With the 29" of snow we received last weekend, I have not been able to really do much of anything in my backyard. But, that doesn't mean there aren't any activities that don't have to be completed right now. As experienced gardeners know all too well, the growing season will soon be upon us. So, before you get caught flatfooted, you have to attend to those items that can certainly sneak up on you.
My first priority is to make sure that my seed starting area is primed to begin the processes. That means I need to check the grow lights, fixtures and to be sure I have enough seed starting mixture to get the plants off to a good start. I also have to clean the area around the grow area to insure that it doesn't affect the plants in any way. My area is a combination seed starting bench and tool area. That means I have to clear the bench of any non-garden related item and basically clean the surfaces off.
I also will be cleaning the grow lamp beds and the seed starter unit I have.
Once I get that cleaned up and hopefully the snow has melted so that I can get into my shed, I will have to clean the various tools I have with a bleach and water mixture. I do this in order to kill off any fungus or bacteria that may have grown on the tools over the winter. It's precautionary but yet another practice that is one of many that help the garden produce at it's best.
The next item of business will be to thoroughly clean my rain barrels and move them to their new spots. I will have two in the gardens this year, one at the end of each bed. I will then install a spigot on each of them. I haven't decided if I am going to install a regular hose or try soaker hoses. I probably will experiment and do one each way in the two beds to see which is easiest. After all, ease of use is always a consideration in most gardens.
This will keep me busy for a few weeks if the weather holds and, if we get another snowstorm, a little longer. Not really much else is out there to do as I am basically in a holding pattern for now. Such is the life of a Mid-Atlantic gardener. Until next time everyone, happy gardening!
Sunday, January 31, 2016
Sunday, January 17, 2016
Fertilizer practices
In my quest to become as organic in my gardens as possible, I have followed several practices to attain the organic balance in my gardens. I have instituted a system of cover cropping at the end of each season, I collect and mulch my leaves and grass clippings throughout the summer and fall months, I compost most months of the year, I use an adapted system of crop rotations and I collect and use rainwater for watering. These are considered to be what are called regenerative organic gardening practices. I modeled them after practices that have been developed by the Rodale Institute over their many years of actual field research at their Kutztown Pa. facility.
I used to be a very strong advocate of the raised bed system called Square Foot gardening. While it was productive, I noticed that over the years, I had to continually add fertilizer to the soil which I did. I did not find that the soil maintained it's fertility without an aggressive composting and fertilizer regimen. And, the fertilizer regimen bothered me for many reasons. The reason I was gardening was to produce vegetables that didn't have the inputs such as chemical fertilizers. While SFG had it's certain advantages, I began a quest to become organic.
I stumbled upon the Rodale Institute while watching a segment on Growing a Greener World that is hosted by Joe Lampl. It spiked an interest in them so I searched out their website and, through the years, I have adopted as many of their practices for my small garden as practical. And, the results have been very pronounced.
I have always stayed away from chemical fertilizers in my garden as much as possible. But, there rarely was a year when I didn't use them at least once or twice a year. Due to my adherence to the practices listed above, one of the most striking results is that over the last two years, I have not used any fertilizers whatsoever. And my plants have been healthier and have been producing more vegetables than they ever have. Through the inputs and practices previously discussed, I have been able to stop applying herbicides and such items too. I feel better about that. I know what I am growing intimately and I know I can trust that my crops are as organic as almost any I would buy in a grocery store. Additionally, my vegetables are fresher and more nutritious than the store bought ones given their very short time from garden to kitchen table.
It is very rewarding and I take pride that I have been doing this far longer than organic has been in fashion. I've known that my vegetables have always been healthier for me. I just didn't like the idea I had to use the fertilizers and chemicals that I really didn't trust. And once you see and taste the difference, you too will understand why you too should grow organic in your backyard.
Well, that's all I have for today. I now have to go out and dig out from the 29 inches of snow mother nature just delivered to the Baltimore area. Big fun today. Happy Gardening everyone!
I used to be a very strong advocate of the raised bed system called Square Foot gardening. While it was productive, I noticed that over the years, I had to continually add fertilizer to the soil which I did. I did not find that the soil maintained it's fertility without an aggressive composting and fertilizer regimen. And, the fertilizer regimen bothered me for many reasons. The reason I was gardening was to produce vegetables that didn't have the inputs such as chemical fertilizers. While SFG had it's certain advantages, I began a quest to become organic.
I stumbled upon the Rodale Institute while watching a segment on Growing a Greener World that is hosted by Joe Lampl. It spiked an interest in them so I searched out their website and, through the years, I have adopted as many of their practices for my small garden as practical. And, the results have been very pronounced.
I have always stayed away from chemical fertilizers in my garden as much as possible. But, there rarely was a year when I didn't use them at least once or twice a year. Due to my adherence to the practices listed above, one of the most striking results is that over the last two years, I have not used any fertilizers whatsoever. And my plants have been healthier and have been producing more vegetables than they ever have. Through the inputs and practices previously discussed, I have been able to stop applying herbicides and such items too. I feel better about that. I know what I am growing intimately and I know I can trust that my crops are as organic as almost any I would buy in a grocery store. Additionally, my vegetables are fresher and more nutritious than the store bought ones given their very short time from garden to kitchen table.
It is very rewarding and I take pride that I have been doing this far longer than organic has been in fashion. I've known that my vegetables have always been healthier for me. I just didn't like the idea I had to use the fertilizers and chemicals that I really didn't trust. And once you see and taste the difference, you too will understand why you too should grow organic in your backyard.
Well, that's all I have for today. I now have to go out and dig out from the 29 inches of snow mother nature just delivered to the Baltimore area. Big fun today. Happy Gardening everyone!
2016
Simple enough of a heading, eh? 2016 - a new year and a new garden. I usually make this long list of plants I want to grow and come up with plans on how I want to grow them and where I will place them in my three beds. This year - not so much. Veggie gardening is actually quite simple so I have no idea why I have complicated it so much.
See, you as the gardener have to master the basics. The vegetables have to do all the hard work. After all, they are the ones out in the elements that must endure pests, fungus's and good old mother nature and all she brings to bear. So. you have to really be great at the basics. And the most basic of all items is your soil. A good soil will bear good plants and a great soil will bear great plants. I believe a plant derives much of it's strength and resiliency from the soil it resides in. That's why two neighbors can and often do, get widely different results.
Soil can be tricky for sure. I'm not sure I have the best soil I can get but I do believe I am moving in the right direction. Last year was the third year I planted a cover crop. I can't say enough about cover crops. My plants last year were much more vibrant and certainly more productive. I never gave away so many tomatoes as I did last year. I am going to have to rethink how many of them I am going to grow this year.
My soil is the result of several organic practices that I have adhered to over the last 5 years. It takes time to develop an organic based soil. It's been a long time since I used any types of chemicals on my plants. That was my first step and it had pain associated with it. When I first started, I lost some plants to wilt and other diseases. Painful as that was, I can now say that I haven't seen that type of loss in my gardens for the last 3 or so years.
Having gone through that, the goal now is to enrich the soil with the nutrients and structure that will support the plants through almost anything that can be thrown at it. It sounds like a scary proposition but, in reality, it isn't. One of the many gifts of doing a cover crop is that when you cut the plants down, you are leaving the root structure of the Rye in place in the soil. Those roots add a certain framework for the plants to burrow around and establish deep and firm roots themselves. They also retain existing Nitrogen that is in the soil, meaning that the nitrogen will be available in the spring to your crops. Without the rye, nitrogen will leach to varying degrees from the soil over winter. As the roots of the cover crop roots decay over the summer, they slowly release nutrients to the soil and thereby the roots of the new plants resulting in more vibrant and productive plants. It has been very noticeable over the last two years to both me and my neighbors.
It's mid January now and the cold of winter has taken hold in the mid-Atlantic region. I have done my seed inventory and determined what seeds I definitely don't need to buy to augment my gardening this year. There are some I need but I can wait for the time being. One thing I will do in the next week is seek a source of organic manure. While I don't use a significant amount of it, I feel that it is a good augmentation of my compost and peat moss that I use throughout the summer season.
There really isn't a abundance of things you can do in the garden if you aren't growing winter vegetables now. I need to prepare my tools and I also need to clear the area where I start and grow my seeds. My wife and I went to a well known garden supply store here in Baltimore yesterday that is curtailing their garden operations. I was able to get some structures from them that I intend to use in my garden although I haven't quite worked out how yet. We shall see.
Well, that's all for now. Until next time, happy gardening everyone!
See, you as the gardener have to master the basics. The vegetables have to do all the hard work. After all, they are the ones out in the elements that must endure pests, fungus's and good old mother nature and all she brings to bear. So. you have to really be great at the basics. And the most basic of all items is your soil. A good soil will bear good plants and a great soil will bear great plants. I believe a plant derives much of it's strength and resiliency from the soil it resides in. That's why two neighbors can and often do, get widely different results.
Soil can be tricky for sure. I'm not sure I have the best soil I can get but I do believe I am moving in the right direction. Last year was the third year I planted a cover crop. I can't say enough about cover crops. My plants last year were much more vibrant and certainly more productive. I never gave away so many tomatoes as I did last year. I am going to have to rethink how many of them I am going to grow this year.
My soil is the result of several organic practices that I have adhered to over the last 5 years. It takes time to develop an organic based soil. It's been a long time since I used any types of chemicals on my plants. That was my first step and it had pain associated with it. When I first started, I lost some plants to wilt and other diseases. Painful as that was, I can now say that I haven't seen that type of loss in my gardens for the last 3 or so years.
Having gone through that, the goal now is to enrich the soil with the nutrients and structure that will support the plants through almost anything that can be thrown at it. It sounds like a scary proposition but, in reality, it isn't. One of the many gifts of doing a cover crop is that when you cut the plants down, you are leaving the root structure of the Rye in place in the soil. Those roots add a certain framework for the plants to burrow around and establish deep and firm roots themselves. They also retain existing Nitrogen that is in the soil, meaning that the nitrogen will be available in the spring to your crops. Without the rye, nitrogen will leach to varying degrees from the soil over winter. As the roots of the cover crop roots decay over the summer, they slowly release nutrients to the soil and thereby the roots of the new plants resulting in more vibrant and productive plants. It has been very noticeable over the last two years to both me and my neighbors.
It's mid January now and the cold of winter has taken hold in the mid-Atlantic region. I have done my seed inventory and determined what seeds I definitely don't need to buy to augment my gardening this year. There are some I need but I can wait for the time being. One thing I will do in the next week is seek a source of organic manure. While I don't use a significant amount of it, I feel that it is a good augmentation of my compost and peat moss that I use throughout the summer season.
There really isn't a abundance of things you can do in the garden if you aren't growing winter vegetables now. I need to prepare my tools and I also need to clear the area where I start and grow my seeds. My wife and I went to a well known garden supply store here in Baltimore yesterday that is curtailing their garden operations. I was able to get some structures from them that I intend to use in my garden although I haven't quite worked out how yet. We shall see.
Well, that's all for now. Until next time, happy gardening everyone!
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