Diatomaceous Earth (food grade) At Wholesale Prices Gardening, for people that have too much time. Faith in humanity, restored. SCORE 501 Favorite part of The Lion King SCORE 96 What sex ed should be. Grocery Turtle! My Type of People SCORE 154 It's not about the money... Let's get fat.
Permaculture Guilds - Never Ending Food Permaculture is based on natural systems like those that we see in forests. In a forest system, there are mulitple layers of vegetation growing together in a very diverse setting. We see many types of trees, shrubs, plants, insects, animals, and various other things all living together in a system that continually strengthens itself. All of these components of a natural ecosystem serve a function (or several functions) that support each other like the strands of a web. In order to mimic these natural systems and to provide for human needs (i.e. food, building supplies, fuel, fibers, etc.) we must learn to identify and work with the various functions of our natural resources. A good Permaculture guild generally has seven components: Food for us When building a guild we need to think about maximizing the health and nutritional benefits that we will be getting from our systems. Food for the soil All plants need nutrients to grow, just like we do. Diggers/Miners Groundcover Climbers Supporters
Aquaponics 4 You - Step-By-Step How To Build Your Own Aquaponics System “Break-Through Organic Gardening Secret Grows You Up To 10 Times The Plants, In Half The Time, With Healthier Plants, While the "Fish" Do All the Work...” Imagine a Garden Where There's No More Weeds or Soil Pests, No Tilling or Cultivating, No Fertilizer Spreading or Compost Shredding, No Manure Spreading or Irrigating, and No Tractor Shed Required... And Yet... Your Plants Grow Abundantly, Taste Amazing, and Are Extremely Healthy. WARNING: What You're About To Read Is Life Changing Information, DO NOT Read This If You Don't Want To Discover a Way To Grow Up to TEN Times the Amount Of Organic Produce In the Same Area of Ground, Use 70% Less Energy, And Absolutely Revolutionize Your Gardening and Farming Forever. Dear Gardener, Imagine you knew a secret about growing plants in a break-through new way... to the outside world your organic garden or farm would seem almost "magic", Why? This one family in Hawaii spends less than 1 hour per day. Now wait... this sounds way too good to be true.
27 Medicinal Plants Worth Your Garden Space Playful as kids are, accidents happen. And the accident that befallen me at 7 years old was the feeling of the hot exhaust pipe of a motorcycle kissing the skin of my leg. Grandma was around and saw it. Immediately, she took out a knife and slice the thick lower part of the aloe vera plant by the garden and rubbed the exposed end on the burn. Looking back, I realized that it was important to have medicinal plants around the house cause you never know when you might need them. Aloe Vera The aloe vera grows only under the sun with well drained dry or moist soil. woundscutsburnseczemareducing inflammation Apart from its external use on the skin, aloe vera is also taken internally in the treatment of : ulcerative colitis (drinking aloe vera juice)chronic constipationpoor appetitedigestive problems Marsh Mallow The plant of which marshmallows were once made of. inflammations and irritations of the urinary and respiratory mucus membranescounter excess stomach acidpeptic ulcerationgastritis Camomile
Multi-Rain Barrel System I’ve been wanting to build a rain barrel system for a long time! I wanted something that would store a a large volume of water that can be used in the garden during the long periods without rain. I also wanted to build it in a way that it’s expandable. In other words, I wanted to add to it over time to make it larger for storing more water for even longer dry spells. Here’s what I came up with: Dual Rain Barrel It’s a simple two-barrel system with PVC plumbing. Here are the details for building the system: I began the project by selecting a location. Cinder Blocks stacked for Rain Barrels Once I decided on this location, I leveled the ground where the barrels will be placed. Leveled ground for rain barrels I placed the blocks in a triangular configuration so that the most contact was maintained between the barrels and the blocks. Next, I acquired the plumbing fittings I chose to use. Here are the parts for the inside of the barrel to act as a drain. Plumbing for inside the rain barrel
How to Prevent Tomato Cracking + 4th of July Update How to Grow Delectable Lemon Basils January 28th, 2009 1Email 17 users recommend 'Mrs. Burns' is a large, strongly scented lemon basil. Renée Comet Lemon basil does well as a potted plant. Scott Phillips Cutting stems back just above the second set of lower leaves prevents flowering and promotes leaf growth. Photo: Renée Comet by Susan BelsingerApril 1999from issue #20 Having fallen in love with basil in Italy more than 25 years ago, I did not hesitate when friend and fellow herb grower Tom DeBaggio asked me if I would write a book on basil with him. Basil is the ultimate summer herb; it evokes warm sunny days, luscious fragrances, and mouthwatering food combinations. Lemon basil (Ocimum basilicum var. citriodorum) isoffered by many seed companies. Varieties to tryThe following lemon basils are all named varieties I have grown for years and will continue to grow for their intoxicating fragrance and superb flavor. ‘Sweet Dani’ basil was recently introduced by James E. Sow seeds a seed-width apart in rows 1 to 2 inches apart.
The Plant Lady Grow 100 lbs. Of Potatoes In 4 Square Feet: {How To Quite the clever gardening tip here folks! Today’s feature includes tips from three different sources for growing potatoes vertically (in layers) instead of spread out in rows across your garden. If you have limited garden space or want to try some nifty gardening magic, this could be a great option for you. First, there’s this article from The Seattle Times: It’s Not Idaho, But You Still Can Grow Potatoes: The potatoes are planted inside the box, the first row of boards is installed and the dirt or mulch can now be added to cover the seed potatoes. As the plant grows, more boards and dirt will be added. You plant in one bottom layer, boarding up the sides of each layer and adding dirt as you go higher (you wait until the plants have grown a bit before adding a new layer). I traced the information provided in the article to Irish Eyes Garden Seeds, they also advise you can skip the box and try growing them in a barrel or wire cage instead. Bonus! Here’s a photo:
Flash in the Pan | Flash in the Pan I haven't purchased garlic since 1996. That's because I grow enough to eat a bulb of garlic every day, year-round. While most of my garden adventures are hobby-level attempts at self-sufficiency, my garlic crop is for real. Garlic is an overwintering crop, planted in fall and harvested mid-summer. A year's supply of garlic hanging in your garage hints at many great meals to come, but by the time you reach that milestone the rewards have already been flowing for months. As spring continues, your plants will continue to skyrocket, and in late May—assuming you planted a flowering variety—you'll be treated to a funky display of garlic blossoms curling from the plant tops. The flowering varieties of garlic are collectively called hardnecks, so named because of their woody flowering stalks. The first step in growing your own garlic stash is getting your paws on some good garlic for planting. In my case, x = 365/(5-1), or 91.25, which I round up to 92. Ask Ari: Got milk options? Q: Dear Ari,
Propagating and Starting Potatoes Sunday, 13 March 2011 10:35 Seeds growing from seed is almost unknown (GV) seed potatoes, which are small potatoes saved from last season's crop are the preferred method of starting potatoes Seed Potatoes 2.5 pounds of Mountain Rose seed potatoes are laid out in this photo; each bag in the background also holds 2.5 pounds of seed potatoes of other varieties 2 to 2.5 pounds of seed potatoes plants 25 row feet. it's critical to buy certified disease-free seed potatoes. Chitting 2.5 pounds of Mountain Rose and 2.5 pounds of German Butterball seed potatoes laid out for chitting Note: I shouldn't have cut them before chitting them. Chitting seed potatoes shortens the time between planting and harvesting. Saving Seed Stock SSE: Save the very best potatoes for planting next year. Microplants specilist heritage varietes can be grown from microplants (GV) Cuttings Division Germination
Gardening Tips - 7 Habits of Successful Gardeners Originally published January 2009 Or is it the Seven Pillars of Horticultural Wisdom? As everyone's resolutions remind us, we love attaching a number to advice, a number smaller than the one I regard as most realistic: The Twenty Three Thousand Four Hundred and Sixty-Two Things It's Important to Remember Before Getting Out of Bed. So be warned: I haven't really honed it down to only seven; these are just the first seven essentials that came to mind when I decided to do this. And not in order, either. Make CompostUse CompostPlant Crops in Wide BedsMulchFeed the Soil, Not the PlantsShare SomethingBe There Photo: The compost bins at Stonecrop Gardens in Cold Spring, N.Y. 1. Short version: Mother Nature never throws anything away. Longer version: Composting is the rare silk purse from sow's ear, something for nothing, win-win. It's easy to fall into thinking that compost's last name is bin, and that careful layering and turning are part of the deal. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Got seeds? 7.
How to Grow Green Onions Indefinitely | 17 Apart: How to Grow Green Onions Indefinitely I'm officially dubbing this the week of Scallions and Pinterest. Mary and I separately came across 2 trending ideas for using and growing green onions on the highly addictive bookmarking site, Pinterest, last week — we couldn't wait to try them. When I came home over the weekend with a bunch of scallions, Mary exclaimed, "did you see this scallion/ginger sauce I pinned — you should totally make that!" Little did she know I had pinned it hours before her, which is virtually light years in terms of Pinterest discoveries. I had been planning to make this ginger scallion sauce from Lottie + Doof since I first set eyes on it. It's a great little accompaniment that could be used in so many ways. So, back to scallions and Pinterest. All I can say is... it works! This is it guys — place a bunch of scallions with their roots in a glass full of water, then place in a sunny window. Here's a shot of some of the green onions with 2 that I chopped down to the roots. P.S. Discover More: