Monthly Archives: April 2012

Why Worms are a Gardener’s Best Friend

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Of all the critters that can be found in a garden I’m always glad to see a worm. The most obvious benefit comes from their constant tilling of the soil providing aeration and improving the percolation of water throughout the root zone. But having been trained in the scientific method at the University of Arizona I’m also glad to find data that supports my beliefs.

Last fall I received an email from plant pathologist at Cornell University. Ms Allison Jack, a PhD candidate, forwarded studies on the use of vermicompost, also known as worm castings, in disease control and plant growth. While scientific papers can be tedious for the layperson, if you’re interested I’ll gladly forward these studies to you. Just send a request to OzarkAggie@gmail.com and I’ll reply with the articles attached.

Fortunately Allison has published an award-winning video that provides an overview of vermicomposting, and how worm castings provide both a nutritional benefit and disease protection for plants. It’s definitely worth a watch.

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Making Mulch – 4 Steps to Green Nirvana

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Raking leaves isn’t my favorite activity, and with mature trees on 3 sides of my house I have plenty without the neighbors leaves blowing into my yard. But just like the guy with too many lemons I take advantage of the situation. My good luck stems from the fact that I have wide drain that runs along the road that backs up when it rains and forms a shallow pond. And that’s where I rake my leaves.

I let nature take its course and my lawn mower does the rest. It begins when the leaves saturate with water and fungi and bacteria begin to colonize the cellulose in the leaves. Cellulose forms as a result of photosynthesis generating glucose which is then polymerized. In its most basic form two glucose molecules are bound together and form structural cellulose.

Fungi and some bacteria possess the ability to break the bonds and derive glucose and other micronutrients from the leaves. Slowly the leaf breaks down. Worms help that process by feeding on the fungi and wiggling around as worms will do. Of course raking the leaves into a pile and mulching them with a lawn mower speeds things up considerably.

In the early stage the leaves are simply wet and matted and therefore a welcome environment for the fungi and bacteria. Second from the left are the leaves I ground up with mower last summer, the next pile was ground up last spring, and the pile on the far right was dug out the year before and is ready to be incorporated into the soil.

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Coffee Can Containers – The Heavy Metal Version

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Last year I glued together some plastic coffee containers, and my cherry tomatoes did well in them, but this year I decided to go with metal containers because they don’t require assembly. I simply cut out the bottom of the can, and cut slits for drainage in the plastic lid which then becomes the bottom of the container.

Wood slats raise coffee can containers above the floor of the cold frame to allow for drainage.

Wood slats raise coffee can containers above the floor of the cold frame to allow for drainage.

One of problems I encountered last year is that I had to raise the containers off the porch to get good drainage. It’s even more important to have the metal containers raised because the plastic tops can affect a seal if placed on a flat surface.

This year one of the varieties I selected is a hybrid carrot, a cross of a Nantes and an Imperator variety bred in Germany. Typical of the Nantes variety this carrot is barrel shaped and grows 5-6 inches in length - about the same depth as a full sized coffee can.

But the roots of a carrot go much deeper than the body. My plan is get the carrots started and then after removing the lid set the containers in the garden so the roots can grow as deep as they may. When it’s time to harvest I’ll pull the containers up and the carrots will be easily accessible.

In addition to facilitating the harvest I expect the carrots will grow much better in a potting mix than the heavy clay soil in my garden – not to mention the ever present gravel and rocks -that permeate my plots.

Carrot seedlings sprouting in metal coffee cans.

Carrot seedlings sprouting in metal coffee cans.

I’m doing the same with some of my tomatoes, with the tomato in the center and carrots seeded along the edges. I’ve read that tomatoes and carrots are good companions with the carrots providing a green mulch around the base of the tomato plant.

I’ll have to let you know how this experiment turns out, but if you have access to metal cans you might just try it for yourself.

Seeds to the Starting Line – Grow Your Favorites from Scratch

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Growing plants from seed is like cooking from scratch. You pick your ingredients and bring them together according to your own taste. I think it adds to the mystique, the wonder of it all, but also allows you to select and experiment with the many varieties available.

This year I’ll grow varieties developed in Holland, Germany, Taiwan, and Israel – as well as the USA. They range from hot peppers to super sweet melons, scallions to a triple-cross gourmet corn. I didn’t select them for their international flavor, but for the flavor they add to the palate.

Good germination and seedling growth starts with the right potting mix, temperature and light. With the early spring we’re experiencing this year I’ve moved all my starts into the cold frame I built a month ago.

While the early spring inspires confidence there’s still a 50% chance of a hard frost in our future. So in this article I’ll cover starting plants from seed, potting mixes, and protecting your seedlings in the garden.

Black plastic covers seeded beds to promote germination.

Perforated black plastic covering field planted seed to encourage germination by retaining heat and moisture.

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