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Free Solar Greenhouse Plans

2010/05/21
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Free Solar Greenhouse Plans

Solar Greenhouses greenhouse plans at end of articleCalling a greenhouse solar is somewhat redundant, since all greenhouses are solar heated to some extent. The greenhouse itself traps the heat each day, as anyone who has been inside a greenhouse for just a few minutes on a sunny day knows. Although a traditional greenhouse acts as a natural solar collector on sunny days, it does not retain the suns heat at night. Consequently, 75 to 80 percent of the cost of heating a greenhouse by conventional energy sources is expended at night. via Free Solar Greenhouse Plans.

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Indoor Strawberries | GardenHacker.com

2010/02/05
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Indoor Strawberries | GardenHacker.com

Grow your own strawberry patch indoors!  This is great for kids as well as adults, you just have to keep the cats out! (in case of cats, I recommend the planters that don’t expose much soil). If you’re patient, you can grow from seed – if not, talk to your garden center and see if you can get some plants early for a great indoor harvest that beats store-bought! Indoor Strawberries | GardenHacker.com.

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The Lompoc Record

2009/10/03
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The Lompoc Record

“… Rather than the brawny, sprawling crops of summer that bear fruits, pods, ears and gourds, winter vegetables tend to be small and offer up leaves, flowers and roots. Most take up less space, don’t require as much sunlight and are content to grow in containers. A number of these cool-season crops can also be easily sown from seed. Indeed, a new industry group, the Home Garden Seed Association, has conveniently begun promoting a list of what it calls the 10 easiest winter vegetables to grow from seed: beets, calendulas, cilantro, kale, lettuce, peas, radishes, salad greens, spinach and Swiss chard. …” The Hack: Grow these cooler weather crops in containers so you can bring them inside for continued growing (be sure there’s enough room and light available!) Note:  With less sun, you’ll find it takes longer for plants to mature. via The Lompoc Record.

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Clever plot – Gardening is Now Fashionable

2009/09/21
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And if it’s fashionable in Europe this fall, you know that in spring it’ll be the rage in the US… Okay, so it already is here, with urban gardens, people converting their front yards into beautiful plots with decorative peppers and cabbages, etc.  ”…The Scottish Women’s Rural Institutes (SWRI) has created an easy-to-follow guide to help tackle all gardening issues, from choosing a suitable site and preparing your soil to raising and caring for your plants. …” Clever plot – Press & Journal.

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Small Footprint, Big Yield

2009/07/31
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Small Footprint, Big Yield

Some of the best use of space I’ve seen in a long time.  Even though I’m blessed with almost one acre of land, a lot of it is taken up by play areas or swamp for half the season.  The rest of the lawn is “harvested” for mulch.  If I had the wood, I’d build at least one of these just to increase the yield in the sunnier parts of my garden. The Hack:  make a high-rise tiered garden to increase your useable space. Small Footprint, Big Yield: Create an Easy Micro Organic Urban Garden Today! | Urban Gardens | Unlimited Thinking For Limited Spaces.

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Grow your own borscht: Planning a fall vegetable garden

2009/07/27
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Grow your own borscht: Planning a fall vegetable garden

We’re not in Virginia, but the same ideas apply.  The Hack:  Make use of your garden into the fall and beyond by planning and planting cooler weather crops now. Grow your own borscht: Planning a fall vegetable garden.

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Free Info in Sustainability Permaculture Visions

2009/07/26
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Free Info in Sustainability Permaculture Visions

Free is good! Free Info in Sustainability Permaculture Visions.

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Get Your Mind Out of the Gutter and Put Your Garden There Instead

2009/06/15
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Get Your Mind Out of the Gutter and Put Your Garden There Instead

Make your own “vertical veggie garden” with some gutter material and an exterior wall you’re not doing anything with anyway! The Hack: Use a wall and some gutter material to make a vertical garden where no garden has dared to cling! “… The idea is essential this: Why not put rain gutters in rows along the wood siding on the sunny side of the house. It might look weird, but that was where all the heat, sun and protection from damage is best. I talked to my husband, Pete, about it and he agreed it was worth a try. We went to Home Depot and selected some “attractive” brown plastic gutters along with all the required parts so that we could mount them in one long row. (The total length or a row would be about 20 feet). Pete drilled some very small holes in the bottom of the gutters to let excess water drain out after he mounted them...

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LED Grow Light Panels: Prices Getting Reasonable!

2009/06/08
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LED Grow Light Panels: Prices Getting Reasonable!

The prices for LED grow lights are getting more reasonable – as more people and businesses are manufacturing them, the prices get better and better.  I’m currently using a set of T8 (Fluorescent tube) replacements which necessitated rewiring a shop light to remove the ballast from the circuit.  They’ve worked well as grow lights, but they’re not as long-lived as their components:  LED’s will last for up to 100,000 hours – but they’re only part of the overall circuitry.  The diodes and resistors take the brunt of the power fluctuations, and they’re what often fail.  One of my “bulbs” has gone completely dark, while the other is starting to fail as well, but the manufacturer is working on getting me replacements under warranty.  I’ll write further about them as things unfold, but I’m pretty optimistic. The LED Growth lights look like a nice alternative to rewiring a shop light.  Two T8 LED tubes cover approximately 8 square feet, and...

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What fruits can I grow in my garden?

2009/05/31
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What fruits can I grow in my garden?

A friend of mine asked: “So, what fruits can I grow in my garden?” The easy answer: the three types of fruit for the home gardener that are easy to grow:  strawberries, blueberries and raspberries.  Berries?  They’re not fruits! Okay, picky, picky – tomatoes are fruits… The Hack: bigger strawberries, june producing variety, other than 1-2″ of water per week during growing season and at least six hours of sun  ”…The spaced-row method limits the number of daughter plants allowed to grow. Mother plants are planted 2 feet apart in rows 3 to 4 feet apart. The daughter plants are spaced to root no closer than 4 inches apart and all other runners are removed. This method takes more care, but results in higher yields, larger berries and fewer problems with disease. …” Day neutral and everbearing take a different technique.  Lots of great information and tips from Daily Herald | Growing small fruit in the home garden.

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Myth-ing from the Garden

2009/05/04
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More for landscape than for gardening, but the information is valuable.  Linda Chalker-Scott has a great list of articles she’s written, including the use of wood chips, epsom salt, dust mulching(!) and more. http://www.puyallup.wsu.edu/~Linda%20Chalker-Scott/Horticultural%20Myths_files/index.html

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