Given our 7 foot fence around the yard, have to rule out deer…my best guess is a raccoon scaling the fence for a snack. 

Probably the same one who decided that my first tomato looked too good to ripen to save for seeds and pulled the branch off.  It was nice enough to leave the green ones on the fine which I have hung up on my garage where they are turning orange last time I checked them.

My daughters and I started a butterfly garden a couple of years ago, though we have seen a few butterflies pass by this was the first time we have been able to capture one on camera. 

This butterfly was visiting our butterfly bush, which for by many standards is basically a noxious weed.  But it doesn’t need much water, makes pretty flowers, and butterflies/bees like it so seems like a good plant to me.

While heading to a friend’s house we came across a local fruit stand selling fresh peaches.  With the great quality and low prices I couldn’t help leaving with a couple dozen peaches.  By the time I made it back to the car, I knew there is no way we were going to eat this many so Maddie (my recently turned 6 year old) and I decided to make the homemade peach jam.

Now the other than Maddies “pinches of love” we simply followed the recipe on the package of Pectin. 

• 4 pounds of peaches (or about 8 peaches)
• 1 cup of sugar
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
• 1 packet of Ball Fruit Pectin
• 5 pinches of love (each jar)

Now I will share with you a couple of techniques for “cutting up the peaches” I did this by hand because I did not take the time to learn these (yeah I was in a hurry)  First which I like the best is cut the peaches in half (remove pit) and then simply use a citrus juicer to get the meat off.  This also mashes them up a little for you and safe of kids to help out.  If you don’t have a citrus juicer, you can also use the same technique for removing skins off of tomatoes.  Boil the peaches for 30-60 seconds then dump them in an ice bath and the skins should slide right off.  If they still have trouble try leaving them in for another 30 seconds (given they are probably not completely ripe) and you should have better luck.

Add the peaches, lemon, and pectin into a pot over medium heat stirring constantly as it comes to a full boil.  Add sugar then let boil for 1 minute then remove from heat.  Fill jars up to 1/4 inch from the top add lids/rings and boil for 5 minutes and you should have yourself some delicious peach jam which is good for about 12 months in your pantry.

The more educational part of this post is my demonstration of how to improvise when you are missing fancy tools like a water bath canner (ok it is just a large pot) that barely covers the top of the jars.

Here is our “jar tongs” to get the jars promptly out of the water bath using my BBQ tongs. 

In the end the jam setup well and all five jars remained sealed.  Though I think I either need to get a bigger pot or some half pint jars for the next time I try this.

As a finishing touch my daughter insisted on this custom make labels using some mailing labels I had lying around. 

In the end the jars look pretty good and she is excited to start selling them…though we probably will opt to keep a couple jars for ourselves and share a few with some friends/family.

Stevia is an ultra sweet sweetener that has no calories and is grown natively for ages in South America that is 300 times more sweet than other sweeteners.  The good news you can grow your own in your backyard and make some in your own backyard.

1. You can start a stevia plant by seeds but you can save yourself a lot of pain and just buy one at your local nursery and root cuttings in moist soil and keep your plant around for years.

2. Once the plant is 12” to 18” tall harvest top 2/3 of the plant.

3. Place plant on dehydrator tray at 90 degrees F, checking every 8 hours until the leaves are crisp (took 18 hours for mine to get to the correct dryness.

4. Pull off the leaves off of the stem, if the end break off keep those as well (this cab be the sweetest part of the plant)

5. Grind the leaves and into a powder using a blender or coffee grinder.

One teaspoon of raw stevia powder has the equivalent sweetness of 1 cup of regular sugar and can be used as is in baked goods though to make up for the bulk you will want to also add 1/2 cup of unsweetened applesauce.

You can also make your own liquid sweetener by adding 1 tablespoon of raw stevia to 1 cup water and boil for 10 minutes.  Filter leaves out using a coffee filter and keep in the refrigerator for and add to your liquid drinks as needed.

Though not the best summer for tomatoes, our mild summer has been great for strawberries.  Until recently I was picking about a pint a day from our modest “strawberry patch”  Many became a quick snack, smoothies, and others got frozen for consumption this summer. 

This morning the kids wanted something special for breakfast so decided on making some homemade strawberry syrup.

Homemade Strawberry Syrup

Ingredients:

• 2 cups sliced strawberries
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1.5 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon orange zest

Directions:

Combine all ingredients into a small saucepan and bring to a boil.  Lower heat and simmer to allow the syrup to thicken and reduce to about one half by volume (15 – 20 minutes)

Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature before serving

This is great of pancakes/waffles but my daughters also enjoyed this on vanilla ice cream.  With my oldest daughters loves of sugar and strawberries she asked if she could eat it by itself, which I had to say no too…

This is an unfortunately record, being the latest I have gotten my first ripe tomato.  In case if anyone was wondering, this was on the 1 gallon milk carton upside down garden planter.

The jalapenos are doing great, they are loaded with peppers and I already harvested some to make some jalapeno powder.

The Cayenne peppers are looking good and though they are a little late, I am just waiting for them to just begin to change color before I dry them and make some cayenne powder.

The bell peppers are not doing quite as well the ones above have a pretty bad sunburn.

Not quite as bad a sunburn…but still a waste.

Not sure what this one is…any ideas?

You’re not the only one who enjoys your garden—deer, rabbits and even household pets may find your flowers or vegetables to be tasty treats. And, of course, dogs and cats may mistake your garden beds for a great place to do their business.

While organic or eco-friendly pest control is a good idea for combating any type of pest, it is especially important to use non-harmful deterrents when dealing with larger animals, particularly household pets. Fences, lighting, noisemakers and a variety of biological sprays and spreads can help make your garden less appealing and less accessible to unwanted guests.

Physical Pest Control Methods

Perhaps the easiest way to keep animals out of your garden is to fence it in. Dogs, rabbits and even deer will dig, so a good garden fence should extend at least a foot underground, and the spaces should be too small for little heads to poke through. Deer can also jump, so a good deer fence will be 8 feet high. Depending on the size of your yard or garden, a fence can quickly become an expensive means of pest control, but it can also be a beautiful landscape element itself, and well-built fencing will last many years.

If a fence is not an option, then floodlights, noisemakers or motion-activated sprinklers are also effective, but less intrusive, pest deterrents. Neither cats nor rabbits like water, and dogs’ ears are sensitive to certain pitches that can’t be heard by humans. Deer tend to shy away from brightly lit areas and may also be startled by sprinklers or noisemakers, causing them to retreat and avoid the area in the future.

Unique Pest Control Methods

If physical pest control methods don’t work or aren’t enough, there are also many natural chemical options. Diluted hot-pepper sauce sprayed over plants will make them unappetizing. A sprinkle of coyote urine, available at many hunting and outdoor supply shops, around the border of your garden will deter rabbits and deer from coming near, and may also keep dogs and cats at bay.

Biological Pest Control Methods

Of course, like people, animals like certain plants and dislike others. Rabbits, for example, prefer clover to vegetables and hate onions, so planting clover will keep them away from your vegetable garden, and planting rows of onions along the outside of your garden will deter them from going after the tastier vegetables in the middle.

Deer, too, prefer certain plants—namely, clematis, roses, tulips, lettuce, peas, broccoli, azaleas and fruit trees (among others). Avoid these plants, or locate them in a less accessible area of the yard or garden. Disguising these plants among less desirable offerings—such as mint, onions, chives, daffodils, boxwood and butterfly bush—may also protect them.

Author of this guest post is Marco who is an editor over at Luma Gardening.

I was contacted by SoilLogic and offered a free sample of their product Moisture X-Tend.  Though I could attempt to describe their product, I will let them do it in their own words…

Moisture X- Tend helps water penetrate the surface of the potted soil easier and remain within the soil root zone up to 4X’s longer than untreated water.

This innovative soil moisture management product helps prevent water from evaporating too quickly or draining past the roots of the plant. Moisture X-Tend is so easy to use – just add and mix the recommended amount directly to our watering can and water as usual.

The specific claim on the bottle that got my attention was that by using the product you can actually water plants 4 times less often.  I must say I was a little skeptical about this claim, though I decided to give it a try. 

My first attempt was shortly after I brought out a couple of my pepper plants from my grow box.  They both were bearing fruit of similar size and overall plants were of very similar size.  I started by watering one plant with water and the second with Moisture X-Tend and I observed their physical appearance over a period of time.  There was one problem on day two it rained ruining my results.

Having an empty client controlled grow box in my garage equipped with a moisture Vegetronix sensor, I decided this would be a great place to conduct my testing.  I watered two identical pots filled with Miracle Grow Potting Mix (without moisture control) with 250ml of liquid.  One being purified water, the second with Moisture X-Tend as described in the directions and monitored the moisture saturation over time.

As you can see the Moisture X-Tend started out with a much greater water saturation immediately after the watering and continued to hold the moisture 1.5 times longer than water alone.

Now this 1.5 times is quite a difference between the 4 times claim on the bottle, though in their defense this was from a single application and the FAQ on their website mentions that watering frequency is reduced after about a month of use.  I also was using a 4 inch pot and I would suspect that a larger pot would show better results.  If there is interest I am considering extending this experiment over a longer period of time to attempt to prove/disprove the 4 times claim that they mention on the bottle.

Though for me this is not practical to use all summer Moisture X-Tend is a great option when you are going away for a few days on vacation and do not have an automated watering solution or are forgetful like me and just get busy and neglect those poor plants for a day (or two) too long.

Other than gardening I also enjoy cooking manly foods such as chili and BBQ rubs.  One seasoning I have heard being used for both recently was jalapeno pepper powder.  Not seeing any in local stores and having an abundance of jalapeno peppers in my garden I decided to attempt to make my own.

1. First picked some nice green jalapeno peppers from my garden, I chose to use young green ones but you could also use more ripe red ones for a different and less spicy flavor.

2. Next I cut the ends off the pepper, split them in half, and removed any seeds.  After a little trial and error I noticed that if I cut perpendicular to the line in the middle of the pepper (see below) it was much easier to remove the seeds

3. I then placed the halved peppers in a plastic tray and put them in my dehydrator at 90F for 24 hours until they were brittle (when you break them in half they snap with minimal bending) with no soft or moist areas. 

Tip: For difference flavor you can dehydrate at a higher temperature to roast/cook them a little but you will lose some of their heat.

4. Place your dried peppers into a blender or spice grinder and pulse until they create a fine powder. 

Be sure to let the powder settle some and be careful to not inhale the powder, though much less heat then some of its pepper cousins (see chart below) getting a nose full of jalapeno pepper powder is not a pleasant experience (I did try this not too painful, though should have a nice little coughing fit).

5. Finally carefully pour powder into a airtight container and store for 6-12 months.

As I mentioned above you can use this in meat rubs and chili but also can be used anywhere you may use other pepper powders.  Some ideas I am thinking about is complement to Mexican foods, omelets, popcorn, and potatoes.

Don’t have the space, money, and/or time to have a full size pond?  May want to think about adding a small container water garden.  All it takes is a sealed decorative container and you can have an attractive addition to your garden.

I would also recommend the mosquito prevention techniques of creating moving water with a pump or add some goldfish to eat the mosquito larva.

Via apartment therapy, via Likehacker

I first saw this idea on a garden mailing list at work but given most of you are not on that, I figured I should share with the rest of you.  My problem was I had a big bag of seeds and it was always a pain to dif through and find the right seeds for the time of year I was planting.

My solution was to use Darice Bead Container and some Avery Shipping Labels (printed lengthwise) and was able to get 7-8 seed labels out of a singe shipping label.

One printed I added the seeds and labels and grouped by planting time.  After I was done I did have some thoughts about getting even more organized with a little color coding of specific dates…but guess I should take small steps

As you can see from a glance you can find your seeds and do a quick inventory of your available seeds.  With this you can make easy incites like, “I really shouldn’t plant on collecting onion seeds this year” or “I almost forgot to plant fall spinach/lettuce”

Well off knock off a onion flower and plant some spinach and lettuce for this fall/winter.

The common theory is that the origin of the word “strawberry” is based on the practice growing the plants with a layer of straw mulch to help retain moisture, deter pests, and keep the berries cleaner for picking.  There is also a thought that they were simply packaged in straw when being brought to market.

There is one problem with this theory which in this article from Snopes sums up very nicely:

The word ‘strawberry’ has been part of the English language for at least a thousand years, well before strawberries were cultivated as garden or farm edibles. They grew in the wild of their own accord, their berries gathered by folks who happened across strawberry patches. Therefore, although the word’s precise origin cannot be determined, we can certainly throw out any etymology dependent upon the plant’s being bedded in straw to protect it from the cold or keep its berries clean. Even if such practices had been used, they would have begun long after the fruit had been given its current name.

So where did the name ‘strawberry’ come from then?  There are a couple more theories based on the meaning of the word “straw”

One explanation hinges on a particular meaning of "straw" a particle of straw, chaff, or mote describing the appearance of the achenes (tiny yellow seeds) scattered over the surface of the berry. Another view says it comes from "stray" or "strew," designating the spread of the plant’s runners (slender tendrils), in that in an unchecked field of strawberries the plants appear to have been strewn across the ground with their runners straying everywhere.

In the end I guess we really do not know for sure where they got their name, so any other theories out there?

I normally hang my garlic off my bike to allow it to cure and store to use over the winter, but given the large amount of garlic I have grown and I have gotten into better shape and am actually using my bike, I decided to attempt to create a pretty garlic braid.  After spending a 10-15 minutes checking on the internet on the various knots and techniques to braid garlic. 

Lacking some basic knowledge and first hand experience braiding, I eventually got confused, gave up, and  just winged it and discovered a technique I call “Braiding Garlic For Guys” knowing if I handed the bulbs to my two daughters they would have made a perfect braid with them in just a few minutes.  And yes, my wife does not trust me to do our daughters hair…

Step 1: Dry your bulbs

Lay them out into the sun to dry for one hot day.  You will be letting the garlic dry longer though this is primarily to get the dirt dry on the bulbs to make Step 3 (Clean up your bulbs) a little easier.

Step 2: Select the right bulbs

If you are lucky enough to only grow large perfectly formed bulbs with no imperfections you can skip this step, but if you are like me you should have at least a few bulbs with small cloves or some that are split open.  Set these bulbs aside and use right away in your cooking or do like I did and use them to make some garlic powder.

Step 3: Clean up your bulbs (optional)

Though creating a garlic braid is a good compact way to store your garlic it also looks pretty cool when done right.  To make sure it looks its best give each of the bulbs a little haircut by trimming their roots to about 1/4 inch using scissors or shears  Follow this with a quick cleaning by a little brushing of your hand and/or a quick brush with an unused toothbrush.  Given I am just hanging my garlic in my garage I was a little lazy on the clean up.

Step 4: Start your garlic braid

Begin by taking your 3 largest bulbs and laying them side by side in front of you.  Take the stems of the bulbs on the left and right and cross them over the one in the center.

Now take whatever stem (right or left) that is on the bottom and bend it over the stem in the center (which now becomes the new center)

Here is an illustration but easier if you don’t think about it too much:

Step 5: Repeat yourself

Give the right and left side a little tug to make everything is tight and lay a new bulb on the middle of your garlic braid (center) then bend over the stem from the other side over the center (which now becomes the new center) and repeat this step until run out of garlic bulbs.

Step 6: Finish things off

Repeat what you have been doing in Step 5 three or four times obviously skipping the add a garlic bulb to help secure the last few bulbs in place.  Finish by tightly tying a piece of twine or string at the top of the braid to keep things from unraveling and giving you something to hang your beautiful braid in a dry location to have garlic which will keep for about 6 months.

Tip: When you need some garlic just cut or pull off bulbs as you need them.  I personally save the largest bulbs to replant in the fall to harvest the following year.

I like to use garlic powder for making my own BBQ rubs and in cooking where I am too lazy to cut up some fresh garlic.  Whenever I go to buy garlic powder at the grocery store I normally end up convincing myself to get 11 ounces of garlic salt at $3.99 versus the $7.49 for a 9 ounce container of garlic powder.  Though this not what I really wanted, the cheapness in me always wins.  Given I picked up a fancy food dehydrator recently, this year I have opted to make my own.

When creating my garlic braid I found many imperfect bulbs as well as some small bulbs which I set aside to be the victims into making garlic powder.

Step #1: Peel the and clean the cloves

The title pretty much sums it up but you need to get the cloves and peel off the outer layer of all the cloves.  I normally following this up with a quick rinse to help get rid of the various loose pieces and make them a little less sticky (and smelly)

Step #2 Slice the garlic

The size is not that important, though the general idea is all of the slices should be about the same general size.  This way they all should complete drying at the same time.  Obviously the smaller you slice the quicker they will dry which may not be a good thing which I will explain later.

Step #3 Dry the garlic

Place the garlic in your food dehydrator with no pieces touching at 125-130F (or as close as yours can get) and if you sliced thin they could be ready in about 12 hours or if they were huge hunks like mine more like 3-4 days.  The easy way to tell if they are done is by picking the largest clove chunk you can find and break it in half with your fingers.  If it brittle and breaks cleanly they are ready, if it is soft and bends some check again in about 8-12 hours.

Step #4 Grind the garlic

Here is where you have a couple options, you can grind all of the cloves using a spice/coffee grinder and store in an airtight container or simply store the chunks in an airtight container and grind into powder as needed.

If you smell the chunks you may be surprised that there is not a strong garlic smell, that is because the outside has become oxidized.  Though if you break one in half and take a smell or pop it in your mouth (if you are daring) you will see there is plenty of flavor inside.  If you grind the garlic chunks they will start to oxidize reducing their effectiveness and given the new much larger surface area of the small particles it will not take long for your garlic to lose the great aroma it previous had.

You can preserve this potency longer by keeping the garlic as chunks and grinding it into powder right before using.  Though bringing out and cleaning a spice grinder each time you cook with garlic can be a pain, so I would recommend grinding as much as you expect to use for a couple months and save the garlic chunks in an air tight contain and grind when needed so you always have fresh garlic powder ready to use.

As with any spices once opened they are good for about 6 months ground or 12 month whole when stored in an airtight container and twice those numbers if vacuum packed.  So the garlic chunks are useable for one year with about half that for ground variety.  You can also store garlic powder or garlic chunks in an airtight container in your freezer to gain a few extra months.

Sand has the largest particle size of all these components and creates large gaps between them which is excellent for water to flow through and roots to grow in.  On the contrast it is terrible for retaining water and will dry out quickly.

Silt has medium size particles and if you had to choose a single component for effective growing this would be it.  Its particles are large enough to allow healthy root growth and also retains water.  Though some plants like their roots to be a little more on the drier side so in isolation this may not work for all plants

Clay has the smallest particles thus making it very difficult for water to flow through it.  Not really much positive to say about this stuff though if your goal is to hold water this property can be great when used as a substructure out of your plants normal growing area 1-2 feet down, think of it as a natural earth box.

Organic Material is the good stuff (leaves, compost, grass clipping) the stuff that makes your “dirt” alive and becoming living soil.  This feed beneficial bacteria and worms to provide rich vermicompost to add natural nutrients to your garden.

Now we know what we are looking for, lets find out what we have in our back yard.  All of my vegetable gardens are raised which consist of soil I have brought in myself so I know they will be very loamy and high in organic matter to makes things more interesting.

1. Get Dirt: I dug a small hole (about 6 inches deep in a dead part of my lawn.  I filled an apple juice container about 2/3 full.  Any container can work for this as long as it is clear and uniform in shape/volume (width/depth) at the bottom.

2. Add Water and Shake: Fill with water about 1-2 inches from the top and shake for at least one minute to ensure particles are well mixed

3. Let Soil Components Rest: Set on a flat surface until water on top is clear or 24 hours (whichever comes first)

Before

After

4. Do the Math: After the dust particles have settled you should see 3 distinct lines and possibly some stuff floating in the water.  The sediments will settle according to their particle size (sand, silt, clay) and organic material should float above the water. 

Given the knowledge mentioned above we can now calculate the percentage of each soil component to determine our soil type take a couple simple measurements. 

Total Soil Height = Measure from the bottom of the container to top of sand/silt/clay

Sand Height = Measure from bottom of container to top of sand

Silt Height = Measure from top of sand to top of silt

Clay Height = Measure from top of silt to top of clay

% Sand = Sand Height / Total Soil Height X 100

% Silt = Silt Height / Total Soil Height X 100

% Clay = Clay Height / Total Soil Height X 100

Example of math using my Data

69.47% Sand  = 66mm / 95mm X 100%

29.47% Silt     = 28mm / 95mm X 100%

1.05% Clay     = 1mm / 95mm X 100%

Tip: You can measure with cm/mm/inches and the formulas will still work out as long as you use the same units for all measurements

Now using your Sand/Silt/Clay percentages you can now use the triangle diagram below to determine your soil type.  Though it can vary depending on the types of plants you are growing (i.e. succulents like the sand) but in general a nice “Silty loam” is what you want to shoot for, so if you are lacking adding some organic matter is the best way to get moving in that direction

Image from http://web.bethere.co.uk/fm/soil/formed/f0107.htm

Using my data I have “Sandy Loam” soil, though if I would have dug a few inches deeper I would have had a much higher percentage of clay.  Even if you are sure you know what your soil type I recommend trying this out you might end up surprised.

Organic gardening is a hobby many find relaxing and rewarding, and you can take a bite out of your produce bills by eating the delicious fruits and vegetables your efforts yield. However, between the many different planting and gardening tools and supplies you’ll need, the costs can really add up, and anything you can do to save a buck or two here and there will help. Fortunately, there are all kinds of simple money-saving gardening tips for the organic gardener looking to keep expenses under control.

Save Money on Seeds and Planting

If you’re looking for plant trays, hold off before buying brand-new ones. Many garden centers and nurseries will be more than happy to give you their used ones, so be sure to ask if you’re heading out there to pick up seeds or supplies. You can use them as starting pots; they work especially well for kicking off a hardy plant’s growth cycle.

Reusing household items for your gardening whenever possible is one of the best ways to save a few bucks. For example, rather than purchasing seed storage containers, you can use empty film canisters, which you can label to ensure you know which seeds are which. Separating individually started seeds in yogurt containers, plastic bakery trays or ice cube trays is another strategy you can use.

More Money-Saving Organic Gardening Tips

If you’re new to the world of organic gardening, it’s a good idea to get secondhand tools and supplies; you may also find it worth your while to choose plants that are easy to grow and care for so you’re not wasting time and money on finicky, fragile and difficult plants. Mint, lemon balm, thyme, sage and rosemary are excellent beginner herbs. Garlic, radishes, kale and potatoes are recommended vegetable crops for new organic gardeners.

You can cut down on your water usage by harvesting rainwater and creating tiny irrigation moats around your garden that allow you to store water and direct it to where it’s needed. Plants thrive when they’re given rainwater to drink; it’s naturally softened, free of chemicals and additives, and it’s pH-neutral, which in turn helps you maintain the proper pH level in your soil.

Get creative to save even more. If you have old tree stumps, make them part of your garden plan instead of paying several hundred dollars for professional removal. Simply hollow out the center of the stump and grow plants in it!

About the Author

Dontel Montelbaun is a lead writer for www.livetogarden.com, and is an advocate for organic gardening. On LiveToGarden.com you can find articles from Dontel focusing on flowers, outdoor living and landscape design.

Though there are many sites that contain this information, my experience in the past you have to go through a series of detail on colors and attributes of the insect/fungus and without a degree in botany or Entomology I really have little idea what they are asking for.  Gardeners.com’s “Pest and Disease Detective” on the other hand allows you to simply select the specific plant and the area that is being attacked (leaves. stems, flowers, fruit, roots) and it will show you thumbnails to quickly identify the pest/disease that is harming your plant.  With a simple click you go right into the description and details how to terminate the problem. 

Simple but effective just the way I like it…

The tomatoes have been lacking this year though the peppers are still doing great. 

Under normal circumstances this would make no sense at all but the secret with this success is the two months this summer these peppers have been spending in the grow box with their perfect temperature and lighting conditions…otherwise there is little hope for me growing peppers in my short season here in the Pacific Northwest.

I have been providing (mostly weekly) updates on progress on my two tomato planter designs.  So far the 2-liter is the only plant with any fruit, though before looking at this as a failure…due to the poor weather we have been having I have no fruit on the tomatoes growing in the ground.

How has your success been with your upside down vegetables?  Please share your pictures in the forum.

I have been having a losing battle with cattails for the past couple years.  This was what was lurking under my snow peas after I pulled them out.  The problem with cattails is they do not emerge until the temperatures increase and given their broad root structure trying to remove them will most likely kill the plants (in this case peas) surrounding them. 

If you attempt to pull cattails not only will you not kill them but this disturbance will actually encourage more growth.  There are a couple of techniques to stop these evils weeds, first is instead of pulling them cut them at the base, second it to shade them.  I decided to attack these weeds using both techniques.

Step 1: Chop weeds to their base.  I used some scissors to cut down all of the cattails at their base.

Step 2: Covered the weeds.  I used black plastic to smother the weeds.  Not only will this smother the weeds but also bake the soil to kill any bacteria/fungus (or any other weed seeds) to hopefully end up with a moderately sterile soil when I plant next year.

Not to waste any of my very limited space in my garden, I moved my peppers and one tomato plants to this location.

If I didn’t have a big house blocking my southern exposed window, otherwise I would have completely tried this myself.  The basic idea is to take come recycled plastic bottles, use an air pump and some tubing to create an air water pump to push the nutrients to the top and gravity takes care of the rest.

The great part of this is that it is an open design community making and sharing new innovations as they are discovered.  Here are the complete instructions of the most recent (version 3) of their system.  They also offer a complete kit, you just have to provide the recycled bottles.

Via LifeHacker [via Window Farms]

Egg shells are a great additive to increase the calcium content in the soil of your vegetable garden.  Calcium is important to plants specifically because it helps with cell wall structure imperative for strength of plants.  There are many specific plants that respond well calcium supplementation: apples, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, cherries, citrus, conifers, cotton, curcurbits, melons, grapes, legumes, lettuce, peaches, peanuts, pears, peppers, potatoes, tobacco, and tomatoes [1]

Now you know why you need calcium in your garden, now lets talk about how you can make your own calcium supplement at home from egg shells heading to your trash. 

1. When cooking eggs for breakfast or baking rinse them quickly.  They do not have to be spotless just enough so they will not create an odor.

2. Lay the shells on a cookie sheet or a piece of aluminum foil in your oven for 5-6 minutes at 350 degree F until the egg shells start to brown.  I normally do this when I am doing some baking and throw them in while the oven is preheating, by the time I am ready to bake the eggs are ready to go.

3. At this point (after they cool for a few minutes) you can simply put the shells in a plastic bag and roll them out with a rolling pin, though the smaller you break up the shells the easier it is to leech the calcium out of them.  For this reason I like to use my Magic Bullet using the grinding attachment to really pulverize the shells into powder.

4. Place the egg shells into a sealed container for future use.  I used the same aluminum foil I used to bake them to funnel the powder into an old spice container.

How to use your ground Egg Shells:

1. Sprinkle a couple of teaspoons into planting holes when transplanting new seedlings

2. Sprinkle on surface and gently work into soil when tomatoes are beginning to flower to prevent blossom end rot and promote overall health of the plant

3. Add 2 tsp of egg shells to 1 liter of water and let them sit for 24 hours, apply directly to plants

4. Add ground egg shells to your compost bin.

5. Sprinkle around plants to deter slugs

Summer has finally appeared here in the Pacific Northwest with temperatures in the 90s I decided this would be a good time to dry some herbs in the garage given it was already at the right drying temperature without any heating required.

Here is the basic steps to harvest, dry, and store your own dried basil.

1. 1. Pick and clean (optional) the leaves
2. Start by trimming as much as you may need for the next month.  If the leaves are dirty give them a quick rinse and pat them dry with a paper towel.  If the leaves are clean you can skip this step.  You want to pick the greenest leaves you can find.  In my case many of the leaves were not as green as I would have likes (they are getting better now the weather is improving)
3. 2. Strip the leaves from the stem
4. Unlike oregano this part if very easy use scissors (or just pinch off with your finger nails.
5. 3. Dry the leaves
6. If you have a food dehydrator place the leaves in a single layer and set to 90-100 degree F for about 24 hours.  Alternately you can also dry the leaves by placing them in a screen in a dry warm place.  You will know they are down when the leaves are crispy and can be pulverized easily with your fingers.
7. 4. Storing the leaves
8. Now you have two choices:
9. 1. Keep the leaves whole and chop them as you need them for added flavor
10. 2. Chop them up using a spice/coffee grinder (or Magic Bullet with the grinding blade) and use them immediately as needed

As you can see the freshly dried basil (left) looks much better than the stuff hanging around in my spice rack, which was only a few months old. 

The picture above had two purposes, I actually place my herbs on paper then fold to easily pour into the old bottles.

Cloning herbs is an inexpensive and fast way to expand your herb garden.  This is also a great method to possible give or receive (with permission of course) from friends/neighbors.

Unlike cloning other organisms, plants have a much simpler procedure you can do in your kitchen.

1. Take cutting from mother plant.  Cut a stem of total length of about 4-5 inches, cutting 1/2 inch above a leaf node.  The leaf node is where the leaves attach to the stem.  You want to make this cut at 45 degrees with a sharp knife/razor blade/shears.

2. Remove 2-3 sets of leaves.  You want the plant to concentrate of growing roots rather than leaves so you need to trim off the sets of leaves that will be in water/rooting medium.

3. Start rooting process.  You can apply a rooting hormone if you wish but I have had great results without needing to do this.  Depending on the type of herbs you need to place your cutting in simply a container filled with water or some sort of rooting medium (Coir/Perlite/Coarse Sand/Rooter Plugs)

Herbs to start in water:
Basil, Thyme, Mint, Oregano

Herbs to start in Rooting Medium:
Lavender, Lemon Verbena, Lemon Balm, Rosemary, Sage, Santolina, Savory, Scented Geraniums, Stevia

Water Only Care.  With the water only option you should change the water every couple days and ensure that the roots are always under water.  You should see roots in a week to a week and a half.  After the roots are well established you can then plant outdoors or to a 4 inch pot.

Rooting Medium Care.  You will need to water the plants daily to ensure there is adequate moisture.  After a couple weeks you should see that the cutting has a well established root system and can be transplanted to pot or outdoors.

Other ideas

I use this technique to save some money by purchasing a single plant at the my local garden center and then cloning to fill the space to get the harvest I am looking for.  One other idea is to plant fresh herbs purchased from the grocery store, success may vary but should be fun to try…

This is also a great technique to extend your fresh basil throughout the winter.  At the end of your outdoor season take a couple cuttings and place in water indoors.  Use the fresh basil and when the plant appears to weaken take another cutting and repeat the process.  Fresh basil all winter and a good basil plant ready for next spring.

Lots of blossoms, still waiting for that first fruit, hopefully our warmer weather coming this week helps out…

This winter I went through my spice rack (which was given as a wedding gift 11 years ago) and threw out any spices I have yet to open and took inventory of spices I have at least used half of the container.  These herbs were added to my growing list which one of which was oregano.

 Here is the basic steps to harvest, dry, and store your own oregano:

1. 1. Pick and clean (optional) the leaves
2. Start by trimming as much as you may need for the next month.  If the leaves are dirty give them a quick rinse and pat them dry with a paper towel.  If the leaves are clean you can skip this step.
3. 2. Strip the leaves from the stem
4. You can try to save some time and plan on doing this after you dry but the stems will be come very brittle and will lead to a lot of tiny stem picking later.  The easiest way to do this is to run your finger down the plant from the end of the stem toward the beginning that should get the leaves off pretty easily and quickly.
5. 3. Dry the leaves
6. If you have a food dehydrator place the leaves in a single layer and set to 90-100 degree F for about 24 hours.  Alternately you can also dry the leaves by placing them in a screen in a dry warm place.  You will know they are down when the leaves are crispy and can be pulverized easily with your fingers.
7. 4. Storing the leaves
8. Now you have two choices:
9. 1. Keep the leaves whole and chop them as you need them for added flavor
10. 2. Chop them up using a spice/coffee grinder and use them immediately as needed

As you can see the freshly dried oregano (left) looks much better than the stuff hanging around in my spice rack.  Can’t tell from the picture but also smells much better too.

“In other environmental issues we tell people to stop something, reduce their impact, reduce their damage,” – US Ecologist Gary Nabham

Since the beginning of the green movement, there has been a rise in the number of organizations and businesses that are doing their part in the promotion of sustainability through conservation. As human beings, we’re told to reduce our carbon footprint, consume less unhealthy foods, and spend less time in the shower! But let’s take a minute to step back and look at this from a different perspective; one that Gary Nabham strongly suggests.

 Gary Paul Nabham, phD., is a Arab-American writer/conservationist who’s extensive farming work in the U.S./Mexico borderlands region has made him world renown. Specifically speaking, Nabham is known for his work in biodiversity as an ethnobotanist. His uplifting messages and attitude towards life and culture has granted us access to multiple beneficial theories including his latest of eat what you conserve.

According to The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, about three quarters of the genetic diversity of crops been vanishing over the last century and that a dozen species now gives 90% of the animal protein eaten globally. In accordance, just 4 crop species supply half of plant based calories in the human diet.

Nabham claims that by eating the fruits and vegetables that we are attempting to conserve/save, we’re promoting the granular dissemination of various plant species. But this goes beyond what we typically buy in supermarkets, particularly because of price and abundance. We must remember to try new things and immerse ourselves in the very concept of diversity. Keep in mind; the benefits of splurging for that costly fruit/vegetable supremely outweigh the cons. Not only are you promoting biodiversity and further eliminating the needs of farmers to remove rare, less purchased crops off their agenda, but you’re also effectively encouraging healthier lifestyles.

Agriculturist Marco Contiero mentioned that “biodiversity is an essential characteristic of any sustainable agricultural system, especially in the context of climate change.”[ 1] With sustainable crop efforts being lead by the CGI (Clinton Global Initiative) and the IRRI (International Rice Research Institute) the duo plans to provide a more sustainable crop, untouched by natural disasters, much like the ones experience in Haiti and neighboring areas. Contiero goes on to state “We need to ensure this is the basis for the future…” – This is exactly what Doug Band, the CGI, and the IRRI are doing by engaging in sustainability efforts.

So remember, next time you’re in the supermarket picking out navel oranges or strawberries, turn your attention to something that’s a bit more “out of season,” or exotic in nature. The same goes for salads/salad ingredients; shop outside the norm, picking spices and vegetables that you wouldn’t normally incorporate into your everyday diet. During such economic downtime it isn’t always easy to maintain the same level of grocery shopping intrigue, but we must also not forget that in this sundry of foods we can find fun!

Dan Grifen – Supporter of all things green and progressive.

While heading to my local home improvement I noticed an unusual plant in the herb display and moved closer to investigate.  It turned out to be a Stevia plant which is more well known as the primary ingredient in a new artificial sweetener Truvia.  I immediately grabbed a good looking plant, I have wanted to grow one of these myself but given the high price of the seeds and it is known to have serious germination issues and normally leads to failure.

The stevia plant can grow to a height of about 30 inches and a width of 18 to 24 inches.  They prefer rich, loamy soil and need frequent shallow watering to keep the roots moist but not wet.  Given the requirements growing in containers is a great option (which is my current plan).  Plant in a container about 10-12 inches in diameter and plant with your favorite potting mix.

The plant will normally not require side dressing of fertilizer but if your plant requires it, make sure to use a low nitrogen organic fertilizer since high nitrogen causes reduced leaf sweetness.

Once the plant matures in the fall, dry the leaves by leaving out in the sun for 12 hours or use a home dehydrator and the lowest possible temperature.  The leaves then can be ground with a coffee or spice grinder and made into a fine powder which is called Green Stevia Powder.  You can replace 3-4 teaspoons in place of one cup of sugar.  It retains its sweetness for at least two years in storage in an airtight container.

If desired you can also make some Stevia concentrate liquid which will allow your Green Stevia Powder to stretch a little further.  You can make your own by steeping 1 tablespoon of Green Stevia Powder with 4 cups (1 liter) of hot water for 5 minutes.  This liquid Stevia concentrate will be good for 3 days in the refrigerator and one tablespoon of this liquid is equivalent to 1 cup of sugar.

Sure much less work to buy some of this at the store, but not nearly as much fun…

It has been slow to warm up this year but finally getting some warm enough nights to bring my peppers outside for a little while.  Though they were flowering in the grow box I was surprised to see a sweet yellow pepper already growing.  This is definitely a record for me by at least a good month.

One thing I realized halfway through the winter was that I did not nearly save enough berries to make it through.  With local strawberries showing up in my garden and in the farmers market this seemed like a perfect time to get an early start this year.

Freezing strawberries is much like freezing other berries strawberries are just as easy with just a few simple steps:

1. 1.  Quickly wash and gently dry strawberries with a towel
2. 2.  Cut of crowns (optional but much easier to do now than when frozen)
3. 3.  Place strawberries upside-down on wax paper on cookie sheet
4. 
5. 4.  Put strawberries in freezer for 24 hours

1. 5.  Dump frozen strawberries into freezer bag and use Poor Man’s Vacuum Pack*
2. 
3. With these simple steps you can have plenty of strawberries for making smoothies or strawberry shortcake this summer/winter.  This process can scale from many flats of berries or just a handful extra from your garden.  Eat what you want fresh, freeze the rest.
4. * Poor Man’s Vacuum Pack: Close ZipLoc bag with only enough space to fit in a drinking straw.  Suck out air with drinking straw and quickly close the bag.

And the winner of the GardenSafe Gift Pack is…Ashley.  Thank you for everyone who entered.  I am still looking for more giveaways coming soon so you should have another chance to win shortly…

Last week I was contacted by Garden Safe asking if I would like some samples and given I used the last of my insecticidal soap protecting my peas from aphids I graciously agreed.  Expecting to get a couple bottles to try out I was definitely surprised to get the lifetime supply (at least fro my little garden above)

Not wanting to share the love with my readers they also agreed to offer a gift pack to giveaway.  Not only does it include the products pictured below but also a garden tote bag with a weeding fork, sprayer, hand rake, trowel, transplanter, and clipper AND $20 gift card to Lowe’s.  I don’t know the exact retail value of this gift package but my back of the envelope estimate is at least $100.

�
Rules:

1. Enter one comment to enter

2. Mention this contest on your blog, enter another comment for another chance to win

3. Entries in by 06/25/2010 12:00PM Pacific Time

4. Become a fan on Facebook , enter another comment for another chance to win

5. Winner will be randomly chosen from comments on Saturday, 06/25/2010 

I guess while we are at lets not leave out shallots, salad onions, bunching onions, and green sticks.  For the purists a scallion is technically slightly less mature than a green onions.  No matter what you call them this is a very versatile version of the conventional mature bulb version of the vegetable and shouldn’t be overlooked in your garden.

What is great about green onions is the provide a milder onion taste when you want to avoid the overpowering taste mature onions can bring.  This is why green onions are commonly used raw or cooked into many Asian dishes as well as soup, noodle, and seafood dishes.  One of my favorite uses for green onions is in my garden salsa mango salsa, or black bean and corn salsa.

What is good to remember when you are growing green onions is obviously you will be pulling them before they create bulbs and mature so you can plant them very close together (i.e. the term bunching onions)  This is great when you are like me with not a lot of room to grow vegetables so anytime I can do some intensive spacing the better.

So if you forgot to grow onions this year, don’t fret it is not too late to start your green onions, scallions, spring onions, shallots, salad onions, green sticks, or bunching onions.  I know someone else has another name for these that I missed, if so please add it to the comments…

Most often I start my seeds in a mix of coconut coir and perlite in seeding cells or small containers, though there are occasions when it may be better to start your seeds in a simple paper towel.

Before going into the benefits first lets go over the technique:

1. Get a paper towel, napkin, or coffee filter and spray with water so it is moist (not soaking wet or the seeds could rot)
2. Add a few seeds and folder over the paper to cover them.
3. Place the paper and seeds into a zip lock bag (I like to use the snack sized ones) and place in a warm location (top or refrigerator, water hearer, etc)
4. Check every day or so do see if seedlings have emerged and water as needed
5. When seedlings emerge very carefully place the strongest seedlings into dirt cups.

Tips

• Instead of trying to remove the seeds from the paper, you can simply cut around the seedling and plant both into the ground.  The paper will eventually erode away without affecting the seedling.
• You can also use this technique to plant the seedling right into the ground.

This technique is great for many reasons:

• Allows for faster germination rates and times
• Great if you have limited space for seedlings (stack of zip lock bags take up much less space than 40/50 seed cells)
• More consistent moisture
• Less dirt on your counters
• Great option for rare, poor germination rates and/or very slow germinating times (think hot peppers with 3-4 weeks germination delays)  With this method you can keep close tabs on the progress and know after a week or two if you need to start some more (or buy some new seeds)

For the home grower this is a great space saving technique and due to the water retention in the bags it is nearly impossible to lose seedlings due to lack of watering.

I actually thought I already posted about this bad boy which unfortunately is only a design concept from Philips.  For those that are not familiar:

Aquaponics /ˈækwəˈpɒnɨks/ is the symbiotic cultivation of plants and aquatic animals in a recirculating environment.

Aquatic animal effluent (for example fish waste) accumulates in water as a by-product of keeping them in a closed system or tank (for example a recirculating aquaculture system). The effluent-rich water becomes high in plant nutrients but this is correspondingly toxic to the aquatic animal.

Source Wikipedia

This system is called the BioTower, the first 2 levels are hydroponic plants with the third being algae.  The fourth layer contains shrimp and fish which produce organic waste which is stored in the bottom layer.

The lights are powered using optical fibers from the sun and the methane from the organic waste powers the lights at night.  The plants and seafood can then be consumed all powered by the various ecosystems.

I couldn’t even imagine what something like this would cost if it came out of the design phase, though a simple cover over the organic waste and this would make a great conversation piece.

Pepper plants need specific environmental (temperature and humidity) conditions to establish growth and create high yields.  If the temperatures get too low it will stunt its growth or not produce blossoms, when the temperatures get too high the plant will drop it blossoms resulting in no or reduce yields.

The perfect temperature range for peppers is between 70 and 80 degrees F for Bell peppers and hot peppers can handle a little warmer temperatures up to 85 degrees.  If their environment gets below 70 degrees the plants will struggle, which given even in August we don’t hit an average of 70 degrees F for any success a greenhouse, hot box, or a growbox is requirement.  If you are a frequent reader of this site you probably already know I go with the last option.

With a few CFLs (or incandescent if extra heat is needed) the peppers plants are happy in the growbox.  With exception of once a week watering with a diluted fertilizer at 50% recommended on the box they pretty much take care of themselves.  If we do get a nice warm day I will bring them out for some natural light.  This also invites some natural organic pest control of any aphids which may have found their way into the growbox.  When the plants begin flowering this also gives some bees an opportunity to do a little pollination, this can be done by hand with a paint brush or Q-Tip though my success rate is much less than the bees, though they have been doing this for millions of years…I am still a little new at this

As mentioned above controlling the proper temperature is critical, I do this with a combination of computer controlled fans and lighting to maintain the proper temperature, though this could also be achieved by using a $10 outdoor digital thermometer and a occasional adjustments to venting or fan control to maintain a good temperature range.

Last year I only grew jalapeno pepper plants, but this year I am also trying Cayenne, Sweet Yellow, and Bhut Jolokia pepper plants.  Though it is quite a bit more work growing peppers in my area, I like challenges and to do things that others say can not be done, call me stubborn.

When I mention I grow tomatoes upside down many people ask me, “Why don’t you grow tomatoes in the ground?”  The surprise answer is, I do grow both in the ground and in the air. 

The picture above shows my current tomato plants I am growing in the one location with sufficient sunlight to grow them, which might explain the reason why I look alternate options for adding more yields each season.

We normally would have already had our annual ladybug release for aphid control, though this year it has been a little colder than normal so we have to postpone until this evening.  You want to release your ladybugs at sunset since they do not like to fly at night and gives you the best odds of keeping them in your garden.

For fun and a little carnage we decided to let 20-30 out early and placed them on some plants with a few too many aphids (peas and mint)  In the picture above fortunately (or unfortunately depending how much you loathe aphids) you can’t see it but the ladybug was just having his first victim.  With many more to come that were surrounding him (or her).

For some less gruesome pictures of ladybugs you can check out some of the photo shoots from our previous years ladybug releases

With a piece of cedar fence board and a few nails you can make your own ladybug house to give your army of aphid eaters I nice comfortable place to take shelter between battles

This project started with my youngest daughter (5 years old) has been asking every weekend, “Can we build something with wood?”  Finally I came up with this project which we had a great time building.

Materials

• 1 – Cedar fence board
• about 12 finishing nails
• small hinge
• 1/2-3/4 drill bit
• paint for decorating (optional)

Build instructions

Step #1 – Cut the boards:  Given the cedar board should be 5-1/2 inches so the cuts should be pretty straightforward.  Cut the following pieces:

• Front Panel – 5.5” by 5”
• Back Panel – 5.5” by 5”
• Bottom Panel – 5.5” by 5”
• Top Panel – 5.5” by 4”
• 2 X Side Panel – 5.5” by 2.5”
• Room Separator – 5.5” by 1”

I used a circular saw for my cuts…yes I really should invest in a chop saw or table saw so hopefully your cuts will be a little straighter but I am sure the ladybugs will not mind.

Step #2 – Nail two sides to back panel

Step #3 – Nail front to sides and back panel

Step #4 – Nail bottom panel to ladybug house.

Step #5 – Drop room separator inside house.

Ladybugs are social and like to group together but sometimes thy like to live in smaller groups, this divider will give an additional area for the ladybugs to hang out.

Step #5 – Attach top using screws and hinge

Step #6 – Drill 3-4 holes into front and sides and decorate (optional)

Step #7 – Hang close to your garden

Now of course the decoration part is optional unless you are a 5 year old then it is required.  Here she is carefully deciding what to paint with her marker next…

It is fairly uncommon for me to see these little green bugs on my peas.  In case you didn’t guess these are pea aphids, which suck juices from the plant leaves ad spread disease between plants.  This is a rare occurrence because normally it is warmer and drier this time of year and we would have our annual ladybug release to take care of these little pests.  If the weather holds up we should have good enough weather to do the ladybug release next weekend.

In the meantime I have resorted to to using some organic pesticide solution to deter these pests until the weather gets better.  This will not stop the aphids, but hopefully slow the down a little, though when it comes to organic solutions you can not compete with ladybugs which each one can eat up to 5000 aphids/mites in their lifetime.  Come next weekend there will be an aphid massacre in the garden. [evil laugh]

	Bamboo Pole Structure Pea Trellis Here is a classic structure made from a couple pieces of bamboo poles scavenged from a couple of rotting scarecrows purchased a few years back at a craft store.  I used a stick I am pretty sure one of my daughters picked up on a nature hike across the top bound with a few inches of twine.  Lastly I attached a line of twine at 1 foot and 2 feet above the ground which gives the plant plenty of leverage to climb up the structure. Click on the picture to the left or below for a larger view.
	Branches Pea Trellis Here is probably the simplest technique out there.  If you have some old branches left over from pruning?  Just stick them in the ground and let the peas grow up the branch.  This gives a nice natural look but also a variety of paths for the peas to naturally sprawl while given each plant plenty of personal space.
	Vertical Stick or Pole Pea Trellis Another simple option is just by simply driving a few straight sticks or bamboo or metal poles in the ground with a little assistance the peas will climb their way up the trellis
	Hybrid A-Frame Pole Structure and Branch Pea Trellis Do you like more than one technique?  Feel free to combine them like this where I used bamboo poles as additional support for branch pea trellis (though in the end the branches proved to do just fine by themselves, I sometimes over engineer things…)

As you can see when it comes to making your own pea trellis it is very difficult to do it wrong.  So do a quick scan around your yard and you should find exactly the materials you need.  Though if you want something a little more professional looking there is always the commercial options (click images below for more info) which I would definitely recommend as well.

This site was practically started because of my oldest daughters science fair project Why Don’t Strawberries Grow in the Wintertime?  Now with my youngest in kindergarten she was very excited to have a science fair project of her own, which should be pretty obvious from the picture above.

With no influence from me she decided on answering the question if smaller seeds will sprout faster.  These days science fairs are more than just gluing some some Styrofoam balls to a couple hangers and calling it good.  They require using true scientific methods and procedures, which is pretty advanced for a 5 year old, although she didn’t seem to notice.  Here is the contents of her experiment…

Hypothesis: Smaller seeds will grow bigger in a shorter amount of time because their roots don’t need to grow as big to support the plant

Procedure: I planted 3 seeds of each plant type (lettuce, cilantro, pumpkin) and watered them and gave them sunlight and I watched them grow.

Results: I planted the seeds at the same time and measured the growth over 2 weeks.  The lettuce was the first one to sprout.  The cilantro was the next one to sprout and the pumpkin was the last one to sprout.  At week one, the lettuce was still the largest, cilantro was the second, and the pumpkin was the smallest

Conclusion: Smaller seeds sprouted and grow quicker than larger seeds.

I was very impressed with her project as well as the hypothesis, one of those moments of thinking, “hmm…is that how actually works…”  Though you probably can think of a few plants that would break the hypothesis but pretty much on target for most plants.

For people who were listening live here are a few of the topics that were discussed for quick reference:

• How to make your own upside Down Planter In your Garden
• The most profitable plants in your vegetable garden
• Using used coffee grounds in your garden/compost
• The Great Sunflower Project [external]

[link to radio interview] [mirror]

We were very excited to be featured in The New York Times last Thursday.  Welcome to the many new visitors that visiting us this week.  If you want to check out the entire article it is available online. 

I have been considering creating a press page and figured this was a good opportunity to start a “CVG featured in the press page”

Over the past year I have created a few different versions of garden planters for growing tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers inspired from my daughter watching a Topsy Turvy tomato planter commercial.  Here is a quick summary of the different options which you can click the link for full instructions how to build on yourself.

	2 Liter – The Original – This is the one that started it all.  Very simple design using a 2 liter bottle covered with duct tape with a hole cut in the side to add soil and water as needed.Pros: Simple to create, dark color helped keep soil warm during the early part of the year, unlike the sibling seedling which I planted in the ground as a control which did not make it. Cons:  Really had to keep up on watering, given it had a 2 inch hole in the side water was able to easily evaporate and it did not get the advantage of being watered automatically on raining days/weeks and given I wasn’t watering any other plants forgot about this poor one which led to reduced yields.
	2 liter – Version 2.0 – This year I wanted something that did not appear as hideous hanging and also took care of the watering issue from the previous version.  With this I created a slow drip watering reservoir and used spray paint and skipped the duct tape.Pros: Easy to water through manual or automatic (rain), evaporation is minimized due to small drainage holes Cons: At the moment, there are none known.  I am happy with this design.
	1 gallon milk jug (with auto-watering) – I was curious about if the extra 1.799 liters with a larger contain would significantly help yields so I went with this version.  Also decided to add an experimental external watering source.Pros: Larger volume of soil, extra watering capacity Cons: Keeping the whole thing balanced was a pain, currently have it under control with a couple rubber band but will probably have to be replaced with something more permanent later.

So there you have the short evolution of my homemade upside down tomato planters all created from materials from my recycling bin.  Though if you do not want to make one yourself here are a just a few of the commercial upside down planter versions on the market right now.

With many people inquiring how well the plants actually did planning on doing a better job to chronicling their progress of my peppers and tomatoes on a weekly basis in the forum.  You are also welcome to start your own thread and share your progress as well.

I wanted to see if (how much) my yields varied by allowing more volume of dirt in my homemade tomato planter, so I made this variation with the same type and size “Husky Cherry” seedling I am using in my 2-liter planter version.

The build for this one is also very simple:

• I started with an organic milk carton given it was already opaque, but if you have the non-organic variety you will want to paint or cover the outside with duct tape.
• Next cut or drill a 1/2 inch hole on the bottom of the milk carton, this will be where the stem of the plant will fit through.
• Cut four slits out from the center of the 1/2 inch hole to make it easier to insert the plant into the planter.
• Insert plant through the bottom.
• Fill with soil (mix of 1 part peat moss/coconut coir)
• Finally drill a hole and feed though eyelet secured with a nut from the back side

Now here is where you can stop or you can go with the advanced auto-watering option.�

Materials Needed:

• 20 ounce water bottle
• plastic straw
• sponge

Build Instructions:

• Drill hole just large enough to barely be able to pull the straw through
• Cut a 1 inch long piece of sponge just wide enough to be able to slip inside the straw.
• Fill with water and screw on cap and insert into top of planter

As the dirt dries it will also dry out the sponge which will release water and repeat as necessary.  This works in a very similar concept as a Aqua Globe you may have seen advertised on TV.

Though my first attempt at an upside down tomato planter worked out great, I have a habit of forgetting to water the plants everyday.  More commonly when we have decent rains when only the hanging tomato planters need to be watered.  So this year I have modified my design a little to make this a little easier.  As a bonus you can create this new version much quicker and minimal tools.

Materials required

• Empty 2-liter bottle
• Spray paint
• Drill or hot nail
• Chopstick or 1/4 in stick

Step 1 – Cut off bottom

There is a natural ridge at the bottom of the two liter bottle, simply cut at this ridge and remove the bottom.

Step 2 – Attach water reservoir

Take the removed bottom, flip it over, and insert it into the bottom of the bottle until flush with the top.

Step 3 – Drills Holes

First you need to drill a small hole in the bottom of the reservoir (the bottom you cut of)  Use the smallest drill bit you have, this will reduce the water flow coming into the planter during rainfall and/or manual watering.  With this reduced flow there should be much less soil loss during watering.

Second you need to drill two holes about 1/4 inch from the edge with a 1/4 inch drill bit.  It is a little difficult to get enough pressure against the plastic to make this hole without causing the plastic to collapse.  To take care of this place a small piece of wood on the floor and drill the holes from the inside.

Step 4 – Paint planter

You want to protect the roots from being exposed to direct sunlight so you need to cover the outside.  This can be done with contact paper, duct tape (as I have done in the past) or for a fast cleaner look just quickly add a quick coat of spray paint to the outside.  It is probably best to use paint that is made to adheres well to plastic, though in my case I had some nice multipurpose light green paint leftover from another project that with a few hard rains appears to be holding up well.
 

Step 5 – Secure with stick (chopstick) and fill with soil

Now add your plant (tomatoes and peppers are my favorites) to the bottom (previously the top) of the planter by carefully pushing the roots through the hole or alternatively you can the plant out from the inside.  If your plant is too large to do this safely you may also cut a larger opening in the bottom, but I would recommend wrapping a sponge or coffee filter around the plant to assist in keeping the dirt in the planter.

Fill your planter with a mixture of 1 part perlite to 2 parts (potting mix, peat moss, coconut coir) with the top 1/2 inch being only (potting mix, peat moss, coconut coir)  After a couple of waterings, this 1/2 inch layer will compact and restrict the water flow for a slower and more distributed watering.

Use the thinner end of your chopsticks to thread it through both holes and both sets of plastic, attach a piece of twine attached to bother ends, and hang wherever the plants can get some good full sunshine and you should have plenty of early tomatoes this summer.