It pains me to see customers spending hundreds of dollars on new plants and simultaneously refusing to spend a few more on a bag or two of compost and a box of starter fertilizer. These two items are not unnecessary “add-ons” that the retailer is just trying to add to the sale, they are critical components of a successful transplanting process - or as I like to refer to them as “plant insurance”. Unless you have phenomenal soil, you should always add compost and starter fertilizers when you are planting new plants. Here is why…
January is seed starting time and like a lot of things in life, it’s not always as easy as we professionals make it look, (nor I might add is it the kind of activity that you can walk away from for a week or two, like knitting). To be successful you have to show up on a consistent basis and pay attention to what is happening…
Growing fruit trees in our own backyards can be lots of fun and nutritionally rewarding. It does, however, take some time and effort to be successful and a willingness to accept less than perfect (blemish-free) produce. If you have any interest in growing your own fruit, then these next two months are prime time to take action…
Okay my gardening friends, 2020 is behind us and it is time to start drooling over the seed catalogues and visiting garden centers to see what looks interesting this time of year. During the next several weeks of rain storms (remember, this is a La Nina year so there’s likely to be lots of rain and mild temps) find a moment to take stock in the garden to see where you want to make additions and deletions, take some notes, and then get ready for spring. It will be here before you know it!
The Golfing Gardener
Trevor Cameron
I often tell gardeners in our region to rediscover their “Evergreen State”, which (in a play on words) simply means to show some gardening style with the structure, texture and color of conifers. Around here nature has the many shades of green covered, but how about some bold blues and bright yellows? When all of the deciduous shrubs and trees have…