Holiday Gift Guide for the GIY Gardener

With the holiday season now in full launch, and cyber Monday right around the corner I thought it would be nice to share some unique gift ideas for the gardener in your life....or if you are the gardener share this link to inspire  loved ones with gift ideas for your GIY garden !!

7 Piece All-In-One Garden Tool Set

This All-In-One Garden tool set  is the perfect gift for  the garden enthusiat in your life.  This is a practical  set includes a sturdy steel frame folding stool with detachable polyester storage tote  to stash your tools.  The tote even has a clever pocket for your mobile device The variety of useful wooden handled tools will make weeding and planting a cinch.   

At $22.99 you can grab  this great gift here: http://amzn.to/2geM3wp

COMMANDO 25'Ft Expandable Hose

This 25ft. expandable garden hose is lightweight and super strong with solid brass fittings.  The hose comes with a spray nozzle and rubber hose washer.  Gardener love how convenient it is to store when after use in their garden.  

Pick up this garden goodie for  $27.99 here: http://amzn.to/2gwjYmD

Hutzler Garden Colander 

Your garden guru will love how easy it is to collect and rinse vegetables from their GIY garden with this convenient tote.  Harvest time is super simple with the garden colander which  is BPA free and dishwaher safe.  

Get this unique garden gift for $28.99 here:  http://amzn.to/2f0GGDj  

Plant Theater Funky Veg Kit 

This is perfect for the adventurous gardener you may be shopping for.  Everything they will need to grow 5 unique varieties of veggies.  This seed collection includes Purple Carrots, Red Brussell Sprouts, Stripy Tomatoes, Yellow Zuchinni and Multi Coloured Swiss Chard.  

You can add drama to a loved ones garden journey for $18.99 here: http://amzn.to/2fM5IVI

Fiskars Softouch Weeder

This extra-large, ergonomically designed handle with a Softgrip is perfect for removing 

dandelions, thistles and other pesky invasive weeds.  

Pick up  this great garden gift for 6.99 here: http://amzn.to/2gwtiXX

What to Grow To Support Healthy Lifestyle with Lower Blood Pressure - Garden For Health Podcast

Garden For Health Podcast offers listeners information about adding edible plants to your GIY garden that support a healthier lifestyle.  Episode 101 gives listeners ideas about what to plant and grow to support a lower blood pressure.

Show Notes:

Three Easy Herbs to Grow in Your GIY Kitchen Garden

Three Easy Herbs to  Grow This Summer

There are several reasons to start growing herbs in your kitchen garden this summer.   Herbs are not too fussy and tend to be really easy to grow.   They can be incorporated into a variety of  culinary dishes so having them on hand is extremely  convenient.   They  are perfect for  gardeners with limited growing space and container gardens. 

While there are numerous herb  to choose for incorporation into your GIY garden, today we are going to look at three easy to grow  plants. 

Parsley is a slow grower and  needs very little sun or care to do very well. If you use a lot of parsley, you may want to have several plants growing so you  will have plenty available for salads,  pestos, soups and more.   This  biannual will overwinter in temperate climates so you will be able to harvest throughout the fall and winter.     Parsley is  a good source of  Parsley is a source of flavonoid, antioxidants,  vitamin K, vitamin C, and vitamin A.  

Mint & spearmint are both very easy to grow  in the GIY kitchen garden . They are kind of like weeds once they get started which is awesome if you love mint. It is best to grow these plants in a dedicated container or separate bed as  they  will crowd out other herbs if you aren’t careful.  They do need a bit of sun but should mostly be grown in the shade.Both mint and spearmint can be used to make delicious teas.  You can use the leaves straight out of the garden or dry them for  easy storage in the pantry.   Don’t forget to add these herbs to  your homemade ice cream , fruit bowls and even throw couple into your salad for a refreshing  burst of flavor

Oregano  is super easy to grow in a sunny area of the garden.   The GIY  Kitchen gardener will find many great uses for  this  proliferative  herb.  This perinea l garden herb  is perfect for adding to home made  spaghetti sauces, pizza and  many soups or stews.    Try chopping up  a few  leaves and adding it to your biscuit dough  for an amazing breakfast treat!!    Oregano contains vitamins A, C, E, and K, as well as fiber, folate, iron, magnesium, vitamin B6, calcium, and potassium which makes it very healthy as well as delicious.

I have really enjoyed having these three fresh herbs  on hand in the garden.  I never have to run to the store  because I opened the cabinet to find  I have none available.   Also using the fresh herbs is much healthier for my family.   We are getting the full compliment of  nutrients offered by each.  You can too --Get  your GIY Kitchen garden planted to include  these three yummy herbs. 

How to Decide When to Plant Your Veggie Garden

What to Consider Before You Plant

Figuring out when to plant vegetables in your area requires a little detective work. In addition to your geographic location, you’ll need to consider a few other variables, as well. For example, the type of vegetables you plan to grow. Another factor that must be taken into consideration is how you intend to start your garden...will you use seedlings, transplants or seeds? Some seeds must be started weeks before you will actually. plant out your garden, others must be directly planted in the ground.

If you live in an area with distinct seasons, your vegetable growing season will fall loosely between your anticipated frost-free date in the spring and the first hard frost in the fall. Unless you have a crystal ball, it is next to impossible to predict these dates with absolute certainty.

Fortunately, there are some valuable online resources you can check for general guidelines. A quick online search for “frost-free date” + your geographic area should give you a good idea of when it will be safe to plant in your region.

Of course, the published frost-free date for your area doesn’t take into account unexpected late season snow storms or unseasonably cold temperatures. However, if you wait until after the expected frost-free date for your area AND for the daytime soil temperature to reach 65 degrees or warmer, you should be in good shape. If you want to warm up your soil faster, you can cover your planting beds with dark plastic sheets for several weeks prior to planting.

As you develop your garden planting timeline, think of these two important dates as virtual “bookends” around your prime vegetable growing season. However, if you start seeds indoors or protect your plants from cold temperatures with mulch, cold frames, row covers or mini-hoop houses, you can extend your growing season even further.

Don’t Ignore “Days to Maturity” for Your Selected Plants

As you’re deciding when to plant vegetables in your garden, pay close attention the “days to maturity” information noted on the seed packages or plant markers for the vegetables you’ve selected. This number, which is often expressed as a range of days, tells you how long it will take until that plant is ready to harvest.

This is important to know because some vegetables reach maturity much faster than others. For example, radishes, lettuce and baby carrots can be ready for harvest just 30 days after they are sown as seeds. On the other hand, some pumpkin varieties can take a full 120 – 160 days before they reach maturity.

The “days to maturity” for a particular vegetable variety gives you an idea of how early you need to get that plant into the ground if you want it to reach maturity before your first hard frost date.

It also tells you how late in the season you can plant certain crops. For example, you can’t wait until late summer in northern climates to plant pumpkins seeds that require 160 days to mature. On the other hand, you can plant fast-growing lettuce varieties with confidence until 30 days or so before your expected last frost date.  

Learning when to plant vegetables in your area is worth the effort. Knowing when your prime growing season begins and ends – and how you can get the most out of it – will make you a much more successful food gardener. It will help you decide which vegetables to grow and how to help those varieties thrive in your garden. Taking all these factors into consideration will provide  a great start to a prolific growing season which yields many yummy organic vegetables.

What is your projected last frost date this year.   Here in NC we just passed ours which was listed as April 1st -April 10th.  We did have several evenings with very low temperaturs so I was so glad I waited until a few days more to start planting my summer garden.

Planning Your Kitchen Herb Garden pt I

Herbs are a great group of edible plants to grow whether you're an experienced gardener or have never grown anything yourself. Herbs are generally low maintenance and a great edible plant for beginners. Not only do they smell great, but they are useful. Fresh herbs can enhance the foods you cook while adding a pleasant aroma to the area you choose to grow them. There are  several important factors  you should take into consideration  when planning your first herb garden

 Distance From Kitchen or Cooking area

The closer your herb garden is to where you cook, the more often you will go to your plants to harvest bits for your recipes. If your herbs are located too far from the kitchen  the odds are much higher that you will grab some dried herbs from the cabinet or skip the herbs altogether if you are in the middle of cooking.   The more you harvest your the aromatic herbs, the more they will grow  and the more familiar you will be with how to efficiently harvest them for cooking. 

Space and Design

 How much room do you have for your herb garden? Will it just be one window box or do you have more room? You may also enjoy a unique design. You can plant your herbs in regular pots and planters or go for something more interesting, such as a wall mounted vertical herb garden. Another area to be considered is how the plants will be arranged in the bed.  Do you want to plant the herbs in an orderly fashion or mix all of them together in your planter.

These are the first factors to be considered when planning your kitchen herb garden.   In part II we will look at how to decide what plants to grow.   

Are you planning a kitchen  herb garden?  What designs are you considering?  

Winter Hardy Veggie Garden Plants!!

Here is a look at the plants that were able to keep standing thru the  cold winter days without protecttion.  For the upcoming winter I plant to cover at least one of my beds during Dec Jan and Feb to offer a little more protection!!

Now onto the spring planting!!

Winter Survivor with a Smile

Look who made it thru the winter with a "smile" #parsleyLove #gardenLove #CLT #veggiePower pic.twitter.com/1J0bahAwW6

— Jan P (@eastCLTtweets) March 12, 2016

Home Grown Food Summit 2016

This is a great event with tons of FREE presentations during the summit!!   I am learning so much that will help me grow bigger tastier veggies this summer!   Let me know what your favorite presentation is below