—t aN Lu a WISER LIVING Ssale> = * The Keys to. ‘Bente Weeds * Maintain Healthy Garden Soil * Grow Strawberries & Blackberrie * Squash, Asparagus, Pepper:ys ah) oar Y De AGacucseLt) i the past 35 years. Versatility - YourWhat Will You Grow This Year? Systemic Pesticides: Chemicals You Can't Wash OFF; The Winter Harvest Handbook: Growing Healthy Lunches With School Gardens Permanent beds make gardening easier and soil healthier Use these natural methods to build healthier soil, Let beauty and bounty thrive by designing a multifunctional landscape that incorporates plenty of delicious edibles. This scason-by-season planting plan for a no-dig, casy-care bag garden features 25 favorite crops You can increase soil fertility and cut down on plant disease he vegetables in your garden plots on a three Double your garden's productivity with these simple inexpensive low cunnels. Your crops will thrive with this organic soil-building plan. You can save money by using your own soil and compost to make porting mixes your plants will ove Keep weeds in their place with these seven organic techniques. Is time to start planning your garden and ordering seeds! Check our these 15 great ideas for organic gardens, Choose the right garden hoes for nearly effortless weed control wv MrnERE RUNES.Happiness and a garden tiller can go hand in hand. These 11 ranteed to fend off the 26 most nese beetles, squash bugs and hornworms, These reports tell ntrol ticks, mosquitoes and garden pests is guineas, turkeys or ducks Growing your own is the best way to get the best possible flavor. This reliable crop isa top choice for any food garden. Sometimes referred srcen soybeans,” this sweet, nutty crop is easy to grow and wonderfully nutritious. Here's how to enjoy the rich, sweet flavors of ripe red peppers. Seven steps to growing superior spears, year after year Flavorful, antioxidant-packed blackberries are hard to beat when it comes to dependable fruit productionMORE THAN A MAGAZINE ... A WAY OF LIFE ONLINE ARTICLES www.MotherEarthNews.com Food Preservation Techniques: Learn How to Pickle Pickling can capture the tremendous flavors of crops when they're at their seasonal peak—which is also when they're least expensive!—so you can relish them year-round. Start Your Own Farm Business Learn how to blend strategy, marketing and money management to build a successful business selling your homegrown harvests. Garden Bench Plai Build This Handy, Lightweight Bench Every garden needs a bench, and you can construct this durable, easy-to-build seat in just half a day. Growing Mushrooms at Home With a few purchased tools, some freshly cut logs and 4 litte patience, you can grow your own nutritious mushrooms to enjoy at home. INTERACTIVE GARDEN PLANNER Whether you're a seasoned gardener or you just caught the gardening itch, our new Vegetable Garden Planner will make growing a fantas tic garden easier than ever! This unique tool allows you to experi- ment with bed designs and plant placement, creates a personalized planting chart, helps with succession sowings and crop rotations, ‘and much more. Sign up for your 30-day free trial of the Planner —or get a Garden Planner gift card for the green thumb in your life—at wow MotherEarth News. com/Garden-Planner. PICK THE PERFECT CHICKEN (Our new Pickin’ Chicken iPhone/iPad app describes 78 chicken breeds and helps you select the breeds that, are just right for you based (on 14 qualities, including egg color, temperament, foraging abilities, size and Sai growth rate. Go to wm. Ll eae ‘MotherEarthNews.com’/ PickinChicken for more information and to download the apo, FREE E-NEWSLETTERS Get more MorHer Earth News on the topics that interest you ‘most, all delivered right to your inbox! Each of our biweekly e-newsletters features original online content, timely articles from our Archive, and much more. Visit our home page to sign up. Tips, tools and techniques for fun, useful projects, big and small Food & Gardening Lleara how to grow your own fruits and < vegetables, plus get ideas and recipes for cooking with fresh, local foods. Simple Living & Country Skills @ DIY Skills & Projects whether you live in the city or on a country hamestead. &® Health & Environment "News and perspectives on health and ® Green Energy & Great Homes Al things energy, from solar and wind power to energy-efficient homes to _green transportation options. vw Mora Eiras.cot5 FROM MOTHER What Will You Grow This Year? oor gardeners, there's at least one Rees thar’ always fun co pon: der: What crops should 1 plant this year? In this special issue, you'll ind y good answers to that question. few examples to kick-start Here ar your imagination: * If he had to grow just one crop, he would choose fertuce, says Roger Doiron, founder of Kitchen Gardeners International, and author of “Grow Great Lettuce” on Page 74. This basic crop is easy o grow, takes up litte space, andallows for long, continuous har- vests. If you're noc convinced of the allure of lettuce, ith time to give this humble veggie an- other look, starting with the beautifull photographs in this article * For a crop that’s probably new co you (and even to many experi- enced gardeners) try edamame, says John Navazio of the Organic Seed Alliance in Pore ‘Townsend, Wash Japanese name “As soo ty, melt-in-you (“Edamame” is th for “green soybea taste the swe as you mouth flavor of edamame, I predict ill become a devotee of this wholesome, easy-to-grow vegeta you, 100, ble,” Navazio says. Read more about edamame on Page 78. And you just can't bear homegrown strawberries, says longtime garden writer Kris Wetherbee (Page 70). Truly ripe, tender strawberries are so perish- able, never get true strawberry flavor unless fetherbee explains, that you'll you find local berries. And because this is one of the easiest fruits to grow, why not plane some in your own garden? For lots of other good ideas about what to grow this year, be sure to check out contributing editor Barbara Pleasant’s de- scription of seed-buying trends (Page 48) Pleasant highlights crops that gardeners have been buying in recent years, includ- ing specific varieties that are disease-resis- tant, easy to store, and especialy tolerant of cold or heat. Also popula are vegetables that come in a rainbow of colors, from ‘Green Zebra tomatoes and ‘Purple Plum’ rad. ishes to ‘Cheddar’ orange cauliflower. You'll also find helpful advice on she notes, where and how to plant your garden, including a step-by- step plan for garden (Page 26), ideas for making edible gardens into gorgeous landscapes (Page 20), and an advanced discus sion of crop rota~ tion (Page 30) for experienced gardeners And, of course, this issue is bursting with techniques for how to grow all kinds of beautiful, organic produce, in cluding tips for how to enrich your soil, tackle weeds and control pests naturally, as well as “recipes” for mixing up some organic fertilizer and preparing your own potting soil ‘We hope you'll dig in this spring and plant some favorite fruits and vegetables, and also try a few new ones. Whatever you grow this year, we wish you a happy gardening season and bountiful harvests! —MorHer THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING 800-234-3368 www. MotherEarthNews.com Publier and Editorial Dietor Brass Wescit itor in Ohigf Caer Lowe Managing Editor Jou Rocisoen Special we Editor Mec E. Pats Solar Asociate Eur Taare Atreasias SoniorAsciate Editor Two Gaver Auistent Editor Heo» Hoe Asian Editor Russo Rocas Asian Edtor Buns Ucn Aine Edtor Moan Hint Asien Edi Susser Sromtseoox Asian dior Jnsoaren Koes Bator ar Large Rows Guts Lawnescr Editorial terns Sal Robie “Benet nasa Sma Abin Anca Advisers and Contribatng Eves Recrtano Bacxes + Lesrex R. Buown + Dan Cons K.C, Comrron + Groscr DiVauir # Owex Gricen Jous Gotan * Steve Heckenon* Joes Kunseat Teany Kuacrevasr Sreve Maxwrt [Banzana Puzasan + Gaay Revsn + Jo Romysow, DDavtp Sours Saas Sev # Lisa B, Ware ‘insta Wows Weaven © Osean H. 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Unie incor of Craton + Marketing Canes Ouse into of ila Bon Lacaver Grexp drt Dicer Cawoern Lave Gaalation &-Predscion Manager Bow Goccastese Dinetr of bofornation Technolgy Tine Sex ‘Managing Editert Online Jou Roceno1, Fide oi td Jane Sarre Mora a Ns uly Ope @ x ©WHICH CAME FIRST? ; CHICKS AVAILABLE ty aul - MARCH 4- MAY 4" * Chicks, Ducks, & Bantams available + Breeds & selection vary by score + Special Order available on over 40 varieties — TRACTOR SUPPLY PRESENTS — CHICK DAYS MARCH 4 - MAY 4* TSC HAS EVERYTHING you need to care for— ALL YOUR ANIMALS * TSC, we take being your one stop sho 2 limi ering the animals, too. Live chicks EQUIPMENT & and ducks are available in es CONTAINMENT most TSC stores by March 4. you need co be TRACTOR SUPPLY C2 sow. TractorSupply.com/CbickD. ©2010 Tractor 5. All RighSystemic Pesticides: Chemicals You Can’t Wash Off True or False: In conventional food production Systemic pesticides circulate throughout the plant, inside and out. Many question whether these products are safe for ‘humans, and particularly for bees. systems, all pesticides are applied to a plant's exterior. Therefore, washing *Dinotefuran can be applied co fruits and vegetables before you soil or sprayed on leafy greens, potatoes and crops in the cu- cumber family. When the Pesticide Action eat them is sure to reduce your exposure. The answer is “False Network reviewed the results of pesticide residue tests conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture from 1999 to 2007, numer- Sy cals that are actually absorbed by a plant when applied to seeds, soil or leaves, The chemicals then temic pesticides are chemi circulate through the plant's tis- sues, killing the insects that feed on them. Use of these pes tained residues. of these systemic pes- ticides. For exam- ple, 74 percent of conventionally grown fresh lettuce and 70 percent of broccoli samples showed imidacloprid residues. Clothianidin was found in potatoes, thiamethoxam showed up in strawber ticides on food crops began in 1998, and has steadil during the past 10 years. Unlike with traditional insecticides, you can't wash oF peel creased. off systemic pesticide residues because they're in che plants’ tissues, nov on their exteriors The four main systemics used on food crops ies and sweet peppers, and (listed below) are members of the nitroguani- group of chemi has been implicated in the mysterious colony some collard green samples were laced which with dinotefuran, dine/neonicotin The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has launched a comprehen- sive review of the environmental safety of imidacloprid, but we won't have results until 2014! In the meantime, the state of California collapse disorder that has killed millions of bees. (See our article “Colony Collapse: Are Potent Pesticides Killing Hon MotherEarthNews.com.) + Imidacloprid can be applied to many vegetables (in- initiated its own reevaluation (currently ongo- ing) of all four systemics in February 2009. Among its reasons, California's Department of Pesticide cluding tomatoes and leafy greens) right up to the day they're harvested. + Thiamethoxam was first approved as a seed treatment for corn in 2002, applied to the soil have since been approved for use on most vegetable and fruit crops. See Page 7 for a photo egulation cited reports of eucalyptus nectar and d thiamethoxam products that are pollen with imidacloprid levels up to 550 parts per billion —nearly three times the 185 parts per billion needed to kill honeybees. And deadly levels of these even showing up in leaf gut- tation drops (water droplets that plants sometimes exude). According t@ a 2009 report in the Journal of seed corn treated with this chemical. * Clothianidin is used as a seed treatment on canola, cere- als, corn and si systemic poisons iB za beets, and on soil around potatoes. THE MOTHER EARTIL NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENINGof Economic Entomology, “When bees consume guttation drops, collected from plants grown from neonicotinoid coated seeds, they encounter death within a few minutes Equally discurbing, it nitroguanidine pesticides can appears thac persist in soil for 500 days or more, which creates a high- risk scenario. After one or two applications, plants grown in treated soil may produce toxic pollen, nectar and guttation droplets for more than two scasons. All the while, the entire treated area will be moderately toxic to beneficial earth worms, carabid beetles, lady beetles, predatory pirate bugs and other “good’ A garden seed company recently sent us a packet of these seeds for a new sweet corn The seeds were treated with Cruiser, which is thiamethoxam, a systemic neonicotinoid insecticide. They were also treated with four fungicides: azoxystrobin, carboxin ftudioxonil and mefenoxam! bugs that our gardens need There is no scientific evidence yet that says food laced with nconicotinoids will harm humans, but why is the EPA allowing systemic pesticides on food plants in the first place? Do people really want co eat pumpkins thac are so full of poison that they kill every cucumber beetle fares take a bite? Looking beyond food plants, does the use of systemic pesticides to grow perfect roses justify the deaths of millions of bees and other insects? We need to set things right and learn (once again) this importa lesson: When we let a novel, man-made chemical loose in the food chain, we can't be entirely certain of what will happen next. This new contamination of our food is yet another reason to grow and buy organic. Barbara Pleasant The Winter Harvest Handbook Ce a ae ee using deep organic techniques and Red Dee Cee Cae eer) De eer ee Ly vegetables throughout winter. See rd vegetables all through winter in coastal DC cc Ce eed Winter Harvest Handbook does contain three ‘guiding principles that have helped him Re eee ee Ce eC a etc 1. Plant Cold-Hardy Vegetables. Crops Pe eons See ee ‘and more flavorful” in cold weather. Pee Coleman begins planting winter garden crops Oe eed Ce aed Sea eed kind of cover: a low tunnel, row covers or a ed “More than 85 percent of the United Ree ge Maine, and has more sun and warmer winter Winter Harvest Handbook ‘hn Dey OTe Eliot Coleman Creu ad standing in the way of winter production Ce ee ‘of the country, except perhaps the lack of knowledge about how to employ the simple technology of cold houses and row covers, Bcd Re eae Coleman wrote his winter gardening book to “launch prospective focal growers into Br ec CML a richly illustrated with maps, charts and See ee cs Cee cg Cee ta everything from getting started, scheduling plantings, choosing tools and designing a greenhouse to marketing and economics. ce ee red Cae end Dee Ue a Se Re Cm Be ees George Devauit SC ed@GREEN GAZETT Growing realty Lunches With School Gardens With the recent signing of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, the time ha better to start aschool garden, Food gardens are sprouting in schoolyards across the nation never been as educators work to teach kids abour nutrition, ecol- ogy and economics. But that’s not the only purpose school gardens serve: Incorporating gardens into the lesson plans can also improve the quality of school lunches, The Green Schools Initiative, which provides raining and support to com- munity members who wish and they've done some cook zations, funding opportuni- Get the Garden Growing Schoo! gardens ae a great laring experience forks, and a low-cost way o get mare veggies inthe nchroom to implement green school ing with it in the cooking ties, newsleccers, and policy After you've collected programs, says that schools and legislation background, background information and often struggle to provide the ‘try itwhen itshows up A couple of great reads funding ideas, the next step is freshest, healthiest foods due as chard. pesto in the co funding issues. According ria, because ie notsomething Food: A Pol include “Mapping School to meet with school officials y Guide from to create a plan of action. to the organization, “Budget strange and green, Its some- ‘The Public Health Advocacy ‘The Food and Agriculture constraints often compel thing they know about,” Institute” (wwu.phaionline, Organization of the United school districts and decision- So how can you help geca__ arg), which will help you Nations (wwwyfta.org) pro- makers—along with par- school garden started in your navigate the muddy school vides a guide titled “Setting ents—to choose unhealthy, community? lunch program regulatory Up and Running a School low-cost options for feeding waters, and the National — Garden,” and the Healthy children ... One of the most Make a Plan Sustainable Agriculture Schools Initiative offers a creative ways to connect what The first step to starting a alition’s (wnw.sustainable plan that’s available ac wus children eat with teaching school garden is doing some —_agriculture.net) “Guide myhealthyschool.com. about health, nutrition and research. Luckily, Farm to to Federal Funding for Be aware of potential the environment is to planta School (wxw.farmeoschool. Local and Regional Food roadblocks thar may impede school garden and grow food org) has a comprehensive Systems,” which will help progress, such as budget on site.” resources page with links you secure grants to cover _ limitations and time restric Growing a School garden to informative publications, any necessary remodeling tions. Also consider the can provide the raw materials involved groups and organi- and start-up costs, current state of the school cafeteria kitchen —many are ill-equipped to process fresh foods because they'te designed to simply reheat frozen, pre-processed meals. to inspire new lunch ideas for kids, as well as tools for great hands-on learning experi- ‘ ences. This direct interaction makes the vegetables-more appealing to the kids, so the healthier school lunches will meet with less resistance, In a 2006 National Public Radio ” interview, Oregon clemen- ‘ tary school principal Tammy qv Barron said, “When they [the students} have picked che Kids are more likely Swiss chard from the garden to eat vegetables that they helped grow. Visit this article at wun. MotherEarth) com for inspirational stories of how others have managed to suc- cessfully implement school gardens as part of the class- room curriculum and regu- Jar lunch menu. —Jennifer Kongs & THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENINGTAKE THE GUESSWORK OUT OF GARDEN PLANNING This revolutionary new software makes vegetable gardening so much easier. Use the MotHer EartH News Vegetable Garden Planner to: * Create a personalized planting schedule based on your local frost dates — just enter your ZIP code and the software adjusts to your area! * Experiment with bed designs and plant placement. * Plan succession sowings to maximize the amount you can grow throughout the yeer. * Plan crop rotations to prevent pests and depletion of soil nutrients. * Keep track of plant varieties and other notes, * Get biweekly e-mail reminders for what you need to plant, plus related gardening tips. SIGN UP TODAY FOR YOUR FREE 30-DAY ACCOUNT www. MotherEarthNews.com/Garden-Planner GIVE THE GIFT OF GARDENING. Now available, Garden Planner gift certificates! Give the perfect gift to anyone who wants to grow the best garden ever. The gift card can be sent to you or directly to the gift recipient. The card will include a voucher number that will enable the gift recipient to gain access to the online Garden Planner. “*MOTHER EARTH NEWS GIVE THE GIFT OF GARDENING TODAY! www.MotherEarthNews.com/Garden-Planner-GiftBuild Permanent BEDS AND PATHS Permanent beds make gardening easier and soil healthier. by CHERYL LONG arden beds can be any length you want, as wide across as you can easily reach to tend, or even a single row wide if that’s what you prefer. Edging is strictly op- tional —une Iged beds will look terrific and will work just fine. If you opt for no edging, just put in some corner stakes to help you keep track of the paths and growing areas, You can frame the beds with boards or stones if you like the way these look, or try using logs for edging if «them fiee from your proper- tree trimmers. (IF you plan to use your tiller in the beds, use logs on the long edges and leave the ends unframed so you can easily run the tiller down the length of the beds and turn it around on the paths.) You donit need to bring in lots of top soil to raise the beds above the surround- ing soil unless you have a poorly drained sire or want the bed to warm up extra carly in the spring. Raised beds do warm up faster, but iF you raise the beds more tha a couple quire more water during dry spells. After you've staked out permanent beds and inches, they will re- paths, the uncompacted soil in the beds will naturally be slightly higher than the paths. You can easily r more by tilling the raking the loosened soil from the paths up onto the beds. In dry, windy clima you may want to reverse the process and make sunken beds so your growin stay moister and your seedlings have a lite wind protection. c the beds a litele reas and thenBur raised or sunken, framed oF not, permanent bed areas and paths will pre- serve the loose soil that is a key aspect of fertile garden soil Add Compost Annually In addition to not walking on the soil in the planting beds, the other impor- tant rule of creating fertile soil is to add 1C GARDE plenty of organic matter each year. For new beds, “plenty” can beas much as 4 or even 6 inches of mature compost, tilled in. But in subsequent years, just onc fourth to one-half inch of compost per year will usually provide all the nutrients your crops will need. If you donit have enough compost, a few inches of clippings used as a mulch will provide the same benefits. With permanent beds, you will need less compost and mulch 3, while the less-rich and ted soil in the paths makes, it more difficult for weeds to thrive. Building New Beds So you've gor a patch of grass or weeds ing areas each more-comp that you want to tuen into a bed? Here are three bed-building techniques, ranked from the ideal choice, option No, 1, to the quickest and easiest, option No. 3.No. 1: Till, compost and till again. Kill the grass or weeds by tilling or plowing the area. (Ifthe area has weeds that spread by runners or underground roots, smothering them using technique No. 2 before you till the soil would be best.) After you've tilled, spread several inches of compost or grass clippings and till again, To destroy remaining weed seeds, water the cultivated bed, then hoe or «ill shallowly as soon as weed seedlings appear. Repeat this water/ sprout/hoe routine several times before planting your vegetable or flower seeds if possible No. 2: Newspapers and mulch. If you don't have time to till and spread compost, cover the area with cardboard or several layers of wet newspapers, fol lowed by several inches of grass clip. pings, shredded leaves or weed-free hay st year, use the bed for or straw. The transplants such as tomatoes or peppers rather than direct-seeded crops, and add an organic vegetable fertilizer. (A /seaweed blend is a good choice.) Put Your Soil to the Test If you're new to gardening or you're starting a garden in a new location, have your soil tested. The cost is typically about $10. Check with your county extension office to find out whether it offers a soil-testing service. You can add compost or other organic matter without testing first, but nev ymendments unless you have had a soil test that indicated they lime, sulfur or o dd were needed. You can permanently damage soil by adding the wrong amendments or too much of an amendment No. 3: Instant beds using bagged topsoil. For instant beds, punch drain age holes on one side of enough bags of topsoil co cover the bed area. (Topsoil quality varies; we recommend buying your soil aca garden center rather than opting for cheap, 99-cent bags ata dis- count store.) Lay out the bags to cover the bed, cut away the cops and plant your seeds or transplants. Mulch with grass clippings or leaves to hide the plastic. The plastic bags will smother the grass or weeds, and at the end of the season you can pull away the plas- tie and use a garden fork oF tiller to mix the topsoil in and prepare the bed for your next crop. Whichever method you use, if you avoid walking on the bed areas and add fresh compost cach year, you will soon have rich, loose garden soil that will warm quickly in the spring and produce healthy, abundant crops. Spring prepa ration will be a snap with a garden fork or broadfork, such as the one shown in the illustration on Page 12. 4% Flowers and vegetables blend beautifully in this elegant parterre with grass paths in Vietoria, AustraliaSTRATEGIES FOR BETTER GARDEN SOIL Use these natural methods to build healthier soil. by HARVEY USSERY This garden needed room to grow! ‘The firs step was to cover the ground with compost. Next, the garden was divided into permanent beds and paths to protect the soil from foot traffic. ‘The result: a colorful, productive garden that was built without any tillage. THE MOT NEWS GUIDE TO 01 NGing out into their ith a shovel or rden tiller, dig up che ground and putts Add a little mulch or com youre lon you to homegrown “a es, But, in the long run, th il, The » to keep your soil healthy our garden depends on healthy the more productive your garden will be and the higher the quality of your crops. T often discuss the value of soil care methods that imitate natural soil commu: nities. T ture, feec oil protecting sol struc- ith nutrients from natural and local sources and inere the diversity and numbers of the mics and other organisms that live in th In this article, I'l focus on specific ways to achieve these goals. There are m: ways todo this, but they all revolve around two basic concepts: For more fertile soil ou need to increase organic matter and mineral availability, and whenever p ible, you should avoid tilling the soil and Matte: For the urces of organic mat ter should be as diverse as pe 1s a juable addi- nutrients are readily anisms and plants. In greater contribution co soil aggregation than composts, which have already mostly decomp manure with care less likely to be found in manures from hom mall fas ;nement livestock operations, ¥ You should app! Although pathogens ar ds and, than those from larg: allow three months between ap and harvest of root crops ot leaf as leteuce and spina corn and uellised tomatoes shouldnt be However, because some nutrients from manures are wvailable, they ar more likely co leach out of the soil (where into groundwater and e pollurants). Also, if they're neede¢ creams (where t dy they can provide ex cess amounts of some nut phosphorus. Because ofd is, especial itmay be bestBAM ace (CNM ere REET Ce a to restrict fresh manures to heavy feeding, fast-growing crops such as com, and process additional manure by composting, When thinking of manure, its worth consideri our own, Flushing “humanure” away disrupts aquatic ecosystems and represents a net loss of potential fertility from agricultural soils. On the other hand, human ma- nnure requires cautious management to avoid spreading disease. I recommend Joe Jenkins’ The Humanure Handbook, the bible on this subject 2 ry composting. Composting is a means of recycling almost an organic wastes, It reduces the bulk of als, stabilizes their more olatile and soluble nucrients, and speeds up the formation of soil humus. Bele (nl oper ee CNM CoP COB Boece Kemer Con ie Regular applications of modest amounts of compost—one-quarter inch per sea- son—will provide slow-release nutrients, which will dramatically improve your soils water retention and help suppress disease Classic composting is relatively simple (see box below), but ic can be labor intensive i you try todo it on a large scale. The older I get, the more interested I am in an easier alternative. Fortunately, I've found wo. One is “sheet composting,” In classic composting, you build tall piles in bins, alternating layers of fresh, high-nicrogen ns,” such as grass clippings, with high carbon, difficult to break down “browns, such as dry leaves. Instead, you can keep these two compost materials separate, and apply them in two layers directly to the garden bed The moist, volatile, high-ni eens” go down first, in direct contact with the soil and the microbial populations ready to feed on them, while the drier, coarser, high-carbon “browns are used as a cover to keep the frst layer from drying out or losing its more volatile elements to the atmosphere The second altemative is vermicompost- ing: using earthworms to convert nutrient dense materials, such as manures, food wastes and green crop residues, into forms usable by plans. Earthworm castings are a major part of my Fertility program. I started vermicom: in a 3-by-4 foot worm bin, Then T converted the center of my greenhouse to a 4-by-40 foot series of bins, 16 inches deep. My worms process horse manure by the pickup load from a neighbor. Nor only do the worm castings feed plant roots, they carry a huge load of beneficial microbes that boost the sol organism community Tap chicken power to mix organic naterials into the soil. Typically L use electric net fencin; chickens, rotating them from place t place on pasture. When needed, however, park’ them on one of my garden spaces. I dump whatever organic materials I have handy in piles, and the chickens happily do what they love best—scratch cease- lessly through that material, looking for interesting things to eat, In the process they shred ic and incorporate it into the top couple inches of soil, che zone of most intense biological activity. Their droppings are scratched in as well, and they give a big, boost to the soil microbes. 4 ‘Mine” soil nutrients with deep rooted plants. When you first start rdening, it may be necessary co use rock poviders, and ather slow-release sources of minerals, co correct mineral deficien- cies in the soil. In the long run, however, you can supply minerals without purchas- nputs. The organic materials we add to our soil supply most of the minerals hy crops need. In addition, we plant tility parches” to grow a lot of our ownThese fertility patches include plans that function as “dynamic ac- cumulators.”T deep and “mine” mineral reserves from the deeper layers of subsoil, where it has weathered out of the par ent rock, The roots of comfrey, for ts, the roots grow Instance, can grow 8 t0 10 feet into the subsoil. Stinging nettle is another extremely usefil dynamic accumula tor. Both nettle. » in addi. tion to high mineral content, are high in nitrogen, They make excellent ad nd com! ditions t0 a compost heap, or can be used as mulches. If you have some pasture, think of ie as a fertility patch par excellence. ‘When growth is fast and lush in the spring, you should be able to take one oF two eut- tings, pethaps more, for use in composting co as mulches. If you dont have a pasture, consider using parts of your lawn. I over- seed my lawns each fall with the same sort of grass/clover mix I use on the pasture. In the spring, [allow some areas to grow about 8 of 10 inches before cutting i with the scythe and using it for fertility ap plications elsewhere: A final thought on fertility patches: Many gardeners are a bit paranoid about “weeds,” but some weeds are deep-rooted, and can be used like comfrey as dynamic accumulators to bring minerals up from the deep subsoil. An example is yellow dock (ume rispus). Why noc allow some yellow dock to grow in edges and cor ners where itis not inthe way? When the plants start to make seed heads, cut them olf just above the crown to prevent huge numbers of seeds from blowing loose in the garden, then use the plants in mulches or composts Plant cover crops. Growing ‘cover crops is perhaps the most valuable strategy we ean adopt to feed cour soil, build up its fertility and im- prove its structure with each passing season, Freshly killed cover crops pro- vide readily available nutrients for our soil microbe friends and, hence, for food crop plants. Plus, the channels ‘opened up by the decaying roots of cover crops permit oxygen and water co penetrate the soil Legumes (lovers aff, beansand peas) are especially valuable cover crops, because they fix nitrogen from the atmosphere into forms availa ferent cover crops are often beneficial, For example, the grasses add a large amount of biomass and improve soil structure because of the wo crop plants, Mises of dif in mixes of grasses and clovers, size and complexity of their root systems, Put chickens in your garden during the fall and winter, and they'll eat bugs and weed seeds, plus add fertilizer. and the legumes add nitrogen to help break down the relatively carbon-rich grass roots quickly ‘Tiy to work cover crops into yout cropping plans with the same deli cration that you bring to food crops. The easy way to do so is to maintain two separate garden spaces: Plant one swith food crops and one with cover ‘crops, then alternate the two crops in the following year. But most garden- crs cannot devote that much space to such a strategy, so effective cover cropping must be fied into a unified gar- den plan, a concept that in practice can get fiendishly complex. Gardeners who like jigsaw puzzles will love che cha There are cover crops that work best for each of the four seasons, and for almost any cropping staegy. For few options to try, sce Page 19. Find Alternatives To Tillage Ics importanc to keep in mind thac excessive tillage is detrimental to soil life and contributes to greenhouse gases, Proper soil care reduces the need for tillage. Nurturing soil life by constantly introducing organic matter helps keep a loose and open soil structure. Protect that improved structure by keeping the soil covered at all times. Repeat after me: “No ba soil!” ‘Cover the soil with mulch, An Jobvious way to keep the soil covered is to use organic mulches. Some people advise against using high-carbon materials such as straw or leaves, since soil microbes “rob” available nitrogen from the soil in or- der to break down the excess amounts. of carbon. This is only true, however, if we incorporate these high-carbon sources into the soil. | once tilled in some coarse compost containing Harvey and Ellen disturb their soil as lttle as possible. Digging root crops is almost ‘the only time they dig up the ground von Morte euNES.c0As best you can, never leave your soil bare. Cover crops are low-maintance and add valuable ‘nutrients to the soil. Clockwise from top let: Vetch, white clover, red clover, and oats planted ‘together with field peas. Jarge amounts of oak leaves not yet fully decomposed, and found that crops grew quite poorly there the entire season. However, if hig! aid down on top of y proble soil moisture and protects against tem- perature extremes. Microbes, and other forms of soil life can “nibble” ar the mulch, and slowly incorporate their residues into the topsoil. High-carbon mulches are preferable for weed control to materials that decompose readily, because they persist longer before being incorpo- rated into the soil food web. (E dener who has used mulches knows the scory: You put down a thick layer early in the season, then suddenly one day notice, “the garden ate my mulch!”) Even so, i is usually necessary to renew mulches that are in place for the enti wont be The mulch retains ithworms ery gare rowing season, | Life in the Soil It is often recommended to turn ma rnures and composts into the soil, but «0 reduce tillage you can apply the manure or compost on the soil surface, and keep it from drying out (hence degrading) with a thick high-carbon mulch (along the lines of “sheet composting,” described above). Grass clippings should not belosc asa re- source—shipping them off o the landfill isatrue crime against sustainability. Grass- clippings mulch in paths can be slippery underfoot and unpleasant to work on. 1 prefer to le lawn or pasture grasses grow to 8 to 12 inches, then cut them with a scythe, rake them up after a couple days of drying and apply where needed. ‘An undervalued source of organic mat- ter is the wood fiber in newspapers and cardboard. All the reading I've done on the subject convinces me that modern newsprint in this country, and card- | tes often said that organic material in soil consists of “the living, the recently dead and || the very dead.” This is a helpful way to understand the processes that shape soil and | make it fertile. | « The living portion of soil is made up of plant roots and of the numerous microbes and ‘other living organisms that improve soil structure by breaking down organic material ‘+ The recently dead components include dece sed soll organisms, green plant material and fresh manures. They decompose readily and release nutrients quickly ‘© The very dead portion is humus, the final residue of organic matter breakdown that's important for soil structure and disease suppression. ‘+ For fertile sol, all three forms of organic matter should be present at all times, THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING board produced in the United States and Europe, do not pose environmental haz ards. When establishing “kill mulches” (mulches over a living grass sod intended to kill it in preparation for planting trees and shrubs), I lay down a thick layer of newspaper or cardboard, then cover with leaves, grass cuttings and other organic materials. Wood chips also make good mulch for some situations, especially for pathways and kill mulches, and they often are fice from tee-trimming services ‘Use permanent beds and paths. A key strategy for protecting soil structure is to grow in wide permanent beds and restrict foot traffic to the path- ‘ways— thus avoiding compaction in the growing areas—and to plant as closely as possible in the beds. Close planting shades ¢ sol surface, which benefits both soil and plants by conserving moisture and moderating temperature extremes. You also can use paths to grow your mulches, or mulch the paths and take advantage of foot traffic o help shred or grind materials such as straw or leaves From time to time, this finely shredded material can be transferred to the beds, where it will break down much more read- ily than in its coarser forms. ‘Try low-tech tillage. There are al most always better alternatives to tillage, especially power tillage, which inverts and mixes the different layers in the sol profile, disrupts the soil food web and breaks down the “crumb” structure wwe have worked so hard to achieve, Even in the case of cover crops, which must give way to the planting of a harvest crop, i is not necessary to turn them into the soil, as recommended. Instead, consider these alternatives. You can bury the cover crop under a heavy mulch to kill it. Ifthe sol isin loose, friable condition, itis easy to pull the cover plants up by the roots and lay them on the bed as mulch. Certain plants, such as rye and vetch, are difficult co kill withoue dll. age, but cutting them immediately above the crowns afier seed stalks or flowers form will kill them. Use the upper ends of the plants as a mulch to help break down the roots more rapidly Ifyou have chickens, you can use them to till in your cover crops. They cause somedisruption of soil life, but only in the top couple of inches. The damage they cause is quickly repaired, because the birds! droppings boost soil life. When it’s necessary t0 loosen soil at depth—as in a young garden whose soil has not yet mellowed sufficiently to grow good root crops—TI recommend the broad fork, a hand tool that, like the seythe, makes joyful, all-round use of the body in a rhythm thar becomes a garden meditation. like a power tiller, the broad fork loosens the soil without i verting the natural soil layers or breaking down the “crumb” structure of the soil The broad fork is much easier to use in soil that is already in fairly good cond sion —itis nor the tool of choice for con. verting a tough grass sod over compacted soil to new garden ground. Does that mean that in this case we are forced to revert to power-driven steel? Not on my homestead, where once again chicken power comes to the rescue. Normally, I would rotate the birds onto another plot after a week or so to prevent excessive wearing of the pasture sod, but in this case “excessive wearing” is exactly what T want. T use electronet to “park” a flock of chickens on the sod I want to convert to garden, With their constant scratching, the birds kill and ill in the sod. I remove the birds, grow a mixed cover crop, then return the chickens for another round of tilling. Now the new ground is ready to start working as a gar- Pick a Cover Crop | There's a cover crop for every season, climate and gardening strategy. Here are a few options: ** Fast-growing grain grasses (rye, oats, wheat and barley) are a good choice in early spring. * Cold-hardy legumes, such as peas, can be started in late winter and allowed to grow two ‘months or longer to precede a warm-weather, heavy-feeding crop, such as winter squash. ‘+ Warm-weather legumes, such as soybeans or cowpeas, can fertilize beds that will be planted to fall crops that need rich soil, such as broccoli or fall-planted garlic and shallots, ‘© For a quick-growing “Tiler” between spring and fall crops, nothing beats buckwheat, the “instant cover crop" (30 days from seed to flower.) ‘© For winter, a mix of hairy vetch and rye (cereal re, the sort of rye used to make bread, not perennial ye or annual grass rye) isa top choice, ‘© Another good winter cover is a mix of oats and “field pe 2a close relative of P. sativum, the common garden pea). Both plants are cold-hardy, but reliably winterkill ifthe ground freezes in your area. You can leave them in place as mulch, ‘and make spring transplants right into it. ‘© Try undersowing to grow a food crop and a cover crop together. For example, you can put Dutch white clover in a bed where you are planting tall crops with a small “footprint” such a trellised tomatoes or pole beans. The clover comes up fast, establishing a tight cover or “winter pea” (Pisum arvense, that suppresses weeds and retains soil moisture. Since itis low-growing, it does not inter- {ere with managing or harvesting the taller crops above it. den. Be sure to note the state of the soil before you start—the changes by the end of the season will amaze you, Ifyou dont have chickens, a no-till way to develop new ground is to lay down a sheet compost, which is heavy enough to kill the existing sod. IF you can be ge ous with watering through the germina- tion phase, you can start a cover crop in the top layer of the compost, and the roots will greatly accelerate the breakdown of win the mulch. Planta second cover in the fall. This strategy works better if yo the arca over completely to soil-building fora full year. F'you have to get some pro- duction oucof the ground the frst season, simply open up holes in the compost and plant (a strategy that works better with some crops than others). You can also try using potatoes to do the heavy work for you. Lay your seed potatoes directly on the sod, and cover with a thick mulch, Renew the mulch as n well covered. When its time to harvest, simply push the mulch aside and pick up your spuds. The nev garden soil still has ded (0 keep the growing tubers along way to go, but its well on its way The only time I do massive tillage in the garden is when digging root crops such as potatoes, sweet potatoes and bur- dock. With such crops, I dig deep and thorough coral disruption of so with the spading fork—a struetute and in- cers. My goal, however, is to make such intensive ssion/mixing of its natural the rule. That way, the intact soil life communities in surrounding beds soon uptions the rare exception rather than help rebuild the soil food web in the dis- curbed areas. vw Morne RE araNews.o0Nany people would planta flowering vine“ to climb up and over this beautiful pergola. = Se a ed Dee OTR Ud Oregon Pee eG en ta Me Oa ee ea ee oe uO Runa a Ceo RCs ripen at differant times, extending the harvest Ce eu Mune Ce cae Ue een oa el “A close-up look at the author's street-side border reveals 12 edible plants. On the bottom, from left to right: society garlic, nepitella (an oreganolike her with a hint of mint), a cluster of sculptural collards, and thyme and winter savory spilling out of the bed. Middle tier: upright rosemary, purple boasils, chartreuse pineapple sages, bronze fennel ‘and a kumquat. Roma tomatoes grow behind the fence and scarlet runner beans grow over the entry arbor. The purple verbena, yellow lantanas and roses, and red zinnias, geraniums and dahlias Compete for guests’ attention ‘A“Black Satin’ thornless blackberry bush grows ‘on wires supported by 3-foot-long pieces of rebar drilled into the posts on a low wall. Lavender flowers cover the vine for most of May, and blackberries produce from late June through mid-August. The author grows many edibles in her northern California yard, but few give such delight a this one plant. It stretches 12 to 15 feet, and bears at least 8 quarts of berries every summer. You can let your dinner guests harvest their own berries. In fall, the leaves are a vibrant yellow. THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARD en exploring edible landscaping options for more than 40 concept still strikes a deep chord with me. Americans cover millions of acres of ith lawn, marigold and azalea a landscape designer, L utiful and that homeowners could valuable agricultural land around their homes beds, wisteri, and an occasional privet or maple. Yet know most edible plants are b owa meaningful nount of food in their yards —a much more noble use of the soil Instead of the typical landscape, we could minimize lawn areas and put in decor- paprih ‘ould grow blueb tive borders of herbs, rainbow chard and strki ppers. Instead of thi ries that are decorative yearThe Future Tim convinced that, in addition to being a viable ible Iandscap. hhods) is th peept for th incredible benefit s Now most compelling land andscay plant, spray and har Food Safety bined and therefo rduction neds to produce a crop And unlike in agriculture, fields arent flooded and » cool down the harvest an unbelievable amount of food in a small, beautiful ( nd my website, w some popular crop: megrown frui Even in a limited space, you can use containers to create an edible landscape. Use bright Colors to add excitement and visual appeal, such as these eye-popping red containers, which bring style to entry steps. ‘Hungarian Wax peppers and a geranium underscore the red theme and help unity the design Red Flame’ grapes and cilantro grow in the other pots. The charming structure of designer Linda Vater's Oklahoma City vegetable garden is extremely effective. The flagstone paths, clipped boxwood hedge, scarecrow, arbor and bench area draw you in. Long after Vater has harvested the basil parsley, peppers and tomatoes, this garden remains wondertully invitingSea berry is one of a number of nutritious berries that will enhance an edible landscape. Itis a tall upright and deciduous shrub with silver foliage. The plant has a graceful weeping form and dramatic, highly nutritious gold berries that make great juices. You need male and female plants for pollination. Perhaps plant sea berry in a hedgerow along a property line with other hardy, edible shrubs, such as elderberries, Nanking’ cherries and highbush cranberries, Two spring vegetable beds invite you to stroll by and harvest the makings of a delicious salad. The edibles featured here are sculptural red cabbages, frily ‘Salad Bow’ lettuces, mizuna, collard, ‘mustards and even the flowers of a broccoli plant The cook has many choices! usually picked under-ripe and is days or weeks old when you ng Your E scape ‘Any landscape design begins with choosing the location of the paths, patios, fences, hedges, arbors and garden beds—estab- lishing the “bones” of you This is critically important inan edible gar use the beds are more apr to have plant with a wide array of textures, sizes and shapes, such as filly car ves, mounding peppers and climbing beans. Edible gar- den beds may be filled with young seedlings or even be empty at times. That's when paths, arbors, fences, hedges and even a birdbath are vital for keeping things attractive. xt, plan yout style by asking some questions: Do you want a formal or informal garden? Do you prefer a theme—maybe carly Colonial or Spanish? How about whimsical areas with a scarecrow or whirligigs? Have you always dreamed of a bright yellow gate welcoming folks into your garden? Afeer you've determined the setup of the landscape, its time to choose the plants. Herein lies the true subtlety of the landscaper’s art. First make a list of edibles you like most and that grow well in your climate, noting their cultural needs. Be aware of their size, shape, and the color of their foliage and flowers or fruic they produce (if any). Do you crave lots of hot reds and ‘oranges, or do you prefer a cooler scene with lavenders, grays and shades of blue If fragrance is important, consider the scent of apple and plum blossoms, or heady basils and lavendersWith your list of plants in hand, create arcas of interest. You could create a curved line of filly-leafed chartreu lertuces ora row of blueberry shrubs whose blazing fll color can lead your eye down a brick path and to your entry. Instead of the predict able row of lilacs along the driveway, imagine a mixed hedge of currants, gooseber- ries and blucberties. The possibilities are limited only by your imagination. jor everything in your landscape has to be edible. Consider these colorful combos “inedible plants) * A geometric design of orange tulips underplanted with mesclun salad mix and bordered with parsley ot filly ke * Red or orange cherry comatoes growing over an arbor interplanted with blue or purple morning glories* ‘Cucumbers climbing a trellis to form a backdrop for a splash of coral gladiolus* Gold zucchini and yellow dablias* bordered by red zinnias* and purple basil A bed of fernlike carrots surrounded by dwarf nascurtiums A path bordered with dwarf red runner beans backed with giant, red-and-white striped peppermint zinnias* + A wooden planter overflowing with strawberries and burgundy-leaved cannas* As we all try to do our part to protect the planet and our own health, finding ways to grow more of our own food is a worthy goal. So how do you start your edible landscape? You could replace a few shrubs with easily grown culinary herbs and salad greens, The next step may be to add a few strawberry or rhubarb plants your flower border. And maybe this is the time to finally take out a few hundred square feet of sunny lawn in your front yard co create a decorative edible border instead. Rosalind Creasy has been growing edibles in her beautiful northern California garden for 40 years. The expanded second edition of her landmark book, Edible Landscaping (Sierra Club Books/Counterpoint Press), was released in Novernber 2010. This definitive book on designing with edible plants has detailed advice and more than 300 gorgeous, inspiring photos, ws MorneRE RTH EWSF your yard has a space at least 20 by 28 feet gets full or almost full sun, you can grow enough veg fresh food all season ables to have surprisingly little effort. Go ahead and dig beds if you'r lucky enough to have naturally fertile, well- drained soil, but dont let soil flaws stop you from starting a food garden. Instead, use this quick and simple bag-gardening technique This method is almost too y (0 believe buc it absolutely works! € in bags of roday, and copsol lets you get a gar offers these additional benef * In the course of a season, the topsoil bags will smother the grass underneath them, so you won't have to dig up and remove the grass sod. by BARBARA PLEASANT * The bags eliminate aggravation from Killing cutworms, which are cat commonly found in soil where ny) weeds, be- soils and planting mixes are pasteurized co kill weed seeds + You can eventually gather up the plastic nd dig their contents into per- manent beds, or just lay down a new batch of bagsWhat Can | Grow? Whether you dig right in or start swith bags, you cant go wrong with the selection of 25 easy-to-grow Page 28. In addition to plenty of fresh veggies to put on the table and to store, this garden plan will also produce a years sup- crops on P ply of several tasty herbs, which will attract droves of pollinators and other beneficial insects. If youre new to food gardening, your biggest challenge may be planting crops at the right times. A food garden should be planted in phases, so that every crop gets the type of weather it prefers. The following season-by-se: structions for our easy food garden (see the plan on Pag planting sequ a few labor 28) show how seasonal nces work. Youll also find wing tips, such as letting pole beans twine up tall sunflowers. Early Spring 1. Prepare your site. You can dig beds the traditional way, or you can plant most of this garden in bags. If you're using bags, you will need about 25 40-pound bags to cover the five main beds. See Bed 3 on Page 28 for guidance on how to range the bags when starting your gar den, Definitely dig the squash bed and the circular bed, mixing in a 2-inch of good compost as you work. 2. Use a utility knife to cut outa large, rectangular window on the upper sur- face of each bag. Leave the sides and 2 inches of each top edge intact, resembling 4 picture frame (see illustration, above). Lightly dust the surface of the soil inside the bags with organ it in with a trowel. (Skip this if the bag’s label says fertilizer has been added.) Using a screwdriver ora big knife, stab each b fertilizer and mix through at least a dozen times to create plenty of drainage holes in the bottom, Plane roots will use these holes to grow down into the soil below the bags. Mid-Spring 1, Plant onions, beets and early let- tuce. About four weeks before your last frost, plant onion seedlings in Bed 1. (To find the average last spring frost for your location, search for “frost date” at stots MotherEarthNews.com.) Water well to sectle the soil around the roots. Sow beet seeds half an inch deep and 2 inches apart, Sow some 2. Plant potatoes and peas. Set pota- ly lettuce in Bed 3. toes 2 inches deep and 12 inches apart Leave a 2-inch rim of plastic around the edges of each bag to keep the soil from spilling and to help retain moisture in Bed 2, flanked by double rows of bush snap or snow peas. These short, bushy varieties don’t need a.uellis if grown closely cogether, although poking a few sticks into the row between the plants helps keep them off the ground, 3. Plant greens and herbs. Plant leccuce, dill, cilantro and chard seeds in Bed 6, Plant chard the same way you planted beets Set out potted peren: (oregano, rosemary, sage, thyme) in Beds 3 and 6. Make a second sowing herbs of lettuce and cilantro one week before your last frost 4, Mulch, mulch, mulch. About three weeks afier you've planted your beds, thin seedlings o correct spacing (check seed packets) and hoe or pull weeds. Choosing the Right Bags of ‘Soil’ Garden centers typically sell a dizzying array of bagged soil mixes and soil amendments, ‘so choosing one can be confusing, To make the task even more difficult, there are no strict standards that define what qualifies as “compost” or “shrub planting mix.” The best way to know what you're getting is to look beyond the label and examine wtiat's inside the beg. Some garden centers set aside broken bags of topsoil so customers can ‘examine their contents, or you can buy a sample bag to check out before you buy more. For most soil-building purposes, a mixture that looks and feels fluffy and has plenty of tidbits of decomposed leaves or wood chips offers more organic matter than a heavier mixture that includes mostly gritty soll. Light-textured composts are usually the best choice for digging into sol as a long-lasting source of organic mater, but for the fast bag beds inthis garden plan, look for products that do include some gritty soil. Plant roots prefer a mixture of soil and organic matter to organic matter alone. A bag of such | soil will fee! heavier than one | that's mostly organic matter, assuming both are equally wet or dry. Ordinary bagged topsoil" or inexpensive “tree and shrub planting mix” will do quite nicely in any spot where you want to set up a new veg | sie bed quickiy Topsoil and other soil amendments are sold by weight or volume. For this garden plan, use 40-pound bags, which wil cover a 2-by-3-foot space and provide ample room for the roots of most vegetables. 1. MormeRE RT HNEWS.cOMto lettuce and tumios eg taal sca i eel shoe sat ‘snap or ‘sunflowers ‘snow peas (bush) ee i HEKRKAK RKXYK RAKE a Footprint: 20 x 28 feet WHEN TO PLANT: Mid-spring: onions, beets, lettuce, potatoes, snap or snow peas, dil, cilantro, chard, oregano, rosemary, sage, thyme Late spring: tomatoes, peppers, basil, bush and pole beans, sunflowers, squash Midsummer: kale, arugula Late summer: Asian greens, lettuce, tumips, carrots, mixed cover crop of bush beans, peas, oats of mustard Late fall: garlic LST ae cilantro BED 1 BED2 BED 3 BED 4 BED6 © beets, 1 packet © 10 seed potatoes © oregano, rosemary, © sunflowers, 1 © basil, 1 packet of seeds or of seeds (© snap or snow peas ssage and thyme, 1 packet of seeds 2 seedlings © onions, about (bush), 1 packet plant each ‘O snap beans (pole), © oregano, rosemary, sage 20 seedlings of seeds, © snap beans 1 packet of seeds and thyme, 1 plant each (half bunch) © lettuce or other salad (bush), 1 packet © mixed lettuce, 1 packet © mizuna, red greens, 2 packets of seeds BED 5 of seeds, mustard or other of seeds, O mixed lettuce, 2 © tomatoes, 4 © chard, 1 packet of seeds or Asian greens, 1 © turnips, 1 packet packets of seeds seedlings, assorted 6 seedlings packet of seeds of seeds © arugula and © peppers, 2 seedlings O cilantro and dill, 1 packet kale, 1 packet of © garlic, 1 pound of seeds each seeds each of cloves © carrots, 1 packet of seeds 28 THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING| Considering Compost sy Gl amis ple compost from vegetable mings, | compost in a spot where you're planning to add a nen bed inthe fture earthworms and ther compost creatures will kick-start the soil improvement process, Enclosed composters made from recycled plastic sight. Most models are animal-resistant, making them a great choice for urban or suburban yards. You can also make com: post in a small pen made from a circle of fencing. Both types of ‘compost enclosures are easy to move as your garden expands. | | work like garden garbage cans by keeping rotting debris out of work area BED7 © squash, 3 packets of seeds or 6 seedlings in assorted types: acorn ‘squash, spaghetti squash, summer squash (pattypan, yellow squash, zucchini) and sweet potato (delicata) squash © mixed cover crop of bush beans, mustard, oats or peas ‘Mulch the garden with grass clippings, hay or shredded leaves Late Spring 1. Plant tomatoes and more. When the soil feels warm co your bare feet, set out tomatoes and peppers in Bed 5 and basil in Bed 6, Plant bush beans in Bed 3, and sow sunflowers in Bed 4. One week later, plant pole beans inside the edge of the circular bed (Bed 4). 2. Set up the squash bed. In Bed 7, use spade or shovel to make sixor seven planting holes arranged in a zigzag pat tem. Place a large shovelful of compost and a handful of organic fertilizer in each hole, then mix in thoroughly. Plant three squash seeds or one seedling in each pre- pared planting spot. Thin seedlings to one per planting hole, Use a row cover to protect your squash from insect pests. To do so, push the ends of wire hoops into the grou three evenly spaced arches over the squash, Unfold or untoll the row cover and drape it over the arches, Secure the edges of the cover by burying them, or anchor them with boards, bricks or stones. Open the cover only to weed and thin, den close it right appear, remove the cover entirely to allow insects to pollinate the flowers. to form One week after the first blooms Midsummer 1. Plant kale. S or in a nursery bed, and set them out when space becomes available in Bed 3. i kale seeds indoors Sow arugula, Move the row cover tunnel fiom the squash to your baby kale, Late Summer 1. Plant fall greens. Replace spring beets and onions in Bed 1 with mizuna, red mustard or other Asian greens, and replace potatoes and peas in Bed 2 with lettuce in front ofa turnip backdrop. Replace spring, lettuce and cilantro in Bed 6 with carrots. 2. Plant a cover crop. After you have collected the winter squash harvest from Bed 7, you can improve the soil by grow- ing a cover crop of bush beans, mustard, Late Fall 1. Plant garlic. Clean up the tomato bed, dump out the bags, and amend the soil with fresh compost and a dusting of organic fertilizer. Mix soil thoroughly with a spade or digging fork, and plant garlic cloves 4 inches deep and 4 to 6 inches apart. After planting, cover with at least 2 inches of mulch. 4 Adapted from Starter Vegetable Gardens: 24 No-Fail Plans for Small Organic Gardens (Storey Publishing, 2010) by organic gardening expert and Motier Earti News contributing editor Barbara Pleasant. Order at www. ‘MotherEarthNews.com/Shopping. wnvw.MornexEuemiNews.com 29by BARBARA PLEASANT Maintain Healthy Garden Soil with CROP ROTATIONS YOU CAN INCREASE SOIL FERTILITY AND CUT DOWN ON PLANT DISEASE BY ROTATING THE VEGETABLES IN YOUR GARDEN PLOTS ON A THREE-YEAR CYCLE. Illustrations by ELAYNE SEARS ne of the rules of good organic gardening is to rotate O plant families from one season to the next, as best you so related crops are not planted in the same spot ‘more often than every three years or so. The purpose of crop ro- tation is to help the soil maintain a healthy balance of nutrients, organic matter and microorganisms. OF these three, the invisible world of soil-dwelling micro-creavures is the one that most ben- efits from crop rotations. Take potatoes, for example. In the course of season, the fungi that cause se killing ve eggplant) and tiny nematodes that injure potatoes. If you plant potatocs again in the same place, these pathogens will be ready and waiting co sabotage the crop. Rotating the space to an unrelated crop deprives the potaro pathogens of the host plant they require. Most pests damage plants of the same botanical fa hurt unrelated crops (see “Rotate Your Families: The Nine Main id diseases can but cannot Groups,” Page 32). What if you dont follow a crop rotation plan? Field trials in Connecticuc and Europe indicate that your potato production will quickly fll by 40 pereent, mostly due to disease. According 10a seven-year study fom Ontario, you could expect similar declines ifyou planted romatocsin thesame place over and over again, Compared to eight different rotations with other vege- tables or cover crops, continuous tomatoes consistently produced he lowest yields. Snap beans that are not rorated will rurn into paltry. producer, too. In a recent study from Cornell snap bean production doubled when beans were planted afier corn x rather than afier snap beans. In addition to interrupting disease cycles, rotating crops prevents the Universi THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING Ponce ca DS ee Lame COE ua See eee depletion of nutrients. For example, tomatoes need plenty of calcium, the same way beans and beets crave manganese, But the exact benefits of effective rorations vary with crop sequence. Broad-leafed greens are great for suppressing weeds, and the deep roots of sweet com do.a good job of penetrating compacted subsoil, Nirogen-fixing legumes often take no more nitrogen from the soil than they replace, and their presence stimulates the growth of beneficial soil microorganisms. But in some situa tions, the “rotation effect” defies easy explanation, For example, ‘we dont know precisely why potatoes tend to grow wellwhen planted after sweet corn, but they do. ‘The subject of crop rotation can get complicated fast—ir's no won- der we are tempted to cheat, What if your garden is like mine, a collection of a dozen permanent beds chat are planted with 20-plus differene crops in the course of a growing season? Not using rotations would be unwise, When researchers at Pennsylvania State University tracked early blight of tomatoes grown in the same place for four years, early-season infection rates (measured when 5 percent of fruits turned red) went from 3 percent in the first year to 74 percent in the chird, When they tried the same monoculture ma- neuver with cantaloupes, symptoms of alter: earlier and earlier with each passing season. In addition to interrupting disease cycles, rotating crops prevents the ou atom rt iau (onlin Questioning the Rules Some organic gardeners point out that crop rotation guidelines de- veloped for farmers don't really fic home gardens, On farms, crop resi- due is either plowed under or left on the surface to decay, which means the soil receives large infusions of a single type of plant material. Gardeners are more likely to pull up and compost spent crops, and to dig in compost or other soil amendments between plantings, which replenishes nutrients and yorates the soil food web in an extremely diversified way. Biodegradable mulches introduce more considerations: If you heavily mulch your potatoes with straw, shredded leaves, grass clippings or all three, certainly it makes sense to factor those forms of organic matter into your rotation plans. URE showing that crop rotation results in better harvests for CERRO LS Ca ww MoriexEaeraNe.cowBut dont think just because you pull up plants you are interrupting the food supply of soilborne plant pathogens to the point you can ignore rota- tions, When I pull up beans, for example, only a small tangle of roots comes up with the plants the bulk of the root system stays behind in the soil. IFT plant beans in that row again within two years, the plants will be at rsk for micronutrient deficiency and several major bean discases. Using a three-year crop rotation radically reduces the chances that my beans will be bothered by root rot, white mold and several serious blights. This is an excellent reward for taking on the task of devising a workable rota- tion plan in which new plantings are helped along Rotate Your Families: The Nine Main Groups ‘You can simplify your rotations by sorting your crops into these major plant families: lic, leeks and shallots eee ed Sey Sees BS Td UA Ce eo a cy * Cabbage family: cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Kale and many other leafy Ce ec eee os See ae Eee ee Oa ee Dee eae ‘+ Tomato family: tamatoes, peppers, eggplant and potatoes by the bed’ previous tenants. The Eight-Crop Rotation ‘The cight-crop roration plan developed by market gardener Elioe Coleman incorporates decades of farm and garden research, and it a great place to start planning rotations for your garden. In order, Coleman's plants unfold like this: (1) tomatoes (2) peas (3) cabbage (4) sweet corn (5) potatoes (6) squash (7) root crops (8) beans. Ifyou grow only these eight crops in eight rows or beds, you now have your rotation plan. Simply line up your crops in the right order, and shifé them one space over every year. Bat it’s not likely to be this simple for your garden, so you will nced a customized plan that relocates the main plant fami- lies from one season to the next. (Families are crops that are closely related and therefore prone to many of the same pests and diseases.) The nine plant families grown in vegetable gar- dens are summarized above, but expect to need more space for some families than others. For ex- ample, you may need a lot of space for tomato-family crops (tomatoes, peppers, potatoes) and only a little for spinach, chard or beets, and you may not be able o grow space-hun- gry sweet corn at all. Begin plan- ning your rotations by making a list of your must-have crops as well as the amount of space that’s required by each one. Then sort them into the plant families. You will also need co identify “crop sequences” that work well in your garden within the same growing season. For example, many gardeners have garlic in the ground from fall to midsummer, after which the area can be planted with a second crop. In my Zone 6 garden, I can grow shell beans after garlic if I hustle, which gives me a garlic! bean sequence. In a cooler climate, you might have a garlic! lercuce sequence. ‘Other sequences that work well for me include a snap peal carrot sequence, an onioni/leafy green sequence, and a broc- coli/bush bean sequence. Add any crop sequences you often use (or want to try) to your list. 32. THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANTC GARDENING BU ure meron planning can be huge —a long-term rotation plan Prarie lero Tem oot t ES every crop you grow. Rotation Planning You will need ovo sheets of paper, scissors, and a pen or pencil. On one sheet, make a rough drawing of your garden, noting the sizes of beds or rows. Write down, co the best of your knowledge, where various crops grew last year. If you take photographs of your garden at different times during the season, its much easier to recall where you planted what. Cut another piece of paper into smaller pieces that fic the rows or beds in your garden drawing, and copy the crops, the plant family they belong to, and crop sequences from your list onto these “crop markers.” In my garden, I end up with markers for 10 crops or crop sequences to rotate within my 12 permanent beds. It’s good to have a couple of beds for trial plantings and irresistible whims. Back at che drawing board, spend some time puzzling through your plans by moving the labeled crop/plant family mark- ers about on your garden draw- ing. Your goal (which may take a few seasons to implement) will be co have your plantings move in a logical order and direction, whether it's left to right, front to rear, circular or whatever. Expect to improvise and innovate. (To sign up for our digital garden plan- ner, go to www.MotherEarthNews.com/Garden-Planner.) ‘When in doubt about a rotation, 1 slip in a crop of beans or leafy greens. If you feel frustrated, play with your drawing and markers for a while, and then pack them up for a few days of think- ing time, When you go back to the task, you will probably have an casier time finding at least a few effective rotations waiting co be put into action. Afier a few years of fine-tuning, the payoff for this level of garden planning can be huge—a long-term rotation plan that runs itself and benefits every crop you grow. 4%Ce sey eae ecu nesicincur ayer Erste lease lita ae Colgate See eles The ultimatelsingle row planter making Eye eles) pele elo) Peed osirete users se vari © Adjustable depth tool bar. a ® Includes|5-tine cultivator, hilling plow and furrowing plow, Ideal for keepingwour, garaen) tilled and, Wisfo/iit 3 f iferet mula i Pe mu Me Me Aiea ele eto ee ls liters EMeriaetteshmueloyeseuie teres The Spritzer,putsitiie spray where the: Lotte Neacelg) nie) Otol (OhF nich eldDouble your garden’s by ELIOT COLEMAN roductivity with ensl looking for new ideas and simple, low-cost solutions 10 . and efficiency, I have never found an activity that can- these simple, not be improved (and then improved again) by a diligent process of critical . . evaluation. Long before my wife, Barbara Damrosch, and I came up with the inexpensive design for our low cunnels (miniature greenhouse tunnel), we had already improved ign 8 ii-% ‘our greenhouses by making them moveable, first on skids and later on wheels. But in- low tunnels. novation is a never-ending process. ‘The ideal solution is always less expensive, simpler 4 THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENINGto build and less complicated to manage. We consider it pleasant pects of our agricultural producti mental exercise (0 1 to the essentials For a harvest of mature onions in early summer co sell at our he fal-planted onion farmstand, we were interested in growi watieries listed in seed catalogs. ‘Bridger’ 2 from Johnny's Selected Seeds (wamjohnnyseedt.com), has become cur fvorite varity. It only keeps in storage for a few months, but that’s no problem, because they all sll bythe time later onions are harvestable, B 3 the low temperatures here in Maine are too harsh for overwintered onions to survive, we needed to grow them with protection from the weather, We decided to grow them in one of our unheated moveable greenhouse rotations. We drilled the seed in late August, left the onions uncovered until we had harvested the last of a late sowing of greenhouse- protected lectuces just before Thanks ind then moved the greenhouse to cover the onions for winter. To be sure there would be sufficient winter protection, we put an inner layer of floating row cover supported by wire wickets inside the greenhouse. In late March, when we moved the greenhouse, the wo il, and they iad hoped for. had onions to sell cold was aver. The onions looked green and bea ‘matured in June to give us the eal in June, we hadnt sold In another mobile greenhouse rotation, we had harvested spinach planted in mid-September from mid-November right through nything from that greenhouse all winterthe winter. In April, we followed that spinach crop with transplants of Tuscan kale, which we were also selling in June. The demand for winter spinach was insatiable, and we would gladly have had that onion greenhouse filled with spinach, But the onions were a great crop, and got us thinking about simpler, less expensive pro- tection than a greenhouse, Low Tunnel Greenhouses Because we harvested the spinach all winter, it nceded to be in 2 greenhouse in which we could walk and work comfortably. Buc the onions were just hibernating for the winter, s0 to speak, so we didnt need to walk in and vist chem, We decided they should be We knew the wire wickets that supported our floating row covers wouldn't hold up under snow, but we thought sturdier low tunnels might work. When we looked realized that 10-foot lengths of half inch electrical conduit would be ideal A 10-foot length of conduit bent into a half-circle, the ends inserted in the soil, covers two of our 30-inch-wide growing beds, with a 1-foor path in be rveen, “Quick hoops” were born. THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING Low tunnels can provide winter protection for only 5 percent of what it would cost to use a full-size greenhouse. Eliot Coleman uses low tunnels to grow carrots, salad greens and other crops in winter —in Maine! To make the low wn nels, we started with half-inch metal clectrical conduit and made three 60-degece bends with a conduit bender to create a house shape—straight side walls (6 feet apart), and “roof” sections slant- ing equally co both sides. We assumed we would have enough suppor: if we used one hoop every 5 feet. We then covered this prototype with 2 10-foat-wide floating row cover held down along the edges with sandbags. We found that holding the edges of the fabric with sandbags was much kss work, much faster and almost as secure as burying the edges. We filled each bag with 12 to 15 pounds of soil, sand or gravel A few windy days showed us a weakness in this design. The row cover fabric was stressed where it was pulled tightly against the three bends of the house-shaped hoops, and was torn in a few places. We realized thata smooth, round shape for the hoops would bre preferable ‘Our nexe step was to make the hoops out of halF'inch hard plas- tic conduit. By making 10- deep holes with an iron bar every 5 feet along the outside edges of the two beds, we could insert an end of the plastic conduit into ‘one hole and carefully bend the ich conduit into a halfcircle, insert ing the other end into the cor- responding hole The first time we puc up the plastic hoops, «wo people work: 1g together made the process casicr: one holding the first end vertical while the other bent the conduit and inserted the second cend as vertically as possible. After being used for a while, the con- dui acquired a reasonably curved These low tunnels are covered with tloating row covers. Before winter, a layer of plastic will be addedIf you'd like to bend metal conduit (electrical metallic tubing) | into arcs (instead of forming a corner with a com | mon tube bender, autho Eliot Coleman uses 2 “quick hoop’ bender that is available from Johnny's Selected Seeds (ww.johinny sseeds.com). If you'd like to make your own tubing roller, plans are available at www. ‘MotherEarthNews.com. Just search for “tubing roller.” shape that made erecting the hoops an easier job for ‘one person. We put hoops over the onion beds in mid- October. Realizing the tunnels would have to survive the weight of winter snow and that we we now using plastic instead of metal conduit, we doubled the num- ber of hoops by placing one every 2/4 feet along the row. We covered the hoops with row covers after we onions continued growing. But for the seri would be staring by ate November, we knew we needed a stron- ‘ger material than the floating row cover fabric. We had just re-covered a greenhouse, and the old plastie still had a litle life in it, so we cut it into 10-foot-wide strips and set them aside to use when the weather gor colder. We planned to place the plastic over the fabric in order to give the low tunnels a smooth, w them up, and the us winter weather that strong surface for the snow to slide off of. The final step, completed around Thanksgiving, was to add the plastic and stiffen the structures against the weight of winter snow to come. We drove a 2-by-4 stake into the ground 3 feet from the end of each row and tied a rope tightly around the bunched end of the plastic covers (se illustration, Page 34). We then pulled the ropes as tightly as we could from both ends to make the cover taut and tied the ropes to the stakes. We replaced the sandbags to hold down both the plastic and the fabric. Both that first winter and again this past winter, the snow here ‘on the Maine coast did not disappoint us, and the quick hoops got areal test. With the exception of one snow drified excessively and pressed a few of the plastic hoops down to the ground, the 30-inch high tunnels survived a number of 18-inch snowfalls with aplomb. nd of a row where the Even Better Designs Are we satisfie We recently perfected a tubing OF course not bender to create the ideal curved | * Beets shape from half-inch metal con- | * Broccoli duit. With the proper curve, metal _ | * Cabbage conduit hoops with almost straight 3) * Carrots sides extending 6 inches orso above =| * Lettuce the soil come closcr to the ideal 2) * Onions shape. We need only half as many 5) # Peas. hoops (back to the 5-foot spacing) =) * Spinach to hold up under the snow ogee Good Crops for Low Tunnels Pre-bent metal hoops help in another way. The plastic conduit tends to lean in toward the beds where it’s been inserted into the soil, because of the forces against it. The leaning reduces space along the edges of the beds when we use the hoops for protecting other crops that need more headroom, such as early brassicas, beets, carrots let tuce, melons and zuechini—in both spring and fall We always strive t0 achieve our goals in the least expensive way. Quick hoops do well in that respect. Using the quick hoop system, we can give winter protection to 1,000 square fet (the size ofa 20-by-50-foot greenhouse) of overwintered crops for about $100—only 5 percent of the costof protecting that area with a greenhouse. (The cost for our low tunnels is about 10 cents per square foot.) Which crops work well under quick hoops? Spinach is an obvi- cous candidate. New England growers have traditionally sown out- door spinach in the fll (giving ica lite protection with evergreen boughs), in order to get an extra-catly harvest in spring. Many other hardy greens, such as lettuce, could also be planted in the fall forearly spring harvest. We have ofien seen our ktest—planted baby leaf salads for fll harvest successfully winter under a layer of snow and come up again in the spring much sooner and more vigorously than a spring-planted crop ever could. Because one cant count (on snow cover, quick hoops are an excellent substicure, And what about alate fll sowing of eatly spring crops such as peas, carrots or beets? Hopefully they would survive to germinate and start grow- ing a month of owo ahead of schedule in the protected shelter of the low tunnel, A new idea always leads us to more new ideas. (One more important thing: Think about venting the hoop tun- ines so they don't overheat when the sun returns in late winter. We simply remove some sandbags in a couple of places and use stakes with a V-notch in the top t hold the plastic and fabric foot above the ground. By the end of March, we remove the plastic layer on cach hoop tunnel and store i for furure use. At that point, we have afabric-covered low tunnel that we leave in place until its no longer necessary or we need to move the hoops to another crop. It couldn't be easier. PerEsxraNews.con 371 WAY TO FERTILIZE YOUR GARDEN Your crops will thrive with this organic soil-building plan. cause my garden supplies about half of my family’s yearly food intake, I do all I can to maximize iy vegetables’ nutritional qual- ity. Based on considerable research and wore than 30 years of vegetable growing, Thave formulated a fertilizing mix that is beneficial for almost any food garden. Icis a potent, correctly balanced fertilizing mix composed entirely of nacural substances. eles expensive than commercial organic fertilizers, and its much better for your soil life chan harsh synthetic chemical mixes (see “Chemical Cautions,” Page 39) my gardens, T use only this mix and regular additions of compost. Together they produce incredible results. I've re- commended this system in the gardening books I've written over 20 years. Many readers have written me saying things Bone Meal, 1 part Kelp Meal, 1/2 part such as, “My garden has never grown so well; the plants have never been so large and healthy; the food never tasted so good,” The basic ingredients—seed meal, various kinds of lime, bone meal and kelp meal—are shown below. The complete recipe isin “The Quick and Easy Guide to Fertilizer,” Page 40, Complete Organic Fertilizer To concoct the mix, measure out all materials by volume—that is, by the scoop, buckerful, jaful, etc. Proportions that vary by 10 percent cither way will be close enough to produce the desired Dolomitic Lime, 1/2 part Complete Organic Fertilizer Mix 38 THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING results, but do not attempt 10 make this formula by weight. I blend mine in a 20- quart plastic bucket, using an old sauce- pan as a measuring scoop. | make 7 to 14 {quarts ata time. This mix is inexpensive ifjudged by the results it produces; i also inexpensive in monetary terms if you buy the ingredients in bulk from the right vendors. Urban gar- deners may have to do a bit of research tw find suppliers that have the right ingre- dients. Farm and ranch stores as well as feed and grain dealers are the best sources for seed meals, which are typically used 0 feed livestock. If were an urban gardener, would visit the country every year or wo «o stock up. The other ingredients usually can be found at garden shops, although they probably will be sold in smaller q tities at relatively high prices per pound. Soybean Meal, 4 parts Agricultural Lime, 1/2 partYou may find the best prices by mail order or on the In ernet Seed meals and various kinds of lime are the most important ingredients (see “Basic Organic Fertilizer Ingredients” on Page 41). These alone will grow a great garden, Gypsum is the least necessary kind of lime, but its included because it contains sulfur, a vital plant nucrient that is deficient in some soils. If gypsum should prove hard to find oF seems too costly, dontt worry about it—double the quantity of inexpensive agriculcural ime. Ifyou can afford only one bag of lime, in ‘most circumstances your best choice will be dolomitic limestone. You also could alternate agricultural lime and dolomite from year to year or bag to bag. Bone meal is usually available at garden centers. Guano, rock phosphate and kelp meal may scem costly or difficult to ob- tain, but they add considerable forieude to the plants and inerease the nutritional con- cencof your vegetables. Go as far down the recipe as you can afford, but if you cant find the more exotic materials toward the bottom, dont worry too much, However, if concerns about money stop you from obtaining kelp meal, rock dust or a phos- phate supplement, I suggest taking a hard look at priorities, In my opinion, you cant spend too much money creating maxi- mum nutrition in your food—a dollar spent here will save several in health care costs over the long t Applying the Fertilizer Mix Before planting each crop, or at least once a year (preferably in the spring), uniformly broadeast 4 to 6 quarts of fer lizer mix atop each 100 square feet of raised bed, or down each 50 feet of plant- ing row, ina band 12 to 18 inches wide. Blend in the fertilizer with a hoe or spade. ‘This amount provides sufficient fertility Adapted from Gardening When It Counts, a Morven EarTa News “Book for Wiser Living” from New Society Publishers. To order, visit: www. MotherEarthNews. com/Shopping. for what I've classified as “low-demand” vegetables to grow to their maximum po- tential and is usually enough to adequately feed “medium-demand” vegetables (see “Which Crops Need the Most” on Page 40). Ifyoute planting in hills, mix an ad- ditional cup of fertilizer into each. fier the initial application, sprinkle small amounts of fertilizer around me- dlium- and high-demand vegetables every three 10 four weeks, thinly covering the area that the root system will grow into. As the plants grow, repeat this “side-dressing,” placing each dusting farther from their centers. Each application will require more fertilizer than the previous. As a rough guide, side-dress about 4 to 6 additional quarts total per 100 square feet of bed during a crop cycle. If the growth rate fails to increase over the next few weeks, the most recent appli ed, so don't add any more. ® Steve Solomon, founder of Territorial Seed Co., has gardened extensively in California, Oregon, Canada and at his current home in Australia ion wasn't need- Chemical Cautions |_ easy for inexperienced gardeners to cross the line between just enough and too much. | Chemical fertilizers are too pure. This is particularly true of inexpensive chemical | troublesome is that chemical fertilizer rarely contain calcium or magnesium, which later by a big sag. Plants then require another application. Should it rain hard enough cess. The rate of decomposition roughly doubles for each 10 degree Fahrenheit increase times as much as the type that dissolves rapidly in water. The seed meals in my organic feats caer a ‘wor. MoraxEanriNEws.conThe Quick and Easy Guide Organic Fertilizer Recipe Mix uniformly, in parts by volume: 4 parts seed meal” 1/4 part ordinary agricultural lime, best finely ground 1/4 port gypsum (or double the agricultural lime) 1/2 part dolomitic lime 5-gallon bucketfuls Plus, for best ests: feet), chopped into 1 part bone meal, rock phosphate or high- phosphate guano 1/2 to 1 part kelp meal (or 1 part basalt dust) surface mulch. How Much to Use ‘Once a year (usualy in spring), before planting crops, spread and dig in the following materials. LOW-DEMAND VEGETABLES (SEE LISTS BELOW): 1/4-inch layer of steer manure or finished compost 4 quarts organic fertilizer mix/100 sq. ft MEDIUM-DEMAND VEGETABLES: 1/d-inch layer of steer manure or finished compost 4 to 6 quarts organic fertilizer mix/100 sq. ft HIGH-DEMAND VEGETABLES: 1/2:inch tayer of steer manure or finished compost 4 to 6 quarts organic fertilizer mix/100 sa, ft. ‘These recommendations are minimums for growing low-, medium- and high-demand vegetables in all sol types, except heavy clay. (For For a more sustainable and less expensive option, you can substitute chemical-free grass clippings for the seed meal, although clippings will rot provoke the same strong growth response. Use about a half-inch-thick layer of fresh clippings (six to seven ‘of your soil with a hoe. Then spread ‘an additional 1-inch-thick layer as a to Fertilizer per 100 square the top 2 inches Organic fertilizer ingredients are less ‘expensive if bought in bulk hheawy clay soils: The frst year, spread an inch of decomposed organic ‘matter and dig it into @ shove’s depth. In subsequent years, apply ‘manure or compost and fertilizer mix as described above, using about 50 percent more fertilizer) In addition to these initial applications, add side-dressings of fertilizer around medium. and high-demand crops every few weeks through the season; altogether, these additions may equal the amount used in intial preparation. This organic fertilizer is potent, so use no more than recommended above. Excessive liming can be harmful to sol. Hf you can, increase the amounts of manure and compost by 60 percent to 100 percent, but no ‘more than that. If you tink your vegetables aren't growing well enough, do not apply more manure or compos; fc it with fertilizer mic Sacked steer manure is commonly avaiable in springtime ata rela tively low price per bag. This material may contain semidecomposed sawdust and usually has lite fertilizing value. However, it does feed soil microbes and improves soil structure, which helps roots breathe And itis not raw manure i's been partially composted. Which Crops Need the Most For thousands of years, home gardens received the hest ofthe family’s manures, and lots of them. Few vegetable crops can thrive in ordinary yecause they have been coddied for millennia in highly improved conditions. However, different vegetables demand different levels of soil quality. Both low- and medium-demand vegetables will become far more productive when grown in soil that has received at least the minimum applications of fertilizer listed above. High-demand vegetables are sensitive, delicate species and usually will not thrive unless grown in light, Coen eee ee ee ee Low-Demand Vegetables Medium-Demand Vegetables High-Demand Vegetables Jerusalem artichoke, arugula (rocket), beans, beets, burdock, carrots, chicory, collard greens, endive, escarole, fava beans, herbs (most kinds), kale, parsnip, peas, Southern peas, raab (ra- pin’, salsiy, scorzonera, French sorrel, Swiss chard (silverbeet), turnip greens Artichoke, basil, cilantro, sprouting broccoli, Brussels ‘sprouts (late), cabbage (large, late), cutting celery, ‘sweet corn, cucumbers, eggplant, garlic, giant kohirabi, kohlrabi (autumn), lettuce, mustard greens (autumn), ‘okra, potato onions, topsetting onions, parsley/roat parsley, peppers (small-fruited), potatoes (sweet and “Irish”, pumpkin, radish (salad and winter), rutabega, scallions, spinach (autumn), squash, tomatoes, turnips (autumn), watermelon, zucchini Asparagus, Italian broccoli, Brussels sprouts (early), Chinese cabbage, cabbage (small, early), cantaloupe honeydew, cauliflower, celeryicele- riac, Asian cucumbers, kohirabi (spring), leeks, mustard greens (spring), bulbing onions, peppers (large-fruited), spinach (spring), tur nips (spring) AO THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENINGSeed meals are byproducts of making vegetable oil and are mainly used as animal feed. They are made from soy beans, flaxseed, sunflowers, cotton seeds canola and other plants. Different kinds are more readily available in different regions of the country. When chemically analyzed, most seed meals show similar nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium (NPK) content—about 6-4-2. Because seed meals are used mainly as animal feed and not as fertilizer, they are labeled by protein content rather than NPK content. The general rule is that 6 percent protein provides about 1 percent nitrogen, so buy whichever type of seed meal gives you the amount of nitrogen for the lowest possible cost If you want seed meals that are free of genetic modification and grown without sewage sludge or pesticides, choose certi- fied organic meals. Seed meals are less und bags, which can be found at farm stores rather than garden centers. Seed meals are stable and will ary and protected from pests in a metal garbage can or empty ail drum with a tight ld. Lime is ground, large amounts of calcium, and there are three types. Agricultural lime is relatively pure calcium carbonate, Gypsum is cal cium sulfate. Dolomite, or dolamitic lime contains both calcium and magnesium carbonates, usvally in mor amounts. If you have to choose one kind, it probably should be dolomite, but you'll fet a far better result using a mixture of the three types. The: expensive if bought in large sacks from agricultural suppliers. (Do not use quick ime, burnt lime, hydrated lime or other chemically active “hot” limes.) atthe acidity or pH of soil should be corrected by liming | suggest you forget about pH. Liming to adjust soil pH may be useful in large scale farming, but is not of concern in an organic garden. In fact, the whole concept of soil pH is controversial. My conclusion on the subject is this: If @ soil test shows your garden's pH is low and you are advised to apply lime to correct expensive in 40- or 5 or years if ke natural rock containing or less equal substances are not You may have read itdon't. Each year, just add amend ments as shown in “How Much to Use. Over time, the pH will correct itself, more because of the added organic matter than from adding calcium and magnesium And if your garden's pH tests as accept able, use the full recommendations in “How Much to Use” anyway, because vegetables still need calcium and magne. sium in the right balance as nutrients, If you routinely gar made fertilizer mix, you won't need to apply additional lime ta the garden. The mix is formulated so that, if used in the recommended amount, it automatically distributes about 50 pounds of lime per 1,000 square feet each year. Bone meal, phosphate rock or guano (bat or bird manure) all serve to boost the phosphorus level, and phosphate and guano usually are also rich in trace ele- jen with this home. ments, Bone meal will be the easiest of the three to find at garden centers Kelp meal (dried seaweed) has bi expensive, but one §5-pound sac supply @ 2,000-square-foot garden for several years. Kelp supplies some things nothing else does—a complete range of ome trace minerals plus growth regulators and natural hormones that act like plant vita- mins, increasing resistance to cold, frost and other stresses. Some rock dusts are highly mineralized and contain a broad and complete range of minor plant nutrients. These may be substituted for kelp meal, but | believe kelp is best. If your garden center doesn't carty kelp meal and can't order it, you can get it from Peaceful Valley Farm ‘Supply of Grass Valley, Calif, 888-784-1722; wirw groworganic.com. —Steve Solomon www MornexEaxraiNews.couby BARBARA PLEASANT Make Your Own POTTING SOIL YOU CAN SAVE MONEY BY USING YOUR OWN SOIL AND COMPOST TO MAKE POTTING MIXES YOUR PLANTS WILL LOVE. Illustrations by ELAYNE SEARS cost adds up fast in a busy garden, Next year, when my pile of rotting sawdust matures, I hope to be potting-soil sel sulfficient—and save bundle. Potting soil scl-suffciency is good for your pocketbook, your plants and the planet, and you actually gain convenience by always having potting soil ready when you need it. If you have soil and compost, youlve got the basic ingredients for making your own potting soil. In place of peat moss, perlite and vermiculite (the thee leading ingredients in bagged porting soil), you can simply combine your best soil with cured compost, leaf mold, rotted sawdust (from untreated wood) or a long list of other organic ingredients, Prepare some small batches, mix it with store-bought stuff to stretch your supply, and gradually make the transition to what porting soil should be—a simple, nurturing medium for growing healthy plants or starting seeds. P ackaged potting soils are a terrific convenience, but theit Giving Up Exotic Ingredients ‘At least half of any homemade porting soil is compost, but most commercial porting soils are based on some combination of peat moss, perlite and vermiculite—all of which contribute to land degradation and pollution as they are mined, processed, packaged and shipped. Peat moss comes from wetland bogs in Canada or Michigan, which is not sustainable and probably a long, long way from where you live (see “The Price of | Peat Moss” at www.MotherEarthNews.com). Many nurseries that grow woody shrubs and trees have found that composted tree bark or sg. wood chips work beautifully as a peat moss substitute. In Walla Walla, Wash., Organix: has developed a technology that turns the cow manure used in methane production into a peatlike material, sold as RePeet. ‘Coconut husk fibers, coir, will stand in for peat moss any day of the week; but unless you live where it’s produced—in India or Central ‘Ametica—coir is about as exotic as you can get. For most of us, the best peat alternatives are leaf mold (rotted leaves), rotted sawdust or a mixture of both. A 4-by-5-foor pile of chopped leaves will 2 THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING AON ee Bene ed compost, then pasteurize it by heating in RC CRU Ru ae Pe take about two years to decompose into leaf mold, In areas where organic rice or other grain hulls are available, composting them will create a light maceral for flufing up potting soil Rorted sawdust, leaf mold or the abundance of organic matter in garden waste compost also can compensate for the absence of vermiculite, a mined mineral with as many environmental issues as peat moss. Deposits in Montana and Virginia have been found. to contain asbestos, leaving a small area of South Carolina as the Jone remaining safe source in North America. Perlite ore, mined from mountain plateaus from New Mexico © Oregon, travels a long way to your garden, too, and its main contributions co potting soil—lightening texture and improving drainage —often can be matched by clean sand, When you want a light mix, a handful of sand per quart will do the trick (you don't need much). Asa hedge againstslow drainage in the bottoms of scedling flats oF containers, use a thin layer of rotted leaves, sawdust or sand. Taming Your Wild Compost Using live compost or biologically active garden soil in your potting mixes ofien requires ovo extra steps—screening and chen heat-treating or pasceurizing che material at 160 degrees to 180 degrees Fahrenheit, I like to use the compost made from garden waste t0 make potting soil, so whenever a batch looks good, | screen some and put ie in plastic pails, bins or bags (such as those saved from purchased potting soil), My compost screen is a piece of half-inch mesh plastic Fencing stapled 10 two pieces of scrap lumber. Many people u tached toa sturdy wood frame. Stored where iccan stay lightly m and improves with age. When you have excellent-quality, cured compost, and you with Tighe- suressed lite seedlings (the most disease-prone ofall green beings), it fine to go ahead and mix up 2 50:50 mixture of compost and good soil, and uy it out. Or use more compost and less soil, My garden waste compost often contains similar version, with the screen at screened compost continues to cure not worki quitea bicof soil alweady, mostly from the roots of pulled plants, so Tofien go with three parts compost to one part soil when potting plants that are ready for a rich, outdoorsy mix that gives them a nice tate oftheir fucure Now for the risks. The bioactive nature of compost makes it an ideal p) teeming colonies of random fungi and bacteria are the last thing you want in containers. Many of the microbes in compost spe- nary food source for your garden’ soil food web, but vi Montes. @@ GARDEN KNOW-HOW SUNS ec a) GCu eRe ecrcuc from a cardboard box, aluminum foil and plastic wrap. Gialize in breaking down dead plant matter, but if they are deprived of food they ofien find ways to invade live plant tissues. Good examples are the cadre of fungi that cause seedlings to rot off at the soil’s surface, called “damping off” These fungi are usually present in compost, but when forced to compete with other microorganis open soil, they stick to a dead-plant diet. When let loose in a flat of tomatoes, with litle oF no appropri- ate food or competition, they will go alter tender new roors and seems rather than starve, Numerous studies have shown that pasteurization, which in- volves heating compost or soil to 160 degrees for an hour, or 180 degrees for 30 minutes, kills a high percentage of all fungi and bacteria (the good and the bad), while preserving the biological integrity of the material —and its ability to suppress other diseases. Pasteurization kills persistent insects such as fungus gnats, 100, along with all buca few heat-resistant weed seeds, The temperature must not go above 190 degrees, which can result in the formation ‘of compounds that hinder plane growth, In summer, a solar cooker made from a cardboard box (see “Solar Cooking for Free” at www: MotherEarthNews.com) will heat a SP 3-gallon black plastic por filled ‘with soil and enclosed in a plastic bag within a few hours (search for “solar cooker" at watt MotherEarthNews com and you'll find Cs Ta three articles that de- Cas scribe casy-to-build — MUSA) DIY models). CC The rest of the year, SL use your oven and SEL Se a big heacretaining Pyrex baking dish (mine came from a ty thrift store) to pasteurize compost or soil. When done correctly, you will smell an earthy fragrance as the process unfolds. (Reports of foul odors from oven pasteurization are wildly exagger- ated.) Here’ the basic method: 1, Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Place 3 10 4 quarts of screened, mature compost (or screened rich garden soil) bucket or pail, and mix in enough water to make it lightly Spread the moistened material in a large metal or glass pan, but donit pack it down because steam needs to be able to circulate 44. THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING through the crevices. Cover tightly with aluminum foil. Poke a meat or oven thermometer into the center of the cover at a diagonal angle. 2. Place the pan in the oven, and check the temperature at 15 minute intervals. Turn the oven off when the thermometer shows 150 degrees. Compost heats up quickly, while denser soil can take up to 30 minutes to hit 150 degrees. Afier the oven is turned off, the temperature should rise (0 170 degrees; vent the oven if it goes to 180 degrees. Sharp odors indicate that things in the oven have gocten 100 hot. Allow the pan to sit in the warm oven for at least 30 minutes. To free up the oven for dinner, remove the pan from the oven and wrap ic snugly in dry towels This isan optional step, but it will slow cooling, which makes for more thorough pasteurization. 3. When the pan is cool, dump the pasteurized compost or soil into a clean container with a lid, Lec ic rest until you need ic. Germinating seeds, young seedlings and plants being rooted from stem cuttings benefit greatly from a pasteurized mix, as do long-lived houseplants and tres that are seldom repotted. But you donic need to heat-treat compost-soil mixtures used for potting up plants that are almost ready co grow outdoors, In fact, I think itching to an unpasteurized, bio-active soil mix during the last “potting up” before transplanting reduces transplant shock, and there is no break in the growing action as they settle into their permanent home. et Adding Fertilizer Of the 35 recipes for organic potting mixes collected and published by the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service (atta neat.org: search “potting mix- es” and dick on the first search result), ‘many include blood meal (for nitro- \ gen), bone meal (for phosphorus), and small amounts of kelp meal, greensand of various rock-based minerals for minor nutrients, Should plants grow slowly or show other signs of nutrient stress, its easy enough to feed them with a mix-with-water organic fertilizer. Add organic fertilizer in small amounts until your potting soil is giving you the results you want. Until 30 years ago, most gardeners made their own potting soil by combining their best garden soil with rotted manure from the barn or buckets of leaf mold hauled home ftom damp stream banks, topped off with a dusting of wood ashes. Contrast and compare: North American gardeners now spend more than $500) million each year on potting mixes and specialty sols. How many of those dollars do you want to come from your wallet? 4%Ses Winning Against Keep weeds in their place with these seven organic techniques. by PATRYK BATTLE + first, weeds seem innocu: ous enough — ju flowers and vegetables. In fact, weeds bestow a multitude of on us, from holding and protecting bare soils and providing habitat for beneficial insects, to their u ble and medic! Know Your Weeds,” Page 47). Weeds compete with garder crops for space, water and nutrients, however, and if riot kept in check, they can seriously affect crop yield and quality The k becom y to preventing weeds from a problem is to remove them duce seeds. Every pigweed pens the door for the arrival of thousands of its offspring. These seeds can remain dormant for years and then sprout when you hoe or till, which brings them to the surface Altho: ical herbicides to h some gardeners use chem: Il weeds, research suggests these pose health risks for humans and are dam the envi ronment. Furthermore, they'te simply not the most effective way to control garden weeds. Herbicides, afterall, aredesigned co kill plants. Fortunately, though, you can manage weeds with easy and safe organic techniques. Basic Weed Prevention Mulch. Using weed-free mulches is one of the best methods of p Good options include mulch. ing with leaves, straw or grass clippings. Fresh grass clippings from lawns that treated with herbicides are a eventing weed problems. aven't been great choice because you can get them free from your lawn and from neighbors’ lawns. Grass clippings contain about 4 percent nitrogen and provide a slow release fertilizer as they decompose. Straw is the material leftover after ind it makes grain has been harvested. a good mulch beca weed seeds. Hay (dried grasses) can work well, too, but talk to a reputable c it contains few Grass clippings are free and make a nutrient-rich, weed-suppressing mulch, Chemical herb you intend to use it as mulch to be sure it isn't full of supplicr and make ass seeds. ‘A method of gardening championed by the late Ruth Stour advocates the heavy application of spoiled hay, but to people and the planet, and they simply aren't the most effective way to control garden weeds. iF your hay is full of seeds, this method only works if you keep piling on more and more Mulching works well for transplants, but it’s not a great option when you're direct seeding. That’s because you can mulch both sides of a newly planced THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING les are harmful seed row, bur that will not prevent weeds from popping up in the row it ven before the self —often appearin; seeds you've planted. Corn Gluten. If you don’t have mulch or the time to apply it, consid: er com gluten, This nontoxic, plant- based herbicide is a byproduct of corn processing that kills germinating seeds and a You seeded crops because it may kill the 0 provides a source of nitrogen n't use corn gluten with direct- seeds, but it’s a good option for trans plants. You can buy corn gluten prod- ucts from garden supply companics. Organic growers should be aware that com gluten may be made from geneti- cally modified corn. Stale Seed Beds. “Stale bedding” is good option for direct-sceded crops. The idea is to reduce weed problems by exhausting the weed seeds in the top inch or so of soil without bringing, new seeds to the surface. Till the bed yen water it, and when a good crop of weed seedlings emerges, kill them with the least soil disturbance as possible such as with a flame weeder or scuffle hoe. If there's time, repeat the process This approach makes growing even slow-germinating crops— includ- ing many flowers and herbs— pos sible with one modest weeding session before they reach a size that makes mulching practical Flame Weeding. | like to flame my stale beds so I don’t disturb the soil at all, and I don't bring new weed seeds to the surface. I also plant a bit of my crop seed a couple of days before I seed the entire bed. When the first seed germinates, | know [ can flame the bed one last time— just before my main crop eme es. This final flaming that any weeds will begin on the same footing as my crop, rather than way ahead of it Cultivating Tools. As soon as the crop is up, I switch to cultivating a ) ‘Weasel, which has tools. My favorites are the lightweij Winged Weeder (see photo and the Gar wheels with prongs that make curningup the soil easy, Like many cultivating hoes, these tools work on the principle of the g the weeds when ‘re small — ideally in the weeds infancy According to North Carolina farmer Kenny Haines, you “wane to catch them in that white hair stage” —that is, just as weeds are sprouting that first white root. At this sage, they're utterly vulner- able, Disturbance exposes the newly emerged roots to drying out, and the roots Haines recommends cultivating the top half inch or inch of soil as soon as possible after rain ot it- ion. If Ido thas, I find work is quick and easy and my plantings remain virtually weed-free. Cultivating is most effec tive if your seed rows are spaced just widely enough to accommodate the tools you plan to use. If your soil’s fertility will allow it and fungal diseases are not a problem, you can also prevent weed growth by spacing, plantings so that, at maturity, your crop will completely shade the spaces between rows A flame weeder is a fantastic tool for removing weeds from a new garden bed. Eliminating Noxious Weeds Unless you mulch with cardboard, black plastie or landscape fabric, none of the previously described tactics will eradicate such pernicious weeds as mugwort, nutsedge, or Johnson, ‘Get to. Know Your Weeds Edible and Medicinal Weeds Take a close look at the weeds in your garden, and you'll find a number of useful wild plants. Many weeds have medicinal properties. For ex ample, plantain can be used to treat sect bites or stings by chewing it up and applying it to your skin. Dandelions, purslane and lamb’ quarters are just a few weeds with edible leaves. As long as they're not treated with herbicides, they're nutri- tious and tasty salad greens. Many ‘200d field guides are available for ed- ible plants—look for one specific to Identifying Weeds vwunw.jom.uedavis.edt/PMG/ ‘menu.weeds. tm! web.aces.uiuc.edu/weedit Find weeds by photo or description. More Weed Control | www pesticide.org | Organic methods for handling garden prob- lems and detailed information on health risks associated with herbicides | | | | waw.attra.org/attra-pubsweed. htm! Information on weed contro! for field crops from the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service, Bermuda and quack grass- es. Apart from such heavy. duty mulches, the only organic options for eradi- cating these weeds — short of removing ev root by hand —are to bare- fallow or smother-crop the infected area, y piece of Bare fallowing is most effective in hot (or very cold), dry weather. First, till oF plow the infected area, Repeat every time you see green, or every seven to 10 days. Depending on the weather, this process can ake thr longer, and it’s hard on the soil. If the weather is coop- to six weeks or erative, however, this is the most effective method. Smother crops are vig- orous cover crops, includ- ing buckwheat, cowpeas, hairy verch, rye and Sudan grass. They force weeds to exhaust their reserves while ying unsuccessfully co compete with the smother crop. Just be sure to cut down your smother crop before it pro- es seeds of its own. Some researchers and farmers are ex ig the soil in perimenting with wo ds need the dark. Apparently, ma just a brief exposure to light to break their dormancy, which they can get simply by being tilled up and turned back into the soil during daylight hours. Working the soil in the dark is supposed to eliminate this problem. I have nor tried this method, but if you're single or have an equally ob- sessed spouse and excellent night vi- sion, let me know how it works. Patryk Battle lives on Sparkling Earth Farm in Burnsville, N.C. | He grows and sells vegetables locally and is the head gardener at the Mountain Air Community Organic Garden ‘www MorneeErNews.coaBEST SEEDS vwmmnnor FOR A BIGGER, BETTER GARDEN ZS resIt’s time to start planning your garden and ordering seeds! Check out these 15 great ideas for organic gardens. rom orange cauliflower to salad bar crops for the chicken yard, today’s organic gardeners have a long list of plans and dreams that begin with seeds. When I surveyed a dozen seed companies with organic inclinations, I discovered that gardeners are scouring seed caralogs with the aim of finding some very spe- cific things. Here are 15 ways innova- tive gardeners are using seeds to make their gardens better than they have ever been 1. Fresh Food for Any Season Instead of short lists of mainstream vegetable seeds, such as tomatoes and squash, customers are placing larger, more com- plicated orders that include gourmet goodies such as corn salad and bulb fen nel. In addition, gardeners gardens ind end late are now planti chat start early with the help of more cold- hardy vegetables or example, spin- ach sales have increased sharply, says Ira Wallace, who keeps her eye on seed supplies for coop- eratively owned Southern Exposure Seed Exchange in Mineral, Va. (wwwsouthern exposure.com). “People want things they can m: every day, even if th she says. Plenty of cool-season greens are key to getting a garden started early in spring, and making the bounty last well into fall. 2. More Local Seeds The best gardens include great- tasting open-pollinated favorites that grow well in your region balanced with hybrids that satisfy special needs for ceatliness, high yields or pest resistance. Over time, your future seed orders will shrink in size as you save more of your own non-hybrid seeds—and rade them with your neighbors. This is exactly what C.R. Lawn, founder of Fedco Seeds in Waterville, Maine (wu fedeaseeds.com), has in mind. Thave a dream that someday soon ‘our communities will again produce By saving seeds from your own garden you can breed plants suited to your region. Another good idea—trade seeds with neighbors! seed as well as food to meet most of our needs, and seed companies such as Fedco will no longer or rarely be need- ed,” Lawn says. es should stare se a variety that performs beautifully in South Dakota moist soils The search for var close co home, beca may be a dud in the warm, of Louisiana. Seed companies with or- ganic trial acreage often use it to screen varieties, grow ed of crops that 1 rally grow wel in the area, and set a some space for the public good. The folks at Southern Exposure grow more than 50 varieties of tomatoes for the Heritage Harvest Festival tomato tasting, at Monticello, near Charlottesville, Va. Across the country, in Cottage Grove, Ore., Territorial Seeds (www: territorial seed.com) continues its long-standing tradition of hosting the Great Northwest ‘Tomato Taste-Off. ‘A new regional resource has emerged in the South, where David Bradshaw recently enriched the variety ist offered by the South C: Seeds Associ personal picks, collected during the years he served as South Carolina's exten- olina Foundation jon with his sion horticulture specialist. If you wane disease-resistant Southern peas or ‘O’Henry sweet potato (a white-fleshed version of “Beauregard’), South Carolina Foundation Sed Program (wwu:virtual clemson.edulgroupslceedlveg. him) isthe place to look. 3. Seeds to Share If you wane truly local s, be on the lookout for ‘events, such as the Gardener's Seed Swap hosted by the Toledo (Ohio) Botanical jardens, Begun several years ago by community gardens coordinator Michael Szuberla as a way to clear out his office storage closet, the swap has expanded into a two-day event that attracts more than 500 gardeners. In Canada, Seeds of Diversity (wnw.seeds.ed) holds “Seedy s seed swaps at more than 50 locations throughout the provinces. You n your own town even form a “crop circle” in a loose association of friendly gardeners who meet a few times a year to share seeds, samples and good times. (See Page 52 for how MorHer www MoriexEanraNis.co 49\W2 ‘5° oe actother Eaatit News can help you cot gardeners in your community:) od Health Many hybrid varieties offer resis. tance to common diseases, but lately some open-pollinated varieties have had ance levels raised by talented plane breeders. If your cucumber-family crops go white with powdery mildew before the season ends, High Mowing Seeds (www highmowingseeds.com) can fix you up with ‘Sweet REBA’ acorn “PMR I loupe or “Success PM’ squash icious 51° & yellow straight neck summer squash— three of the best varieties recently bred at Cornell The past few years have seen a resurgence in in response to the downward shift in the economy and to ar ed interest i there has been \ me sooo 4 pane in os) Melons — ole, yummy foods and sel-rel ready growth in seed in New York. Nichols Ls University c den Nursery (sien. nich ry.com) has “Hannah's Choice cantaloupe, another disease-resistant Cornell variety with superior flavor and aroma. It’s also on Cornell’ Selected List of Ve cornell edulvegetables/veguar pdf). ctable Varieties (wuu.gardening Fits trouble-tolerant tomatoes you're after, you will be wise to include some hybrids in your garden, but they need not be cardboard commercial variet- ies. For example, ‘Country Taste’ from Park Seed (wuw:parkseed.com) delivers rich tomato flavor while providing resis tance (0 fusarium and verticillium wil diseases. In similar style, Burpee’ bright gardening, largely time, iance. AS sales over that | w7/ that i the supply did can qui more nimble Seed tween catalogs, Internet special and to meet the demand, most with 2 two-year supply of their m still prudent to be prepared to order early, ut food on the table is truly catching of Salt Spring Seeds (www. British Columbia, put together a “Zero Mile Diet* co regionally a orange ‘Sweet Tangerine’ offers vibrant fruity taste on tough, disease-resistant plants (wuu:burpee.com) aber of gardeners want space-saving varieties that produce per sonal-size squash, broccoli or even chard. Fast growth in the garden coupled with kitchen convenience helped “Honey Bear’ acorn squash win a 2008 All America Selections award. Scaled-down versions of chard (‘Pot-o-Gold’), let- Lite broccoli (‘Small Miracle’) and other veg- tuce Gem’ and ‘Garden Babies’) tables perform as well in containers as in beds, so they'e real problem solvers if npanies try to be ready opular varieties. But it's cause gardening n. When Dan Ja neseeds.com) in apted grains, beans and vegetables, n't even make it until July wever, even if an unexpected crop failure causes spotty shortages, no need to fear: Companies with online catalogs ly offer substitutions, says Denise Smit Ifa grower has seeds or plants The Net lets us be horticulturalist for Park hat are ready we can offer it to customers right away as an ‘Smith says. For example, Park has used the Web to offer 10 or more types of organic vegetable and herb seeds that weren't in the most recent catalog, and that num: ber continues to grow.the only place you have to grow food is your deck or balcony. 6. A Rainbow of Colors Just when you thought tomatoes couldn't get much prettier than ‘Green Zebra, one look at Burpee’s purplish-red Razzle Dazzle’ tomato will make your eyes pop. ‘Redventure’ celery blushes crimson where the ribs are touched by Purple Plum’ radishes really look like plums, and you can't miss the pink pods of “Tar the sun, a pole beans when you're filling your picking bas- ket. Be bold —try that ‘Cheddar’ cauliflower that’s haunting your dreams. The seeds may cost 25 cents each, but you can coup the cost of a packet with one head of organic cauliflower As a bonus, yo head will have 25 times more cheese-colored beta carotene than a similar head of white cauliflower Many seed companies are working with vegetable breeders and seed growers to improve the quality and uniformity of open- pollinated varieties, which are preferred by gardeners who want to save some of their own seed, There is no reason why open-pollinated varieties bred to perform well in organic sys tems can't be of equal quality 10 hybrids, for certain crops,” says Jodi Le High Mowing Seeds. Lew-Smith is in the carly stages of developing better resistance co septoria leaf spot in to- matocs, but is farther along selecting higher quality open-pollinated zucchi: ni, butternut and acorn squash In addition to working with “public” breeding lines, Lew-Smith uses variet- ies from Seed Savers Exchange (wu seedsavers.org), and often picks up in- teresting varieties when visiting grow- ic seed. “These people put Smith, vegetable breeder at an extraordinary amount of effort into growing crop for everyone when things turn out well,” Lew-Smith says 8. seed, which can be a jackpot erbs From Seed The idea of an instant herb garden has inspired many products that look good but don't work very well, because ners have trouble working with tiny herb seeds. A new solution from Johnny's Selected Seeds — properly spaced herb seeds embedded in a paper disk — last year that more are planned for 2009, including basil, cilan- as so wildly successful to, chives, marjoram, parsley and thyme. Each disk plants a G-inch pot, and requires nothing more than a pot, a bit of pot ting soil, and some water to get it started. The easiest way to eat fron your garden all winter is to grow plenty of vegetables that store well just as they are—garlic potatoes, grain corn, sweet pora- toes, onions and winter squash, for example. Varieties of garlic, onions, potatoes and sweet po tatoes grow better in some cli mates than others, so it's a good id to look to regional seed companies to see which varieties they recommend. Th anywhere winter squash. nor the case with go- Tknow yh MoTMERENRTHNWhy buy a packet of one type of we have a disproportionate number of winter squash, but ics going to get worse Rose Marie Nichols-MeGee, president of Nichols Garden Nursery in Albany, Ore. “Tm caught be- tween the new hybrids and heirlooms, and with winter squash, the heirlooms really shine.” 10. Beans That Can Take the Heat Not long ago, the I-Dig-My- online forum hosted by Baker Creek, Heirloom Seeds (rareseeds.com; www. idigmygarden.com) came alive when people started discussing prolific, heat- resistant yard-long beans (Vigna un- quiculata), particularly the ‘Red Noodle’ variety. Long popular for early summer planting in Texas and Oklahoma, and Garden well as ed cousins of blackeyes keep setting pods in heat that causes other snap beans to abort their blossoms. Limas are enjoy- 1 to Japanese beetles a high heat, these vigorous, long-v ing a popularity spike, too, especially “Fordhook 242° and ‘Henderson Bush. lettuce seeds, when you can have six varieties for the same price? 11. Creative Collections Why buy a packet of one type of let- tuce seeds when you can have six va- rieties for the same price? Most seed companies sell pre-blended lettuce mix- tures; rainbow mixtures of beets, carrots, radishes and chard are easy to find, too, The seeds in many of the mixtures cre- ated by Renee Shepherd (www: renees qarden.com) axe color-coded to help you 12. Garden-Worthy Grain At Bountiful Gardens in Willits, Calif (www.bountifulgardens.org), grains for the garden are flying off the shelves. “People want to be self-sustaining, It's the only way we can keep the future se- cure for our kids,” says office manager Carrie Perkins, Gardeners who want tritious grains for grinding into flours can try wheat, spelt or triticale (a wheav/rye cross), but to grow their own 1 Perkins says that lor of people are looking for wheat alterna- tives, too. “Amaranth is pretty in the garden, good to eat, and the greens are good for eating ‘or composting,” she says 13. One-Cut Lettuce Varieties Delicate baby lectuce is thrilling, and crunchy } lessly inter esting salads. Bur how much time do you spend picking, cleaning, chilling and serving your beautiful greens? Enter what growers are calling “one-cut” let- tuce—varieties that can be harvested -ads make for and cleaned intact, then prepared for the table with a single cut made about 1 inch above the crown. Voila! A per- fect cluster of leaves falls away, ready to swish through cool water and spin dry “Sargeant,” hhandle this way. an oak leaf variety, is easy 10 14. Forage Food for Fowl If you want your chickens to pro- duce eggs with those high omega-3 fauty acids, they need to have fresh Find the Seeds You Need! tex Eaetn News, we know the joys and frustrations of thumb: ing through seed catalogs. I's fun to browse, and sometimes you find everything you need. But sometimes there are varieties you want to try and just can’t track down. Plus, there are over 500 mail-order com- panies that offer vegetables, fruit, herbs, nuts, grains and more. That means there are great “new" companies out there offering varieties that you haven't heard about yet! With that in mind, we've created these new online tools that will make garden shopping much easier. The Seed and Plant Finder: Search for Your Favorite Varieties ‘Are you looking for a particular vegetable, herb or flower variety and can't spot it in your favorite catalogs? Our MorHen Ear News Seed and Plant Finder lets you quickly search the online catalogs of more than 500 mail-order seed and plant companies. The Finder uses the Google search engine, but limits the search only to the seed companies we've listed, so you get cleaner search results without as much “clutter Al you have to do is type the variety you're looking for in the search box, and you'll get a list of links to the companies offering that variety (For variety names with two or more words, put the entire name inside quota- tion marks for the best results.) Many of the companies we've included offer the newest or rarest selections You can find this custom search engine at wn MotherEarthNews.com/Find Seeds: Plants.aspx. We have another search set up specifically for finding organic pest controls ‘and gardening supplies. To try out this finder, go to wivw. MotherEarthNews.com/ FFind-Organic-Garclening:Products.aspx. HH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDEN!greens,” Nichols-McGee says. She chose the plants for her Nichols Chicken Scratch based on their ability to regrow afier cutting. After the tyfon, lettuces, mustards and kale have been cut back two or three times, you can pen your birds over the planting and let them finish it up, or pull up the plants and toss them into your chicken yard. The plants in the Nichols Chicken Scratch blends Glenn Drowns sells at Sandhill Preservation Center (waw.sandhill ppreservation.com) ate meant to be buf- fers solely for poultry 15. Hard-Working Flowers Sweet alyssum, bachelor buttons, com poppies, and many other easy annual flowers attract nectar-secking beneficial insects and make the garden a more beautiful place. Look for ways to put flowers to work doing multiple jobs. Flowers” at wir MotherEarthNews.com.) For example, you can eat the blossoms and immature seeds of nasturtiums, and their spreading growth habit smothers weeds. Dwarf French marigolds help starve out root-knot nematodes, and dried calendula blossoms can be used to make skin-soothing lotions. These and many other flowers are easy to grow from seed, and some reseed themselves can be eaten by people, too, but the The Morac Earth News National Seed Company Directory: Explore New Seed Sources for Local, Organic and Heirloom Seeds To help you get acquainted with more companies, we've invited the 500 that are included in our Seed and Plant Finder to register in our National Directory of companies offering mail-order seeds and plants, This directory will help you learn more about your favorite seed ‘companies, and discover new ones to check out. You can find seed ated in your area that are most likely to have seeds. ‘adapted to your region. You also can track down companies specializing in nuts, ber ries, herbs, grains or cover crops, or those that offer @ high number companies | (To learn more, see “10 Easy & Useful year afier year. 9% of organic seeds or heirloom varieties, You can find it at www. MotherEarthNvews.com/Directories. Community Seed Swaps: Spread the Word About Local Events ‘Want to organize a seed swap event for your community? MorHeR Eaati News will help. If you will send us an announcement about your event at least three weeks in advance, along with alist of your local ZIP codes, we will relay the announcement to other MorHER anti News readers in your area, To learn more about how we can he you arrange seed swaps yr events, visit www. ‘and how to send us information about y: ‘MotherEarthiews,corn/Seed-Swaps. Bountiful Gardens vow MaraenE veriNews.conHard-Working ones GARDEN HOES CHOOSE THE RIGHT GARDEN HOES FOR NEARLY EFFORTLESS WEED CONTROL. Ast: often say that humankind went “from bow to hoc” when switching from hunting and gather- ing to growing food. Garden hoes were probably the first gardening tools, made from sticks, antlers, bone and stone. Then as now, hoes were indispensable for shaping soil and controlling weeds. Every gardener needs at least one good hoe, and most serious gardeners use several. Hoes vary in the types of work they are designed to do, so the challenge is to choose the best hoes for the tasks that await in your garden. This pistol grip As oy Peers ero Se Sizing Up Handles A hoe is composed of a head —of which there are several major variations, discussed below —and a handle. The handle can be made of wood, metal or fiberglass, Although most handles are straight, push-pull scuffle hoes m: ond “pistol grij illustration, top left) on the handle for easier operation. The length of a hoe’s handle should correspond to both the nature and duration of its use. If you have many rows to weed in a large garden, a long-handled hoe you can use in an upright position will save time and muscle strain. On the other hand, if your garden is a small collection of intensively managed raised beds, you may find that you prefer the more detailed weeding job you can do with a short handled hoe. Many of the hoe heads described here are available mounted on short- and long-handled hoes. Artisan toolmakers, such as lefty-friendly Red Pig tools in Oregon and Rogue Hoe in Missouri, make “hand plows”) with include a sec- BUSSE Lia Resid ae Biers aia) Pere) oe) cultivate CEs 12-inch handles. Among long-handled hoes, han- dle length ranges from 55 10 60 inches for hoes youd use when bending over, to 74 inches for hoes you'd use while stand- ing up. Tall people should opt for the longest handle available. For folks of average height, a 65-inch handle offers good balance and grip. The Winged Weeder comes in several sizes, THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENINGWith hard-to-weed carrots, beets and onions, you can often do a better job using a short-han- dled tool than you can using a hoe with a long handle. Some diversity in the handle lengths of your hoes is obviously in order. De ae Ce ey onc) ces High-Efficiency Scuffle Hoes Ready co start talking heads and blades? For most gar- deners, a sharp, ultralight sculile hoe is a top tool for controlling, young weeds up to 4 inches tall. Scufle hoes cut when you push and again when you pull on the handle, which makes them more efficient than hoes that cut in just one direc- tion, Many scuffle hoes can be operated from a near-standing position, usually by swinging the blade through weeds instead of chopping them, which can be hard on your back, Scuffle hoes come in two designs: Diamond or triangle hoes slice through weeds on all sides, so they make excellent use of time and energy. Models include DeWir’s diamond hoc (847), Rogue Hoe’ triangle hoe ($25), and Fisher Industries! Winged Weeder (about $20), which looks like a swept-back diamond hoe. Ac retail scores, look for Ames’ floral scuffle hoe for about $40. Keep in mind that diamond and triangle hoes are dangerously sharp, so they must be handled carefully and stored out of the reach of young children. Their efficiency depends on the sharpness of their blades, so you should start every serious weeding session by honing out any bumps or dull spots in blades with a hand file or whetstone. When you use one of these hoes, make small, controlled movements to avoid slicing down seedlings instead of weeds. Stirrup hoes are a safer alternative because their outer edges are smooth rather than sharp, reducing danger to nearby plants. Both cedges of a stirrup hoe’s cutting blade are sharp, so it cuts on the push and the pull as you scuffle it through the soil. Many gardeners consider stirrup hoes a step up from diamond and triangle hoes, and they switch to stirrups for weeds that have formed clumps or grown more than 4 inches high. Prices range from $20 for a small Hula Hoe or other Rg Tes Pa in tight places. oy ors Ce close quarters. oe ey uaa) rs American-made model to about $50 for stirrup hoes from esteemed This sturdy, European toolmakers. Cd CSE cy Endearing Draw Hoes small and large What about the traditional American garden hoe, which you can buy for Prec less chan $15 at garden and hardware stores? Called a draw hoe because it Ped cuts only on the pull (or draw), a well-sharpened American garden hoe t oti will slice down weeds reasonably well, and you can use it to shape beds, chop and mix compost, or make planting furrows. I keep one around (you never know when you might necd to mix up a batch of concrete), but several higher-quality draw hoes are much www MoruexEanraNiws.con SSChoose the Right Hoe for the Job Tasks aaa DL Controlling young weeds in large areas ‘or long rows; thinning seedlings Spot weeding in tight spaces or inten- sive raised beds ‘Weeding and hilling up soil at the same time garden hoe Controlling large weeds; making fur- rows; cutting irigation trenches; chopping compost. ‘garden hoe better suited ro controlling garden weeds. Starting with the lightest, here are some draw hoes worth considering: Collinear hoes have thin, sharp blades that shave down young weeds and are nimble enough to get berween closely spaced plants, People who grow a lot of onions eventually fall in love with these $40, featherweight hoes. Like diamond and triangle hoes, collinear hoes are only for weeding. ‘The unique design of the circle hoe ($30) makes it safer than the collinear hoes for close work. Circle hoes work well when used up close to your crops, but don't cover as much ground as quickly as other styles. Swan-neck hoes have curved necks to enable less bending on the part of their human opera- tors, but the phrase “swan neck” describes the hoe's mount, not its cutting blade. You can get a swan neck with a Warren hoe blade (which has a triangular, often slightly curved blade); a flat, half-moon (semicircle) blade; or a number of other blade designs. Japanese draw hoes usually have a half-moon (semicircle) shape, but without the swan-neck mount. Subtle differences between products are endless, as you will see by looking at the selection of hoes sold by Lee Valley Tools and Rogue Hoe. Ac $25 to $55, draw hoes, inspired by Japanese gar- deners’ dedication to sharp edges, make great all-around garden hoes. Field or grub hoes are noticeably heavier than many other hoes, but as weeds gain size, these chopping champs quickly emerge as the best tools for the jab. If you want to attack, deep-rooted dock, burdock or Canada thistle, this is the kind of hoe you need. Their weight also makes them a top choice if you need to cut weeds growing up through hay or bark mulches. Field hoes also are great tools for cutting ir- tigation trenches, hilling up soil, eaking down spenc crops, of breaking up chunks of almost-done compost. Johnny's Selected Seeds: Lee Valley Too! vavacleevalley.com Rogue 56. THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING Lightweight scuffle hoes such as diamond, ‘triangle, Winged Weeder or stirrup hoes Circle hoe, collinear hoe or any sharp scuffle hoe mounted on a short handle Field hoe, Japanese draw hoe or American Field or grub hoe, Warren hoe or American Earth Tools: 502-484-2988; wwvearthtoolsbes.com 377-564-6697; www. johanyseeds.com 800-871-8158 (USA); 800-267-8767 (Canada): Peaceful Valley Farm Supply: 888-784-1722; wnwegronterganic.com Red Pig Garden Tools: 503-663-9404; wn redpigtools.com : 417-962-5091; wmnw.roguelioe.com had Push the hoe forward and back from a near- standing position Use a sitting pad or rolling seat for long, sit- down weeding sessions Maintain a sharp edge for efficient weed control Slightly loosen your grip with each progres- sive chop to reduce the impact on your back and shoulders Lovin’ Care for Your Best Hoes Given reasonable care, a good hoe will last a lifetime, and often longer. Chopping into soil, rocks and roots dulls a blade, so you should keep a small mill file handy for sharp- ening your hoe ($2 to $5 at any hardware store). I keep a file with my gardening gloves so it's always ready to grab on my way out the door. (For details on how to sharpen garden tools, see “Tool Sharpening Basics” ac www.MotherEarthNews. com. —Moriien) You can make an old hoe seem young again by spiffing up the blade with a sharp edge, and by sanding and oiling the handle (linseed oil is pre- ferred, but canola will do in a pinch). Some stirrup and col- linear hoes have replaceable blades, and there is no limit to how many times you can replace a hoe’s handle. After you discover how effective a high-quality hoe can be, you wont mind spending a few minutes now and then keeping it in top condition —something smart gardeners have known for nearly 10,000 years. Do you have a fivorite weeding tool or tip we didi't mention? What’ your favorite type of hoe and why? Post a comment to this article at www.MotherEarthNews.com and share your wisdom with the world. —Morner j || Abig believer in sharp edges, contributing editor Barbara Pleasant uses five different hoes to maintain her big ter- raced food garden in Virginia's Blue Ridge country. From burdock to pigweed, no wild invaders are safe from her stirrup hoe. Her website is barbarapleasant.com.Stay up to date. ei Visit www.MotherEarthNewsFair.com |." RD Fe 3 EatingWell Ws Se Herb UTNE!by BARBARA PLEASANT have to admit, the close relation- ships 've had with tillers through the years were nor all happy al night fights (the half-ton draft i that hated to start), while other ingly committed relationships drifed into distant indifference (the front- tined crawler I eventually craded for a food dehydrator) A few years ago, after breaking wo many start cords on a cranky antiq with a bad carburetor (it came with the house), | finally did what I should have done years earlier: [bought a tiller that I truly enjoy using But I wont launch into a brand name testimonial, My gardening life is mine yours is yours, and the chances that we'd find happi preity darn slim, Instead let's look at the makings of a gardener and tiller. Get that three-way with the same tiller are ood fit between garden, match right, and you can almost feel your soil smiling under your feet. By the Numbers The size of your garden isa fair starting point for determining your tiller needs According co most tiller manufacturers, small gardens of less than 1,500 square feet can be worked with a mini-tiller ($200 to $350). Medium-sized gardens are manageable with a 5- to 6-horsepow-er tiller ($500 to $800), and big gardens of more than 5,000 square fect call for a tiller with at least a 6-horsepower engine ($800 to $2,000). Of course there’ a lot of wiggle room here, which is good because garden soil comes in many different types, and gardeners themselves come in many different sizes. Very hard or rocky soil is difficule to work with a lightweight or undersized tiller, which will often skip over a tough spot rather than dig into it. A big, heavy tiller will do a better job in hard soil, buc here I must pause to recommend a good plowing for hard-bottomed garden sites. If you turn your heavy soil with a plow in fall or early spring, your tiller will be much more effective. And you can get by with a smaller tiller, which has certain advantages. Where Have All the Front-Tines Gone? Before we tory lesson: A couple of decades back, the controversy in tillers pitted taditional front-tined tillers against the upstart design from Troy-Bik, in which the tines rode be- hind the engine, on the back. The rear- tined design has clearly won out, because all of the leading tiller manufacturers have now gone to rear-tined models experiment is One ongoi rotate in the opposite direction from the power-driven wheels. This feature, called counter- rotating tines, is still available ina few models. I heard a good summary of its shortcomings from Larry Reimer, an engineer: farmer-orchardist who lives sta, Kan, Reimer got co know acounter-rotatiny near Au firsthand before moving on to tiller with forward-ro- ing tines, “Counter-rotating tines dig. ressively that the self propelled tires get buried, ¢ to the point where g to push the tiller ep ores Reimer has a lot of space to cover in clay soil that bakes rock-hard in sum- mer, so he needs the power and weight roy-Bilt Horse. T've also used one, and they'te great if you'te working in straight rows. One of the drawbacks of rear-tined tillers is they're hard to turn; the ler, the more space you need to change directions. The tighter your space, the more reason you have for looking at litte illers, You may want a big tiller for its till: bilities and for the attachments it can run. The biggest tillers can power log splitters, pull a wag: onload of rocks or clear snow from a driveway. In fact, the BCS 722H (8-horsepower) and the Troy- Bilt 10-horsepower Big Red are often called walk-behind trac tors; the tillers that go with them. are considered attachments, Intensive Tillers for Small Spaces Few spaces are tighter than raised beds, which are rotated often in intensively managed gardens. Although pre the soil is pretty enjoyable work todo by hand, the availability of ion of little «illers that are fast, lightweight and fun to use is ch nging how some people garden, including me Unf attract ants or termites, and not med, raised beds donthaving frames to get in the way makes it easy to work organic matter into the soil beoween plantings using a litle eller. My small, 3-horsepower, rear-tined weighs 100 pounds, which is tiller on| just my size. (I ike a tiller I can maneu- ver easily when irs not running.) But when my soi’s quality improves a little more, I'm thinking of downsizing to a tue mini-tiller, many of which weigh less than 30 pounds. In fact, many people who use mini- tillers stand tall and smile when big-dog tiller fans make jokes about their toy sized machines, They don't care, because they're having fun! When your tiller is as maneuverable as a weed-whacker, not only can you renovate a vegetable bed in no time, but you won't fed like you've been hit by a truck when you're done Bill Norcoct, a MorHer EartH News reader in Hollis, N.H., has been, surprised by the power of his 2-horse- power Troy-Bilt mini-tiller. “We use it for weeding and setting up rows, which we do a lor because we have constant rotations,” Norcott says. He rented a big tiller to get his garden in shape, but now he and his wife use the mini-tiller exclusively. “You don’t have to manhandle the thing like you do with the larger til- lets, Plus, with larger tillers you still have storage issues.” Norcott describes the sound his til- ler makes as “more low-pitched than a weed trimmer.” The newest mini- tillers, the electrics, are so quiet you only hear the tines moving through the soil. Mantis and Remington now sell plug-in mini-tillers, and though | know better than co regard the coal- fired electricity that comes out of my outlets as “clean,” at least they're quiet, turers’ websites: BES; wow.bcs-america.com Craftsman; weave sears.com [BR; winw.countryhomeproducts.com Eanthquake; winwardisam.com Mantis; wwwzmantis.com Tips for Trouble-Free Tilling ‘+ Mow over existing vegetation before you till. Consider raking first, too. This cuts down ‘on how much junk gets caught in the tines of the tiller. Never til wet sol. Lightly moist is the best soil condition for tilling. If necessary, wa- ter extremely dry sites three days before you til Avoid tilling overly aggressive or invasive plants that produce rootbuds, such as crab- grass, johnsongrass, bindweed or Canada thistle. Dig them out by hand. When tilling between rows to control weeds, keep the tilling depth very shallow. Deep tilling injures plant roots and pulls weed seeds to the surface. Check the oil level in your tiller regularly, and change it before it becomes dark in color—after 1 hours of running time or every two years, whichever comes first. Use the low gear when operating a heayy tiller in loose soil or on a slope. When oper: ating a big tiller, slow and safe often go together. Ifa tiller gets out of control, turn it off. Do not attempt to wrestle it into submis- ‘sion—you will ose. Stop, regroup and start again. For more details on available tiller models and features, consult these manufac- Honda; wivs.hondapowerequipment.com emit no bad odors and I won't have to deal with cold starts. Ignition Matters To ensure responsive starting of your tiller, time after time, Reimer says he thinks that proper end-of-the-season care is absolutely essential. “Drain th gas, and then let the engine run until the fuel lines are dry,” he advises. Norcott mixes only a half-gallon of fuel at a time for his little ewo-stroke mini, so he always has a fresh batch. Merry; nw miackissic.com Remington; wiv remingtonpowertools.com Simplicity; wavw.simplicityfg.com Troy-Bilt; wirroybilt.com Husqvarna; www husqvarna.com THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING Between uses, he runs the tank dry so the fuel lines stay c! You often can save money by buying cd tiller, but if you don’t know much about small engines, beware of several ‘widespread scourges among old «illers: decrepit carburetors, worn-out bushings and shot clutches —all double- or criple- digit repairs Indeed, buying a used tiller from a re pair shop or small-engine tinkereris prob- ably smarter than considering one that has been sitting in a garage for years. And, even if you buy a new one, make sure you know what will be involved if parts or re- pairs are necded. Afecr all, a bro! is pretty hard to fic into an envelope. Of course, if you treat a good tiller properly, you can expect breakdowns to be few and far between. Take the time to find the right tiller for your site, soil and personal size, and your garden cant help but prosper. 4 tillera oa by BARBARA PLEASANT with each p nized our guide in *Y harp-eyed handpicking and trapping can control many garden pests, bur not insect battle can product eo by pest and by remedy. First bring yourself up co date Drganic Pest Control Products.” Then read Pests” table (both in on the next page). All the information is based on current be won with han and co: on the “Top 1 may need an intervention plan that affects the pest, through the “( yet causes litle or no harm co natural predators and beneficial tions from sustainable agriculture research center lorth America. life-forms that live in your garden. This is where organic pest -ontrol product: escue, To help you match Cee Bees Top: A ladybeetle, one ofthe good guys. " * SpeAbove: Colorado potato beetle larva, eggs and adults. Left: Cabbageworms can devour cabbage Auickly, leaving gardeners empty- handed at harvest. In the past few years, we've learned a lor about the seeret world of garden insects. Spraying is not your only option. Growing flow- cts and exclud- ing pests with row covers are both remarkably effective preventive ts to provide nectar and pollen for beneficial in measures, Learn more about these two options by searching for “beneficial insects” and “row covers” ac wave: MotherEarthNews wild birds, ducks and chickens feast on all kinds of garden pests (see “Poultry: com. And don't forge Secret Weapon for Organic Pest Control” on Page 67). Top 11 Organic Pest Control Products Before you use a1 identify the pest (sce “What's Buggin’ Your”, Page 64), and check yy organic pest control product, try o correctly the chart below to sce whether it will respond to no-spray options such as handpicking. Using the wrong product could cost you time and money, and may backfire by killing natural predators The Basic Biologicals. The oldest and best knewn of bio- logical pesticides is Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis ssp. kurstaki), which remains a top remedy for leaf-cating caterpillars. Bt is based on a naturally occurring soil bacterium that causes an insect’s gut to rupture several hours after it eats it. A newer biological pesticide called spinosad is a fermented brew of owo naturally occurring bacteria, and it slowly paralyzes insects after they eat it. Spinosad is widely used in fire anc baits, and itis also useful for controlling in bean beetles and Colorado leaf-eating beetles, such as Mexi potato beetles, Where cabbageworms, armyworms, European com borers or other caterpillars require repeated creatment, ex perts recommend alternating Bt with spinosad to keep insects from becoming resistant. 62 THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE. Organic Remedies for Garden Pests Pest No-Spray Options Aphids Row covers; encourage beneficial insects, including ladybeetles, lace wings and syrpid flies; reflective mulches, Armyworms Row covers; beneficial insects, including braconids and other small wasps ‘Asparagus beetles Predation by poultry; winter cleanup of debris Cabbage loopers, Row covers; handpick; predation by birds Cabbageworms Row covers; handpick; predation by birds Colorado potato beetles Resistant varieties; row covers; straw mulch; crop rotation; handpick Corn earworms Corn borers Cucumber beetles cr with yellow sticky traps Grow resistant varieties with tight husk tips; plant early Good end-of-season cleanup of debris: parasitic wasps Row covers; handpick; vacuum; trap in yellow pails filled with water, Dra Hen Insecticidal soap, diatomaceous earth, horticultural Bt, spinosad, kaolin clay Spinosad Bt or spinosad Bt or spinosed Spinosad Bt, spinosad or vegetable oil applied to young ear ti Bt, spinosad (alternating use) Kaolin clay Cutworms Surface cultivation; reduce weeds; rigid collars around seedling stems Bt, kaolin clay, beneficial nematodes Fire ants ‘Check garden weekly for new mounds and treat as needed Spinosad Flea beetles Row covers; reflective mulch Spinosad Grasshoppers Poultry; good fall cleanup to dislodge overwintering eggs. Nosema locustae protozoa, applied to Japanese beetles Leathoppers Row covers; handpick; parasitic wasps 0 ORGANIC |ARDENING Ladybeetles, lacewings and other beneficial insects Ts habitat areas in late spring Milky spore, beneficial nematodes Neem, kaolin clay, diatomaceous earthPoultry Pest Patrol Chickens, ducks, guineas and turkeys are key players on mod: ern homesteads. We are collecting reports an how poultry help reduce pest problems, and thus far you've told us that the following pests can be reduced by poultry: ticks, mosquitoes, flies, grasshoppers, Japanese beetles, fire ants, termites, pill bugs, grubs, crickets, cabbageworms and millipedes. You can read more about the amazing pest control abilities of poultry in “Poultry: Secret Weapon for Organic Pest Control,” a collec- tion of actual reader experiences on Page 67. Itchy Irvitants, Although diatomaceous earth feels as soft as talcum powder in your hand, under a microscope you can see that each particle has sharp edges. When enough gets wedged inco the head and leg joints of soft-bodied insects, they dry up and die, Diatomaccous earth deters slug feeding, too, Its effects are short-lived because it seeps into mulch and soil after rain, but a thorough, well-timed dusting can still effectively contol aphids, leafhoppers, and slugs or snails. The particles of kaolin clay are Lacewings and lacewing larvae (top) prey on aphids and leathoppers. so tiny they form a thin paint if mixed with water. Leaves cov- ered with the stufFare ignored by many common pests, and those be controlled with two applications of insecticidal soap, five that do nibble on clay-coated leaves usually move on. Organically to seven days apart. Assuming you get the soap on the insects grown produce that has traces of a dusty, off-white residue was (which is crucial), its fatty acids cause the bugs to die through probably «reated with kaolin clay desiccation, For best results, blast infested plants with a strong Soaps and Oils. Aphids, mites and other small sucking in- spray of water to dislodge offenders, then apply insecticidal soap sects that dont have much of an exoskeleton (shell) can usually to kill any missed by the water spray. (After tiny sucking insects Pest LS EAU Top Product Choices Mexican bean beetle Scout twice weekly; handpick adults, eggs and larvae; release benefi- Neem cial Pediobius wasps Spider mites Encourage beneficial insects; use strong water spray to wash under: insecticidal soap applied in late after: sides of leaves noon or early evening, Slugs and snails No evening watering; handpick; trap; release ground beetles and other Sand, diatomaceous earth, copper bar natural predators; reduce mulching: clean cultivation riers, iron sulfate baits (restricted use in some certified organic operations) Squash bugs Row covers; handpick; trap under boards at night; grow non-preferred Neem varieties; compost debris promptly Squash vine borers Grow resistant varieties (butternuts); row covers; surgical removal: Beneficial nematodes compost all debris Tarnished plant bugs Mow close near plantings; vacuum; row covers; trap crop with alfalfa Beauveria bassiana fungus (Lygus bugs) Tent caterpillars ‘Tear nests open with a stick every few days Late night applications of Bt or spinosad Thrips Grow flowers to provide pollen and nectar for beneficial insects; reflec- Kaolin clay, Beauveria fungus, insect tive mulches cial soap Tomato fruitworm Encourage beneficial insects and wild birds; handpick Bt or spinosad (same species as corn earworm) Tomato hornworm Scout twice weekly starting in early summer; handpick Bt or spinosad Whitefties Wash off with water; yellow sticky traps; reflective mulches Neem, insecticidal soap, horticultural cilEvery vegetable gardener should fave a cop Cranshaw’s Gar MotherEarthNews.com/Shopping) It this website has an up-to-date list of pages/insect. Prob (vegipm. tamu from Penn St have been washed to the; ingly, as it can reduce yields of some crops, and know thac plant leaves can be damaged if you ap- ply insecticidal soap on a hot, sunny day Oils that clog up insects’ sensory and breathing systems can be useful in the control of whiteflies and a few other pests. Most horticultural oils are now made from soybean oil, made into a water soluble emulsion, (These oils may burn plant leaves in hot weather) Ifyoure isbest 1 opt for neem oil, which is derived from the tropica ; ; What's Buggin’ You? dentfcaton inte by Tos AEM Unieriy .cas,psu.edu/50, htm) ate remarkably easy to use, to. round, few make it back up to tender new growing tips.) Use the soap spar- the oil route, im most cases it tree, After dozens of studies, neem has not turned out to be the big fix for garcen pests it was hoped to be, yet it has earned recognition for controlling squash bugs, Mexican bean beetles and a few other difficult-to-control bad boys. [n addition to the smothering action of neem oil, contact with or ingestion of neems active ingredient slows feeding and radically reduces reproduc tion, Neem seldom eliminates pests altogeth: cf, buc itoften reduces them co levels thar can be ignored or managed by handpicking Employing Natural Enemies. If you're willing to pay close attention to timing temperature and moisture, you can do some amazing things with microscopic ife- forms. For instance, you can wipe out every cucvorm in a newly dug bed with benef ial nematodes. Some people have even had luck injecting these tiny parasitic eelworms inco the stems of squash plants infested with squash vine borers, and Japanese beetle grubs make fine hosts for nematodes, (oo. away from your garden, and encour gate there by mowing around it. In early spr Where grasshoppers are the biggest problem, the farmscap- ing approach that works best is to maintain a moist, grassy area grasshoppers 10 congre- hoppers begin to emerge, place baits that contain the spores of Nosema locustae in and around the grasshopper habitat. Those that eat the bait will grow weak and die Underground, milky spore disease, ap plied in fall or early spring, does a similar number on Japanese beetle larvae. The new kid on the microbial block is Beauveria bassiana fungus, the spores of which germinate and grow on whiteflies, thrips and several other pests, curning them into little, white mummies. It’s a useful tactic, but may result in unwanted casualties of ladybeetles and other sus ceptible insects. 4 To locate mail A irder sources for these prod Con www. MotherEarthNews.com/Organic c 1s and compare prices, we our Pet ral and Garden Products Finder at idening-Products.FINALLY! Natural Weed Control That’s Fun, Easy & Effective! Stop wasting your precious time and straining your back pulling or hoeing weeds by hand. Pick up a fully assembled Weed Dragon® Torch Kit and put some fun back into yard work and reduce the time you spend on weeding. Just split second of the intense heat from a Weed Dragon’ is all it takes to kill weeds. Best of all it's safe, fun, easy, proven effective and a USDA approved method for organic weed & pest control. Perfect for weeding driveways, sidewalks, patios, gardens, along fence rows, around hardwood trees, lawn edges, and much more. Also great for lots of other jobs all year long. Comes fully assembled and connects to any refillable propane cylinder. A gas gril cylinder works great! Weed Dragon® Torch Kits come equipped with either a flame adjusting needle valve or a ‘squeeze valve with adjustable pilot. The squeeze valve model is perfect for those who do a lot of spot weeding and don't need a continuous full flame. Both models are also available in back-pack kits. All Weed Dragon® models are CSA Certified for USA and Canada. ct ‘Also Available With An ‘Adustable Pt and Squeeze Vale. Each Weed Dragon and Min Dragon Torch Ktis Made With Pile By Hard Working Americans! MADE IN THE a ined the National Home Gardening lub ‘Also Avaliable in Complete i Approval. Ithas also been tested and Back Pack Kis. Catifed by CSA Intemational for use the USA and Canade, The NEW Mini Dragon provides the perfect pin-point flame for small jobs around the home & garden. Works great in tight areas and is perfect for working around smaller desirable plants in your garden. Uses standard 1 pound propane cylinders. A hose kits also available for use with larger refillable cylinders. ‘tm a house in Sonora, CA where J have weods gowig inmyrek nena Teed Dagan tk cae of arg ‘away wih the woods ar would have yremovig he gating roof woods his way" AB. FIND OUT MORE TODAY! 1-800-255-2469 *« www.WeedDragon.com Vacwe aan aaay UST 1970 - 2010 a eae Sa Less Than ny oak) Cer cdc pins wetsThese reports tell how hickens and other poultry arc a wonderful addition to any backyard or homestead. They're entertaining, you can control ticks, for pets, and they provide flavorful, nuctitiow Pls, the produce will help your garden mosquitoes and garden jourish (after some time composting). But poultry offer another advantage thar’s often overlooked — they can provide ou k and mosquit pests by raising chickens, aa have voracious in pers, slugs, snails and other f pests. They even eat mi st guineas, turkeys or ducks. see mbled colton of ports om out reads on wing pour : to conttol pests, and the information is f " o>Turkeys vs. Hoppers When we lived in Illinois, the grasshop- pers got so bad in July that if you took a walk in the field it was like a fountain go- ing off all around you. I was working in the garden one day when I noticed about seven turkeys heading down the path to the pasture. When I caught up with them, I found them happi ing on gourmet grasshoppers. We turned around and headed back to the barn, a quarter mile round-trip. When we returned to the yard, cone of the bird’s crops (the pouch on a birds breast that holds food as it begins to. digest it) was so full of grasshoppers that it could barely walk —the crop hung almost to the ground. More turkeys would have cleaned up our grasshopper problem, Tarkeys are also useful in the garden for bugs and cabbageworms. ‘The only prob Jem we had was keeping them out of the garden when the plants were small. When the plants got a little bigger, the birds walked down the rows looking for bugs and didnt seem to bother the plants. My, turkeys needed little feed and were great seroungers. Also, we had the best, juiciest turkey dinners. Vern Stolte Wetertonn, Wisconsin Mosquito Munchers Most (if not all) people hate mosqui- toes, but our Muscovy ducklings just love them—for feed, that is. Ducklings, from the second day of their lives, go after those bloodsuckers all day long, By the evening, the little ducklings are so stuffed they can hardly move. They probably eat thousands und other insects. (Our yard is practically mosquito- and tick-free without our using any chemicals. Grasshoppers also arc a favorite snack. The ‘only bugs the ducks don't care for are the box elder bugs, except if they see a fly: ing one, mistaking it for a mosquito. Tm. keeping the ducklings out of the garden, though, because they like to nibble on young vegetable plants, too, Andy Torsevies sant Mimescta of mosquitoe More on Muscovies Thave three horses boarded on 6 acres hete in Kentucky, For years I had a ter- Muscovy ducklings start eating slugs, mosqui- toes and more when they're only 2 days old. rible problem with face flies, deer flies and ticks, We even had the 2-inch-long “horse flies” in huge numbers. One year, I swatted 15 during an hour-long riding lesson. The bites are teribly painful, and the horses go crazy trying (0 get away from these blood- thirsty pests Then, someone gave me six Muscovy ducks. They did well the first summer, but that winter coyotes got all but one nesting female, She hatched 16 ducklings, and the fun began. Those little ducklings were hungry all the time. They would h: horse stalls, snapping up every fly they could catch. Ie’ an amazing sight: Litdle You might be surprised at all the pests chickens eat when they're allowed to roam! THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE T0 ORGANIC GARDENING biey ducklings hunting bugs like cats af e. These little guys would position themselves in all dhe places the flies would lay their eggs, and feast on the incoming flies. They made a good-sized dent in the bug population; I haven't had a tick on me that year, and Tm a tick mi c have a small pond, so the ducks However, the pasture bor- ets on a subdivision. Pve gone out to feed many an afternoon and found our ducks all over the neighborhood. When I stare feed the horses, the ducks will start to fly in, or [will ell chem with a bell. Usua they are already waiting, because feeding time is 4 p.m, For some reason, my neigh- bors dont mind che ducks at all, and will come over to chat with me about what kind of mischief they've been up to. Also, we've had a West Nile Virus breakout in the horse population here; | was fortunate to have my ducks on mos- quito patrol undil I could get my horses vaccinated er mi never stray fi Kathleen Callahan-Jordan Radel, Kentucky Chickens’ Bug Feast ‘When I rill my garden, I usually let my chickens out of their pen because they fol- low right behind the tiller, catching any bugs—especially grub worms—that hap- pen to be turned up by the tiller ‘When I harvest my corn, I walk among. the stalks and push each one over with my foot as I pick the ears. This usually sets the grasshoppers and other bugs going everywhich way. The chickens are right there (0 enjoy this “bug smorgasbord,” too. Each year, some species of bugs flourish, ase year it was crickets, and this year its grasshoppers. I am the only one around here who has no problem with the annual bugs. When I seean invasion of bugs com- ing, 1 just lec the chickens out, and they enjoy another feast. Kenny Lites Grady Couny Obiakor Barred Rocks Rock We bought our dream property in June 2002 and have been working happily ever since to make it into what we really want One of our goals was to have chickens. Fresh eggs, the farm atmosphere, roosters crowing in the morning—the whole ef- fect. What we didn't realize was that we also would have problem: We have millipedes—hundreds of big, long, black ones! ‘They invade our house, even the upstairs! ‘Well, when our chickens started to free- range several months ago, we noticed our millipede problem was diminishing, At first we thought it was the winter season that had discouraged che bugs, but now that the weather has warmed, we still aren't having the problem we did last year, thanks to our wonderful Barred Rock chickens! So if anyone has the problem we had with millipede migration, we can attest to an easy solution: chickens. We love ‘em and. are planning on letting them hatch chicks this year so we can enjoy solution (0 @ major pest Joyce Lawrence ‘Scappose, Oregon Guard Guineas We have about 50 guinea fowl. We use them mostly for bug control in the gar= dens, We originally got five of them for tick control because my 82-year-old dad said it would work, Within six weeks we stopped secing ticks, The fleas disappeared within a year; our three cats never need. any form of flea control. Guineas also gob- ble down many other bugs; even 2-week- old keets (baby guineas) go nuts when you give them a grasshopper to fight over. ‘These birds also are great for snake hing bur a rattlesnake. They just circled it for control. I have seen them kill ever Guineas are famous for ther tick-hunting abil hours and screamed bloody murder until wwe took the snake away. Poor little rat- der was terrified. We also have never lost even one of our pasture-range chickens to birds of prey. The guineas let out a warning if'a hawk is near, and the birds allrun for cover. [have witnessed a group of guineas chase ewo foxes in the pasture These birds are definitely mischievor entertaining and much more intelligent than chickens, Robin Bucking Waynesville. North Carolina Buy Babies In 1998 my husband and I took over the family farm, We soon discovered the pastures were infested with ticks and other crawling critters, Soon afterward, my husband developed Lyme di We were desperate, but we did not wane 10 use poisons, as that would ruin the land for our cattle and our pets. Someone told us to get some guin as they were great for pest control. We purchased some adult guineas, but thi continually escaped. Finally, we de- cided to start with babies. We began to turn them out during the day to forage when they were 5 weeks old. Ac night, we put them up for their own protec tion, It took awhile, but we be- gan to see the difference: This past y pasture was tick-free. The 1, our upper 25- guineas truly have been a blessing to us, Susan Jaret Dover Adar _S Even chicks love hunting Worms and insects. but they also eat other pests. Guineas vs. Ticks, Grasshoppers and Snakes My wife and I live outside of Jamestown, Tenn., on the northern edge of the Cumberland Plateau. While viewing our property prior to purchas- ing it, we noticed everyone standing in the grass for two minutes had at least five ticks crawling on them, After pur- chasing the property and doing a little research, we ordered a shipment of 15 French guineas for pest control. Every few years this area is inundated with grasshoppers that eat everything, including metal window screening, Our first year here happened to be one of those seasons, and there were so many grasshoppers that you couldnt see my house, except for the roof. In J free wasn't a grasshopper to be found Within wo we: day outside and not have one tick at- tached to us. The guineas never harmed the garden and they live our chickens. we released the guineas to ge. Within one week, there s, we could spend all icably with Snakes don't stand a chance with guineas. The guineas usually work as a team co peck the snake apart, The guineas have had co contend with a lor of copperheads and a few garter snakes, which average 8 to 10-inches long. The -foot- record was a 2 long king snake. So far, none of the cop- perheads have killed any guineas, Jim Ekteberry Jamestown, Tense ww MorneRE ARTHASa = by KRIS WETHERBEE here’s no denying the lure of sun-ripened strawberries 002 ing with sweetness and flavor. Just catching glimpse of a rich, red berry is enough to arouse any- one’s appetite, and if appearances alone guaranteed good eating, strawberries certainly would win an epicurean gold medal every time. Unless you live near a strawberry mar ket grower, growing your own is che only way co get that splendid strawberry flavor so lacking in supermarket crops. Truly ripe, too perishable. Commercially grown strawberries are bred for firmness, size and long shelf life—flavor is an after thought. In addition, they often are har juicy strawberries are THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE T0 ORGANIC GARDENING a GROW SUPERB vested before the berries even turn red, a practice that halts the development of their flavor, but not their luscious color. Growing your own strawberries is also conc ofthe easiest and most rewarding gar dening efforts you can undertake. These modest plants need only a small amount of space in which to grow, and they pro- yields quickly. Right now is che ideal time to make plans for growing your some considerations that will help you succeed. duce larg Types of Strawberries Perennial garden strawberries come in three main types, defined by when theybear their fruit, according to Barbara L. Bowling, author of The Berry Grower’ Companion and formerly a professor of horticulture at Rutgers and Pennsylvania State Universities. They are June (also called short-day), day-neutrals and ever-bearers. June-bearers, available early, mid-and late-season varieties, are the most widely grown by home gardeners. As their name implies, they produce theie crop in June Day-neutrals, which are gaining popular- ity, bear a modest crop along with the June-bearersand then continue to produce fruits into the fall. “They initiate flower buds regardless of day length, thus producing some fruic throughout the summer and a sizable fall crop that is a great bonus for backyard growers,” Bowling says. Day- neutrals, though, generally do not thrive in areas that have hot summers. Ever-bearers, which sometimes are confused with day-neutrals, bear from early summer into fall but are less productive and have lower-quality bervies than the day-neutrals. Nevertheless, their ongoing harvests have appealed to many gardeners over the yeas. You can harvest berries from day-neutral and ever bearer strawberries the first year; June-bearers should not be harvested until their sec: ond year. In many areas, if you yw a combination of these types, you will be able to harvest your own. sun-ripened strawberries from late May to October every year Best Backyard Varieties You should seek out varieties of these types that are espe adapted to your re gion; to learn the names of tried-and-true local favorites, check with your extension agency. A few varieties are widely recog nized as among the best tasting and most disease resistant no matter where you live These include June-bearers ‘Earlighow’ and “Jewel, and day-neutral “Tristar” Bowling’ book lists recommendations by region and includes a chart chat details the disease re- sistance of common varieties Among other popular recommended June-bearers, ‘Allstar’ has become the stan dard midseason variety in the East and Midwest; ‘Honeoye,’ also a midseason henry, has a “distinctive, perfiumey” flavor and ‘Red Chief? another midseason b offers excellent disease resistance. Among recommended day-neutras, ‘Seascape’ is ula ;ge fruit with good flavor for gardeners Growing a variety of strawberry types ensures a long, happy harvest. in the Northwest, but is relatively new and untested, and Tribute’ produces large ber ries on vigorous plants, Planting Tips ay be highly perishable, Strawberties but they will g tions; plants produce the best fruit when ow well ina rat own in full sun and slightly acidic sol are nutrient-demanding plants, so take care to providea nutrient-rich soil high pose a site with ex- cellent air circulation and drainage (raised beds are good as long as the soil doesn't dry out). Planting strawberries in rows onc plane wide will help sunlight penetrate the entire plant and increase fruiting, Avoid areas where tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant, peppers or raspberries have been grown in the past five years, as these plants ean act as hosts for vertcillium wilt, which can attack strawberry plant, too. Grubs also bother strawberries by cating their roots, so if possible avoid making a new strawberry bed where sod recently has been removed. If the perfect site is nowhere to be found, you still may avoid poten tial problems by planting in raised beds and choosing disease-resistant varieties Prior to planting, remove all perennial weeds and ill in a 1- co 2-inch layer of compost You can use grass clippings instead of compost as long as you wait a few weeks before you plant to give the dlippings time to decompose. To be sure the shallow-rooted planes get off to a good start this is one time when a fast-release fertilizer appropriate For most of the United States, plant strawberry plants in spring as soon as the soil can be worked. In warmer regions, such as California and the South, you can plant strawberries as annuals in late summer or fall. Keep your planting holes wide enough (0 accommodate the roots, and carefully fan out the roots as you plant and be sure the top of the crown (the dense area between the roots and stem) remains slightly above soil level while the roors are well-buried below. Bowling recommends planting straw- berries in a system called “matted rows. She says, “The strawberry’s perennial nature is used to best ad ig the plants to be replenished with new growth each year age in the mated rows by allow In this system, plants are spaced according totype (keep reading), and runners, which are long, horizontal stems that form small, “daughter” plants on the end, are allowedco fillin empty spaces, renewing the plant- ing as they establish themselves, June-bearers produce more runners than day-neutrals or ever-bearers, and should be spaced 18 to 24 inches apart with about 3 to 4 feet between rows. This spacing allows the runners (0 root and eventually form a matted row. Space day-neutral and ever-bearing types 5 to 9 inches apart, with 24- to 30-inch aisles berween each row. These two types re- quire a more constant nitrogen supply, so fertilize them once a month from June through the first of September. Ongoing Maintenance ‘When you get your strawberries in the ground and fertilized, immediately fol- Tow up with a deep mulch of straw, grass clippings or pine needles between plants. Mulching inhibits weeds, conserves mois- ture, and helps keep fruit clean and roots, cool. This is especially important for day- neutral types. ‘Water your new planting thoroughly and try to keep the soil moist as the sea~ son progresses: consistent moisture is essential for strawberries shallow roots, which need about 1 inch of water per week during the growing season. That's especially important in fall, when flower buds that will curn into next year’s crop are forming. “The more cells that are formed in the flower bud, the larger the fruit will be,” Bowling explains. Weed beds weekly, 0 During the first year, no matter what type of strawberries you choose to plant, the goal is to get your bed wellestab- lished. One way to help the plants settle in is to remove all flowers for the first four to six weeks. Doing this allows the plants to pur their energy into developing healthy leaf canopies, root systems and. runners, and asa result, you can expect beter yields in sub- sequent yeas. — Strawberry shortcake and strawberry preserves are perennial favorites, and both are as easy to make as strawberries are to grow. If you are able to plant all three types, you will have day-neutrals and ever-beaters producing berries the first year after their first flush of flowers has been removed. In subsequent seasons, you will harvest yields of approximately 1 to 2 quarts of berries per season, per linear foot of row. Ever- bearers bear the least, June-bearers bear the most intensely (all n about three weeks for a given variety) and day-neutrals the most, but over a long period of time. Strawberry Fields Forever If you want strawberry fields forever, you should renovate your beds after each harvest period. As a bed ages, the plants become crowded, berries become smaller and yields decline. 'To renovate the plant- ing, usea shovel or tiller co narrow the rows 106 to 12 inches, then thin the remaining plants to abour 4 t0 5 inches apart, remov- ing older and small, spindly plants when- ever possible. Then, remove the old leaves by mowing the bed with the blade set high enough to avoid hitting the crowns, ‘June-bearers and ever-bearers managed. this way should produce large berries for at least five years. Day-neutrals will need to be replaced about every third year. THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING After renovation, give all your straw- berry beds a good weeding, and feed the remaining plants the equivalent of 5 pounds of 10-10-10 fertilizer per 100 feec of row. Renew mulch beoveen plants and, where winters are severe, cover plants with loose straw in late fall. Diseases and Pests Most diseases that affect strawberries can be kept under control by buying resistant varieties and practicing careful Itivation, When you pick, remove any spoiled fruits The major pests usually are birds (cover your ripening feuit wich bird netting), and slugs or snails, which can be controlled by eliminating weeds, setting out beer traps, using a copper barrier strip around the bed’s perimeter or releasing decollate snails (Rumina decollatd), a proven slug-and-snail pred- ator sold in garden centers and nurser- ies and available via mail-order. ‘A few insects can be a problem with strawberries, These include the tar- nished plant bug, a relative of the stink bug; the litcle black sap beetle and the strawberry clipper, bue they usually are less troublesome on strawberries than birds and slugs or snails. 4 Kris Wetherbee has tended strawberries for more than a | decade in her home garden in [_ western Oregon.Finally a planter that grows your vegetables for you— naturally and without back-breaking work. 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For me, the choice would be easy: lettuce You could make a good case for grow- ing other crops instead: a highly caloric crop (potatoes), a more flavorful one (tomatoes) or a better keeper (carrots). T would pick lettuce because it's easy, reli- able, requires litle space and enjoys along growing season, allowing for multiple and continuous harvests. Lettua nice mix of nutrients in a compact pack- age, including iron, folate, and vitamins A and C T recommend new gardeners let lettuce 0 offers a Ie for all of these reasons that be their ist step in their journey to deli cious, homegrown self-reliance Lettuce Types While “iceberg” isthe bland poster child for store-bought lectuce, its part of a larger, diverse and better-looking family than people may realize. Gardeners can choose from hundreds of lettuce varieties, all fall- ing into six groups (se "Six Lettuce Types Which Will You Try?” below) For beginners, I recommend starting with loose-eaf varieties also known as “cut and come again” lettuces (meaning you can cut a harvest, then harvest ag few weeks). These varieties are not only thees ist to grow, but they come in many sced mixes, offering a balance of colors, textures and flavors. To add some extra color and zing to « planting a row of spicy mesclun mix for every row of lettuce your salad bowl, I sugg you grow. Mos ced companies offer mes ula, kales and mustard clun mixes of arugy greens, which, with the addition of some cheese, chopped walnuts and a couple of edible flowers, can turn a ho-hum salad side dish into a memorable main course. Preparing to Plant As with any crop, delicious salad greens start with the soil. Lettuce does best in sandy loam soil with a high level of mois- ture-retaining organic marter, but don't bottom right) or a bottom left Oak Le be discouraged if you dont have those conditions. Lettuce grows all around the world in all types of climates and soils, including your own, There's no ideal climate for all lettuce types, but most grow best in cool weather: Salad greens can be planted as soon as you can work the soil, which, here in Maine, is carly to midspring. Most lereuce varieties Six Lettuce Types: Which Will Loos leat: These varieties are grown as leaves instead of tightly You T ry? Butterhead: A soft, buttery texture characterizes these varieties, which form loose heads. Chinese: nese varieties generally have long, pointy, non-head-forn- ing leaves and a bitter flavor better sulted to stir-fry than salad 3s in this type (which includes iceberg) form tight, sembling cabbage. They are generally the mildest of the lettuces and are appreciated more for their crunchy texture than their flavor or nutritional value formed heads, and they have a delicate texture and a mild flavor. They are also known as “cut and come again” lettuce, as they can be harvested multiple times. Romaine, aka "Cos": This heat-tolerant type grows a long head of sturdy leaves with a firm rib down the center. ‘Summer Crisp, aka “Batavian”: Think of this group as an intermediate between crisphead and loose-leaf types. jr Monn aTRNES.cOM‘germinate well in the range of 40 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit, making them an excel- lent spring and fall crop for gar temperate arcas It possible to start lettuce seeds indoors in pots, but I dont bother. Space under my winter grow lights is limiced, and I prefer (© save it for long tomatoes, which ca season crops such as really take advantage of a few weeks’ head start ‘When planting, begin by working some finished compost (if you have some avail- Fi land” Grow a mix of lettuces and other salad greens for ‘maximum flavor and color in your bowl OTHER EWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDI Cut loose-leaf lettuce 1 inch above the soil, then come hack for mare in a few weeks! able) into the soil. Lettuce plants dontt have time to root deeply and will benefit from the extra organic matter close o the surface, Next, rake your bed smooth so you have an even planting surface. I plant my loose-leafin rows, alternating lextuce with rows of mesclun and other crops, such as radishes in the spring and beets in the fall, Among lettuces many positive traits is that its a good neighbor and can be planted next co or between just out anything, provided it has enough water, space and light. Rather than planting long rows, I plane ‘onc or two short rows across my 30-inch beds every two weeks. More than any other crop, lettuce works best with suc- cession planting, because it turns bitter as it matures, especially in warm weathe. ‘Encore’ ‘Accustom, all-organic rix of seven red and green loose-leat varieties. ‘Green ‘A lime green loose-leat Salad Bow!’ variety and “All-American Selections” winner. Easy to grow and heat-tolerant. ‘Mignonette An heirloom butterhiead va Bronze’ riety well-suited to hot and tropical climates, “Winter A tall romaine that, al: Wonder. though slow to mature, laughs at cold temperatures, Capable of overwintering in many cool climates. With succession planting, there’ always a salad ready for the taking, Space your loose-leaf rows 6 to 12 inches apart, de pending on the available space and soil fertility in your garden. If youre growing a loose-leaf type or a af mix, pl inch or so apart in a singl loos t your seeds about 1 ine, cover them with about a quarter inch of soi, and gen tly pac them down to keep them in place Water well, and within a week you should see them sprout. What works for planting loose-leaf va rieties also works for heading varieties The only difference is spacing, Full-head lettuces can be planted cither in rows or in a grid pateern 12 to 18 inches apart Tf you're located in a hot climate or want to grow lettuce through the dog days eat Lettuce Varieties 28 days Johnny's Selected Seeds, winw johnnyseeds.com The Cook's Garden wivw.cooksgarden.com 45 days, Baker Creek Hei 60 days loom Seeds 70 days, Fedco Seeds wi fedcoseeds.comof summer, consider interplanting your rows o heads with taller crops that can shade them. Harvesting Lettuce One of the keys to having tender ler tuce is rapid growth, which is why spring- grown lettuce tastes so good. [Fall of the right conditions are present —sunny mild days, cool nights, sufficient water and good soil fertility —lettuce can go from seed t0 salad bowl in about 30 days. Most full-head varieties take 45 to 60 days to reach maturity Also consider timing when you're har vesting lettuce. Leaves are at their sweetest and most vibrant in the morning, A study by the US. griculture from the carly 1990s found that lettuce harvested ac 7 Department o! a.m, contained nearly twice as much natural sugar as the same variety harvested at 2 p.m. While this is crue for header: and loose-leafs, recent that its best to harvest baby greens in che evening if they are to be stored for more than a day. Regardless of when you harvest, the tender leaves of lettuce demand careful handling, Harvested greens left in the late spring sun can start co wile in just 15 minutes, so quickly get chem out of the garden and into a cool, moist (but not wet) spot. If I don't have time co thoroughly wash my greens directly af- ter harvesting, I give them a quick rinse in cold water before putting them in my refrigerator’ crisper. An exciting thing about harvesting let- tuce is thac iccan be repeat performance. Loose-leafs can be harvested twice—and sometimes three times —before the qual- ty of the leaves declines. Make your first Do you have an abundance of greens ready? Harvest your head lettuce before it bolts, and it will keep nicely in the fridge for several weeks. cutting aboutan inch above the soil. Keep your plants weeded and watered, and you should be able to harvest them again «wo to three weeks later Growing Ti While lettuce is nor a complicated crop, a few things can go wrong—most of them related to heat and moisture. Ifyou live in a wet climate, you may discover the local slugs are eating more salad than you are. One of the best ways to get slugs to stop ‘munching on your lettuce is to make them more appeali ty tuna of & offer: beer! Bury an emp- food can in the soil amidst the plants and fill it halfway with beer. y the smell, shugs will crawl into the container, but cant crawl out Attracted The greatest menace to lettuce is not slugs, but che heat. When temperatures ex- ceed 70 degrees, lettuce seeds donit germi- nate well, and mature plants tend to bolt (meaning they stop producing leaves and go to seed). Regular wate using shade So, you've grown your own fresh, will work just as well: Wrap up the lettuce ina large, clean dish towel and step outside. Swing the bundle of let tuce in circles as fast as you can —like you're winding up to z pitch a softball Voila! Most of the moisture will be gone when you open the cloth. You'll find that salad dressings will coat the leaves more evenly if the leaves don’t have much water on them, Human Salad Spinner risp lettuce, and now it’s time to wash and serve it A salad spinner works well to quickly remave water after the lettuce has been washed, but if you don’t own a spinner, here's a trick that cloths or tall, shade-making companion plants, and planting heat-colerant varieties can help, bur extreme heat over time uli- mately takes a coll on lettuce’ flavor and texture, The positive fip side co leteuce’s heat sensitivity is that you can enjoy it dur- ing the cooler months when not much else grows. In fact, many gardeners and farm- ers in northern areas use cold frames, low ‘tunnels or minimally heated greenhouses to produce salad greens through winter Whatever your climate, I hope you'll grow some of your own lettuce this year With organic mixes costing as much as $6 per pound, I canic think of a better way to hold on to your green than by growing some greens of your own. 4% Roger Doiron is the founder of Kitchen Gardeners Internationa and plants his sensational salads in Scarborough, Maine. \wwwMorneRE riseTHE 1 isn't often we discover a truly new crop for our vegetable gar- dens. Asians have been enjoying edamame (“ed-ah-mah- sometimes called y beans,” for many years. Bue chis nucri- tious and delicious crop is still unknown to most Ar gardeners. As soon as you taste the sweet, nutty, melt-in mouth flavor of edamame, I predict you, 00, will become a devotee of this whole sy-to-prow vegetable, Edamame soybeans are different va- ies than the types grown as a dry field crop for making 10 or other soy products. soybean oil damame vari- OYS OF EDAMAME (Or you can call ’em green soybeans) ties are harvested while they are still green, before the pods dry, much like shelling peas. T first tr Japanese restaurant, as an appetizer in the traditional style. edamame at a re it was served The came 10 our table bowl, piping hot, looking exqu their emerald green pods. I was with two Japanese friends, who taught me the proper etiquette for cating edamame from the pod. They showed me how to hold the pod lengthways near m and then pinch the outer edge pod, pressing the beans a large the the in- nner seam to split itso the beans popped neatly into my mouth, THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING by JOHN NAVAZIO Eating them from the shell in a com- mon bow! is a time-honored tradition with friends. You can also shell them before you serve them, or add chem to stir-fries or other shes ‘There’ another excellent reason to give ‘edamame a try this season: Mat more soy foods tha fore as we learn about the health benefits of this nutritious food. Aside from be ing a great source of quality protein and vitamin E, soy foods contain isoflavones, hich seem to play a role in reducing the risk of heart attack, osteopor cancer and prostate cancer. of us ever be breastrowing Green Bean: Edamame does well in many different soil types, but an ideal location would be well drained with plenty of mature compost worked in. Soybeans are a warm-season crop, so plant the seeds when its time to transplant tomatos or when the soil is at least 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Sow eight to 10 seeds per foot in the row, at a depth of 1 to 14 inches. Edamame plants can get rather bushy, so space your rows at least 2 t0 2% feet apart. All soybeans, including edamame legumes that host beneficial, nitrogei fixing bacteria on their roots. To take advantage of this natural nitrogen pro- duction, you can dust your seeds before planting with a bacterial inoculant for ailable from most seed cata- logs that offer edamame) soybeans ( Some Japanese farmers transplant this valuable erop from the greenhouse. To do this, be sure to grow the seedlings in sepa rave pots and carefully cransplane them afier hardening Make sure your edamame bed gets full off the plants sun and give the plants the same amount of water you give peas or beans. After the plants start yielding harvestable pods, keep the beans picked on schedule, not missing any, Remember the plant's goal is to reproduce, and they won't continue yielding if you allow them to make mature seeds, N Jo You Pick Harvesting edamame pods for fresh eating is like picking peas for shelling. The firse sign your crop is close to harvest is the swelling of the pods. After this starts, it’s a good idea to check your plants every couple of days to monitor their progress. This is importanc because they can quickly overripen and become starchy When the beans are fully formed and almost touching each other within the pods, open a few of the plumpest pods to see if the beans are fully formed, and taste a few of them raw. They should be mildly sweet and tender without any starchiness Towa gardener David Cavagnato says, “There's a narrow harvest window, and you really have co pay attention to get the maximum tenderness and sweetness from your crop.” Never let the pods wir yellow, a sure sign the beans inside are getting starchy and past their prime, Cooking or reezing Your C So now you've got a crop of edamame coming in, and you're finding out just Edamame beans are a super right-from-the-garden snack for young and old Edamame plants closely resemble regular bush green beans, how many pods those couple of rows you planted can produce. If there are more ripe pods than you can use fresh, the best way to preserve them at their peak of perfection is to freeze, Freezing edamame is almost as easy as cooking them to eat on the spot. All you do is, wash them, then cook and fieeze them right in the pod For freezing, put the pods into light- ly salted, boiling water, and instead of cooking them for five co six minutes as you would when you plan to eat them fresh, reduce the cook- ing time to three to four minutes When they're done, lift the pods from the boiling water and put them into a basin of ice water. This will stop the cooking process. Afier all the pods are chilled, life them from the water and pat the excess water with a clean kitchen towel. Next place them into plas tic freezer bags, press the excess air out and pop them into the freezer When you want a taste of summer, just take a bag out of the freezer, pour the contents straight into a pot of boiling water and cook for only evo to three minutes, Best Varie for the Garde To evaluate the edamame vari- ties now offered in seed catalogs, Ienlisted the help of nwo astute gardeners in other parts of the country — gardener and photographer David Cavagnaro in Decorah, lowa, and C.R. Lawr person in Canaan, Maine—to augment y plantings in Bellingham, W Together we rested the same five varieties a seeds and ‘Butterbeans,” from Johnny's Selected Seeds in Winslow, Maine; evo Japanes ets to the United States, ‘Say owo stalwarts, Envy! and "Misono Green,’ from ‘Territorial Sceds in Cottage Grove, Ores and the variety ‘Shirofumi’ from Fedco Seeds in Waterville, Maine. us planted these five edamame varieties dur- The three of ing the last week of May in our respective loca- tions, and we all enjoyed enough warmth and sun- shine to get our crops off to a running start By the middle of August Maine, and early September in Washington, we were all picking and grinning as we discovered just how in lowa and delicious homegrown edamame can be. We all agreed a good edamame variety had to have a sweet, buttery flavor wich a tender, but slightly crunchy texture. But there is another important attribute of good flavor. C.R. Lawn summed it up ot [look for in edamame. It's the nuttiness that gives, body to the flavor.” For carliness, there were two clear win yy and ‘Shirofumi.’ Foran ear- ly harvest, ‘Shirofumi’ had the sweetest, most tender beans; it gor rave reviews nvy’ shouldn't be Envy’ which is touted as in all locations. But counted out a first early variety, was easily 10 days carlier than ‘Shirofumi’ for me in cool, coastal Washington State. In the hot- ter summers of Iowa and M: Maine can have hot weather!) it wasn't ne (yes, significantly earlier than ‘Shirofumi. While ‘Envy’ wasn’t as sweet as other edamame varieties, it did have a robust, THE MOTHER EA Fresh green soybeans have a buttery, nutty flavor. nutty flavor, which, coupled with its earliness, should carn it a spot in any short-season garden, “Sayamusume’ received the real hon- ors for flavor. It took a little longer to mature but was well worth the wait ‘Sayamusume’ was about a week later in maturity than the other varieties in Towa and Maine. Another edamame connoisseur, Steve Peters formerly of Seeds of Change in Santa Fe, says, “ ‘Sayamusume’ is everything you want in edamame: I's plump, tender, sweet, with a buttery flavor, and it’s consistent from pod to pod.” David Cavagnaro recognizes another plus for gardeners who “shell out” their ‘edamame for cooking: “Both ‘Sayamu. sume’ and ‘Shirofumi’ have big pods with big seeds, which makes them easier to shell than the other varieties.” “Buccerbeans’ was the real surprise in this test. Because ‘Butterbeans’ is derived from a cross between an Ameri edamame, I sus- pected its flavor and quality wouldn't match the other purebred edamame vari- ties, However, ic did well in all locations, 1n Soy bean and a Japanes with a harvest window just behind ‘Envy and ‘Shirofumi,’ and a buttery, sweet fla- vor almost as good as ‘Shirofumi. ‘Misono Green’ received less praise than the others, as its flavor was on the bland NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING side and it wasnt early. Ie did, however, yield well, setting quite a few pods. Growing for Your Region Regionall these varietis Envy’ and “Butterbeans’ seemed to perform best in more northerly loca- there were differences in reactions to the environ- ment. tions, with ‘Envy’ showing its early ad- vantage in the cool coastal Washington summer. In trials performed in New Mexico by Seeds of Change, ‘Envy’ pro- duced few harvestable pods and had yel- lowing leaves on spindly plants. Jeff McCormick of Garden Medicinals in Earlysville, Va., tied grow= ing “Burterbeans’ a few years ago only to find an ‘unappealing discolos of the beans in the green shell stage. Margaret steader near Southwest Ranches, Fla., plants her edamame in August or September for a winter crop and has had great success with ‘Burterbeans, demonstrating how a variety from another re- jon can work if planted at the right time of year. However, she also. grows ‘Envy’ under this regimen and its yields are still poor. As always, the best advice is to grow at least a couple of different varieties in your garden and scrutinize the results. ‘Obviously.a variety such as Sayamusume, which performed superbly in M: ‘Washingeon and New Mexico, should do well in most locations. ne, Lowa, John Navazio, Ph.D. is the | | Senior Scientist for the Organic Seed Alliance in Port Townsend, | Wash., where he trains organic farmers in on-farm plant breeding | for environmental challenges and | in seed production using organic | practices |by DOREEN G. HOWARD. aising ripe, red sweet peppers takes patience, period. That's why they cost up to five times as much as green peppers and why some gardeners think they cant grow them, Even when they're grown from transplants, thick-fleshed and flavorful red peppers such as ‘Pimento’ and ‘Red Marconi’ take up to 100 days to ‘mature. Bur some varieties turn red much sooner—in as lite as 65 days. IF you use nd a few these fast-maturing varieties, tricks of the trade, you can produ meaty red peppers in almost any climate. Quick to Color Most red peppers start ou green, Some begin life yellow; purple or white. After reaching their maximum size, these pep- pers will develop red pigments in 10 to 28 days, if daytime temp between 65 degrees and 75 degrees. In southern regions where temperatures exceed that range, peppers curn yellow- ish and may acquire an off-color pallor that is not attractive, a b for market growers, Below the optimum, temperature range, color development slows dramatica consideration below 55 degrees, ir stops compler drop below 68 degrees, pigment produc- tion declines and eventually ceases. y. If soil temperatures Sweet peppers are considered warm- season crops (they are more sensitive to cold than tomatoes), but they tually thrive in a temperature band of 60 degiees to 85 degrees. Withi range, some varieties develop red pig- this ‘ments faster than others do—in as little as 14 days in the case of “King Arthur, a S-inch-long, disease-resistant variety that’s popular with Wisconsin growers. If you live in a cold climate or if your growing season is short due to the rapid on: carly ripening Arthur.’ Oregon State University searchers have found that ‘Lady Bell, La Bamba,’ ‘Merlin,’ ‘Ace,’ ‘Bell Boy and ‘Red Knight’ will color rapidly (in about two weeks) in almost every cli- mate. ‘Ace’ is one of the most reliable varieties, setting frui of summer heat, choose even when it's t00 hot of too cold for other varieties. “Ie remarkable variety.” says pepper breed er Rob Johnston, owner of Johnny's Selected Seeds. * the 1970s and wei discovered it in c blown away by itsearliness and productivity. In the years since, there have been contenders, but nothing beats ‘Ace.” It is the first pep- per to curn red in any garden, about 65 days after transplanting, ‘Jingle Bells, a miniature bell pepper and a favorite at farmers markets, produces an abun- dance of tiny, 1¥-inch-round fruits in 65 days, too. Another earl red pepper Johnston likes is ‘Round of Hungary.’ “Ics not la looking, with smooth ribs and a bright red like there's a light inside.” Fully 2" he admits, “but it is distinctive red about 75 days after transplanting, Round of Hungary’ has great market ‘Something this good should always bring more potential, Johnston says walled peppers. He doesn't grow ‘Ace, which has + tively thin walls, for that reason. “In 1978, when we start ed bringing red peppers to farmers markets, we g amples to get “Th had never seen them, and we had to people to buy,” says Denison convince them that these red peppers were not hot.” Since then, although regular red peppers are ubiquitous, Denison’s special, sweeter and organi- cally grown varieties still are preferred by customers, Fast to Grow Once you know the right variet- ies to grow, the key to getting lots of sweet red peppers is to 1) give them m up money than ordinary bell peppers He also loves ‘Lipstick,’ a pimento- an early start indoors; 2) wa ype pepper that is fully red at 73 days. “Both ‘Round of Hungary’ and Lipstick’ are sweet and tops in taste,” he says. Another big fan of ‘Lipstick’ is Tom Denison, a Corvallis, Ore., market grower who devotes more than an acre of his fields solely to peppers. Lipstick’ is an absolutely delicious pepper that is thick-w. open-pollinated,” he says. “I can untreated seed, too, from Johnny's, led, early and et which is important, because 1 am an organic grower.” Denison finds his the ground before you plant them outside; and 3) give them any reason to stop growing. Start pep: per seeds indoors at least cight to 10 weeks before nights remain above 8 space is on the cool side (in a base- 50 degrees. If your indoor growi ment or other unheated room), start The idea is to have a transplant wich some buds on it at planting time, but no open flowers,” off transplants for at least a week by leaving them outside for increasing seeds two or three weeks sooner. says Johnston, Harden customers —from farmers markets to the local food co-op — prefer thick amounts of time each day. “And, if you water them with a high-phospho- When it comes to peppers, bright red is not the only color that brings big prices at farmers markets and adds variety to the dinner table, Certain peppers turn brilliant orange, yellow or purple before they ripen to their red finale. As with particular red peppers, some pep: peer varieties of other colors mature early, too. ‘Islander’ (shown at left) turns violet in as few as 60 days. It holds that color for seven to 10 days, then develops yellow and orange streaks, and eventually turns dark red. Other purple peppers that mature fast and fetch premium prices at market include ‘Tequila’ (amethyst at 60 days) and ‘Purple Beauty (dark purple at 62 days). Gypsy’ is another pepper that can be harvested and sold at various color stages. It starts pale yellow, tums lemon-yellow at about 70 days and then becomes a brassy orange-red fruit. ‘Flamingo’ goes through the same changes, but in a more flamboyant manner, At 56 days, itis chartreuse; at 65 days, it's a showy magenta. Finally the pepper turns a tropical-sunset red. In optimal conditions, ‘Ariane,’ a t ductive pepper, turns rich orange in as little as 70 days. Market gardener Tom Denison of Corvallis, Ore., says his customers can't get enough of ‘Ariane. pepper seller.” ick-walled, sweet and pro- It's our biggest orange-rous fertilizer solution (compost or alfalfa-meal cea) at planting,” he says, “they won't miss a beat and will set peppers rapidly.” When nighttime air temperatures stay above 50 degrees, peppers can be transplanted. At soil temperatures above 65 degrees, pepper growth ac- Plants ma and never recover if e air temperature is much below 55 de- grees. To combat cool ground, cover celerates. become stunted her the soil or your beds with plastic mulch as early in the spring as possible, (Clear plas- tic warms the soil more quickly, but black plastic controls weeds better.) When the soil has warmed, the plastic or cover it with grass clip pings or other mulch to prevent the plastic-covered soil from becoming {oo warm, Another trick, recommended by Morne Earrit News contributor and retired Texas extension agent Bill Adams, is to place wire cages around each pep- per transplant, wrapping the cages with clear plastic. These mini-greenhouses trap heat and act as a physical barrier to fungal diseases. Afver the weather heats up, remove the plastic around cages or the plants will get coo hot. Ifyour summers get really sultry, your peppers will appreciate a heavy muleh after the spring season, Several inches of straw or dried grass clippings will keep the soil cooler and reduce moisture evaporation, Continually moist ground isa necessity for peppers, as they suffer from blossom-end rot, a physiological disease caused by a calcium deficiency ain ample calcium, but the mineral relies on water to transport Most soils «i it to the plant's root system. When the soil lacks moisture, the calcium can't reach the plants and a telltale black leathery spot forms on the blossom end of developing fruit. Big, sweet peppers require a continual source of nutrition. The easiest way to fertilize them is to incorporate gradua release fertilizer in the ground at plant- ing. Fish-meal pellets, alfalfa pellets or cottonseed meal are all good organic choices. You also can foliar-feed plants every week or two with a fish/seaweed soluble fertilizer, spraying the tops and bottoms of leaves, or water the ground with the same mixture Peppers need a good supply of magnesium, which may be defi cient in some soils. If a soil test or your extension agent recommends magnesium, consider scratching a tablespoon of Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) around the base of each pep- per plant when they start flowering, or of mix a tablespoon of salts per qua warm water in a spray bottle to foliar- feed them. 4 ‘Blushing Beauty.’ an All-America Selection winner in 2000, produces high yields, even ntainers. | planted five of them in the porous, organic soil in my garden and set five in containers filled with potting mix. Both the garden and potted peppers were fed with gradual-elease, fish-meal pellets, incorporated into the growing media when the peppers were planted. | caged all plants, and its a good thing | did. The container peppers grew So big and set so mary fruits that the stems would have snapped without support. By season's end, the garden peppers averaged 12 fruits per plant. Their pott One plant produced 24 large, fully ripe red bells. Two additional seasons with similar results have convinced me that ‘Blushing Beauty’ is an excellent choice for containers, ‘A multicolored pepper that can be harvested at several stages forthe table or market, ‘Blushing Beauty’ starts out a greenish-Wory color, tums yellow, changes to @ pinky blush, then to apricot, deepens to vivid red-orange and finally blooms to scarlet after 90 days cousins averaged 17.by VICKI MATTERNasparagus in the frcezer—just blanch it in boiling water, then chill in ice water before you pop it in the freezer Asparagus is not difficult ro grow, either. While it takes some time to get a crop started, if you choose your variety male/female varieties, s Washington.” That's because they put all of their energy into producing spears rather ich as “Mary than seeds, according to Chee-kok Chin, a professor of plant biology and a good location and prepare it care- fully, says Mathieu Ngouajio, assistant professor of horticulture at Michigan Seate University “To avoid disease problems, choose a site where corn of asparagus did not and site wisely, then provide basic care pa also means hology at Rutgers. That lants do nor produ seedlings, which compete against the established plants and reduce yields. All-male hybrids also are more disease- resistant chan older varieties. In fact grow the year before,” Ngouajio says. IF male ¢ volunteer as outlined here, you're on your way to you can plane a cover crop, such as sor decades of good eating. sghum or rye, in the area where you plan to plant asparagu cover crop [turned into the soil before you're in luck. “A For the highest yi male” vari years ago, all a ‘ds, choose “all- Until about 20 planting] will increase the soil’ organic s varieties were one of the best w: which is beneficial to aspara sto avoid aspara- mate he says, a mixture of male and female plants. But Rutgers developed a method for prop: gus rust, a fungal disease that reduces gus, cchers Native to warm climates, such as Asia gating only the male plants (the female plants yields, is to plane rust-resistanc va Jniversicy rese: eties, such as ‘Jersey Giant,’ ‘Jersey Minor and the Mediterranean region, Supreme’ and ‘Jersey Knight. asparagus thrives in full sun and rich, produce seeds). These well-drained soil, Incorporate plenty of paragus varieties — including ‘Jersey Take time to make a cozy bed. high-quality, aged compost into your as Giant,’ ‘Jersey Supreme’ and ‘Jersey Remember that your asparagus _paragus site to improve drainage, boost Knight’ — produce up to three times will call this site “home” for many soil fertility and reduce the chance of more than older, open-pollinated years to come, so it’s best to choose _soilborne fungal diseases, such as fusari Best Asparagus Varieties & Sources All-Male Varieties 1, ‘Jersey Giant’: Medium to large green spears with purplish bracts (scaly leaves) resistant to fusarium and rust disease; cold tolerant 2. “lersey Knight’: Similar to “Jersey Giant’ in size and appearance with thick, flavorful spears; highly resistant to rust; tolerant to fusarium; adapted to most climates ‘Jersey Supreme’: Slender to medium diameter green spears; high yielding and Lniform in size; good rust resistance; adapted to temperate, cool and warm regions 4. ‘Guelph Millennium’: Developed by the University of Guelph in Ontario; high-qual: ity green spears; requires rust control; excellent for cold regions, including Canada ‘and the upper Midwest Also Recommended 5. ‘Atlas’: Combines the heat tolerance of 'U.C. 157’ (an older California variety) with the productivity of the Jersey varieties; tips stay tight in higher temperatures (70 degrees and above) longer than with other varieties 6. ‘Purple Passion’: Large reddish-purple spears that turn green when cooked; said to have a slight nutty flavor and be milder, sweeter and more tender than green: speared asparagus; susceptible to rust Mail-Order Sources To know which varieties each company offers, match the numbers above to the ‘numbers below in parentheses. «Daisy Farms: 269-782-6321, nw.daisytarms.net(1, 2, 3, 6) + Krohne Plant Farms: 269-424-5423; wnw.krohneplantfarms.com (1, 2, 6) + Nourse: 413-665-2658; wiuznoursefarms.com (2, 3, 4, 6) + Walker Plants: 856-358-2548; wanv.walkerplants.com (1, 2, 3)um crown and root ror. IF you don't have compost, add grass clippings or shredded le Planting in raised beds also will improve drainage. You may want to test your soil to be sure the pH level is in the neutral range of 6.5 to 7.5. Plant pathologists have found that lower pH values may promote fusarium dis in asparagus. If the tests show a low pH, the testing lab can tell you how much limestone to add to your soil in order to neutralize the acidity. Get a jump on weeds. They can be one of the biggest challenges for organic asparagus growers. To reduce perennial weed problems, be sure to climinace them from the site before plantiny cm out in years to come ore we planted our new aspara- ind be vigilant about rout- gus bed, we prepared the soil carcful- Jeff Cantara of New Roots Farm in Newmarket, N.., uses chickens to control asparagus beetles in his garden. ly,” says Charlotte Johnson, co-owner with her husband, Glen, of Mother Flight Farm in Mt. Vernon, Wash The Johnsons decided to stare a new asparagus patch after their previous, 15-year-old patch became hopelessly invaded by quack grass and thistles, which were possibly brought in with some straw mulch, “Alter tilling the area, we allowed the dormant weed seeds to germinate, Stalking Summer Asparagus Here's a nifty trick for stretching your asparagus harvest a couple of weeks longer into late spring or early summer. Harvest your crop as usual for the first two weeks of the season. Then, select two or three sturdy spears from each plant, and allow them to grow undis- turbed, while you continue to harvest the newly emerging spears. The leaty gromth of the unharvested “mother stalks” will collect enough solar energy to stimulate the growth of additional spears for at least two weeks longer, according to researchers at Cornell and Rutgers universities. If the weather is dry, water the plants to minimize stress. And to begin harvesting spears | Up to two weeks earlier in the spring, use black plastic mulch to warm the soll, conserve moisture and prevent the growth of weeds. THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING then burned them off with afl planted the asparagus.” Now that their patch is becoming ne weeder before we established, the Johnsons stay on top of any new weeds by flaming the entire bed in late fall co winter, after the asparagus has gone dormant, Other growers find that a combination of cultiva- tion and mulching docs the wick. In a five-year trial of organic versus conventional asparagus culture conducted by Mark Hutton, extension vegerable specialist at the University of Maine, weeds were kept at bay by applying a thin layer of bark mulch around plants and cultivating between rows. “After the final harvest this year, w a shallow (14-inch deep) ¢ with a tiller over the entire area to eliminate grasses,” he says. also did rivation In cold locales, such as Gene Thiel’s Prairie Greek Farm in Joseph, Ore (elevation 4,150 feet), black plastic mulch not only stops weeds, but also warms soil and conserves moisture. foot-wide perforated plastic, used between rows, warms the Thiel says the soil enough to allow him co harvest spears two weeks earlier than usual in the spring. Plant in trenches. After the days have warmed to about 50 degrees Fahrenheit, plant asparagus crowns in trenches 6 to 12 inches deep, and about (Use the shallower Ngougjio says.) By starting your asparagus crop 12 inches wide depth for heavy clay soils, with crowns, you'll be able co harvest th sar earlier than if you plant seeds. Spread finished compost in the bottom of the trench, then space the crowns about 12 to 18 inches apart inside the trench, mounding the soil a bit beneath each crown. Cover crowns with about 2 inches of soil Gradually add more soil (mixed with compost, if available) over the next four to six week: the plants grow, until the trench is level with the sur- rounding soilResist the temptation 5 to harvest spears the first season! For the best future harvests, allow the underground crowns to become well-established during the first year or wo after do not harvest the spears (which are actually the plants’ newly emerging shoots) ting. If you they will develop into call, attractive plants with lacy leaves. “The vegetative part the tall, leafy growth sometimes of asparagus called ‘ferns’ —is the part that captures st light and energy, which is stored in the crowns. The more energy stored in the crowns, the better your crop will be the fol- lowing year,” explains Thomas Orton, extension vegetable specialise with Rutgers Cooperative Extension in New Brunswick, N.J Ics important that a gardener look at their asparagus plants and not push them before they are ready,” says Robert Dufault, professor of en: vironmental horticulture ac Clemson University. For instance, if the plants ferns grew lush and tall (about shoul- der-height) the first year, it’s OK to harvest the spears for about two weeks the second spring (instead of the usual He also recommends waiting one more six to eight weeks), Dufault say: year before harvesting if the spears did not grow thac tall, or if new emerging spears look spindly, to ensure robust plants the following year. 6 Stop picking when spears grow ) spindly. By the crop’s third sea- son, you should be able co pick a full harvest —that means you can pick all the spears that emerge over six to eight weeks. (To extend your harvest by a couple of weeks, see “Stalking lefi.) To harvest asparagus spears, simply snap them off by hand where they naturally bend; a Summer Asparagus Steamed asparagus smothered in hollandaise sauce is a rich and beautiful addition to any meal essary, and can actu- knife is not ne ally spread disease from one plant to another. Plus, by snapping off only the tender stalks in the garden, you'll save a step in the kitchen by avoiding the need to remove the fibrous stems Be sure to harvest the spears before their tips begin to open, however. Afier the tips open, the spears become tough. Warm temperatures courage tips to open faster, so you may need to harvest daily if your area experi ences a sudden warm spell. In cool ler spring weather, expect to harvest spears a couple of times each week. As soon as you see most of the spears coming up spindly—aboue the diam. eter of a pencil oF less —stop harvest- ing. Spindly spears are a sign that the plancs are stressed, Dufault says, Take good care of your “ferns.” Keep in mind that your asparagus plants will continue to grow after you finish harvesting the spears in spring And it's that tall ferny growth that the plants produce from June through September chat is most critical to the success of next y ferns by ensuring that they receive ad- equate nutrients and water (at least a 1's crop. Pamper yout half inch per week). Orton advises applying compost on top of the bed right after harvest is completed. And don't forget to stay on top of competing weeds and in- sect pests. Jeff Cantara, of New Roots Farm in Newmarket, N.H., uses chickens (moved in a home- made portable chicken pen) to fertilize his aspai crop, while controlling asparagus beetles — the black or red-spotted insects that quarcer-inch-long, 2 sometimes damage ferns. After he's finished harvest ing his spears for the season, Cantara moves the 5-by-12 foot wooden frame covered with poultry netting to the asparagus bed (with young laying hens inside), then moves the enclosure to a different location in his patch every three or four days. “Tadd a little grain to the soil co en- courage them to scratch,” he says. “We had some asparagus beetles before, but not since the chickens have been clean- ing up the beds. They don't hurt the as- paragus ferns, and the chicken manure gets incorporated into the soil.” Although asparagus aficionados some- times differ when it comes to the finer points of planting and care, all agree on the fundamentals: Give your asparagus plantsa litle bicofloveand they'll reward you richly for many years to come! Vicki Mattern grows food and flowers organically in eastern Pennsylvania, Although she has always liked the pretty red berries on her ‘Mary Washington’ asparagus —especially for floral arrangements looking forward to boosting her yields by planting a patch of seedless, higher-yielding, all-male “Jersey Supreme.’ she’sSUREFIRE SUMMER SQUASH Expert advice, a rare gardener whose planting year, what kinds of kitchen wizardry wil plus a secret L: be they zucchini, yello to great flavor At first glance the: questions may quash or scalloped pattypan. ss, but in tions arise when consider- fact they are quash patch: How much if hould you grow? Shoul revealed! you star wi cuethat 4 niques that dew cedlin Jane the seed: directly inthe of summer squash’s natural garden? What can you do to keep in- exuberance, youl need just four or five by BARBARA PLEASANT ec Assuming you have a good healthy plants to keep summer squash SE Ree‘on your daily menu for more than a month—and stock up your freezer too. The key word here is “healthy,” but growing robust plants is easy ... if you think like a squash. Small Plantings, Big Harvests Step one is to choose the best varieties for your garden, keeping in mind that all summer squash are flavor lightweighes until they're enhanced with seasonings Or try a secret I only recently discov: ered —grill squash to greatly intensify its subtle flavors. Grilling sweats out wa. ter and caramelizes the sugars—try it, you'll be amazed! Summer squash varieties make up for frail flavor with their abundant yields, vibrant colors, great nutritional value and variable shapes. Young specimens of colorful yellow and green ‘Zephyr or ‘Sunburst’ squash are almost too beautiful to eat, while dark-skinned Raven, have a high quota of lutein (an anti- zucchini varieties, such as oxidant that can prevent vision loss associated with aging). Squash is also 1 good source of fiber and potassium, as well as vitamins A and C, To save space in a small garden, try training a vining variety, such as ‘Costata Romanesca’ or “Tatume;’ up a sturdy trellis or fence. If you don't have room to grow your own squash, buy your favorice varieties from farmers markets or roadside vegetable stands, and jump to “Summer Squash Recipe Roundup,” Page 91 Don't worry if you end up buying several packets of seeds to get the diversity you wane in a small planting, because sum- mer squash seeds will remain Viable for chrce to four years (or more) when stored under cool, dry and dark conditions Another option is to start with 1 mixture of varieties, such as the ‘Summer Squash Mix’ from The Cook's Garden, or Summer Scallop ‘Trio’ and Tricolor Mix’ zucchini from Renee's Garden. IF you're wor Squash blossoms are edible, nutritious and colorful, and you can harvest all the easy-to-identify male blossoms you want without damaging your crop (only female blossoms bear fruit), ried about pollination problems in a small planting of different varieties, just think like a squash. Yellow squash or zucchini might tell you. pollen from a pattypan is just fine with us!” Unless you plan to save seeds, it’s fine to mix them up. Planting Seeds From a Squash’s Perspective The next decision is whether to start the seeds in pots or diteetly in the g den. If your squash seeds could talk, theyd say, “Oh no, not in the garden! As soon as we sprout, those nasty squash bugs will find us. Besides, we'll show you a special, magic secret if you plant us in roomy pots and give us plenty of compost.” The compost is important here, because it’s likely to host rem: nant populations of fungi and bacteria that form beneficial partnerships with summer squash roots, After this spon: taneous root myco-magie starts hap- pening (myco means fun the squash root/fun; become geniuses at extracting moisture, phosphorus and other nutrients from the soil. (For more on myco-magic, search for “Building Fertile Soil” at torn MotherEarthNews.com. For seedlings started in 3- to 4-inch pots, this process will continue without missing a beat if you set out the plants without disturbing the roots, when they are about three weeks old (squash grows up quickly), in warm soil that was amended with plenty of com- post and a few handfuls of an organic fertilizer. Always choose 2 sunny spot and the squash seedlings will promptly b unfurling their extensive array of solar collectors, which weThis is probably an anxious time for summer squashlets, because they've suddenly become sitting ducks to four formidable insect pests. “Please protect us from pests that want to destroy us,” the squash would plead if they could speak. When sported or striped cucum- ber beetles fly in and get a taste of them, mple, they'll call their comrades to come join the party. On the ground, squash bugs patrol for the host plants they crave, And on warm evenings, the squash plants will likely be discovered ‘Lephyr’ (eft) is a crookneck squash that’s as nutritious as itis lovely. ‘Sunburst (above) is a tasty pattypan variety, Female flowers (right sit ontop of baby squash. by fast-flying moths, whose larvae aded squash vine borers —inch-long su per-maggots that devour the spongy material on the inside of squash stems, ravaging them from the inside our None of these insects will damage your plants if they can't reach them, so it’s time to cover them up with a float- ing f at the edges. Attach the row cover to a wire mesh tunnel co make it easier abric row cover, weighted down to secure, install and remove for weed- ing, You can buy row covers at garden centers, or make your own by stitching rogether two lengths of tulle or nylon net, sold at fabric stores. (For a similar es in Winter, Page 34.) Give the plants a good strategy, see “Grow Vegs Control Cucumber Beetles With Trap Cropping Trap cropping, in which pests are lured to plants they like in hopes they will leave others alone, is a tricky business. If the technique fails, you can end up with ex tremely high pest populations. But in Massachusetts and Connecticut, veg! \ding that perimeter plantings of “Blue Hubbard’ squash are so attractive to cucumbe more valuable squash and pumpkins grown nearby have up to 90 percent fewer beetles. Trap cropping can reduce squash vine borer damage as well. An excellent review of this technique can be found at vegandberry/factsheets/Per fer TC. htm drenching, and mulch beeween them to det cover. Then, you'e pretty much home seds before you install the bug free for the early growing stage When you start seeing female flow crs, its time to remove your bug cover so bees and other little pollinators can carry pollen between the boy and girl flowers, which should be plentiful thanks ¢o your compost. Male flowers are attached to straight green stems, while female flowers sit atop the tiny little squash. One of the things we know about the myco-magic of squash is that plants use the nutritional good. ies picked up in a biologically active rhizosphere (the soil right around the roots) to produce lots of big, viable pollen grains. And lots of big pollen grains mean loads of fat squash to harThe Cook's Garden P.O. Box C5030 Warminster, PA 18974 800-457-9703 vwarw.cooksgarden.com Johnny's Selected Seeds 955 Benton Ave. Winslow, ME 04901 877-564-6697 wunw johnnyseeds.com Renee's Garden 60604 Graham Hill Rd, Felton, CA 95018 888.880.7228 www reneesgarden.com ‘Sand Hill Preservation Center 1878 230th St. Calamus, 1A 52729 563-246-2299 ww sandhilipreservation.com vest. Your uncovered plants eventually will be found by borers, beetles and squash bugs, bur plants that were pro- tected until they reached bearing size are strong enough to produce heavily, despite insect aggravation When my plants are showing si of decline (usually from squash vine borer damage) and I've harvested all the summer squash I want, ifs time to stage a crackdown cleanup by spread. a la ‘ge piece of clear plastic on the ground, piling on the pest-ridden plants, and quickly gathering it into A few days in the hot sum mer sun kills anything living in there, a bundle leaving me with shrunken squash skel- etons for my compost heap—an ap: propriate ending for my garden's most prolific producer. = ] A dedicated fan of summer || squash, contributing editor Barbara Pleasant allows only three squash plants at a time in her Virginia garden—or two if they are zukes. Summer Squash Recipe Roundup The summer squash season begins with newly opened yellow-orange squash blos soms, which taste like mild spinach, and contain beta carotene and several other famins. Use small scissors to nip out the stamens before rinsing the blossoms and patting them dry. Then add the squash blossoms to soups, salads or omelets; stuff them with soft cheese: sauté them in oil; or slip them into the prettiest (and tasti est) cheese quesadillas you've ever made. You won't hurt your squash harvest one bit by lifting the bug cover long enough to pick all the early blossoms, which are most The most splattered pages in my copy of The Classi recipes that pair summer squash with herbs such as dill, basil and thyme. | avoid apple” pies, Zucchini Cookbook bear using my oven in summer, but sooner ater | mus in order to mal breads or muffins in which king-sized zuechinis masquerade as apples As for dally fare, at least twice a week | make a one-pot pasta salad that | cal Pasta Pepo (named after summer squash’ botanical name, Cucurbita pepe). It goes like this: Cook any pasta according to package directions until two minutes before | i's done, Str in bite-sized pieces of surnmer squash, bring back to boiling, and cook for another minute, Drain pasta, add fresh chopped herbs (thyme, sage, bail cilan tro and oregano are all great). and whatever else you have—halved cherry tomatoes, olives ora can of black beans —and toss withthe salad dressing of your choice When using summer squash asa side dish, | eften make chunky brea crumbs {rom stale bread or corn bread, season them with oregano or thyme, an sprinkle hot cooked summer squash along with a litle grated hard cheese, White in the toes of last year’s squash surge, | searched fr more healthy sum mer squash recipes refined by the food pros at Cooking Light magazine, It was a revelotion to discover that gilled squash recipes received five star ratings from most of the cooks wie tried them. OF course Griling sweats out water, which helps to concentrate squash's subtle flavor, plusitcaramelizes sugars present i the squash or grilling sauces. Stocking my freezer with grilled rather than blanched squash is | one of the best fod preservation upgrades I have ever made. | aso sun dry afew | batcnes of summer squash chips, Once the water’ gone rom thin slices of summer | J them o4 squash, they become savory cures for late-night snack attacks.ENJO BLACKBERRIES by BARBARA PLEASANT lackberries are among the best and worst of fruits you can grow in your yard. In many areas, they grow themselves—ofien a litte too well. The thorny vines eagerly overtake available space, and when you're forced to take a stand, it can be a prickly, bloody battle, If you have wild blackberries on your land, there are a few simple steps you can take nove to help the plants produce better berries that are easier to pick. Better yet, diversify your home or to grow cul ard—or underutilized space along a fence tivated varieties famous for their zippy sweet flavor, large fruit and phenomenal productivity Thornless varieties now are available for easier picking, and in the newest ewist in blackberries, you can grow late-season va- rieties that make it easier to grow blackberries in cooler climates where cultivated plants often lose their buds to winter weather (keep reading for more on new, cold-hardy blackberries) THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING Like most other bramble fruits, blackberries bear b and ewo-year-old canes, or woody stems. The many vatities come in either upright or railing plants. With upright varieties, if you pinch or snip back the tips of new canes midsummer (Jalyisa bloomi right angles. “Tipping ba od time), the plants will respond by growing heavy- ateral branches that emerge from the main canes at canes to 5 to 6 feet improves the productivity of upright blackberries (including wild ones) and keeps the best berries at che perfect picking height Tipping back is not necessary with trailing varieties, but be prepareds Their canes quickly can grow up to 12 feet in | Thinning these canes to six to 12 per plant, and telling to keep them off the ground, will bring out the best in wild or cultivated varieties. Most people can recall popp en wishing they hadn't, b 5a few blackberries into their mouths, biting down and use the berries can taste too tart to eat out of hand until they haveBlackberries are loaded with anthocyanins — antioxidants that give our immune systems a wake-up call. They're also prolific—a single plant can quickly yield 20 pounds of fruit or more on some varieties, fully ripened (blackberries are ripe when they go from glossy to dull, fully ripe blackberry has a melt-in-your-mouth quality. In 1 transition that usually takes ewo to three days). A addition co tasting sour, prematurely picked blackberries have less chan half of the immunity-boosting anthocyanins found in ripe berries. Taming the Wild Ones Should you have a decent patch of wild blackberries on your land, a few simple man int techniques will maximize its best attributes. You can reduce aggravation from chiggers and snakes when summer artives if you bring order to it now. Choose the best site, Look for a healthy thicket or em ing stand that is easily accessible and not near a busy road Roadside picking is dangerous, and the berries are exposed to pollutants and dust. Dress for the job by wearing thick pants and a jacket that is unlikely to be ripped by sharp thorns, plus heavy gloves. Use pruning loppers to prune back the tips of the young, live canes (in upright wild varieties) o 6 to 8 feet if they were not tipped back in summer. Young canes of bearing age may be green or reddish brown, while older canes are dark brown to black. Canes typically die after two years or so, and in the wild these dead canes provide g cat habitat for birds and other small crit ters. However, i's a good idea to prune out the dead canes that are within easy reach to minimize the potential for disease and to make picking easier. Prane them ground level, snip the canes into 2-foot long pieces, and compost them. A lice effore will make for big +, better berries that are easier to pick, but simply creating access is all one really needs to do to make good use of a wild blackberry patch. Wild thickets can become productive, low-maintenance berry gardens ifall you do s keep their perimeter mowed Breeding Better Blackberries There are wild blackberries and dewberries (a common name for trailing, early bearing wild blackberries) native to clim from Alaska to Arizona, but only a few are good producers of flavorful berries, U iversity-level blackberry breeding work be gan in 1909, but for 300 years before that, North American gar~ deners had been selecting and replanting superior native strains, many of which crossed with brambles introduced from Europe The wild blackberries along your fencerow are not likely to be Improve productivity in partially shaded sites by removing low branches from nearby trees Sprinkle a balanced organic fertilizer over the plants’ root zones, and then blanket the ground with a 6-inch deep mulch of leaves, straw or other organic material. Also mulch he perimeter path you will use when harvest ing your crop, In spring, control the spread of your pacch by severing sprouts that emerge out of bounds, One pass with a mower (or swipe with a weed whip) will eliminate such canes, as well as weeds Practice good post-picking maincenance Afier the berries finish ripening, pinch back the tips of the longest new canes of upright varieties Fertilize and mulch the patch again Blackberries in Brief Blackberries (Rubus species) There are 237 species worldwide, including 4 zens native to North America, When to Plant: Spring or fal; spring planting preferrec Time from Planting to Good Crop: Two years for most varieties Hardiness: Zones 5 to 10. Varieties differ in their nd heat Longevity: Indefinitely when cared for properly asa perennial Pests: Although insect pests are rare, birds love ripe berries, Special Tis: Don't hesitate to use pruning loppers. te discipline vigorous canes.pure natives, but in this case, who cares? Many of the best varieties — including the heavy- bearing, thornless ‘Doyle’ vari ety —began as chance seedlings from random crosses. The best reason to work with cultivated varieties is that you want bigger, better-tasting blackberries than the wild ones in your area, without the aggra- vation of thorns. Many newer cultivated varieties are resistant tocommon diseases, but because wild blackberries can host viruses (though they exhibit no symptoms), itis wise to separate cultivated and wild blackberries, Blackberries are self-fertile, so you only need a few plants (three is good number to star with). Characteristics of the latest and greatest blackberry varieties are summarized in “Buy Better Blackberries,” below. New Cold-Hardy Blackberries In 1949, a gardener in Ashland, Va., noticed something strange going on in a wild blackberry patch—berries ripening in late summer on new canes. LG. Hillquist sent a sample to the fruit breeding station in Geneva, N.Y.,and in the 1960s breeders began using ‘Hillquise’ in their quest for newer and better blackberries. “Triple Crown’ is a thornless and flavorful favorite In 1994, Jose Lopez-Medina at the University of Arka completed a new set of crosses, and within three years the new Prime Jan’ and ‘Prime Jim’ had proven themselves capable of producing dependable crops on both new and old canes. While most blackberte ing fruit in late August, chese new primocane (first-year bear- ing) varieties begin blooming in mid to late summer, and fruic production continues well into f two months to the blackberry season in Zones 6 to 9, or they can make blackberries possible in climaces where varieties that bear on ‘older canes are oficn damaged by cold winter weather. are done bear These new varieties can add Running a Peaceful Patch If you know how to work with their natural growth habits, blackberri Invasive inclinations can be deterred by sniping out un- can be wel-behaved landscape residents, wanted new growth, or by pruning the tips of extra long canes, Periodically pruning dead canes will deter disease by allowing airflow to climinate excess moisture. Ina home arden, i easy and rewarding to train an erect vat up a pillar of arbor, like a climbing, | Buy Better Blackberries ~ “Prime Jan’ and, “Prime Jim’ Roots hardy to Zone 4 with protection, canes hardy to Zone 7; thorny upright varieties can be mowed ‘and mulched over through winter, then grown for 2 late ‘summer to fall crop. (3, 5) Plants that are certified to ‘Navajo! Widely adapted in Zones 6 to 9; upright thornless canes bear in midsummer. be free of viruses are quite affordable at $5 to $15 apiece. Here is a rundown of the best of the best in Prune to 6 feet. High rat new cultivated blackberries, ings for flavor and yield. (1) The numbers in parenthe. ses represent the nursery ‘Doyle’ Widely adapted in Zone 4 (with mulch) to 9; thorn- less trailing canes need trellis; regular feeding enhances yields. Tart ber- res good for jelly and wine making. (2) sources listed below. | AHipte Crown’ Widely adapted in Zones 5 0 9; upright thornless canes bear heavily in late summer. Prune to 6 feet. Top flavor | ratings. (1, 3,4, 8, 6) ‘Rosborough’ Zones 7 to 10; produces in early summer; well adapt- ed in hot, dry climates. Very thorny, but berries are sweet and firm. (1) Bob Wells Nursery: Lindale, Texas; 903-882-3550; mwn:bobmelisnursery.com FruitsAndBerries.com: Washington, Ind.; 812-254-2654; mw.fuitsandberries.com rose. A vigorous variety such as thorn- less “Triple Crown’ can produce 20 pounds of berries in its third year, and even more in subsequent seasons. ing thornless varieties such as Doyle’ have great landscaping poten- tial to0, especially if you want a dense barrier planting to deter two- and four-legged intruders. Either can be grown on a fence, or you can use a wire welis attached t0 post. Of course, thousands of backyard blackberry patches never see a trel- lis, yet produce bountiful crops year after year. Whether you do no more than clear away nice picking spots around a wild thicket—or install high-yielding varieties in manicured rows—blackberries are hard to beat for dependable fruit production, year after year. Stark Brothers: Louisiana, Mo.; 800-325-4180; wunw.starkbros.com Raintree Nursery: Morton, Wash.; 260-496-6400; www,aintreenursery.com "Nourse Farms, In.: Whately, Mass.; 413-665-2658; wu.noursefarms.com Boston Mountain Nurseries: Wountainburg, Ark.; 479-369-2007 wwncalcasoft.com/bostonmountain | THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING Contributing editor Barbara Pleasant tames wild || blackberries at her home in | southwest VirginiaADDITIONAL RESOURCES Recommended The Garden Primer Books by Barbara Damrosch 100 Vegetables and Garden Wisdom and Know-How by Rodale Books Where They Came From by William Woys Weaver All New Square Foot Gardening by Nel Bartholome Gardening When It Counts by Steve Solomon The Backyard Berry Book by Stella Otto Greennouse Gardener's Companion Barnyard in Your Backyard by Shane Smith by Gail Damerow Growing Your Own Vegetables The Beginner's Guide to by Carla Emery and Preserving Food at Home Lorene Edwards Forkner by Jonet Chadwick Heirloom Vegetable Gardening: The Big Book of ‘A Master Gardener's Guide to Preserving the Harvest Planting, Seed Saving, and utara History by Carol W, Costenbader by William Woys Weaver, ite Gould Container available on CD-ROM by Rose Marie Nichols McGee and Maggie Stuckey Tia erhalten by Shatoiya and Canning and Preserving Richens Pais ea Your Own Harvest by Carla Emery and Lorene Edwards Forkner Homegrown Vegetables, Fruits and Herbs: A Bountiful, Healthful Garden for Lean Times The Complete Compost hoy Jin Wilson Gardening Guide by Barbara Pleasant and Deborah L. Martin Incredible Vegetables from Sel-Watering Containers by Edward C. Smith Edible Landscaping by Rosalind Creasy secscapiag, wih Frat by Lee Reich Four-Season Harvest ty Eliot Coleman The Organic Farming Manual by Ann Larkin Hansen Garden Insects of North America by Whitney Cranshaw Root Cellaring by Mike and Nancy Bubel You can order many of these great books online at www. MatherEarthNews.comyShopping. ee ds Seed Sowing and Saving by Carole B. Turner ‘Small-Scale Grain Raising by Gene Logsdon Starter Vegetable Gardens by Barbara Pleasant Storey’s Guide to Raising Chickens by Gail Damerow Uncommon Frits for Every Garden by Lee Reich The Winter Harvest Handbook by Eliot Coleman Online Organic Gardening Advice ww MotherEarthNews.con/ Organic-Gardening Learn how to use natural methods to grow the freshest food and most productive crops, sans toxic chemicals Links to featured Organic Gardening articles, blogs, Ask Our Experts entries and the Organic Gardening Archive. www MotherEarthNews.con/ Real-Food How to find fresh, seasonal, sustainable foods, plus delicious recipes. Links to {featured Real Food articles, blogs, Ask Our Experts entries and the Real Food Archive. wivw.MotherEarthNews.com/ ‘Modem-Homesteading Lear priceless, practical skills for both urban and rural self-sufficiency. Read Modern Homesteading articles, blogs, Ask Our Experts entries and the Modern Homesteading Archive worw.MotherEarthNews.com/ Compost-And-Fertile-Soil- Building-For-Belter Garden- Soil.aspx Tons of information about healthy soil, compost and organic fertilizer. www. HerbCompanion.com Information on growing cooking and healing with herbs, Online Tools swwon MotherEarthNows.com/ Garden-Planner Design your best garden ever withthe help of our easy-to use, interactive Vegetable Garden Planner. Ty it free for 30 days! www. MotherEarthNews.con/ Custom-Seed-Search Accustom search tool to help you locate sources for the fruit and vegetable varieties you want to grow. ww MotherEarthNews.com/ Directories Explore new seed and plant companies to find local, ‘organic and heirloom seeds and plants, aw MotherEarthNews.com/ What-To-Plant Our regional planting guides take the guesswork out of ‘garden planning by telling you what to plant when www MotherEarthNews.com/ Organic-Gardening-Products ‘Accustom search tool to help you easily find advice about organic methods of pest contral and locate the products you need. 0 Morar.Other Useful Websites Ample Harvest vnmuvampleharvest og Extra produce? This site helps home gardeners donate extra food to a local food panty. Local Harvest www locatharvest.org An excellent directory to help you locate local food and farmers, Woods End Laboratories wiv woodsend.org Offers information about soil uality and provides soil: testing services. Seed Sources The following seed companies have atleast 25 percent organic offerings, Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds 417-924-8917 wurw.rareseeds.com Fedco Seeds 207-873-7333 wunu.fedcoseeds.com Filaree Garlic Farm 509-422-6940 wae-filareefarm.com Horizon Herts 541-846-6704 wanw horizonherbs.com High Mowing Organic Seeds 802-472-6174 www highmowingseeds.com Irish Eyes Garden Seeds 509-964-7000 ww irish-eyes.com Johnny’s Selected Seeds 877-564-6697 www johnnyseeds.com Mountain Valley Growers 969-338-2775 www. mountainvalley _growers.com Natural Gardening Co. 707-766-9303 wow naturalgardening.com Renee's Garden Seeds 831-335-7228 wnw.reneesgarden.corm Seed Savers Exchange 963-382-5990 wwwnseedsavers.org Seeds of Change 800-957-3337 www. seedsofchange.com Seeds Trust 928-649-3315 www. seedstrust.com Select Seeds 800-684.0395 wwselectseeds.com Southern Exposure Seed Exchange 540.894.9480 wn: southernexposure.com TomatoFest Heirloom Tomato Seeds 707-937-1218 ww. tomatofest.com Turtle Tree Seed 518-329-3037 mw turtletreeseed.com Underwood Gardens. 888-878-5247 ww. underwoodgardens.com Gardening Tools & Supplies Arbico Organics 800-827-2847 swww.arbico-orgenies.com 26 THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO ORGANIC GARDENING Earth Tools 502-484-3988 wimearthtoolsbes.com Florian Tools 800-275-3618 ww. floriantools.com Gardener's Supply Co. 888-833-1412 wien gardeners. com Green Heron Tools, 484.294.2278 www greenherontools.com Lee Valley Tools 800-267-8735 www. leevailey.com Peaceful Valley Farm & Garden Supply 888-784-1722 wwe groworganic.com Red Pig Garden Tools 503-663-9404 win. redpigtools.com Rogue Hoe 417-962-5091 wwe roguehoe.com Greenhouses Garden Greenhouse Kits and Sup| \wwa: MotherEarthNews. com’ Garden-Greenhouse-Kits- ‘Supplies.aspx Information and Advice on Home Garden Greenhouses www. MotherEarthNews.com/ Home-Garden-Greenhouse- Advice.aspx Food Preservation Lehman's 888-438-5346 von lehmans.com Carries a wide variety of supplies for canning and preserving foods National Center for Home Food Preservation wunw.uga.eduinchip Offers current research-based recommendations for food- preservation methods. Pressure Cooker Outlet 800-251-8824 ww. pressurecooker- outlet.com Features name-brand pressure cookers and pressure canners, and also carries parts for pressure cookers. Organic Farming & Market Growing Farmers Market Coalition von farmersmarket coalition.or Offers lots of great news anc resources for market farmers, Growing for Market wwwgrowingformarket.com ‘An excellent publication for small-scale, ecological farmers who grow for local markets. National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service (ATTRA) worwattra.org The latest information on sustainable agriculture and organic farming, including news, events and funding ‘opportunities. Organic Farming Research Foundation, waw.ofrfo1g ‘Learn about organic-farming practices and stay up to date on the issues and policies surrounding organic agriculture, ‘Sustainable Agriculture Research ‘and Education (SARE) wwesare.org A leading source of advice and resources on sustainable agriculture practices.Johnny's elected Seeds = __ An employee-owned company Your Single, most Reliable Source. ic Onion Plants ‘Jade’ Round Pe Green Bush Bean s BA Salt and Pepper ‘Zohar’ Ft) Traviata’ (F1) Pickling Cucumber Single Stem Sunflower Eggplant Varieties that perform Information to help you grow Tools to increase efficiencies Supplies to improve your yields At Johnny's it’s all about providing Superior Products, Information, and Service. We are with you every step of the way. 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