What’s the Best Mulch? If done correctly, the best mulch is the plants themselves, followed by straw. Using Plant Foliage as a Living Mulch It’s possible to let plants’ foliage aid their roots by casting enough shade to keep the soil moisture that’s necessary for themselves and all of the Read more…
He called me on a Wednesday, and I could hear the tears and fear in his voice as soon as he spoke. We’d been in regular touch about his recent health issues and doctor visits. I’d been concerned that it was something a little serious. I had no idea it Read more…
Contrasting Alliums Two of our alliums (the onion family) give us contrasting stories about mulch: Onions and Garlic Onions Some old-timey gardeners will tell you to never mulch onions, claiming it will spoil the crop. Onions, however, are one of the garden’s thirstiest crops and do quite poorly in dry Read more…
The Biggest, Best Green-Thumbed Gardening Secrets to Giving Your Plants the Right Amount of Water You may be wondering: Do I really even need to water? Aren’t there gardeners who rarely, if ever, water? We’ve discussed how garden plants need about an inch of water per week. However, not many Read more…
Just as Easy but Twice as Useful This is my favorite method for siting a garden. It’s more precise but not any more difficult than any of the other methods and has many handy uses. The small amount of preparation is very user-friendly and can be accomplished in just a few Read more…
Three More Easy Ways Observe and Record Start observing the place you think would be good for a garden for how much sun it gets. Note when the sun first hits every piece of your spot, as opposed to just starting to hit a part of it. Clearly being able Read more…
Two Easy Ways The Simplest, Easiest Way: A Large Open Space Knowing the cardinal directions on your property, you can expedite this entire process by finding a very large, completely open spot on your land—a place with no trees, buildings, or any other obstructions to the northeast, east, southeast, south, Read more…
Why Northeast and Northwest Instead of Just East and West? On the equinoxes—March 19, 20, or 21 and September 21, 22, or 23, depending on the year—the sun rises due east and sets due west. However, because of the tilt of the earth on its axis, from the spring equinox Read more…
What if You Find You Don’t Have Enough Sun? So what if, after trying all of your best spots, you find that there just isn’t a spot on your property that gets enough sun? Do what you can, but don’t be too hard on yourself. Lack of sunlight is by Read more…
Using a Compass to Find Your Cardinal and Ordinal Directions This is the most basic way to use a compass. If you’re orienteering, there is a whole other set of ways to use one, but, if you just want to know your basic directions, this will work. Set your compass Read more…