The Cheap Vegetable Gardener - Page 33 of 55 - Growing vegetables using grow boxes, LEDs, computers, and great soil

deer | pests | rabbits | Uncategorized

Protecting Your Plants and the Planet: Eco-Friendly Large Pest Control
ByThe Cheap Vegetable Gardener

Photo from Alberta Home Gardening 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…

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moisture sensor | product review | Uncategorized | water

Soil Logic Moisture X-Tend testing and review
ByThe Cheap Vegetable Gardener

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…

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dehydrator | jalapeno | peppers | Uncategorized

How to make jalapeno pepper powder
ByThe Cheap Vegetable Gardener

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…

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Uncategorized

Small container pond (water garden)
ByThe Cheap Vegetable Gardener

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,…

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cheap | seed saving | seed storing

Organizing seeds using bead containers
ByThe Cheap Vegetable Gardener

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…

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strawberries

Why are strawberries called strawberries?
ByThe Cheap Vegetable Gardener

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…

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garlic bulbs | Uncategorized

How to braid garlic (for guys)
ByThe Cheap Vegetable Gardener

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…

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cheap | dehydrator | garlic bulbs

Making your own garlic powder
ByThe Cheap Vegetable Gardener

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…

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science fair | soil composition | soil test

How to find the soil composition of your garden
ByThe Cheap Vegetable Gardener

Knowing your soil composition is very important if you are attempting to amend your existing soil to get your premium soil for growing. You soil is made up of four components; sand, silt, clay, and organic material. 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…

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summer

Might actually have a summer this year…
ByThe Cheap Vegetable Gardener

Read More Might actually have a summer this year…
aphids | disease | free | pests

How to investigate the pests/diseases attacking your plants
ByThe Cheap Vegetable Gardener

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…

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jalapeno | peppers

More Early peppers
ByThe Cheap Vegetable Gardener

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.

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