In the West Sound growing climate, gardeners can often plant seeds and starts in July through September for late fall, winter and sometimes even early spring harvest. The most important thing to remember is soil temperatures and how much water is needed. Many gardeners extend the season even farther by using hoop houses and floating […]
vegetables
How to Make an Easy Summer Salsa from Fresh Ingredients
Great summer weather equals great vine-ripened tomatoes, and this summer is the poster child for both. Even if you aren’t growing your own tomatoes, you can find beautiful, local and delicious tomatoes ready to eat now at your local farmers market and store. It’s hard to describe the difference between a freshly picked, vine-ripened tomato […]
Get The Dirt — On Home Gardening
Crows Fall is the time when days are shorter and fall-colored foliage and decorations abound. It’s also a time of dormancy and death when annual plants die and decompose into great soil, while other plants enter a long sleep, storing energy for next spring. Let’s discuss black-as-night crows, their lives and their flocking as signal […]
Waxy Breakdown of Garlic
I love “Aha!” moments. I recently had one regarding the mysteries of garlic in storage. I had noticed that some years, my garlic stored without any trouble, lasting well into the summer, while other times many of the cloves shriveled up and were unusable. I could not pinpoint the cause until the garlic harvest this […]
What To Do with Your Garden Abundance
If you have a vegetable garden, you probably want all your produce to be used well. But there is a limit to how much produce one household can consume. Puget Sound gardeners get an average of 10 pounds of tomatoes from each plant (and as many as 25 pounds), according to The Brothers Greenhouses tomato […]
Create a ‘Salad Box’ That’s Slug-Proof
Whether you are new to gardening, live in a townhouse or other small space or are an experienced gardener, you probably have seen a favorite crop in a raised bed or in-ground garden turned into Swiss cheese by the creatures of the night. One solution to this perennial problem has been solved in my garden […]
The New Victory Gardens
Victory gardens during World War I and II sprouted up on any vacant lot, in front and back yards and anywhere there was a spot to grow nutritious fruit and vegetables. Today a new movement is underway to grow victory gardens once again. Only instead of supporting the war effort, these new gardens are a […]
