Before planting garlic cloves, water soil thoroughly. After planting garlic bulbs, briefly water the soil again. Be particularly careful not to overwater cloves immediately after planting as cloves are vulnerable to rotting prior to germination. Garlic plants are shallow-rooted and prefer moist but not wet soil. Do not allow the soil to dry down completely […]

As an upright plant with shallow roots and relatively small size, you would think that garlic would be a good choice for growing in containers.  And you would be partly correct. The problem? Some of garlic’s other requirements make growing in containers a bit of a challenge. Garlic plants have a long time to maturity, […]

You may have thought of looseleaf lettuce as an ideal addition to a sustainable garden. Broadcast a few seeds in the open areas of your garden, and looseleaf lettuce can fit in anywhere.  And if you allow some lettuce plants to bolt or go to seed, your looselettuce can magically reappear the following season. But […]

Cauliflower and other brassicas are moderate to heavy feeders, and need sufficient levels of many nutrients, such nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium, zinc, and micronutrients or trace elements. GardenZeus recommends working compost and/or composted manure into soils before planting cauliflower, and growing cauliflower only once every 2 to 4 years in a given bed or garden area […]

Potatoes make excellent container plants: growing potatoes in containers saves garden space, reduces the necessity of weeding, reduces the risk of exposure to pests and fungi, and reduces the risk of damaging the potatoes during harvest. Not sold on containers yet? Potatoes are hilled: soil is “hilled” up around the stems of potato plants to […]

GardenZeus recommends growing potatoes not from true seed but from seed potatoes, pieces of whole potato or a small whole potato.  To avoid purchasing and using diseased or infected seeds, purchase only certified disease-free seed potatoes from a reputable source. Non-certified seed potatoes  may carry root knot nematodes, or various viral diseases. Quality certified disease-free […]

For most of its long history prior to being a cultivated vegetable, chard was a wild beet; it performs best in soil conditions favored by root crops. Try giving chard loose, uniform, deep, fertile soil free of obstructions, with uniform soil moisture and sufficient nitrogen, and watch the show as chard grows to twice or […]

In Mediterranean climates, fall is planting time for garlic. Some gardeners plant garlic in grid-like patterns in raised beds while others plant garlic cloves in nooks and crannies, around existing plants. But have you ever thought of using garlic in a sustainable garden? Or use sustainable gardening practices with respect to garlic? Garlic can be […]

Considering adding peas, whether snap, snow or shelling, to your sustainable garden? Consider the benefits and the limitations. Peas do not naturalize well in many areas of California, and it may be more complicated to actually receive the benefit of soil-nitrogen fixation from legumes than many permaculturists and sustainable-gardening enthusiasts may claim or realize. Properly […]