Gardening Articles
Garden
Organic Matter and Soil Amendments
Key Points
Organic matter is a major contributor to soil health.
Garden
Essential Seed Starting Equipment
Heat Mats
A heat mat is placed beneath the seed-starting containers, and the heat is absorbed by the soil.
Garden
Indoor Seed Starting
Using Jiffy Peat Pellet Greenhouses
Some gardeners prefer to start their seeds indoors using Jiffy peat pellet greenhouses because of their structural and design benefits, using peat to start your seeds has its perks and transplanting seedlings growing out of the expanded peat pellets is very convenient.
Garden
Shade Your Garden for Better Vegetables
Adding Shade
Giving your plants some much-needed sun shelter can be easier than you might think.
Garden
Shade Your Garden for Better Vegetables
Types of Shade
When do your plants need some shelter? Typically during the hottest parts of the day – afternoons – during the hottest parts of the year – May or June through August or September.
Garden
Shade Your Garden for Better Vegetables
Peppers and Tomatoes
Shade for a garden is a polarizing subject – it seems like we’ve either got too much or too little.
Garden
The Basics of Straw Bale Gardening
Benefits of Straw Bales
Not only does straw bale gardening compensate for poor soil, but it also extends the length of the gardening season and makes planting, weeding, watering, and harvesting a whole lot easier than traditional gardening methods.
Garden
The Basics of Straw Bale Gardening
Getting Started
An ancient gardening technique dating back to the Romans, straw bale gardening is a simple concept.
Garden
Organic Matter And Soil Amendments
Mulch
Organic mulches, including tree leaves, grass clippings, straw, wood bark, and wood chips, decompose and contribute to soil organic matter.
Garden
Organic Matter and Soil Amendments
Soil Amendments
Compost can be added at any time of year and can be used as a top-dressing or mulch during the growing season.
Garden
Organic Matter and Soil Amendments
Reduce Pathogens
Fully composted manures can be applied to the soil at any time of the year.
Amendments and Fertilizers
Milk and Molasses, Miracles for Your Garden
Soil Food
Milk is a research-proven fungicide and soft-bodied insecticide – insects have no pancreas to digest the milk sugars.
Amendments and Fertilizers
How Milk Improves Soil Health
Compost Tea
Compost tea is a liquid made by running compost through a “brewer,” a device somewhat akin to a fish tank, in that oxygen is added to the water containing the compost and this action flushes the microbes out of the compost into the water.
Amendments and Fertilizers
How Milk Improves Soil Health
Fish and Sea Minerals
Sea minerals might be the best way to improve poor or depleted soils.
Garden
Essential Seed Starting Equipment
Seed Starting Mixes
You need to make sure that the soil in which your seeds are going to be planted is fertile, contains the right balance of nutrients, and has the proper pH balance to provide those growing seeds with a healthy environment in which to grow.
Garden
Essential Seed Starting Equipment
Lighting
Starting seeds under lights is the way to be certain that your young plants and seedlings get all the “sunlight” they need to grow.
Garden
Buying Garden Seeds
Three Types of Seed
Start with good quality seeds, plant them at the optimal time (when the soil temperature is just right), and offer the best care you can (watering and sunlight) as your garden grows.
Garden
Essential Seed Starting Equipment
Why?
There are a lot of things needed to ensure that the seeds you plant can grow into strong seedlings and young plants.
Amendments and Fertilizers
Cover Crops and Green Manures in Home Gardens
Cover crops form a living mulch in gardens because they grow thickly among each other.
Garden
Builing Healthy Soil
Soil Life
Soil organisms include bacteria and fungi, protozoa and nematodes, mites, springtails, earthworms, and other tiny creatures found in healthy soil.
Garden
Building Healthy Soil
Soil Types
Even very poor soil can be dramatically improved, and your efforts will be well rewarded.
Garden
Building Healthy Soil
Soil FAQ's
Liquid soil conditioners typically contain a blend of humic acid and catalytic enzymes, which are produced in a controlled environment by the same sort of microorganisms that are at work in your compost pile.
Garden
Building Healthy Soil
Soil Texture
Soil texture can range from very fine particles to coarse and gravelly.
Garden
Building Healthy Soil
Soil Testing
A professional soil test will provide you with a wealth of information about your soil, including the pH and amount of different nutrients.
Garden
Building Healthy Soil
Soil pH
The pH level of your soil indicates its relative acidity or alkalinity.
Garden
Planting and Growing in Straw Bales
Rather than go the more labor-intensive route of building raised beds for your veggies, let the straw bales do the work for you.
Garden
Tomato Leaf Mold (Cladosporium fulvum)
Leaf mold on tomato foliage is usually not a problem in field crops, Cladosporium Fulvum, on the other hand, does pose a threat to crops in enclosed environments.
Garden
Gray Mold (Botrytis Cinerea)
The saprophytic fungus Botrytis cinerea (gray mold) lives primarily on dead or decaying organic matter, but in favorable conditions such as excessive humidity, this fungus can very quickly become an aggressive parasite on healthy plants.
Garden
Buying Garden Seeds
Choosing the Best
If you are seeking to preserve cultural heritage in your garden, heirlooms are definitely the number one way to go.
Garden
Buying Garden Seeds
The Basics
Before getting overwhelmed by a luscious, brightly colored seed catalog, flipping through page after page full of hybrids and exotics, stand your ground and figure out just what you need before being lured into a disaster of wants.
Garden
Bacterial Spot On Tomatoes
Bacterial spot on tomatoes is caused by four closely related strains of bacteria: Xanthomonas vesicatoria, Xanthomonas euvesicatoria, Xanthomonas gardneri, and Xanthomonas perforans.
Garden
Powdery mildew (Oidium neolycopersici, Leveillula taurica)
Powdery mildew can attack tomatoes at all stages of development, even small seedlings in the cotyledon stage, but it is most commonly seen in older plants.
Garden
What Happened to My Germination?
Q & A
Did you follow the germination instructions on the seed packet? Go back and read them again; we sometimes spend hours researching and experimenting to find the best methods, temperatures, etc.
Garden
What Happened to My Germination?
Main Factors
Let’s look at the major factors that a seed needs for germination.
Garden
What Happened to My Germination?
Viability
Other conditions such as improper soil temperature and moisture, or a combination of the two, are the majority of the reasons that seeds don’t germinate in a timely manner.
Garden
What Happened to My Germination?
Challenges and Rewards
Seed germination issues happen every spring and challenge many new and experienced gardeners and growers.
Amendments and Fertilizers
Tomatoes
Care
The tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is an herbaceous, usually sprawling plant in the nightshade family that is typically cultivated for its edible fruit.
Amendments and Fertilizers
Tomatoes
Tomato Facts
Tomatoes have high requirement for nutrients, either from soil organic matter or fertilizers.
Garden
Tomatoes
Support
Most gardeners prefer staking, trellising, or caging tomatoes because it requires less space, reduces fruit rots, makes harvesting easier, and increases yields per area of garden space.
Garden
Buying Garden Seeds
Decisions
The next thing you’ll want to figure out is how much sun and/or shade your garden receives.
Garden
Ten Expert Tips for Raised Garden Beds and Planters
Pairing Plants
Gardeners often notice that certain plants grow well when planted next to other specific plants.
Garden
Ten Expert Tips for Raised Garden Beds and Planters
Start Simple
If you’re new to gardening and want to start out small, you might find yourself tending a single raised bed or deck planter as a way to get your feet wet.
Garden
Ultimate Companion Planting Guide
Attraction
The age-old practice of using trap crops can divert unwanted pests from your prized plantings and toward more sacrificial seedlings—naturally.
Garden
Ultimate Companion Planting Guide
Pest Prevention
By proactively planning and planting your beds for pest prevention, you can preserve your plots without introducing pesticides and other damaging chemicals into our shared natural environment.
Amendments and Fertilizers
What Kind of Composter Are You?
Vermicomposting
If you want to move beyond hot composting or constrain your compost pile to a smaller space, you can get a little bit of help from a surprising source: worms.
Amendments and Fertilizers
What Kind of Composter Are You?
Hot Composting
Hot composting is just what it sounds like: naturally “cooking” your compost to speed up the breakdown of materials and the creation of compost.
Amendments and Fertilizers
Fertilizing Vegetables
Organic Matter
Soil organic matter (OM) releases plant-available nutrients slowly during the growing season.
Amendments and Fertilizers
Fertilizing Vegetables
Nitrogen
Nitrogen is needed by plants in large quantities.
Amendments and Fertilizers
Fertilizing Vegetables
Key Points
Fertilizer, whether organic or synthetic, is used to supply nutrients to plants when they need them.
Amendments and Fertilizers
Milk and Molasses, Miracles for Your Garden
Micro-Organisms
Molasses is a very valuable addition to the compost pile, as well as to the garden itself.
Amendments and Fertilizers
How Milk Improves the Soil Health
Applying Raw Milk
An Illinois steel-company executive turned Nebraska dairyman has stumbled onto an amazingly low-cost way to grow high-quality grass – and probably even crops – on depleted soil.
Amendments and Fertilizers
How Milk Improves Soil Health
Microbes and Brix Ratings
There are four principal types of microbes – bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and nematodes.
Amendments and Fertilizers
How Milk Improves Soil Health
Row Crop Farmers and Hunters
Lowenfels, who co-authored the book on microbes, urges anyone who uses herbicides or insecticides to soon thereafter apply compost tea to increase the microbe population that was probably greatly reduced by the chemical spray.
Garden
Gardening With Clay Soil
Soil is a dynamic and complex system that provides important ecosystem services and functions.
Garden
Top 30 Plants That Attract Pollinators
To produce seeds, flowers, fruits, and vegetables, many plants need to be pollinated.
Garden
Blossom End Rot
Most often, a lack of calcium in the soil is not the true cause of blossom end rot.
Breeding and Genetics
Breeding Practices Part 7
Mass Segregation
Now we are ready for the fun to begin! The F2 generation is where all the genetics start to segregate out into the different plant and fruit types as the dominant and recessive genes split up and pair off.
Breeding and Genetics
Breeding Practices Part 6
F1 Grow-Out
The F1 (first filial generation) grow-out is the very first chance you’ll have to see if the cross was successful.
Garden
Keeping Great Company:
Companion Plants for Tomatoes
When planting tomatoes in your garden, you should take into account their fertilization requirements, necessary insolation distances, and also remember that some other plants growing alongside tomatoes can affect the condition, health, and growth of tomatoes.
Breeding and Genetics
Breeding Practices Part 5
Documentation
We have discussed how to time and apply pollen to the mother plant in order to make a successful cross.
Garden
March
March
This calendar’s monthly planting guidelines are based on USDA zone 9, but they are adaptable to most zones.
Garden
February
February
This calendar’s monthly planting guidelines are based on USDA zone 9, but they are adaptable to most zones.
Breeding and Genetics
Breeding Practices Part 4
Timing and Weather
We have talked about emasculating the maternal host blossoms and collecting pollen from the paternal donor, let’s discuss the timing of blossom maturity and fertilization techniques.
Garden
January
January
This calendar’s monthly planting guidelines are based on USDA zone 9, but they are adaptable to most zones.
Breeding and Genetics
Tomato Leaf Types Part 5 of 6
Wispy and Carrot Leaf
The next two types of leaves are sometimes confused with each other because they have similar habits.
Garden
December
December
This calendar’s monthly planting guidelines are based on USDA zone 9, but they are adaptable to most zones.
Garden
Fallow Your Garden
Fallow Your Garden For centuries, farmers allowed their soil to go fallow, and today’s modern gardeners are now following suit.
Garden
Tomato Varieties: What to Plant?
Choosing which tomato variety/varieties to plant is probably one of the most critical decisions commercial producers make each year.
Entomology
Pest and Disease Control Strategies
There are a number of potential diseases, insect and nematode pests that can cause significant damage to tomatoes (see list at end of article).
Breeding and Genetics
More Promiscuity in Domestic Tomatoes
I love promiscuous pollination in every crop that I grow.
Garden
Solanum Peruvianum Complex
Solanum peruvianum are a group of closely related species of wild tomato that are native to the western slope of the Andes in Peru and northern Chile.
Garden
Solanum Pennellii
Solanum pennellii is a dryland-adapted species of wild tomato that’s native to the western slope of the Andes in Peru.
Garden
Solanum Habrochaites by Joseph Lofthouse
Solanum habrochaites is a species of wild tomato that is native to the western slope of the Andes from central Ecuador to central Peru.
Garden
Beauty Standards
Are the Beauty Standards for Fruits and Vegetables Unfair?
Longevity and appearance matter on the supermarket shelf It’s a tough world out there for a tomato.
Amendments and Fertilizers
To Feed or Not to Foliar Feed?
To Feed or Not to Foliar Feed? What’s the best nutrient feeding method for your urban, hydroponic, aquaponic, indoor, organic, greenhouse, or vertical tomato garden? There are many ways — and many climates — in which to grow tomatoes.
Garden
April
April
This calendar’s monthly planting guidelines are based on USDA zone 9, but they are adaptable to most zones.
Garden
May
May
This calendar’s monthly planting guidelines are based on USDA zone 9, but they are adaptable to most zones.
Garden
June
June
This calendar’s monthly planting guidelines are based on USDA zone 9, but they are adaptable to most zones.
Garden
July
July
This calendar’s monthly planting guidelines are based on USDA zone 9, but they are adaptable to most zones.
Garden
August
August
This calendar’s monthly planting guidelines are based on USDA zone 9, but they are adaptable to most zones.
Garden
September
September
This calendar’s monthly planting guidelines are based on USDA zone 9, but they are adaptable to most zones.
Garden
October
October
This calendar’s monthly planting guidelines are based on USDA zone 9, but they are adaptable to most zones.
Garden
November
November
This calendar’s monthly planting guidelines are based on USDA zone 9, but they are adaptable to most zones.
Breeding and Genetics
Microberry Tomato Breeding Project
Microberry was bred in Austria in 2008 by the breeder, Lukas Wallmann.
Garden
Empowering Young Children in the Garden
Installing a passion for gardening Instilling a passion for gardening in a child is a delicious gift.
Breeding and Genetics
Influences in Breeding
My love of heirloom tomatoes began 60 years ago in my Grandfather’s garden.
Breeding and Genetics
Genetic Control of Fruit Ripening in Tomato
The tomato is one of many plants that have evolved an “edible fruit” strategy for seed dispersal.
Breeding and Genetics
Why You Should Cull Most of Your Seedlings
My name is Lukas Wallmann of Uttendorf, Austria where I live in a tough 900 meter-high climate that is cold, windy, and wet.
Garden
Seed Saving Techniques
You just harvested your first tomato… and it’s bliss! The color is sparkling gorgeousness.
Breeding and Genetics
Involvement in Breeder’s Grow Outs
In 2018 I participated in two separate grow outs: Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, Iowa, and Dwarf Tomato Project with Craig Lehoullier from North Carolina.
Garden
Solanum Habrochaites by Gary Cass
Taxonomy Solanum habrochaites is a “wild tomato,” one of about 13 species in the Solanum lycopersicum genus, or tomato “family.
Breeding and Genetics
Breeding Into Grafting
My name is Clifton Hedrick, I am 55 years old and currently live in Somerset Kentucky.
Garden
When the Timing Is Right
to Start Your Tomato Plants
As the “I’m starting my tomato seeds” posts start showing up on social media more often, the thought will suddenly hit: “Should I be starting my tomato seeds now?” The answer for most of us is no.
Breeding and Genetics
Personal Setup and Process for Trialing New Varieties
Part of my grow plan every year includes trialing new variety selections.
Breeding and Genetics
Tasting Party
Chefs and plant breeders met recently to taste tomatoes from The Beautifully Promiscuous & Tasty Tomato Project.
Breeding and Genetics
Towards Promiscuous Wild Tomatoes
I am Joseph Lofthouse, a subsistence farmer from a cold mountain valley in the Rockies.
Breeding and Genetics
The Chemical and Genetic
Basis for Flavor in Tomatoes
There is no universal agreement on what a “perfect” tomato tastes like.
Garden
My Management for Growing Tomatoes in the South
Hello my name is Bill Yoder and I am a tomato grower located in the southeastern U.
Garden
Trichomes
Have you ever wondered why tomato plants have so many little hairs on the stems and leaves? They are kind of neat to look at, but they actually serve a purpose too.
Garden
Transpiration Through Stomata
Did you know that tomato plants have a special way of breathing and circulating nutrients all at the same time? Tomato plants have a vascular system that functions much like a siphon or a wick.
Breeding and Genetics
Tomato Plant Types Part 2 of 2
Dwarfs and Micros
Indeterminates, determinates, and semi-determinates are the three main plant types most people know of; they can generally be found in most greenhouses, but the market is broadening thanks to the efforts of many breeders.
Breeding and Genetics
Tomato Plant Types Part 1 of 2
Indeterminate, Semi-Determinate and Determinate
What are the differences between plant types, and how do you know which type is best for your gardening needs? These are questions people ask themselves when ordering seeds or standing in the local greenhouse, trying to pick the plants they want to grow for the season.
Breeding and Genetics
Tomato Leaf Types Part 6 of 6
Woolly
Another interesting type of tomato foliage to look at is the woolly or angora type.
Breeding and Genetics
Tomato Leaf Types Part 4 of 6
Variegated
This leaf type is my most favorite of all, and that’s because it can be so beautiful.
Breeding and Genetics
Tomato Leaf Types Part 3 of 6
Chartreuse
We are getting to some of the most aesthetically pleasing leaf types of all.
Breeding and Genetics
Tomato Leaf Types Part 2 of 6
Anthocyanins
Anthocyanin, which can appear in a number of different leaf shapes, involves a blue/purple pigment on the epidermis of the fruit.
Breeding and Genetics
Tomato Leaf Types Part 1 of 6
Regular, Potato and Serrated Potato Leaf
Did you know that tomatoes come in all sorts of different types of leaf patterns and colors? There are some wild and crazy ones we are excited to show you, but first let’s look at some of the common ones that we can all recognize.
Garden
Tomato Blossom Anatomy Part 2 of 2
Female Anatomy- Stigma and Ovary
In the last article, we talked about the male blossom parts and how pollen is vibrated loose inside the anther cone.
Garden
Tomato Blossom Anatomy Part 1 of 2
Male Anatomy- Anther Cone
We are getting oh so close to the actual concepts of tomato breeding, but first, let me take you through a crash course on the basic anatomy of a tomato blossom.
Breeding and Genetics
Stripes, stripes, and more stripes!
From Brad Gates’s Pink Berkeley Tie Dye and Boar lines to Fred Hempel’s Artisan Bumblebee series—and all the way back to one of the pioneering lines of stripes, the Green Zebra, bred by Tom Wagner—there’s just something so visually fascinating about these eye-catching tomatoes.
Breeding and Genetics
A Rainbow of Tomato Colors Part 4
Part 4 of 4
In previous articles, we discussed different pigments that promote what our eyes see as “single” colors—red, pink, yellow, white, orange, green, brown, and purple—in tomatoes.
Breeding and Genetics
A Rainbow of Tomato Colors Part 3
Part 3 of 4
In our last article, we talked about a yellow flavonoid pigment called chalconaringenin, found in the cuticle of the skin on some tomatoes, and how this pigment can affect the color we perceive as we view the whole fruit—flesh and skin.
Breeding and Genetics
A Rainbow of Tomato Colors Part 2
Part 2 of 4
In the previous article, we talked about the phytonutrients that express the pigment colors in tomatoes.
Breeding and Genetics
A Rainbow of Tomato Colors Part 1
Part 1 of 4
Have you ever thought about the color of tomatoes? They come in so many colors these days: red, pink, purple, brown, yellow, white, green, orange, bicolor, and even blue and black! Here’s the breakdown of some of the genetic reasoning behind specific colors of tomatoes, but first let’s talk about what creates the color palette.
Garden
In the Beginning Part 8 of 8
Choosing Plant Supports
When it comes to supporting tomato plants, there are many choices, but most require a decision at planting time.
Garden
In the Beginning Part 7 of 8
Planting Out
Your plants are hardened off, the sun is shining and you’re ready to plant your tomato seedlings into the garden.
Garden
In the Beginning Part 6 of 8
Potting Up and Hardening Off
Now that your seedlings have reached a few leafsets high, it may be time to transplant them into larger containers before their roots outgrow the little cells you had started them off in.
Garden
In the Beginning Part 5 of 8
Edema
Edema or Oedema is a common problem with many types of seedlings, but it’s not widely recognized and is frequently mistaken for insect larvae or insect damage.
Garden
In the Beginning Part 2 of 8
Leggy Stem Problems
“How do I grow my tomatoes from seed without the stems getting leggy?” This is a question I hear a lot this time of year, either that or I see people posting photos who are in a state of panic because their seedlings have already grown leggy.
Garden
In the Beginning Part 1 of 8
Choosing the Correct Lighting
One topic that many people find overwhelming when deciding whether or not they want to grow their own tomato starts is lighting.
Breeding and Genetics
Breeding Practices Part 3
Paternal Blossoms
We discussed selecting and preparing the maternal host blossom, leaving off at the actual pollination timing.
Breeding and Genetics
Breeding Practices Part 1
Choosing the Parents
When it comes to breeding tomatoes, the first step is deciding on what the parents will be.
Breeding and Genetics
Breeding Practices Part 2
Maternal Blossoms
Early in the spring, when tomato plants are starting to load up with blossoms, this is the best time to find viable mother blossoms; pollination has a higher success rate in cooler temperatures.