Yeah for Me!

A BIG thank you to all my readers who visit frequently and helped me earn this honor. Another BIG thanks to Nicole Adams from Construction Management .org and the people over at U Gotta Go Green for selecting Greensideupblog.com for their annual Best of the Green blog list. “Green side up Blog aims to make creating a garden something anyone can do simply.”

These people really know what their talking about I’m just honored to be on the list.

Did you see that?   #11 in the TOP 100

Thanks!

Rees

For the first time this year the confetti of fallen leaves crackled underfoot as I walked down the path to the garden, their excited crunch announcing the arrival of fall.

The breast high weeds that had encroached into the pathway have begun to retreat. Spring brought their colors and smiles, summer brought their thorns and turned them shades of brown and tan and now they wilt and blacken as they patiently wait for the rains and microbes to dissolve them back into the soil.

The black fingertips of the giant fig tree’s under branches reach down to scratch my head as I pass beneath, demanding that I take notice and acknowledge.

Morning is my favorite time to visit the garden and the pathway is welcoming. The dampness from the dew soaks the tips of my boots as I walk and the stillness allows the vegetation to waken slowly.

A glimpse of a quick blackbird shooting between cover briefly draws my attention.

The path that leads to my garden is nearly 300 meters long and begins with a section that winds downhill, along an ancient cobblestone road which is now mostly covered by forest duff. The cobblestones have loosened over time and the material between them has been washed and blown and swept away by the seasons. Their looseness makes each step a challenge and full attention must be given to every stride.

At the bottom of the hill the path flattens and turns a sharp left to a section where a mélange of very tall trees provide cover from above and an open view to the trunks and lower understory.  The forest floor is completed covered with low, ivy like vegetation and the upper canopy filters out direct sunlight. The low light limits the growth of shrubs and other brambles but is perfect for the ivy. As I pass I wonder at the history beneath.  What stories what secrets what treasures the ivy guards?

Continuing, the pathway exits the umbrella of trees and the right edge is marked by sporadic remnants of a low stonewall, only partially visible.

After twenty or so paces the path makes a gradual left turn where tall dark sentries form a gauntlet. Ferocious no more the sentries look withered and tired.

As I continue along this section a neighbor’s garden opens up to the right. The soil was turned last spring but nothing was planted. The native weeds were laying in wait and did their best to reclaim the land.

From here the path runs straight, except for a few wiggles, all the way to my plot.

A vegetative tunnel has been formed over time and with each pass I pinch the end of a few escaping stems to keep it at bay.

A very large Oak looms ahead. Through World War I, World War II, the Crusades, the Revolution and Napoleon she has watched and listened.

Her fallen spawn crunch under my feet as I stroll beneath.

The wild black berries were a delicious treat in the spring and summer but the rest of the year the aggressively growing branches with their vampire like thorns reach out and grab at anyone who passes. The pain of a few jabs and scratches is a small price to pay for these delicious gifts.

To my left, I pass a cemetery of ramshackle headstones marking the resting places of spent tomato plants of several seasons past.

As I near the end of the pathway, towering grass plants mark the entrance to my garden and they wave like banners tickled by the wakening breeze.

My garden is at the very end of the path and when I finally reach my destination I feel at home and ready to play. The plants seem to be happy to see me again too.

Compost pile to turn with it’s delicious scent to release, small weeds to fight back in a forever war, a thick blanket of mulch to spread to keep my babies warm.

Rees

For some reason my wife and I decided it would be a good idea to take a hike with my seven year-olds class and their teacher. What we expected to be a few hour “rondonee” turned out to be an entire day. My feet were sore but it was well worth it. The kids were a lot of fun and the teacher, who has grown up in this part of southern France  is full of knowledge about the flora and the plethora (yes I used a quarter word) of history dating back to when the Romans lived here.

Hope you enjoy the pics.

My favorite is the last.

Rees

Like I said earlier this week. I have a bunch of photos to share. These are some moss pics I have taken over the past year.

My kids will verify this but I have this thing for moss. Whenever we are on a hike or just out and about the little patches of green grab my attention and I make everyone wait until I have looked closely or grabbed a sample. I think it has something to do with its resilience. How can something so dainty and fresh looking survive in some harsh spots?  I’ve done a good amount of research into moss and have several specimens I’ve collected. I’ve also got a nice recipe to use for spreading it around and painting it on pots and boulders and such. Here are a few photos for you to enjoy.

okay I know this is a lichen and not a moss but I only had one lichen photo so I've included it here because it's cool.

I’m looking forward to the fall rains when the moss will spring back to life.  I’ve collect many types and have learned a lot about how they grow and what you need to keep them happy so let me know in the comments if you want any advice on growing your own moss.

I’ve been a little busier than usual lately and haven’t had a chance to post much. That should change as fall and winter approach.  I recently needed to clear some space on my camera and when I was moving them to a storage drive I was reminded of some of the beautiful scenery I had taken shots of over the past year.  I thought some of you might enjoy seeing them too so over the next few days I’ll post some of them for you to enjoy too.

An ancient Olive tree in Pasero Italy.....I snuck a cutting and it is well rooted and growing great!

Creative Planter at the weekly market

Moss covered fountian in one of my favorite towns in France- Fountiane de Vaucluse

My youngest at Piza....yes it really does lean

Some manicured Sycamores in front of the casino at Monte Carlo....

Another well aged olive with a nice growth of moss in the Italian mountains.

Alright that is enough for tonight. Like I said, I have a bunch more I will load up as the week progresses…..

Rees

So why do my tomato leaves turn yellow and why are my tomatoes rotting before they are ripe?

Vegetable season is in high gear and fruit is beginning to ripen. This is the time when I start to get all the questions.  Why do my zucchini drop off? Why won’t my melon set fruit?  What are those worms on my peppers? I had been working on a post to address one of the most common ones on tomatoes, Tomato End Rot when I got the following question from a reader who purchased one of my Growing Juicy Delicious Tomatoes eBook from Rainforth Home and Garden.  First I’ll address his question and then finish up with my thoughts on the issue of rotting tomatoes.

Here is the question from Mr. B. Crowder

What causes the base of the leaves on my tomatoes to turn yellow? How can I save the plants?

Here are my thoughts on that Mr. Crowder. In most cases yellow leaves, which begin turning yellow at the base of the plant first are due to one of two causes. Not just with tomatoes but any plant. Usually, when the older/lower leaves turn yellow it is the result of too much water in the root zone. This could be from watering too frequently but most likely it is caused by a poorly draining soil. I won’t get into the details of the plant physiology but plants don’t like wet feet.  Monitor the soil moisture closer and things should improve. Tomatoes like about 1” (3cm for my UK readers) of water per week. I try to water mine once a week. Another possible cause is that as the plants get large the upper foliage begins to shade the lower leaves. This causes the lower leaves to turn yellow and drop off.  This is natural and not a problem. It might help to cultivate the soil near the plants to allow better air penetration into the root zone and your plants should recover. It’s a little tough to diagnose with a short description so I hope this helps Mr. Crowder.

Of course there are several other potential reasons for yellowing leaves, (fusaruim wilt, tobacco mosaic virus, alternaria leaf spot). If Mr. Crowder wants to send a more detailed description or even a photo I’d be happy to post my thoughts.

Now for a more common problem, TOMATO END ROT

Tomato End Rot

Yes, this even has happened to me.



Tomato end rot starts as a small brown spot on the bottom of the fruit and enlarges to cover the entire end of the tomato. Eventually the tomato just falls off. The root cause (pun intended) of brown rot on the end of tomatoes is low calcium levels in the plant.  The most common cause of irregular calcium uptake is an uneven watering schedule. If you are watering like I advise, consistently and evenly, 1”(3cm) per week you should be okay.  A good mulch layer will help even out the soil moisture levels; if you’re already using mulch, you may need a deeper layer but 4” deep maximum.

Take heart in the fact that tomato end rot will not spread from plant to plant and this problem is usually more prevalent on the first few tomatoes. As subsequent tomatoes grow they are less likely to have end rot.

Don’t think you can just spray a chemical and the problem will go away. Since low calcium is the culprit, the use of fungicides or insecticides won’t help.

You could apply a fertilizer that is high in phosphate and low in nitrogen. (3-12-3) That will help the calcium in the soil release better for uptake into the plant but chances are the plant will outgrow the problem. Next season add some well composted organic matter and some of the high phosphate fertilizer and you should be fine.

I hope this helps.

Here are a couple of other posts on tomato problems that you may find helpful too.

SPLITTING AND CRACKING TOMATOES?

BROWN SPOTS ON TOMATOES?

FYI these are all covered in my eBook Growing Juicy Delicious Tomatoes.

Rees

Tomatoes are fairly easy to grow but there a few common problems for new gardeners to deal with and one of them is tiny black spots that develop on the tomato fruit and eventually merge to form larger spots. Here is a photo of what I am talking about.

IF YOU HAVE LARGE ROTTEN SPOTS  or yellow leaves go to this post HERE

In my book eBook, Growing Juicy Delicious Tomatoes I review this and most other problems you might encounter but here is a short explanation and solution for the black spots on tomatoes.

So what are these little black spots? Most likely these lesions start out as little black spots on the tomatoes fruit that look like little dimples and are slightly indented. They eventually increase in size and can become the size of a dime or larger.

Does this sound like what you have on your tomatoes? The most likely culprit is, Pseudomonas syringae also known as Bacterial Speck.

So what is the solution to these black spots on your tomatoes?

This is a disease that is spread when water splashes onto the fruit.

One partial solution is to minimize water on the plant. Never squirt the plants with the hose when watering. Instead, water by drip or flood irrigation. This should reduce the cause. If you want complete eradication of these little black spots on your tomatoes you will need to resort to chemicals….yes you heard me right. Copper Sulfate is the one to use, but this one is okay and in fact is actually considered an organic remedy. Copper Sulfate is available in most garden centers in various forms.

An application of Copper Sulfate will help clear up the black spots on your tomatoes. It must be sprayed on, be aware that it will also kill many beneficial insects so my suggestion is to do it late at night when most of the good bugs are not active. By the time morning arrives the spray will be dry and less harmful to the insects.

Oh and feel free to eat the tomatoes with the black spots, they are fine to eat and can be added to a batch of tomato sauce without any problems.

Another common tomato problems are cracks and splits in your tomato fruit. If that’s your concern read my earlier post HERE

For my post on TOMATO END ROT click HERE

If you need more details and my methods for growing great tomatoes, check out my eBook HERE.

Thanks for stopping by,

Rees

I’ve been preparing to plant my spring garden and am planning to include some garlic again this year.  It seems like we use garlic in just about every meal so why not grow it? I must confess my last attempt didn’t go so well. I think I was sold some of very old bulbs for my starts because  the percentage of successful sprouts was pretty low. I’ll make sure I get good bulbs this year. Make sure they feel solid and full and are not missing any cloves.

There are over 600 types of garlic, also know as Allium sativum. Garlic is related to onions, chives and the leek family. There are a bunch of different varieties but they can all be lumped into one of two groups, Hardneck garlic and Softneck garlic. The Softnecks are what I will be planting this spring and a couple of good varieties are Early Italian, Artichoke, Silverskin, and Purple Garlic. The Hardneck can only be planted on the fall and a couple of good varieties are  Porcelain,  German Red (huge) , Purple Stripe, and Asian.

Homegrown garlic is potent stuff and tastes way better than the garlic you get at the supermarket, so be prepared for a treat.

Garlic is pretty easy to grow and does well as long as you have a well draining soil. It also prefers it on the hot side but will do well in almost any climate except maybe the humid states like Florida.

To plant garlic you gently break apart the cloves and tuck them into your prepared soil, roots down. They just need a little bit of cover so keep them shallow, an inch of cover is perfect. I like to space them out so the bulbs can really get big. Space them 4-6 inches apart if you have the room.  You should start to see green shoots in about three weeks. Keep them watered and plan on harvesting in about four months. You can leave them in longer if the weather is still warm and they are still growing.  You will see the leaves start to turn brown and that’s a sign it will soon be time to harvest. I like to tie my drying leaves in a knot and let the garlic stay in the ground as long as I can so they will get nice and big.

Once you have gently removed them from the ground, just brush them off and let dry in a cool dry location (not in direct sunlight) Garlic will store for quite a while if you keep it dry and cool.

I’ve never tried garlic in a pot or tub but I don’t see why you couldn’t grow it that way.

Happy planting and keep the breath mints handy,

Rees

Do you want a green lawn?

Excerpt from my ebook Growing Great Lawns

One of the most important factors in growing a great looking lawn is how much and how often to feed it.  The fertilizer companies have every one convinced that it takes a rocket scientist to figure this out.  I’m here to tell you that is all BS.

Fertilizing you lawn is really quite a simple process and one I always looked forward to.  Let me simplify it for you.  Your lawn will grow okay without any fertilizer at all BUT IT WILL NOT BE GREEN. Most of the elements your lawn needs will be supplied by the soil air and water, most but not all.

The amount of Nitrogen (N) that is available to your grass is the most important factor to having a nice looking lawn. If it has enough it will be happy and green if not, it will be pale and sad looking. So how do we add nitrogen? Well, commercially manufactured fertilizers are the best option. The problem is that the fertilizer manufacturers have no standardization.

The range of blends and types of nutrients varies widely, luckily, there is one thing you can use as a guide. All fertilizer bags have three numbers listed on them. It is usually on the front or perhaps on the ingredient list on the back of the bag but the should be prominently posted.

These three numbers are the amount of Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K) shortened to NPK contained in the bag. The bag will show the percentage of each of these three elements that are available in the fertilizer. Remember we are mainly concerned with the Nitrogen to get the green color we want and nitrogen is the first number listed. Here is a problem. He can’t just buy a fertilizer that is high in nitrogen and use it all year around. Nitrogen availability is dependant on temperature. In the colder times of year less will be available so we must use a higher level and in the warmer growing seasons you will need less or your grass will grow too fast (think Jack and the Beanstalk fast).

Let me make this simple for you. I suggest that you apply only two types of fertilizer and only change from one to the other once a year. Forget all the fancy mixtures and blends and avoid any seasonal ‘specials’ just follow these instructions and remember that your goal is to apply about 1lb of actual nitrogen each time you fertilizer. (calculation in the appendix)

When the grass is actively growing, use a mixture that is labeled 16-6-8. That’s 16% nitrogen 6% phosphorus and 8% potassium. Now don’t be surprised if you go to buy fertilizers and can’t find anything with these exact numbers, you probably won’t because it is a commercial blend. Just get something close as possible (16-4-6, 18-6-6, etc.) Remember the Nitrogen is the important element here so as long as you get something in the range of 16% to 21% nitrogen you will be fine. Don’t worry about the other two elements they are not what’s important here, just pay attention to the amount of N.  That mixture should be good for the warmer seasons then, when it starts to cool off you will need to shift to a higher N level. This one is simple. Just get the highest level of N you can for the lowest cost. 46-0-0 is a good one, 36-0-0 is another. The P and K aren’t available when it is cold and the N will be all that is needed. Remember, don’t use the high Nitrogen fertilizer in the warm seasons as the grass will grow so fast it will begin to look shaggy the day after you mow it.

There will be a bunch of formulation that garden centers will try to push on you, timed-release, slow-release, urea based and on and on. Go ahead and learn all about them if you want but if you follow my instructions you will be fine. If you can afford to pay a little more the best fertilizers are a combination of fast release and slow release materials. For the slow release component look for the letters IBDU, sulfur coated or water insoluble on the bag. They are pricy but last longer.

Fertilizer frequency is also important. The trick is to keep a uniform color and avoid the ups and downs of yellowing between fertilizer applications.. A good rule of thumb is to apply every six weeks in the growing seasons and every eight or ten weeks when the turf is not actively growing.  If you want to get more detailed than that I have provided a set of calculations in the appendix for fertilizer amounts but if you follow these instructions you probably won’t need to get more detailed than this.

Signs of fertilizer deficiency: If you are mowing your lawn regularly you will see that following a fertilizer application your grass will grow faster and you will have more clippings to depose of. When you start to see a sharp drop in the amount of clippings you will know your fertilizer is running out. If you begin to see a yellow returning to your lawn that is a sign you need to re-apply quickly.

This is a  excerpt form my book Growing Great Lawns,  and here is a link to another article I wrote on lawn care.

http://greensideupblog.com/2010/11/dead-grass-here-is-how-to-fix-it/

Happy Mowing

Rees

The Yew is the National Tree of France but I think it should be the Sycamore, Platanus racemosa.

The entrance to almost every small town in France is announced to drivers by a long tunnel of overhanging sycamore trees. In the town where I live, we have the usual allee at the entrance but also a long row that lines the river and a giant bosque in the plaza where the locals play petangue in the shade.  They are of bare in the winter and the shade is gone but not their beauty.  I took the opportunity of this past rainy Sunday to get my seven year old out of the house and take a walk with my camera.

Along the promenade

Shade for the petanque players

Because Sycamores are riparian trees and used to getting disturbed by flooding rivers they are pretty resilient. It looks like this one has been burnt and then cut down but the stump won’t give up

Wet Sycamore bark had to be the inspiration for camouflage

Metal grates and concrete walls are no obstacles for the resourceful sycamore

Taking a drink from the rivers edge

This one makes a nice finish to the stairs to the river

View from the bridge

I've loved sycamores since I learned to climb trees but I’m not looking forward to the pollen season. ☺

Hope you like the photos and sorry for the fuzziness of some of them.

Rees