The garden and landscape are olfactory delights, have been since early spring, are now, and will continue going forward. In my latest blog post, I write about some of these scents, including what’s currently perfuming the air. Also, my favorite of all, a plant found found growing 200 years ago in a garden in Persia — and, for the last 30 years in my garden.
You don’t grow sweet corn!? Then you’re missing one of summer’s pleasures, that of stepping outdoors to your “patch” and selecting a dead ripe ear to bite into right then and there, or to roast or steam. There are so many kinds of sweet corn and varieties of each kind, many better than what you can purchase because they handle well commercially. Check out my latest blog post for the kinds of sweet corn, my favorite kind and variety, and how I — and you — can grow them.
Bored with marigolds? There are some interesting kin of the common French or African species. A couple have leaves with an anise smell. But my favorite of all is . . . well, you’ll have to read this week’s blog post:
With blossoms past on fruit trees, you’ve got to thin — not you, the fruits. Doing so brings many benefits, which I recount in my latest blog post. The post also tells how to do it, how much to do, and when to do it (not just now). Read about thinning here:
Have you ever tried really fresh asparagus, spears that have been harvested in the last few hours? If not, you can be in for a taste delight. The easiest route to this experience is by growing your own, which I detail in my latest blog post. And, as I point out, flavor alone is not the only reason to recommend growing asparagus.
Espalier is an attractive and functional way to grow fruit plants. Success comes with making the right choice of plant, training it well, and then making the right pruning cuts at the right time. All this is detailed for red currant, an easy espalier, in my latest blog post.
Joyce Kilmer ended his poem “Trees” with the line “But only God can make a tree.” Not so! I make, and you can make, trees by grafting. Learn how to graft at my May 4th 2024 workshop, and read about how to make a bark graft, both detailed on my website: www.leereich.com.
Deer love (to eat) tulips. Actually, humans have been known to eat them. (Important information about this in the blog post). Plenty of bulbs are deer proof. Join me as we time travel through spring and summer to enjoy more deer-proof bulbs in my latest blog post:
The fungi that cause damping off are everywhere, just waiting to topple seedlings! The why’s and the wherefore’s of controlling this horrendous disease are the topic of my latest blog post.
Bags of potting mixes now line shelves of garden centers, building supply stores, even food market. And with good reason. It’s time to grow seedlings and repot house plants, and some sort of potting mix is just the ticket for these plants; straight garden soil, even good garden soil, is unsuitable in pots. What’s really in these bags of potting mix? Can you make your own mix? I (figuratively) dig into these bags as well a provide my own (not so) secret recipe for potting soil in my latest blog post.
