My Garden – Rookie Mistakes in Your Garden?

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Your best friend

Even if your vegetable garden is the envy of neighbors, it’s still easy to make rookie mistakes that waste precious resources, your time, effort and growing time.

1. Unwise watering. Too much, too little, too hard, too soft they’re all watering mistakes that will wreck your garden. Before adding water, poke a finger a couple of inches into the soil. If it’s moist, save the water don’t water your plants. If it’s dry, gently at the base of plants. Better yet, wind a drip hose ($13 for 50 feet) through your garden; that way, you will deliver moisture to the roots without wasting water on leaves and to evaporation.

2. Forgetting to test. Even veteran gardeners forget to test their soil every year to make sure it has the pH and nutrients plants need. For about $10, you can send a sample to your state extension service and receive a complete analysis. Or, buy a DIY test kit at your local garden center. When you know what your soil is made of, either select plants that thrive in that type of earth, or amend soil to match your garden’s needs.

3. Planting garden divas. Of course you love summer tomatoes, but they can be tricky to grow during summers that are too hot, too cold, too wet, too dry. So newbies should try growing a couple of tomato plants just for fun, then load gardens with foolproof veggies and herbs, such as beans, peppers, oregano, and parsley. If you must grow a tomato, plant cherry tomatoes that can survive anything summer can throw at them and even yield fruit into fall.

4. Planting too much. One cherry tomato plant can yield 80 fruit, and a single zucchini plant can keep your neighbors in zucchini bread through winter. So don’t plant more than you can eat, put up, or share with friends. The National Gardening Association says an edible garden of about 200 sq. ft. should keep a family of four in veggies all summer. If you do grow more than you need, can and freeze excess and donate it to a local food bank or plan a swap with fellow gardeners.

5. Growing everything from seed. Some crops, such as salad greens, radishes, carrots, peas, beans, and squash, are easy to grow from seeds that germinate in a couple of weeks. Experience will tell you that eggplant, broccoli, cauliflower, and tomatoes are better grown from seedlings, which someone else has nurtured for months. Pick plants that are short and compact. Avoid leggy plants with blooms that are liable to die on the vine as the plant acclimates itself to your garden.

6. Assuming you know. Gardeners often read seed packages and figure they know everything about growing vegetables. Wrong! The more you know about your hardiness zone, soil, weather, insects, and vegetable varieties, the better your garden will grow. So curl up with a good gardening book, and surf the web for garden bloggers that share your passion.

7. Relying on pesticides. Don’t bring out the big guns, which can contaminate the watershed, until you’ve tried less toxic ways to get rid of garden pests. Ladybugs and praying mantis, which you can buy at garden supply stores, will eat garden intruders, such as aphids and beetles. Non toxic insecticidal soaps will take care of soft-bodied insects (don’t use if ladybugs are around).

Heirloom Tomato Salad

1lb. mixed fresh tomatoes, chopped
1/2cup thinly sliced red onions
1/4cup ATHENOS Crumbled Feta Cheese with Basil & Tomato
1/4cup KRAFT Tuscan House Italian Dressing
2Tbsp. chopped fresh basil
2Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

COMBINE ingredients.
Hint Use a variety of different colored and shaped tomatoes when making this seasonal salad. Just chop, quarter or halve the tomatoes depending on their size.

Salad can be made ahead of time. Prepare as directed, but do not add cheese. Refrigerate up to 8 hours. Toss with cheese just before serving.

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Super Foods For Your Health – Super Charge Your Diet

Source 37 Superfoods To Start Eating Today

Superfoods are a group of natural, nutrient-dense whole foods that truly are nature’s medicine cabinet. You won’t find these foods created in a processing plant. You probably won’t see them advertised on sexy television commercials either. But if you start to include these foods in your diet, it’s likely you’ll experience improved health and wellness, from the inside-out.

1. Apples. Apples are packed with antioxidants and fiber, so they make a filling and sweet snack.

2. Blueberries. Possibly the smallest superfood on our list, blueberries pack a punch. They’re high in potassium, vitamin C, and healthy antioxidants that can lower your risk of heart disease, cancer, and inflammation.

3. Apricots. Rich in fiber, iron and copper, apricots pack a whole lot of nutrition into each bite. Apricots have also been shown to improve indigestion, earaches, and certain skin diseases.

4. Artichokes. This low calorie vegetable is naturally rich with fiber, vitamins C and K, folate, magnesium and potassium. Artichoke is also versatile and can be prepared in a variety of ways. No matter how you eat them, be sure to eat the leaves and not just the heart!

5. Olive Oil. Our friends in the Mediterranean do it right; olive oil has been proven to improve heart health due to its high content of monosaturated fats. Olive oil is also an anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant and anti-microbial

6. Beets. Beets are loaded with fiber, potassium, and folate, and are free of saturated fats and cholesterol. Researchers believe the red pigment in beets – betacyanin – may protect cells against cancer.

7. Cabbage. Just one serving of cabbage contains 15% of your daily fiber, along with vitamins A, C, and K. Eating cruciferous vegetables, including cabbage, has been shown to reduce the risk of cancer.

8. Tomatoes. Tomatoes are high in antioxidants and can reduce risk of heart disease and osteoporosis, as well as minimize UV damage.

9. Bananas. At just 110 calories per serving, bananas are a great way to get in some potassium and vitamin B-6.

10. Carrots. Carrots are filled with beta-carotene which can improve eyesight and slow down aging cell growth.

11. Dark Chocolate. Dark chocolate is full of compound flavanols, which are a type of antioxidant that decreases inflammation, lowers blood sugar, and improves both positive and negative cholesterol levels. Just make sure you eat it dark, not the candy-coated chocolate found in most supermarkets or snack-shops.

12. Beans. Beans are a low-cost high-impact food that are high in protein and fiber and low in fat. .

13. Mangos. Nicknamed the “King of Fruit, eating mangos can improve your eyesight, skin, memory, digestion, and sex drive.

14. Sardines. They may not look appealing, but sardines can help prevent cancer, improve your bone health, and act as an anti-inflammatory.

15. Mushrooms. Mushrooms can help us be healthier, fitter, happier, and live longer. So go make friends with your favorite fungi

16. Pomegranates. A symbol of fertility and health, the pomegranate is great tasting fruit that’s an anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant, and can also help you lose fat.

17. Avocado. Avocados are packed with over 25 essential nutrients: vitamins A, B, C, E, and K, as well as lots of fiber, protein, and healthy fats.

18. Coffee. Benefits of coffee include reduced risk for heart disease, dementia, and skin cancer. It has even been proven to lessen symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.

19. Oranges. Eating oranges can help with arthritis, prevent kidney stones, and with ample amounts of calcium, contributes to healthy bones and teeth.

20. Broccoli. Mustard oils found in broccoli have been shown to fight the most malignant cancer stem cells. It’s also high in fiber and phytonutrients.

21. Honey. Honey’s antibacterial properties help guard against bacterial viruses like E. Coli and salmonella.

22. Oats are extremely high in insoluble fiber, and are a good source of low-glycemic complex carbohydrates.

23. Kale. Kale is packed with vitamins A, C, and K, not to mention fiber and calcium.

24. Brussel Sprouts. Brussel sprouts may not have been your favorite food growing up, but there’s a reason your mother made you eat them. These small vegetables can improve your digestion, lower cholesterol, and protect your DNA..

25. Figs. In only one half a cup of dried figs there are 7.3g of both soluble and insoluble fiber. This makes figs the perfect superfood for slowing digestion and keeping you full longer.

26. Bok Choy. This extremely nutritious cruciferous vegetable provides plenty of calcium and potassium, along with carotenoids (such as beta-carotene), which may improve eye health.

27. Pumpkin. More than just a Halloween decoration, pumpkins are a low calorie food with lots of vitamin A and fiber.

28. Oysters. Oysters are a low density, high energy food and a good source of lean protein.

29. Brown Rice. This high-fiber food has a lower glycemic index than white rice, so it will keep you full for longer without causing a dramatic increase in your blood sugar levels.

30. Edamame. These beans include all nine amino acids, as well as lots of vitamins and minerals that improve immune health and battle disease.

31. Salmon. Salmon is rich in omega-3 fatty acids as well as protein, selenium, and vitamin D, making this superfood a must have if you’re interested in protecting your heart’s health and improving your metabolism.

32. Spinach. Spinach is densely packed with nutrients, and although one cup can hold your entire daily dose of vitamins K and A, its only about 40 calories! Spinach can also be paired with most foods on this list in order to really reach maximum nutrient intake.

33. Garlic. From cancer prevention to heart health to immune system boosting, you can thank allicin (the active ingredient in garlic) for these benefits.

34. Tea. Tea has less caffeine than coffee but still performs as an agent against cancers, heart disease and clogged arteries.

35. Ginger. Ginger has long been used for curing ills of all kinds, from minor stomach pains to arthritis, and even migraines.

36. Turkey. Your favorite Thanksgiving meal is a low fat source of protein with vitamins B3 and B6, as well as selenium, which promotes thyroid health.

37. Walnuts. Walnuts are a great source of omega-3 fatty acids, and are loaded with monosaturated fats, which can improve your heart health.

Start eating foods that are good for your health.

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Gardening It’s Fun, It May Be Your Best Medicine – Special Report: Death By Mushroom!

Source Sun’s blood pressure benefits ‘may outdo cancer risks
Who Knew? Health benefits From Sunshine may be more numerous than anyone thought.
Get out into your garden, soak up a few of the suns UV rays, become a heather person by gardening.

Edinburgh University research suggests sunlight helps reduce blood pressure, cutting heart attack and stroke risks and even prolonging life. The suns UV rays were found to release a compound that lowers blood pressure.
Heart disease and stroke linked to high blood pressure are estimated to lead to about 80 times more deaths than those from skin cancer.

Dr Richard Weller Edinburgh University said “Dietary vitamin D supplements alone will not compensate for lack of sunlight. Production of the blood pressure reducing compound, nitric oxide, is separate from the body’s manufacture of vitamin D, which rises after exposure to sunshine.” Researchers said that until now vitamin D production had been considered the sole benefit of the sun to human health.

Test results showed that blood pressure dropped significantly for an hour after exposure to UV rays.

Wild Mushrooms Can Kill You

Unless your a ‘Real’ mushroom expert and can make proper identification ‘Without Error’ Don’t harvest or eat any wild mushrooms that you or your friends may harvested.

Death by Mushroom – Christina Hale, 57, found the death cap mushrooms, Amanita phalloides, while foraging under a tree in her garden in Bridgwater, Somerset, and assumed they were edible. She added them to a can of Cream of Mushroom soup which she ate for dinner, along with her husband, Jocelyn Lynch.

The couple both fell ill with vomiting and diarrhoea and although a doctor initially diagnosed norovirus, two days later, the pair were admitted to hospital, where Mrs Hale, was taken straight into intensive care. She died on November 19, four days after eating the mushrooms, having suffered major organ failure. Mr Lynch, who had eaten a smaller amount of soup, recovered.

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Beet’s (Beetroot) 101 – Growing, Harvesting And Cooking

Source Growing beetroot BBC Gardening
Stop that, don’t let your children see you making an ugly face while reading about how to plant, grow, harvest and eat your garden fresh beets.

Freshly pulled beets (beetroot) are wonderfully tender with a delicious earthy taste. Best of all, they’re really easy to grow from seed.

Beets prefer to be grown in moist, fertile soil in a sunny spot, but will also thrive in raised beds or pots. Sow seeds directly into the soil from mid-spring and for a fall crop plant in early August to September.

* To make a seed bed, remove weeds and dig or till using a rototiller. Removing any particularly large stones if you have rocks in your garden.
Level working over the area to be planted with a rake to leave a fine finish. Spread a general granular fertilizer across the site and rake into the soil.

* Seed can be sown directly into the soil from March to June in most of the U.S.A. Make a 3/4 to 1 inch deep trench with the corner of a rake, hoe (or a cane will do) and drop in your seeds every 3 to 4 inches apart.
Cover, water well. Note If you want a plentiful supply of beets, sow seeds every 14 to days keeping rows 8 inches apart.

If you have a small garden, beets are easy to grow in pots. To grow in pots (ideal for round varieties, not long cylindrical ones), choose containers that are at least 8 inches in diameter and at least 8 inches deep.
Fill loosely with multi-purpose compost leaving the compost just shy of the top of your pot.
Tap the pot gently to settle, and firm with your finger tips aiming to leave a 1 1/2 inch gap between the surface of the compost and the top of your pot. Sow seeds thinly across the surface and cover with 3/4 inch of compost. Water and thin out seedlings when they’re about 3/4 inch tall, leaving a 3 to 4 inch spacing between your plants.

Harvest your beets while small and very tender. Ping Pong ball to Golf ball size. To harvest, gently hold the tops and lift while levering under the root with a hand fork. Remove the tops by twisting them off with your hands to prevent the plants bleeding their juice. Don’t throw away beet tops (greens), they taste great and can be eaten fresh in salads or cooked and eaten like spinach.

Beets may be boiled, broiled, eaten fresh in salads, or pickled.
* Grate, slice or 1/4 small raw beets to be used in salads.
** Source Beet / Beetroot Cooking Tips
** Source How to pickle beets

*** Beets are a super food Beets are loaded with fiber, potassium, and folate, and are free of saturated fats and cholesterol. Researchers believe the red pigment in beets – betacyanin – may protect cells against cancer.

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Secret Things Only Grandpa’s Know

Grandpa knows Secret things like fresh eggs come from chickens in the hen house, not from the supermarket, how to clean and store fresh eggs still warm from the hen house. Knowing that milk comes from cows and goats, how to get the milk from cow to table without getting a cows foot in the milk bucket. That butter and cheese is made from milk! Knowing it does not come from the supermarket!

Grandpa knows How to make and cook an omelet or eggs over easy, make pancakes and French toast using OMG only an old cast iron skillet and his old gas stove. He can do it all without a computer, internet, cell phone, texting, microwave or toaster oven! Wow, imagine that!

Grandpa knows How to find those garden fresh potatoes hidden under ground to make hash brown potato’s for breakfast.
How to make ‘real’ fresh pancakes and waffles that don’t come frozen out of a box.
How to plant and grow a garden.
How to pick and cook summer squash, egg plant and okra fresh from the garden.
Grandpa knows when a watermelon is ripe!
Grandpa knows what real vine ripe tomatoes look and taste like!
Grandpa knows when cabbage, lettuce, radishes, carrots and beets are ready for harvest what they should look and taste like ‘before’ they are warped in plastic and set on supermarket display shelf’s for day’s on end.
Grandpa knows How to grow and pick things from the garden to make fresh relish for hotdogs and burgers or salsa How to make fresh homemade bread and biscuits.
How to make popcorn using only popping corn and his old cast iron pan!
Grandpa knows how to bait a hook and clean a fish for the dining table.

These are only a few of the ‘Secret’ things only grandpa knows.

Our society today’s young adults, having many more city dwellers than country folk. Two working parent homes, 24/7 supermarkets, satellite TV, computers / internet, cell phones, iphones, ipods in most homes. Our children have come to believe anyone that works more than six or seven hours a day, gets hot and sweaty, gets their hands dirty are uneducated and real hard work is to be avoided.

Never knowing how hard life was way back when homes with a telephone or television was rare, when homes only had ‘one’ telephone and it was attached to the wall. When many people shared a party line.

In the days ‘before’ computers, internet, facebook, ipods, xboxes. When stores closed at night and were closed on Sunday’s. When sales clerks and cashier’s knew your name. When television station started broadcasting at 5am and went off the air at midnight. In the days when families only had one TV and 3 TV stations, when people listened to radio for their news and entertainment. When families eat 3 meals a day ‘together’ at the family dining table.
When kids and parents were forced to talk face to face about school and growing up.

In the days when a fun day out meant a family outing to the creek or lake for fishing and swimming. Chasing and sometimes catching grasshoppers or maybe a lizard.
Listening, watching and learning to identify each bird by it’s call or song, how they fly differently, the difference in the coloring and markings of female and a male birds.
How to identify the numerous different types of insects in their different stages of development. How to recognize a good bug from a destructive (bad) bug.

How hard things were when children and adults were forced to drink water and ‘real’ whole milk, forced snack on fresh home grown vegetables. When getting a coke, chips, candy or a ‘store’ bought burger or pizza was a special once a month event. When kids were forced to drink water or kool-aid, play outside, walk or bike to see, talk and play with friends. In the day’s when drugs, gangs and violence was so uncommon it was headline news in your local news paper. {Do You Remember News papers?}

In the days when growing a home garden was a necessity not a hobby.
When you could not get sea food, bananas, oranges and grapes in the winter.
When every town had an ice house, few people had a ‘real’ refrigerator and even fewer had a deep freezer. Long before microwave ovens, computers, cell phones, GPS navigation systems, On Star, big box stores. In the day’s before Doritos, Redbull, bottled water, cable and satellite dish TV, ATM machines were invented.

These are some of the ‘Secret’ things that only grandpa’s knows.

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Tomato’s From Seed to Your Table

Bamboo Tomato Trellis

1. Don’t Crowd Seedlings.
Don’t Let Seedlings Grow Into Each Other. If you are starting tomatoes from seed, be sure to give the seedlings room to branch out. Close conditions inhibit their growth, so transplant them as soon as they get their first true leaves and move them into 4″ pots about 2 weeks after that.

2. Provide lots of light.
Tomato seedlings will need either strong, direct sunlight or 14-18 hours under grow lights. Place the young plants only a couple of inches from florescent grow lights. Plant your tomatoes outside in the sunniest part of your vegetable plot.

3. Put a fan on your seedlings.
It seems tomato plants need to move and sway in the breeze, to develop strong stems. Provide a breeze by turning a fan on them for 5-10 minutes twice a day.

4. Preheat the soil in your garden.
Using Black Plastic to Warm the Soil. Tomatoes love heat. Cover the planting area with black or red plastic a couple of weeks before you intend to plant. Those extra degrees of warmth will translate into earlier tomatoes.

5. Bury them deep.
Bury tomato plants deeper than they come in the pot, all the way up to a few top leaves. Tomatoes are able to develop roots all along their stems. You can either dig a deeper hole or simply dig a shallow tunnel and lay the plant sideways. It will straighten up and grow toward the sun. Be careful not to drive your pole or cage into the stem.

6. Mulch Later.
Straw Makes a Great Vegetable Garden Mulch. Mulch after the ground has had a chance to warm up. Mulching does conserve water and prevents the soil and soil born diseases from splashing up on the plants, but if you put it down too early it will also shade and therefore cool the soil. Try using plastic mulch for heat lovers like tomatoes and peppers. (See Tip #4)

Vertical Tomato Trellis

7. Remove the Bottom Leaves.
Tomato Leaf Spot Diseases. Once the tomato plants are about 3′ tall, remove the leaves from the bottom 1′ of stem. These are usually the first leaves to develop fungus problems. They get the least amount of sun and soil born pathogens can be unintentionally splashed up onto them. Spraying weekly with compost tea also seems to be effective at warding off fungus diseases.

Tomato Cage

8. Pinch & Prune for More Tomatoes
Tomato Suckers in the Joint of Branches. Pinch and remove suckers that develop in the crotch joint of two branches. They won’t bear fruit and will take energy away from the rest of the plant. But go easy on pruning the rest of the plant. You can thin leaves to allow the sun to reach the ripening fruit, but it’s the leaves that are photosynthesizing and creating the sugars that give flavor to your tomatoes.

9. Water the Tomato Plants Regularly.
Blossom End Rot. Water deeply and regularly while the plants are developing. Irregular watering, (missing a week and trying to make up for it), leads to blossom end rot and cracking. Once the fruit begins to ripen, lessening the water will coax the plant into concentrating its sugars. Don’t withhold water so much that the plants wilt and become stressed or they will drop their blossoms and possibly their fruit.

10. Getting Them to Set Tomatoes.
Successive Ripening of Cherry Tomatoes. Determinate type tomatoes tend to set and ripen their fruit all at about the same time, making a large quantity available when you’re ready to make sauce. You can get indeterminate type tomatoes to set fruit earlier by pinching off the tips of the main stems in early summer.

Finding More Help
The Bad News is there’s more than 10 or 15 different tomato diseases, bacterial and virus that can effect home gardener tomato crops.

Blossom end rot

Powdery mildew

The Good News is most tomato diseases, bacterial and virus infections can be easily treated if properly identified and treated in a timely manner.

Iowa state university link is for those of you that garden in the northern 1/2 of the U.S. and the University of Texas link provides information that most often effect southern state tomato gardens.

No matter where you live both sites have a huge amount of useful information on Identifying and treating tomato diseases. Don’t be discouraged or intimidated by the sheer numbers of tomato diseases. I’m pretty sure you will not suffer from all of them this year. in fact, insect control very well maybe your biggest problem in a home garden.

Iowa State University Contains Pictures, description, Control and Treatment of tomato disease, bacterial and virus infections.

Texas A and M University Contains Pictures, description, Control and Treatment of tomato disease, bacterial and virus infections.

Insect control just like disease control starts with properly identifying the insect(s) that are causing your problems.

Adult potato beetle

Potato beetle larva

Colorado State University link will help you identify and control some of the most common tomato insect pest.

Texas A and M University link will help you identify and control some of the most common tomato insect pest.

University of Kentucky College of Agriculture contains a lot of useful information on identifying and control of the Colorado Potato Beetle. This insect pest will attack Tomato’s, Egg Plants and Peppers as well as Potato’s.

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Walking Catfish – Or – Great Grandson Goes Fishing

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Timer Controlled Automatic Fish Feeder

Our long running drought saw Ronny’s pond dry up during the summer 2010 for the first time. Making the best of a bad situation, we rented a D4 bulldozed and Ronny spent most of 3 days digging out his pond making it much deeper and a bit wider and longer.

Finely in the spring of 2011, we got a hard rain and the pond filled about half way up again. We bought 100 Red Ear (Sun Fish) Perch (about 1 inch long) and 100 (3-4 inch long) Channel Catfish to stock our little fishing hole. Eeeek then it didn’t rain again for 4 months. I was afraid the pond would go dry again and we would loose all of our investment in stocking the pond with fish. But it did rain and this time it filled our little pond up to the top.

If your interested, I got mine from Moultrie feeders They sell deer/turkey feeders as well. It has a lot of features allowing feeding up to 6 times a day with adjustments for the amount of feed dispensed at each feeding. Best part is it is adjustable to dispense the fish food in any direction (directional) you need to sling the feed. Not just in a circular pattern like deer and turkey feeders.

Feeding catfish

To keep Ronny’s longhorn bull and cows out of the fish feeder bucket, I constructed a hinge pole sticking 4 feet out of the ground, with an upset feed bucket holder arm that keeps the feed bucket high enough and far enough over the pond that the cows can’t reach the feeder bucket.

Now The Part About Walking Catfish! Not long ago, Ronny had the feeder bucket off it’s bucket holder arm to replace the 6 volt battery. I noticed that the catfish were all feeding at or very near the pond shore line. After a quick investigation… Oooops, When Ronny reinstalled the feeder bucket he reattached the bucket 180 backwards and was slinging most of the fish food onto dry land. Grin … I explained to him that we had the common American Channel catfish, Not the Amazon river delta Walking Catfish! After he turned the feeder bucket the right direction our catfish are much happier at feeding time.

I have hopes that by mid-summer or so, we will have a few 2 pound catfish and the Red Ear perch should be pan size as well. That’s just the right size to serve one person fried catfish. …. Grin …. That will give me and Great Grand Son an excuse to Go Fishing! I have ordered both of us new telescoping fiberglass poles (like the old real Cane Poles) but more durable I hope. His is 10 feet long (he’s just a little guy, you know) and mine is 13 feet long. We will be using barb-less hooks so we can easily catch and release fish not need for the table.

A few worms or small grasshoppers, a large glass of ice tea for me and a jelly glass of 100% fruit juice (none of that extra sweet, 10% juice for my Great Grand Son) for him and we will be set for our big fishing trip to yea old fishing hole.

Fun Catfish Facts
Catfish get its name from its long, feline whiskers, which are officially called “barbels.”
Most full-grown, farm-raised catfish weigh between 1 and 2 pounds.
Because it’s a firm-fleshed fish, catfish is an excellent candidate for grilling and frying.
Catfish is relatively lean, and is low in saturated fat. It’s also high in vitamin D and is
a good source of protein.
Catfish has a thick, inedible skin, not scales. Remove (skin) before cooking.

Fillet catfish as you would any other fish, this will produce 2 nice sized boneless fish fillets. Fillets because they’re boneless and they have a uniform thickness, makes them easy and they cook more evenly.

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Cabbage Patch |-Doll-| Family Reunion

Stop it, stop making that ugly face. Cabbage and all it’s family members taste good and are good for you. Cruciferous vegetables (cole vegetables) cabbage, cauliflower, collards, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale, kohlrabi, mustard and turnip greens.

Cole crops will tolerate some shade but full sun is always preferable. Cole crops will grow better in heavier, cooler soils than most warm season crops.
Cole crops are heavy feeders and do best in a deep, fertile soil enriched with plenty of organic matter. Because cole crops can easily become deficient in minor elements, at least part of the fertilizer material should be composted manure or composted vegetable matter to ensure a supply of these nutrients. Cauliflower demands the most exacting soil and fertility requirements to produce large firm heads.

Planting and Culture Most growers grow cabbage(green and red), cauliflower, broccoli and Brussels sprouts from spring transplants rather than seeding them directly in the garden. Fall crops may be seeded directly into the garden in June and July for a Fall crop. Quality transplant seedlings are a vital key to a successful crop. To prevent premature flower stalk formation, keep the seedlings growing above 60º F. This is particularly true for broccoli and cauliflower. A good seedling transplant will be 5 to 6 weeks old, sturdy with good color.

Cabbage plants can withstand very low temperatures down to 10º to 15º F for a night or two, broccoli and cauliflower are not nearly so cold resistant.

Harvest Cabbage when the head is very firm. Springy heads are not mature. Harvest Cauliflower heads when they reach a diameter of 5 to 8 inches and before the segments begin to separate. To get pure white heads, exclude light. Tie the outer leaves over the developing head with rubber bands or clothespins and keep them tied until harvest. Do not be concerned if some light gets through and discolors the head the eating quality is not affected.

Harvest Broccoli while the head is still compact and before the small flower buds open up to show yellow. Head diameter will range from 4 to 8 inches. After this center head is harvested side shoots (heads) of 2 to 3 inches will develop.

Brussels sprouts Small, cabbage-like sprouts develop along the thick stem, maturing first at the base of the plant. As the sprouts enlarge, remove the large leaves between the sprouts. Pinch out the growing tip of the plants in early September to hasten maturity. Harvest the sprouts when they are firm and before they open up. A light frost or two improves their flavor.

Harvest kale any time leaves are large enough for intended use. Tender young leaves are best for salad, older leaves are better cooked. Frost improves the flavor of kale.

Don’t over look planting collards, mustard and turnips when you plant your Cole Spring and Fall garden.

Don’t over cook any of the Cole vegetable. No matter what method you choose, boiling, broiling stir frying or steaming, Do Not Over Cook Cole vegetables.

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Home Grown Lettuce – Best Salad You Will Ever Taste

leaf lettuce

Source University of Illinois Extension Lettuce is a cool weather vegetable that thrives when the average daily temperature is between 60 and 70°F. Plant in early spring or late summer. Some types and varieties of lettuce withstand heat better than others.

Leaf lettuce, the most widely adapted of all the Lettuce types, produces crisp leaves loosely arranged on the stalk. Romaine types form a upright, elongated head. Butterhead varieties are generally small, loose heading types that have tender, soft leaves with a delicate sweet flavor.

In my opinion, Crisphead varieties like iceberg commonly sold at supermarkets are tasteless, worthless and a waste of time and space to grow.

Some Recommended Varieties
Green Leaf
Black-seeded Simpson (earliest to harvest)
Grand Rapids (frilly edges; good for coldframes, greenhouse, garden)
Oak Leaf (resistant to tipburn; good for hot weather)
Red Leaf
Red Fire (ruffles with red edge – slow to bolt)
Red Sails (slowest bolting red leaf lettuce)
Ruby (darkest red of all – resistant to tipburn)
Romaine
Cimmaron (unique, dark red leaf)
Green Towers (early – dark green, large leaves)
Paris Island (long – standing)

Northern Climates can plant lettuce in both spring and late summer. Southern climates lettuce planting is best done in late Summer or early Fall. Two or more successive plantings at 7 to 10 day intervals provide a continuous supply of lettuce.

Harvesting and Storage
Leaf lettuce may be cut whenever it is large enough to use. Cutting every other plant at ground level gives the remaining plants more space. Leaf lettuce reaches maximum size (6 to 12 ounces) in 50 to 60 days. Butterhead varieties form small, loose heads that weigh 4 to 8 ounces at harvest (60 to 70 days).

To store lettuce, wash, drip dry and place in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. Lettuce keeps best at 32°F and high (96%) humidity.

I planted my lettuce carefully following the seed package instructions.
What went wrong?
Failure of seeds to germinate is almost always caused by insufficient moisture. Take extra care to keep the seedbed moist, but not soggy, until the seedlings emerge.

Formation of seed stalks is caused by warm temperatures. If seed stalks begin to form, harvest your lettuce immediately and store it in the refrigerator.

In overly warm/hot weather Lettuce may become bitter. Harvest wash and store the leaves in the refrigerator for a day or two. Much of the bitterness will disappear.

From my for what it’s worth department.
Nutrition Facts (One cup raw leaf lettuce, chopped)
Calories 9
Dietary Fiber 1.3
Protein 1 gram
Carbohydrates 1.34 grams
Vitamin A 1456 IU
Vitamin C 13.44
Calcium 20.16
Iron 0.62
Potassium 162.4 mg

Don’t ruin the flavor of your garden fresh lettuce covering it with a large amount of strong flavored/tasting supermarket dressings. Try one of these light flavored vinaigrette style dressings.

Red and Yellow Pepper Vinaigrette
1 small yellow bell pepper, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 small red bell pepper, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons warm water
pinch of sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
In a medium bowl, whisk together all ingredients until combined well. This vinaigrette will keep, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for 3 days. Recipe may be doubled. Makes one cup.

Citrus Vinaigrette
1/4 cup fresh orange juice (juice of one small orange)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 teaspoon coarse Kosher salt (1/4 teaspoon table salt)
Freshly ground black pepper
Combine the juices and salt and pepper. Slowly whisk in oils until incorporated. A blender or food processor may also be used. Pour into a glass jar and seal. Serve over your favorite salad greens. The vinaigrette will keep, tightly covered, for a week in the refrigerator. To warm cold vinaigrette, place jar in a bowl of hot tap water for a few minutes.

Mustard Chive Vinaigrette
1 tablespoon grainy Dijon-style mustard
black pepper freshly ground to taste
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh chives
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 tablespoon water
2 teaspoons honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons olive oil
Using a whisk or fork, in a small bowl combine all ingredients except the oil. Slowly add the oil, whisking vigorously, until the vinaigrette is emulsified. Pour over your favorite salad greens and toss. Store remaining vinaigrette in the refrigerator, in a tightly sealed glass jar, for up to one week. To warm cold vinaigrette, place jar in a small bowl of hot tap water for a few minutes. Makes 1/2 cup.

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Care And Feeding Your Dirt – Garden Soil 101

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Know Your Dirt. These are common soil preparation and soil amendment recommendations. No two places in the world have the same soil conditions nor can you apply the same procedures in the southeast U.S. that work well in Ohio or else where.

A soil test is best. With that said, I know that most gardeners will never take the time nor spend a few dollars to have their garden soil tested. Not knowing what you garden soil really needs means that we must use that shotgun approach to soil care. Almost without fail garden soil is low or very low in humus and nitrogen.

Nitrogen can be added to your soil using a pure nitrogen fertilizer like 20-0-0 but I recommend a better balanced fertilizer like 13-13-13 or maybe something like 10-5-5.
Tilling in a good compost material will add both nitrogen and humus to your soil and most of us need both nitrogen and humus added to our garden dirt.
I do not recommend applying raw manure or livestock bedding in the spring time. Add this type of materials in the fall, till in well, thus giving raw manure and livestock bedding 3 or more months to decompose before planting time.

Caution Tip Don’t over do the nitrogen! To much nitrogen on root and fruit producing crops can cause your vegetables to be all nice green foliage and produce little or no eatable roots or fruits! High levels of nitrogen is fine for leaf crops like leaf lettuce, spinach, arugula and so on.

Container gardening can be a real challenge to get and keep your fertilizer levels correct for the crop(s) you are growing. Having such a small amount of soil to work with and the need to water almost daily quickly leeches all nutrients from your container soil. Mixing in well composted manure before planting is very helpful. Fertilize every two weeks or so at 1/2 the recommended application rate used when fertilizing garden soil.

Source Carl J. Rosen and Peter M. Bierman, Department of Soil, Water, and Climate, University of Minnesota Using Manure and Compost as Nutrient Sources for Fruit and Vegetable Crops
Manure and compost not only supply many nutrients for crop production, including micronutrients, but they are also valuable sources of organic matter. Increasing soil organic matter improves soil structure or tilth, increases the water holding capacity of coarse textured sandy soils, improves drainage in fine textured clay soils, provides a source of slow release nutrients, reduces wind and water erosion, and promotes growth of earthworms and other beneficial soil organisms.

Fresh vs. composted manure. Fresh, non-composted manure will generally have a higher N content than composted manure. Caution Fresh manure may contain high amounts of viable weed seeds, which can lead to weed problems. In addition, various pathogens such as E. coli may be present in fresh manure and can cause illness to individuals eating fresh produce unless proper precautions are taken. Always carefully wash all vegetables under cold running water. Cook meats and vegetables to a temperature of 160 degrees to kill bacteria like E. coli that may be present on meats, fruits or vegetables.

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