Loving Nature’s Garden | A Green Earth Begins at Home

When to Plant Vegetable Seeds

Alison Kerr — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:41:56 +0000

Wondering when to plant vegetable seeds? Confused by the information on packets? I know I am. Here’s a way to finally understand when to plant vegetable seeds.

Four Groups of Vegetable Seeds (and some fruits)

There are four groups of fruit and vegetable seeds when it comes to planting. Know this and know the average date of last frost in your area and you know when to plant vegetable seeds. Here are the four groups:

Hardy vegetables – plant these earliest.
Moderately hardy fruits and vegetables – plant these next.
Frost sensitive vegetables – the third group to plant.
Frost-intolerant fruits and vegetables – plant these last.

Hardy Vegetables – plant first

Hardy vegetables are the first ones you can plant straight into the garden in spring. Other ways to describe hardy vegetables:

plant as soon as the soil is workable in spring
early spring vegetables, cool season vegetables
plant 4-6 weeks before the average date of last frost
soil temperature for germination 55F or above - confusingly, not all vegetables marked 55F or above are in the hardy group. However, if you plant them early they’ll just be slow to germinate. See the list below for which are hardy.

Hardy vegetables are plants which do well in northern climates and don’t like heat. They benefit from a little shade in hotter areas, which prolongs the harvest, and are more shade tolerant than other vegetables.

Here’s a list of hardy vegetables:

peas
lettuce – all types
spinach
broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale
kohlrabi
radishes
onions

Moderately Hardy Fruits and Vegetables – plant second

Above I wrote that some vegetables and fruits can be planted when the soil temperature is above 55F but are not considered hardy. These are the moderately hardy fruits and vegetables. Other ways to describe moderately hardy fruits and vegetables:

plant after the danger of hard frosts has passed
spring vegetables - sometimes instructions say to plant March to mid-July
plant 2-4 weeks before the average last frost date
soil temperature varies – might say above 55F, above 60F, or above 70F

Seeds in this group can be planted early, with the hardy vegetables, but they will take longer to germinate and you may get tired of watering daily while you wait. Or you can plant the hardy and moderately-hardy seeds together at the same time – 4 weeks before average last frost.

Here’s a list of moderately-hardy vegetables and fruits to plant 2-4 weeks before your expected last frost:

carrots, parsnips, turnips, rutabagas, and beetroot
potatoes
celery, chard, swiss chard, parsley
raspberries and blackberries

Frost Sensitive Vegetables – plant third

Frost sensitive vegetables should be planted on the average day of last frost. While tomatoes are normally planted indoors ahead of last frost, beans and corn are planted outdoors. Monitor weather forecasts for late frosts and protect growing plants in this group. If you live in a cool climate you may need to provide protection to grow these and the next group of crops.

Other ways to describe frost sensitive vegetables:

sow outdoors in warm soils
soil temperature for germination 65-85F
after average last frost

Here is a list of frost sensitive vegetables for your garden, which should be planted outdoors on or after the average last frost date:

bush beans, pole beans, edamame
corn
tomatoes

Frost Intolerant Vegetables and Fruits – plant fourth

Frost intolerant vegetables and fruits are the most sensitive group. They require heat and need to be planted 2-3 weeks after the date the last frost is expected. For cooler climates and shorter growing seasons some of these can be grown under cover; others are not practical.

Other ways to describe frost intolerant fruits and vegetables:

plant when nighttime temperatures are above 50F
transplant 2-3 weeks after tomatoes
after the danger of frost has passed
require warm, dry soils and plenty of sunshine

Fruits and vegetables which are frost intolerant and should be planted outdoors 2-3 weeks after average last frost:

cucumber
peppers
melons
squash
pumpkins

I hope this demystified when to plant vegetable seeds for you. If there is a fruit or vegetable I’ve not included above please let me know and I will research which group it belongs to.

You can learn your local average last frost date at your county extension office. For additional information on organic fruit and vegetable growing I recommend The Vegetable Gardener’s Bible (10th Anniversary Edition).

Garden Giving

Alison Kerr — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:40:36 +0000

I already know that you are a giving and sharing type of person. The question is, are you ready to do some garden giving?

Every year I plant radishes in the spring, even though I’m the only one in my house who eats them. I’m glad I do this because I get to share the harvest. I have at least 4 friends who love radishes and who haven’t the time or resources to plant their own. I love growing them to give away.

Dana at RoscommonAcres.com has the same idea, though not necessarily with radishes. But Dana is taking giving one step further this spring. She would like to encourage all of us to plant some extra seeds and to find a family in need to share the harvest with.

I’m a little daunted by the idea of finding a family in need, someone outside the circle of people I already know and give veggies to. However, yesterday when I put my lettuce, kale, pea, and radish seeds in I did plant extra. I filled up my two whole raised beds with early spring vegetable seeds for more food than my own family can eat.

Garden giving is a great idea. I’ll have to wait and see what kind of harvest I get this spring; I don’t want to promise food then not be able to deliver. If you like the idea of growing a little extra, do go over and look at Dana’s article on Share the Harvest. To encourage us all to give this a try, Dana is offering a $15 gift certificate to Territorial Seeds to one participant.

Have you ordered your seeds yet? What are you planning to plant?

Kansas Signs of Spring

Alison Kerr — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 14:40:37 +0000

Kansas Woodland Moss, March 2010

Kansas Woodland Wild Flower, March 2010

Kansas Garden Garlic, March 2010

Kansas Garden Parsley, March 2010

I hope you enjoyed these signs of the Kansas spring. What’s happening in your neighborhood?

Hello Skunk!

Alison Kerr — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 14:09:29 +0000

wet baby skunk by Out at Bob's

One day you find a skunk under your deck. What do you do? Do you say, “Hello, cute little skunk. I’m so glad you have moved into my nature garden.” Or, “Little skunk, I know you’re part of nature, but you must find another home. Not in my back yard!”

One morning last week, and again the same evening, there was a very noisy critter on my back deck. It really sounded like something large bumbling about. I put on my nature detective cap and came up with the following possibilities of who might have moved in: groundhog (not, because they feed in the daytime); possum (possible – I know they’re in my neighborhood); skunk (hopefully not); raccoon or fox (both are in my neighborhood, but I’ve seen no signs of them in my yard).

I wasn’t really too excited about the idea that there could be a skunk out there under the deck. I mean, what would I do? Fortunately for me there was still snow around so I went out to have a good look for footprints. I came back in with several photos. After trying to match them with all of the above critters, I’m not sure if I was relieved, or disappointed, to decide that all I’d found were squirrel prints.

So, the squirrels in my yard are apparently trying to raid the squirrel-proof feeder at dawn and after dusk just to see if that’s different from daytime. That’s what I decided the loud noise was – squirrels leaping onto the metal feeder. It would have been nice to have a possum, but a skunk I’m not so sure about.

Have you ever had a skunk in your garden? Are skunks beyond your limit when it comes to back yard nature? Are you hoping never to find out?

Self Watering Containers

Alison Kerr — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 14:45:13 +0000

Self Watering Garden - copyright Mike Lieberman

In exploring container gardening for my deck I came across the idea of self-watering containers.

Today’s article is by Mike Lieberman who kindly agreed to share his knowledge on container vegetable gardening.

Last year when I was first became interested in gardening on my fire escape, I knew that my options were limited as to what I could grow my vegetables in. I knew that I had to grow in some sort of container, but wasn’t sure if I had to buy a special one, could make my own, or what.

That’s when I came across the self watering container concept. It’s pretty much a homemade version of an Earthbox, which were way too expensive for me.

Self Watering Containers and How They Work

It’s easy to build a self watering container and cheap as well. It’ll cost around $5.00. The most difficult part in building is cutting out the insert for the container.

The way that a container functions is that the water reservoir is below the insert and the soil is above the insert. There is a small wicking container at the bottom of the container to bring the water up to the soil. A pipe is used to get the water down into the reservoir.

This way the plants suck up the water with their roots, which is a more natural way for them to get water. When plants are watered from above, it takes a few moments for the water to work it’s way down to the roots.

Watering a self watering container is simple as well. When the reservoir is filled, water will start to spill out of the overflow hole. This takes the guessing out of over or under watering your plants.

Container Vegetable Gardening

On my fire escape, I had lettuces, red peppers and cherry tomatoes in self watering containers. The lettuces and tomatoes did great, but the peppers didn’t produce as much. I think that had more to do with sun than with the containers.

For the upcoming gardening season, I plan on changing up the design a bit and using a container within a container as opposed to making the inserts. This is one of the fun things about gardening, the constant learning, tweaking and experimentation.

Self watering containers are something that I’d recommend for first timers, not only are they cheap to make, they take the guessing out of watering. They are also great for gardeners with small and limited space.

Mike Lieberman resides in NYC. He is someone who walks their talk as a living, breathing demonstration of how sustainable living is possible anywhere. Lieberman shows others how they can do the same on his own blogs and writes for others around the web. You can find him at CanarsieBK.com.

Have you tried container gardening? I will be visiting Mike’s blog to view his videos and learn how to build self-watering containers for my deck. I’m amazed at what he has managed to grow in such a small space.

Garden Friends in February

Alison Kerr — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 15:45:32 +0000

Writing about gardening has brought me many wonderful garden friends. Here are some of the gardeners who touched my life in February.

Debi of Go Explore Nature is new to gardening. Debi is a student on my Step by Step Gardening course. She is taking up gardening with the same enthusiasm which she puts into all of her outdoor adventures with her two boys. You can read about Debi’s adventures in the school garden. Oh, to be in California in February!

When I wrote about I’m a gardener because… Debi shared that the death of her dad has brought her to gardening. I really love the comments I’ve received on that post. They have given me many connections with other gardeners. Suz of Slow Family Online was inspired to write a wonderful post about who brought her to gardening which prompted some equally wonderful comments at her blog.

While you are over at Suz Lipman’s blog please do read her About Slow Family. She writes of how she wants to do things with her family, rather than dump her kids to be entertained while she runs errands. Be sure to catch the part where she talks of walking the girl scouts. And of course she loves to garden and observe nature.

I have another great friend who believes in getting kids outside. Shannon Baer of Backyard Mama doesn’t just write about getting outdoors, she runs an outdoor-focused preschool. Of course Shannon loves to garden too. She’s making her seed order up this week – despite that, she took time out of her busy schedule to talk with me on the phone. It is always nice to put a voice to an online face. Shannon has a gardening mentor and she helped me with research for Lesson 4 – Mentor, Mentor of Step by Step Gardening.

Jenny of J Peterson Garden Design is new to my list of garden lovers. When I wrote about Who’s Yard is it Anyway. Jenny came over and commented. Jenny and I share a love of books by Sally Wasowski. I asked Jenny to recommend a favorite post at her blog and she pointed me to garden evolution, which showcases how synergy with one of her clients produced a beautiful garden.

Jenny also sent me to visit East Side Patch where I discovered a fellow American from Scotland who mixes science fiction and gardening in his blog. Truly a unique combination and worth a visit!

It would be remiss of me not to mention Carole Brown at Ecosystem Gardening and Rachel Matthews of Successful Garden Design with whom I have contact several times a week. Really, I have too much to say to about them to say more. I’ll save it for another time.

These are some of the garden lovers in my life. Who inspires you?

I’m a gardener because…

Alison Kerr — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 14:58:40 +0000

I’m a gardener because my mom’s father cared for primroses and potatoes and every spring he made a pilgrimage to buy baby leeks from his cousin, who ran a garden supply company, which was really hard for Grandpa to reach without his own car.

Grandpa was one of the garden lovers in my life, and he always got a laugh out of paper hats, which never fitted him.

I garden because my mom’s mother cooked delicious rhubarb pies, buttered potatoes, and leek and carrot soup with the produce from Grandpa’s garden. And because Gran loved the pair of rowan trees in front of her house which guarded the entrance and every fall produced beautiful red berries feasted on by birds.

Gran was loving and caring and a great cook and a garden lover. She liked nothing better than a trip out to the garden to take a few moment’s well-earned rest with friends and family on the garden bench on a sunny day.

I garden because my dad’s mother grew grapes and passion flowers in a greenhouse, had a wild flower patch which I sneaked into to hide and discover, and smiled on her flowering cherry tree with the masses of pink blossoms every spring.

Granny was an artist. She loved flowers and was one of the garden lovers in my life.

I garden because my mom always had her fingers among plants and dirt both inside the house and out, because she was happy in a garden and wanted to find new things to grow, enjoyed nothing more than exploring along a garden path, and showed me how a greenhouse could produce tomatoes, peppers, corn and squash in the unlikely climate of Central Scotland.

Mom liked fresh air, plants of all sorts, and being busy. Here she is at the summit of Dunadd – seat of the ancient Scottish kings.

I garden because I tried growing cabbage and lettuce and strawberries and beans as a teen and failed and wondered what I was doing wrong, because I’ve lain among the grass in the sunshine and seen the bugs play while I studied for college exams, and because I hiked the hills of Scotland and learned to name the native flowers.

And I’m a gardener because my gardening links me to all these garden lovers. These are the people who showed me the joy of nature and gardening when I was just a sprout. As long as they are in my heart, they will never be gone.

You’ve told me your reasons to garden, but you haven’t told me who brought you to gardening. I’m eager to hear.

Rain Gardening in the South

Alison Kerr — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 21:03:18 +0000

Rain Gardening in the South is a book by Helen Kraus and Anne Spafford. Here you will find the information to allow you to decide whether this is the book you need as you plan your rain garden.

Rain Gardening in the South is published by Eno Publishers, a small, non-profit book publishing company which focuses on producing books important to the culture of the Carolinas and the South.

Eno Publishers generously invited me to review this book and provided me with a copy.

Things to Know About Rain Gardening in the South

This is a surprisingly compact book at 142 pages long, considering it seems to contain everything you’d need to know for designing and building a rain garden in the following states: Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia.

Is it Just for the South?

Although this book is titled “…for the south” it’s usefulness extends beyond the listed states. I am in Kansas and I recognize many of the listed planting suggestions as being suitable for my area.

I’m certainly learning a lot from this book which I can put to use as I plan a rain garden for my Midwest back yard.

What is in Rain Gardening in the South

This is both a thorough and readable book with wonderful diagrams, charts and photographs which explain about how rain gardens work, where to site them, and what to plant.

Chapters are as follows:

Introduction – water in the landscape and why to use rain gardens.
Rain Gardens - what rain gardens do, dry gardens, wet gardens, the anatomy of a rain garden, rain gardens at home and abroad (examples).
Designing a Rain Garden – property factors, water flow, location, style, design and maintenance.
Laying the Groundwork – water movement in soil, size matters, rain barrel vs rain garden, filter beds, soil basics, a rain garden in action. Includes a table with numbers for calculating needed garden size.
Plantings – natives and non-natives, grouping plants by water needs (hyrdozones), composition with plants, shade plants, sun plants, part-shade plants. Tables detail plants by light needs with vines, shrubs, groundcover, perennials, and tree choices. How to choose, plant and maintain healthy plants is also explained.
Troubleshooting – slow drainage, fast drainage, dying plants, erosion, fungi problems.
Other Water-wise Gardening Options – rain barrels, rain chains, drip irrigation, porous hardscapes.
Appendix – soil types and suitable amendments.

The One Thing I’d Like Changed

The plant choice tables contain a wealth of information. I’d like to have seen an indication of which plants are native within the tables.

Who Should Buy Rain Gardening in the South?

I recommend this book for all gardeners who want to do their part for the ecosystem by building a rain garden. While it is most suitable for gardeners in Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia there is much valuable information for those gardening in other southern states as well as in the east and midwest.

Shop for Rain Gardening in the South at Amazon.com (list price is $19.95, Amazon.com is selling it, at the time of this article, for $14.96), or online from your local independent bookstore.

Native Evergreen Trees for Kansas and Beyond

Alison Kerr — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 15:40:04 +0000

Are you looking for native evergreen trees for your Kansas or Missouri garden, or maybe just curious about what grows here? Here I outline your evergreen choices. These same trees are native to a larger part of the USA – I’ll explain that too.

Eastern Redcedar - Juniperus virginiana

Native Evergreen Trees in Kansas

If you are looking for a native evergreen tree for your Kansas or western Missouri garden your top choice is eastern redcedar, Juniperus virginiana. In fact it’s your ONLY choice.

Eastern redcedar is the only native evergreen tree in Kansas and western Missouri. It is also native to parts of every state east of the Rocky Mountains.

Male and Female Juniperus virginiana

In farmland, where eastern redcedar self-seeds and is prone to become invasive, it’s common practice to remove female trees.

Given that a variety of birds feed on the small berry-like seed cones you may want to plant a female tree and take the risk of more sprouting up in your garden. It’s not a difficult tree to remove if you get too many – merely cut it off below the lowest leafed branch and it will not re-sprout.

For great information on eastern redcedar download eastern redcedar pdf from the US Forest Service.

Don’t Plant with the Apple Family

Do not plant eastern redcedar near to apple trees or trees in the apple or rose families because it is an alternate host for the fungal disease cedar- apple rust. If you already have a cedar tree and want to grow apples choose varieties which are resistant to cedar-apple rust.

Pines (plus) Native to Missouri

There are some additional evergreen trees native to parts of Missouri, most of which are in the pine family, as follows: loblolly pine, Pinus taeda; shortleaf pine, Pinus echinata.

In addition baldcypress, or swamp cypress Taxodium distichum is, according to The Sibley Guide to Trees, native to Missouri and even to Kansas. Although baldcypress is native to wet, swamp habitat, according to Sibley, it grows relatively well in dry settings beyond it’s native range.

So, if you’re looking for a native evergreen tree for your Kansas or Missouri garden you’re not going to be lost choosing among a long list of trees!

Do you have evergreen trees in your garden? Are they natives?

Who’s Yard is it Anyway?

Alison Kerr — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 15:57:27 +0000

Crazy Eyes by Ardyii

When it comes to making changes in your own back yard, who’s yard is it anyway? For some of us there are so many rules and regulations, it’s enough to drive you crazy!

I might have mentioned that I’m busy doing a redesign of my back yard. I’m working with Rachel of Successful Garden Design. Rachel is wonderful to work with, but the garden design process is fun and frustrating at the same time.

Garden Design is Hard

I’ve been known to say before that garden design is hard. There are so many factors to consider. My conversation with Rachel yesterday included a discussion of all the rules and regulations I need to be aware of when planning my back yard landscape.

Rules and Regulations

As a homeowner you may face rules and regulations about what you can plant, where you can plant it, what type of walls you can use, what materials are allowed, how you direct water from your landscape, heights of decks and steps, where you can put your compost heap, how far your deck needs to be from the boundary with your neighbors, whether you can hang laundry outdoors, where you can store your garden equipment, and if you can keep livestock.

Who Writes the Rules?

I have to admit that I’m still a bit confused about where to even check for the rules. I know that my local city is the place to go for a building warrant and rules regarding retaining walls, decks, steps, fencing, and structures. In my city livestock is not allowed (no chickens, goats, or ducks for me).

Surprisingly, when I checked with my city the one thing there were no regulations about were tree houses. I hope it stays that way!

Who Controls How Your Yard Looks?

Homeowners associations sometimes restrict what can be grown, with rules about “weeds” and the look of your yard. One of my friends tells me that she’s not allowed to grow vegetables because all landscaping has to be decorative, or some such wording. Edible landscaping might allow her to circumvent the rule – I’m sure it’s open to interpretation.

I know I read somewhere, once, that I’m not allowed to dry laundry in my yard, but I’ve been unable to track down where I read this. I think this restriction may be in my title deed, of all places.

Are there any irritating rules and regulations with regard to what you can do in your own back yard or front yard landscape? What’s the worst rule you’ve heard of?