Is this the year you want to plant a home vegetable garden? If so, it's time to get your plan together for this summer's garden. Home vegetable gardening is a popular hobby for a number of reasons. Some people garden for exercise and some for the enjoyment of harvesting flavorful produce that can be eaten... Continue Reading →
The Year of Broccoli
Broccoli hails from the Mediterranean region and has been enjoyed there since Roman times. Other European regions eventually caught on and broccoli was popularized in France as “Italian Asparagus” in about 1650. The English adopted it about 70 years later. We have been broccoli fans across the US since the 1920s when ice-packed broccoli heads... Continue Reading →
2023 All-America Selection Vegetable Winners
Aside from this year’s four national flower winners, All-America Selections (AAS) has chosen three vegetable award winners – two national winners and one heartland regional winner. National awards are given to plants with consistently great performance across the United States. Regional winners showed outstanding performance within a specific section of the county. All-America Selections... Continue Reading →
Choose Tomato Cultivars Wisely to Prevent Summer Wilts
Looking through all the beautiful tomato pictures in a seed catalog, how do you choose the best cultivars for your garden? Every gardener knows nothing is more disappointing than to raise a tomato plant, finally have it loaded with fruit, when suddenly it wilts and dies. One way to prevent this disaster is to choose... Continue Reading →
Bring the “Tart” to Your Thanksgiving Table with Rhubarb
Of course, pumpkin and pecan pie reign supreme on many Thanksgiving tables, but fruit pies are often a close second in the pie-popularity race. A personal favorite of mine is rhubarb or strawberry-rhubarb pie. People seem to have either a love or hate relationship with rhubarb, but if you are a rhubarb lover and have... Continue Reading →
Building a Coldframe or Hot Bed
A cold frame or hotbed is an easy and inexpensive structure to create. It functions as a small greenhouse, enabling gardeners to extend their growing season in both spring and fall. It can be used to harden off seedlings in spring or grow late season crops of cold tolerant plants like greens. LocationThe ideal location for... Continue Reading →
Pushing the Limits- Extend Your Growing Season with a Hotbed or Cold Frame
Building a cold frame or hot bed enables urban gardeners and small scale vegetable growers to protect young plants from adverse weather in spring and fall, extending their growing season. They are relatively inexpensive, simple structures that function as mini-greenhouses. With a growing interest in locally produced foods and many new gardeners experimenting at growing... Continue Reading →