Some of my favorite things about summer time gardens are fresh home grown tomatoes. There's nothing like that taste. It's fresh and sweet and just plain delicious. Since the flavor of the tomato itself is wonderful, I don't like to cover them up with a lot of spices or cook them. Rather, I prefer them in a fresh tomato salad, mixed with fresh basil from my garden and some feta -- just sprinkled with a bit of balsamic vinegar. Fresh Tomato … [Read more...]
What’s Eating My Jalapeños?
You'll never believe what I found eating my jalapeños. It's a hot pepper so you would think that it would be protected from hungry critters. But, that is not always the case. I planted my jalapeño peppers in containers this year. They were grown in part shade just along the edge of my driveway. I have four plants and they are growing 10-15 peppers each thus far. I picked my first batch of peppers this weekend to give to a friend. As I was … [Read more...]
It’s Fall Planting Time
It's still hot outside, really hot. But, believe it or not, fall is just around the corner and it's time to start planting fall vegetables. Beets, broccoli, cabbage, chard, carrots, lettuce, radishes and more can all be put into the ground in late July through September. This is often our hottest and driest time of the year, so to give those seedlings a bit of a leg up, water the ground for 2-3 days before planting the seeds, and cover the … [Read more...]
Preparing for Fall Vegetable Gardening
Now is the time to plant your vegetables for your fall garden. I started some several weeks earlier, and already have the seedlings showing. It's not too late to plant, but with the hot and dry conditions of late August/early September, you'll have to take more care of your plants and be wary of garden pests. Soil Preparation Remove the weeds and old non-producing plants from your existing garden. Put old plants in the compost pile. Mix in any … [Read more...]
How To Grow Tomato Plants from Cuttings
It stays warm enough here in Mississippi that we sometimes get the chance to have a second crop of tomatoes and other vegetables. For those of us who love home-grown tomatoes, it is definitely worth replanting to try and get a second round. At this time of year, it's impossible to find any tomato plants in our local stores. So in lieu of purchasing plants, I decided to root some suckers for the new plants. How To Root Tomato Plants from … [Read more...]
How to Make Deer Exclosure for Raised Beds
Three young fawns and a doe have discovered my garden just recently. They ate all of the leaves off of the pepper plants, devoured the hostas, stripped the bean plants bare, and ate every single beet top. Now that they’ve found us, I’m sure they will continue to come back. I am starting to think about planting for a fall crop of vegetables, so I have to be creative in planting. Making a Deer Exclosure for Raised Beds The Terrazza Raised … [Read more...]
