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Mary’s indoor gardens

While I’ve lived for decades in northern NY, during COVID my daughters felt that I should not be alone, so I lived with my family in Connecticut for eight months. My children knew I couldn’t give up growing plants so they ordered me an Aerogarden, and my indoor gardening adventure began! My daughter-in-law loved it too and bought one for herself. Once I returned home, I ordered another one… That was the beginning of really being addicted. I have one at the entrance to my kitchen for lettuce and cherry tomatoes (pictured above). People come in and break off a piece of lettuce for a snack. I do that now, too. It grows enough for my salads all winter.

Aerogardens are essentially hydroponic gardens, and are simple to set up and use. They can be used to start seedlings for transplanting in grow boxes or outside. The pods to start seeds fit in small cavities and can be covered. Normally they are set up to get sixteen hours of light per day. They need liquid fertilizer every two weeks and tend to grow to transplanting size more quickly than conventional plantings. The light can be raised as the plants grow, so a few smaller plants can be left in the Aerogarden to mature. Read more Mary’s indoor gardens

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Beneficial Nematodes: Holy Grail of Organic Pest Control?

One of the most difficult things for me to deal with as an organic gardener is how to control insect pests in my garden and small orchard. There are times that none of the organic controls that I implement do a very good job in controlling insect damage. The two insect culprits I find the most difficult to control are striped cucumber beetles and squash vine borers, both of which feed on plants in the curcurbit family which includes squash, melons, pumpkins, and zucchini. I’d like to share a bit more about these insects and then about how I’m using beneficial nematodes to control their population in my garden.

Cucumber beetles have evolved to perfectly time their emergence from the soil to coincide with the time cucumber seeds germinate and pop out of the ground. The first generation of beetles overwinter in the soil, undergo pupation, and then emerge as adults. Their first order of business is to attack the new cucumber plant’s first two leaves (called cotyledons) and then any new leaves and stems that have grown. Adult feeding can set back plant growth and may at times even kill the plant altogether. Adult beetles will then breed and females lay their eggs on the soil at the base of the plant. Eggs hatch in a few weeks and larvae burrow into the soil to begin feeding on roots and parts of the plant stem underground.

Striped cucumber beetle causing damage
Striped cucumber beetle causing damage

And that’s just the first generation of beetles! If you’re lucky enough that your plants survive the initial round of attack and are thriving under the June sun, a second generation of beetle larvae are busily consuming roots and maturing in the soil. About 40 days after hatching, the new brood of adult beetles will emerge to feed heavily on the flowers, leaves, and vines of your plants. This second generation of beetles will not only set back plant growth and fruiting, but may also introduce bacterial wilt into the plants. Bacterial wilt closes off the transport of water up the stems and to the developing fruit, causing the plant to wilt and die over just a few days. Eggs are again laid on the soil surface, they hatch, and larvae dig into the soil looking for roots to feed on. These larvae will overwinter in the soil to emerge the following spring as adults. Read more Beneficial Nematodes: Holy Grail of Organic Pest Control?

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A Quick Guide to Starting Your Seeds Indoors

Late winter can be a tough time for gardeners. When the calendar turns to March, the days are getting longer, the snow is melting, and the itch to get outside and garden gets stronger every day. Those sunny days when temperatures soar into the 40s and 50s can seem especially cruel when followed by a sharp drop in temperatures and extended cold snaps. For many gardeners the cure for their itch to garden and for their impatience for spring to arrive is to seed vegetables and flowers indoors under artificial lighting for later transplanting into the garden.

The benefits of starting your own seeds indoors are many. Starting my seeds indoors allows me to grow varieties that I would not find as seedlings at a gardening center or large retailer. This is critical when taking into consideration needs such as disease resistance and tolerance of soil type, but also a matter of preference – I do love the different heirloom varieties! Growing from seed also allows us to select varieties that are suitable to our shorter growing season. Plus you’ll control the timing, so your plants will more likely be the optimal size when the time comes to plant them outdoors.A person seeding a tray with seeds

Successfully growing quality transplants requires a good understanding of a number of parameters, so though you’re probably eager to start, take a moment to read this quick guide for a successful seedling indoors. I’ll cover when to start seeds, potting mixes, indoor growing setups, containers, watering and more. Read more A Quick Guide to Starting Your Seeds Indoors