indoors from seed. Start onion seed about 12 weeks before your transplant date. You can plant thickly and thin at transplant time. Keep the soil moist.

As the tops grow, keep them trimmed to about 4 inches.

Transplants or onion seedlings will need to be hardened off before planting outdoors. Wait until all danger of frost has passed before planting.

Don’t bury transplants too deeply. Plant them right on the surface of the soil, spaced about 4 inch apart. Keep onions well watered throughout the season. The bulbs need regular water to swell in size.

Transplant grown onions are the type you see pushing up out of the ground.

Direct seeding onions require a longer season, so warmer climates will have better luck. To direct seed, follow the directions above for seeding transplants.

Pests & Problems for Growing Onions

Rot: In damp soils, you may encounter neck or stem rot or bulb rot. Avoid with good soil drainage and air circulation.

Splitting: Bulbs will split or double if the soil is allowed to remain dry while the bulbs are forming.

Thrips: Small yellowish-brown lying insects that feed on leaves and can cause twisting and curling. Repeated attacks cause the plant to stop growing, so bulbs don’t mature. Plant resistant varieties. Don’t plant near grain crops. Neem and insecticidal soaps provide temporary control.

Onion Root Maggots: Eggs are laid near the base of onion plants. The larvae hatch and burrow into the stems, feeding on the plants below the soil and eventually killing the plants. Rotate plants yearly to avoid infestation. Covering new seedlings will prevent eggs from being laid. Diatomaceous earth is also effective.

Y Y

Y Y

Many uses for Basil

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Basil is a well known culinary herb that's popular in many Italian dishes. But did you know that there are many other uses of this herb, including its use as a tonic to aid in digestion? In addition to uses other than cooking, basil comes in various varieties and lavors.

The most common use of basil is for cooking, such as in tomato sauce, pesto, or vinegars. But it also can be sprinkled over salads and sliced tomatoes, either whole or chopped. Actually, don’t chop the leaves, but tear them instead for the most lavor. One of my favorite salads is the simple Italian Caprese salad, consisting of

slices of tomato and mozzarella, topped with basil leaves and a vinaigrette or Italian dressing.

To make oil for salads, pound the fresh leaves and mix with a good salad or vegetable oil. If freezing the leaves, coat them with olive oil irst. Leaves also can be dried and stored in salt.

In the landscape, don’t merely relegate basil to the herb or vegetable garden.

Consider planting it in scented gardens, or use it as edging along a bed or path that you'll brush past and release the aroma. Or try mass plantings of basil in a border, plant in decorative outdoor containers, or grow SPROUT 2018

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in pots indoors if you have lots of light. In ancient times, pots of basil on the windowsill were used to deter lies.

Other uses of basil include the cosmetic.

Put fresh leaves in a hot bath as an infusion, for example. As a tonic, steep a few leaves in wine for several hours. Or steep in water as a tea to aid digestion. A drop of basil oil on shirtsleeves will help counteract mental fatigue.

Basil can be propagated from seed. Sow seeds eight to ten weeks before planting outside in a well-drained soil. Or sow directly in the garden. Your site should have rich, well-drained soil with plenty of sunlight for several hours a day.

Throughout the season, remove lower spikes to promote increased growth and branching. Pruning the plants every two to three weeks also will promote growth.

Basil is grown as an annual, as it does not tolerate frost well.If you want to overwinter plants, take stem cuttings late in the season to root, or dig whole plants in early fall and pot to overwinter indoors.

Basil has few if any insect pests, chewed leaves possibly indicating Japanese beetles, and holes with slimy trails indicating slugs (mostly seen during wet weather).

Sudden leaf wilting and perhaps plant death, plus vertical brown streaks on stems, indicates the fusarium fungus disease. Rotating crops yearly to a different area, and buying seeds certiied free of this disease, are means to avoid its spread.

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A relatively new disease on basil is downy mildew. Watch for yellowing leaves, similar to a nutrient deiciency only with black fuzz growth too on leaf undersides. Means to avoid this are starting your own plants from certiied clean seeds, minimizing leaf wetness such as from overhead watering, and plenty of air circulation through wide spacing of plants. If you see or suspect this disease, look for fungicides labeled for its control, such as organic ones containing neem oil or potassium bicarbonate. While sweet basil is susceptible to downy mildew, many other varieties are quite resistant.

Bush Basil (Ocimum basilicum) which is also known as Sweet, Common or Genovese basil is the most widely grown basil, and is native to the Old World Tropics (India, Africa, Asia). In India it is believed to hold divine essence. In some Greek Orthodox churches it is used to prepare holy water, as it was found growing around Christ's tomb after the Resurrection. In Haiti, bush basil is associated with a pagan love goddess named Erzulie, and in Mexico it is used in potions to attract lovers.There are many variants and cultivars (cultivated varieties) of sweet basil.

Cinnamon basil, also known as Mexican basil, is a common basil whose leaves have the same chemical as found in the cinnamon spice. A botanic variety of sweet basil, the Thai basil (thyrsilora), is sometimes called anise or licorice basil from the slightly spicy lavor of its leaves. The small,

narrow leaves hold up better than regular sweet basil in high temperature cooking, so is widely used for this in Southeast Asia."Siam Queen" is a popular cultivar you may see of Thai basil.

Green Globe is a compact mound, only about a foot high, and great for edging. The foliage is green to purple, again depending on cultivar, and is distinctly aromatic. Spicy Globe is similar, with very small leaves having a very strong lavor.

Purple Rufles and Dark Opal (or Purpurascens) are popular cultivars with both purple foliage and rufled edges to the leaves. The lowers are terminal, spike like racemes that are usually purple or white. Dark Opal was bred at the University of Connecticut in the 1950’s. "Pesto Perpetuo" is upright, growing 12 to 18 inches high, with thin white margins on the leaves and no lowers. Both this and the purple cultivars make attractive ornamental annuals foliage plants for the garden.

There are a couple types of American basil (O. americanum) you may ind for different lavors — lemon and lime basils.

The Thai lemon basil comes from another hybrid species (Citriodorum). Another lemon basil (O. x africanum) has a bushy habit, grows to two feet tall, and has an intense lemony fragrance. It is a hybrid between the American and the bush basil, and is used in Asian cooking in stews, curries, stir-fries, and rice dishes.

Among the less common basils are the Camphor Basil (O. kilimandscharicum) a

tender annual shrub reaching about ive feet tall in a season. It becomes woody with camphor scented leaves that can be used in sachets to protect woolens and as a tea for medicinal uses such as stomach aches and many more.

Clove, sometimes known as Tree or African Basil (O. gratissimum), is similar to Camphor Basil and has fuzzy, lime green leaves scented like pennyroyal. A tea of its leaves is used for colds and fevers, the leaves are burned to repel mosquitoes, and the thymol content of one cultivar makes this useful for wounds, gargling, and conjunctivitis.

Holy Basil (O. tenuilorum or sanctum) is an annual shrub with spicy clove like scented leaves that reaches two feet in height. It is the sacred basil of the Hindus, who use it in both cooking and medicines. According to Hindu mythology, this native of tropical Asia (also known as “Tulsi”) symbolizes the goddess Lakshmi — the wife of Vishnu, one of the most sacred deities in this religion.

With all these types of basil, you may want to try several in an herb garden or even mixed in with lowers. If using basil for cooking, a couple plants should sufice for a couple or even for a family. If making pesto, you may want a dozen or so plants of sweet basil. Whether in ground beds or in pots, keep a few plants near the kitchen so they’re handy when needed.

Rosemary: Historic Use Rosemary is an herb rich with traditions and uses, including cooking. Although not hardy outdoors in all but the warmest climates, it has become popular as a potted plant, particularly during the December holidays. It is often found shaped as a small conical tree, a sphere, or trained onto wire frames of various shapes.

The scientiic genus name Rosmarinus comes from the Latin words for “dew” (ros) and “belonging to the sea” (marinus), referring to the location it usually grows in native climates and its blue lowers. There is a saying that if one can hear the sea in such warm climates, rosemary will grow well and it loves lot of sun.

As you would expect for a plant that has been grown for over 5000 years (with dried sprigs found in Egyptian tombs from 3000 B.C.E.), many legends and uses have arisen. The common name is derived from the genus name, but has a legend as well which gives the plant meaning during religious-based holidays. The Mother Mary, as she led Egypt, supposedly sheltered next to a rosemary bush. When she threw her blue cape on the bush to dry, the white lowers turned to blue. Hence, both the origin in legend of the blue lowers and the name “rose of Mary.”The lowers though are not roses but like those ofmint, to which this herb is related.

Rosemary often is associated with remembrance, perhaps the earliest use being

by Greek students to help improve their memory. They would braid garlands in their hair, giving rise to another common name herb of crowns. It was this use that Ophelia referred to in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, saying there’s Rosemary, that’s for remembrance.

The tradition of remembrance is seen today in funerals, guests wearing a sprig of rosemary, and tossing a sprig on the cofin.

From the Middle Ages comes the tradition of rosemary at weddings, the bride wearing a headpiece containing rosemary,

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the groom and guests each wearing a sprig. Or, perhaps wedding guests would be given a branch festooned with ribbons, perhaps even gilt in gold, as a sign of love and loyalty. From this arose the legends and use of rosemary as a love charm.

A young person would tap another with a sprig of rosemary which, if it contained an open lower, signiied they would fall in love. Rosemary also was used in cloth dolls to attract lovers. Newlyweds would plant a rosemary branch on their wedding day, and if it grew would be a good omen for their future. Sprigs of rosemary would be laid in the linens to promote idelity.

The Romans decorated their statues with rosemary, as for them it signiied stability.

Another superstition was that rosemary only grew in gardens of the righteous. A sprig placed under a pillow supposedly prevented bad dreams. Hung outside the home, or planted in the garden, it supposedly repelled evil spirits.By the 16th century, husbands would pull up rosemary out of the garden, as it had come to signify that women, not the men, ruled the home.

The medicinal uses of rosemary over the centuries are many, beginning perhaps for respiratory ailments. In the 13th century, a concoction of this herb with wine was rubbed on the limbs of the Queen of Hungary and was said to have cured her paralysis. This concoction was used for years after for skin ailments such as dandruff, and to prevent baldness. Rosemary was used in former times to prevent the plague, melancholy, gout, epilepsy, arthritis, and more.

Today, some make a rosemary tea for sore throats, head colds, and even bad breath.

In old times, rosemary was used in washed linens to perfume them and to repel moths. Today, one inds rosemary used in many products, from hair care to cleaning. Most use fresh or dried rosemary for its culinary properties, particularly to lavor meats. It is easy to use in a marinade

for lamb, chicken, and pork. Add a few sprigs to lavor olive oil, or a few inely chopped leaves when making soups and sauces. Sprinkle some leaves on potatoes when roasting. As it is strong, use in moderation. Or just clip some leaves and use in a potpourri container. The aromatic leaves are often described as pine or eucalyptus scented.

Native to the Mediterranean, this evergreen plant needs full sun to grow best, but a sunny window indoors with bright light often sufices to get it through winter.

Being from this climate, it likes warm temperatures too, but will tolerate cool (50 degrees F or so) in winter. Make sure to provide plenty of water, but good drainage, as the roots will rot if they stay wet.

Don’t wait for the small, needle like leaves to wilt, turning gray and crispy if too dry and from which they often don’t recover (at least you can use them in cooking). Leaves should be green and soft.

The common rosemary often gets 2 to 4 feet tall, taller in the ground in the Mediterranean or similar warm climates, shorter in pots.It is hardy to about 20 degrees (F) in winter. Prostrate is a cultivar (cultivated variety) used as a groundcover in warm climates, and is good hanging over the sides of pots, window boxes, or hanging containers. It only reaches 4 to 8 inches high, and is the one often trained onto wire frames.

Similar is Collingwood Ingram. "Arp" is perhaps the hardiest common cultivar — to about 10 degrees — originally from Arp, Texas. Similarly hardy is Salem. There are many other cultivars you’ll ind from herb growers. Rosemary, given good conditions, should live in a pot for many years. One legend says that it lives 33 years — the length of Christ’s life — then dies. We’ll see, as ours has only been in a large pot, with very little repotting, for 25 years!

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Small Fruits

By Suzanne DeJohn

0 In this article Growing Strawberries Growing Blueberries Growing Lemon

I

t's always fun to grow the food you eat — but some gardeners don't have the patience to wait for a tree or shrub to grow to its full size. They want fruit fast.

By planting these fast growing fruits and veggies, eating the plants you sow is easy.

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Growing Strawberries When most people think of container gardening, lowers are the irst things that come to mind. Container gardening is becoming increasingly popular as an easy and inexpensive way to brighten up your space.

In addition to lowers, this year try something different: strawberries in containers.

Strawberries are one of the easiest plants to grow in containers. With strawberries, you get a plant with pretty foliage, lowers, and yummy fruit to snack on!

Different Types of Strawberries There are three main categories of strawberries: Junebearing, Everbearing, and Day neutral.Junebearing strawberries produce a large, concentrated crop once a year

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during late spring or early summer (usually in June). They send out a lot of runners that can quickly become a tangle of vines. This category is better suited for a garden bed and it grow easily Everbearing strawberries fruiting season stretches from early spring until fall. They send out fewer runners and will not produce as much as the Junebearing types.

Although it will produce fewer berries, it’s enough for snacking and tastes better than any store bought berries. This category does well in containers.

Dayneutral is a newer variety of everbearing strawberries. They produce more consistently throughout the growing season. Dayneutral strawberries prefer

cooler temperatures and will not bear fruit in hot weather. If you live in an area with hot summers, skip this category.

When shopping for strawberries, the varieties will not always specify which category the strawberries will fall under. Ask the garden center associate to aid you in the category identiication.

Type of Pots When selecting a container for strawberries, pick a pot that will be large enough: at least 8 inches wide. Strawberries have a spreading growing habit and shallow roots.

A wide, shallow container is a good choice.

Most importantly, the container must have good drainage. Also, select a pot that is light colored; this will help keep the plant’s roots cool in the summer.

Planting Strawberries in Containers Strawberries prefer a loose, loamy soil with a pH between 5.3 and 6.5 (acidic).

Select an area that receives 6 to 8 hours of sun per day. You can plant strawberries in the early spring or in the fall (if you live in a warm area). They need to be spaced at least 2 ft apart, so only plant 1 or 2 plants per container. Fill the container with a potting mix and make a small mound in the middle. Spread the roots out over the mound. Cover the roots and up to the crown with additional mix and water well.

Caring for Strawberries in Containers Containers require frequent waterings, but only water when the soil is dry to the touch. You may have to water daily during hot weather; containers dry out faster than soil in the ground. Feed your strawberries every 3 to 4 weeks with a liquid fertilizer.

You can overwinter strawberries. They will produce better the following year if they

are allowed to go dormant during the winter. If you live in an area that gets extremely cold, move your strawberry containers into an unheated garage or basement in the winter. Water the container only when the soil becomes dry. In milder winter climates, mulch up around the container and leave it until spring.

Strawberries are short lived perennials.

Even with the most dedicated care, you will have to replace the plants about every 3 years. No worries, enjoy them for a season.

If you are able to get them to grow again for an additional summer, it will be well worth the effort.

Growing Blueberries Blueberries are one of the most popular and healthful fruits, are easy to grow, and can be grown as an ornamental shrub.

Many have colorful red fall leaves. If you like eating blueberries from the store or picking your own, consider if you might have the space and conditions for growing them in your landscape. The most important aspects for growing blueberries successfully are choosing hardy varieties and having the right soil.

There are ive main groups of blueberries, representing three main species. The northern highbush (Vaccinium corymbosum) and lowbush (Vaccinium angustifolium) are the main species for northern gardeners, as well as hybrids of these called “half high”.

While the highbush reach from 6 to 15 feet high, depending on climate and cultivar

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(cultivated variety), the lowbush only reach a foot or so high. The half-high reach from 3 to 5 feet high. There are some selections of the lowbush, such as "Top Hat", bred for container use. Another dwarf recent introduction for such use, Blueberry Glaze, isn’t quite as hardy (USDA zone 5, minimum -20 degrees Fahrenheit).

The northern groups need suficient cold to produce lowers, then fruit, so are not suitable for southern gardens. There you’ll see rabbiteye (Vaccinium ashei) and southern highbush cultivars. There are many cultivars to choose from within each of these groups, varying mainly in time of bloom and fruit size.

When choosing blueberry cultivars, you’ll want at least 2 if not 3 different ones for cross pollination unless they are one of the

few listed as “self fertile”. Make sure to choose ones from the same group as, for instance, a lowbush wont pollinate a highbush type. Make sure, too, that they are listed to bloom the same time. You’ll ind cultivars listed as early, mid, or late season.

Although this often refers to ripening of the berries, relative bloom time is similar except for some commercial cultivars. So the bees can move the pollen among your different bushes, plant them near each other, or preferably intermixed.

Other than getting the right cultivars, you’ll need the right soil for blueberries to succeed.

They like plenty of organic matter in the soil, and well drained soils so roots don’t rot.

Perhaps the most important point though is to have acid soils—ones with a low pH of 4.5 to 5.2. You can probably get by with a pH PHOTOGRAPHS BY HENRIETTE

of up to 6.0 if you use plenty of peat moss, which is acidic. Sulfur also can be used to lower the pH. If soils are more alkaline (most plants grow best with a pH of 6.0 to 7.0—the latter being neutral), it may take work yearly to try and lower the pH. One solution if the soil pH is too high is to get a shorter cultivar, such as lowbush or half high, and plant in a container.

Just make sure the pot is large enough, perhaps 15 to 20 gallon size, or 18 to 24 inches wide and 12 to 15 inches deep.

You can plant container and all right in the ground. If left above ground, make sure to bring into an unheated shed or garage over winter that wont allow the soil to freeze. Ample ground heat protects roots in the ground during winter, something roots above ground in pots don’t get. Container blueberries also are great for small gardens. When planting in containers, use half of the peat moss and half of the potting soil.

Once you have the right cultivars, and soil, plant as you would other shrubs. Give enough space—at least 5 to 7 feet apart for the highbush, 3 to 5 feet apart for the halfhigh, and 2 to 3 feet apart for the lowbush.

Add plenty of peat moss or compost, or both, when planting. Blueberry roots are near the surface and sensitive to drying out, so don’t allow them to dry before planting and water well once planted. Keep them well watered until established, and even later when droughts. Several inches of mulch helps

retain moisture, and helps prevent weeds.

Hand pulling weeds is best so not to damage their shallow roots with a hoe.

Since blueberries usually begin bearing fruit when 4 to 5 years old, buying older and larger plants will give you fruit in fewer years. You don’t really need to prune bushes, except to remove broken or rubbing branches, until they are much older. They do need some fertilizer, such as a cup of 5-3-4 or similar for young plants, more for larger mature ones. Apply this in early spring, and perhaps again in late June. Don’t apply much later so plants will harden properly for winter.

Also you can use acidic fertilizers as you ind for azaleas and hollies.

If leaves are reddish or have reddish dots, and are overall light green to yellowish, they may need more nitrogen such as from ammonium sulfate. If leaves are light green between veins, this is a common symptom indicating iron deiciency. This, in turn, may mean the soil pH is too high. Check it irst, and correct if needed, and the iron deiciency may be solved too.

Animals don’t really bother blueberries,

but they are a favorite food of birds.You may try scare tactics such as noise emitters and bright balloons and objects hung among plants, but the best method most end up using is tight bird netting over plants.

This netting is black and of thin plastic strands that aren’t really obtrusive or even noticeable from a distance.

Whether you grow your own or just pick blueberries locally, berries are simple to just wash and freeze for use through the rest of the year. Eating more blueberries, even making and drinking blueberry juice, you’ll realize a range of health beneits.

Not only are they very high in antioxidants, but they contain other compounds as well that help your immune system ight infections, help to reduce belly fat, promote urinary tract health, preserve vision and brain health, reduce the risk of heart disease, aid digestion, help prevent certain cancers, and serve as an antidepressant to keep you in a good mood. And you thought blueberry pie just tastes good!

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Growing Lemons If you live in a cooler climate, or simply have limited space, but still want to grow a lemon tree, container lemon trees may be your best option. Growing lemon trees in containers allows you to provide an appropriate environment in a limited space. Let’s look at how to grow a lemon tree in a pot

Growing Lemon Tree in a Container When you grow a lemon tree in a pot, there are a few things you need to keep in mind. First of all, container lemon trees will not get as large as lemon tree grown in the ground. Still, it is best to seek out dwarf varieties of lemon trees. Some lemon tree varieties that do best in containers are: 1 Meyer 2 Improved dwarf 3 Lisbon Ponderosa dwarf When growing lemon trees in containers, the needs are very similar to lemon trees growing in the ground. The lemon trees will need good drainage, so make sure the pot has drainage holes. They will also need consistent and regular watering. If the container where the lemon tree is growing is allowed to dry out, the leaves of the lemon tree will fall off.

Fertilizer is also key to growing a healthy lemon tree in a pot. Use a slow release fertilizer to make sure that your lemon tree gets consistent nutrients. Container lemon trees also need high humidity.

Place your lemon tree over a pebble tray or mist it daily.

Common Problems with Container Regardless of how well you take care of your container lemon tree, growing in a pot will be more stressful on the plant.

You will need to keep an eye out for unique problems that container grown lemon tree can have.

Lemon trees growing in containers are more susceptible to sucker branches.

These are branches that grow from the scion or root stock of the plant. Many times, in order to grow a hardier tree, nurseries will grow the desired tree on a hardy root.

Under stress, the root stock will try to take over the tree. If you see a sucker branch grow from the bottom of the lemon tree, prune it immediately.

Another issue with lemon trees in containers is that they are more vulnerable to cold and drought.

While a lemon tree in the ground can take mild frost and cold, a lemon tree in a container cannot. A lemon tree in a container has a hardiness zone that is one zone higher than the USDA recommended zone. So for example, if the variety of lemon you are growing normally has a hardiness zone of 7, in a container, the lemon tree will have a hardiness zone of 8.

As already mentioned, allowing your lemon tree to dry out will cause more damage to it if it is grown in a container than if it was grown in the ground.

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Landscape & Lawn

By Suzanne DeJohn

L 4 In this article How to keep water clean in Fountains and building a healthy soil

andscape maintenance is the art and vocation of keeping a landscape healthy, clean, safe and attractive, typically in a garden, yard, park, institutional setting or estate. Using tools, supplies, knowledge, physical exertion and skills, a groundskeeper may plan or carry out annual plantings and harvestings, periodic weeding and fertilizing, other gardening, lawn care, snow removal, driveway and path maintenance, shrub pruning, topiary, lighting, fencing, swimming pool care, runoff drainage, and

irrigation, and other jobs for protecting and improving the topsoil, plants, and garden accessories.

Groundskeepers may also deal with local animals (including birds, rodents, reptiles, insects, and domestic animals or pets), and create means to attract or repel them, as desired or necessary. A garden may also be designed to include exotic animals, such as a koi pond. In larger estates, groundskeepers may be responsible for providing and maintaining habitat for wild animals.

The best method for reducing algae growth depends on the size and type of the water feature, the time of year and the extent of the problem, as well as aesthetics and convenience. In general, it’s best to begin treatment early in the season.before problems arise.

Bird Baths and Small Fountains

How to keep water clear in Fountains and ponds

Bird Bath Cleaners: Keep it fresh and crystal clear the way nature does, with the cleansing power of beneicial bacteria and enzymes. One disposable dispenser of our all-natural cleaner works for 30 days and cleanses containers up to 7 gallons.

Submersible Dispenser: Uses beneicial bacteria and enzymes to clarify water, this discreet dispenser can be submerged in your pond. Treats 300 to 2,500 gallons for thirty days.

Large Ponds To keep ponds clear, it’s best to begin treatment early in the season before problems arise. All gardeners want to be green — except when it comes to water.

Whether you have a fountain, pond or a small relecting pool, chances are good that at some point you’ll have to deal with nuisance algae.

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Mother Nature has a way of colonizing just about any watery habitat with algae even a birdbath. Small amounts of algae may be a simple annoyance, discoloring containers with a film of green slime. In ponds, however, large amounts of algae can clog pumps and filters and harm fish.

Ideally, large ponds contain a variety of plant and animal life that can help keep algae in check, but you might need to take steps to prevent murky water. Here are some helpful products: Aquasphere: Float this biodegradable ball in your pond and it will keep algae in check for thirty days.

Blast: A quick and effective way to deal with algae blooms, which are algae overgrowths that can occur during certain weather conditions. This product is best used along with the Aquasphere for long lasting protection.

Product Details The Submersible Dispenser uses the cleansing power of beneficial bacteria and enzymes to help clarify water. Ideal for small ponds, it treats 300 to 2,500 gallons of water for 30 days. The product consists of a plastic dispenser containing the cleansing formula; refills are available. Because it is submerged in the water, the Submersible Dispenser is another invisible way to achieve clear water.

The Aquasphere is a loating ball made from 100 percent biodegradable cornstarch that slowly degrades and dissolves.

It contains beneicial bacteria and enzymes that reduce excess nutrients that lead to algae blooms. For best results, install a fresh Aquasphere monthly.

Blast is a concentrated source of beneicial bacteria similar to those found in the aquasphere. It is best used to manage seasonal spikes in algae growth; use it alongside the aquasphere for long term control. Available in two formulations,

based on pond size: 2,500 gallon and 125,000 gallons.

For information on designing a water garden, including ways to create a balanced ecosystem that will help prevent algae overgrowth, read Water Gardening: Finding the Site, Choosing Plants and Fish Calculating capacities: A small fountain generally has a reservoir that holds 10 gallons or less. A container garden the size of a half whiskey barrel holds about 30 gallons. To calculate the approximate number of gallons in your pond, start by calculating the cubic feet: multiply length (in feet) x width x average depth. To convert cubic feet to gallons, multiply by 7.5.

Building Healthy soil Though some gardeners may be blessed with perfect soil, most of us garden in soil that is less than perfect. If your soil has too much clay in it, is too sandy, too stony or too acidic, don’t despair. Turning a poor soil into a plant friendly soil is not dificult to do, once you understand the components of a healthy soil.

Soil is composed of weathered rock and organic matter, water and air. But the hidden “magic” in a healthy soil is the organisms — small animals, worms, insects

and microbes — that lourish when the other soil elements are in balance.

Minerals. roughly half of the soil in your garden consists of small bits of weathered rock that has gradually been broken down by the forces of wind, rain, freezing and thawing and other chemical and biological processes.

Soil type is generally classiied by the size of these inorganic soil particles: sand (large particles), silt (medium-sized particles) or clay (very small particles). The proportion of sand, silt and clay particles determines the texture of your soil and affects drainage and nutrient availability, which in turn inluence how well your plants will grow.

Organic Matter is the partially decomposed remains of soil organisms and plant life including lichens and mosses, grasses and leaves, trees, and all other kinds of vegetative matter.

Although it only makes up a small fraction of the soil (normally 5 to 10 percent), organic matter is absolutely essential. It binds together soil particles into porous crumbs or granules which allow air and water to move through the soil. Organic matter also retains moisture (humus holds up to 90 percent of its weight in water), and is able to absorb and store nutrients. Most imporSPROUT 2018

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tantly, organic matter is food for microorganisms and other forms of soil life.

You can increase the amount of organic matter in your soil by adding compost, aged animal manures, green manures (cover crops), mulches or peat moss. Because most soil life and plant roots are located in the top 6 inches of soil, concentrate on this upper layer. To learn more about making your own compost, read All About Composting.

Be cautious about incorporating large amounts of high carbon material (straw, leaves, wood chips and sawdust). Soil microorganisms will consume a lot of nitrogen in their efforts to digest these materials and they may deprive your plants of nitrogen in the short run.

Soil life. Soil organisms include the bacteria and fungi, protozoa and nematodes, mites, springtails, earthworms and other tiny creatures found in healthy soil. These organisms are essential for plant growth.

They help convert organic matter and soil minerals into the vitamins, hormones, disease suppressing compounds and nutrients that plants need to grow.

Their excretions also help to bind soil particles into the small aggregates that make a soil loose and crumbly. As a gardener, your job is to create the ideal conditions for these soil organisms to do their work. This means providing them with an abundant source of food (the carbohydrates in organic matter), oxygen (present in a well-aerated soil), and water (an adequate but not excessive amount).

A healthy soil is about 25 percent air.

Insects microbes, earthworms and soil life require this much air to live. The air in soil is also an important source of the atmospheric nitrogen that is utilized by plants.

Well aerated soil has plenty of pore space between the soil particles or crumbs. Fine soil particles (clay or silt) have tiny spaces between them in some cases too small for air to penetrate. Soil composed of large particles, like sand, has large pore spaces and contains plenty of air. But, too much air can cause organic matter to decompose too quickly.

To ensure that there is a balanced supply of air in your soil, add plenty of organic matter, avoid stepping in the growing beds or compacting the soil with heavy equipment and never work the soil when it is very wet.

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Water: A healthy soil will also contain about 25 percent water. Water, like air, is held in the pore spaces between soil particles. Large pore spaces allow rain and irrigation water to move down to the root zone and into the subsoil. In sandy soils, the spaces between the soil particles are so large that gravity causes water to drain down and out very quickly. That’s why sandy soils dry out so fast.

Small pore spaces permit water to migrate back upwards through the process of capillary action. In waterlogged soils, water has completely illed the pore spaces, forcing out all the air. This suffocates soil organisms as well as plant roots.

Ideally, your soil should have a combination of large and small pore spaces.

Again, organic matter is the key, because it encourages the formation of aggregate, or crumbs, or soil. Organic matter also absorbs water and retains it until it is needed by plant roots.

Every soil has a different combination of these ive basic components. By balancing them you can dramatically improve your soil’s healthy and your garden’s productivity. But irst, you need to know what kind of soil you have.

Soil Texture and Type Soil texture can range from very ine particles to coarse and gravelly. You don’t have to be a scientist to determine the texture of the soil in your garden. To get a rough idea, simply place some soil in the palm of your hand and wet it slightly, then run the mixture between your ingers. If it feels gritty, your soil is sandy; if it feels smooth, like moist talcum powder, your soil is silty; if it feels harsh when dry, sticky or slippery when wet, or rubbery when moist, it is high in clay.

Every soil has unique physical characteristics, which are determined by how it was formed. The silty soil found in an old loodplain is inherently different from stony mountain soil; the clay soil that lay under a glacier for millions of years is unlike the sandy soil near an ocean. Some of these basic qualities can be improved with proper management — or made worse by abuse.

Identifying your soil type: Soils are generally described according to the predominant type of soil particle present: sand, silt or clay. By conducting a simple soil test, you can easily see what kind of soil you’re

dealing with. You may want to repeat this test with several different soil samples from your lawn and garden.

1. Fill a quart jar about one — third full with topsoil and add water until the jar is almost full.

2. Screw on the lid and shake the mixture vigorously, until all the clumps of soil have dissolved.

3. Now set the jar on a windowsill and watch as the larger particles begin to sink to the bottom.

4. In a minute or two the sand portion of the soil will have settled to the bottom of the jar. Mark the level of sand on the side of the jar.

5. Leave the jar undisturbed for several hours. The iner silt particles will gradually settle onto the sand. You will ind the layers are slightly different colors, indicating various types of particles.

6. Leave the jar overnight. The next layer above the silt will be clay. Mark the thickness of that layer. On top of the clay will be a thin layer of organic matter. Some of this organic matter may still be loating in the water. In fact, the jar should be murky and full of loating organic sediments. If not, you probably need to add organic matter to improve the soil’s fertility and structure.

Improving Soil Structure Even very poor soil can be dramatically improved, and your efforts will be well rewarded. With their roots in healthy soil, your plants will be more vigorous and more productive.

Sandy Soil. Sand particles are large, irregularly shaped bits of rock. In a sandy soil, large air spaces between the sand particles allow water to drain very quickly. Nutrients tend to drain away with the water, often before plants have a chance to absorb them. For this reason, sandy soils are usually nutrient-poor.

A sandy soil also has so much air in it that microbes consume organic matter very quickly. Because sandy soils usually contain very little clay or organic matter, they don’t have much of a crumb structure. The soil particles do not stick together, even when they’re wet.

To improve sandy soil: Work in 3 to 4 inches of organic matter such as well rotted manure or finished compost.

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Mulch around your plants with leaves, wood chips, bark, hay or straw. Mulch retains moisture and cools the soil. Add at least 2 inches of organic matter each year.

Grow green manures Clay Soil, Clay particles are small and lat. They tend to pack together so tightly that there is hardly any pore space at all.

When clay soils are wet, they are sticky and practically unworkable. They drain slowly and can stay waterlogged well into the spring. Once they inally dry out, they often become hard and cloddy, and the surface cracks into lat plates.

Lack of pore space means that clay soils are generally low in both organic matter and microbial activity. Plant roots are stunted because it is too hard for them to push their way through the soil. Foot trafic and garden equipment can cause compaction problems. Fortunately, most clay soils are rich in minerals which will become available to your plants once you improve the texture of the soil.

To improve clay soil Work 2 to 3 inches of organic matter into the surface of the soil. Then add at least 1 inch more each year after that.

Add the organic matter in the fall, if possible.Use permanent raised beds to improve drainage and keep foot trafic out of the growing area.

Minimize tilling and spading Silty Soil contain small irregularly shaped particles of weathered rock, which means they are usually quite dense and have relatively small pore spaces and poor drainage.

They tend to be more fertile than either sandy or clayey soils.

To improve silty soil Add at least 1 inch of organic matter each year. Concentrate on the top few inches of soil to avoid surface crusting. Avoid soil compaction by avoiding unnecessary tilling and walking on garden beds. Consider constructing raised beds.

Soil pH The pH level of your soil indicates its relative acidity or alkalinity. A pH test measures the ratio of hydrogen (positive) ions to hydroxyl (negative) ions in the soil water.

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present in equal amounts, the pH is said to be neutral (pH 7). When the hydrogen ions prevail, the soil is acidic (pH 1 to pH 6.5).

And when the hydroxyl ions tip the balance, the pH is alkaline (pH 6.8 to pH 14).

Most essential plant nutrients are soluble at pH levels of 6.5 to 6.8, which is why most plants grow best in this range. If the pH of your soil is much higher or lower, soil nutrients start to become chemically bound to the soil particles, which makes them unavailable to your plants. Plant health suffers because the roots are unable to absorb the nutrients they require.

To improve the fertility of your soil, you need to get the pH of your soil within the 6.5 to 6.8 range. You can’t, and shouldn’t try, to change the pH of your soil overnight.

Instead, gradually alter it over one or two growing seasons and then maintain it every year thereafter. Liberal applications of organic matter is a good idea too, because it helps to moderate pH imbalances.

Acidic Soil: If the pH of your soil is less than 6.5, it may be too acidic for most garden plants (although some, such as blueberries and azaleas require acidic soil).

Soils in the eastern half of the U.S. are usually on the acidic side.

The most common way to raise the pH of your soil (make it less acidic) is to add powdered limestone. Dolomitic limestone

will also add manganese to the soil. Apply it in the fall because it takes several months to alter the pH. Wood ash will also raise the pH, and it works more quickly than limestone and contains potassium and trace elements.

But if you add too much wood ash, you can drastically alter the pH and cause nutrient imbalances. For best results, apply wood ash in the winter, and apply no more than 2 pounds per 100 square feet, every two to three years.

Alkaline Soil: If your soil is higher than 6.8, you will need to acidify your soil. Soils in the western U.S., especially in arid regions, are typically alkaline. Soil is usually acidiied by adding ground sulfur. You can also incorporate naturally acidic organic materials such as conifer needles, sawdust, peat moss and oak leaves.

To lower the soil pH by about one point.

In sandy soil: add 1 pound ground sulphur per 100 square feet. In loam soil (good garden soil): add 1.5 to 2 pounds per 100 square feet. In heavy clay soil: add 2 pounds per 100 square feet.

Soil Testing A professional soil test will provide you with a wealth of information about your soil, including the pH and amount of different nutrients.

Your local Cooperative Extension Service ofice may offer a professional soil testing service. The advantage is low cost and results that are speciically geared to your location. If this service is not available, you can also have your soil tested by an independent soil lab. If possible, choose one in your own region of the country.

Soil test results usually rate the levels of soil pH, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, calcium, and sometimes nitrogen.

(Most labs do not test for nitrogen because it is so unstable in the soil). Some labs also offer tests for micronutrients such as boron, zinc and manganese. Unless you feel there may be a deiciency problem, you probably won’t need micronutrient testing. As a preventative measure, you can apply organic fertilizers that include micronutrients (such as greensand and kelp meal).

To get the most accurate test results, take a soil sample from each garden area: lawn, flower garden, and vegetable garden.

Spring and fall are the best times to perform a soil test. The soil is more stable, and these are good times to incorporate any recommended fertilizers. Many labs will give recommendations for speciic organic amendments upon request. If not, you will have to compare labels to ind organic substitutes for the chemical fertilizers that may be suggested.

D.I.Y. Projects X In this article Gather gifts from the garden Grow seeds in an Eggshell

D

o it yourself is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things without the direct aid of experts or professionals. Academic research describes DIY as behaviors where individuals engage raw and semiraw materials and parts to produce, transform, or reconstruct material possessions, including those drawn from the natural environment (e.g., landscaping).

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Gather gifts from the garden The garden offers riches beyond the summer harvest of fresh vegetables, herbs and lowers — it’s also the source of materials for variety of unique homemade gifts.

Giving a gift you’ve made yourself sends a message of caring to the recipient, and using homegrown materials makes it even more special. Summer is the time to gather and prepare lowers and herbs so you’ll have plenty of gift making materials.

bands, and hang them upside down in a warm, dry, dark place. Cover them with a paper bag to keep the dust off. If humidity makes air drying impossible, dry them in a warm oven or use a food dehydrator.

Following are a few ideas for transforming dried herbs into gifts. Package the herbs in an airtight container or plastic bag, listing the ingredients on a label. Include a recipe card with suggested uses.

Drying Flowers

Culinary herb blends

A bouquet of dried lowers in a pretty vase is an easy gift idea. You can also use dried lowers adorn a grape vine wreath base. My favorite lowers to dry are tall ageratum, amaranth, celosia, hydrangea, lavender, ornamental oregano, salvia, strawlower and yarrow.

These lowers have strong stems and dry quickly. Just strip off the leaves, gather the stems into small bunches with rubber bands and hang them upside down in a warm, dry, dark place.

Combine a variety of savory herbs like basil, sage, oregano, rosemary, and thyme.

Suggest recipients mix the herb blend with cream cheese and spread on crackers; thin with sour cream for a dip.

Create an herb mix for Italian salad dressing: Combine marjoram, tarragon and thyme and include suggestions for mixing the blend with olive oil and vinegar. Combine dill, parsley and chives and suggest recipients add to buttermilk and mayonnaise for creamy ranch dressing.

Drying Herbs

Tea blends

You can use dried herbs to create all sorts of “giftable” items, including culinary herb mixes, herb teas and potpourri. Dry herbs the same way you dry lowers — gather the stems into small bunches with rubber

Good tea herbs include anise hyssop, chamomile, fennel, lavender, lemon balm, and mint. Add dried stevia for a touch of sweetness. Try lemon balm and chamomile for a soothing tea.

Combine chocolate mint and spearmint for a refreshing brew

Potpourri Combine a selection of fragrant dried herbs, such as bay, lemon balm, lemon verbena, sage, rosemary, thyme, lavender, mint and scented geraniums. Add some lowers for color, such as borage, calendula, bachelor’s buttons and rose petals. You can also add cinnamon sticks or dried citrus peels. Include a bottle of essential oil for refreshing the potpourri when the scent fades.

Place fresh plant material between two sheets of paper, and then place something heavy over the paper — a few big gardening books, perhaps. Choose relatively lat plant material, such as leaves and ferns, as well as lowers that aren’t too bulky — pansies, for example. Once they’re pressed lat, you can use them right away or store them lat between sheets of paper.

Create a collage by tacking the leaves and lowers to a sheet of paper with small dabs of glue. You can frame the collage as is or photocopy it to make multiple notecards or framed prints. I’ve found that photocopied pressed lowers look very real and they won’t dry out and fade like the real plant material does.

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Herb and Flavored vinegars Making herbed vinegars couldn’t be easier, and they make impressive gifts, especially if decanted into decorative bottles. Use your favorite culinary herbs and vinegars, or experiment with blends. Try pairing strong lavored herbs like rosemary and sage with cider or red wine vinegar; use milder rice wine vinegar for more delicately lavored herbs like tarragon. Basil, cilantro, fennel, mint and thyme are all good candidates for herb vinegars; toss in a few chili peppers for heat or some strips of lemon or orange rind for a citrusy note.

Adding a few chive lowers, nasturtium blossoms or purple basil leaves will add a nice tint to the vinegar.

1. Place the clean, dry herbs and other flavorings in a clean glass jar and then fill the jar with vinegar, making sure herbs are submerged. Shoot for a ratio of about a cup of fresh herbs for every two 2 cups of vinegar.

2. Put the lid on the jar and place it in a cool, dark place for about two weeks.

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3. Pour the vinegar through cheesecloth and into a clean jar to remove the soggy herbs.

4. Store it in a big jar or decant it into pretty bottles and seal tightly. Although the vinegar’s acidity acts as a preservative, to be on the safe side, it’s a good idea to store the vinegar in the refrigerator and recommend the recipient do so as well.

Other Garden Inspired Gift Ideas

Candles: Decorate candles with ferns, leaves, or lower petals. Melt some parafin over a pan of water on low heat, watching carefully so it doesn’t overheat. Use dabs of the melted wax to attach the leaves and petals to the candle, and then gently paint the wax over the entire surface of the plant material. Allow the wax to dry, then buff it with a cloth. Drying calendula lowers on an old window screen. Calendula infused oil, beeswax, bulk soap and essential oils Soap: Making soap from scratch is an all day endeavor and requires the use of caustic lye. An easier way is to purchase bulk glycerine or goat’s milk soap (available

at craft supplies stores) and some soap molds. Melt the soap and stir in some dried herbs and lower petals. For fragrance, add just a drop or two of Essential Oil (a little goes a long way!) Pour the mix into soap molds and let it cool and harden.

Soothing salve: Calendula lowers have anti — inlammatory properties and help promote healing. Place dried calendula lowers in a glass canning jar and cover with olive oil or sweet almond oil, making sure lowers are submerged. Cover and place in a warm spot for a few weeks.

Then, strain the oil and discard the lowers.

Combine 1 cup of the oil with 2 ounces beeswax and warm in a double boiler until the wax is just melted. (I keep a separate glass bowl for this project because the beeswax is dificult to remove by washing.)

Pour into small tins or glass jars and allow to cool before covering. Label with the ingredients and suggest it for use on dry, cracked skin and rashes.

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Grow seeds in an Eggshell

0 What You’ll Need Seed starting potting mix Seeds Clean, cracked egg shells Egg Carton Spray bottle Pot (for transplanting)

Listen up, novice gardeners! Starting your own garden isn't very hard to do, and it's especially simple when you try this easy seedling hack. The great thing about eggshells is that they're compostable, so you can just plant the whole shell once your lowers or herbs have sprouted.

Planting seeds in eggshells is a great way to get started, because you can closely monitor the amount of sunshine and water that your delicate plants are receiving (and, you can make sure that they're not been whipped around by the elements).

Starting from seed instead of seedlings purchased from a garden center is much more cost effective, as well. See below for the written how to.

First, pick seeds that would be easy to grow in a window sill, such as zinnias or basil. Herbs are great seeds to start with, and a few different types of herbs makes a convenient kitchen windowsill garden

for when you need to grab a few fresh sprigs for dinner.

Rinse out the egg shells, and pat dry.

(Don't throw away the eggs, though we've got plenty of cake recipes for those!) Line shells up in the egg carton.

Using a spoon, carefully ill each shell with pre moistened potting soil. Sprinkle a few seeds in each shell, and lightly rake the soil over the seeds with your ingertips. Gently mist the soil with a spray bottle of water If you didn't add drainage holes to your (egg) shells, be careful not to overwater.

Overwatering can cause rotten roots. Mist the potting soil with water when dry to the touch. Once your seeds begin to develop leaves, plant the entire eggshell into a pot.

The eggshell will disintegrate as compost in the soil, providing your plants with nutrients. Place the pot in a sunny windowsill, and spritz with water when dry.

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Vegetable Companion Planting Chart Plant

Good Companions

Bad Companions

Basil

Pepper, Tomato, Marigold

None

Bush Beans

Beets, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Radish, Celery, Strawberry, Pea, Eggplant, Marigold

Basil, Fennel, Onion, Kohlrabi

Pole Beans

Carrots, Cauliflower, Chard, Corn , Cucumber, Potato, Pea, Savory, Strawberry, Marigold, Tansy

Basil, Beets, Cabbage, Fennel, Kohlrabi, Onion, Radish, Sunflower

Beets

Bush Beans, Cabbage family, Lettuce, Lima Beans, Onion, Radish, Sage

Mustard, Pole Bean

Cabbage Family

Bush Beans, Beets, Carrot, Celery, Cucumber, Dill, Let- Pole Beans, Strawberry, Tomato tuce, Mint, Onions, Rosemary, Sage, Spinach, Thyme, Marigold

Carrots

Beans, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Chives, Lettuce, Leek, Onion, Peas, Radish, Rosemary, Sage, Tomato

Celery, Dill, Parsnip

Celery

Allmost everything

Carrot, Parsley, Parsnip

Corn

All Beans, Beets, Cabbage, Cantaloupe, Cucumber, Melons, Parsley, Peas, Potatoes, Pumpkin, Squash

Tomato

Cucumbers

Bush Beans, Pole Beans, Cabbage family, Corn, Dill, Eggplant, Lettuce, Marigold, Onions, Peas, Radish, Tomato, Sunflower, No strong Herbs

Potato

Eggplant

Bush Beans, Pole Beans, Peas, Peppers, Potato and Spinach

Fennel

Lettuce

Everything but especially Carrots, Garlic, Onions, Radish

None

Melon

Corn, Radish

Potato

Onion

Beets, Cabbage family, Carrots, Celery, Cucumber, Lettuce, Pepper, Spinach, Squash, Strawberries, Tomato, Turnip, Savory

Asparagus, Beans, Peas, Sage

Peas

Bush Beans, Pole Beans, Carrots, Celery, Corn, Cucumber, Eggplant, Parsley, Early Potato, Radish, Spinach, Strawberry, Sweet pepper, Turnips

Onions, Late Potato

Sprout out is a bi-monthly magazine that focuses on home gardening. It’ss lush photography and practical information about horticulture will inspire e you.

Anyone with a passion for growing owing their own food, who loves to work with plants and soil, also feels connection with the earth will enjoy this magazine.

$15.00