GARDEN4US

Some thoughts about growing cucumbers gathered over the years…..
Cucumbers will produce good fruits fairly easy if you follow a couple of basics. First, they are not frost tolerant – must be planted when soil temps are 60+ for best germination. The second is that the soil must also be well fertilized and deeply as cucumbers [...]

Some fun things this June – check out the Art in the Garden Celebration – how fun is that? Now officially “summer” doesn’t start until June 21, but Mother Nature is taking that way too seriously this year. This gardening year is the wettest, coldest, longest spring in the past 4 years to [...]

Capsicum Success! I made a batch of the hot pepper spray and have good news for us organic type gardeners. The capsicum spray worked wonders for the bluelake bush and garden beans coming up. It also appears to have some effect on hollyhock weevils. It was pretty effortless to make – [...]

Hopefully by now you’ve got your garden plot tilled (wouldn’t be able to do this without my mantis!) and soil amended or at least tested. If you have had poor results in a particular area, soil testing is a great way to see what your soil lacks. Now that your planting spot is [...]

There are lots of organic ways to discourage ants from being in an area you prefer them not to be. The first is a list of suggested deterrents, the second is elimination. To remove the food or other source of attractant is the first step. You can discourage additional visits by destroying [...]

Lore: Always plant Borage around in your garden…….. vs Science: Borage flowers attract good pollinators
The bright blue, star-shaped flowers (which bloom most of the summer) make borage one of the prettiest herb plants, though the dark green leaves are rather plain. The flavor of the leaves resembles that of cucumber. The plant will [...]

“Grandmother always planted marigolds around her tomatoes“  Evidently Grandmother had it absolutely correct and here’s why:
Although they can be beneficial against a variety of pests, marigolds are best known for their ability to suppress plant-parasitic nematodes. In India, marigolds have been used for this purpose for hundreds of years (Khan, 1971).
Marigolds can suppress 14 [...]