Your Backyard Garden Information Source
Seed starting indoors is exciting and infectious, and you’ll soon find that your windowsills are crammed with little pots of seedlings and you have an overwhelming desire to study greenhouse designs. But a greenhouse is not necessary for a satisfactory experience in gardening, as long as you follow some practical considerations such as light and temperature requirements and space. A […]
Planting the vegetable seed There is no part of the garden work which calls for such nice judgment and careful attention as the sowing of seed. Most of the failures originate right here, and a large share of the blame devoted to the seeds and seedsman, if traced back to its original source, would be found to rest on the […]
When I was growing up, my father’s friend, Richard Pastecki, grew lots of eggplant. He did not eat them grilled or in salads, and it would never have occurred to him to use them in something as unfamiliar as ratatouille. Richard Pastecki raised eggplant for only one reason—Eggplant Parmesan. In the Pastecki household Eggplant Parmesan was taken very seriously. Richard’s […]
Your transplanting success will increase if you’ll observe a few simple rules that take into account the plants’ needs. Basic as they are, simple as they may seem, they are still the fundamentals around which successful transplanting is built, so follow them and give the plants the best of care following their transfer. These are the general rules. Those which have […]
The pea is a vegetable which helps the soil, has an interesting history, is easy to grow, and is a more versatile food than you might know. It is loaded with helpful vitamins, protective phytonutrients that provide antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits, protein and fiber. They’re low in fats but, what they have, are healthy omega-3 fats. Some research (whfoods.org) indicates […]
BRUSSELS SPROUTS This fall and winter vegetable is included in the Mustard family, Cruciferae, and is referred to botanically as Brassica oleracea gemmifera. The plant originated as far back as the 14th century near Brussels, Belgium, from which town it gets its name. The sprouts are miniature “cabbages” or “buttons,” each, when usable, about 1 1/2-2 in. in diameter, and […]
CALLISTEMON—Bottle-Brush Tree (Calliste’mon). Tender evergreen flowering shrubs from Australia which belong to the Myrtle family, Myrtaceae. They are well adapted for growing outdoors in California and in similar mild climates and for greenhouse cultivation elsewhere. They have narrow, dark-green, leathery leaves, which are slightly aromatic when crushed. The flowers are densely packed in terminal cylindrical spikes resembling a bottle brush […]
Basil is a well-known culinary herb that’s popular in many Italian dishes. But did you know that there are many other uses of this herb, including its use as a tonic to aid in digestion? The most common use of basil is for cooking, such as in tomato sauce, pesto, or vinegars. But it also can be sprinkled over salads […]
Low-growing, annual and perennial hardy plants found wild in many countries and suitable for the rock garden and flower border. They belong to the family Rubiaceae. The word Asperula,from asper, rough, refers to the leaves. Planting and Propagation. These plants thrive in a well-drained, woodsy soil and may be planted in early fall or spring. The best method of propagation […]
BUXUS — Boxwood (Bux’us). Evergreen trees and shrubs, found wild in the temperate parts of Europe and Asia, which belong to the Box family, Buxaceae. They are of neat habit of growth and have small, leathery leaves. The Box has no value as a flowering shrub because its blooms are small and dingy in color; but turners and engravers make […]