Gardening Tips & Ideas

Stake Tomato Cages For Better Results

Written by Hilary on June 17th, 2010

Everyone plants their tomatoes differently. If you’re one of those gardeners that prefer to cage your tomatoes so they don’t sprawl on the ground and risk rotting, then this solution is for you.

Cages However, Have Problems

The problem with standard tomato cages is that they tend to wobble from side to side and many times the plants are so vigorous that they overgrow and overwhelm their cages and eventually pull them down.

The Solution is Simple: Stake Your Cages.

Simply secure the tomato cages by driving two stakes about 1 foot (30 cm) into the ground on either side of each cage and tie the cages to the stakes.

This Will Give You Two Benefits:

1. You get extra height for the tomatoes to grow upwards

2. You have given extra support to the cage so it doesn’t fall apart with the weight of the large plants

Just remember, if you do tie any of the tomato branches to the cage or stakes, use flexible material such as green garden tape so the stems don’t get strangled.

This simple trick will get your tomato plants securely off the ground and you don’t have to watch as your tomato cages start slowly sagging to the ground from the plant’s mass – instead the cages will stand tall – giving the tomatoes the opportunity to grow sturdy and tall themselves and produce tons of healthy tomatoes.

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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Sweet Corn Grows Best When Planted in Blocks

Written by Hilary on June 10th, 2010

During the summer, many gardeners are planting that perfect summertime treat – Sweet Corn.

There are several ways to plant sweet corn, but if you want lots of full ears instead of partially pollinated corn, or no corn at all, then planting corn in blocks is the best way to go.

It’s All About Pollen

You will always have the best possible corn crop when you plant in blocks because it pollinates better.

As we all know, each silk is connected to a kernel and has to be pollinated with some fo the pollen from the plant’s tassel.

If it isn’t, that’s when you don’t get filled ears of corn. That’s why planting in one long row, or only a few rows often doesn’t have as good a yield.

On a windy day, pollen on a single corn row could blow away without pollinating a single kernel, but corn planted in a block is more shielded and the pollen will filter down through the rows.

The Solution:

So plant corn in at least five rows to maximize pollination, get fuller ears, and tastier corn. In fact, a typical block is 10 feet (3 m) by 15 feet (1.5 m) and will grow enough corn for two to three people to enjoy.

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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How To Make Fast and Easy Raised Garden Beds

Written by Hilary on May 27th, 2010

The reason so many gardeners love to make raised garden beds is because the benefits are almost endless and they are fast and easy to make; in fact they take about 10 minutes.

But before we show you how easy it is
Here are some of the benefits:

1. Raised garden beds are great for any kind of early crops, root crops, or heat-loving crops. This is because a raised or elevated bed stays eight to ten degrees warmer than soil at ground level which peppers and tomaotes love.

2. Raised beds drain really well, so this means they dry out faster too, which is OK because the soil is never soggy and the plants do better.

3. Raised vegetables stay cleaner and have fewer disease problems because they don’t get mud splatter when watered or rained upon.

4. A raised bed doubles the depth of loose, crumbly soil so these beds grow the best root crops such as onion, garlic, carrot, and turnips.

5. Raised beds are ideal if you have heavy clay soil.

6. They are also the best for wide row planting because kneeling next to raised beds to plant, care for, or harvest your crops is easier on your back because the plants are higher and easier to reach.

7. The soil in raised beds never gets compacted because you never walk upon it. So the soil stays loose and friable.

Just What Is A Raised Garden Bed?

Now often when the term "raised garden bed" is used, many people think of a large wooden box or a rock or brick outlined container that is raised up.

That’s not what we are talking about. To see how we are going to make our raised garden bed, see the picture at the beginning of this post.

How To Make A Raised Garden Bed

1. You can make your raised bed 16 inches to 24 inches wide (41 to 61 cm) and as long as you want or have space for. It’s up to you.

2. Go down one side of the bed and pull up loose soil into the middle portion of the row. Then switch sides so now you are standing in the area where you took the soil, and pull more soil up and into the middle part of the row.

3. Form the seed bed by lightly dragging your rake down the center forming a flat surface on top of the mound. The raised bed is now about 8 to 9 inches (20 to 23 cm) tall and ready to plant. (For an example see the picture at the beginning of this post)

That’s all there is to making a raised garden bed – so simple!

If you have never used raised beds in your garden, try a couple this year. Once you experience the difference, you’ll never go back to regular rows ever again!

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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9 Tricks For Growing Onions

Written by Hilary on May 21st, 2010

Most gardeners also love to cook, so they tend to plant and grow a lot of onions.

That said however, onions can be tricky to grow. So in order for you to have the most success possible, here are 9 growing and care tips to grow healthy, flavorful onions:

1. During the early stages of growth, onion plants don’t like too much heat or nitrogen. For better onions, don’t over fertilize or subject them to high temperatures when they are young and just starting to grow.

2. Onion sets are easier to plant and give better results than planting seeds or transplants. Onion sets will mature earlier and are less prone to disease.

3. Purchase 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) diameter sets. Bulbs that are any larger tend to go to seed before they have produced a good-sized bulb, and sets that are smaller don’t always grow well.

4. Keep planted onion beds well weeded. Onions don’t like weeds so you can either:

Put down a newspaper mulch by laying down 2 to 3 sheets of wet newspaper and then plant your onion sets by punching holes in the mulch.
Keep the onion plants well weeded by using a sharp hoe or knife to cut weeds off at soil level. Try not to pull weeds around onions because that can damage the onion’s roots which are quite shallow and tender.

5. Once the soil has warmed up with rising summer temperatures, put down a layer of mulch to help keep weeds in check and to help conserve water. (For more about mulch read: The Wonders of Mulch – A Complete How To Use Mulch Guide)

6. Dry soil can cause onion bulbs to split, so water onions regularly allowing the soil to slightly dry out in between waterings but not get completely devoid of any water. Even soil moisture is key for healthy onions.

7. When bulbs start to form, new growth from the center of the plants will stop.

8. After the bulbs form, and the tops start to die back, water should be withheld to help the onion crop cure properly. Too much water at this point can reduce the bulb’s storage life.

Note: That’s why it’s always a good idea to grow onions in their own bed away from other plants. That way the onions will get the curing time to dry. But if you plant onions among other plants that need water, you can rot the onions.

Note: You can still plant onions as companion plants in other parts of your garden, but if you plant the bulk of your main onion crop in its own area, you won’t have plants that need different watering needs right next to one another.

9. Harvest onions by first using the back to a rake to bend over the yellowed onion tops horizontally. Leave them that way for a day or two and when the tops turn brown, pull or dig the bulbs on a sunny, dry day.

Leave the onions out to dry. If the sun is too hot in your area and sun scald is possible, allow the onions to dry somewhere out of direct sun, but still warm with good air circulation.

When the onions’ outer skin is dry, wipe off any soil and remove the tops. Store onions in a cool, dry area, or hang them in mesh bags or braids in an airy place.

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

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Grow The Best Peppers This Summer!

Written by Hilary on April 29th, 2010

Besides tomatoes, peppers are one of the most commonly grown garden crops during the summer.

Gardeners are just crazy about peppers! So, with that in mind, here are several tips to help you grow, healthy, robust, and flavorful peppers this summer.

1. Peppers like evenly moist and evenly warm soil. If moisture levels or temperature levels fluctuate too much you will have problems with root rot and low fruit production. Use a good layer of mulch to help solve this problem.

2. Peppers like well drained soil. If they sit in thick wet soil, their roots will rot. If needed, plant them in containers or raised beds.

3. If you buy pepper seedlings in the nursery to transplant, make sure to look for strong stems and healthy, dark green leaves. Also don’t buy any plants that already have flowers or fruit on them because they won’t produce well for you after you have planted them out.

4. Not to beat the point to death, but as soon as you have planted your peppers, spread a thick mulch around the base of the plants, making sure the mulch does not touch any of the plant’s stem. For more about mulch read: The Wonders Of Mulch – A Complete Guide To Mulching

5. Water deeply during dry spells to encourage deep root development, and help with better tasting peppers. Lack of water can produce bitter-tasting fruit.

6. If any weeds pop up, carefully pull them by hand. Don’t heavily cultivate peppers because you can damage their roots and they won’t produce or grow as well.

7. Very hot days with temperatures over 90° F (32° C), can often cause pepper flowers to drop off and the plants to wilt. To avoid this, plant peppers so that taller garden crops, such as corn, will shade the peppers during the hottest part of the day. If that isn’t possible, putting shade cloth over them can help.

8. Peppers grow best when the soil temperatures are at least 60° F (16° C)

9. Most sweet and hot peppers are at their best when fully mature. That said, in order to keep plants bearing fruit longer, you will have to harvest some peppers before they are fully ripened. That’s OK, they will still taste super.

10. Always cut peppers from the plant, don’t pull them off. You can damage the stem and plant and slow fruit production.

11. Late in the season, at the end of summer, if frost is forecasted pick all the fruit. In fact the entire plant can be pulled up by the roots and hung to dry in a cool place indoors until the fruit ripens.

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

Have great week!

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