By joenesgarden, 2 months ago

Hungering for strawberries – GOOPs for June

It's June 1 and with that comes another in my continuing series of gardening oops confessions – I call it GOOPs for short. We all tend to learn from our missteps, and hopefully do the same from those of others. So on the first of each month I fess-up one of my GOOPs hoping you might learn from my faux pas.  (Read through past GOOPs posts here.) Today If you are so inclined you can share one of yours below in a comment or on your own blog (just leave a teaser and a link below).

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By joenesgarden, 2 months and 6 days ago

How do you use chives?

chives2 May is chive season in Connecticut gardens. The multi-purpose herb blooms in showy globe-shaped flower heads in shades of lavender that gently stand atop long slender leaf shoots. I have chives planted in multiple locations, some in perennial beds and others along a garden fence line. In other gardens I've observed chives planted in herb beds, living year after year in a basic wooden planter, and as a border along a perennial bed. All striking ways to show off the herb's form and keep it close at hand for kitchen use. In a former … and formal … circle herb-style garden I created long ago, chives bordered the outermost edge of one of four equally-sized quadrants. Classic orange poppies grew in the middle of the quadrant. One year the two bloomed simultaneously and the effect was stunning (Sorry, no photos … before the digital age).

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By joenesgarden, 2 months and 10 days ago

Brief Newsy Notes

volunteer cherry tomatoes Most in the gardening world are aware of rooftop gardens, but look up in Brooklyn, NY and you might catch a glimpse of a rooftop farm with the catchy country-style name of The Brooklyn Grange.  The 40,000 square foot roof top will be home to tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and greens – all meant for sale to local restaurants and at a farm market. I'm not quite sure how efficient it is to haul nearly a million pounds of specialized roof-top planting mix to the six-story roof, but I like the thought of looking skyward in to see tomatoes ripening on a roof-top in the midst of a bulging city.

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By joenesgarden, 2 months and 12 days ago

Don’t get bit by phenology indicators

You know how those moisture-retaining gels swell when placed in water? That's what I envision happens to brains of new gardeners as they soak up any and all available how-to gardening information – I was a novice gardener once long, long ago and did just that. It's important to seek learned, sound advise from gardening friends, trusted nursery staff, local agriculture extension departments, books, blogs, websites, and magazines. Unfortunately not all gardening information is as clear as it should be.

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By joenesgarden, 2 months and 15 days ago

Newsy Outdoorsy Notes of Interest

Yes, today is Monday and Newsy Notes usually runs on Friday … or at the latest Saturday … but better late than never.

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