Vegetable Gardening Calendar - The Importance of Knowing the Right Time to Plant Veggies

A vegetable gardening calendar is very important to determine what particular crops you are going to plant and when is the right time to harvest it. Vegetables need to be planted at the right time in order for them to become productive and to give you the expected benefits from gardening. That is why if you want to have your own garden you need first to know the appropriate time for planting a particular crop by having a gardening calendar.

Depending on the place you are living, your vegetable gardening calendar and crops to plant will vary. For example if you are living in a place where the climate is cold, particularly for those places located in Northern Hemisphere, then you need to plant your garden with crops that are suitable for such condition. Nevertheless, you need also to base the planting season accordingly.

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Here is an example of vegetable gardening calendar in a form of list that you can follow when you are living in a country such as Japan, Canada, and United Kingdom where the climate is cooler.

* Broccoli is best to plant between the month of May and June. Usually you can harvest it after four months from the time you planted it.

* Brussels sprouts can be planted between May and June. Similar with broccoli, after four of five months you can already harvest it.

* Between April and June is the best time to plant Beetroot. Right after three months it is ready for harvesting.

* Celery must be planted between the months of March and April. After five or six months celery has already reached its maturity stage where you can harvest it already.

* Dwarf peas are best to include in your vegetable gardening during the month February. You can harvest it after three or four months.

* The most ideal time to plant lettuce is during springtime in the month of April. However, this veggie can be grown whole year round. After two to three months, you can make harvest of it already.

For tropical countries near the Equator, naturally, this calendar will not be best suitable for your conditions.
So have some fun with it, but be sure to consult the gardening calendar specific to your region so that you get the most benefit.

Vegetable Gardening Calendar - The Importance of Knowing the Right Time to Plant Veggies

Grow Calendar 2011

Organic Gardening Pest Control Methods

First, if you have a garden, you will have pests. There is always some little critter looking for a free meal, and your luscious garden produce looks a lot like a buffet to many insects.

Pest control

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Pest management can be broken down into 2 parts, the first of which is, or at least should be, pest prevention. The second is pest control. Prevention is always better than dealing with the aftermath. Control is what you do when you failed to prevent. We understand this with auto accidents, and disease, but often forget when it comes to our homes and gardens.

Pest prevention

Pest prevention in gardens is really a matter of keeping your plants healthy. This can be accomplished by:

Choosing the right varieties Grouping plants according to elemental needs Attention to the plants internal calender Soil structure Soil fertility Soil moisture

If these factors are balanced, your garden plants will be healthier, and more disease and pest resistant, thus preventing the majority of pest problems. Failing this, or if other factors have conspired to bring on a pest invasion, or if some pests just managed to get through the prevention barrier, it may be necessary to resort to pest control.

Pest control types

Organic pest management methods are separated into 3 types, biological, and botanical and physical.

Biological

Biological pest control is one method suitable to organic gardening. Biological pest controls include lady bugs, spiders, praying mantis, and other bugs that feed on the insects feeding on your garden.

Botanical

Botanical pest management agents are made from plant oils and naturally occurring pyrethrins. There are products available to target and safely kill unwanted pests, but like most commercial insecticides, they will kill beneficial insects as well, so caution should be exercised.

Physical

Physical pest control is the removal of pests by hand. This is often done with a stream of water, a net, or by picking the bugs from the plant using the fingers. This method is often slow and tedious, but can be effective in many situations.

Organic Gardening Pest Control Methods

Grow Calendar 2011

Zodiac Sign Gardening

Gardening by the Signs of the Zodiac

The first farmers were probably the founders of astrology. Their crops responded to the signs in the heavens and this became a easy method of ensuring good harvests. Certain seasons brought changing conditions which would either help or hinder the crops. Each season presented different patterns in the constellations and these patterns would evolve into astrology as we know it today.

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Fine tune your Garden

Gardening by the signs of the Zodiac is a method of fine tuning your gardening efforts. Planting, growing and maintaining your garden by the constellations or signs of the Zodiac and the Phases of the Moon enhances the effects of nature on your crops.

Combined effects of the Moon and the Signs of the Zodiac in your Garden

The full effects of gardening by the phases of the moon are heightened when the moon is in the right Zodiac Sign. Certain signs of the zodiac have unique benefits on particular plants. Leafy plants do best in the water signs. The water signs are Cancer, Pisces, and Scorpio, and are the correct signs for planting above ground, leafy annuals. The Earth signs, Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn, are also very fertile and good for planting all other above ground crops. Root bearing crops do best in the earth signs. As the waxing moon passes through one of the earth signs plant root crops such as carrots and potatoes. This is also a good time for transplanting, as this period promotes subsurface root development.

Note:

Plants which produce their fruits above ground should be planted during the waxing moon. Plants that yield their produce below ground (root crops) should be planted in the waning moon.

Fertile and Barren Zodiac Signs

The Fertile Signs

Planting and re-planting is best done during a waxing moon, in an earth or water sign. These signs are signs of fertility. The fertile zodiac signs are Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces, Libra, Tarus and Capricorn

The Barren Signs

Garden maintenance, soil improvements and pruning are best done when the moon is waning and in an air or fire sign. These zodiac signs are the barren signs of the zodiac. They are Aries, Gemini, Leo, Virgo, Sagittarius and Aquarius.

Zodiac Sign Gardening

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The Reluctant Gardening Calendar - July

The month of roses - and they have been particularly spectacular this year, especially the ones I have in pots on the patio. This could have a bit to do with the fact that in April I took pity on the poor straggling things and decided to lob a handful of feed pellets into each pot. Don't both asking me how much should be added per litre of soil or anything like that - I don't wear reading glasses when gardening so you can forget anything with instructions on the side. Each pot got a handful or two and a lecture on the alternative to a good flower production. Whether it was the pellets which worked or just terror of the alternative is immaterial, this year I have a lovely display of roses.

This July has been a month of contrast - days of heatwave interspersed with days of sustained heavy rain. The result of this is a total green explosion. Bushes that were large to start with now desperately need a drastic haircut if I want to be able to see out of my sitting room windows again. That job has been put on 'the List'. In point of fact, it hardly every comes OFF the List - its like painting the Forth Bridge, by the time the job is completed its time to start at the beginning again. Yes, I DID have an electric hedge-trimmer to do the job ... the first thing I managed to do with it was to cut the cable in half so its back to the good old shears.

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The Victoria plum is sparsely fruited this year. The last two years there was such a glut of fruit that branches got broken down by the weight. Still, those plums that are there are of good size for eating - last year's puny things were really only suitable for the jam pot. That said, I 'do' jam. Like to make lots of different types - that you would never see in the supermarkets. This year nectarine and raspberry has been my favourite, but when the blackberries are ripe I shall go picking. Last year's blackberry, apple and Victoria plum turned out to be a superb mixture.

Ah yes, and its time for an update on the bee situation. The hive in our garden is still empty, but the old hive we sent up to son Tony has been colonised by a substantial swarm of nice golden-coloured honeybees. The light coloured bees are usually the quieter variety, easier to work with - the darker the bee the more ...well, shall be say 'lively' ... they can be. I have been chased for fifty yards across an orchard by the bees from a 'dark' hive. Needless to say, I much prefer the little blondies. Last weekend we went into the hive for the first time and its now set up for honey production. It was the first time Tony had ever seen the inside of a populated hive, and I think he was amazed at just how many bees were in there, and how manageable they were when handled properly. Of course he had had a bit of a run-in with them, because he couldn't wait for me to go up with the protective clothing etc before he 'just had a peek'. He found out that levering up the top of a beehive with a screwdriver results in thousands rising in retribution - and was dead lucky to only get one sting. The result could have been nasty, and I think he now realises just how lucky he really was - and has put his name down for the local Beekeeping for Beginners class. Mind you, his main aim appears to be to get a few jars of honey to sell down the pub - and a few good stories to go with a pint or two.

Well, that's it at the moment - time to de-weed the pond ... oh joy ...

The Reluctant Gardening Calendar - July

Grow Calendar 2011