Recently in Missouri vegetable gardening Category

Hoaky, huh, but it's true.

When I started recycling a couple of years ago, I was amazed that more than half my daily garbage was reusable paper refuse.

When I then removed items that could be composted, I went from one of those hungamunga green garbage cans I could hardly wrestle down my driveway to a dainty one almost a third of that size - and my little toy kitchen raised bed garden started to have healthier plants, too.

Compost is nothing more than organic matter that's been allowed, and encouraged, to break down into humus or what gardeners call "black gold." Compost is how farmers return nutrients to the soil and make sure their ground is ready to grow specific crops

If you're gardening around here, you can get a soil test through University of Missouri Extension offices so you know what kind of amendments you need to add to your soil. Since we're lucky to have 2-4 inches of good top soil in this area, I figure anything I add to my hilly garden has to be good.

The first concern I hear about compost is smell. There are several ways to easily manage that:

1. Keep a plastic bag in a freezer bin and toss compost-bound materials in there. When the bag is full, take it out to the composter.

2. Get a self-enclosed composter. I like the ones that have a handle on the side so they can easily be turned. Closed composters keep wildlife out and manage odors. Or try the Dr. Stevie black bag composting technique, named after my youngest brother who one summer had a gold mine of composted leaves when he forgot he had bagged them the fall before and piled them behind his gardening shed.

 If you have wildlife or neighborhood pets,  don't expect them to respect plastic. My brother's cucumber-ravaging bunny rabbits chewed a hole in one of his black bags after we tossed watermelon rinds in
.
3. Use odors to tell you when you don't have the right combination of brown materials and green materials. If you have the right combination, the compost mixture should not smell. You basically need equal parts of brown leaves, grass clippings and kitchen scraps sprinkled with water and regularly mixed or tumbled.

Compost needs warm weather to work but I still drag my buckets of material to my composters through winter. Although nothing is breaking down when it's cold, the composters are all set when weather does start warming up.

You can compost a variety of things including egg shells; fruit and vegetable peels and related left overs, but not seeds. Well, go ahead and toss seeds into a composter when its warm. I'm guessing that's how the Jack In the Bean Stalk fairy tale story got started!

You can also compost straw, grass, leaves, dryer lint, hair and shredded newspaper.
 
Do not compost meat, poop or bones.

If you're just starting to compost, invest in a pair of kitchen chicken-cutting scissors.  Mine live in the drying rack in my sink so I can easily access them when I'm cooking.

I save organic leftovers in a bowl; when I'm through cooking, part of the clean up is to use the scissors to cut all organic matter into small pieces. It takes up less storage space that way, and decomposes faster

When compost turns black and crumbly, it's ready to add to your garden soil.

Once you get into a routine, I'll bet you'll be surprised at how much less you have in your garbage,  and how much better your garden is growing.
















Charlotte Ekker Wiggins shares gardening and beekeeping adventures from her limestone MO hill. Copyright 2012 all rights reserved.




 

Gardening catalogs are starting to show up in my mailbox.  They're a good reminder that one of the advantages of being a gardener is that you don't really have to grow up.
By that I mean you're encouraged to try new seeds and plants, and to test new techniques and toys - oops tools, I meant tools.

Unfortunately for gadget manufacturers, I'm not too drawn to newfangled gardening accessories, probably because gardening on a Missouri limestone hill means a pick ax is the main, and sometimes only, gardening tool that will work.

The following is my list of top things to try this year:

1. Composting. I like the tumbler-type plastic composters with a side handle for easy turning. I also have a table top Nature Mill composter in my garage. I collect compost material in a bag in my freezer, then move it outside when the bag is full. It's amazing to me how composting reduces the amount of garbage. Colleagues in my business office also have been kind enough to help save coffee grounds and fruit peelings. In return, I bring in fresh flowers for our coffee break room and amend my raised bed kitchen garden.

2. Start vegetable garden seeds a little earlier than end February. I'm still trying to decide how to protect lettuce seedlings in my deck pots, maybe plastic over the top will work.

3. Conserve water. I'm amazed at how much my rain barrels collect during rain storms; and then how happier my plants seem to be when watered with
rain water.

4. Use  soaker hoses to minimize water runoff; add a timer to your irrigation system so you don't forget to turn it off.

5. Make a concerted effort not to use pesticides. Today there are more earth-friendly and safe alternatives. take a little extra time to read labels and learn about non-traditional options like spraying plants with hot pepper-infused water. Being less critical of a less than perfect
flower also helps!

6. Create an inviting habitat for garden visitors by providing food, water and shelter for birds, butterflies and other pollinators like bees. Birds are natural predators, and pollinators will help your garden have more produce.

7. Mow less grass; expand flower beds.

8. Add fruit-bearing shrubs and compact fruit trees. They're not only pretty when in bloom but can provide you with fresh fruit.

9. Plant more low maintenance native flowers. Rolla area is in USDA zone 5B. Natives require less water and will adapt faster; some have long blooming seasons like black-eyed susans.

10. Don't toss out those green tomatoes you finally grew. Try ripening them by storing in a cool, dark place in a brown bag with an apple. They don't have as much flavor as vine-ripened
tomatoes but they are still better than winter, store bought ones!


Which one of these have you tried already?







Charlotte Ekker Wiggins is a master gardener sharing gardening adventures in and around her Missouri wildlife garden. 

Copyright 2012, all rights reserved.

Do you like to make New Year's resolutions?

I don't either so I don't make traditional ones. I like to think of the new year in terms of doing something new.

I've always loved corn in the cob so 1998 was the year I tried barbecued corn and developed my own favorite corn muffin recipe. Nothing personal but even though I tried several different combinations, there's something not quite right about grits.

That was also the year I tried to grow corn in a new, sloping plot in back of my house. Actually I did grow it, only to have raccoons decimate the whole crop the first night the corn was ripe. Raccoons and deer were amazingly efficient, the little plot looked like a tornado had ripped through it. I still want to know how they knew the corn was ready for picking.

I was left with a lovely supply of corn stalks and corn husks so I used them, and dried flowers, to decorate outside wreaths around my house. That is, until the morning I opened my front door and I found two deer standing several steps up on my deck calmly having breakfast as they took my wreath apart.

Over the years, several habits have developed from having yearly themes. Not that I need another reason but having a theme gives me a place to start when shopping for books.  I also go out of my way to watch theme-related TV shows and movies, sometimes traveling to a related place or event.

Last year, for example, started out as the year of honeybees and ended up being the year of honey.

When I adopted two bee hives two years ago, the idea was to have bees pollinate my flowers and vegetables with no intention of ever harvesting honey. Beginning beekeepers are forewarned it could take several years before their honeybees produce extra honey so I was counting on at least 2-3 years before having to decide what to do with any extra.

Bees need about 70 lbs of honey per hive to make it through winter. One of my hives this past year ended up producing several hundred pounds of extra honey so I not only taught myself how to harvest honey by hand, but I bottled it to sell and for gifts.

My brother, who received my first-ever harvested honey for his birthday, gave me a coupon for Christmas for an electric honey extractor so I will be shopping for one before the next honey harvesting season, assuming my bees have another good year.

Both hives seem to be doing fine so far. With the warm weather we've been having, it's easy to spot them moving around on the white styrofoam suits I have winterizing the hives. Bees don't hibernate; they bunch up inside the hive and keep it very warm while eating honey they've stored. If the hive gets too cold, bees can't use their delicate wings and can literally die millimeters from honey.

Starting the new year with something new doesn't have to be complicated.

Take parking my car in my garage. Years ago, I installed my old kitchen cabinets around my garage, including my old kitchen sink - to make gardening storage room. It was wonderful until the motor burned out in my VW and I had to shop for a new car - couldn't be more than 17 feet long or it wouldn't fit. My Honda Fastback fits like a glove, as long as I accurately "guess" the distance between the cabinet and closing garage door, and don't place anything in front of the cabinets.

My car and I are starting the new year with a tennis ball tied to a string at the point where I have to stop the car in the garage before I take out the cabinets.

Should also stop my having to explain the dents on the side of the hive boxes, my bees are not taking their hives out for a joy ride...happy new year!


Charlotte Ekker Wiggins is a master gardener and writes about gardening in and around her Missouri wildlife garden. 

Copyright 2012, all rights reserved

If you've always wanted to head a community garden effort, there's an area group trying to get another community garden started.

The idea, as presented to a recent Phelps County Master Gardener meeting, is to establish a community garden manned by volunteers that would benefit both low income families and church pantries.

This is Rolla, Missouri's third, maybe fourth attempt to get a public space set aside to plant, and to share, locally-grown fruits and vegetables.

It's a great idea; now let's figure out how to make this one a success.
 
Take water, for example. Rolla's Veteran's Park off Highway 72 didn't fare so well without easy to access, on-site regular watering. Rain barrels and ponds will work only as well as their easy access. With record hot  summer temperatures, there's also no guarantee there will be uphill pond water left when water is needed most.
I'm assuming the pond would be uphill; gravity would help more easily get water to garden beds. Bottom line is there needs to be a constant and reliable source of water.

Another critical element is well-preparing soil prior to planting. There's a good reason why Rolla originally was almost called "Hardscrabble," we're lucky to have 2" of good top soil. Getting real soil, and amending it so that it can support a vegetable garden, could easily take a year before a seed should be planted. Soil elements need time to break down and season before they are ready to grow anything.

When I recently was in Maplewood, Missouri, I happened to visit a charming
community garden with a ready water source.

The garden was part of a neighborhood watch with regular meetings and planned events.

It was also
at the corner of a busy intersection, which reminded me that around here,
any successful community garden will require fencing to keep wildlife, and others, from plundering.

Successful community gardens also have manpower who benefit from the hard work. Groups like Master Naturalists and Master Gardeners can provide training on how to garden; Boy Scouts may periodically help on a specific project but the garden itself needs a dedicated group of nearby volunteers who will regularly visit, work, and learn, from the garden.

Earlier this summer, I visited St. James' Community Garden, right off the downtown area. What struck me, besides the charming arbors, was the long list of contributors. A good community garden needs someone organized o tend the garden and to get not only volunteers but donations as well.

My thanks to Master Gardener Laura Lackey, who did some research on community gardens. There's a national association that holds workshops and offers assistance: American Community Garden Association | 1777 East Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio 43203-2040 http://communitygarden.org/index.php\

So how about it - are you interested in pulling together Rolla's community garden?

Contact Bruce Wade, Fit Helps Coordinator,The Community Partnership (wk) 573-368-2849 (cell) 573-578-4912.

 

Charlotte Ekker Wiggin is a master gardener and writes about gardening in and around her Missouri wildlife garden. 

Copyright 2011, all rights reserved.

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Balboa the squirrel just walked by with another love apple in his mouth.

We met under a sofa cover in my den a couple of years ago when he was
still a baby.

He inadvertently spent a weekend closed up in my house.

He used to periodically walk into the den when I left the door open for my
cats and, this particular weekend, I must have missed him sneaking in.

The house looked like they had had quite a party; lamps and books knocked over everywhere.  A trail of  empty sunflower seeds gave him away, and he reluctantly moved back outside with the encouragement of a broom.

Balboa still periodically peeks into the den through the glass door and chatters at me when I'm out on the deck,  calmly helping himself to green pears and most recently, cherry tomatoes.

Tomatoes are originally from South America via Europe. The French perpetuated the charming superstition that people who ate tomatoes fell in love and gave them the nickname "pomme d'amour" or "love apples." 

Although scientifically a fruit, the US Supreme court in 1887 ruled tomatoes were a vegetable and subject to an import tariff with other fruits of the vine like beans, peans and cucumbers.

I've noticed my ripening tomatoes this year need a little help. Because of record hot temperatures, they've either not produced fruit or are ripening unevenly with green patches.
 

I forego buying tomatoes over winter because they are picked so early and so green, they are tasteless. 

By mid-summer, I'm more than ready to add delicious home grown tomatoes to my salads.

They're certainly not as perfect as grocery store tomatoes but there's an easy way to get them ready.

I pop them into a brown bag with an apple, clip the bag top closed, and check the bag every day until the whole tomato is red.

One of my neighbors is also growing tomato plants in his backyard but he's having issues with stink bugs.

I planted marigolds around my tomato plants; a wonderful, easy to grow annual that keeps bad bugs away and that bloom continuously even through record hot weather.

Frankly I don't get excited about holes in plant leaves or seeing bugs in my garden. I want ladybugs, praying mantis and birds around; they are natural predators to the more damaging bugs.

Another friend recently told me he learned to spread corn starch with a fan over his vegetables, a great natural way to discourage bugs from taking the first bite out of your homegrown produce.

In the years I haven't added marigolds, I've used a homemade dormant oil spray:

Hot pepper concentrate
1 unpeeled onion
1 unpeeled head of garlic
1 TBS cayenne pepper
3 pints of water

Use gloves to mix. Simmer for 20 minutes. Cool. Store in refrigerator for 6 weeks or so. Dilute 1 TBSP with 1 pint water. Add dish soap to better stick on leaves. Apply with a spray bottle. Re-apply every other day or so.

Sorry, it doesn't work on squirrels. Balboa seems to think it's a great salad dressing!













Charlotte is a Master Gardener writing her blog, and a weekly newspaper column, on a MO hill
gardening to distraction. Copyright 2011, all rights reserved.

Here's a wonderful way to get inspired fall 2011 for next year's gardening season.

Tim Moloney, University of Missouri landscaper, will be teaching 10 advanced landscape design classes in Rolla, Missouri.

The classes are sponsored by Phelps County Master Gardeners and Phelps County University of Missouri Extension.

To register, call or stop by Phelps County Extension at 200 North Main Street, Rolla, call 573-458-6260 or email Laura Faherty at fahertyl@missouri.edu.

Classes are $20 each or $135 for the series.

Deadline for registration is Wednesday, July 20.

Classes will be held at Ridgeview Christian Church, 806 Ridgeview Road, corner of S. Walker and Ridgeview past Walgreens, on Saturdays.

Here's a rundown of what the classes will cover:

Classes 1 & 2:

The rest of these same day classes can be taken individually:

Principles of Landscape Design (must take this two-part class together) August 20, 9 am - noon and 1 - 4 pm ($40) There are rules, or principles, that need to be followed when designing outdoor space. This course will take a fast paced and in-depth look at each of landscape design's six principles and show how to apply them to outdoor rooms.

Class 3: September 17, 9 am -noon. Learn a detailed, step-by-step process for better initial site analysis. Students will look closely at site issues such as drainage, slope and exposure, and how these ultimately affect design. Students will need to be prepared to conduct a site
analysis exercise where they will receive hands-on training in observing and recording information. Bring a 100' measuring tape, directional compass, pad and paper, and a pen or pencil.

Class 4: September 17, 1-4 pm. In afternoon, during Class 4, students will also learn skills necessary to convert site analysis measurements and sketches into working scale drawings and hands-on experience in drawing working landscape plans. Details will be given on landscape symbolism and how to effectively use a drawing to produce aesthetic landscapes. Bring engineering or architect's scale, ruler, eraser, lined paper for drawing, and a means to draw circles of different sizes (either templates or drafting compass).

Class 5: Low Maintenance Design - October 15, 9 am - noon  One of the most often requested requirements of landscape design is that it be low maintenance. Students will be given instruction on methods that can be taken at the design stage to help reduce overall maintenance without reducing aesthetics and function.

Class 6: Contemporary Landscape Design October 15, 1 - 4 pm  As time moves forward, landscape designers have built upon the experience and design styles of those who have come before. Students will take a detailed look at some of the more classic styles of landscape architecture; at how older styles influence what we now call contemporary design, and how to achieve these in a functionally aesthetic way.

Class 7: Patio Design and Installation November 19, 9 am - noon. Blurring lines between indoor and outdoor living is one of the key elements in contemporary landscape design. One of the ways in which we can accomplish this is by building outdoor rooms. This class takes a detailed look at specifically the floor of these rooms. We will examine design basics for size, shape and function. We will also look at materials and methods for solid patio construction.

Class 8: Retaining Wall Design and Installation: November 19, 1 - 4 pm A site is defined as a parcel of land suitable for development. With the aid of modern excavation practices and retaining wall construction, any parcel of land can be made suitable for development. With the materials available for retention today, we do not have to sacrifice aesthetics for
engineering. We will take a close look at situations requiring retaining walls, methods of construction, materials available for construction, and pros and cons to building each type of wall.

Class 9: Water Falls and Features - December 17, 9 am - noon  This class takes a close look at benefits, and pitfalls, to having various types of garden water features.

Class 10: Landscape Lighting - December 17, 1 - 4 pm Most of our adult lives are spent away from homes. Why allow our landscape investment be enjoyed mostly by others as they pass by during daylight hours? Adding lighting can change the way in which we view landscapes. Students will look closely at different types of lighting systems and how they can help increase the amount of time spent in outdoor spaces.

For more information about the classes, contact Marilyn Fox at foxmar@centurylink.net or 573-368-3007.









Charlotte is a Master Gardener writing her blog, and a weekly newspaper column, on a Missouri hill gardening to distraction.

Contact Charlotte at charlotte@bluebirdgardens.com.

Wouldn't you know it, of all the plants in my garden to munch on, Japanese beetles started on my raspberries. Not just my raspberry plants, my actual berries!!!

These iridescent green, 3/8th of an inch beetles are a menace. Once they turn from grubs into beetles, they set off a scent that says "let's party" to other Japanese beetles and they seem particularly fond of fruit trees like this peach tree; roses,  and green bean leaves in my toy vegetable garden.

Since I don't like to use chemicals, I've been trying to sneak up on them to squish them in a towel. They're smart bugs; once they sense you're getting close, they literally quickly drop straight down, then take flight.

Last year. when I found them eating my favorite wild grapevine, I dropped Japanese beetles into a jar of soapy water. It seemed a kinder way to dispatch them but word got around and they soon flew off at the sight  of the jar.

According to University of Missouri Extension Service, Pyrethrins and Spinosad are effective and non-toxic sprays to try to manage Japanese beetles. It would be even better if the grubs could be located before they hatch but from what I've read, that's a lot more difficult to do.

Japanese beetles are among a number of green Missouri insects.

One of the more damaging insects is the emerald ash borer, spotted in 2008 at Wappapello Lake. This bug has killed some 60 million trees in 15 states, an according to Time Magazine. Cities are spending more than $10 billion over the next decade to try to stop them. You know it's a bad bug when there's a hotline number to report any sightings 866-716-9974 or contact State Entomologist Collin Warmsley at 573-751-5505.

For those of you who have emailed asking how my little toy garden is doing, peas are spent and I now pick a handful of fresh green beans every morning.

A couple of tomato plants are growing so fast they're looming over my little eggplant and green peppers. With this heat, I'm sure they appreciate shade.

The starter trays with seeds sitting at the top of tomato cages worked well until the plants outgrew the cages or it rained. The soil-filled tray bottoms are now on the ground hosting shallow-rooted zinnias, cosmos and marigolds. I should transplant them but I'm afraid in this heat they may not make it. A variety of flower seeds are also sprouting in concrete blocks.

Cucumbers, zucchini and pumpkins are blooming, and I'm trying to daily pinch herbs to keep them from going to flower and loose their potency.

Catnip and spearmint are all over the place; one of my cats now seems to prefer munching on mint leaves. Either that or Bobcat may need glasses.

If you have a better, more creative way to get rid of Japanese beetles, let me know and I'll share in an upcoming column.

Thanks also for all the suggestions of what else to do with periodical cicadas. You are a creative, and ghoulish, bunch!











Charlotte is a Master Gardener writing her blog, and a weekly newspaper column, on a MO hill gardening to distraction.

Nationwide figures are in.

According to US Department of Agriculture, beekeepers lost about 30 percent of their hives last winter.

Although there are a number of theories why honeybees are dying in record numbers - one out of every three fruit or vegetable we eat is courtesy of honeybee pollination - not having enough good pollen sources is sometimes mentioned as one of the factors.According to US Department of Agriculture, beekeepers lost about 1/3 of their hives last winter.

So last year, after getting my two honeybee hives settled in, I thought I would find a list of favorite honeybee plants and start adding them to my garden.

It wasn't that easy.

First, honeybees don't dart around. Once they find a pollen source, they farm one area and even share the location with other honeybees through a little dance. They may also  travel up to 1.5 to 2 miles to locate pollen, so to produce a certain flavored honey, honeybees have to be given access to 8,000 acres of just one crop.

Honeybees also have color preference.

They  prefer blue and yellow flowers, as opposed to hummingbirds and butterflies, who prefer flowers in the pink to purple range.

 That explains why dandelions are a favorite early, sometimes first spring honeybee pollen source, as well as fall's yellow wildflower goldenrod and my hummingbird feeders full of sugar water.

According to "The Hive and the Honey Bee" by Dadant and Sons, the following are favorite honeybee flowers:

Alfalfa; Asters; Basil; Blackberry; Button Bush; Catnip; Chickweed; Chicory; Red and White Clover; Coneflower; Dandelion; Goldenrod; Honeysuckle; Locust; Milkweed; (yikes) Poison Ivy and Poison Oak; Privet: Redbud; Sage;  Sumac; Thyme; Willow and Yellow Rocket.

In terms of fruits and vegetables, honeybees are also fond of Cantaloupe; Cucumber; Gourds: Melon; Pumpkin; Soybeans: Lima Beans; Squash. Apples; Apricot; Cherry; Peach; Plums and (photo) Pears.

I have to confess, when my garden was up for "inspection" last May before my two beehives arrived, I was very nervous. I knew not using pesticides over the years was good, but I couldn't imagine what else honeybees would need besides a good source of pollen.

Turns out a source of water is important, and honeybees don't particularly like clean water; they're attracted to water with a little taste to it, like leaves.

Honeybees also need a spot where hives are protected from weather elements but still have a clear flight path. The idea is to minimize cold winds getting into hive entrances; bee wings will freeze at certain temperatures.

So far, my honeybee hives seem to be doing well. May-July is the peak of honey-making, and one of my hives is doing exceptionally well.

The hive named after Mildred, my grandmother, has one super full of gorgeous yellow gold honey, a second super half full and I added a third one last weekend.

I wasn't sure how the bees would react to having two top, honeybee full floors, or supers,  moved to make room for a third one. Except for raising the noise level in the hive when I applied smoke to gently move them down into the hive, the process went smoothly.

The new super is designed to help bees produce easy-to-remove comb honey. I'm not sure I put them together correctly but that's part of the adventure!











Charlotte is a Master Gardener writing her blog, and a weekly newspaper column, on a MO hill Gardening to Distraction.
 

Have you been tempted to put in a garden but put off doing it because of all the work?

I'm talking about a small  garden, with raised beds and elevated structures so plants grow vertically.

This is the second year for my toy Missouri vegetable garden, featuring several 3x3 feet square, and 2x8 and 3x8 painted cedar, raised bed forms in a 15x15 foot, relatively flat area.

The benefit of using raised beds is the plots are easier to manage - the soil tends to stay in raised bed forms, a challenge gardening on a hill - and they don't require big gardening equipment.

A small hand-tiller picked up for $1 at an auction helps me keep soil loose, mix in compost. and is easy on my back.

I do follow some basic farming practices: I add compost every season; I don't plant the same vegetables in the same spot,  and although I appreciate chemicals can be useful, I depend on a healthy supply of onions and marigolds to do guard duty. I also plant herbs in left-over concrete blocks, which helps to control their usually vigorous growth.

Morning glories are growing over this topiary cat seemingly about to munch on a bunch of chives.

My toy garden nicely feeds two and gives me a chance to reconnect to how food grows and experiment; last year, I tested several ways to keep deer out;  99 cent a yard bridal veil finally saved over-munched broccoli and cauliflower.

From the number of turtles walking around, this year I'll find out how high turtles can climb to get into a raised strawberry bed.

So far, I've shared fresh salads with lettuce mixtures, radishes, onions and herbs; peas are blooming, and if it ever stops raining, the planted summer garden will get started with green beans, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, summer squash, pumpkins, strawberries and raspberries.

Old birdhouses make whimsical planters; I'm growing marigolds in this half of the buried birdhouse, zinnias in the other half.

Make sure to add a seating area so you can rest, and a rain barrel to collect water for later use.

Raised garden beds don't have to be anything big, and it's amazing how much produce you can get out of a little spot of good soil and a handful of seeds.















Charlotte

Gardening to Distraction on a MO Hill

One of my dearest friends loves to cook but freaks when her vegetables don't behave.

One late night, I got  a frantic call about white onions "going to town" in her refrigerator crisper.

I thought at first she was upset because they didn't invite her, only to be reminded if I wanted a delivery of any of her fabulous cooking, I had "better tell these onions to stop."

It's okay, I thought, I'm a certified professional, although for the life of me I don't remember anyone in our Phelps County Master Gardener classes last year covering errant onions.

Misbehavin' blackberries, maybe.

I decided to first break the "good" news.

If she ever wanted a cold-frame-like environment to grow early spring crops, or a bulb garden, sounded like her refrigerator crisper was the perfect spot to do it.

Amazing how silence on the other end of a phone call can sound so - well, you know.

Then I reminded her of Andrew the Onion, a Vadalia onion surviving 9 months in an empty refrigerator, then traveling from San Francisco to Missouri through two airport pat downs.
 
Andrew ended up in my first raised vegetable garden last year, blooming beautifully.



You're telling me I can't cut these suckers up, she said, I have to plant them?

Well, they're using their stored energy in the bulb to grow.

 Why not plant them in a container garden or next to roses.

Onions will keep bugs away from roses, and be quite beautiful when they bloom.

And if you were buying fancy ones, you'd be delightedly waiting for them to grow and bloom, then  calling them your darling alliums.

They'll also make a great elegant garnish with any dish you're making - hint, hint!





Charlotte

Gardening to Distraction on a MO Hill