Host a Garden Swap

With spring on the way, it’s time to start planting and planning. Once your seedlings start to take off though, your garden plot can start producing more delicious fruits and veggies than you could possibly store in your fridge, or know what to do with. When life gives you lemons—or say 15 pounds of zucchini—don’t just make lemonade and a quiche for yourself, share the seasonal wealth and host a garden swap party for your friends, family, and neighbors. Trade your excess produce for theirs and grow a collaborative community or an informal co-op. You can even start a Facebook event page to get others involved. Here are some ways to reap rewards from your garden, beyond just fresh produce.

From beefsteak to heirloom to cherry and grape, tomatoes are a favorite garden veggie for home growers (yes, technically, they are fruit). In fact, they’re so popular, there are gardening products tailored just for them like Miracle-Gro® Water Soluble Tomato Plant Food. In summer, tomatoes can grow by the bucketful, so invite friends over for a backyard BBQ and garden swap. Make fresh Greek salad and grill sliced tomatoes for burgers. Buy some craft party bags to fill with extra tomatoes and distribute to guests as they leave. If you still have leftovers, tomatoes can be frozen for later use in sauces; just core and place them whole in a freezer bag or container.

Even if you don’t have a giant backyard, cucumbers are a warm-season vegetable that can grow in small spaces. This climbing plant is a great option for urban gardeners and shared plots because you can also use a trellis to guide their upward mobility. They also grow quickly and abundantly, if you care for them right. To do so, feed them a good formula, like Miracle-Gro® Organic Choice® All Purpose Plant Food, one week after they bloom, and then again three weeks later. To share the bounty, make some classic English cucumber tea sandwiches and throw a Prohibition-themed soiree, serving refreshing spiked drinks out of teacups, like a Cucumber Fizz made with muddled cucumber. You can also get creative by adding fresh herbs, like mint and basil, which also thrive on windowsills and small areas.

Since beets are a cool season crop, you can plant them in the early spring or fall. Unlike a lot of produce however, this root vegetable can survive frost and near freezing temps, meaning they’ll take you from spring salads to winter borscht. More versatile than you might think, they grow quickly, come in deep red, yellow, or white varieties, and different shapes—and the often-discarded tops and leaves are also edible. While beets are packed with antioxidants, they also require prime nutrition when you plant them. Since pickling has become a hot trend among foodies, get a few friends together to learn how to pickle root veggies. You supply the beets, someone else can bring the carrots, or even string beans, and once jarred, you each have a crunchy snack to take home.

Share what you want to grow at MiracleGro.com, and they’ll share it with the world.

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Grow a Garden with a View

Just because you don't have a backyard, doesn't mean you can't grow a garden. Rooftop gardens have become a hot new trend in cities across the nation, from individuals growing fresh fruits and veggies to restaurants sourcing their menus with ultra-local produce from a few flights up. For urbanites, rooftop gardens are a great way to escape the hustle and bustle with the push of an elevator button and enjoy the outdoors—homegrown happy hours included.

Planting a rooftop garden is a great way to have a steady supply of seasonal produce. Even restaurants in downtown New York City have started growing fresh herbs, lettuces, and tomatoes, among other crops in top-level plots. Beyond supplying fresh ingredients, however, these skyscraping green spaces can also be a stylish oasis away from the hustle-and-bustle of city streets. Mixing town and country with jaw-dropping views of the skyline and breathtaking greenery, they're great places for entertaining or unwinding. Before you start planting, research different layout ideas, from modern to bohemian schemes.

At the heart of the Midwest, Chicago's rooftop gardeners have created impressive green spaces overlooking the iconic skyline, some as big as 20,000 square feet. But, even if you don't have the space for a petite botanic garden, there are ways to maximize a tiny roof or even just part of one by planting up—and down. Vertical-growing vines are a great option, especially with easy to grow veggies like cucumbers and tomatoes. Start with a nourishing base, like Miracle-Gro® Moisture Control® Potting Mix. Likewise growing down with hanging gardens is a space-saving method for planting strawberries.

While you might not be able to grow full-size trees on your roof, you can easily grow smaller versions of citrus trees in garden pots, like dwarf Meyer lemon shrubs. These types of plants grow best in regions with a mild winter, like the West Coast, where in cities like San Francisco, individuals have transformed their rooftops into mini-orchards using pots. To get started, pick up a potting mix designed for container plants, like Miracle-Gro(R) Cactus, Palm & Citrus Potting Mix. Along with producing fruit for cooking and making cocktails, the pretty blossoms have a nice fragrance.

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The Garden Gourmet Composter - Description and Overview

For a very long time I always had my eye on a garden gourmet composter bin, but I was not sure if this bin is the right composter for me. This composter is made of plastic, and I was not sure if I should buy one because how can plastic make waste rot? Guess what, I am a proud owner of one now and am very pleased to have one. My own garden gourmet composter bin.

This composter bins are made of 100% recycled polyethylene, and that helps to trap more heat so that the waste inside can brake down much faster than a normal compost pile would have done it. This bin is UV resistant.

The side panels have air vents within it to aerate the waste inside, the bottom have a slide door from where you can access the compost which are ready to deposit into your garden. The lid just clips over the side of the gourmet composter bin, and it fits a few inches over the sides so that not to much water enters the bin when it rains. The lid has some drip holes in it and that is to keep the waste inside the bin moist. It also has two flip lids within the lid, one on each side of the lid so that there is no need of taking of the complete lid to deposit your kitchen scraps, the two flip lids are sloping down on each side of the lid, making it difficult for unwanted guests, like critters, to get into the composter. This garden gourmet composter are capable of holding 11 cubic feet of material.

This composter has an average size of 23 inch. X 23 inch. X 36 inch. high, and are excellent for the average gardener. This bin I use primarily for waste out of the kitchen, like eggs, corn cobs, watermelon rinds etc. Just keep in mind that you need to mix your greens in the bin with some browns like leaves, hay et cetera.

This composter can produce nutritious plant food that contains healthy ingredients for your garden soil and your plants. It saves you the expense of buying food for your soil and flora. It keeps your garden neat and you don't have that ugly pile of waste that degrades the look of your garden, the unpleasant odor gets reduced as well, because the air vents allow oxygen into the composter.

The the garden gourmet composter is a remarkable compost maker and it is a must have for any home owner and garden lover.

Thumbs up for the garden gourmet composter

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Gourmet Herbs - How to Grow the Tastiest Perennial Herbs in Your Garden

Every keen cook or budding gourmet knows that the right combination of herbs can make or break a meal. Most herbs are at their best when they're ultra-fresh. Growing your own can give you a year-round supply of the tastiest herbs at a fraction of the cost of buying them at the grocery store, but how do you keep your herb plants at peak performance?

For many perennial herbs, the key to getting the best flavour lies in choosing the right variety. Once you've done that then it's a case of planting it in the best possible position, and scheduling in regular maintenance. Gourmet herb gardening is not for the lazy - treat your plants well and you'll reap the benefits in improved harvests and flavour.

Thyme

Thyme is one of the key perennial herbs to plant in a gourmet herb garden. Fresh leaves are great used in all meat and cheese dishes, and can even be added to salads. Choose a variety with grey leaves - they have the best flavor - and give it a sunny, well-drained spot with lime-rich soil. Thymes are low growing and make a great edging for paths and borders. Keep your thyme on the dry side - don't feed or water it once it has established, if it's planted in the soil.

Cut thyme plants back just before they flower to encourage a new flush of fragrant leaves; you can dry the trimmings for use through the winter. Aim to replace your plants every few years - they can be divided in spring to rejuvenate them. Although you'll get the best flavour from thyme planted in the ground, it can also be grown in pots.

Chives

Chives bring to life egg and cheese dishes, and can also be snipped into salads. You can grow your chives from seed or divide mature plants in spring. Chive plants love rich, moist soil in a sunny position. Their big purple flowers are a magnet for bees - but letting your plants flower will shorten your harvest season, so have more than one plant and cut some back before they flower, and some afterwards, for a continuous supply of fresh leaves.

Young chive plants grow larger, more succulent leaves, so take the time to divide your plants every 2 or 3 years in spring. Regular trims are also in order. Chives can be dried for winter use, but a better option is to grow some in pots - they respond well to being forced indoors during the colder months.

Marjoram and oregano

Marjoram and oregano are essential herbs for Italian food aficionados. Different varieties have different hardiness levels. The hardy marjoram can be divided in spring, but the tastiest oregano varieties are much more tender and best grown as annuals, from seed.

These Mediterranean herbs love open positions, lime-rich and well-drained soil and plenty of sun. They grow well in pots, and in fact the most tender oreganos are best grown in pots so that they can be moved under cover when necessary - but they must always be kept in the best light available. For the best flavor, don't over feed or water these plants - they're used to tough conditions.

Mints

There's a huge range of mint varieties available, each with a unique flavor. They're all invasive and best kept strictly under control or grown in containers. Don't plant mint in among your other herbs - its rampant roots will quickly force them out. Mints prefer different conditions to most other herbs anyway - they love moist soil and are shade tolerant.

Although mint flowers are great for wildlife, flowering changes the flavor of the leaves. For a gourmet experience, cut the plants back before they flower. And don't plant different varieties too close together - their flavors will mingle. For the tastiest leaves, don't be too generous with either water or feed. Mint leaves are best used fresh, but this is another herb that responds well to being potted up and brought inside over winter.

Rosemary

Rosemary adds a touch of heaven to meat dishes, particularly roast lamb, and barbecues. Although there are several varieties to choose from the flavour is the same and so, for once, you can choose your plant for its aesthetic qualities! A well-grown plant in a warm position will keep you in fresh leaves year-round.

Well-drained soil is essential; lime-rich soil is preferable. If your rosemary bush is growing in the soil then there is no need to water or feed it once it has established. Pot-grown plants will need occasional feeding and watering, but be sparing. The only other maintenance required is a light trim after flowering. For a real gourmet treat, try adding a few young leaves and flowers to salads.

There are many more herbs worthy of a place in a gourmet herb garden. Whichever ones you choose, remember to pick a variety regarded for its flavor, give it the best spot possible and regular care. Then simply sit back and savor your harvest!

The author is a herb enthusiast who has studied herbs for over 7 years and focuses on their gardening, cooking and craft uses. If you would like to receive inspiring herb gardening, cooking and craft hints, tips and recipes in her FREE monthly newsletter plus receive a FREE report '7 Everyday Herbs Made Simple', please visit the author's website: http://www.madaboutherbs.org or her blog at: http://www.madaboutherbs.org