Grow your own food. How can we help?

TomatoAs I sit here writing this, I am drinking processed instant coffee and Lord knows what kind of processed stuff in my creamer. (I know “Instant” coffee, but it’s something I picked up from my Grandmother a long time ago) Anyway…..

I have been thinking a lot about natural foods and what is good for us to eat. If you take a look around, pre-processed stuff is in EVERYTHING we eat. You can’t get away from it. I have been doing a good bit of research on this and trying to find ways to get better food that is not so… well… ARTIFICIAL.

Through research, I have come across a few websites that show you how to get real heirloom seeds to grow your own stuff and how to avoid the big agra guys.

I have even come across a local Facebook page here in town that has a lot of active members doing this very thing. You can visit their FB page at: Columbus Ga (zone8) Gardeners community. I joined a while back and they seem to be a solid group of people.

Wilsons-FarmsI also have a good friend I graduated with that has a farm up in Pine Mountain. This is their second year growing and they have a lot of vegetables and are even raising chickens now. They pollinate with their own honey bees, so they don’t use harsh chemical pesticides. My wife and I will be buying most of our food from them this year. You can find their farm here at Wilsons Farms.

As a local retailer in the horticultural side of things, we would like to ask:

How can we help people in the community eat and live this way, if they choose to?

Are there products or services that we may be able to incorporate in our business that may help make these endeavors a little easier?

I started our Facebook page and our website last year for this very purpose. This community has been very good to us the last 33 years and we want to engage and be a resource for others.

Another question I would like to ask is: Are you trying to get better food now and if so, how are you going about it?

I would love to hear your comments below and any recommendations you may have on eating better and growing your own food.

“What is this purple weed all over my yard?”

HenbitI had someone contact me recently, asking what this purple weed was in his yard. He submitted the photo above.

This weed is called Henbit and is very common around here. Fortunately, it is easy to kill. Any of the broad leaf weed killers like Weed-B-Gone or Weed Out will take care of it in short order and at low rates.

Here another photo that I took of it as well.image

You can keep this weed and most others from appearing in your yard by applying Pre-M (Pendimethlin) three times per year. Once in spring, summer and fall. These three applications will cut down on the need to spray all year and keep your weeds in check. Preemergents can save you a lot of money and reduce the amount of pesticides you apply to your lawn.

Has this been a problem in your yard this year? Comment below.

NO! Zoysia is not made for the shade!

BGI got a call from a friend yesterday and he was asking me to clarify some conflicting advise he received about what sod to put under his oak tree.

Apparently a “Lawn Care Professional” told him his best bet would be to plant Emerald Zoysia under his oak tree in his front yard. The area he is referring to is very shady and so is the advise he was given.

Let me clarify. Yes, Zoysia tolerates  more shade than Bermuda, but not near as much as most people think. Zoysia is not the answer to heavily shaded areas. When you install it, it will look great for a few years, but eventually it will go into decline getting thinner and thinner each year. I don’t know where the idea that Zoysia is the answer to shade problems got started, but it is just plain wrong.

The only turf grass we can grow that will tolerate a lot of shade is St. Augustine and it is not without it’s own problems. St. Augustine tolerates much more shade than any other sod we have here, but it has issues with insects and frost damage. You will no doubt notice people having problems with damage to their St. Augustine this year due to the cold winter we have had.

The only sure fire way to tackle a shady area is to create a bed there and plant some shade loving plants like Azaleas or Vinca. It’s also a great place to put a swing and enjoy a glass of tea. Sorry, but that’s just how it is.

Look at it this way, more Azaleas, means less time on the mower. 🙂

Don’t let your sprinkler guy mix heads!

I see this all too often. I go out to a client’s house to work on their sprinkler system and there it is staring me in the face! My old evil adversary…. THE MIXED ZONE!

What is a mixed zone? A mixed zone is a sprinkler zone that has two types of sprinkler heads that put out different rates of water.

Sprinkler
Sprinkler

For example: You may have a zone primarily consisting of rotors and on that zone someone has added a spray. Rotors are heads that rotate and usually throw water thirty feet or more. Sprays are heads that have a short spray pattern, generally fifteen feet or less.

“Why is this a problem?” you may ask. “After all, we just need to get stuff wet right?” WRONG and here’s why.

The typical installation here in town, running off of a residential water meter, is going to give you a few rotors that put out approx two gallons of water per minute each. If your rotor is throwing thirty feet, the area you are watering is approx 2800 sq ft. If someone adds in a spray just to wet a corner or something, it will be much different. Let’s say they add an 8H. That is a spray nozzle that throws eight feet in a half circle pattern. Now that nozzle only puts out .4 gallons per minute and covers an area of 100 sq ft. Remember the rotor puts out two gallons per minute.spraybodies_00_prospray-08

Which type of head do you think puts down more water? The big rotor at 2 gpm or the little spray at only .4 gpm? If you said the big rotor, you guessed WRONG!

This typical scenario is full of major issues and creates a huge imbalance in the zone. If we break it down to how much water is hitting the ground per sq ft, per half hour it works out like this. The rotors are putting down 0.02 gallons of water per sq ft, each half hr. The spray is putting down 0.1 gallons of water per sq ft, per half hr. THAT’S FIVE TIMES MORE THAN THE ROTOR!!!

If you run that zone long enough to have the rotors cover the rest yard, you drown the area covered by the spray. If you only run the zone enough for the spray to water correctly, the rest of the yard will burn up.

The bad thing is, I see this problem almost daily!

Remember this the next time you have your sprinkler system worked on and DON’T LET THEM DO THIS!

How to create a vertical garden

 

This is a video we made, showing you how to create a vertical garden from some common products.

In the video, I mention using five pots, it actually turned out using six pots. These are common terracotta pots and a simple pot display stand.

You can use this to plant herbs, small vegetables, flowers, really anything you can think of.

Side Planting by Pamela Crawford

Planter2I wanted to share a video with you on “Side planting”. This video is by Pamela Crawford. Pamela is a Gardener and writer from right here in Georgia.

She does an amazing job of explaining this simple concept and the results are as amazing as they are simple. Using her ideas, you can buy any wire plant stand and cut holes in the coconut liner to make your own side planter.

I hope you enjoy her video as much as I did!

If you would like to see more of her work or know more about her, visit her site at:

Easy Garden Color

 

Roundup may be a thing of the past……

IMG_7889This season, Scotts plans to test genetically modified Blue Grass in some of its employees’ lawns in Marryville, Oh, reported here in the Columbus Dispatch in Ohio.

I have always been wary of genetically modified products, but I have never fancied myself a Chicken Little type. I understand that there is good to be gained from some of the products. However, I think this is a big mistake and here is why.

Right now, Roundup is used pretty sparingly and does a good job. What is going to happen when your entire lawn is Roundup resistant? I can tell you. People will be spraying this stuff like crazy with no regard for the side-effects.

Does anyone remember DDT? DDT was a great product, but was overused and caused a lot of damage to our environment. Had the EPA restricted its use instead of doing away with it, I say we could have saved a lot of lives all around the world. DDT was great at controlling insect-borne diseases like malaria.

Back to my point. If and when this grass comes to market and they are claiming as early as 2015, we will see a huge increase in Roundup use. How long do you think this will last until we have huge side-effects from overuse? 5 years, maybe 10? I can only guess. When that happens, politicians and the FDA (Who deregulated this development, read about it here) will cry with their typical false outrage and demand it be taken off of the market. Once off of the market we will be left with inferior weed control options. This makes me wonder if Monsanto has a new product up their sleeve.

Another bad side effect of this Grass Frankenstein is this and should be the most obvious one! We already struggle to keep turf grass in the lawn and out of our flower beds. How in the world are we going to keep it out of our beds if it is ROUNDUP PROOF?!!!!

Look, I like Scotts and I like Monsanto. They make good products and help us a lot in the landscaping industry, but I think this is short sighted and VERY dangerous!

Do you think this is a bad idea? Let us hear what you think. Please comment below.

Basic Lawn Care Tips That Make a Difference

Basic Lawn Care Tips That Make a Difference

Today we have a guest post by  Graham Mosley –  a product and marketing manager at lawnmowerpros.com

 

maint3

 

A great looking lawn makes us happy, but caring for it can be a challenge. The following tips can help you be the envy of the neighborhood.

 

    1. Soil Sample. First of all, test the pH of the soil. This will actually save you a lot of money, because you’ll know exactly what your soil needs. You can use your local county extension agent or test it yourself with a test kit.

 

    1. Mowing your lawn. You want to keep the lawn down to at least 2 inches because we have a hot humid climate. Grass that is too tall will tend to set up fungus in the summer due to the heat and humidity. However, it is advised to keep the lawn a little tall in the coldest months of winter to protect the roots from frost damage. Always rotate the direction you mow the lawn. If you don’t you will develop ruts.

 

    1. Watering. In the winter no water is needed. We usually get enough rain and the sod is dormant. New sod needs to be watered twice a day in the summer
      Sprinkler
      Sprinkler

      because of the extreme heat and evaporation, Established sod can usually be watered every other day for about 20 minutes. Your sprinkler system efficiency will dictate this timing. You should always water in the early morning around 4 am or so. The water has time to soak in and then be evaporated by the sun. Watering in the evening, leaves the sod wet all night and gives fungus time to get established.

       

    2. Fertilizing your lawn. To keep your lawn healthy, you need to fertilize about every 60 days during the growing season. Your PH test and proper adjustment make the fertilizer available to the sod in the soil. Improper PH will lock the nutrients up and your fertilizer won’t work.

 

    1. Weed Control. It is important to establish and maintain a solid weed control program. Weeds not only take away from a lawn’s visual appeal, but its health as well.

 

    1. Aeration. Aeration is very important since the compacted soil may prevent nutrients, air and water from reaching the root system.

 

  1. Keep the leaves up. Leaves covering your lawn keep sunlight from reaching the grass blades and the sod can’t survive. Keep the leaves up.

    Lawn Maintenance
    Lawn Maintenance
  2. Maintain your lawn mower. To keep your mower working correctly, it has to be maintained. First of all, always keep the blade sharp and sharpen it when necessary. A sharp blade actually cuts the grass instead of tearing it. Also, check the oil level each time you mow and lubricate all moving parts. Don’t forget about the spark plugs and the air filter as well.

 

A well-maintained lawn can be achieved quite easily – just remember these basic tips. Did I miss something? Feel free to add your lawn care tips in comments below. 

 

Author’s Bio
Post by Graham Mosley –  a product and marketing manager at Lawnmowerpros.com, a widely known online retailer of lawn mower parts, accessories and outdoor power equipment

 

Adding a Fruit tree to your landscape

Fruit-Tree-1Adding a fruit tree to your landscape is a very rewarding endeavor but you need to be aware of the care it requires.

Here are some tips to make your planting successful!

 

  1. NOW is the time to plant. The colder and wetter the better.
  2. First you need to dig the hole about twice the size of the root ball. This way you will be sure to have nice loose soil for the new roots to grow into. Be sure to dig the hole deeper than needed as well.
  3. Next, you want fill the hole with water and let it soak in. This make take some time.
  4. Now take some potting soil and put in the bottom of the hole so that when the tree is installed, it is above the ground about a half an inch. Be sure to pack the soil good, so it doesn’t settle later.
  5. Now take the tree out of the container and slice the roots on the sides to encourage new growth in the spring.
  6. Put the tree in the hole and make sure the root ball is about a half inch above ground.
  7. Use good rich soil to fill in around the tree. Don’t use the bag soil that is light and fluffy, it won’t hold the tree. Use good heavy potting soil that you can pack.
  8. Fill the hole all the way to the top of the root ball but not covering it. It will be sloped away just a bit. Make sure to pack the soil well so the tree will be stable and not have air pockets around the root ball.
  9. Take the old soil that you dug out and use it to build a large saucer around the whole thing. Make the saucer a little larger than the hole you dug. The sides should be 4 or 5 inches tall when you are done and sloping to the root ball. Again… Be sure not to cover the root ball.
  10. Now sprinkle a couple of handfuls of fruit tree fertilizer around the saucer taking care not to get it on the exposed root ball. You just want it around the tree, inside the
    saucer.
  11. Next you want to stabilize the tree by driving three steaks around it, outside of the area you dug. You will need some small rope or wire and some old garden hose to tie the tree off. Cut three pieces of old garden hose about a foot long and run the rope or wire through it. You will go from the steak, through the hose, around the tree and back to the steak. Use the hose to protect the tree from the wire or rope. It will cut into and damage the bark if you don’t. Be sure to remove this after the first growing season.
  12. And last but not least, water your new tree in. Lay the hose in the saucer and let it gently fill up, taking care not to run the hose too fast, as it may create a hole. Fill the saucer a few times and you’re done!

 

In the coming weeks, I will make a follow up post on keeping pests from damaging your new tree.

 

Good luck to all of you who signed up for our new community and made a comment to win the tree next week!

10 Important Lawn Care Tips

1. Don’t plant large shrubbery or trees against your house. The roots from them can damage your foundation and the foliage against the walls can cause mold and mildew.

 

2. Plan your design ahead of time. Always have a plan going in. This will save you time, money and aggravation. You don’t want to have your front yard looking great, only to remember you need to take a tractor to the back yard later on. This happens a lot.

 

 3. Don’t plant too much of the same plant material. You want to vary your selection for several reasons. If you have different type of blooming plants and shrubs, you can have blooms all year long. Another good reason is if a fungus or blight comes along that affect one type of plant, you won’t lose everything.

 

 4. Plant low maintenance material. Unless you have lots of time to devote to the maintenance of your landscape, or can afford a full-time gardener, plant low maintenance items. It may look great today, but if you can’t keep up with it, it will look worse than ever and you have just wasted your time and money.

 

 5. Put beds around single trees and shrubs. Placing a bed around these makes it easier to mow and weed eat. You will be less likely to damage your shrub or tree with the mower or weed eater.

 

 6. Be aware of growth habits of trees you plant. When planting a tree in your yard, be sure you know how big it will get and what kind of canopy it will have on it. If you have a nice lawn and want to keep it, don’t plant a tree in the middle of it that will make lots of shade in a large area. The grass will not survive. Also, make sure not to plant too close to the house, or plant tall trees under utility lines. They will eventually have to be topped out or taken down.

 

 7. Think in three dimensions when planting beds. When you plan your beds, always think of how the plants will look when mature and try to put tall plants as a backdrop to shorter plants in the front. This will give you more dimension, than just planting a row of something.

 

 8. Put in a sprinkler system. A sprinkler system saves time and money. Have you ever been moving the lawn sprinkler around on a Saturday and forgot it in one spot too long. Every time you do that, you waste massive amounts of water. With an automatic system, You get what you need, where you need, when you need. If and this is a big IF, you use a reputable contractor. Just putting some pipe in the ground with some heads scattered about, getting things wet is not the answer. If you are going to do that, you may as well stick with a hose.

 

 9. Don’t rely on non-local sources of information. Get your information from local nurseries and the County Extension Agent. They will be more knowledgeable about our local climate and plant material. Someone writing a book about planting methods in California or Maine, would not be reliable for planting techniques here in Georgia.

 

 10. Stay on top of weeds. Weeds are hard enough to keep at bay and they are exponentially worse when they get established. Be sure to stay ahead of them.

 

 Well there you go. These are simple tips, but they are important. If you apply these to your lawn and landscape, you will be miles ahead of the game.