This Imperfect Plot

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April 25th, 2012

Don’t forget: All week long we’re giving away an awesome prize package from our friends at Organic Mechanics. One lucky winner will be selected to receive a care package from Organic Mechanics this week. Here’s what you’ll get:

• (1) 8qt Premium Blend (OMRI listed indoor potting soil)
• (1) 16qt Container Blend (all-purpose outdoor potting soil)
• (1) 16qt Seed Starting Blend (OMRI listed potting soil for seed starting indoors)
• (1) 1.0cuft Planting Mix (OMRI listed compost blend soil amendment – great for building raised bed veggie gardens!)
• (5) 1 lb. Worm Castings (premium soil amendment, great for making worm “tea”, directions on our website’s Products page)
• (1) Organic Mechanics T Shirt (Green, L or XL available)

All you have to do is register here: http://www.organicgardening.com/organic-mechanics-giveaway

Note: Last month we gave away an electric tiller, but we have not heard back from our potential winner yet (I’m looking at you, Minnesota). Be sure to use your real email address so we can contact you and award the prize. If your name is randomly selected, you will receive an email from me about the middle of next week. Thanks!

For more information about Organic Mechanics, go here: www.organicmechanicsoil.com

* No purchase necessary to enter or win.
* A purchase will not improve your chances of winning.
* You are not a winner yet.
* Void where prohibited.
* Must be over 18 to enter, and legal resident of 50 United States or DC and Canada (excluding residents of the Province of QUEBEC)
* Sweepstakes begins at 12:01 a.m. ET April 23, 2012 and ends 11:59 p.m. ET April 27, 2012 with the final drawing on May 3, 2012
* Entries must be received by 11:59 pm (ET) on April 27, 2012
* Click here for official rules.

April 23rd, 2012

As the father of two young daughters, I don’t always have enough daylight after work to do any gardening. I get home around six and it’s a whirlwind of cooking, eating, playing, and reading before it’s all said and done. By the time my girls are fed, read, and in bed, it’s somewhere around 8:30 and twilight is just giving way to darkness.

So what’s a gardener to do? Two words: Nighttime Gardening. With that in mind, I’d like to share with you my new homemade video series called “Gardening at Night.” The first episode is called “Slugs Love Beer.” Keep in mind that I’m shooting and editing this myself, and I’m still trying to dial it in a bit. So it’s with some nervousness and potential embarrassment that I give you this:

Organic Mechanic Giveaway

This spring, I’ve been trying out the seed starting mix from Organic Mechanics Potting Soil.  I’ve started tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, tomatillos, parsley, basil, corn and lots of annual flowers in this mix. My seedlings are big, strong, and healthy. The mix holds moisture really well so my flats don’t dry out as fast as some other starting mixes. It’s made from coconut fiber, pine bark, rice hulls, worm castings, and an OMRI-listed organic fertilizer.

And here is your chance to try their line of products. One lucky winner will be selected to receive a care package from Organic Mechanics this week. Here’s what you’ll get:

• (1) 8qt Premium Blend (OMRI listed indoor potting soil)
• (1) 16qt Container Blend (all-purpose outdoor potting soil)
• (1) 16qt Seed Starting Blend (OMRI listed potting soil for seed starting indoors)
• (1) 1.0cuft Planting Mix (OMRI listed compost blend soil amendment – great for building raised bed veggie gardens!)
• (5) 1 lb. Worm Castings (premium soil amendment, great for making worm “tea”, directions on our website’s Products page)
• (1) Organic Mechanics T Shirt (Green, L or XL available)

All you have to do is register here: http://www.organicgardening.com/organic-mechanics-giveaway

Note: Last month we gave away an electric tiller, but we have not heard back from our potential winner yet (I’m looking at you, Minnesota). Be sure to use your real email address so we can contact you and award the prize. If your name is randomly selected, you will receive an email from me about the middle of next week. Thanks!

For more information about Organic Mechanics, go here: www.organicmechanicsoil.com

April 10th, 2012

You’d think I would have gotten a lot of gardening done since my last blog post. You’d be right, too. Luckily, there is no direct correlation between my blogging frequency and my gardening. Here’s what I’ve been working on at home these past few weeks.

In the basement, under lights, I have the following:

Green Zebra tomatoes
Cosmonaut Volkov tomatoes
Indigo Rose tomatoes
Brandywine tomatoes
Amish Paste tomatoes
Sweetie Cherry tomatoes
Toma Verde tomatillo
Corno di Torro sweet peppers
Rosa Bianca eggplant
Jasmine-scented nicotiana
Italian Flat Leaf Parsley
Genovese basil
Sweet corn

I started the corn in newspaper pots. I’ve heard that corn seedlings don’t transplant well, so I’m hoping that I can avoid any issues by simply planting the whole newspaper pot.

I also started Siberian Kale, Red Russian Kale, Fordhook Chard, and Champion Collards. I transplanted these last weekend, and now they’re out there under a row cover. About 5 days before I transplanted them, I took the temperature of my soil. It was 50 degrees, so I covered that raised bed with black plastic and 5 days later the temp was nearly 60 degrees.

I also have a flat of onion, Dakota Tears & Siskiyou Sweet Walla Walla. That flat gets moved around a lot, usually shuffling back and forth between the kitchen table and the deck.

The peas that we planted around Saint Patty’s Day are sprouting. They’re not doing so well, though. I think I have either cut worms or very hungry slugs. I’m going to pre-sprout some more peas and replant this weekend.

All of these varieties are from High Mowing Organic Seeds. And I’ve been using Organic Mechanic’s Seed Starting Mix.

PS. If you entered the Sun Joe Tiller Giveaway last month, check your email. We’ve selected a potential winner and sent her an email. If this is you, please respond so we can get the prize to you!

Tags: high mowing, seed starting, seedlings, tomatoes, transplanting