Spring sowing and planting
There it is! Spring! Rather than cramming to fit everything in a single month, stage your sowing and planting wisely to maximize your harvests and avoid spring burn-out.
Potato
Potato is one of the staple foods of humanity. With these tubers, you can feed a family for months on end. Learn to germinate, sow, and harvest potato.
September to December, the vegetable gardener’s calendar
Even though the harvest is the highlight of Fall and autumn, other tasks like cleaning up and preparing the plot for the future spring sowing are also there to keep us busy in the vegetable patch.
Companion planting in the vegetable patch
Just like humans, vegetables also have friends and foes. Some families stimulate or protect each other. Other families tire each other out and make each other vulnerable. Companion planting is the art of pairing them well!
Potato, how to grow a bushel
From planting to harvest, here are the practices that will help you grow beautiful potatoes.
Potato health benefits and therapeutic value
Native to South America, potato or Solanum tuberosum is a perennial plant that boasts many health benefits and has a high therapeutic value.
The Children’s vegetable patch – with a simple planting calendar, too!
For the school holidays, nothing beats introducing your children to the world of gardening. This vegetable patch calendar will make them more sensitive to the environment and to the food they eat.
Bollworms, dreaded caterpillars defoliating vegetables
Typical of many insects (and even more so for butterflies), adult bollworms won’t cause any damage in the garden or vegetable patch. However, caterpillars and larva that emerge from their eggs can devastate nearby plants.
30+ plants to grow from kitchen scraps – no need to go buy seeds!
Grow plants straight from the kitchen. No need to leave the house to garden!
Septoria host plants – targets of this ravaging leaf spot disease
Septoria has often caused many a gardener to wail in desperation. What plants does it affect? Which host is it hiding on over winter?
Forgotten heirloom vegetables… rediscover the tastes of old!
In the age before industrial agriculture, there were over 1000 varieties of vegetables in people’s gardens… an incredible heirloom which has now been forgotten!
Potato beetle, strike this striped pest at the heart!
These little striped beetles are definitely a hassle! The Colorado potato beetle devours leaves with terrifying speed!
Solanum, Potato vine, a jasmine look-alike
Potato vine (Solanum), also called jasmine nightshade for the resemblance they share, is a marvelous climbing vine.
Avoiding and treating powdery mildew
Powdery mildew is a fungus that belongs to the Erysiphaceae family and frequently colonizes certain plants. This mold appears in the form of a light velvety white layer or white spots on leaves, which is what makes it immediately recognizable.
Vitelotte, or black vitelotte, the China truffle
The purple Vitelotte noire, or black vitelotte, isn’t only reputed for its striking violet flesh, but also for the delicious particular taste this potato shares when cooked.
Germinating potatoes at the right moment
Germinating potato tubers before planting them helps increase growth of your young plants. It brings the harvest a few days or weeks earlier, and increases harvest size and quality.
How to plant potatoes up to the harvest
A quick course on how to plant potatoes that has it all at a leisurely pace. Growing potatoes is easy and rewarding (not to mention delicious) if you follow these guidelines. Read more ►
