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in person George Carlo, PhD Friday, May 2nd 7 - 9 pm St. Andrew’s-Wesley Church 1022 Nelson Street, Vancouver

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ORGANICS Let’s get growing

ON THE GARDEN PATH Carolyn Herriot

Ialways start the gardening year off with a good spring clean. Crisp, sunny days are perfect for cutting herbaceous matter down from borders, raking beds and checking for weeds. Dig perennial weeds out first – dandelions, morning glory, plantain and couch grass – and try to remove annual weeds before they set seed. Tip: Unless you hot compost, don’t put pernicious weeds or weed seeds into compost piles as you don’t want to inadvertently spread them around.

When soil temperature warms up, microbial populations wake up and enable plants to access nutrients from the soil. It’s all about the microbes, I am reminded, when I see huge changes in the gardenscape daily. This is a good time to walk around the garden and think about how you can work in harward facing bud just above the bud.

To avoid water shoots, never take off more than 30 percent at one time.

Note: Prune, then dormant spray fruit trees before their buds open.

Wait until a mild, sunny day with no wind to dormant spray. Rent or buy a backpack sprayer and mix lime sulphur and horticultural oil with water. Sulphur is a natural fungicide and oil smothers over-wintering egg masses and fungal spores. The last step is to attach sticky band traps that trap insects as they crawl up tree trunks to lay eggs that hatch into fruit maggots. You won’t believe how many insects get stuck on these.

As a seed saver, I have attended many Seedy Saturday seed exchanges. Now, I have a stockpile of exciting new vegetable varieties to grow. All the seeds I

When soil temperature warms up, microbial populations wake up

and enable plants to access nutrients from the soil.

mony with the garden’s web of life. It’s the secret to becoming a great gardener.

If you mulch newly cut borders with compost, (teaming with microbes), you will be practising organic weed and feed. The mulch smothers weed seeds so they don’t germinate and adds nutrients to feed soil organisms.

My “Super Duper Mix” looks something like this – Layers of each of the following (no more than six inches at a time): •Herbaceous cuttings from garden (chopped up). •Weeds (no seeds). •Horse manure (fresh OK – good activator). •Seaweed (in winter). •Spoiled hay (when available). •Sawdust with chicken manure (always available!). •Leaves (stockpiled in wire cages for year round use). •Stinging nettles and comfrey cuttings (in season).

Note: No kitchen waste. This goes into a separate, rat-proof, recycled, plastic composter.

Simple pruning rules:

Dead, diseased and damaged wood off first.

Criss-crossing branches and those growing in towards the centre next.

Tip: Prune long branches if the weight of fruit threatens to rip the branch.

Always prune at an angle to an outgrow are open-pollinated because I can save seeds for future harvests with them. The cool weather crops are sown first: peas, onions, leeks, lettuces, brassicas – broccoli, cauliflowers, cabbages and kales – spinach, chards, parsleys and herbs. Sow seeds in a greenhouse, on a sunny windowsill or directly in the garden once the soil has started to warm up. I can’t wait to see purple-black lettuces, striped Tigerella tomatoes and white Russian kale. They sound so intriguing and delicious.

Fava beans, French shallots and softneck garlic should be planted directly in the garden during the cooler days of late winter. A dibber makes planting beans, peas and garlic cloves easy. It sinks into moist soil and makes a deep, pointy hole. Simply punch holes six inches apart, in rows six inches apart, and drop the beans in. Rake soil over to cover the beans. Growing in blocks better supports Favas.

Grow what you and your family like to eat and whatever does well in your area. We don’t all have to grow the same things because we can barter fruits, vegetables, plants and preserves with Mrs. Bloggs down the road and get to know our neighbours at the same time.

Carolyn Herriot is author of A Year on the Garden Path, which talks you through growing food year-round and seed saving. http://www.earthfuture. com/gardenpath/ Follow Carolyn’s blog on www.gardenwise.ca