Plants are the lens Jessie views the world through because they’re all-sustaining. (“They feed, clothe, house and heal us. They produce the air we breathe and even make us smell pretty.”) She’s a garden writer and photographer with degrees in both horticulture and plant biology from Purdue and Michigan State Universities. Her degrees were bolstered by internships at Longwood Gardens and the American Horticultural Society. She has since worked for many horticultural institutions and companies and now manages communications for Sun Gro Horticulture, the parent company of Black Gold. Her joy is sharing all things green and lovely with her two daughters.
“Is really ok to use weeds when doing compost? Do you have to make sure that they are in a certain stage of growth? Because I really don’t have the time to study them as I pull.”Question from Erin of Kirkwood, Missouri
Answer: You can certainly put weeds in the compost pile if they meet two criteria: (1) They are not sickly or obviously diseased, or (2) they are not noxious weeds, such as bindweed or Canada thistle, that have set seed. I would also avoid trying to compost any perennial weed roots. A well-tended compost pile should heat up enough to kill weed seeds, but when it comes to noxious weeds, I would not take the chance and recommend that other gardeners apply the same precaution. The heating process in the compost pile can also kill any diseases, but once again, I think it’s smarter to err on the side of caution.
Large pots and vertical gardens allow one to grow more in a small space.
Vegetable gardening is on the rise. Gardeners of all experience levels and backgrounds are growing their own food, whether they live in urban environments or spacious suburbs and countrysides. Those living where space is limited have extra challenges, which means that they must garden differently to produce enough food to enjoy all season. Here are some of the ways that we have used to grow fresh food where space and sunshine are at a premium.
Plant in Spacious Pots
Spacious, deep containers let gardeners grow more in small spaces, like this balcony garden.
If you have a sunny balcony or patio with just enough space for a couple of pots, choose the largest, deepest pots that will fill the space. Large containers (22 to 24 inches minimum) Let gardeners grow more produce, and they have deeper reservoirs for soil and water to encourage more root growth and reduce the need to water as often. The pots must have good drainage and be filled with a quality mix, such as Black Gold® Natural and Organic Raised Bed & Potting Mix. A couple of large pots, or one long, deep raised pot, will be vastly more productive than several smaller ones, so go big! (Click here for more tips on growing potted vegetables.)
Garden Vertically
Some vertical gardening systems, like the Gronomics Cedar Vertical Planter, are very sturdy and made to last.
Gardeners with a little more space, like a small, sunny rear patio or yard, should consider growing one or more vertical gardens. Clever vertical planters are being designed to allow lots of vegetables to be grown in a small space. There are also plenty of DIY vertical garden designs to consider if you are the creative type. Whether you choose a premade product or go for a less expensive make-your-own vertical garden, make sure that the design allows for easy irrigation, holds enough soil for plants to grow well, and will last for a long time.
Tempting Tomatoes® Patio Sunshine is a true dwarf cherry tomato that’s perfect for pots and hanging baskets. (Image by Proven Winners®)
Smaller vegetables and fruits are made for container growing, so choose varieties better suited to pot culture. This includes non-vining bush tomatoes, such as ‘Mountain Merit‘ and ‘Celebrity‘, both AAS winners. The tiny, cute cherry tomato Tempting Tomatoes® Patio Sunshine is another excellent choice. These are just a few of the many quality little tomatoes available. Tiny bush basils are fun to grow at the base of potted tomatoes. Windowbox Mini from Renee’s Garden Seeds is a superior little basil that’s very easy to start from seed.
There are plenty of other compact bush vegetables, such as ‘Bush Pickle‘ cucumber, the little butternut ‘Butterbush‘, and compact zucchini ‘Fordhook‘. If you like melons, the compact ‘Minnesota Midget‘ cantaloupe and short-vined watermelon ‘Bush Sugar Baby‘ both grow well sprawling from a large pot. Strawberries of all types are great for pots. The beautiful Berried Treasure® strawberries, with their double pink, red, or white blossoms, also yield delicious sweet berries through summer.
Strawberries grow beautifully in hanging baskets and are easy to harvest from them.
Some vegetables and fruits grow beautifully in large hanging baskets. As with the pots, go big to minimize watering and maximize performance. The best vegetables for hanging are cascaders, such as compact tomatoes, strawberries, dwarf cucumbers, and peppers. The new, compact Pot-a-Peño jalapeño pepper is ideal for hanging baskets. This variety is also a 2021 AAS award winner, so it is sure to perform well.
Rotate Potted Vegetables
Potted greens and spring herbs are great cool-season potted edibles to start the season with.
Vegetable gardening is a dynamic process. Gardeners have to shift from cool-season spring vegetables to warm-season summer vegetables back to cool-weather crops. In between, smart gardeners rotate their crops to continue the harvest and encourage garden health. Plan to harvest and plant, harvest and plant until fall to boost your garden’s yields and diversity of crops. Seasonal planting and rotation keep soil diseases and pests from taking hold. (Click here to learn more about rotating vegetables.)
Maintain to Maximize Production
Place containers and gardens where they get maximum sunlight. Eight hours a day or more is recommended. Start with great soil that holds water well, has ample air space, and drains well. Black Gold®Natural & Organic Potting Mix is ideal for growing all types of vegetables in containers and it is OMRI Listed® for organic gardening. It’s wise to add a little Black Gold Earthworm Castings Blend 0.8-0.0-0.0, which is rich in nitrogen, to pots with greens and herbs. Change a pot’s soil every two to three years because peat-based potting mixes break down, lose structure, and acidify over time.
Fertilize regularly to encourage the best growth and production. Lots of vegetables are “heavy feeders”, which means they deplete nutrients from the soil fast. Apply a slow-release fertilizer formulated for vegetable gardening at the start of the season. For heavy feeders, like tomatoes, follow up with applications of a water-soluble fertilizer formulated for vegetables. This is especially important to do just before the fruits develop.
Lack of water is the main cause of container vegetable failure. During the hottest days of summer, daily water will likely be needed, especially if your pots are in the full, hot sun. At watering time, water until its starts to run out of the pot drain holes. This indicates that the container is saturated. Thorough watering encourages deeper root development and stronger, more stable plants.
If your time is limited, consider investing in drip irrigation for pots. It also helps to add an extra layer of porous organic mulch to keep surface water from evaporating. Leaf mulch, straw, or grass clippings are all great options for pots that break down quickly while providing a little extra protection. (Click here to read about the 8 best watering strategies for plants.)
“I have a number of pine trees in my yard. Last year I had a number of trees that dropped new growth, this happened in the fall and winter. This year a larger number of the trees dropped the new growth. It looked like a green carpet. under the trees. The weather was dry warm and the winter was colder than usual. This year was quite warm and the winter was warmer than usual, stayed in the 20deg. Also, we had heavy snow. Also higher wind both years. Is there a problem with the weather or something else? The new candles are falling. All the candles are falling, it looks like a carpet. They are falling in the fall and winter. I’m really not sure what kind of pine they are. The pines did drop some needles in 2019, too.” Question from Raymond of Holt, Michigan
Answer: If the fresh, new candles on your pines are falling to the ground green, then it is likely that insect pests are at work, though some environmental conditions can also cause needle drop. I will cover a few possible answers for you, but without knowing what species of pines you have, and without seeing images of the damage, I cannot provide a definitive answer. I recommend that you follow up with your local extension agent at Michigan State University. Extension agents are paid to help state residents with garden and landscape problems. Yours sounds serious! (Click here to see your local agents.)
“I bought Black Gold potting soil with fertilizer for my herb, tomato, onion, and pepper seedlings. Do I also need to use liquid fertilizer once the seedlings grow their true leaves?” Question from Kim of Hiram, Ohio
Answer: It is important to be timely when fertilizing seedlings to give them the best head start. With that said, fertilizer in the soil can actually inhibit the germination of some seeds. (The salts in fertilizers disable the uptake of water in some seeds, which reduces or stops germination.) So, we recommend starting seeds in a mix that does not contain added fertilizer. Black Gold Seedling Mix is perfect for all types of seeds, and Black Gold Natural & Organic Potting Mix is a little coarser and great for starting larger seeds, like sunflowers, squash, and beans.
From there, start feeding seedlings with a 1/2 dilution of water-soluble fertilizer formulated for vegetables after they have begun to develop their true leaves. As they become larger, you can graduate to a full-strength dilution. I recommend waiting until they are 4-5 inches before feeding them fully.
“How can you grow grass when you have so many trees you get no sunlight on the ground?” Question from Terry of La Place, Louisiana
Answer: Sadly, the best thing to do is to grow something else. Grasses are notoriously sun-loving and none of the common lawn varieties will grow well in deep shade. Beds of attractive, low-growing groundcovers for deep shade are a much better choice. Some options are even grass-like, such as sedges. Here are some of the finest groundcovers for deep shade in Louisiana. You may even mix these up to create a more textural, interesting planting.
Southern Groundcovers for Deep Shade
Ajuga is an easy-to-find, spring-blooming groundcover for deep shade.
Ajuga (Ajuga reptans, use in small areas as it is prone to crown rot)
Green-and Gold (Chrysogonum virginianum, a cute, pretty spreader)
Little brown jug (Hexastylis arifolia, evergreen, compact, beautiful)
Strawberry begonia (Saxifraga stolonifera; best used in shady, damp small areas)
Partidge berry and little brown jug are my favorites because they are native, cute, tough, and feed wildlife. There are also lots of ferns to consider if the soil is not too dry beneath your trees. These include wood fern (Thelypteris kunthii) and Autumn fern (Dryopteris erythrosora).
“My basil always is short and flowers. It is in full sun, and I suspect it’s too much sun. I would like lots of succulent leaves, but the leaves are small and thin 🙁 How many hours of direct sun is enough? or maybe I should move it to part shade?” Question from Catherine of Tampa, Florida
Answer: Basil needs just a few things to really grow well. These are.
Well-drained, fertile soil with a neutral pH
Full sun (6 hours or more)
Average water
Fertilizer for vegetables and herbs (follow product instructions)
Regular deadheading to keep it from flowering
Thai basil is compact, beautiful, and tasty!
Check your soil and make sure that it is porous and fertile. Amending your herb garden with Black Gold Garden Compost Blend will certainly improve its texture and quality.
There are some basils that have been bred to refrain from flowering while producing non-stop flavorful leaves. Proven Winners Amazel Basil and the tall, gorgeous, variegated Pesto Perpetuo Basil are two excellent varieties that are sure to perform beautifully and DO NOT FLOWER. I also recommend that you try Thai basil, which is pretty, tasty, and very heat tolerant. ‘Cardinal’ is a super beautiful variety that I am growing this year. You can let Thai basil flower with no ill effect. Its purplish-red flowers are fantastic and delicious!
“Any suggestions for using shredded paper in my raised beds for vegetables? I have a home office that produces a lot of shredded paper that I would like to “recycle” if possible.” Question from Glenda of Sewell, New Jersey
Answer: Before putting any paper in the garden, make sure that the ink you use is acceptable for garden use. Almost all printer ink is non-toxic these days, but double-check your ink brand to make sure. Plant-based or soy inks are best.
A good use for shredded white paper in the vegetable garden is as a sub-layer below a straw or a compost layer. Spread the paper over your bed, wet it down, and cover it with straw or compost. It will serve as an extra protective layer to ward off weeds. I always try to find seed-free straw as vegetable-garden mulch.
The paper can also be composted. Mix in organic ingredients, such as grass clippings, vegetable waste from the kitchen, chopped leaves, and granular nitrogen to help the paper break down properly. Compost piles need to be tended, wetted, and turned to facilitate the composting process. (Please click here to learn more about how to compost at home.) Then you can add the compost to your beds to fortify all of your plantings.
“Is there a recommended size of a flower bed, specifically the depth, and how much Black Gold soil should be used for a solid grow?” Question from Rob of Colorado Springs Colorado
Answer: The size of your flower bed depends entirely on the space you have, the flowers that you want to plant, and the time you have to care for them.
Space: If you have a front porch that you want to decorate with a front floral border, then it needs to enhance the porch while being wide enough to enable a good mix of flowers of various sizes to be grown. If you have a very small yard, start with a small bed placed in a showy spot, maybe surrounding a mailbox or along a short walkway.
Flowers: Often, gardeners plant flowers at least three rows deep for high impact. If you want roses, you will need to provide enough space for them. If purple coneflowers, flowering sage, and ornamental grasses interest you, then you need to measure and plan for the beds to determine how many plants you will need.
Time: Don’t over-commit. Flower beds need to be weeded, watered, fertilized, and the plants themselves need to be trimmed and deadheaded through the season. Start small if you have never grown flowers before and be sure to research plants before you grow them to make sure you know and can supply their needs.
Planting Bed Height and Depth: When creating flower beds, many gardeners berm the beds a few inches high with added soil and garden amendments, such as Black Gold Garden Soil, and cover with a layer of mulch. (To determine how much amendment or soil to add, please click on our Black Gold Amendment Guide. There is a formula to calculate how much to add to a given bed size.) Berming provides flower beds with a little height and adds distinction. A nicely shaped and planned bed is like creating a beautiful stage for your flowers. It also looks good to edge your beds for a clean look (see the video below).
There are also some excellent free garden-design tools out there for new flower-bed designers. Proven Winners Perfect Pairings is a great one that allows you to choose suites of garden flowers sure to bloom at the same time and look great together. Their Premium Continuous-Release Fertilizer is also specially designed for flowering plants.
“I need help grafting a lemon tree branch to my small lemon tree (3 ft. tall). How soon should I graft the tree so the fruit can grow, or is 3 ft. tall OK to graft? What is the best technique for grafting? Is there any plant hormone that I should use for the best results?” Question from Elaine of Daytona Beach, Florida
Answer: Your lemon tree is not too small for grafting. It is not too tricky to graft lemon tree scion onto a dwarf plant (rootstock) as long as the two are compatible, you use healthy stock, and you follow all directions. There are a couple of methods you can try, which do not require supplementary hormones. You will need some special materials, and timing is important when grafting plants.
From what I have read, citrus trees should be ‘bud grafted’ using techniques called ‘chip budding’ or ‘t-budding.’ So, you will be grafting buds rather than branches. Bud-grafting of citrus is best done from mid-spring to fall when plants are actively growing, and it is easy to cut away buds.
Bud Grafting Citrus Trees
Grafting tape protects the graft union and holds in moisture while the bud and rootstock grow together.
Clean: Clean your grafting knife with alcohol and paper towels between cutting each bud and branch.
Collect: Collect bud-wood using your knife. Be sure to cut away the bud leaving a long chip of wood at the base (see above) to supply it with nutrients and create a good union.
Incise: Make an incision on the rootstock (as shown above).
Graft: Slide your buds into incisions so that they fit well.
Wrap: Wrap the buds with grafting tape.
Tend: Tend to the bud for three or four weeks. Rewrap it if the film becomes loose.
Unwrap: After a month or so, unwrap the buds. The grafted buds should look healthy, and you should see a union of cells and tissue between the bud and branch.
Force Growth: Next you must force the bud to grow by damaging the stem above it so that your new grafted bud is the primary bud at the top of the branch. Identify the closest bud above your grafted bud, cut it in half, and bend it downward. This will encourage your new grafted bud to “take charge” and grow as the primary bud on the branch.
For more details, please click on the links above. They provide full grafting guides for citrus along with lots of informative visuals.
“Last year my tomatoes struggled a lot. I think my soil might be tired. Should I rotate spots or should I fortify the soil? Thank you.” Question from Lucinda of Pittston, Maine
Answer: Tomatoes must be rotated on a three-year cycle for best performance, especially if they have experienced diseases. They are heavy feeders, experience lots of soil-borne diseases that can carry over in the soil from year to year, and root-knot nematodes are common pests that lower production and can live in the soil from year to year. Rotation fixes all of these problems. I recommend rotating tomatoes with soil-fortifying crops, such as peas and beans, which naturally add nitrogen to the soil. Tomatoes take up lots of nitrogen and fertilizer!
From there, I also suggest that you try short-season varieties adapted to northern climates. You can find several listed in the first article below.
