Replanting

Today I got a little email from one of my mom's lifelong best friends, Kathi. She loves plants and gardens as well (she first introduced the term "xeriscaping" to me way back before it was cool). Her email contained a little green "tip" horoscope that she had received and wanted to pass along. It reminded me of something I haven't talked about much since one of my first posts:

Hidden in your vegetable scraps are houseplants waiting to be discovered. Cut off a pineapple top, sit it on top of a jar of water until it grows roots, then plant it in a container of soil and you've got a free indoor tropical plant. Replant the bottom half of a green onion with its roots still intact and you'll have more green onion tops to harvest. Turnips and radishes will bloom when replanted. And even discarded beans can be replanted to provide you with pretty flowers to gaze at later on.

When I got started with my garden last year, I decided to save seeds and portions of fruits and vegetables that had sprouted in my fridge. Many people said it wouldn't work, especially with the seeds, because everything we eat is now GM (genetically modified) so consumers don't try to regrow their own food. That might be true- but I decided to give it a try anyway.

I saved a few clementine seeds as well as lemon, grapefruit, sweet peppers, avocado (everyone's tried this as kids, right?), and onion bulbs; I even let an amaryllis go to seed to see what would happen. Well, guess what ye ol' naysayers?

Everything sprouted. And furthermore, all the vegetables produced.

Of course, you have to wait a while on citrus and avocado plants, since they need to be mature enough to produce any fruit, but I did get the sweetest smelling and beautiful flower on one of my little orange trees this winter. If that is all I ever get from them, I'll be happy. They are beautiful, especially in the middle of winter, and they add a touch of Florida home to our Utah apartment.

The moral of this story is- give it a try. You all have seen what we have done despite other people telling us that it can't be done; go ahead and try planting those seeds from the hot peppers you are using for salsa or the lemon you are juicing. As for me, I'm about to head out to the store for a pineapple. =)

Composting 101

"What's so great about compost?"

I've been asked this a lot since I've had to explain about the MS prize. It seems to be a pressing issue on everyone's mind, so I'll explain what I know about it and how you can get started.



Compost is a digested mix of "brown" and "green" material. It is wonderfully full of nutrients which are delicious to your plants; it helps retain water, promotes good drainage, and keeps plants vigorous and disease free (as well as able to fend off pests). This plant treat can be produced in several ways and in varying amounts depending on your space. And for those of you worried about smelly compost, rest assured that well-maintained and properly mixed compost should not give off a smell. If it does, it's a great indication that you're messing up. =)

Getting started:

Decide what kind of composting you would like to do. Since we are dealing with smaller gardens, the two that are most feasible are vermicomposting (using red worms) or bin composting. Both of these types of composting are aerobic composting, which is the reason they should not give off offensive odors (aerobic composting requires some sort of turning, which mixes in oxygen, whereas anaerobic composting just sits and rots).

The benefit of vermicomposting is that it produces more nutrient-rich compost because of the worm castings that are left behind as waste. The worms used in this process are known as Red Wigglers or red worms. They are not available in your front lawn. (We are not talking about earthworms or "nightcrawlers".) They are, however, available through many gardening centers and mail order for a reasonable price.



These little guys don't require much in the way of housing, but they are particular about their environment. The container must be aerated to allow excess water to drain and for oxygen to enter; the air temperature must be mild (55-75 degrees F), and you can't forget to feed them. =) To learn more about vermicomposting, I suggest you check out the book "Worms Eat my Garbage" written by the Worm Woman, Mary Appelhof. If you've got specific questions like "how many worms should I start with?" or "what should I make my container out of?" let me know and I'll try to help you with specifics.

Bin composting can be done in something as elaborate as a commercially-made tumbler or in as simple as something you create out of chicken wire or wood boards.

This type of composting requires layering and manual turning of materials. The benefit over vermicomposting is that it does not require as much labor. Ideally, it is turned every time you add another layer of material but it's up to you how often it is turned.

(ok, that's a little extreme)

Oh, and yes, you can always compost in a trench or by layering in a container and then covering up with some good soil. Stick your plant right in. I discussed this in the last post, but to find out more about this type of composting, check out the book "Lasagna Gardening" by Patricia Lanza.

On to materials:

A good compost mix contains a nearly even amount of "greens" and "browns" as well as enough water to keep it slightly damp (not dripping). In other words, compost should have about 50% fresh material- things like green grass clippings, tea and coffee grounds (for you tea and coffee drinkers out there- looking in Anne's general direction), apple cores, etc., and 50% dry materials- such as newspaper shreddings, wood chips, sawdust, pine needles and dried leaves. It should feel about as moist as a wrung-out sponge.





Try to make the type and size of the materials as varied as possible. A more diverse use of material allows for more activity in beneficial bacteria as well as a higher nutrient content. When it comes to size, bacteria can obviously break down smaller pieces more quickly, but without larger pieces, your compost may not have enough room for oxygen to flow through and can become anaerobic. (Yuck.)

Some great things to include in your compost include:

eggshells

hair and fur

veggie and fruit peels

fireplace ash

nutshells

lint

tea bags and coffee filters as well as grounds

TP rolls

wool and cotton



Some of the materials you should NOT include in your compost mix include:

Black walnut tree leaves or twigs-releases substances that might be harmful to plants

Coal or charcoal ash- might contain substances harmful to plants

Dairy products (incl. egg yolks)- create odor problems and attract pests such as rodents and flies

Diseased or insect-ridden plants- it'll transfer back to other plants

Fats, grease, lard, or oils- create odor problems and attract pests

Meat or fish bones and scraps- see above

Pet wastes or litter- might contain parasites, bacteria, germs, pathogens, and viruses harmful to humans

Yard trimmings treated with chemical pesticides- might kill beneficial composting organisms

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Compost that is ready to use will be a deep color with an earthy smell.



In addition to using the compost under the plants (as a soil ammendment), try using it as a mulch around the top of your plants. And remember, if it smells, something is wrong- add a bit of the "browns" to your pile and give it a good turn.

Hope this intro helps get you on your way; if you have any specific questions, let me know and I'll try to help you out. =)

Next time-
The right mix of soil & drainage in containers- what you thought was right may be wrong! (That'll keep you riveted, eh?)

My Five Minutes of Fame

Actually, it's more like four minutes. I edited this because there was quite a bit of air time between the parts about me. And really, that's what we're here for, right? Kidding.

Anyway, I was nervous, and wasn't really sure when I was actually on the air because of being on hold, so I sound pretty unexcited in my first moment. No, my dear readers, do not let that fool you. I was running around with excitement. It was a great experience. Thanks to you guys for making it happen.

The end of the recording didn't work out, but the guys on the show (who were awesome!) said they would send me a copy so I can make one for my mom- since she missed it (in a brief moment of forgetfulness- she had been waiting all morning for it to come on!). For those who just can not wait to hear how funny my voice sounds on the radio, here you go:

Getting Your Soil Ready and an Early Spring Crop

The ground can become leeched of nutrients after a long growing season so it is next-to-imperative that you get that soil ready before planting or else you risk sub-par results. If you can, add compost or "cured" manure to the soil before setting your seeds or plants out. You can also make a trough where your plants will be located and put in crushed eggshells, matchsticks, coffee grounds (for those coffee drinkers out there), etc. The point is to get nutrients back in the depleted soil which in turn helps your plants fend off diseases, combat pest attacks, and generally have a more robust health record.

If compost is not feasible for you because of budget restraints, you might want to check out the book Lasagna Gardening for Small Spaces: A Layering System for Big Results in Small Gardens and Containers by Patricia Lanza. (There is a version for larger gardens as well.) It has a lot of great ideas about getting those amazing nutrients back in the soil without too much mess or hassle.


Once you're happy with your newly nutritioned (can I make that up?) soil, you are ready to plant. A great early crop can be found in leafy salad greens such as mesclun, romaine, and spinach. Generally, these types of plants thrive with the cooler temperatures of spring and fall but will bolt (get gangly and go to seed) if planted too late in the summer when temperatures soar. It's even been told that lettuce seed will germinate on snow, although I've never felt the desire to give that one a try. I do have lettuce that has been outside all winter; and while it has not gotten very big, they certainly have grown.

My advice: do not wait too long to get them out there.

Growing lettuce is one of the easiest gardening tasks you will have. To begin, I simply prepare the soil by dampening it and tilling a bit to provide a place for the seeds to "stick". I then scatter the lettuce seeds over the soil without covering them. (This advice would be the same for in-ground as well as container gardens.) There are two schools of thought about how thickly to sow as well as thinning; seed packets generally say to thin the seedlings after a period of growth, but many humans (I'm one of them) say to let them be. Allowing them to be slightly crowded encourages the plants to stay smaller, ensuring that you will have an abundance of tender "baby" greens (which are more delicious, anyway, in my opinion!).

A few other early spring plants are peas (I prefer Sugar Snap), sweet peas (a flower), carrots, onion, garlic, and broccoli. You may be surprised by the variety of things you can start planting now. Planting dates vary across the country so make sure you check accordingly before getting your seeds in the soil. A county extension can help with this and is a great resource for gardeners. Keep that one bookmarked in your browser!

Happy Gardening!

Seed Swap

Last gardening season we grew a ridiculous amount of plants. I loved it, my husband loved it, neighbors loved it- but what we did NOT love was how much plants cost. Even seed is pricier than I expected. So my little head got to thinking that I could try a seed swap.



I'm not sure how many of you out there have seeds or collect them, but this might be a way to get your hands into gardening without much startup. Interested? It could go something like this:

Say you've got a packet of seeds, but you only need half. You've also got a plant that can be propogated (basically- regrown) by cuttings or division. You list whatever you've got to share. Pretty soon, there's a healthy little seed exchange list going. You take a look around, find some stuff you'd be interested in, and ask that person if they'd like to trade. Seeds can easily be mailed without much special consideration (mark "hand-stamp" on the envelope) and some cuttings are okay mailed as well.

I could get this set up pretty easily if there's interest.

I'm probably the only nerdy-enough person to want to swap seeds, though. ;)