Monday, November 28, 2011
Coming Soon
Hi, I've been busy but I wanted to let you all know that my next post will be on natural insect and disease control. I know that many people are not happy to have spiders in the garden but they are beneficial and we just need to learn how to tell the poisonous ones and to mark where they are and avoid that area. The only draw back of spiders is that they will also kill other good insects as well as pests. But I'll try and have some new information for you in the next few days. I need time to research before I post. I really want you to have good information. By the way how are your compost piles doing? Keep putting water on them and turning them. Planting time will be here soon. So that's it for now and thanx for visiting Runnindog's Organic Garden. Keep it organic! : )
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Should you start from seed or from seedlings?
Well that's the question we all face when we start gardening. It seems easier to start by buying seedlings to transplant. Allot of mistakes happen when transplanting seedlings. The main one is how the small plants are handled. You must be very careful and try not to handle the seedling by the stem. You see the stem or trunk of all plants is vital to it's survival. Just inside the skin (epidermis) or bark there are tiny tubes vascular tissues that take nutrients to the roots and leaves. If these are damaged the plant can die. So you must handle them by the root ball but you still need to use caution. The other mistake people make is that they don't fill the area with enough water, the water must go to the bottom of the root ball and force all the air out. Trapped air will cause the roots to rot and kill the plant. So if your going to plant seedlings don't handle the plant by the stem and make sure when you water them in all the air comes out, you'll know because the bubbles will stop.
Now if you want to start your garden by seed you need to make sure you buy good seeds. Don't be tempted to buy cheap seeds because they may be old and many won't grow. You can find many seed companies online and there are many places locally to find what your looking for. Depending on where you live the time to plant will vary. Planting should be done after the last frost in your area. The ground temperature should be 65 degrees or higher. Follow the directions on the seed package and you should not have any problems. You can use the time now to research everything you need to know before you decide how you'll put your garden in. And also keep working on your compost pile.
Some plants are better started by seedling like berries, and berries like a acidic soil. Pine needles are good for bringing up the acid content in the soil for berries. You can also find soil additives online. Well I hope this helps you plan your garden better. Have fun planning your garden and remember keep it organic.
Now if you want to start your garden by seed you need to make sure you buy good seeds. Don't be tempted to buy cheap seeds because they may be old and many won't grow. You can find many seed companies online and there are many places locally to find what your looking for. Depending on where you live the time to plant will vary. Planting should be done after the last frost in your area. The ground temperature should be 65 degrees or higher. Follow the directions on the seed package and you should not have any problems. You can use the time now to research everything you need to know before you decide how you'll put your garden in. And also keep working on your compost pile.
Some plants are better started by seedling like berries, and berries like a acidic soil. Pine needles are good for bringing up the acid content in the soil for berries. You can also find soil additives online. Well I hope this helps you plan your garden better. Have fun planning your garden and remember keep it organic.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
compost tips
Hi Runnindog here and I have some tips about composting. When your growing organic anything the best food for your plants is natural rotting organic matter. As this matter breaks down and rots it will be taken up by the roots easier. So to make sure you help your compost along with water and turning it over. You'll know when it's done it'll smell like a deep hole or if you've ever been to the forest and dug all the soft dirt that lays on top of the harder dirt, what you smell is natural compost. So your trying to achieve what happens naturally in the forest, for your plants.
Now when your ready to use your compost, a tip I will share with you is how to make compost tea. Once you make this tea you can put it in a spray bottle and spray on your plants or on the dirt around your plants. They will love it. Ok you will need a bucket well 5 gallon one will work fine. You'll need a small water pump that can aerate the water in the bucket. Fill the bucket about half way make sure you have a screen on the pump so you don't get big stuff in there and burn it up. An old stocking should work. Turn the pump on and then ad some compost to the water about 2 handfuls should do, let it run like that for around a week in a dark place. When it's done put the tea in a spray bottle and feed your plants. Oh yeah if you don't have a pump you can still do this by using a small container to mix and aerate the tea by hand and do this 2 to 3 times a day for a week. It's well worth it. Well there you go and remember keep it organic, till next time.
Now when your ready to use your compost, a tip I will share with you is how to make compost tea. Once you make this tea you can put it in a spray bottle and spray on your plants or on the dirt around your plants. They will love it. Ok you will need a bucket well 5 gallon one will work fine. You'll need a small water pump that can aerate the water in the bucket. Fill the bucket about half way make sure you have a screen on the pump so you don't get big stuff in there and burn it up. An old stocking should work. Turn the pump on and then ad some compost to the water about 2 handfuls should do, let it run like that for around a week in a dark place. When it's done put the tea in a spray bottle and feed your plants. Oh yeah if you don't have a pump you can still do this by using a small container to mix and aerate the tea by hand and do this 2 to 3 times a day for a week. It's well worth it. Well there you go and remember keep it organic, till next time.
Monday, October 31, 2011
Acres U.S.A. is North America's oldest, largest magazine covering commercial-scale organic and sustainable farming . . . subscribe now and receive Acres U.S.A. monthly by mail. For all you organic gardeners and those of you that are thinking about learning more this trade and conference show will have allot of information of this way of life. If you can attend it will be well worth it. It doesn't matter if you grow in pots or out in the yard Acres USA is a great magazine that's full of information on growing organic. You can learn about soil and watering when to plant how to plant and so much more. So go to their web site and order a FREE sample issue. And remember to keep it organic.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Organic Home Gardening it's easier than you think.
There you are looking at your yard wondering where you could put in an organic home garden. Then your thougnts go to how nice fresh produce will be to eat. Wow veggies of all kinds, well all the kinds you and your family like. Yeah the price of produce at the market can be so high. You know you can do this yes your own organic home garden.
If this will be your first garden you'll need some help. And I think I can help you with that. I can get you started in the right direction. It's not really that hard and you can't be afraid of a little hard work. The hardest part is turning the dirt over if your going to garden the old way. We'll talk about a different way a little later on, ok? This will be worth the effort belive me.
So you need to plan where to put your veggie garden in. Ok go get a sheet of paper and something to write with, now sketch what your yards lay out is, you know just a rough draft. Figure about how big you want it to be. Now if you live in the city or in an apartment you can still grow your organic garden. Indoor organic gardening is done by allot of people, you'll need some containers to grow them in. Is there a place that gets sun light most of the day? Thats where you want to put your containers. Make sure these containers can let water drain through them, and you can put trays of some sort under them to catch the water. We will talk more about that later.
Alrighty then, we know where to plant and now we need to figure out what to plant. Will your organic garden be of vegetables, herbs (I love to cook with fresh herbs) or flowers? Well you can plant any combination of these even berries are good to grow, and good for you, so you decide, it's your garden. There are different ways to plant (in the yard) you can turn the soil over or you can put compost and other organic matter on top of the soil. These would be called raised beds. These beds can be 4 to 10 inches (10cm to 25.5cm)deep or high. That should be enuff to support a good root foundation. Once I learned how microbs worked in the soil and how healthy they are for the plants I used the raised bed option.
So now we decided where to plant our organic home garden and we put a list together of the things our family likes to eat. Now then at this writing it is mid fall so we need to start getting ready for next growing season. Lets put in a compost pile, it will consist of every organic thing in our reach. No not the children or the spouse. Plant organics like peelings from preparing your food and stuff from the yard like leaves cut grass small twiggs and things of that sort. No animal products unless it's fertilizer, yum. You can put old newspapers in as long as its black and white ink or you know for sure the printer uses biodegradable color ink. Cardborad boxes if you tare them up or lay them flat on the ground then pile everything else on them will work. The key to a good compost pile is to water it and turn it once in awhile maybe 2 or 3 times a month, in the fall and winter that is. If you can turn it in the winter, you know. You'll figure it out. If you live in an apartment you can compost your kitchen organics in a porciline crock, it's not very big but later on I'll share a secret with you about something called compost tea. Real good for any garden indoors or out.
So that should give you enuff to start with and I hope you grow a great organic garden. It's healthy and good for the whole family. Did you know gardening is also a great way to relive stress and get a workout maybe lose those stubborn inches. So this should keep you busy until next time when we talk about seed or transplants, witch should you start with, well happy gardening and "keep it organic".
-Runningdog
Learn more here
If this will be your first garden you'll need some help. And I think I can help you with that. I can get you started in the right direction. It's not really that hard and you can't be afraid of a little hard work. The hardest part is turning the dirt over if your going to garden the old way. We'll talk about a different way a little later on, ok? This will be worth the effort belive me.
So you need to plan where to put your veggie garden in. Ok go get a sheet of paper and something to write with, now sketch what your yards lay out is, you know just a rough draft. Figure about how big you want it to be. Now if you live in the city or in an apartment you can still grow your organic garden. Indoor organic gardening is done by allot of people, you'll need some containers to grow them in. Is there a place that gets sun light most of the day? Thats where you want to put your containers. Make sure these containers can let water drain through them, and you can put trays of some sort under them to catch the water. We will talk more about that later.
Alrighty then, we know where to plant and now we need to figure out what to plant. Will your organic garden be of vegetables, herbs (I love to cook with fresh herbs) or flowers? Well you can plant any combination of these even berries are good to grow, and good for you, so you decide, it's your garden. There are different ways to plant (in the yard) you can turn the soil over or you can put compost and other organic matter on top of the soil. These would be called raised beds. These beds can be 4 to 10 inches (10cm to 25.5cm)deep or high. That should be enuff to support a good root foundation. Once I learned how microbs worked in the soil and how healthy they are for the plants I used the raised bed option.
So now we decided where to plant our organic home garden and we put a list together of the things our family likes to eat. Now then at this writing it is mid fall so we need to start getting ready for next growing season. Lets put in a compost pile, it will consist of every organic thing in our reach. No not the children or the spouse. Plant organics like peelings from preparing your food and stuff from the yard like leaves cut grass small twiggs and things of that sort. No animal products unless it's fertilizer, yum. You can put old newspapers in as long as its black and white ink or you know for sure the printer uses biodegradable color ink. Cardborad boxes if you tare them up or lay them flat on the ground then pile everything else on them will work. The key to a good compost pile is to water it and turn it once in awhile maybe 2 or 3 times a month, in the fall and winter that is. If you can turn it in the winter, you know. You'll figure it out. If you live in an apartment you can compost your kitchen organics in a porciline crock, it's not very big but later on I'll share a secret with you about something called compost tea. Real good for any garden indoors or out.
So that should give you enuff to start with and I hope you grow a great organic garden. It's healthy and good for the whole family. Did you know gardening is also a great way to relive stress and get a workout maybe lose those stubborn inches. So this should keep you busy until next time when we talk about seed or transplants, witch should you start with, well happy gardening and "keep it organic".
-Runningdog
Learn more here
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