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Potatoes are one of our favorite vegetables. The Northern Plains Potato Growers Association says each person in the United States eats 110 pounds of potatoes each year! Fortunately potatoes are not very difficult to grow in the home garden. And once you have your crop in the ground, it’s important to know when and... Continue Reading →
Finally, it’s tomato harvest season! You’ve tended your plants through cool, cloudy spring conditions into summer’s heat and they’ve done great. Now you finally have tomatoes ripening and ready for harvest. But wait – they have cracks, yellow shoulders and white spots; what is wrong now? It’s amazing how many problems can plague on our... Continue Reading →
Summer is in full swing and so is harvest in the vegetable garden with the first summer squash, zucchini and cucumbers. In many small towns, soon you won’t be able to leave your car parked with the windows rolled down or you might come back to find the front seat full of zucchini or cucumbers! ... Continue Reading →
Sweet corn season is here, and there's nothing like eating freshly harvested ears – unless you find a worm when peeling back the husks! That unwanted intruder is usually the corn earworm. IdentificationThese caterpillars vary widely in color and may be green, brown, pink, black or various shades between these colors, with light and dark... Continue Reading →
Nothing is more disappointing to the home vegetable gardener than to raise a tomato plant, finally have it loaded with fruit, when suddenly it wilts and dies. What could be the problem? Possible causes include lack of water, fungal wilt diseases, tomato spotted wilt virus, walnut toxicity and stalk borers. Lack of Water. Tomato plants require approximately 1... Continue Reading →
Pest control - insects, diseases and weeds - are challenging for the home organic vegetable gardener. Today we’ll focus on techniques for insect and disease control. Organic gardens may have a higher level of insect and disease damage. Decide how much damage can be tolerated as a threshold for determining when control is needed. Pest Prevention Start... Continue Reading →
For 2021, All-America Selections (AAS) announces three vegetable award winners – ‘Crème Brulee’ echalion, ‘Pot-apeno’ pepper and ‘Goldilocks’ squash. To see pictures of these and other great plants visit the All-American Selection website. Eschalion 'Creme Brulee', image from All-America Selections. Echalion ‘Crème Brulee’. An echalion, also called a banana shallot, differs from standard shallots by having an elongated 4-5” bulb, which is easy to peel and cut. ‘Crème Brulee’... Continue Reading →
Unseasonably warm, mid-70 to nearly 90-degree temperatures in early April lured trees, shrubs and perennials out of dormancy. Many trees and shrubs have been blooming for the last two weeks, only to be threatened by normal late April frosts. April 14-15, Lincoln nighttime temperatures dip to 27°F and 26°F degrees, respectively. April 19-22, had nighttime temperatures of 31°F, 32°F, 29°F and 23°F degrees, respectively. Gardeners always have concerns... Continue Reading →
Fruit trees are blooming, or will soon be, marking the beginning of another growing season. Many diseases become active during blooming, so it’s time to protect your trees and ensure a good harvest. Brown Rot After harvesting, gardeners are often disappointed to find their apricot, peach, cherry or plum fruits quickly develop a soft fuzzy brown rot. This is caused by a very common... Continue Reading →
There are many species of beans in cultivation around the world, yet it is the common garden bean, Phaseolus vulgaris that takes on celebrity status as National Garden Bureau’s vegetable focus for 2021. One of the earliest cultivated plants, garden beans can trace their beginnings to Central and South America. Vining or climbing beans were an original... Continue Reading →
Tree fruits look very appealing in garden magazines and catalogs. But not all tree fruits in the catalogs do well in eastern Nebraska. Important considerations to make sure trees thrive and produce well include winter hardiness, bloom time, disease resistance, growth requirements and regular maintenance. HardinessExtreme winter conditions are the biggest limiting factor for backyard... Continue Reading →
This is a great time of year for gardeners – the mailbox is full of seed and plant catalogs, and we get the joy of considering hundreds of new plants we could try in our gardens this year. Here are some tips to keep in mind as you peruse your catalogs and decide which plants... Continue Reading →
