With the Grain » gardening

Using Coffee Grounds for Gardening

Jenn Greenleaf — Sun, 30 May 2010 16:58:08 +0000

Why do people put their used coffee grounds in their garden beds? Good question!

When coffee grounds are added to garden soil right before watering (or prior to rainfall), they slowly release nitrogen into the mix. This fertilization keeps the soil in balance in order for better plant growth. Placing the grounds around plants with crushed eggshells also repel pests.

Use of tea bags and coffee filters (with their grounds) are a good additive for compost heaps, as well, to keep the nitrogen balance in check. Don’t worry about the paper filters or tea bags because they break down fast.

Eggshells in the Garden

Jenn Greenleaf — Sat, 29 May 2010 14:34:53 +0000

Do eggshells really help gardens, and how? That’s a great question and, to be honest, I had no idea eggshells are beneficial to gardens until this planting season. Let’s look at how they help gardens:

They deter slugs and cutworms.
Place them around tomato plants to provide extra calcium, which tomatoes need.
Mix them with coffee grounds for extra nutrients and nitrogen in your garden’s soil.

Be sure to wash the eggshells prior to adding them to your garden. Because eggshells break down very slowly, they should also be crushed prior to adding them to your garden soil or compost.

Gardening With Rocks and Boulders

Jenn Greenleaf — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 22:43:07 +0000

There are some very beautiful pieces of stone, as well as pavers at home improvement store and garden stores by the dozen. However, what about using nature’s bounty located within your own backyard? For those living on larger pieces of property, rocks and boulders are readily available. For those who don’t, however, the garden centers and home improvement centers are the way to go.

What do you do with these pieces of Earth, though?

Create a border surrounding your flowering and vegetable gardens.
Use small rocks, about the size of a golf ball or a little larger, as drainage in large plant pots and other planters.
Consider using a boulder as the anchor piece, or focal point if you will, for a sprawling garden with water features and a variety of plantings.
Use rocks and pebbles that have been pushed level with each other into the ground to create a rustic pathway to porches, outdoor structures, and other garden elements.

There are a number of ways to approach use of rocks, boulders, and other stone work on properties. Let your imagination run wild, and you’d be surprised what you might come up with. Consider picking up a book covering this topic, as well as searching a number of stone gardening websites.

Learning How to Cultivate Soil

Jenn Greenleaf — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 22:30:32 +0000

Spring has sprung throughout the much of the country, and that means it’s time to get seeds started and garden beds ready for planting. For those new to the process of garden bed preparation, here are some links teaching how to and the importance of soil cultivation:

For those living in parts of the country where rainfall isn’t letting up, get some advice from an experienced landscaper or greenhouse about how to prepare the ground for planting. You may need to add gravel or sand to prevent over saturation.

Planting a Raised Garden

Jenn Greenleaf — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 19:52:26 +0000

To some, planting a garden directly into tilled soil is the way to go. For others, though, raised gardening is more to their taste. For those who are new to raised gardening, it’s important to understand some important tips and guidelines. Here are some links to lead you:

As you can see, there’s a lot of information to get through prior to getting started. Choosing which method is best for your planting style, the garden layout your interested in, and how big your garden is going to be prior to getting seeds sown is essential.

How to Sow Seeds

Jenn Greenleaf — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 16:40:22 +0000

Even though most of the country is still experiencing cold weather and, where I’m from, starting ground gardening can’t happen until after the last frost. In the meantime, it’s important to get started on seed sowing, though.

Here are some links to lead you:

No matter if you’re a flower gardener, a vegetable gardener, or both it’s time to get those seeds started! This is, of course, unless you purchase plants that have already been started from your local nursery. Either option is completely fine and produce excellent results.

How to Compost

Jenn Greenleaf — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 15:29:09 +0000

Self-sufficiency is on the minds of many consumers, particularly those who are already implementing the “reduce, reuse, and recycle” practice into their households. With these principles in mind, it’s a smoother transition into self-sufficiency.

Why? Because these homeowners are looking for ways to reuse household items and, in the case of composting, this is achievable.

Here are some links to lead you:

Composting is just one of the many ways homeowners can work toward self-sufficiency and reusing items. Good luck!

Plants Through the Seasons

Jenn Greenleaf — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 14:36:31 +0000

Do you know which potted plants and container gardens you need to protect from cold weather and which ones can be kept right where they are through the seasons?

This has always been a tricky thing for me to figure out. There have been some years where I’ve left some potted plants right where they were one year, and they were fine . . . however, when I made the same attempt the following year, they didn’t last.

So, before giving myself another headache about this bit of gardening maintenance I decided to do some research on the topic:

Hopefully this will get you (and me!) started on our way toward container gardens that won’t die out, get ruined, or any of the other weather related issues they may encounter. Good luck!

Get Your (Container) Garden On!

Jenn Greenleaf — Thu, 14 May 2009 12:27:57 +0000

This weekend, I’m working on getting my vegetable and flower gardens in. We are working on a LOT of landscaping (heavy equipment excavation) to fix the drainage issues surrounding our foundation, so all of my gardening will be in containers this year. Here are some resources I’m using to help me through the process:

When I lived in apartments and rental homes, digging in the dirt was never something I was allowed to do (and, in some cases, there was no yard where I was renting), so container gardening was part of my yearly routine. It’s nice to revisit this type of gardening again, despite how much I can’t wait to plant beds in the ground!

Outdoor Home Improvement Ideas

Jenn Greenleaf — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 14:19:47 +0000

The weather is too nice (at least in my neck of the woods) to stay cooped up inside any longer! Here is a list of outdoor home improvement projects to tackle now that the weather is finally cooperating:

Create an outdoor fireplace or fire pit.
Install a pool, spa, or miniature pond (depending on space and budget).
Replace, refurbish, or install decking.
Create a new walkway (or refurbish an existing walkway).
Update or purchase patio amenities (furniture, a grill, etc.).

There’s a lot to do beyond gardening and landscaping during this time of year. Spend some time going through your property, make a list, figure out your budget, and get going! You’ll love what you accomplish as you start marking off things on your list bit by bit!