Just Grow Something | Evidence-Based Home Gardening

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Ep. 58 - Mum's the Word: Growing mums in the garden. Sep 21, 2021

Show notes

This Garden Talk Tuesday we’re digging into growing a favorite fall decoration of many people – mums or, more accurately, chrysanthemums. Now you absolutely can grow these fall flowers in your garden year-round but you need to know what you’re planting. Is it possible to plant the mums you get from your garden center and have them come back each year? The answer is: it depends. Knowing the difference between a garden or hardy mum and a nursery or florist mum is going to make all the difference here. So, we’ll talk about propagating your own mums, whether it’s from seed or from cuttings, when and where it’s possible to plant potted nursery mums in the garden and have them be perennial, overwintering your mums and we’ll talk about what’s different about Belgian mums.

So, for this week’s episode, mum’s the word!

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Resources:

Secondary metabolites of Chrysanthemum genus and their biological activities

History of the Chrysanthemum – National Chrysanthemum Society, USA

Chrysanthemum

Growing Garden Mums for Fall Sales

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Ep. 57 - When to Pick Your Pumpkins and other winter squashes (and how to make them last!) Sep 17, 2021

Show notes

Did you plant pumpkins this year? What about winter squashes? One of the questions I usually get around this time of year about pumpkins and other winter squash is, “how do I know when it’s ready to pick?” There’s nothing worse than waiting all season long for that huge vine to flower and produce these beautiful fruit, only to harvest it way too early because it looked ready or leave it out there too long and the bugs or ground rot gets to it. So, today we’re going to talk really quickly about the best time to harvest your winter squashes, including pumpkins, how to properly display them so they don’t go bad so quickly, and how to store them long-term so you can enjoy them all winter.

Episode 34 – Winter Squash

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Ep. 56 - Row Covers, Frost Covers, Insect Cover and Shade Cloth Sep 14, 2021

Show notes

I've talked about using these before, but what's the difference between a row cover, a frost cover, and insect cover? What about shade cloth? This episode we'll dig into the different materials available commercially to purchase for each of these tasks in your gardens, which ones are multi-purpose and which ones aren't, the accessories that go along with them and what alternatives you may have just laying around your home.

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Resources:

Johnny's Selected Seeds

AgFabric

Gurney's

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Ep. 55 - Identifying Insects in the Garden Sep 10, 2021

Show notes

What is this?? It's a common question in the garden when we come across an insect, or any other arthropod, that we don't recognize. This Focal Point Friday we'll talk about the key items to take note of when trying to identify any one of the hundreds of thousands (literally!) of insects we may encounter in our day-to-day lives and then what to do with that info. Let's dig in to identifying insects in the garden.

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Resources:

BugFinder Insect Identification Tool

Antman's Hill on Facebook

Peterson Field Guide to Insects North of Mexico

Pest World Pest Guide

Insect Identification Forum

Insect Identification Key

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Ep. 54 - Arugula Sep 07, 2021

Show notes

This Garden Talk Tuesday we’re going to talk about a leafy green that people either really love or really do not care for – arugula. And though we refer to it as a green culinarily, like lettuce or kale, botanically it’s actually an herb and it definitely has a peppery or mustardy bite. It’s in the same family as the brassicas we’ve talked about in previous episodes, but the growth habit is completely different so I thought it deserved its own episode. Now, I’ll admit, I wasn’t a huge fan of arugula in the beginning. In fact, I had no idea what it was when customers began to ask me if I grew it. And for the first few years I grew it but didn’t really use it myself. Now that I’m more familiar with some great uses for it and at what stage of growth I prefer it, it’s become a favorite early spring and late fall or winter addition to my leafy mixes and even as a topping for my pizza or pasta. You can even grow it indoors as both a leafy green and as a microgreen.

So, let’s talk arugula!

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Resources:

Eruca versicaria subsp. sativa

Rocket, Garden

Tradition, uses, and biodiversity of rocket in Israel

Arugula

Eruca versicaria

Growing Arugula

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Ep. 53 - Persephone and Pruning: Can You Dig It? Sep 03, 2021

Show notes

It's the first Friday of the month and time for another Can You Dig It episode. To be honest, this one snuck up on me! And, it must have snuck up on all of you, too, because I don’t have any listener questions for this month. But, I do have an interesting question that was posed to me by a customer at the farmer’s market stand and a couple quick tips on how to finish the season strongly with some of your summer garden plants.

So, let’s dig in, shall we?

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Resources:

Find your Persephone Period: Sunset and Sunrise Times

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Ep. 52 - Cabbage Aug 31, 2021

Show notes

This Garden Talk Tuesday we’re going to look at another crop that’s great in the fall garden - cabbage! This is another one that works well in the cooler shoulder seasons of spring and fall and does exceptionally well in fall weather. Plus, it’s another bonus crop that can survive a light frost with no damage if it’s covered and can withstand longer periods of cold weather if properly protected.

The biggest problems people face when growing cabbage are twofold. Number one is the garden pests, and we’ll talk a little about how to manage those, but the real head scratcher is when the cabbage won’t form a head. So, we’ll talk about the importance of nutrients when it comes to cabbage and what to do when it just doesn’t head up like it should.

So, without further ado, let’s dig in to growing cabbage.

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Resources:

Episode 12 - Broccoli

Brassica oleracea

Properties of Cabbage

9 Impressive Health Benefits of Cabbage

Stomach Cramps After Eating Cabbage

Midwest Vegetable Production Guide for Commercial Growers

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Ep. 51 - Garden Myths, Part Two Aug 20, 2021

Show notes

We’ve talked quite a bit this season about things that can and do go wrong in the garden and some ways to prevent them. In our first Garden Myths episode, we talked about things like coffee grounds, banana peels and eggshells in the garden, whether watering during the heat of the day can burn your plant leaves, marigolds, adding sand to your soil, talking to your plants, and more. If you missed that episode, I’ll put a link to it in the show notes.

On this Focal Point Friday episode, we’re going to look at two things’ people do or are told to do in the garden to prevent weeds and pests and one topic that has confused many home gardeners for generations, including myself. Let’s dig in, shall we?

Episode 32 – Garden Myths! True, False, or … Maybe??

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References:

Dawn Dish Soap Ingredients

How Soap Works

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Ep. 50 - The Dirt on Fall Garden Preparation Aug 17, 2021

Show notes

Right now many of you are getting ready to transition from your summer garden to your fall crops and that’s pretty much what’s going on around here. And many of you are likely going to be using spaces that were previously used for a spring or summer crop or both. Whether you are interplanting your fall stuff under the canopy of your summer plants or planning to pull those plants to make way for the fall garden, there are few things you need to take into consideration prior to planting especially in terms of your soil health. Let’s dig in to what needs to be done to the garden beds before you plant your fall crops.

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Ep. 49 - There is No Garden Perfection: Total Transparency and an Origin Story Aug 13, 2021

Show notes

I hope this week has been treating you well, especially in the garden. This Focal Point Friday I want to talk about something I think is pretty prevalent, especially on social media, but in any sort of promotional or educational space, like YouTube or podcasting, when it comes to teaching people how to garden. There is this tendency, I think, to only show the beautiful parts. I mean, it makes sense, right? As someone who wants to help people learn all about gardening, I want you to see all the great things in my gardens so you think, “Wow, okay, she knows what she’s talking about, look at that garden!” and then maybe you’ll lean further in to what I’m teaching you. But, I’m finding that can be very detrimental, both for you as a gardener trying to learn as much as you can for your garden, and for me as someone wanting to share my knowledge and what I’ve learned, but also me as a gardener.

Let's talk about why I have felt like a failure in the garden this year, how I've changed that, and what you can do when you feel like everyone else's gardens are looking great and yours doesn't match up.

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