A Tour of Fred's Garden, with Debbie Flower

If this newsletter podcast sounds familiar, it should. It is also the current (Ep. 341) Garden Basics podcast where myself and America’s Favorite Retired College Horticulture Professor, Debbie Flower, take a late May stroll through my garden, discussing the plants, as well as gardening techniques. But wouldn’t it be nice to see those plants and garden accoutrements? Well, here you go.

But first, a recap of what you may have missed on this week’s two Garden Basics podcasts:

Tuesday, June 4:

Ep. 340 -Q&A Cross Pollination Concerns. What is the Best City or State for Gardening?

• Understanding cross-pollination and its implications for seed saving and plant breeding.

• The importance of local conditions and location-specific knowledge in gardening.

• The impact of climate and weather on gardening success.

• Different perspectives on the best US cities for gardening, highlighting the influence of location on gardening success.

Thank you, AI, for your dry summary. Debbie Flower and I are more warm and endearing than that.

Friday, June 7: Ep. 341 - Fred’s Yard Tour with Debbie.

Or, listen above and scroll below. But we are definitely more entertaining and informative than AI would have you believe:

Takeaways

• The importance of selecting heat-resistant greens for summer gardening

• Strategies for dealing with garden pests like tomato hornworms and cabbage worms

• Tips for growing determinate tomatoes and managing peach trees

• Insights on using raised beds and root cellars for gardening

• The benefits of using vermiculite for seed planting and the use of worm bins for fertilizer

• The significance of providing shade for certain plants and the value of using row covers for protection. SmartPot compost sacks are a convenient and effective way to create rich compost for gardening (golly, AI, thanks for plugging the sponsor!)

• Clover is resistant to dog urine and can be used as a ground cover in areas frequented by pets.

• Fruit trees can be grown in containers, and it's important to control the width and height of the tree to manage root growth.

• Different soil types, such as raised bed soil planter mix and pumice, can be used for gardening in containers.

• Citrus, blueberries, and potatoes can be successfully grown in containers, providing a versatile option for home gardeners.

Again, just punch play above, and begin scrolling here:

Bush Early Girl tomato. Can you spot the tomato worm?

Three pictures in one: squirrel eating the donut peach while sitting on the squirrel freeway fence with the Violette De Bordeaux fig tree in the foreground.

Back in March, the donut peach had a bad case of peach leaf curl. It’s much better now, thank you. And the squirrels shared the peaches with us, but just enough for four pitchers of peach daiquiris.

Zucchini seed planting day. The vermiculite topping over the newly planted seed serves several functions, including letting you know where to water until they come up. The 3-inch grid screening (a repurposed trellis), suspended about an inch over the bed, keeps dogs and cats out of the seedbed.

Tower of Jewels, a biennial (lives for two years). Echium wildpretii, for you fans of Linnaeus.

Greenhouse and garden, in April 2023. Note the experimental dog pee-resistant groundcover. Rye, Kurapia, failed. Some success with clover. Note the Kurapia running amok.

onions in pots, waiting for me to clear out the current onion bed. Can onions grow here in the summer? We’ll find out.

Lots of work awaits now. Spread the mulch. Protect suffering Tokyo Bekana cabbage from marauders with row cover. Watch the tomatoes grow in their cages. The area at the bottom gets afternoon shade from the house, giving heat sensitive plants a chance.

Garlic Harvest in Root Cellar (under the house, actually. A nice benefit of living on a slope.)

Tomato cage made from 4’x5’ sheet of concrete reinforcement wire. Instead of bending the wire, you can also use zip ties to hold the circle closed.

Worm Bins Under the House (root cellar!). Heavy weights keep the top secure from curious four-legged creatures

Pluerry Trees ( plum-cherry cross, from Dave Wilson Nursery) in Smart Pots, with ‘Crouching Dragon’ Zinnias

The Lyda Rose in its heyday, at the Old City Cemetery in Sacramento

The Sally Holmes rose, in its second week in a vase. A guy vase.

Recirculating fountain/bird bath, with Peruvian Lilies (Alstroemerias)

The ‘Charles Grimaldi’ Brugmansia. It’s heady scent fills the backyard each evening.

Blueberry plants in a cattle watering trough. Tractor paint color: Ford Red

A pot of Japanese bunching onions, ensnarled by Charlie.

By request of the cook, thyme in an easily accessible pot.

Fuyu Persimmons, ripening in mid-fall

Testing roses on the hottest side of the house, in Smart Pots and Pulp Pots. (Smart Pots kept the soil cooler and more consistent moisture)

Clancy Potato Harvest

Citrus Row.

Click Here for the FRED 20% Discount at HeirloomRoses.com. where you can choose from over 900 roses! (Discount expires Oct. 31, 2024)

Your Harvest to Better Health Begins at Dave Wilson Nursery!

Thanks for reading Beyond Basics: The Garden Basics with Farmer Fred Newsletter! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

Thank you for also listening to the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast! It’s available wherever you get your podcasts. Please share it with your garden friends.

Fred Hoffman is also a University of California Cooperative Extension Master Gardener in Sacramento County. And he likes to ride his bike(s).