Growing Bee Balm by Joyce D'Agostino

In the last couple of years, I had focused most of my garden space to vegetables, however this year I decided to once again dedicate some of the space to flowers. Adding flowers to your landscape not only brings their beauty and fragrance, but they can also attract important pollinators.

There is such a wide variety to choose from, I decided to grow some that not only have flowers, but fragrant foliage as well. In addition to lavender and hyssop, I also grew Bee Balm (Monarda hybrida), also known as Lambada. The showy flower heads come in red, pinks and lavender and their tubular flowers hold nectar that attracts butterflies, bees and hummingbirds.

Water: Where and When You Want It! by Dave Moland

Tomatillos, Part II By Amy Norwood

This is a sequel to the excellent post on growing tomatillos by Elizabeth Buckingham dated September 6, 2011,  a post I wish I had read before I planted my single tomatillo this spring.  Elizabeth warned us about single tomatillo plantings.

Tomatillo Plant

As of this writing , my tomatillo plant is a beauty, big and full with lots of wonderful flowers that have so far not started a single fruit.  I recently grew concerned about the lack of fruit and tried to find an explanation.  I was surprised to learn that there’s little consistent and definitive information on the subject of growing tomatillos on the Internet, in print, and in the knowledge base of seasoned gardeners.  What I concluded from my research is that, to maximize your odds for producing a tomatillo crop, you should plant two plants of the same variety next to each other.   I’m an amateur gardener, so I hesitate to offer what sounds like an authoritative an explanation for this, but here goes:  tomatillos and tomatoes are in the same family and are often discussed interchangeably in the literature.  But, unlike most tomatoes, tomatillos don’t self-pollinate.  Two plants are required to make fruit. 

How to Begin a Garden Project by Kate Sullivan-Sisneros

Author's Garden After Planning

If you have never done any gardening before or have never seen it done, getting started can be a little intimidating.  Where does one begin? 

Step 1:  Begin by asking yourself a few questions: 
What do I want to accomplish?  Do I want to grow vegetables, herbs, flowers, shrubs or some combination of all of these?
How much time am I going to have to tend the garden once it is planted?  What is my budget?  Am I willing or able to irrigate my new plantings?  Am I limited by space such as living in an apartment or patio home?  Answering these questions will provide you with some direction.

Step 2:  What do you like?  When I got started, I began by looking at pictures of different kinds of gardens.  What was I drawn to?  What are you drawn to?  Everybody’s tastes are different.  The library and internet are great sources for the budding gardener.  “Lawnscaping” by Scotts was one of the first gardening books I bought at Home Depot. 

Creating a Backyard Pond by Rich Haas

Have you dreamed of having a second home where you can privately enjoy a gentle waterfall and babbling brook leading to a cool, relaxing pond?  The trouble is, most of these great places are many miles away and most often have been turned into multi-million-dollar resorts! 

Why not create that paradise at your existing home?  It is easier than you think!

A little history: I enjoy gardening.  I turned about 95% of my property into a perennial garden.  That is why I signed up to be a Colorado Master Gardener. Then I happened to go on a “Pond Tour”.  I realized then that this was what I was searching for in a second home!  Why incur the trouble and recurring expense (2nd mortgage?) of a faraway destination when you can bring it right to your home?

All it takes a little planning, effort and some expense but think about how wonderful it will be to enjoy a cool, peaceful waterfall at a moment’s notice simply by walking out your back door! 

Hardy Succulents: Tough Plants for every Climate; Book Review by Pam Macy

 “Succulents are the drama queens of contemporary gardens,” states the back cover of this compelling book.  Hardy Succulents: Tough Plants for every Climate, by Gwen Moore Kelaidis, Storey Publishing, 2008, is a stunningly beautiful paperback, containing an abundance of close-up color photos and descriptions of succulents of every kind. After recently viewing Ms. Kelaidis’ garden during the 2012 Colorado Master Gardeners’ tour in Denver, and gradually realizing I was witnessing an experienced garden talent in action; there was no doubt I needed to purchase her book.  The array of succulents in her garden, both in-ground and in countless containers, was a visual feast.

This book is particularly useful for Colorado gardeners, since Ms. Keladis resides and gardens here (zone 5b). It references what will grow elsewhere but offers specific recommendations about what is most suitable for our western conditions. Reading the text often feels like talking to a good friend who is sharing her knowledge because she wants her friend to enjoy these plants just as much as she does, and to insure her success in growing them.  Ms. Kelaidis was a joy to meet; when I asked her about propagating hens and chicks, before I knew it, she had retrieved several starter pots of hens and chicks, and gave them to my companions and I!

Aphids by Gail Wilson

One of the most common insect problems we suffer here on the Front Range is Aphids.  They are so very common they are sometimes called plant lice.  These small, soft-bodied, pear-shaped insects are generally less than 1/8" long.  Green or black is the most common color but they can also be found in a variety of other colors as well. 

The insects survive by sucking the sap and juices from the soft, new growth, causing injury to plants.  These injuries damage the plant's ability to properly process food and causes the plant to lose vigor, wilt, distort or show spots.  Aphids can also transmit viral diseases from unhealthy plants to healthy plants.

Garden Tool Care at Its Finest: Oiled Sand by Gail Wilson

I have spent a fair amount of money on my garden tools and I work hard at keeping them in good shape.  One of the ways I do that is oiled sand and I would like to share that secret with you.

I use a 3-gallon plastic bucket because I found it at a thrift store but you can use a 5-gallon bucket or even a large trash can filled only about a third full.

To create the oiled sand I used general all-purpose sand and the most inexpensive motor oil I could find at the local big box store.  You can use mineral oil or vegetable oil but for me the motor oil was less expensive.   The success of the project is not dependent on the quality of the oil.    A 5-gallon bucket requires approximately ½ gallon of oil so for my 3-gallon bucket I used a total of about 1 and 1/3 quarts.  That is enough oil to moisten the sand but not enough to create a drippy mess.

Will my Green Bell Peppers turn Yellow? by Gail Wilson

Have trouble figuring out when peppers are ripe and ready for harvest? Here's a few tips to help.

First things first, different pepper plants produce different colored peppers so it is imperative that you know what type of peppers you’ve planted.

You can harvest peppers at any size desired, however, green bell varieties are usually harvested when they are fully grown, about 3-4 inches.  When fruit is mature, they break easily from the plant but less damage occurs if the fruit is cut from the plant.

Crops in Pots: Lessons from the Demonstration Garden by Patti O'Neal

Space – or the lack of it – often prevents people from even considering growing their own food.  But that need not be the case.  What you may perceive as a lack of space may be an opportunity to “think outside of the box” and enable you to grow at the very least, your two or three favorite edibles to use in your kitchen.  And it is not too late to begin even this year!

Container gardening with edibles is not only easy, but brings gardening to apartment dwellers, or those living in patio homes, condos or on small lots or even in community living situations.  About the only limiting factor is the orientation to the sun.  Vegetables, with very few exceptions, require minimum of 6 hours of full sun a day.  Obviously, some will plants will perform better with the optimum 8 hours, but 6 are doable and spring and fall crops of greens can even perform well with 4.

Grafted Tomatoes – REALLY? by Barb Klett

So why graft a plant that has only one season?  Isn’t that a lot of work for a little pay off? And expensive to boot?  Huh?

Grafted Tomatoes

REALLY, there are reasons for grafting tomatoes – the same reasons we graft other plants.  The rootstock is sturdy, disease resistant, stress tolerant, and/or they increase productivity.  The grafted part is said to have better qualities than the original rootstock, such as flavor or size.

Tomato grafting has been used in Asia and Europe for some time (since the 1960s) and is currently used in Mediterranean areas, while it is gaining popularity in the US too.  There are several reasons the grafted tomatoes are becoming so popular.  The rootstock is chosen to help deal with many kinds of abiotic issues including salinity, drought/flood and temperature extremes.  The rootstock selection can be effective against many fungus, bacteria, virus, and even nematodes and may help reduce use of soil fumigants.

Beckon the Butterflies! by Donna Duffy

A couple of days ago, I was standing in the yard with my 6-year old neighbor, watching a butterfly flit around the garden. She was thoroughly entranced until the butterfly flew away. With a heavy sigh, she shook her head and said, “I just wish they would stay a little longer.”

It’s true, butterflies often seem to be just passing through our yards. You can prolong their visit by changing some of your gardening practices to provide them the food and shelter they are seeking.