There’s nothing like listening to a shower

and thinking how it is soaking in around your green beans.

~Marcelene Cox

Do you remember the first seed you ever planted? Mine was a bean seed. I grew [...]]]>

Weather means more when you have a garden.

There’s nothing like listening to a shower

and thinking how it is soaking in around your green beans.

~Marcelene Cox

Do you remember the first seed you ever planted? Mine was a bean seed. I grew it as an experimental part of a school unit on plants in the fourth grade. We dampened a paper towel, wadded it up gently and placed it in a clear plastic cup. I was handed a single bean seed to place between the side of the cup and the paper towel. I observed and made notes as the seed germinated. I clearly remember being fascinated by the first slender root that emerged followed by tiny hairs that fanned out and burrowed through the paper towel. Beans remain my favorite garden plant.

Beans are relatively easy to grow and there are several varieties for the home gardener to choose from. If you are new to growing vegetables try beans! The following may help you to decide which variety (or varieties) to try.

First choose the growth habit you would prefer:

• Bush beans are the most commonly grown form of garden bean. The plants grow to be from 14″-18″ tall (with heirloom varieties being on the taller end) and produce a single crop over a two week period.Seeds may be sown every week up until 60 days before the first fall frost to ensure a harvest throughout the summer.

• Pole beans require a tall support (or poles) for the 8′ (or more) vines to grow on. The vines will grow up the support by twining around it (not by tendrils). Young vines may need your assistance getting started.Pole beans will take longer to produce than bush beans, but they produce heavily and may be harvested throughout the season until frost. Heirloom varieties include: “Lazy Wife”, “Gold of Bacau”, “Scarlett Runner” and “Rattlesnake”.

Next choose the type of bean:

• Green beans (snap beans)/wax beans are slender, round and average 6″ in length. They are excellent fresh as well as for canning and freezing for winter use. Heirloom varieties widely available include “Tendergreen”, “Provider”, “Dragon Tongue”, “Landreth’s Stringless”, “Pencil Pod” and “Beurre De Rocquencourt”.
• Romano beans are an Italian variety that are available as a bush or pole beans. They have broad, flat, meaty pods that average about 5″ in length. They can be used the same way as snap beans. Heirloom varieties include “Romanette Bush”, “Roma”, and “Greencrop”.
• French filet beans are unlike other beans, their flavor is exceptional! The beans are very thin and straight, measuring a mere 3/8″ around and 5″-7″ in length. The color is a very deep green and may be streaked with purple. They bear heavily and should be picked very frequently before growing large and tough. Use as you would snap beans. Heirloom varieties include “Maxibel”, “Fin de Bagnol”, “Climbing French”, “Jade” and “Masai”.
• Lima beans are available as pole or bush types. The 4″-5″ long pods bear 3-5 flat beans per pod for fresh eating or drying. Heirloom varieties include “Christmas Lima”, “Fordhook Bush”, “Jackson Wonder” and “Henderson Bush”.
• Dry (or soup) beans are grown as other snap beans, but are allowed to fully ripen and dry in the pods for use in soups and baked dishes. The plants range from 18″-24″ tall depending on the variety. (Pole types are available as well.) The plants are very productive and each pod will contain an average of 3-5 beans. Heirloom varieties include “Black turtle”, “Hutterite”, “Jacob’s Cattle”, “Marfax”, “True Red Cranberry”, “Soldier” and “Wren’s Egg”.

There are hundreds of varieties of beans to choose from, I’ve mentioned only a few. Choose one or choose several… delicious, fresh, easy to grow beans deserve a place in every garden! Happy gardening!

Share this post

Hide Sites

~Lou Holtz

Spring’s arrival is heralded not only by the sweet scent of blossoms and the melodies of birds, but the full choir of nature. Our yard is awakening a bit more each warm day that passes [...]]]>

A bird doesn’t sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.

~Lou Holtz

Spring’s arrival is heralded not only by the sweet scent of blossoms and the melodies of birds, but the full choir of nature. Our yard is awakening a bit more each warm day that passes and last night brought the refrain I’ve been awaiting…the chorus of the pond dwellers! Such an opening night!

Our small pond is home to several varieties of amphibians, fish and frequenting water fowl. Robins and other birds steal the wet grasses for nests and the occasional raccoon stops by for a starlit drink. By far, though, the most well-known of all the pond inhabitants are the evening singers. A high trill followed by a throaty twang alerted us to the re-appearance of the bull frogs and toads. Their nightly chorus will last well into the summer and early fall before they disappear into an earthly burrow to overwinter.

These early days with temperatures in the 80’s are uncommon for our area. More seasonally mild weather is to arrive early in the week. The frogs and toads are here for the season, though. Even with the windows closed I’ll hear their calls all evening long. Nature’s choir lulling us to sleep.

Share this post

Hide Sites

~Christopher Morley, John Mistletoe

March is nearly at an end, it’s time to look ahead to April garden chores. Though temperatures rise throughout the month, rain is the norm in many parts of the country. It’s important to remember not [...]]]>

“April prepares her green traffic light and the world thinks Go.”

~Christopher Morley, John Mistletoe

March is nearly at an end, it’s time to look ahead to April garden chores. Though temperatures rise throughout the month, rain is the norm in many parts of the country. It’s important to remember not to work in the garden when the soil is very wet. Soil compaction is deadly to plants whose tender root systems need air for proper growth. As always, keep notes in your garden journal through the month about any pests, diseases and prevention so you can refer back in future seasons.

• Indoors: Transplant March seedlings when the tops are 1 1/2″-2″ tall and/or the roots extend outside the pot. Bottom-water and fertilize once a week with organic fertilizer. Now is the time to sow seeds indoors for annual flowers and herbs, corn, beans (yes, beans can be started indoors), cucumber, okra, melon, summer and winter squash.

• Seeds outdoors: Second sowings of lettuce, beets, peas and turnips can be planted as well as seeds for kohlrabi, celeriac, salsify, New Zealand spinach, amaranth, parsnips and radishes. Seeds for perennial flowers and hardy annuals like poppies, Bells of Ireland, larkspur and sweet peas can also be sown directly into the soil.

• Plants Outdoors: Plants of broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, cabbage, artichokes, asparagus and oriental greens can be set out into the vegetable garden. Be sure to mulch well. Plant lily, gladiolus and other tender summer bulbs, garlic sets, rhubarb crowns and roses as well. Transplant new trees and shrubs and fertilize existing ones before new growth starts. Use organic dormant oil spray on fruit trees to prevent emerging insect damage and mulch well with compost. Flowering shrubs should be pruned after they bloom. Now is a good time to divide crowded perennials and re-plant.

April is a busy time for the gardener, both indoors and out. Remember, if you live in a zone where late frosts aren’t uncommon use of row covers (sheets, blankets etc.), cloches (milk jugs, soda bottles with bottoms removed) and hot caps (see here) will prevent lethal damage to tender seedlings. Happy planting!

Share this post

Hide Sites

~Soren Kierkegaard

I don’t know why I let it happen every spring, but I do. The beautiful sunshine beckons me outdoors where I’ve longed to be all winter. Sowing seeds in warmed soil, relaxing outside with a book [...]]]>

Most men pursue pleasure with such breathless haste that they hurry past it.

~Soren Kierkegaard

I don’t know why I let it happen every spring, but I do. The beautiful sunshine beckons me outdoors where I’ve longed to be all winter. Sowing seeds in warmed soil, relaxing outside with a book and delighting in the longer days that will soon seem endless. My mornings are filled with birdsong, the days with sunshine and everything wonderful about spring. Then I look around.

The shrubs need to be pruned, the weeds pulled, the compost turned and the beds cleared. The perennials need to be divided, the seedlings transplanted and the fence mended. A trellis is leaning, the grapevines falling and the grass is littered with debris from winter winds. *SIGH* So much to do! All at once I’m hurrying. There’s not enough time to stand and enjoy the sweet scent of soil in the air or notice the buds swelling each day on the trees. I have work to do! I’m very busy!

I was in the middle of listing today’s garden chores when the phone rang with an offer so sweet I had no choice but to accept. Our eldest daughter needed to pick up her wedding gown. I sat looking out the window while we chatted, suddenly I wasn’t so worried about getting everything done.  After all it’s only March, spring has only just begun. The garden will get planted, the yard cleaned and straightened just as it does every year. Life has a way of interrupting my haste and reminding me “Don’t hurry, don’t worry and don’t forget to stop and smell the flowers.” Today I did just that…after we picked up her dress.

Share this post

Hide Sites

~Peter Fonda

I knew when I heard the soft sound of buzzing it was officially spring in the garden. If the bees are awake and foraging what other proof could we demand? At once the transformation from winter to spring [...]]]>

It’s wonderful to me that bees have this simple, age-old thing going on.

~Peter Fonda

I knew when I heard the soft sound of buzzing it was officially spring in the garden. If the bees are awake and foraging what other proof could we demand? At once the transformation from winter to spring is over and we are in the midst of warmth, sunshine and early preparation of the garden. Yes, it’s a bit early and surely late snows will send my friend into hiding again. No matter… this busy bee has brought a celebration to my garden!

I’ve been working outside in the gardens for more than a few days now. I’ve raked up dried grass, cut back perennials and removed thick layers of wet, matted leaves smothering yellowed and light-starved foliage. I’ve plunked in rows of peas and lettuces and carrots and watched birds return to gather bits and twigs for nests. Truthfully, it never really felt like gardening until I heard the gentle buzzzz. It’s the happy busy bee making my garden so delightful to work in and profitable as well. Garden labor is fruitless, quite literally, without the unceasing efforts of the precious bees.

I’m celebrating the return of these happy, hard-working friends! Once again they’ve triumphed over environmental onslaughts to feed and feast upon early blooming crocuses. Throughout the season we’ll work side-by-side in this petite patch to grow a green, fruitful and healthy garden in which we all thrive. The bees’ return signals not only the beginning of spring, but a new beginning in my efforts to have healthy, organic, safe places to live and grow. A bee in my garden… now that’s worth celebrating!

Share this post

Hide Sites

~T. Roosevelt

Every now and then a random conversation will spark an idea for a blog post.  Yesterday I mentioned that liquid kelp is a valuable and nutrient rich fertilizer for plants to a vegan friend who [...]]]>

Have you got a problem? Do what you can where you are with what you’ve got.

~T. Roosevelt

Every now and then a random conversation will spark an idea for a blog post.  Yesterday I mentioned that liquid kelp is a valuable and nutrient rich fertilizer for plants to a vegan friend who was searching for an alternative to animal-based fertilizers. That got me to thinking about the organic solutions I use created from other plants and used as fertilizers and preventatives. The best time to spray plants is in the cool early morning or late afternoon. Always test the spray on a few leaves first, if there’s no negative reaction, treat the entire plant. Julia, these are for you!

Fertilizers:

• Liquid Kelp (or seaweed) is valuable in starting seeds, preventing damping off and makes a nutrient rich foliar spray for indoor and outdoor plants. The plants’ leaves and roots store the nutrients so apply only 3x a season: at the seedling stage, upon setting plants out and at the blossoming stage.
• Compost Tea: Used like manure tea only it’s made from your own kitchen compost. To make simply put 2 c. of compost into a mesh bag, old pantyhose, sock etc. and place into 1 gallon of water. Let steep for 48 hours. For large outdoor gardens put two shovel-fulls of compost into a large container  and fill with water. Let sit 48 hours before using.

Prevention:

• Damping off: Chamomile Tea used to treat the soil when starting seeds will prevent damping off.
• Powdery Mildew: Horsetail tea (yes, horsetail that horrible invasive weed!) can be used effectively against powdery mildew on vegetables. A few dried leaves mixed into a gallon of water and allowed to steep for a day will make a concentrate that needs to be diluted before use. Mix 1 part tea to 5 parts water for use as a foliar spray.
• Downey Mildew: Chive spray. Chopped chives simmered in hot water for a few minutes and strained will make an effective foliar spray for cucumbers and winter and summer squash. It also helps to repel chewing insects.
• Black Spot: Apple cider vinegar (about 2-3 Tbsp.) mixed into a gallon of water and sprayed on roses will treat leaves affected by black spot.

There are many more. It’s worth taking a little time to read and research natural organic methods to use in the garden as preventatives and solutions to problems. It’s just as easy to mix up an herbal foliar spray as it is a harmful, synthetic concentrated one. The big difference is your health, the health of your garden and the beneficial organisms living in it. For more solutions visit the concoctions page.  Green and easy!

Share this post

Hide Sites

~Bill Rodgers

The rains have moved in and happy outdoor seed sowing days have come to an end for now. It was wonderful to be out in the sunshine (in short sleeves no less!) turning over the winter rye and marking furrows for tiny seeds. The warm [...]]]>

I like rain, actually.

~Bill Rodgers

The rains have moved in and happy outdoor seed sowing days have come to an end for now. It was wonderful to be out in the sunshine (in short sleeves no less!) turning over the winter rye and marking furrows for tiny seeds. The warm breeze whisked away the winter chill and rippled the sheets on the clothesline until they were dry. The sunshine and hazy blue sky erased every memory of longing for spring…even if just for one day it was here.

Funny though how the rain is so much more delightful to me when seeds are in the ground. Every plop, plop, plop sinking down to the peas as they plump and swell. I imagine the lettuce and spinach seeds waking and stretching to the surface ready to pop forth in a wave of green at the next hint of sunshine. Oddly, I feel productive knowing the day isn’t wasted because of inclement weather but rather the garden is busy at work waking and growing. As fickle a month as March may be, the seeds will press onward and upward knowing their time in the sun is close at hand.

For now I’ll rest, sitting by the window with a hot cup of tea and listening to the raindrops fall. Tree buds are swelling, birds are nesting and the snow has vanished completely. Garden life is reawakening and a rainy day is the perfect time to appreciate all that’s changing.  It’s also a good time to rest sore muscles that have forgotten last season’s work over the long winter. I’m sore! No complaints, though. Spring is returning and all is right with the world.

Share this post

Hide Sites

~Theodore Roosevelt

With the “official” first day of spring merely eleven (!) days off,  it’s a good time to plan monthly garden chores. It’s helpful to keep track of progress and record [...]]]>

Far and away the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.

~Theodore Roosevelt

With the “official” first day of spring merely eleven (!) days off,  it’s a good time to plan monthly garden chores. It’s helpful to keep track of progress and record any notes in a journal throughout each month of the growing season. (As always, please keep in mind your USDA zone, your chores may be accomplished earlier or later than my zone 5b/6a garden.)

March

• Indoors: Now is the time to sow seeds indoors for peppers, eggplants, tomatoes, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, artichokes, lettuces and Asian greens. Remember to use a sterile starter mix to promote healthy first roots. If you have seedlings started, remember to bottom water with diluted organic fertilizer when the first true leaves appear and thin out crowded plants by snipping extras off at the soil line with a small pair of scissors. Transplant any seedlings with roots extending outside the pot.

• Seeds outdoors: Seeds for spinach, escarole, peas, fava beans, turnips, dill, fennel, parsley, chervil, mache and swiss chard and sets of potatoes, onions, leeks and shallots can be planted in prepared garden beds from mid-month on.
• Plants outdoors: Prune berry brambles and fruit bushes as well as grapevines and ornamentals. Cut back flower stalks and rake out dry debris from beds. Remove thick, matted wet leaves from beds by hand. Fertilize spring bulbs lightly with bone meal worked into the beds.
• Tools: Inspect all garden tools. Clean, sharpen and repair/replace any that require it. You’ll want to have a reliable hoe, rake, spade, pruners and hand trowel for working in the garden. There are many other wonderful tools and gadgets available, these are the necessities.
• Soil: Spring is the time to enrich the garden with compost and manure if it wasn’t done the fall before. Four inches of well-rotted manure spread on top of the garden and turned under will benefit your plants throughout the growing season.

A  note about compost: Herbicide residues have been detected in commercial composts and manures. When spread into a garden bed the plants grown remain stunted and may even die. The herbicide can persist in the soil for several years, thus affecting crops for many seasons. There is an article available from Mother Earth News here with more information. It’s always important to know the source of anything you add to your soil. Local farms are often a reliable option for composted manures instead of buying commercially. Check your local Craigslist and Freecycle listings.

Share this post

Hide Sites

just within the iron fence, the radiant dandelion, shining in the grass, like a spark dropped from the sun.”

~Henry Ward Beecher

Every gardener has given thought at [...]]]>

“It gives one a sudden start in going down a barren, stony street, to see upon a narrow strip of grass,

just within the iron fence, the radiant dandelion, shining in the grass, like a spark dropped from the sun.”

~Henry Ward Beecher

Every gardener has given thought at one time or another to which flower best represents him/her in the garden. A bloom that exemplifies our very nature and personality. Perhaps the classic rose, or towering delphinium, dainty ruffled poppies or fragrant four o’ clocks. So many varieties…vibrant, subtle, showy and demure and yet I say, “A dandelion for me!”

Yes, a dandelion. Roses are classic beauties, so true, but they can be a bit fussy and prefer a bit of coddling now and then. Poppies are sweetly feminine and delicate yet the blooms never last as long as I’d like. Four o’clocks are easy, colorful and fragrant indeed! They’re short lived, though, and to be an annual one must be committed to a cycle of brand new beginnings. As one who struggles with small changes, that’s not much my style. A dandelion though…

I admire a root that easily taps into soil and drives down deep to sub-layers establishing a stronghold. Though often plucked, trampled and mowed down this lowly “weed” returns unscathed and unoffended to set it’s sights on higher things. Natural tenacity and perseverance! Left alone a dandelion grows, reaching respectable height and setting forth a sunny bloom that mimics the rays of the sun. It basks only a short while before setting about the business of scattering seeds that will touch every part of the nearby garden and beyond. A life fulfilled!

As spring approaches and I set about preparing the garden beds I will undoubtedly come across many dandelions. Truthfully, I will pluck out each one from it’s much-needed space, save the greens and compost the tops. Even in it’s demise this humble plant will serve to nourish our family and new gardens to come. Nothing lowly about that. Oh to be a dandelion!

Share this post

Hide Sites