Radishs means stay away

You should plant radishs near your cabbage and eggplants.

How will this help? Well the flea bettles and root maggot flies will eat your radishs before they will eat you cabbage and eggplant. ( atleast that is the goal) When the radish is covered with insects pull up plant and destroy it....

Happy Gardening..

Lynn

How to plant potatoes...eyes up or eyes down??

If you think all potatoes are the same you have never had a home grown potato. I think potatoes from the garden are wonderful and they are so easy to grow....


Potatoes can be planted by seed but this can take a long time and they will be need to be started indoors and then transplanted. I believe the best way is to use seed potatoes. These are tubers that have many eyes or sprouts. I cut mine so there are at least two eyes on each potato.I have found that presprouted potatoes develop quicker than whole seed potatoes. (I cut my potatoes and let sit out for 2 days so they can get a skin on the side that I cut) I plant them when I know there will only be 2-4 weeks until my last frost. Potatoes do the best when the soil is warm 60-70 degrees.

Potatoes like good soil I make sure my soil is full of compost. I then plant my potatoes eyes up in a trench and 4 inches deep and about a foot apart. I always cover my potatoes with about 2-4 inches of soil.

It will take about a week for the sprouts to come up. After my plants get about 6 inches tall I then "hill" them I start putting dirt all around my potato plants so they look like little "hills" I do this about every two weeks keeping dirt right up to my potatoes. When your plants are full size you can mulch them I don't...I just sit back and wait for my potatoes leaves to dye back.

After the leaves have dyed back I know that I can now harvest my potatoes. Just lift the entire plant and search for those yummy spuds.

I dig mine up and store dirty...I just wash and cook them.

* Don't eat green potatoes they would have an off flavor and could make you sick.

I would love to hear how you grow your potatoes.

Happy Gardening..

Lynn

Dividing Herbs and a recipe

Every year I have to divide some of my herbs this year it will be my mint and chives. My chives have over-grown in to big clumps and my mint has jumped out of one of my beds. This is how I divide my herbs.

I dig up my chives and mint from underneath the soil trying to keep all the roots intact. I then use a knife and slice the soil into smaller clumps. I plant these new clumps of herbs in a place where they will have a lot of room to grow. This way I won't have to divide them in a few years.
* The best time to divide is early spring or fall

One of my favorite ways to use mint:

I usually go out in the morning and cut a few stalks of mint. I chopped them up a bit and place them in a ice tray...I then fill the ice tray with water. After the ice gets solid I put a few mint ice cubes in my favorite tea Yum!! I hope you try this!

Happy Gardening!

Lynn

Growing Vegetables in the Shade?

Yes, you can grow many vegetables in the shade. Here are a few that will grow behind a house, or even under a tree.

Beets

Cabbage

Chard

Potato

Pea

Spinach

Radish

Sorrel

Turnip

Garlic


Now even if you have a shaded yard here are a few veggies you can grow.

Happy Gardening..

Lynn

What plants can you grow in pots?

There are times when you do not have space to grow vegetables in your yard. I have found that you can grow many vegetables right on your own back or front deck. You just need a large pot and some good dirt with a little compost mixed in and you will have vegetables all season long.

Here are the best plants you can grow in pots.

Tomatoes

Peppers

Eggplant

Potatoes

Snap Beans

Lettuce

Spinach

Chard

Carrots (small finger type)

Happy Gardening...

Lynn

Egg Seed Pots

Here is a great way to save a little money in the garden. You can make seed pots out of egg shells. I poke a hole in the bottom of a egg blow out the contents ( I use this in a omelet) I try my best to cut the egg in the middle ( this doesn't always happen) I then put soil in each half and then plant 2 seeds. When my plant gets a few leaves I transplant it in the garden. (I crush the egg shell a little to let the roots have some room to spread out.)

Happy Gardening..

Lynn

Blueberries...

Blueberries:

You must have acid soil 4.5 to 5 pH the soil must be well drained with rich compost. You should mix 1 to 2 bucketfuls of an acidic peat moss into each hole.

If you happen to have alkaline soil you really should dig a hole at least 3 feet deep and 6 feet across and fill with soil, acidic peat moss, sand, cottonseed meal and ammonium sulfate these are all very high in acidic and this will help your blueberries get a good start.

You can mulch your blueberries with wood chips, pine needles, and saw dust.


Don't forget birds love blueberries so you will have to net them before the berries begin to ripen. Make sure you can easily get the net off and on....you don't want to miss one of those wonderful berries.

Happy Gardening...

Lynn