September 2016 Issue #133

Hello,

What fun that we both love gardening. Thanks for joining me.

1) Weedy weirdos
2) Eco gardening tips
3) Vegetable Croutons

Weed Art! Draw some weedy weirdos in your driveway.

This artwork is by David Zinn. For masses of practical and natural ideas to control weeds in your garden, click here

Eco gardening tips

• Berry nice strawberries
  Pick your strawberries when fully ripe. If you pick them before that, they will not ripen any further, even though it might seem so. They will go from pale pink or cream to red and get softer but their flavor and sugar content remains fixed.


• Algae and synthetic fertilizers
  Make the effort to use natural fertilizers and compost. Why? Because it's impossible to apply the exact amount of synthetic fertilizer needed for plants to take up and grow. Sure, plants don't care where the fertilizer comes from… chemicals, compost or other means; plants will grow the same. Any excess fertilizer leaches from farms and gardens into waterways, and the overuse of synthetic fertilizers is usually the problem.
  
  

  Excess fertilizer runoff results in nitrogen and phosphorus in the water — perfect food to fertilize the growth of algae blooms. Algae looks gross and smells like dead fish, as well as killing fish and aquatic plants by destroying oxygen in the water. It can also sicken pets and humans.



• Seaweed extract
  One of the ways to boost plant growth is to soak your soil with seaweed extract. It's particularly useful for planting out seedlings and even larger plants like trees.
  
  

  Here's an extract on extracts (smile)... "Take a large container such as a bucket or old roasting tray and place your pots or tubes in it to be planted out. Then make up a diluted seaweed extract and pour into the container between the pots — about 1 in 100 would be the usual. Leave the pots sitting in the solution for at least 1-2 hours or even overnight, depending on the size of the plants. The seaweed extract will enter the soil in the pots through the drainage holes, and then be absorbed by the roots, giving plants a head start from all the goodies in the extract."

  For more handy information from this article, see No-dig gardening's Facebook page.

Want to know what vegetables to plant?

Want to know when to plant them?

The GroVeg Garden Planner is your answer. Click here for a 30 DAY FREE TRIAL!

Vegetable Croutons

Ingredients

• Approximately 2-3 Tblspns oil (coconut oil is best)
• 1 sweet potato or parsnip, diced
• 1 clove garlic

Method

• Heat oil to medium heat in large frypan.
• Add vegetables and garlic and cook until tender and lightly browned, approximately 10 minutes.
• Drain on paper and sprinkle over soup.

Preparation: 20 minutes.

Serves: Makes enough to add to 2-3 bowls of soup.

Live, love and garden.
Megan