Annuals

AnnualsGarden Design & CareSoils & FertilizerVegetable

How to Grow: Straw Bale Gardens

Learn how to grow tomatoes and other vegetables in straw bales with less work and weeds. Listen to podcast: I've seen vegetables planted in just about everything. Whether it be old bathtubs, broken down cars, old shoes or even a used gas grill, gardeners can get creative when it comes to space saving techniques. Well, here's an old space saver that's come back to life in a new book. It's called straw bale gardening. Ruth Stout started it years ago and now Joel Karsten has got a new twist on this idea. Joel makes vegetable gardening less...

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Annuals

How to Grow: Strawflowers & Statice

  Each year, I often rotate growing various cut flowers in our garden. This year I went back to growing two old favorites; strawflowers and statice. I hadn't grown these annual cut flowers for years and I'm glad I did this year. They are beautiful and durable. What I like about strawflowers and statice is they're attractive in the garden now, cut as fresh flowers for a vase, or cut and dried for long lasting indoor bouquets. Strawflowers stand 2 feet tall with double, daisy-like flowers that have stiff, papery petals. Depending on the...

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AnnualsVegetable

How to Grow: Succession Planting

Succession planting is an important concept in your foodscape because some edibles will look attractive all growing season long, while others will not. Understanding how your plants grow in the foodscape will help you keep it productive and beautiful spring, summer and fall. Succession planting is when you replace a plant that has finished producing (lettuce) with either more of the same plant or a different plant. Many foodscape plants such as lettuce, peas, pansies, and Florence fennel will need to be replaced once harvested. These are...

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AnnualsPodcast

How to Grow: Sunflowers

Learn how to select, plant and grow sunflowers Listen to Podcast: podcast transcript How to Grow: Sunflowers  Helianthus annuus   Other Name common sunflower   Sun Requirements full sun, part sun   Bloom Period and Seasonal Color Mid summer to fall in colors such as yellow, red, white and burgundy   Mature Height x Spread 1 to 15 feet x 2 feet   Added Benefits attracts beneficials, drought tolerant, native, edible   This native North American flower is a dramatic eye-catcher in any garden. The original species features the...

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Annuals

How to Grow: Sweet Peas

Learn how to grow sweet peas including information on fragrant and unusual varieties. Listen to Podcast: podcast transcript Lathyrus odoratus   Other Name annual sweet pea   Sun Requirements full sun, part sun   Bloom Period and Seasonal Color mid summer to fall to colors such as white, purple, pink, red, and bi-colors   Mature Height x Spread 2 to 8 feet x 1 to 2 feet   Added Benefits attracts beneficials, deer resistant   This annual vine grows and flowers best during cool weather so is particularly attractive in coastal and...

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Annuals FruitPerennials Shrubs Trees

How to Grow: The Right Plant in the Right Place

Probably the simplest way to start with foodscaping in your yard is to substitute plants. Look at the ornamental flowers, shrubs and trees in your yard and consider similarly sized and shaped alternatives that are edible as well. With the advent of so many new plants that blur the line between edible and ornamental, it’s not so hard anymore to find the right substitute for your yard. This process may start simply because a plant has died, died back significantly or outgrown its location and has to be removed. When looking for a substitute...

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Annuals Shrubs

How to Grow: Valentine’s Flowers

  The conventional gift in America on Valentine's Day is the cut-flower rose. And at this time of year, 30 cargo jets are flying every day between Bogota and Miami, bringing all those roses to America. The vast majority of rose growers are in Ecuador and Colombia, which often use pesticides. In fact, if you handle cut-flower roses, you should wash your hands after, because there could be a lot of chemical residue still on them. But a new movement is afoot in the cut flower industry. Farms are being certified, stating to their...

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Annuals

How to Grow: Verbena

Verbena hybrids   Other Name vervain   Sun Requirements Full sun   Bloom Period and Seasonal Color Early summer to fall in colors ranging from white, pink, yellow, orange, red, purple, and bicolors   Mature Height x Spread 1 to 5 feet x 6 inches to 3 feet   Added Benefits attracts beneficials, drought tolerant, deer resistant   Verbena is a full sun loving, colorful annual plant that can fool you since some versions self sow readily and seem like a perennial. They seem to pop up everywhere in my garden. The trailing forms of...

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AnnualsPerennialsPodcast Weeds

How to Grow: Wildflower Meadows

Listen to this podcast on how to care for a wildflower meadow. It takes just one look outside to know what time of year it is. The goldenrod, Queen Anne's lace, and asters are blooming, so it must be late summer moving into fall. There's been a lot of attention on planting gardens for pollinating insects and butterflies. It seems like we've had a bevy of Monarchs and other butterflies this year in our garden. While creating a planted wildflower garden is a great way to help these creatures and have a beautiful garden, a simpler way to help...

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Annuals

How to Grow: Zinnia

Learn how to grow zinnias including different varieties. Listen to podcast: podcast transcript How to Grow: Zinnias Zinnia elegans   Other Name Common zinnia   Sun Requirements Full sun, part sun   Bloom Period and Seasonal Color Mid summer until fall in colors such as red, pink, orange, yellow, white and bi-colors   Mature Height x Spread 6 inches to 3 feet x 1 to 2 feet   Added Benefits attracts beneficials, attracts hummingbirds, deer resistant   Zinnias are old-fashioned garden favorites that I in abundance in my garden....

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