Show Date: 31 Mar 10
Are ya ready for it????? It’s DILL!
Dill
The feathery foliage, pretty little yellow flowers AND seeds are all edible.
Dill flower
Dill is a cool season herb that grows fast and furious, peters out in the heat of summer but will reseed if allowed and you’ll get another crop in the Fall.
Dill may be small but it packs a pungent punch! Try it on salads, veggies, egg dishes, meatloaf and more! Freeze it in ziploc baggies for up to 6 months.
Show Date: 30 Mar 10
Introducing Baptisia Australis:
Baptisia Australis
Also known as False Indigo, this 3 ft. x 3 ft. zone 3 tolerant beauty looks gorgeous in a native prairie or in your flower bed.
Named the 2010 Perennial of the year by the Perennial Plant Association.
Show Date: 29 Mar 10
You mean there’s a choice? YUP!
Loam soil - the good stuff
If you plan on building a raised bed you’ll probably be ordering some topsoil or black dirt. Before you just order it, give it a whiff!
You want the soil to smell like earth, no sour smell. You want it dark but not TOO dark with any greyish cast.
Bring a bottle of water with you, dampen the soil then roll it in your hands. If it’s sticky, it’s clay. If it won’t hold together, it’s too sandy. If it forms a ball – it’s the good stuff.
Show Date: 26 Mar 10
If this is your first veggie garden or your tired of disease ravaging your veggies then consider planting disease resistant varieties!
Harvest
Cornell University has put together a great list of disease resistant veggies!
Show Date: 25 Mar 10
Making seed tape is a fun (cheap and a little messy) way to get your kids involved in gardening. And what kid doesn’t like messy!
Seedtape
Flour, water, seed and newspaper, that’s it! Oh and some salt.
Mix a 1/2 cup of flour with enough water to a consistency of thick gravy. Follow packet directions for seed spacing. Use a toothpick to apply the “glue” to the seed and newspaper. You may want to try this a few times till you get the hang of how much to use!
Let the “glue” dry then roll up those 1 inch wide strips of newspaper, pack them in ziploc baggies with some salt to absorb moisture and you’re good to go!
Show Date: 24 Mar 10
Ever thought about skipping the whole lawn mowing and weeding process?
Ground covers are a wonderful substitute for low traffic areas and to add some dimension to your landscape.
Thyme offers a number of varieties to please nearly everyone including the more kid-friendly Creeping Thyme which can be walked on.
Creeping Thyme
Here are a couple of very good websites that carry native seeds. Don’t buy those seeds offered by sites that say their seeds are perfect anywhere!
Show Date: 23 Mar 10
The snow is pretty much gone, now you see spots!
From Fido or a Gigi? If you have a dog you probably have little left overs from winter.
dog pee spots
the beautiful culprit, Gigi
After the soil has dried out enough to walk on, rake the area, mix a handful of lawn seed with a bucket of top soil and spread over the spot, water and mulch and wait for sprouting!
Snow Mold may be your issue.
Now normally I don’t post information from television stations but Jason DeRusha of WCCO-TV had a “Good Question” segment on snow mold that tells the story as he talks with University of Minnesota expert Bob Mugaas:
WCCO-TV Good Question- Snow Mold
Show Date: 22 Mar 10
Step away from the shovel!
yes, they're dirty but don't use them yet!
If your yard is the least bit spongy, don’t work it. Wet soil turns into dirt clods if worked too early. These tools could use a good cleaning too!
To test your soil, dig down a trowel’s worth of soil – if it forms a ball and stays that way then go back in the house and SKETCH your garden!
Happy dance!
Do your own happy dance today for the perfect combination of sun and rain for our beautiful Earth…
Show Date: 18 Mar 10
Move over Aunt Jemima, you got NOTHIN’ on the real deal!
Homemade Maple Syrup
Check out this step by step process:
I recently read an article about how much bacteria is on those bags and it was frightening. We use them for all kinds of things and then don't always think to wash them.
It's easy to just toss them in with a load of clothes or, if they're the more plastic type, hand wash them.
