Food-Gardening Lessons From A Wartime Victory Garden

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Author: JESSIE KEITH

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.

Tough, Water Saving Container Plants

Lantana Camara Pinata
Lantana camara ‘Piñata’ is one of several heat and drought tolerant ornamentals for summer long color.

Water-needy container plants often require twice-daily watering in summer’s heat, so it saves time and water to plant tougher, more water-efficient ornamentals. My top five water saving container plants for effortless color are lantana (Lantana camera), narrowleaf zinnia (Zinnia angustifolia), Dichondra Silver Falls™, moss rose (Portulaca), and cigar plant (Cuphea ignea). (All of these beauties also attract pollinators!) Once established, they shine in the heat and can manage with less water. Two more tips towards less container watering: Plant in larger containers that give roots more room to grow, and use a water-holding growing medium like Black Gold® Waterhold Cocoblend.

Water saving container plants

Grow Strawberries: Make Your Kids Berry Happy

Strawberries: Making Kids Berry Happy - Jessie Keith
The author’s daughter, Franziska, planting ever-bearing ‘Alexandria’ and ‘Temptation’ strawberries.

Strawberries have a simple beauty and appeal not lost on children. Whether grown in containers, mounds, or patches, they’re sure to please. For kids, ever-bearing varieties that produce intermittent berries all season are best.

This spring, my oldest daughter and I created a strawberry mound with some spare bricks and a little ingenuity. We amended the mound with Black Gold Garden Compost Blend and fertilized our berries with organic fertilizer for small fruits. Then let the berries begin!

Potted Gardens: Create a Spring Container-scape

Potted gardens with 'Gold Heart' Bleeding Hearts - Jessie Keith
A potted garden with a ‘Gold Heart’ bleeding heart as the focal point of this spring container planting.

Potted gardens add character and definition to porch and patio spaces. Spring compositions are the most joyous being the first plantings of the season, so make them memorable with mix-and-match bulbs and perennials. Contrast plant colors, textures and heights as well as creating pleasing potted landscapes with a selection of different containers. Fertilize with organic fertilizer formulated for flowers for best blooming results.

Naturalize with Woodland Perennials

Aquilegia canadensis, Dicentra eximia and Geranium maculatum
Aquilegia canadensis, Dicentra eximia and Geranium maculatum in a wooded garden.

Have a wooded garden and tired of hostas, vinca and English ivy? Tear out the old and replace it with North American native woodland perennials that gently self-sow and naturalize. Choose late spring to early summer knockouts, such as red columbine (Aquilegia canadensis), fern leaf bleeding heart (Dicentra eximia), spotted geranium (Geranium maculatum) and lady fern (Athyrium filix-femina), that can be planted in early spring. Many of these beautiful spring flowers also feed hungry bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds! Before planting, amend the soil with Black Gold® Garden Soil to give your new perennials a running head start.

Easy Peasy: Tips for Planting Peas

Golden Sweet Edible Peas - Jessie Keith
Snow Peas: ‘Golden Sweet Edible Pod’.

Peas taste of spring. Whether snow, snap or shelling peas, all grow the same. Here are some helpful tips for planting peas in your Spring garden…

Plant in earliest spring; light frost won’t harm them. Provide full sun and friable soil fortified with Black Gold® Compost Blend. Pre-soak seeds overnight and plant two-inches deep, eight-inches apart. Trellis vining types. Harvest wafer thin snow and juicy snap peas when young and tender and shelling when plump and bursting.

Easy peasy!