Quality Soil = Quality Food March 26, 2007

Quality soil is essential to the quality of the crop you are trying to grow.  Using biologically based fertilizers such as compost or Dr. Earth ensure that you do not burn or kill any of the microorganisms in the soil.  Regular chemical fertilizers are essentially salts and when the little critters in the soil encounter this is sucks the water out of them, killing them.  These same microorganisms are essential in processing mineral elements and converting them to forms readily available for uptake by plant roots as nutrients.  If the crop is allowed to get its nutrients this way, it can maintain proper balance among elements and microelements and you will end up with much tastier fruits and vegetables.  Now that Spring is here in the Northern Hemisphere its time to get that mycorrhizae going in the garden for good root growth, too.  Happy Gardening!

Plantman.

Outside with the Redwoods March 20, 2007

As Spring arrives tomorrow and we experience the vernal equinox, note that the sun will rise due east and set due west.  Try and experience both and take mental note of it.  Its always good to visualize this east / west orientation and remember it so that you plant crops correctly, orient greenhouses and beds correctly, garden layout on these lines, vineyards, etc.  It’s just good to know.  Although of course a compass can be used for this, actually seeing and experiencing is worthwhile. 

The redwoods in the greenhouse are beginning to root and it is getting real warm in there so I moved them all outside.  The group that is most happy and doing the best was outside already, now they all seem to be doing great.  The oaks like the heat inside the greenhouse and are growing very quickly.  I think the mycorhizzae has really helped.  The buckeye seeds are sprouting in the gallon cans and like the heat too and need water every few days; they’re really thirsty.  The redwoods are sitting on black nursery fabric, and I think this is helping the soil stay warm in the plastic pots which is beneficial to root generation.  I also have only been watering them with a mister twice a week as they are responding better when they’re a little less wet and they perk up right after a light mist is sprayed on them and stay that way for hours.  It’s really cool to experience this almost immediate response tree by tree while doing this.

In each direction there are hills around the nursery full of 100 foot tall redwoods, so these guys have plenty of inspiration and vibes from their big brothers and sisters around them.  Maybe that’s why nearly every one planted is alive and well, and hopefully my care and energies figure in there somewhere too.  Go figure I prefer it outside too.  Happy Gardening.

Plantman

Organic Methods and Balance March 12, 2007

The thought of pouring “Miracle-Gro” on plants kind of makes me cringe.  I used to be all for this kind of stuff, quick acting with good results, etc.  But I’ve seen the light!  Not only will organics work better, they will be cheaper for you to use in the long run.  Sure, buying organics will set you back a little more at the outset, but this is an investment in the long-term health of your garden or greenhouse as overall changes are made for the better for a longer period of time. 

Nature reacts when being poisoned.  It finds ways to offset things which are bad for it.  When you use chemical fertilizers for instance, you are playing with the natural balance of the soil minerals (nutrients) and all of the creatures in it.  The soil will react by changing to accomodate what you are putting on (in) it.  Once this balance is lost, the soil will need what you have put on it again and again, further changing and damaging the structure and makeup of the original soil.  Much like a drug addict, the soil will need these fixes to continue to produce.  Of course fertilizer salesman love this as they have had much of the nation’s farmland in this predicament Since the 1950’s.  Chemical applications to kill pests are much the same way.  When you use pesticides to kill insects, fungus, weeds, etc.  you are only going to get short-term results.  This is because nature is at it again, trying to counter what we’ve done by letting a few insects, fungi, weeds, etc. survive the pesticide application.  Now we have a population of pests that is reproducing with a natural resistance to what’s been applied.  Then a stronger chemical is needed, and so on.  We’re breeding super-pests that are pretty tough to control and having to use more toxic stuff to kill them. 

When you use organic or “earth-friendly” products, the idea is to create a healthy environment in your garden or greenhouse that will thrive because it is naturally in balance.  This is to say that if you use natural materials on (in) the soil like compost, mycorhizzae, meal, etc. and lightly till or aerate, you will generate a healthy population of microbes in your soil that will fix minerals (nutrients) for the plant.  In the long term this will keep the soil fertile as the abundant healthy microbes thrive in symbiosis with your plants, both perpetuating each other.  This long term soil health leads to plants which are healthier as they ingest the proper balance of macro and micronutrients (16 or so altogether).  You will thus apply less fertilizer and maintain a greener garden or greenhouse.  Also, you will find yourself spraying off a few aphids on your roses with the water hose once in a while instead of applying bug spray every few weeks.  Healthy plants naturally resist pests and disease, just like people.

Changing to these methods does take patience as results can take time, especially if your garden is used to these treatments of chemicals.  It will rebel at first and may turn sickly just as a drug-addicted person may after his chemicals have been taken away, but after a season or so it will start to align itself.  You will begin generating healthy balance of microbes in your soil, which is where it starts.  The rest is a natural chain reaction, and once this balance is found the garden will perpetuate itself much more readily and healthily with less attention needed, giving you some time to enjoy what you have helped create.

Now go find some balance.  Happy gardening.

Plantman.

Watering Your Plants Correctly March 6, 2007

It seems so simple, plants need water to live.  But it’s a little more than that…  I found the best way while working in my dad’s wholesale nursery when I was about 19.  I spent a good portion of the week during the summer just watering plants, and noticed that the best response (and I have also later found that this works with most all varieties of plants and trees) from the plants came if I waited to water them until I noticed that they were just barely starting to wilt, and then watering them just enough and never flooding them.  This is not to say you should let them get too dry either as many people do, but if you pay attention you will see a subtle change in the appearance of the leaves when it’s time to water.  The leaves will appear a tiny bit wilted, they will just barely lose “turgidity” as the cells within the leaf lose their pressure from dehydration.  It will take longer for drought tolerant plants to get to this point than a houseplant for example, but the lesson is true for most plants and trees.  You will notice a tiny bit of “sadness” (as they say in Spanish to mean this tiny bit of wilt).  Obviously the soil might be a bit dry, too.  It is okay to allow the soil dry out a little (it should never get completely dry) contrary to some people’s belief.  It should be so that you can barely feel the moisture in it (the soil will pull a little bit of moisture from your fingers and you will notice them feeling drier after a few seconds), but never soaking wet.  Think of the soil as a sponge and while watering try to keep that sponge moist but never saturated, then allow the sponge to dry to just to the point of it losing its flexibility before watering again.  When you wait for the soil to dry like this you help push the minerals or nutrients through it just a little each time you water.  With this, overwatering will push the minerals right through the root zone quickly too quickly.  The soil and the plant’s leaves will tell you when it’s time to water.  When watering within this balance you’re helping the plant as the minerals come in contact with the roots and vice-versa, with enough time for the roots to process and uptake them.  This keeps a steady flow of minerals running through the soil as well.  Also, you will help oxygenate the roots if you let them dry a bit before rehydrating which helps them grow.  Finally, watering correctly keeps the soil structure healthy for the millions of microbes and critters living within it, helping them ward off the bad guys while making nurients available to your plant’s roots in a symbiotic relationship.  With time you will get in tune with the watering needs of your plants as you notice when to water them by looking at the leaves and checking the soil.  Finding this balance will keep them healthy and happy and willing to grow and bloom and thrive for you.  Try it!  Happy Gardening!

Plantman

Experimenting for Optimal Results March 2, 2007

I was back in the greenhouse yesterday afternoon planting more Aesculus californica (California hawthorn) and a few more redwood ‘burlwood’ cuttings.  Today I’d like to talk about the importance of experimentation if you are looking for optimum results from your plants or trees (especially if you have many plants/trees of the same variety).  I have all of the hawthorn seeds together in gallon cans in one section of the greenhouse, and those I planted about a month ago are already sprouting and looking very healthy, with the others close behind.  Since I do have over 200 redwoods now, I have switched up a few of the variables in growing to find out what they like best.  This is a great way to gather information so when I do more planting in the future I have a good idea of what to do to get the best results.  For example, I have one valve watering 3 days a week for 12 minutes (I started with 20 and it was a bit too much), while the other waters just 2 days a week for 8 minutes, and still another section outside the greenhouse that only gets water from rain and the occasional hand watering I do in between rains.  As for fertilizer, a cross section of the redwoods have gotten a full handful of 4-4-4 organic fertilizer with mycorhizzae and another cross section has gotten about half that amount; the same for the redwoods outside.  As for aeration (roots do need air too!), I have lightly mixed the soil in some of the cans after planting and left others a bit more heavy and compacted.  As for sunlight, the redwoods toward the center of the greenhouse do get a little bit more because of the shade of a large oak tree in the afternoon.  It seems so far that the more fertilized, more aerated, less watered, more “sunny” cuttings are rooting the fastest (especially the ones that got the rooting hormone treatment before planting).  This does not mean that these are the best conditions yet as I have found that things can change with time.  As soon as the oaks and Aesculus are large enough and I have enough specimens of each, I will be doing the same sort of experimentation on them as well.  One more quick note.  I have been practicing the guitar inside the greenhouse, playing mostly country type songs as the acoustics are really good inside.  I have no idea what the reaction will be as I have read that plants and trees enjoy melodic tunes like classical music as well as those that are very earth and land oriented such as country.  I’ll leave the electric guitar at home as they supposedly do not like the vibrations of heavy metal or rock music.  This has been documented as experiments have been made where plants tend to grow toward a source of music that they like and grow away from music they dislike.  Interesting food for thought.  Until next time, happy gardening!

Plantman