Garden, Plant, Cook!

Friday, January 06, 2017

Greenhouses In the Desert - When and How, And Potting Transplants

Dear Folks,

The subject of Greenhouses in the desert has been going on recently in some of the gardening groups on facebook, so I thought I would give you some information on when and how to use a greenhouse in our Phoenix Metro (and similar) area. [Pictured seedlings from seeds started December 12th, picture taken January 4th.]

>>> More Information on the Coming eBundle -- see at end of this blog post <<<

We usually have a few nights during the winter when the temps can get to freezing or a little below.  Rarely do we have sustained or killing frosts.

Ready To Use!
At the same time, because of the quick jump into warm, then hot weather, getting frost sensitive plants ready for transplanting out at the earliest best time, means a standing greenhouse or similar can really get that early start going with healthy transplants.

Typically it is recommended to set out your tomatoes, basil, peppers etc., which all like their "feet" warm, on February 1st to ensure the tomatoes in particular get good growth going before the high summer night temps stop fruit set.

So a little bit about the greenhouse I am using then the "keeping a healthy greenhouse in the desert" information. [Picture functioning greenhouse - notice the door is open - that is important!]

I actually purchased this greenhouse last spring - to late to use - intending to set it up this fall/winter.  We set it up on December 11th, and I started sowing seeds on December 12th.

TIP:  I use jiffy pellets for starting seeds and I soak the pellets in HOT water to expand them.  By the time they have expanded, the pellet has cooled slightly but is still warm and this gives the seeds a bit of warmth to launch the germination.  The first seedlings broke through about 8 days later.

I am delighted with this mini greenhouse and will take it down about the 1st week in March, when the danger of overnight frost is over.

In the past I have always started seeds on my racks outside, in full sun, schlepping  the trays back and forth to their overnight warm area in our water heater shed.  The greenhouse has made my seed starting so much easier AND on a chilly day I can work inside of it enjoying the warmth even on over cast days.  I do-not-do-cold-well.

Using and Maintaining a Healthy Greenhouse in the Desert.

First, what do I mean by a "healthy" greenhouse?

1)  there is maximum air circulation during the day
2)  moisture and excess heat build-up is allowed to be released during the day

Do both of these functions by opening the doors and windows during the day, except on completely overcast days.

If you do not keep these actions in focus you can easily create an environment where you will encourage pests (like spider mites) to completely destroy your plants and waste all your hard work  At the very least you will encourage damaging molds and cook the plants. There is a real name for this problem "sick greenhouse."

Do Not Discount the intensity of our winter sun on an enclosed environment.  Think about the last time you got in your car in a parking lot on a cold but sunny day.  Nice and warm in the car, right?  Remember all the warnings about children, pets and elderly in closed cars?  Same applies to your plants in a greenhouse.

The primary function of a greenhouse in the desert is to start frost-sensitive plants.  Once the day time temperatures are in the high 80s (mid-March) you risk cooking the plants even with the doors open.

So, plan on using your greenhouse from approximately mid-November to end of February or, 1st week or two in March.  With short use, you should get more years out of your plastic cover when properly dried and stored.

To give running shoes to the roots (maximum growth - fast) transplant out the tomatoes, basil, peppers etc. using a poor man's cloche.  Take the jug off during the day remembering to put it back on at night until frost danger is over for your area - mid-February to first week or so in March depending on where in the Valley you are.  If you are not good at remembering, leave the cap off so the heat and excess moisture can vent during the day.

. . .

Transplanting Into Temporary Pots

 I had some sweet potato cuttings of a variety called O'Henry given to me by my friend Jacq Davis over at Epic Yard Farm.  The O'Henry is supposed to taste like chestnuts, so I thought I would add this to my summer sweet potato patch, but want to give these frost sensitive vines a good head start by transplanting them and keeping them in the greenhouse.  I also took some cuttings from my "Molokai" sweets before I harvested them last week.

Pictured the sweet potato transplanting in the left upper corner and then the process of taking the small amaryllis babies out and putting them in 4 inch pots.  This was a very special project of starting amaryllis from seeds!


Amaryllis flowers are one of the few none edible plants I grow, which started when my dad gave me a plant back in the 80s.  Over the last few years I have transplanted the babies through out the gardens.  Then I could not resist a gorgeous red and white splashed plant at the farmers market over in Sun City in 2015 and the gorgeous bloom faded and produced a seed pod!!

WOW.  I found a lot of details on how to grow amaryllis from seed and followed the general guidelines which indicated it would take a while for 1) the seeds to germinate and 2) for them to be big enough to produce the basic baby bulb.  [Close up of the baby bulb on the amaryllis.]

I sowed the seeds of the red / white on July 1, 2015 in a large round pot.  3 days later I decided to check on "Dad's" amaryllis and found a small seed pod and sowed several seeds in a smaller container (pictured in the transplanting collage above).  3 sprouted, 2 survived.  Both of these sown amaryllis pots were in a "germination" area in part of my gardens which is automatically watered overhead so I could rely on consistent watering because of the amount of potential time for the seeds to germinate.

You will notice paper towel pieces -- I use paper towel to keep the soil from sifting through the drain holes.  Over time the paper will break down, but by then the bottom soil will have firmed up to keep the soil in.  The plants won't be in the containers for a long time.  I will be selling most and giving some to friends.




"The Back To Basics Living Bundle contains over 65 resources for Simple Living, Cooking From Scratch, DIY, Gardening & Homesteading, Natural Remedies, Food Storage, Preparedness & more. It’s a complete library of resources to help you live healthier, simpler and be prepared for anything (but for 96% off!)."

Clicking on this link takes you to a page where you can sign up to be notified when the sale starts.  OR you can temporarily book mark this post and mark your calendar.

I contributed one of the 65 resources.  The price of the PDF download eBundle will be $29.97.

I am also offering a special bonus PDF book if you purchase the eBundle.

Important!

The sale lasts one week only, however you have the rest of the year to download your PDF.

Perhaps not every topic would be of interest to you.  If you consider the individual prices of even a few of the topics you would still be getting a great value for the price.

. . .

Have a great weekend in the garden and kitchen with your bounty.



-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

If you enjoyed this post, subscribe below by entering your email, to get all my posts!

Enter your email address:


Delivered by FeedBurner
Disclaimer: Clicking on links on this blog may earn me a small commission if you purchase something. Your price does not change.

Tuesday, January 03, 2017

eBundle - Coming Soon!!

Dear Folks,

The eBundle sale will start soon.

The sale lasts one week only (mid-January).  You can sign up to be notified when the sale starts by clicking on this link.

So what is an eBundle?

"The Back To Basics Living Bundle contains over 65 resources for Simple Living, Cooking From Scratch, DIY, Gardening & Homesteading, Natural Remedies, Food Storage, Preparedness & more. It’s a complete library of resources to help you live healthier, simpler and be prepared for anything (but for 96% off!)."

I contributed one of the 65 resources.

While the sale lasts 1 week, as a purchaser you have until the end of 2017 to download your eBundle.

The eBundle will be available as a PDF download file or for a little bit more you can purchase a thumb drive to be mailed to you.

Have a website or blog and want to earn a bit of money?

The "Back to Basics" folks offer an opportunity to anyone with a website or blog to earn some commission for posting a link to the sale page.

You can check out the affiliate information by clicking on this link, and then clicking on "Affiliates" at the top of the page.

I am excited about participating in this "library" of information based on sustainable gardening, using and healthy options.  As the quote says, this is a lot of information, which if purchased separately, would be out of some folks budget.

There is no obligation to purchase, by signing up to be notified when the sale starts.

Have a best day,


-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

If you enjoyed this post, subscribe below by entering your email, to get all my posts!


Enter your email address:


Delivered by FeedBurner


Disclaimer: Clicking on links on this blog may earn me a small commission if you purchase something. Your price does not change.

Sunday, January 01, 2017

Happy New Year 2017 - My Potatoes Are Planted & Sweet Potato Surprise!

Dear Folks,

I have my Irish potatoes planted in the garden's raised bed.

Watch For The eBundle Announcement Coming in Next Days

This was a fun couple of days because of the surprise I got.  I had delayed harvesting my Sweet Potatoes "Molokai" a purple variety.  I purchased the plants this last spring from Baker Creek.

Pictured is the vine, then the harvest and the bed cleaned up and ready for my Irish Potatoes.

I had a lot going on this past couple of months and then some real challenges this past month, but I finally decided I NEEDED to get the sweet potatoes harvested so I could get the Irish potatoes planted today, January 1st as is my tradition.

When I started to pull the vines back to figure out where to dig up the Molokai, I was amazed to see one sticking out like a huge rock.  WOW!  I'm sure I should have harvested a while back but then I would not have these giants.  All in all, they weighed in at about 17 pounds total.

I will be sharing with friends and also prepping some for the freezer. Meanwhile some of them are not cured (skin toughened) so I'm storing them in our laundry shed near the water heater so it is warm and humid.

We have gotten about .6 inches of rain since Friday night, so I was hoping for a break to plant the potatoes I have, and we got them in a 3 p.m. today.  I saved some organic red-skined ones from the grocery that I let sprout, cut them in to pieces and let the cuts dry this morning on the counter.  Then I got out my little "seed" potatoes I saved from last spring's harvest for replanting.  I store them in the crisper or a small frig in a cardboard box.

So I prefer the mulch-cover method of planting Irish potatoes to make it easier to harvest in the spring.  Loosen the soil, lay the spuds on the surface and cover with mulch, in this case our fig tree gifts us with a lot of leaves.

This mulch breaks down AND as the potato plants grow I add more dried leaves to always make sure the growing potatoes are never exposed to sunlight.  Usually by the end of March or so I have about 10-12 inches of leaves on top.

I am going to try tomatoes in the other half of the bed when my seedlings are ready to go in on February 1st.

Make your New Year great by trying a new-to-you edible.

Happy New Year to You All, may it peaceful, joyous and meaningful,

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

If you enjoyed this post, subscribe below by entering your email, to get all my posts!


Enter your email address:


Delivered by FeedBurner


Disclaimer: Clicking on links on this blog may earn me a small commission if you purchase something. Your price does not change.