Blog posts tagged with 'vegetables'

Stop! Don't throw out the leftowvers just yet. Did you know that you can use your left over fruits and vegetables to grow more fruitd and vegetables? In this blog I will name a few of thes vegetables.  I will tell you how to regrow Celery, Sweet Potatoes and Pineapple from the pieces that you might usually toss in the trash.

Celery:  Take the bottom of the celery you cut off and soak it in warm water for about 24 hours. Next plant it in fertile soil with the cut side up. Water Daily. in about 1-2 weeks you should start to see the tops of baby celery.

Sweet Potatoes:  To grow a sweet potato is all you need is the end of one of your old sweet potatoes. Cut off the end of the potato, place toothpicks around the outside of the potato and submerge the tip in water allowing the toothpicks to support the remainder of the piece of patato above the water. Palce the potato in a nice sunny spot near the window and watch the roots start to grow in about three weeks.  Once the roots form it is ready to plant in the ground.

Pineapple:  You can grow a pineapple by planting the top of your scrap pineapple.  Once you have removed the top you need to peel away about 1/2 in. of the leaves at the bottom of the stalk. Next you need to trim the bottom and sides of the stalk till you see little brown dots around the rim. This is where your roots will come from. Now you need to let the pineapple dry for two days to prevent it from rotting.  Then place the pineapp.e top into a bowl of plain water. Remember to change the water every 2 days. Once you see lots of roots growing it's time to plant the top in a pot that drains well with about 9 inches of soil. They grow slow, but soon you will have a healthy pinapple bush that one day, a couple of years from now, will produce a pinapple.

I hope you have enjoyed our blog.  Good luck growing your scraps. We would love to hear about your experience on our Mister Landscaper Facebook Page. If you enjoyed this blog and want to learn about other scraps you can grow do a search on google.com for "plants you can plant from scraps".  And as always, Mister Landscaper the best way to irrigate all of you fruits and vegetables.

Thanks for reading, and have an awesome week.

A well manicured landscape is something to be noticed.  Beautiful Trees, shrubs, Flowers, and other types of plants fill the yard space with a combination of balance and design that can adorn the outside of a home much like jewelry on a beautiful woman.
While there are countless examples of wonderful landscape designs available online, something special began to catch my eye. I noticed that some of these landscapes had edible plants used in their layout.  This seemed to me like such a fabulous idea that I wanted to know more, so I began to research this trend and found out that it is becoming quite popular to ad edible plants to landscape designs, or even to completely use edible plants for the landscape.

There are a great many benefits to having edible plants in the yard. The first being, they are edible.  This can save some time, and money by avoiding going to the grocery store, just walk outside and pick your favorite veggie or fruit off your own plant. The Second benefit is that they are healthy.  We always talk about how we want to eat healthier around our house. What better way to do that then to surround our yards with healthy plants that encourage us to consume more fruits and vegetables.  A third benefit, is that growing edible landscapes is a "green" way to landscape a yard because the fruits and veggies that are grown in the yard don't have to be shipped across country or around the world to end up on your table.  And last, but certainly not least, if it is grown in your yard, you know what went into it, and on it, so there is less worry about strong pesticides or chemical fertilizers, and more time to enjoy the fruits of your yard.

This kind of landscaping will continue to gain in popularity as people tire of using water and other resources for large grassy areas that do little more then ornament the yard. Edible landscapes can help feed us and turn our yards into ecosystems. Fruit-bearing trees, bushes and perennial vegetables can be a part of a productive landscape, especially when mixed in with native and drought-resistant ornamentals. Ad to that low flow irrigation products such as micro & drip irrigation and one can create a sustainable landscape with not just color, but flavor as well.

With the prices of food rising in much of the country this is, no doubt, a trend that will continue to grow, leaving many a front and or back yard full of tasty treats.
 

A few years ago, a good friend of mine took the time to plant a wonderful
 small garden in his back yard. He lay down a row of squash and zucchini and
 was looking forward to what it would yield. The plants grew nice and lush.
  He watered and fertilized as required. Then they began to bud, marking the
beginning of the lovely vegetables. Everything was going according to plan.
  My friend was disappointed a few weeks later when the plants never produced
 any vegetables. He scratched his head thinking about what he might have 
forgotten to do. As he went down his checklist, it never once occurred to
him that the solution to his dilemma was as simple as four letters. B E E S!

Later, another friend of his at work told him that more than likely what had
 happened was a lack of our buzzing friends who are responsible for
 pollinating our plants. Quite simply, when the vegetable plants budded,
there were no bees around to spread the pollen. Could it be that simple? The
 answer is yes.


Anyone who has lived in Florida for a considerable amount of time has driven 
by an orange grove. The white stacks of wooden crates in the middle of the 
grove? Those are bee hives. They ensure the trees will produce oranges next 
fall. Amazing, isn't it?


Next time you are in your garden, and you notice a few of our hard working 
friends buzzing around, just let them be. They're doing you a huge
favor--what they were meant to do.
 

Depending on where you live, you might have already started your vegetable garden or are in the planning stage.

Irrigation is a very important part of any garden, especially vegetables. Too much or too little water can affect not only the quality of your produce but also whether you get any produce.

Mister Landscaper’s Vegetable Garden Drip Kit is perfect for your home vegetable garden. It’s easy, time-efficient, and includes everything you need to water up to 100 linear feet of vegetables. Take a look.

Mister Landscaper’s Vegetable Garden Drip Kit… The right amount of water for all your vegetables.

Join the discussion... Are you growing vegetables? If so, which ones? How is it going?

Have you heard about community gardens? That’s right…community.

According to the American Community Garden Association (ACGA), a community garden is simply a piece of land that is gardened by a group of people. It can be for flowers or vegetables or simply to spend time with others who love gardening.

Here’s a sampling of community gardens making headlines across the country.

• In South Florida, there are various community gardens on city-owned land. These gardens help needy folks learn to grow their own food. Many are in areas that need beautification or are undergoing revitalization. Others are in urban areas. 
• In Greer, South Carolina, the local hospital started the project. Soon, sponsors donated tools and irrigation equipment - even seeds - to get gardeners started. 
• Portland has 39 community gardens, many with open spots waiting to be rented.  Each 100-square-foot area rents for $21. Volunteers have “work parties” to tend to area gardens. Some plant beds are handicapped-accessible. And they also offer scholarships for low-income families and individuals. 
• In Kalamazoo, Michigan, the success of one community garden has sparked interested in starting other gardens around that area. Plans also include compost heaps, a greenhouse for year-round gardening, and classes for those needing a little extra help getting started. 

These are just a few of the community gardens making news around the country.

As springtime approaches, think about joining a community garden in your area. You can search for existing gardens. Better yet, start one!

Join the discussion:

Are you interested in community gardening? If so, tell us about it. If you’re already participating in a community garden, share some information with us. Who participates? What do you grow? How do you maintain it?