With the weather heating up and the importance of keeping everything well watered, it's a good time to focus on our soils - especially with the spring planting season just around the corner. A good soil is critical for water retention and overall plant health.

It is a great time to think about composting. A great old saying is "Waste Not, Want Not." This principle can certainly be put to use in our gardens! We are throwing away in the trash the very material that we can utilize to improve our gardens. Healthy soil is full of all kinds of beneficial microbes and bacterias that will help our plants grow.

Homemade compost is easy and fun! It can be anything from throwing an apple core in the flower bed to utilizing one of the new tumbler type bins with thermometers, etc... Just mowing the lawn and leaving the clippings will help; there's nitrogen in that green stuff!

When we compost we are really just putting back into the earth what we've taken out of it! A few guidelines:

• Do add - any raw vegetable material such as potato peelings, eggshell, yard trimmings, grass clippings, leaves etc. (Avoid perennial weeds and diseased or insect-infested foliage.)
• Do not use cooked foods, fats or meats - you want to attract microbes, not furry visitors! Also, the addition of chemical fertilizers in the compost pile is not microbe friendly.
• Add a layer of garden soil after each addition. The more textures of material the better. The microbes need moisture and air circulation. Hint: If you see ants, the compost is too dry, and an odor would mean it's probably too wet and there's not enough air circulation.
• You don't have to turn the pile, but the more you do the faster it will work. That's why the tumbler bins are popular. Seems we're always trying to rush nature!

If you lack space for a compost pile or large bin, you might want to try some slower but less intrusive composting methods like trench composting or hole composting ('compostholing').

For trenches — dig trenches deep enough to accommodate the volume of waste to be composted. Fill with material. Next planting season, set up new beds atop the old trenches and dig new trenches where the old beds were. By alternating trenches and garden rows each season, you'll improve the soil throughout your garden. The hole composting method is similar, but uses a hole instead of a trench.

The next time you put out newspapers and cans to recycle, think about what we can recycle in our gardens as well.

By Tamara Galbraith

Many nurseries have their potato "seeds" out for purchase now. You can get anything from Purple Peruvian to Russian Banana fingerlings. Whatever the variety, make sure the seeds you purchase are marked as "certified" and are firm and unsprouted. Now is a good time to start spuds.

If the seed potatoes are small- to medium-sized, plant the whole potato. If they are larger -- say, bigger than your fist -- you can cut them into pieces, ensuring each section has two or three "eyes" or growth bumps. After cutting, let the potatoes cure for a day or two, so the cut surface calluses over. You can also let them start to sprout in a warm indoor area to give them a head start before planting.

A fun and easy way to grow potatoes is in an above-ground bin, a method that has been popular with Scandinavians for hundreds of years. This a great growing alternative for those of us with small backyards.

The container can be almost anything, from a garbage bag, wire cage, or trash can to a stack of clean tires. Whatever container you choose should be at least 2' in diameter and 4' feet tall. Garden or potting soil (we recommend Harvest Supreme) is placed in the bottom. Bury the seeds, cut side down, about two inches deep and one foot apart and cover with a thick (12") layer of chopped leaves, pine needles or straw. Water thoroughly and make sure that whatever container you use has adequate drainage; for example, a garbage bag will need to have holes punched in the bottom.

As the potatoes sprout and the foliage begins to emerge above the soil, add more chopped leaves or straw and water weekly. Continue to add material as the foliage gets taller, always leaving about 2 inches of the plant showing. (If the new potatoes are exposed to sunlight while they are developing, they will turn green. This green portion may be toxic - if you have any green areas on your potatoes, cut them off before eating.)

Potatoes generally take about 100 days to mature, but you can harvest them as soon as the spuds are big enough to eat. However, a good gauge of knowing when your potatoes are close to mature (when they must be harvested) is when the plants turn brown and die. At that point, you should let everything sit for two weeks as the potatoes complete their final bit of curing. Then harvest your spuds gently, and enjoy!

Strawberries are an excellent crop for home gardeners. Like most fruits and vegetables, they taste much better if homegrown and picked when just ripe.

You can plant strawberries three ways: in the ground, in strawberry pots, or in hanging baskets. Plant certain varieties now and you can be enjoying your fresh strawberries into autumn.

Strawberry Types:

• June-bearing strawberries produce a large, concentrated crop in late spring. You'll get more berries per season from June-bearing strawberries, but the entire crop will ripen over a short period.
• Ever-bearing strawberries produce one crop in spring and another in fall.
• Day-neutral plants are capable of producing fruit throughout most of the growing season.

We recommend planting more than one type, so you'll get a better spread in your harvest.

Growing Strawberries:
Strawberries need full sun to produce the best crop - give them at least 6 hours of direct sunlight per day. More sunlight will give you more, and better quality, berries.
Strawberries do best in a sandy loam with high humus content. They don't like either drought or wet feet (they will suffer root-rot in poorly-draining soil).
Water when the top inch of soil dries out - this may be daily in hot weather.

Planting Depth
Try to plant strawberries on a cloudy day or during the late afternoon. Set the strawberry plant in the soil so that the soil is just covering the tops of the roots. Do not cover the crown. After a month or so, the plants will begin producing runners and new plants. Feed monthly with a good organic liquid fertilizer like Raingrow All Purpose Liquid Fertilizer .

In a Strawberry Pot or Basket:
We recommend using the larger pots and baskets, as the smaller ones dry out too quickly. Use an organic potting mix like Gardener & Bloome Potting Soil that provides nutrients, or fortify the potting mix with slow-release fertilizer.

In the Ground
Strawberries don't like either drought or wet feet. We recommend amending with Gardener & Bloome Soil Building Compost if your site doesn't drain well (or drains too quickly).

Beds should be placed beyond the root zone of large trees so the tree won't compete with the strawberries for nutrients and water. Choose a location that will be easy to water during dry spells.

The site selected should be free from weeds, grubs and soil-borne diseases. Strawberries are susceptible to verticillium wilt, and should not be planted where tomatoes, peppers, eggplant and potatoes have grown in the past three years, since these vegetables often carry the disease. If you don't have a 'clean' area to plant them, we recommend using strawberry pots or baskets.

Plant strawberries in the spring, as soon as the ground is workable. Don't work the soil if it's soggy. Wait a few days until it dries.

Edible Spring Hanging Basket
Sat. April 22nd at 1:00.

Learn how fun and delicious it can be when you plant herbs and edible flowers in combination in a handy basket. Cost is $25.00. Pre-registration required.

Kids: May Day Basket
Saturday April 29th at 1:00.

Bright Spring flowers in a colorful woven basket! The perfect way to bring in the month of May. Cost is $10.00. All Ages! Pre-registration required.

Designing for Color!
Sunday April 30th at 1:00.

Get the scoop on selecting plants that are star performers and look good longer! Free!

May class schedule coming soon. Call 687-5952 for more information. Sign up Today!