Tropics Still Pushing

Tropical Influences

So has anyone noticed where the East Atlantic Tropical Waves have been forming this year? I have seen just about all pop up in a more Southern Latitude this year than normal…. But, I have also done some homework for you. Most depressions have formed lower than normal because of the Atlantic’s surface temp. Its cooler than it has been for the last 15 years, so they need to go South to pick up some warmth.  Most of the cat 4 and 5 storms that get to CONUS are born off the coast of Africa, right at the Cape Verde Islands. This year, they have been from a more southern Latitude. La Nina is alive and well, and El Nino is pushing from the West at the upper altitudes, knocking off the tops of the tropical depressions. and the Coral Beds have not bleached out like they have in a long time. So, if the Jet Stream is holding off in the Great Lakes region most of the time, and the Atlantic is cooler than it has been in a long time, and my Asters have been blooming for well over a month, and the squirrells have been like “practice” nesting for the last 5 weeks, and…. well, there is much more but I will spare you the agony of my worldly observations.

We are on a 30 year cycle here in Richmond. 15 year “mini” cycles. When the Jet Stream holds like it has been, then it is almost like the refrigerator door being shut all the time, keeping in the cold, letting it build up…. Its getting ready to open… and when it does, there will be a lot of cold air pouring down to us every 7 days for a good while. We will see the same weather patterns every week, on the day for about 12 weeks.  Wouldn’t it be cool, if I were right on this? Moisture patterns will continue to form from the South East and cold dry air from the North West. Lets see, cold, dry Canadian air meeting cold, wet  Southern climate…. Um, carry the 2, multiply x pi, and we get kids home from school a lot, so stock up on your snacks, line up a babysitter, get your firewood, and don’t panic. It will only be here for about the next 4 years, then we are back to 68 degrees on Christmas…

So the big picture is this. You will see things bloom, germinate, die off for good, and a lot more damage than in recent years. Stop paying attention to the media about fertilizing, and do your own homework. Get your Fall feedings in on time. Prune and structure like you are supposed to, or you will lose things. Strange things will appear that will baffle you if you have not been paying attention. Bugs will be confused and caught in the freeze without allowing for their mating time, but other bugs we haven’t seen in a while will try to get in to your comfy home, unless the limbs growing over the power lines that no one paid attention to will get you.. See, that’s one thing that Mother Nature will do to control her bugs and creepy rodents that are getting over abundant. Look up, the sky is falling. The moisture will continue, and I think I read somewhere that 1″ of rain could be 1′ of snow at 32 degrees at sea level, if the ground is at 32 degrees also….. Yeah, got my 2 Buck Chuck stocked up, fire wood this week, candles, flashlights, canned goods, and a little bit of other stuff to get me through the Winter…  We’ll see.

Can We Talk About The Bay?

Hey all, just want to jump up on my soapbox a minute. Fall is coming, most are eager to get lawns re-established, over seeded, or just plain fed. This is great, especially since the “organic” industry is actually realizing that a healthy lawn produces great riparian assets, as well as absorbs harmful things a-floatin’ around the air we breathe. But lets get a handle on some things.  If you aren’t hungry, do you eat? If you are hungry, do you decide when and what to eat? And if you have a crazy craving for something, do you seek it out? OK, our lawns can’t just up and go to the store when it’s hungry, or turn on the spigot when it’s thirsty. So lets get some “Lawn Menu” of sorts in order, so I can eat my seafood in peace.

Lawns in Va. do best when they are actually hungry. You feed, they respond, and make us the envy of the neighborhood. But just how important is the extra “overage” of fertilizer? Lawns are getting ready to wake up again here in a couple of weeks. We have lost over an hour daylight so far, and by mid September, we will be minus two. Temps will still be warm in the day, but not as much direct sunlight, and the angle will be severely changed. Night time temps will be sometimes 20 degrees less than daytime. Your grass is hungry. So what have we done to prepare the “menu” for our beloved lawn?

The previous post we mentioned lime… Here in central Va. you more than likely have acidic soil, yeah I know, there are a few random pockets throughout the state that are alkaline, so there is the importance of getting your soil tested. But either way, rain is acidic, and we have had our share of toad chokers this Summer. Getting your soil pH close to neutral will help your lawn feed the nutrients it mostly deserves. A lot of folks think lime greens up a lawn. No, it doesn’t. There is always trace nutrients locked up in the soil, and when the pH is out of wack, the lawn does not feed.  Apply some lime, and wow, greens up pretty good, especially if you have been recycling your clippings, full of Nitrogen. So, we can create a menu option for our lawn to get it ready for the next 3 months of feeding, and it will take everything we throw at it.

Now for the Bay part. If your pH is out of wack, and the media is telling you to feed, feed, feed, and, then feed some more, and you have not set the table (correct pH ), then you are killing my beloved crabs. It’s not the cows…. It’s us. There are several websites you can go to that monitor the NPK loads in streams, rivers, and our Bay. You should see the numbers climb in the fall, it’s astounding, but I guess cows only poop in the fall. Yeah, like its their fault. We can clean our watershed drastically, by just realizing how a lawn grows. Tall Fescue, cool season grass right? So, we would feed in the cool season. Bermuda’s and Zoysia, warm season grass, so feed in the warm months before it goes dormant for Winter. Wow, what was that? If I want Bermuda, I would feed in the Summer? Wait, If I want Tall fescue, feed in the Fall………. Wait, something’s ticking in the old bean here… If I feed my Fescue lawn in, I dunno, say July, when the Summer feed with the bug killer in it comes out, then, I might just promote that dreaded creeping brown in the Winter Bermuda in my TF lawn. Yeah, but they make that stuff to kill out the Bermuda, right? No, never look at the label, you know, the part that says you can’t apply if the temp will reach 85 degrees…. What the heck? Yeah, now there goes my oysters…

Come on. Ask any Extension Agent in your area. Do what they say, forget the guy next door. Soil prep, oxygen, watering properly, feeding at the right time, pH corrections, sharp mower blades, and patience… Nice green lawn. There, I said it. Feel much better now. Preaching this is sometimes hard, but I have a lot of Karma to burn off. Ma Nature is talking to us, and not everyone is listening.

Thanks for visiting my site.

Lawn Readiness in Va. – August

Its time folks. Time to start re-evaluating the sad times you have in cultivating a lawn in Zone 7a. If you have a great stand of grass, this will bore you. If you don’t, then this may help you, unless you just have to do what the media tells you. Maybe this will dispel the myths of More is better.

NOTE 1 -     It’s August, Crabgrass and Bermuda are on the prowl. Typically Crabgrass will drop seed around Aug. 12th. So, if you have a bagger, then start bagging the “lawn” now, for about the next 3 weeks. DO NOT APPLY ANYMORE FERTILIZER!. August is your mechanical maintence month. Typically, the Crabgrass that drops seed now, will overwinter, and come up in March. It will be hardy, and it will be hungry. That will be an issue we discuss in, well, March. Right now, the more you bag, the less you will have to overcome in the Spring. So lets get rid of some problems now. Also, Crabgrass and Bermuda, are indicator plantsof compacted soil, so this month, I would core aerate and/or apply pelletized gypsum on the lawn area.

Note 2  -    But….First we need to assimilate the time frame for things to happen. Lets say you are going to overseed in September. This will be accompanied with a feeding of either a Starter fertilizer with an N-P-K of about 20-27-5, or a good dose of 10-10-10. For the seed to germinate properly, there should be good seed-to-soil contact with warm days and cool nights, with some daily dampness. If you can accomplish this, you will see sprigs in about 13 days. So don’t let the next note scare you, but 13 days minus 7 dead days minus 7 mechanical days puts you around August 20th to start, I’ll  ’splain the math throughout this blog…

Note 3 -    At your start date, you need to apply a nonselective herbicide to your lawn, Yep, if it’s green, it’s dead type, like Round-up. See, you can plant 7 days later with this product, but you won’t. Then you need to get up as much dead material as possible. Round-up does not kill seed, so there will be things trying to pop up from time to time, but it will be manageable.

Note 4 -    Now, how about plug aerating? Do it after clearing your debris, apply the gypsum if you want, and while you are at it, apply your pelleted lime as well.. Lime the season before you feed and before the lawn wakes up in the Spring, so again in say late January. Lawn looks pretty crappy now right? OK, normally people don’t do this, but I would apply some sort of amendment on the bare areas now. Shredded Oak leaves are perfect. or some store bought lawn soil, but just enough to cover the old soil make-up. Now wait.

Note 5 -    OK, Mid September is here. (Pretend, OK?). The amendment, gypsum, and lime have done their thing. Your newly planted “soil” is at the peak of readiness. Your “plugs” have healed for the most part. Time to get the lawn planted. Apply your choice of the above mentioned fertilizers at the recommended rate on the bag. More is not better. Only one. Not both..Do Not Apply Any Fertilizer With A Weed Control Or Pre-emergent! Its all hogwash… There, you’ve been told… Apply the seed at the recommended rate on the bag as well. Turn off irrigation. All you want for the next 10 to 15 days is damp, maybe twice a day if it gets hot. Afteryou see the sprigs come up, then set the irrigation, or run your sprinkler, every other day… Hear me? You want at least 1 1/2 inches of water per week. Not every day, but every other day, deeper. You want to basically, leach the fertilizer down into your properly prepared soil bed, so the roots chase the food. See? Deeper roots, better tops. Water in the morning only so high school biology takes over.

Note 6 -    Do not apply any weed killers at this time. Yeah, your gonna see some things pop up, but either pull them or we can take care of in October. Remember to take the bagger off, you are going to be re-cycling (mulching) until mid October. Do not feed anymore until mid to late October, at which time we will discuss “Winterizers“, completely different animals. You are about to really impress yourself on this….

See you in September.

Watch the Critters. I Am, and They’re Scaring Me!

Anyone paying attention to the critters and out-of-season blooming plants? Whaddya think about Phenology? I kinda think we are in for it this Winter in Richmond, and all points north. Squirrels are wrecking the trees already. ALL my peaches are gone, as well as Elderberries, and now they are stripping my Red Twig Dogwoods. My Asters are blooming, and my Fire Power Nandinas are turning Copper already. Uh-oh, remember last February? Squirrels were literally ripping into houses, and weeds were kinda behind schedule. Then, 10 inches of snow in early March. We are on the cusp of the 25 to 30 yr bad winter scale. I’m getting my firewood very soon. Nope, not waiting. What about Atlantic temps? Still below last 15 yr average, no tropical weather so far, OK, one depression in what, late April? All the bugs came about at the same time frame. They know, come out, mate, lay eggs, die. Woohoo! Kinda like failing 4th grade… Ya got rooked… The Farmers Almanac has been famous forever on their predictions. I mostly rely on anyone over 70, to let me know. They know the year, month, date, what day it was, and the most believable ones, know what time the big storms hit. (That’s the ones you take care of). Pay attention folks, I think it will be a quick, early Fall, followed by long, cold and to some (mostly parents of school age kids), miserable winter. This doesn’t mean not to study for Winter Exams, but, well you startwatching Mother Nature yourself. Kinda has me nervous so far. My employer usually listens to me on these things. We get the bust on everyone because the local weather folks will miss certain things. March 2nd was a “dusting” with maybe 2-3 inches. We got down all winter gear and products on Feb 28th, all gone by the 4th. Ya kinda have to respect Mother Nature. She’s talking to us, and some ain’t listening. Maybe I’ll look at a Generac for my home… No, have two fireplaces, and parents have the generator. We will survive. Freezing a lot of garden veggies, which I will have to use for bartering to the parents. Collecting pinecones , twigs, and fatwood. Warmth, food, company, something good to read, and collecting 2 Buck Chuck for emergency use, also a bartering tool. Next few years the whoohoos will be crying Nuclear Winter to us because of the temps….Maybe the sky IS falling. Maybe its the Southern Oscillation, you know, El Nino and La Nina misbehaving. I dunno, you watch. Make your own opinion.

Again, congrats to Boondoogle, Australia for not allowing the sale of or transportation of bottled water in or through their township. First place in the world to say no… Who’s next?

Nuttin’ but pics, Nuttin’ to say right now..

OK. Bottled Water and Green Roof Blogs Combined. Stop Nagging Me.

     OK, here goes. Since I first published these two blogs about 2 years ago, I can’t get any peace. Mostly because I took them down for all the comments and e-mails and because I don’t have time to answer all of you. There is no need to e-mail me, because about 95 % of the comments were positive accolades with wanting more. They are just to get you to think about sustainability and what we are doing to Ma Nature and how we can reverse some things, quickly…

     Bottled Water (or, Why I can’t water my veggies in August)

If you think about what the polar Ice Caps use was for, then this will make some sense. How many aisles are dedicated to bottled water in any grocery store? How many grocery stores in your city? State? In the US? Not even talking world wide now. That’s a lot of cubic feet of water. The Polar Ice Caps are melting at an alarming rate, or should we say, dissolving? Salt does not freeze, but huge land masses falling into the sea will raise the sea level a good bit. Water is not sustainable. We do not manufacture water. We harvest it. Get it? The water we have on Earth, was already here. It does not go away. It goes up, then it comes down, then gets filtered in some way through natural processes, then back up, and, well you should see this now. The very water you are drinking now, could contain the very molecules of water that Moses parted, or even what was flowing through a prehistoric canyon, or that seeped through the leak in your backyard pool last year. Nevertheless, we do not manufacture water. Atlanta, was it, that just a while ago lost a very important water supply? Lake Meade, I think? I don’t know, there were so many over the years. If you wring out a sponge, it is semi dry, right? Until you re-wet it again.  I say we should release the water back into the planet, and let it do it’s thing. It is the giver of life, and we kinda need it to survive, not only to drink, but to help our crops grow so we can eat, as well as our livestock watering. Yeah, I know, your towns water smells and tastes bad. OK, consider this, more water in the Earth, can properly filter out the contaminates, such as all the prescription pills sent down the toilet at an alarming rate. If the Viagra starts showing up in the public drinking water, I bet there will be a whole lot more of you either complaining, or just smiling. And we know who will be who. I’m sure that since we caused the Dust Bowl of the early 30’s, and we corrected it in the same decade, without all the techno bull we have today, I would like to think we can reverse this water shortage we have now. Oh yea, don’t forget to ante up the millions of cases we have stockpiled underground in case of an emergency. Well, I think this qualifies as such. It’s not leaking out into space folks, Its still here, but someone needs to make a buck off it.

 

    Green Roofs vs. White Roofs (or, What have we done?)

OK, now lets examine this a little bit. Now we think we had a good idea, to plant vegetation on roof tops, to, now let me remember here, either to absorb noxious fumes, or promote biological respiration/transpiration in big cities, or was it just because they were pretty? Now we are finding that they do absolutely no good, and may have backfired in a peculiar way. First, the not so bad issue. Now we have to feed them. Now the NPK we have to throw at them is flowing down the downspouts right into the sewer, and into our rivers. Wow, seen the algae blooms causing the dead waterways? Damn cows! Like its the cows, come on. Wait, just unbottle a few million gallons of water, dump it in the river, and we’ll be OK, right? OK, now the uncontrollable blister. Ever hear about Coral Bleaching?Usually you can tell where the major Hurricanes will come from this year, just by educating yourself on this phenomenon. Coral beds that bleach out either in the Caribbean, or around the Cape Verde Islands, will generate more tropical events. How’s that? Let’s see the simple logic here, then, again, the Polar Ice Caps will make sense to you, and you will dump out your bottled water. White reflects solar heat. Green, black, blue, all absorb thermal energy. OK, if the coral is bleaching, it is reflecting thermals up to the surface of the bluish-green surface of the ocean, where constant barrage of tropical waves are constantly pushing off the coast of Africa, every couple of days, then something is going to happen. Now if the conditions are right, and they will be, then rotation occurs, moisture develops, and there you go, cyclonic activity is born. Then, it gets a name, and we nervously watch it waver across the sea, until it hits our coastline, where we suffer greatly in damages and lives, BUT there is a good side to this too. We have bottled water to save us! Now, getting back to the roof thing. The Polar Ice Caps were supposed to reflect, not absorb, these thermals. Most tennis players wear white? I wonder why. Why didn’t we think to have white roofs? Give the Caps a little help.  The world is getting a little warmer each year now.  We can reverse this as well.

There, that’s most of the way the last blogs were. I don’t think the whole writings need to appear again, because if you don’t at least think a little about these subjects, then there is no need for me to be keeping this headache.  One last bit. I was noticing a kid the other day, pouring out water from a store bought water retention apparatus (bottle of water) and his mom yells,” Stop wasting that water!” Now just where did she think it was going? Outer space, or when it dries up, well it’s just all gone? But the water in the dishwasher, washing machine, or the car wash is not being wasted? Ow…. My head!

So, What Now?

     Wow. Are we feeding anyone yet? Are you harvesting so much you are taking produce to work to give to your co-horts? Are you trading with the neighbors or family? Wait… Did we say “produce?” A tomato is not produce, is it? But when is the amount of veggies and fruits considered to be called,  produce?  I mean, are we actually producing, produce?  Man, were farming now!  Let’s go over a few items on ways to keep the produce, producing on a production level, so as not to spoil the produce we are trying to produce. Hate that word now, don’t you? Did that to get your mind off the weeds and bugs.

    First off, is there going to be enough air circulation through out the plot? If not, prune a little, not much, but remember how big or crowded things are getting for next years plans. Air circulation is important for fungus relief and bug transmittal.  And, it looks better.

    Are we mulching with something? Shredded news paper, straw, bagged grass clippings ( without weed and feed, or bug killers), or just plain mulch. Moisture control is going to be very important soon. Ma Nature can turn off the tap when she wants, and leave it off, and we will be in trouble.

   Hows the war on bugs going? Got your companion plantings in there working for you? The way the Winter lingered here this year, everything has waited to hatch, emerge, appear, migrate, or just plain show up at the same time making it seem worse than ever. Its not. It’s just the timing of the phenology. We’re OK.

   Feeding at regular intervals? Harvesting regularly? Pick to get more. Once the fruit goes past mature, the plant may start to go dormant, thinking it has produced enough seeds to survive. Indeterminate plants will shut down somewhat, and thats not what we want. Determinate types, well theres no choice, but have fun canning, then start the next crop, you still have time.

   Its still not rocket science. When a seed touches soil, and the moisture, light, food, etc., conditions are met, it will germinate, and we will have a plant. Enjoy your gardens for today. Take the pictures, weed, harvest, sweat, complain, harvest some more. Show a child what you did, and let them help. Keep your garden journal up to date for next year. Worry about whats in front of you for now. Next years garden belongs to next year. Thats what makes January so much fun. Ah, the journal…..

Dazed and Contused?

 

By now, here in central Va., you have had a bunch of rain, so you may be experiencing some minor problems. Before, we talked of soil conditioning. We need to realize that Ma Nature is the bomb. The plowing, feeding, mulching, weeding, don’t mean squat. Unless you have learned what exactly what SOIL is. I see a lot of you buying the cheap bagged stuff in the box stores. It will ( or has ) turned into the concrete you were standing on at the time you purchased it.  Where’s your leaves from the fall? Oh, no trees? Cutting grass now? There you go, Bag that green gold, and use as mulch now. FREE nitrogen, FREE mulch. FREE from amendments in the bag! Come on, ever hear of Sustainable Gardening? Use what Ma gives you. Your Grand Parents did. So did theirs. And there was always food on the table. Have a Koi pond? That “muck” you get out of there is like gold. Spread it around your plant bases. Ever tried manure tea? One bag of, OK, “store bought” manure, a burlap bag, a 32 gal Rubbermaid (or cheap one) trash can, some water, and a piece of rope, and you can feed your garden for 2 months. Put the manure in the sack, tie the rope around it to make a, well, tea bag of sorts. Put it in the water for a few days, and you can dip it out to feed your live goods. I have one in a field rain barrel, and use the hose to apply it.

For the rain issue. If your plants are turning yellow at the bottom, they are not thirsty. They are drowning. Don’t water. Soil amendments like Oak leaves, grass clippings, pelleted gypsum, will help a great deal. Of course, if you are one of those lawn jockeys, that throw every poison and weed killer at your lawn at the mention of it on the media, don’t put those clippings on your edibles. YOU WILL DIE too!.  Lets get smart here. If the bag of stuff says on the warning label, ” DO NOT INGEST” then DO NOT INGEST by second hand servings.

I have Tomatoes on the vine now. Peppers showing. Beans are on the climb, and my Squash and Cukes are almost in bloom. Red Sails Lettuce is going to be harvested this week. Cherries are abundant, not ready yet, Peaches, Apricots and Blueberries are making an impressive showing. Elderberries, Blackberries and Raspberries are making me proud. Onions, don’t get me started, holy cow! Been using my herbs for over a month now. I am happy. I am gardening. I am dirty. I am one with the natural order. I am full of poop…. Really. It’s a Zen thing. I like to give back to what I take from Ma Nature. Keeps my fire and water equal. Look at Michelle Obama. Her gaze is always proof of some fond memory. She can use a shovel. She knows the secret. You can as well…. Get on your knees and get dirty with a loved one. I am talking about weeding, for those shallow minded. They are up and running, robbing your work of nutrients. Maybe you will like to use Dandy lions in your salad, But Henbit, Wire grass, spurge, and chickweed, do not taste good.

Kevinthegarden@verizon.net

Are We Dirt Ready?

   OK, it’s been about 6 weeks since we have been getting prepped. Either we have decided to go container, raised bed, or in the ground. Seeds have been started, they should be full and leafy, roots coming out the bottoms of the root balls. Maybe given a small shot of food. Solarized beds are showing substantial growth, maybe even some insect life. All’s well if you obtained that. Raised beds are built, amendedand cooking. Containers should be rinsed with a light bleach solution if they are being re-used. Gravel, Styrofoam peanuts, hair curlers, bag of green Army Men, whatever, for drainage in the pots ready. Compost cooking all Winter for amendments is getting ripe now. Shorts in Walmart, Bikini’s in Target, Tomatoes at the box stores…. We are ready but Ma Nature still has some unpleasantness in store. For 2 years in a row, we have had some sort of freezing precipitation on April 7th. We are not out of it yet.

   Unless you are prepared to baby your tender veggies, don’t jump the gun yet. Row covers are not all that fun, and won’t hold up 1/4″ of ice which is what we usually get in April. We have plenty of time to grow, but we are running out of time for the prep. Remember, some of you (and me) are planning to show a difference in our food bills this year. I have been mentioning the old “Victory Gardens” of yore, and now the spin is “Recession Gardens”… I kinda like that. It will mark our point in history in years to come. Whenever someone mentions “Recession”,  most of us will also remember the great Tomatoes, Green Beans, Squash, Melon’s, Cucumbers, etc., that we relished on during this time. Even bragging like over blown fish stories. To make it through, we need to be “Dirt Ready”.

   This term is not just soil in a bag ready. It should be thought of as, “Do I have the right tools to maintain my dirt, is my dirt properly bedded, and most important, am I ready to get dirty?” Michelle Obama proved to the nation last week, that you can dress classy, and get dirty. I don’t think for an instant, that she would have hesitated to get on her knees to plant something in that photo-op. I really don’t think it was a put on. I think the media thought she was just going to be the figure head. I believe she shocked them when she picked up a shovel and knew how to use it. I believe she would, or maybe after the cameras were gone, she did, get down and dirty in that garden. I wonder though, if memories of her childhood were flowing through, of her gardening with Dad, or Grand Ma, or whoever. Playing in dirt usually brings back pleasant memories of someone in your past. Dirt. Who would have thought we were right as kids. Why did someone always yell out the back door at us, “Don’t get dirty!” And what did we do? Got dirty… It was almost as if we were not supposed to know the joys of dirt.

   Advantages of getting dirty. Stressed at work? Play in the dirt. Want to amend a frendship or make up with a spouse. Go plant something together.  Want atonement? Plow a garden plot for someone who can’t. Karma is a wonderful thing. Ahhh, dirt. You can learn a lot from its complicated biological formation. We came from it, and we will eventually go back to it, maybe that’s the attraction, I dunno… I have 5 children, and 3 Grandchildren. I always encouraged dirt. Don’t think I was ever the one yelling about the dirt on them. I mean, it washes off you know. Yeah, my offspring are dirt ready. I can only hope that when they plant, they think of me. They are after all, my personal garden. And I am proud to have “dirty” kids. Yeah, they will feed me when I’m 80.

   So are we dirt ready, because its getting close to get dirty.  I would recommend though, if you are planning to prove what you can save on what you grow, NOT to wear what The First Lady wore. That wouldn’t be cost effective. Let’s get dirty.

Upgrading the Past

   Its great to be able to get the garden in the ground. Fresh babies all in a neat and tidy row. Got all the right tools for the new season. Plenty of fertilizer, bug killer, weed killer, oyster killer, killer killer. I’ve spent about $ 250.00 so far…. Wait, I’m supposed to be “growing” , not killing? Wait, the media and commercials are promoting all this to make my garden “foolproof”. Wait again. I want to be Eco-friendly. Why does it cost more to buy “Eco”? Its less harmful stuff, right?

   I get so tired of hearing this. Plain and simple, go ask your Grand Parents how they did the “Victory Gardens” back in the day. There was no bagged goods, no special applicators, no “green sand” products that cost a fortune, and by the way, for all you “Sustainable Gardeners”, anything that has to be “Harvested” is NOT sustainable. We harvest Green Sand, Peat Moss, Bagged Soils, etc. Oops, I let that slip out. I’m sure that somewhere in your neighborhood, there is someone who has an abundance of Oak leaves, Pine Needles, etc. that goes to the local landfill. I have seen great stuff growing in the landfill. Mother Nature must be proud. How do you think she feeds her own? Green Sand, I mean COME ON!

   OK. Back to your backyard. It’s March, It’s getting close. First timer? Old Hat? First Timers, meet Old Hats. They are the ones that can grow anything right? You had problems last year, and probably blamed something. Weather, stupid seeds, wrong media advice, long vacation, bugs, the old “Brown Thumb” syndrome. But the Lady down the street fed the entire block out of her 15′x20′ plot. How’d she do it? Oh, she’s made mistakes before, but only once. See, gardening is like a nice soothing lesson. You do, you screw up, you correct, you enjoy. That’s the difference between Gardening and Landscaping. There are no rules in Gardening. If you are following rules, then you are only Landscraping. How hard is it to get a seed in contact with moist soil? How hard is it to get good soil? Leaves fall to the base of a tree in the woods. No one cleans them up. They decay, and turn to dirt, compost if you will. Not the first empty plastic bag in sight. 

   Back to Old Hats. Its simple folks. If we haven’t learned from our own mistakes from just last season, and we don’t heed the Old Hats advice. We won’t make it, especially now, when everyone is putting in some sort of plot because of the economy. We will buy all the killers while trying to get something to live. Find an Old Hat. They love to teach, share, help. There’s nothing new under the Sun. It’s all been there since the dawn of time. So have the Old Hats. So have Garden Coaches. Find one.