Recently in Gardening Category

It's almost December, and that means it is time for ...

GARDEN CATALOGS!!!!

I've received three catalogs this week.

• Totally Tomatoes - As the name suggests, they have a lot of varieties of tomatoes. They also have a good selection of peppers.
• Gurney's - They sell a wide variety of products, including seeds, annual plants, trees, shrubs, and other perennials. I've had good results with plants from Gurney's in the past.
• High Mowing Organic Seeds - A wide selection of certified organic seeds.

I'm looking forward to browsing through these catalogs!

Fall brings overnight frost, which marks the end of the gardening season. As most vegetables are annuals, it is time to clean up the garden and start preparations for next year. I made good use of my new tractor this year. As I took tomato cages out of the ground, I put them in the cart that I had behind the tractor for easy transport back to the garage. Then, I went over the remaining plants with the mower to chop them up before getting the tiller out. That made it much easier to till everything under. There were no long vines to wrap around the tines of the tiller. One pass with the tiller is all it took.

I also took some time to look around the rest of the yard. Some of the fruit trees will need some pruning early next year. I also need to build trellises for the raspberries. I have some space in the raspberry row for a few more raspberry plants, or maybe some blackberries.

I don't have room for any more fruit trees (at least not without taking the elm tree out). I will be adding one more blueberry bush next spring. I also have a place for another row of small bushes, but it is somewhat shaded by the neighbor's maple trees.

I've done some searching, and it seems that plants in the Ribes genus will tolerate some shade, and may actually prefer it in some cases. This genus includes gooseberries and currants. The hardy kiwi appears to tolerate shade as well, but I think I may stick with the gooseberries and currants. I should have enough room to plant several different varieties. I planted one gooseberry this spring, and it has done very well. The rabbits don't seem to bother it. I assume they don't like the thorns. (I think I could use a few more plants with built-in defenses like that!)

I haven't decided on any particular varieties yet. If anyone has any favorites of either currants (any color) or gooseberries, feel free to mention them in the comments. :)

I recently found out about Blog Action Day, so I thought I'd join in the fun. :)

What can you do to help the environment? Even if you don't have the resources for large projects, there are small things that anyone can do to help.

If you have a garden, or even just a lawn, switch to organic fertilizers and pesticides. Start a compost bin. Leave the grass clippings on the yard. If you have a small yard (1/4 acre or smaller), consider switching to an electric (corded or cordless) mower or a manual reel mower.

Even if you don't have a yard, you can support farmers that use organic methods (no synthetic chemicals) when you buy organic food at the supermarket. Buy locally produced food when possible to reduce the environmental impact of transporting food.

Even small changes can make a difference.

My latest tool for the lawn and garden:

It's the John Deere LA130 Lawn Tractor. I can get the mowing done a lot faster now! I'm planning on getting a cart to pull behind it to help out with the gardening. For now, it just gives me more time for gardening since I get the mowing done so quickly!

Happy Arbor Day!

Today is Arbor Day in the US, although some states observe Arbor Day on different dates.

Visit the National Arbor Day Foundation website to find out more about Arbor Day. Join the Foundation, order trees, or learn more about Arbor Day.

Have you planted any trees recently? I planted another plum tree and an apricot tree a few weeks ago, but I don't think I'll be able to do that every year, as I'm running out of room!

Fruits or vegetables? What's in your garden?

I have decided to scale back the vegetable garden this year. Instead, I am planting more fruit trees and bushes. Why? For several reasons:

(1) I like fruit -- all kinds of fruit! Fruit fresh from the tree/bush/whatever is the best.
(2) I like growing perennials. I like to see them leaf out and bloom in the spring, with little or no effort on my part. Almost all fruits are perennials, and almost all vegetables are annuals (which means I have to start over each year).
(3) Most fruit grows on large plants (trees, bushes, etc.). I find it easier to care for large plants, as it is easy to control weeds around them. A thick layer of mulch works well. Small vegetables require careful weeding. (Strawberries are an exception to the large plants, but I have to grow those because they taste so good!)

I'm turning the backyard into a small fruit orchard. I have raspberries, cherries, peaches, plums, rhubarb, and strawberries right now, and I will be adding another plum tree, an apricot tree, blueberries, gooseberries, and more strawberries this year.

I'll still grow some tomatoes, peppers, and a few other vegetables this year, but not as many as last year.

Last night's supper:

Ground beef patties (naturally-raised beef from Lakewinds), grilled over butternut wood, on buns brushed with extra-virgin olive oil and toasted on the grill. Topped with 2 slices of a fresh heirloom tomato (Brandywine). Nothing else.

Absolutely wonderful.

Waiting for tomatoes. There are lots of tomatoes in the garden, but they are all green (except for Matt's Wild Cherry -- those are starting to ripen). The tomatoes are getting bigger, and more are setting on, but so far, they are still green. I know they will ripen soon (the smaller ones first), but it is hard to wait! Waiting ...

In our modern society, we don't like to wait. We have fast food, microwavable dinners, instant coffee, and all types of ready-to-eat or quick-fix meals in the grocery store. We even get fresh produce (including tomatoes) year-round. Why wait for vegetables to be in season?

Why make your own pasta sauce when you can open a jar from the store? Why make your own fresh salsa when you can buy good salsa (even fresh salsa) at the store? Why can tomatoes when you can buy canned tomatoes at the store? Why? Because you can make it better. You can use fresh ingredients for the pasta sauce and let it simmer to blend the flavors. You can make the salsa from garden-fresh vegetables, hand-picked for best flavor. You can use your favorite variety of tomatoes to make your own canned tomato sauce. You'll also know exactly what went in your pasta sauce or salsa or canned tomatoes.

Make it yourself, and you can make it your own. Change the recipe to match your tastes! Add more basil to the pasta sauce. Or more garlic. Leave out the oregano if you don't like it. Customize it! Add more cilantro to the salsa, or leave it out completely. It's up to you!

Yes, it takes longer to make it yourself, but it tastes better when you're done. I'm willing to wait for better quality, better tasting food. That's why I'm waiting for the tomatoes -- because heirloom tomatoes fresh from the garden are much better than the tomatoes at the grocery store.

So I wait.

We've been getting some fresh strawberries from the garden. They are small, but good. We also are starting to get some radishes. Very tasty!

No roses, but the onions, beets, carrots, squash, and cucumbers are all coming up. :D

What I'm growing this year: Tomatoes, peppers (sweet and hot), tomatillos, eggplant, radishes, carrots, beets, onions, cucumbers, zucchini squash, winter squash, garlic, strawberries, and rhubarb. I also have a peach tree, two plum trees, a cherry tree, and several raspberry bushes, but I don't expect to get any fruit from those this year. The strawberries are ripening, so we'll have a few of those to enjoy soon.