Share my passion for all things gardening!
I love learning new things, but I’m not so happy to learn the following tidbit. Pillbugs aren’t quite as benevolent as they’d like us to believe. Darn. For years, I’ve known that pillbugs are benign critters that primarily feed on decomposing organic matter. So they play a useful role in building soil fertility. However, I now know there’s a Dr. […]
Read more
I recently wrote a post on Growing apples organically, but wanted to do a follow-up today. I get a lot of questions from readers about how to do this, so this post should help. Last week, we decided it was high time we thinned and covered our young apples. The covers help protect them from the apple codling moth, which […]
Read more
What’s bugging you? Chances are, there are a few insect pests in your garden that are getting the better of you. In today’s column, I discuss my top 5 insect pests and organic insect control. Here’s a link to it, in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Pests can be thwarted naturally. (or you can read my column lower in this […]
Read more
This apple tree probably looks like it has a horrible case of powdery mildew. I’m happy to report it doesn’t! What you’re seeing are leaves that have been sprayed with kaolin clay. My husband, Bill, and I have been growing apples organically for several years now. This is one of the tools in our arsenal. Our goal is to keep the […]
Read more
I have to admit it. Watching the solitary bees coming and going from our insect hotel is addicting! We built ours last spring and some insects had found it. But it wasn’t the hub of activity that it is this year. That’s because the eggs that the Mason bees laid last year are now hatching. The females are busily laying […]
Read more
This year, I’m all about attracting pollinators to my garden. And I’m hoping that’s on your to-do list as well. In my column today, I discuss why this is more important than ever. I also talk about the different types of pollinators that you want to attract and it’s not just bees! Other critters that serve as pollinators include butterflies, […]
Read more
I just finished planting potatoes and thought you’d be interested in seeing my latest video on how to do it. This year, we’re growing ‘Viking Purple’ and ‘Yukon Gold’. I’ve grown and enjoyed ‘Yukon Gold’ for many years and have only grown ‘Viking Purple’ for 2 seasons so far but we’re very impressed with it. Despite the name, the flesh […]
Read more
As gardeners, we aim to thwart insects and plant diseases, right? Well, one of the best tools we have is vegetable crop rotation. I know, crop rotation sounds like something farmers do, not small-time gardeners. And yet it makes a huge difference no matter what size your garden is. Why is it so important? Certain insects and diseases are common […]
Read moreHere’s a link to today’s column in The Spokesman-Review: Traps, sprays help keep fruit free of pests. It’s about a topic that is near and dear to my heart: organic orchard practices. Cherries, apples and pears are the most challenging tree fruits to grow. So those are the ones I focused on. I also pointed out how my husband, Bill, […]
Read moreThe other day, I noticed this leaf damage on one of my artichoke plants. I immediately suspected slugs, and quickly confirmed this when I saw a bit of a slime trail on the underside of the leaf. Grrr! In the past, I’ve used organic slug bait or handpicked them whenever I found any. And when I give talks about vegetable […]
Read more