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Gardener, What of Your Compost Heap?
By Trevor Dalley

To the making of composts there is no end.

Where it is possible to make compost, this is the best material of all for the gardener to use. All kinds of green material and garden waste can be incorporated in the heap including annual weeds. Grass Mowings, Hedge Trimmings, Pea, Tomato and Bean haulm, old flower stems and so on.

If a proportion of manure can be obtained, this also should be included in the heap, though it is not absolutely essential. Poultry manure, if included, should not exceed 20 per cent in bulk and should be applied in layers not more than an inch thick. A thick layer of poultry manure will prevent air from circulating and retard the break-down of the heap. It is often possible to obtain industrial or semi-industrial organic waste (waste from eating establishments and hotels) that, if incorporated in reasonable proportions, can be of great value.

Seaweed is probably the most valuable of all, and other materials which I have used include water-weed from rivers and canals, decayed sawdust from the old sawmills and waste coffee, cocoa residues from various industrial processes, also we have used hemp not the type that some people smoke, (if you tried to smoke this type you would have to roll a joint the size of a telegraph pole to get any sort of buzz) we only use the type for making rope.

Fresh fallen leaves have a delaying effect on the break-down of the heap and it is better, therefore, to allow them to rot by themselves for a year or two and then to incorporate them in the compost heap.
I find that the Garden Compost Heap should not exceed four feet square and about three feet high, but they can be made of any desired size.

If the Compost Heap is made to wide or to high, there will be a lack of air and the majority of the necessary bacteria will not multiply. The Garden Compost Heap should be built on soil rather than on a concrete base or on gravel. If it is built on grassland, it is better to dig out the top 4 inches of the grass. In any case, there should be a loose layer of hard, woody material to assist aeration.

Baled Straw is the best material to use for the walls; it provides a neat, convenient method of making the heap and enables the compost to decompose fully right up to the walls and assists the retention of the heat of decomposition. After the bales have been used two or three times and have started to disintegrate, the Straw Bale can itself be incorporated in the next heap. Many Garden Compost Heaps, however, are made without any retaining walls at all.

Quicker results and more even decomposition will be obtained if the raw materials are mixed and shredded before being put on to the heap and there are several shredding machines on the market which are very efficient. Where no shredder is available, dry materials should be mixed with fresh green matter in alternate layers. Straw Bales of any description should be thoroughly wetted. The layers should not exceed 6 inches in thickness and should be a good deal less in the case of Grass Mowings and any other material that will form a mass which the air cannot penetrate.

A light sprinkling of topsoil or good de-composted compost should be added at every twelve inches of height to introduce bacteria into the heap. A sprinkling of lime dust in the form of crushed chalk at a rate of one ounce to every two square yards may also be added along with the topsoil.

Layers of Well Rotted Farmyard Manure in the Garden Compost Heap will act as an activator, but whether there is Manure in the heap or not, I always use an activator usually herbal based as I find this speeds up decomposition.
The final covering of the Garden Compost Heap can either be an inch or two of topsoil or a rough thatch of straw, slopped to carry off the rain. In large Garden Compost Heaps, vertical air holes are necessary. They should be spaced at 3 feet intervals down the centre of the Garden Compost Heap.

If the heap seems to be drying out, the outside should be wetted. Try to wet evenly and avoid saturation. There may be a certain amount of leaching from the bottom of the Garden Compost Heap if no retaining wall is used. In such a case it is well to spread a thin layer of sawdust, peat or other absorbent organic matter round the base of the Garden Compost Heap. This material can be incorporated into the next Garden Compost Heap that is made and will add to the value of the finished compost.

The process of decomposition will be greatly accelerated by turning the Garden Compost Heap once every 3 to 4 weeks after building. If so desired the Garden Compost Heap can be treated again with an activator during the turning process but this is not essential. Garden Compost Heaps made chiefly of fresh green material will often break down quite successfully without any turning at all but where the material is very dry and made from straw one turn is practically essential.

It is most important that the high temperature at the centre of the Garden Compost Heap should be obtained, otherwise annual weed seeds may survive and be reintroduced all over the garden. It is advisable to purchase a soil thermometer and make sure that the Garden Compost Heap reaches a temperature of no less than 40 degrees Celsius. If the Garden Compost Heap does not heat up, the reason is probably that it has been built to slowly.

The remedy is to turn it and add fresh green material; also adding chicken dung pellets will help. There is no objection to incorporating diseased vegetable matter in the well-made Garden Compost Heap that heats up properly. In fact, there is considerable evidence to prove that such a Garden Compost Heap becomes a breeding-ground for bacteria that will fight the disease, and that the resulting Garden Compost Heap, when applied to the soil, will give resistance to, if not immunity from, the disease concerned.

This seems to be particularly true in the case of Tomatoes, and many gardeners insist that the compost that they use for their Tomato crops should contain as large a proportion as possible of old Tomato haulm.
Garden Compost-Making is an art that has to be acquired. It is, however, not a difficult art and any Gardener with a reasonable amount of common sense can quickly learn it.

It is also, quite frankly, something which we know more about now than lets say 100 years ago mainly because of the advancements in modern scientific research. What I do think is that some gardeners make much to heavy weather of Garden Compost-Making. It need not be anything like the laborious a job as many people think, providing the Garden Compost Heap is sited in the right place as to avoid unnecessary transport of materials.

Trevor Dalley has been growing and preserving his own fruit for 40 year, most of the preserves are sold in his Organic Farm Shops in Herefordshire England. Did you find those tips on Organic Food a way of Life useful?

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Trevor_Dalley
http://EzineArticles.com/?Gardener,-What-of-Your-Compost-Heap?&id=1718320

Soil-Less Indoor Gardening – Provide the Easy Life For Your Plants
By Carm Paynter

There are a variety of benefits associated with soil less or hydroponic gardening. This is the easy life for your plants. The plants roots don’t have to search for food and water like they do in soil. The food and water is brought directly to them, all they have to do is grow and enjoy the easy life.

There are no insects to eat the leaves and roots, no diseases to leave large gaping holes in the leaves making it hard to manufacture the required food to keep them growing.

For providing all these plant comforts what are the rewards? There are actually several major benefits. The most noticeable is the rate of growth, that can be 30%-50% faster. There isn’t any reason to use pesticides so we don’t have to worry about the pesticides that were used just as a preventative measure to produce our food. The plants are usually quite a bit larger, the flavors are usually enhanced, the garden can be grown indoors, the produce can be grown year round. Hydroponics enables plants to be grown closer together which helps increase the overall yield of crops. Not only that, but also several crops can be grown in the same hydroponic growth tank.

We can get this same response from annual flowers, fruit, herbs, and vegetables in a hydroponics system.

Hydroponics has always been an ecologically sound gardening choice. It uses much less water than conventional gardening and does not erode the soil or add toxins to the environment. Soluble nutrient formulas are re-circulated and used by the plants’ roots, which helps eliminate this environmental waste that we have to deal with every day.

As many gardeners today are choosing to grow crops, especially food crops organically, organic crop cultivation in hydroponics has become very popular. Organic gardening is the cultivation of plants without the use of synthetic chemicals or pesticides. This ensures that no harmful pesticides or fungicides will be used in our food production. For this we are willing to invest in the extras that are required by organic gardening. There are many organic nutrients and additives designed specifically for use in hydroponic gardens.

In order to know what to expect when attempting your own hydroponic garden you have to know what a hydroponic garden is. Once you understand what this type of gardening entails, you will be more aware of what to expect when constructing a garden of this nature for yourself.

The big advantage for small-scale hydroponic gardeners is the opportunity to grow plants year-round. This can be accomplished by the use of indoor lighting. The correct type of lighting that you would need for growing plants indoors using the hydroponic method would be a High Intensity Discharge (H.I.D.) light. These types of lights are designed to give off the correct spectrum of light waves, which are perfect for growing plants indoors-and in water no less. There has been some research using LED’s. This will reduce the electrical costs of lighting your hydroponic garden.

This is a relatively new concept in indoor gardening but there is lots of good information available and you can access this Hydroponic Gardening information anytime you want.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Carm_Paynter
http://EzineArticles.com/?Soil-Less-Indoor-Gardening—Provide-the-Easy-Life-For-Your-Plants&id=1720864

Growing Vegetables Indoors
By Eudora DeWynter

Do you already miss those fresh garden vegetables that you grew in your outdoor garden over the summer? Would you like to grow those same vegetables indoors? Of course the rules for indoor gardening are a bit different from growing outdoors, but it can be done and with a lot of success.

Gardening inside requires you to consider the temperature, light sources and pollination and the type of vegetables you plan to grow. There are some vegetables that can be easily grown indoors even on windowsills. A room that gets southern exposure sunlight, slightly used will make a good place for an indoor garden.

An enclosed heated porch is also a good alternative since some plants require daytime temperatures in the mid to upper 60’s and 70’s and nighttime lows of upper30’s to lower 60’s. An ideal room is one that you can provide with supplemental lighting which will provide the needed heat and warm up well from the daytime sunlight. Your plants will need at least 6 to 8 hours of lighting so using cool white or warm florescent lighting will help keep the plants warm during the cold windy days in winter if you keep them near the light source.

Grow lights can be used and help provide extra growing light because the days of the winter months are shorter. Soil used in indoor gardening is different also, indoor gardening soil should be lightweight so does not use soil that is for outdoor use, it will sometimes harbor diseases and insects and they are harder to control in a confined area. Instead use regular indoor potting soil mixed with 1 part vermiculite, 1 part peat, 1 part perlit and you will have an ideal soil mix.

Your indoor garden will need to be watered daily or every other day, due to the lack of humidity and fertilized at least every two weeks for the best results. You choice of what to grow is up to you but there are vegetables that do quite well indoors, but don’t expect the same size or yield that you got when growing outside.

Plants that do well in an indoor garden if you have enough space are: determinate vine cherry tomatoes, bush beans bunching onions, leaf lettuce, and basil. Hungarian sweet and hot peppers and small vine cucumbers. So go ahead and give indoor gardening a try, and enjoy the benefits of fresh vegetables again.

Eudora DeWynter offers tips on Growing Vegetables Indoors on her blog
at http://www.gardentoolguru.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Eudora_DeWynter
http://EzineArticles.com/?Growing-Vegetables-Indoors&id=1730402

Container Gardening Essentials – Discover Nature’s 7 Most Nutritious and Power Packed Herbs
By Eric Samms

Scientists and nutritionists insist that we pack in as many raw and organic fruits and vegetables for maximum health and vitality. But the humble herb’s inner vigor is often overlooked. But not anymore, through the charms of organic container gardening, it’s time to not only add a melody of tastes, but a great source of essential vitamins, minerals and nutrients.

The Finalists Are:

1. Mints : There are a variety of mint leaves, the most common being spearmint, peppermint, apple mint, and ginger mint. Use mints in salads, dressings, in teas, with lamb, in summer drinks and sorbets, and also as a garnish.

It has been used for centuries in Asian cuisine and herbal treatments. It was considered so usefull that it was an accepted as a tax payment. Jesus even scolds the Pharisees in Luke (11:39) “you pay tithes of mint and rue…but have no care for justice and the love of God.” Not only does it taste great, but it freshens the breath, helps settle the stomach and aids digestion, and has been found to slow the growth of some fungi and bacteria.

2. Basil : A clean and distinctive flavor, it especially works great with fresh tomato and cooked tomato based dishes, such as those from Italy. It can be added to soups, salads, breads, and pasta and forms the key ingredient in pesto.

Research studies on basil have shown unique health-protecting effects in two basic areas: basil’s flavonoids and volatile oils. Flavonoids are chemicals components – and Basil’s have been found to protect cells from radiation and oxygen damage. It’s oil has been found to have antibacterial properties, and it is a rich source of Vitamin A which helps prevent free-radical cell damage.

3. Parsley : A light and refreshing herb, with 2 main varieties curly and flat leaf. It is very versatile, and is wonderful added to just about any dish – soups, salads, breads.

It is also no modest herb – bursting in Vitamin C, an important component to disease prevention and great skin. Plus it is also a rich source of other nutrients such as Vitamin’s K and A, and Folic Acid, an important factor in good cardiovascular health.

4. Chives : They are delicate in flavor, and as such more suited to light dishes and salads, or as wonderful garnishes or decoration. If you have more than you need just store them in the freezer, and use as required.

Chives are from the allium family , and All alliums contain iron, and vitamins. Low in Saturated Fat, Cholesterol, and Sodium , and High in Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Potassium, Copper, Manganese, Thiamin, Niacin, Pantothenic Acid, Phosphorus and Zinc.

5. Thyme : This herb is one of my favorites. It has a warming and satisfying flavor, and works great with chicken, sprinkled on vegetables, and in light salads.

Derived from a Greek word meaning courage, thyme is said to be an invigorating herb, and is also renowned for it’s antiseptic and anti-fungal properties, and anti-spasmodic qualities – useful to soothe digestion and menstrual cramps and is an excellent source of iron and manganese, calcium and a food source of dietary fiber.

6. Dill : A light a refreshing herb which works wonderfully with salmon, in salads, and dressings.

Dill’s name comes from the old Norse word “dilla” which means “to lull” reflecting it’s traditional uses as both a stomach soother and an insomnia reliever. The total volatile oil portion of dill has been shown to have bacteria-regulating effects, much like garlic, and is good source of calcium.

7. Sage : A strong and meaty herb, it partners well with some chicken dishes, as well as onions and potatoes, and form many herbal teas.

Similar to rosemary and thyme, sage helps reduce depletion of the brain’s concentration of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that is crucial to proper brain function. A combination of ginkgo biloba, sage, and rosemary may help prevent or slow the development of Alzheimer’s. More research is needed to find out why sage is so effective but researchers think it could be a combination of chemicals in the oil which have an effect on acetylecholine and which give it antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, also considered to be of value in Alzheimer’s therapy.

It helps promote digestion health, its antiseptic action is especially important in relation to intestinal infection and is said to reduce gripping pains by relaxing the intestines.
It is an excellent remedy for helping to remove mucous congestion in and numerous studies have confirmed that Sage leaf helps to reduce menopausal sweats, and helps reduce pain associated with menstruation.

Who ever would have thought that herbs could be such nutritious powerhouses? So before you reach for the salt, think ‘Fresh Nutritious Herbs’, and add these to your breads, pasta dishes, salads, soups, meat dishes, hot teas, and anything else you’d like to try! Organic container gardening is the tool to growing your personal, pesticide free herbs, plus it’s fun, fulfilling, a great way to save money, and it keeps you and the family bursting with health and vitality.

I’m Eric Samms and I’m here to share my passion for Container Gardening with you all. After years of starting, maintaining and developing my own Container Gardens for the last 11 years – it’s time to give away my secrets. Now it’s your turn to learn all about Container Gardening and it’s many amazing benefits in your life! Visit http://www.containergardeningexpert.com today for more great container gardening tips plus your two free gifts!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Eric_Samms
http://EzineArticles.com/?Container-Gardening-Essentials—Discover-Natures-7-Most-Nutritious-and-Power-Packed-Herbs&id=1733878

Container Vegetable Gardening
By John Yazo

Container Vegetable Gardening is an ideal solution when you don’t have a yard to plant a garden and is also a way of gardening to add versatility to your yard.

Container gardening can be done to add accent or dimension to the landscape with the planting of vegetables or flowers. You can create the same effects with vegetables as you would with the planting of flowers. Just arrange the pots or containers that you plant with vegetables as you would if you were planting flowers. There are large varieties of colors and sizes of vegetable plants as there is in flowering plants.

Planters that can be used for container planting are endless. If it is strong enough to hold soil mix and plants you want to grow it can be used. Just make sure there are holes in the base of the container or pot for water to drain from.The most common types of planters that are used are your standard indoor plant pots.They are usually made of clay, ceramic, plastic or wood and are purchased at your local garden center or department store.

Soil mix for container planting should be a light weight mix. Soilless potting mix is the best for container planting because of it’s ability to aerate well and retain moisture. Soilless potting mix is usually a blend of peat, perlite and or vermiculite.

The planting of plants or seeds in containers is done the same way as would be done in a garden. Just follow the instruction that come with the plants or on the seed packet. The location that the containers are placed is also important. Read the instruction for location needed for what you are planting. Some plants need full sun, partial sun or even shade.

Watering of plants in containers needs to be checked on a daily bases. Containers don’t hold the volume of moisture as would be retained in garden soil with a good soil structure. Usually containers need to be watered daily if not every other day. Temperature and rainfall amounts are the two main factors in when watering and how much is needed. Keep the soil in the containers moist at all times.

Nutrients in the soil also need to be monitored regularly. Due to the frequent watering of container planting the nutrients can be easily washed from the soil. A slow release organic fertilizer will add the nutrients needed back in the soil.

A environment friendly and healthy way of gardening. Organic Gardening is away of gardening in harmony with nature. Growing a healthy and productive crop in a way that is healthier for both you and the environment.

John Yazo

http://www.organicheirloomgardening.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_Yazo
http://EzineArticles.com/?Container-Vegetable-Gardening&id=1668037

Nearly Work-Free Vegetable Gardening
By Ian Pennington

Growing vegetables from your own garden is one of the best ways to provide your family with healthy and fresh produce. But starting a garden can be a time consuming and intimidating process, particularly for beginners. Fear of the amount of labor and time involved in planting and maintaining a garden keeps many would-be gardeners out of the garden and in the supermarket instead.

Much of this fear may be misplaced, however. There has been much experimentation in the gardening community in recent years aimed at developing innovative ways to reduce the amount of time and labor spent gardening, often with sensational results. Although there may be no such thing as completely work free vegetable gardening, there are definitely ways in which you are able to dramatically reduce the amount of labor and time you need to spend in your garden.

One of the best ways to lessen the work spent preparing and weeding your garden is through a gardening method known as “Lasagna Gardening” or “Sheet Mulching.” Lasagna gardening is a non-traditional, no-till method of gardening that relies on blanketing a garden plot with multiple layers of mulch obtained from locally available, and preferably organic, sources (such as weed clippings, chopped leaves, animal manure, compost, sawdust or seaweed). The lasagna gardening method greatly reduces the time and labor needed to prepare a new garden plot, and some gardeners report that they spend almost no time at all weeding a well-mulched lasagna garden. This may be as close to work free vegetable gardening as one can get.

Here are some additional suggestions to greatly reduce the amount of time and labor spent in your vegetable garden:

- Grow prolific vegetables. Vegetables like summer squash, pole green beans and indeterminate tomatoes produce large quantities of produce for extended periods during the summer. The amount of labor they require is very small in comparison to the harvest you will reap.
- Keep your garden small. It is easy to be overwhelmed by your garden, and many gardeners end up either producing much more than they can consume or giving up entirely. You will only need one or two zucchini or tomato plants to feed most families.
- Choose vegetables well suited for your climate. Although growing a long-season winter squash in Maine or keeping a heat-sensitive lettuce variety from bolting in Florida may be noteworthy accomplishments, they are also time-consuming projects. Stick to growing vegetables that are best suited to your region.
- Choose vegetable varieties that have a reputation of being easy to grow. Many seed catalogs will mark certain vegetable varieties as being especially easy to grow. Select these varieties if they are available.

By using gardening methods such as lasagna gardening and focusing on growing the most prolific, easy to grow vegetables for your region, you are on your way to nearly work free vegetable gardening.

Ian Pennington is an accomplished niche website developer and author.
To learn more about
Work Free Vegetable Gardening, please visit
Garden World Online for
current articles and discussions.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ian_Pennington
http://EzineArticles.com/?Nearly-Work-Free-Vegetable-Gardening&id=1746287

Indoor Edibles
By Eudora DeWynter

Eating a fresh garden salad, made with vegetables grown indoor edibles from an indoor garden in January is a treat that one can only enjoy. Being able to pick and enjoy edible vegetables right from your window sill or right out of your indoor garden will be rewarding. There are many herbs and vegetables that can be grown indoors in winter such as basil, parsley, rosemary, cherry tomatoes and a variety of lettuces. Once you start growing your edibles indoors in winter you will love it, and will always want an indoor garden.

Many people don’t realize that some of the same edible vegetables grown outside can also be grown indoors under the right conditions. Herbs such as basil, parsley, sage, rosemary, oregano and dill can be grown in containers on a windowsill with good southern exposure for light or on a countertop with a grow light. Seeds for edibles to be grown indoors may be hard to find so buy a good supply in early spring, they become hard to find by late summer and early fall.

When starting your garden factor in the room temperature and light conditions as well as the pollination of your plants. The room temperature can be controlled and light can be added with the use of grow lights and warm white florescent light, but the pollinating will have to be done manually.

Many indoor gardeners use an artists brush to help with plant pollination and find that it works quite well when distributing pollen from one plant flower to another. Another point to remember is that vegetable plants grown indoors are just as susceptible to pest problems as those grown outside. If you have house plants, insects such as spider mites and white flies can be attracted to your vegetable plants also so the use of an insecticidal soap will be extremely useful inside with closed windows and doors.

Use lightweight soil mixes for your indoor growing, a good example is potting soil mixed with vermiculite and perlite and peat, and this will keep the soil from becoming compact. With the lack of humidity in many homes watering nearly every day or every other day will be essential, and fertilize every two weeks with a good organic fertilizer.

Don’t allow the night time temperature in your garden room drop below 60, remember it is winter and most garden plants don’t fair well in cold temperatures. Keep in mind also that being able to harvest your own fresh edible vegetables from an outdoor or an indoor garden is always rewarding.

Eudora DeWynter offers tips on Growing Indoor Edibles on her blog at http://www.gardentoolguru.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Eudora_DeWynter
http://EzineArticles.com/?Indoor-Edibles&id=1757641

Growing Plants Inside a Container
By Kent Higgins

Gardening in containers gives even the smallest porch or patio the ability to project beauty and color or even fresh vegetables and spices for those who care for them. You can let your imagination run wild by utilizing container gardening, even if you live in a small apartment or home. There is a huge variety of plants, flowers, vegetables, and more that can be grown in pots and containers in even the smallest of perceived spaces.

Flower boxes, plantar boxes, window boxes, bay windows, sills, even creatively used fiberglass or plastic tubs and basins can be used to grow plants and flowers. There are literally millions of opportunities to grow plants, you just need to see them.

Before you use a container for plants, however, make sure you know what it’s properties, with soil and plants inside, will be. Will it drain well? At all? How strong is it, will it hold all that dirt and water? Is it large enough? Too large? Each plant is different and has different needs, so make sure your new home for your plant is fitting.

Plastic pots should have drainage holes and moisture trays or the ability to fit in them. Cheap, flimsy plastic can degrade and break down in sunlight, so make sure you use something sturdy enough. The bottoms of plastic 2-liter bottles will work if you cut small drainage holes in them, but don’t use them for more than a year before replacement.

Glazed ceramic pots are great and can have a lot of beauty and charm and intricate design, but they also need to have proper draining built in. Glaze does not allow water to pass through or soak in, so it needs to be provided.

Ceramics that haven’t been glazed will do well, but can dry out the soil too, so watch for that. They are also prone to breakage and conduct heat and cold very well, so they can harm the plants in them if you don’t have the proper control.

Wood containers can rot or break down and will absorb water, but will also give it back when the soil inside is dryer than the wood around it. They make great containers for many reasons, but can easily succumb to rot and ruin. To avoid this, grow only plants that die at the end of the season, then empty the pot and allow it sit dry and empty for the winter before reusing it. This will kill any rot that’s growing in the pot and greatly increase its lifespan.

If you’re growing plants that require deep roots or are growing several plants in one pot, make sure there is room for that. Deep pots for deep-rooted, tall plants are a must so that the plant not only has room to spread out, but so it won’t topple over when it gets larger. It’s better to grow a large plant that’s starting small in the pot it will be in for the rest of its life. Transplanting is hazardous and traumatic for most plants and can cause problems.

Finally, the color of the container is also important. In hot climates, use lighter-color containers so that the heat will be reflected and do the opposite in colder climes. Some people put their pot inside another pot when the seasons change, just to take advantage of the color factor. It can be that important.

Above all, though, make sure to have fun and to grow plants that you find rewarding and beautiful and you’ll definitely have a greener, happier home!

Who said there is no more to learn on the subject of decorative plant containers. Take advantage of our years of experience, visit plant-care.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kent_Higgins
http://EzineArticles.com/?Growing-Plants-Inside-a-Container&id=1772376