Hello Gardeners!
Today we are going to talk about permaculture. Permaculture is a systematic concept that aims to create ecosystems that respect biodiversity. It is a method of defining and practicing crops, living spaces and human agricultural systems using ecological principles and knowledge of traditional societies to replicate the diversity, stability and resilience of natural ecosystems.
What are the benefits of Permaculture?
It combats pests in an integrated way and recovers degraded soils. It is an efficient use of energy and responsible use of air, water, soil… It produces organic and healthy food. In addition, it reduces pollution, waste and energy costs. It uses natural fertilizers and renewable energy.
Have you ever done permaculture?
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Hello Gardeners!
A root vegetable is a vegetable whose consumed part is actually the root of the vegetable plant. In the lunar calendar, the specific work of root crops is done on root days. This is especially the case for sowing and planting.
Here are some examples of root vegetables:
- Beet
- Carrot
- Black radish
- Garlic
- Asparagus
- Beet
- Celery root
- Tuber
- Shallot
- Ginger
- Turnip
- Onion
- Sweet potato
- Parsley root
- Potato
- Radish
- Horseradish
- Kohlrabi
- Jerusalem artichoke
- Growing root vegetables:
Root vegetables prefer light, fertile soil, prepared or fertilized up to a year in advance, and no wet manure, as this can rot the roots.
Climate?
They are not very tolerant of cold. They need warm or cool climates.
Watering ?
Watering must be regular, to ensure constant humidity and avoid waterlogging. Whether it is a furrow irrigation system or a drip irrigation system, it is important to remember that these vegetables are sensitive to lack and excess of water. The frequency of irrigation depends on the type of crop.
Fertilization ?
It is always advisable to fertilize with organic fertilizers, such as guano, compost or cow manure.
Pests and diseases ?
Pests:
- aphids
- Red mite
- Whitefly
- Nematodes
- Leafminer
- Thrips
Diseases:
- Alternaria
- Bacterial canker
- Powdery mildew
- Rust
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Hello Gardeners!
The difference between the New Moon and the Full Moon has a great importance for the use of the lunar calendar.
New Moon
The lunar cycle begins with this darkest phase of the month. This is when we cannot see the Moon because the illuminated part is on the opposite side of the Moon from the one we see on Earth. The moon is somewhere between the sun and the earth. It is closer to the sun.
Full Moon
This is the brightest phase of the Moon in the lunar month. The Moon is located very far from the Sun. It is the 15th day of the lunar month. This is when the Moon is seen fully illuminated as a circle of light. At this point, the Moon has traveled half way around its orbit and is in the farthest part of its orbit, facing the Sun. This phase can be observed between sunset and sunrise.
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Hello Gardeners!
In this article I will expose you some of the books and websites that I have used as inspiration for my articles. You can consult them to learn more about biodynamics and the lunar calendar.
Books
The first book is called “Gardening and Planting by th Moon 2022” written by Nick Kollerstrom and published by W Foulsham & Co Ltd. This guide tells the influence of the moon and the planets on the garden. It includes a calendar detailing the work to be done each day. It is also a good form of self-discipline for amateur gardeners. It is a very interesting book and every year they bring out a new edition with a new lunar calendar.
Another book that you can consult is “The Moon Gardener’s Almanac 2020: a lunar calendar to help you get the best from your garden” written by Therese Tredoulat and published by Floris Books. It is a complete guide where you will find the lunar calendar, the weather of your garden, tables of crops and explanations of what are the constellations of the zodiac and its relationship with the Moon. It is fully illustrated with easy-to-follow diagrams and space for your own notes. It also publishes a new edition every year.
The paperback I recommend you to consult is called “Moon Gardening: planting your biodynamic garden by the phases of the Moon ” written by Matt Jackson and published by CICO Books . I find this paperback very interesting to learn about the benefits of lunar and biodynamic gardening. You’ll discover how to take advantage of the moon’s natural rhythms, planning your gardening activities to match the weather. You will know about which fruits or vegetables are best to plant on a waning moon etc.
This paperback contains step-by-step illustrations of 25 projects, explanatory diagrams and stunning color photographs, it’s easy to see how biodynamic techniques can work for any gardener. The magazine can be read in a few days. Its format is convenient if you don’t have much time to read a book and understand the basics of these themes.
Websites
On the website Organic Edible Garden you can find the lunar calendar for each month and recommendations of what to do each day. It also has a blog on topics related to food growing. It also has a section of recipes that can be cooked with different fruits or vegetables. In the store section you can buy their products such as natures organic compost, the organic edible garden shopping bag or the organic gardener’s year calendar 2022 etc.
There is a last section called OEG channel where you can find explanatory videos about for example: how to feed, mulch and net tomatoes, maintenance and replanting or how to grow dry-loving herbs and lettuces in containers.
Another website is Gardener’s Path on this gardening website you will find many articles about planting with the phases of the moon, about gardening and recommendations such as: how to plant and grow purple sage, how to plant and grow glodenseal, how to identify and manage 9 common gladiolus pests etc. You will also find articles about hand tools, gardening books, outdoor furnitures. I think this is a very complete site where you will learn about different topics essentially about gardening.
Do you already know these sites, books and paperback? What are your favorite books, sites or paperback?
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Hello Gardeners!
You have already heard of biodynamic and permaculture. What is the difference between these 2 types of agriculture?
Biodynamics
This type of organic agriculture is based on the theories of Rudolf Steiner. It is characterized by a responsible use of natural resources. Biodynamics does not use chemicals, fertilizers or pesticides. Its main characteristic is that it is based on a spiritual aspect of the relationship between man and the earth as a being with a life of its own, based on cosmic forces. It considers the earth, plants, animals and man as a whole that must function in harmony, and that each of them is connected to the others and influenced by natural forces, the sun and the moon.
Permaculture
“Permaculture (permanent agriculture) is the conscious design and maintenance of productive agricultural ecosystems, which have the diversity, stability and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of landscape and people producing food, energy, shelter, and other necessary and non-material goods in a sustainable manner.” (Bill Mollison 1988, Permaculture A Designers’ Manual)
Permaculture is integrated into the garden and home to create a way of life with less impact on the environment.
The big difference is that in permaculture, energy is not wasted because it is well used and does not generate waste.
It is an agriculture that uses clean and renewable energy. Which of these 2 types of organic farming techniques are you most interested in? Do you use one of these techniques on your crops? What results do you get? It is essential to use these farming techniques to protect our planet.
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Hello Gardeners!
Discover all the steps and tips to make compost at home.
What is compost?
Compost is an organic fertilizer for plants. It is obtained from different organic materials that undergo a biological decomposition process. Compost improves soil structure, facilitates plant growth and prevents weeds. Composting reduces the volume of waste and is an economical and ecological way to recover the waste we produce at home.
The 5 steps of composting:
1. Prepare the compost bin:
You can use wooden boxes with holes, a large pot, a porous container or a prefabricated composter to put the compost in. Don’t forget to put several layers of unplasticised cardboard in the composter first to absorb excess moisture.
2. Choose the waste:
These wastes can be found in your kitchen. The wastes are materials rich in carbohydrates, such as branches, dry leaves, prunings, sawdust, straw, paper, cardboard …. and materials rich in nitrogen, such as fruit and vegetable wastes, egg shells, coffee and tea bags, etc. It is recommended to use 1 nitrogen-rich material and 3 carbohydrate-rich materials for our compost. Avoid using fish scraps, meat, bones, prepared foods (pasta, soups, sauces, etc.), large amounts of bread, grain flakes, rotten tomatoes, animal waste, fats and oils. After sorting the waste, cut it into small pieces.
3. Lack of oxygen:
Bad odors are a sign of a lack of oxygen. To solve this problem, it is recommended to mix dry waste (dehydrated plants, bread paper bags or newspaper sheets).
4. Gather everything together:
Place the fresh waste first, then the same amount of dry waste. It is possible to join them with your hands.
5. Cover the compost:
Before covering the mixture, make sure it has enough oxygen. To find out if there is enough oxygen, take a portion of the mixture with your hands and squeeze hard. If drops fall out when you do this, there is not enough oxygen. In this case, you need to use more dry residue. When everything is perfectly balanced, spread three layers of newspaper over the mixture, pressing the edges together.
That’s it! Your compost is ready to use 😊
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Hello Gardeners!
I’m leaving you with some tips on how to get rid of pests that can damage your garden.
1. Lemon
To prevent ants from damaging your plants, one trick is to rub half a lemon on the rim of the pots. Lemon naturally keeps ants away.
2. Cow’s milk
To kill insect eggs, mix half a cup of fresh unpasteurized milk with 4 cups of flour and 20 liters of water. Afterwards, put the mixture in a spray bottle.
3. Cilantro
Cilantro is an excellent remedy for killing dust mites. Boil this plant with water for about 10 minutes, strain the mixture and spray it in the garden with a spray bottle.
4. Vegetable oil
To kill aphids, mealy bugs, mites or caterpillars, a good solution is to mix 2 cups of vegetable oil with half a cup of pure liquid soap. Shake this mixture until it turns white. Then dilute it with water and spray it with a spray bottle. It is best to use it in the morning or evening when the sun does not reach temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius because it can damage the plant.
5. Use a garlic clove
The trick is to plant a garlic clove in the pot or near the trees. Aphids and mealy bugs hate the smell of garlic.
6. Homemade fertilizer from a cigarette
Smoking is not recommended, but if you do, you can make a homemade fertilizer to kill pests. Leave five cigarette butts in a liter of water for a day and spray this mixture on your plants.
7. Watch out for earthworms!
Earthworms are often deadly to grass, as they like to eat its roots. To catch them, we recommend digging up the soil in your garden.
8. Homemade insecticide against pests
We recommend putting garlic, spices, flax and biodegradable blue soap dissolved in water in a blender. Then put the mixture in a spray bottle and apply it weekly until the pest is eliminated.
9. Insecticide to kill fungi
We recommend cooking several cloves of garlic, an onion and raspberry leaves in boiling water. Then mix them and pour the mixture into a spray bottle, which you can use to spray and apply to the plant.
10. A pet dog or cat
They are useful for keeping squirrels and mice away from your plants and fruit trees.
11. Ladybug
Another natural way to kill certain pests, especially aphids, is ladybugs, their natural predator. They also contribute to pollination. Their contact with human skin is harmless, and children love them.
Do you know of any other tips for eliminating pests in the garden? Which one did you find most interesting or didn’t know before?
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Hello Gardeners!
In this article, I will show you definitions of the most used gardening terms. It is very important to know these terms which are sometimes technical.
Mulch
Mulching is when you cover your plants with a layer of organic matter, such as straw, bark or dead leaves. Mulching protects plants from extreme temperatures, whether they are too cold or too hot. It also helps to keep the soil moist in the summer.
Pruning
Pruning a hedge, a tree or a shrub consists in reducing its size in order to give it more strength.
Sowing
Sowing is the planting of seeds in order to grow them in the garden.
Cutting
Multiplication technique to obtain a second plant identical to the first one. To cut a plant, it is necessary to take a stem or a leaf of the aforementioned plant, and to cause its rooting with or without products, in order to make it grow.
Amending
To improve the nature of the soil by adding compost, fertilizer or manure.
Loosen
Working the soil to make it more aerated and more permeable to water.
Weeding
Operation consisting in eliminating weeds with the help of a tool (e.g.: a weeder, a hoe, etc.)
Hoeing
The purpose of hoeing is to loosen the top layer of soil around the crops, using a hoe or other manual tools. Hoeing allows the soil to be aerated and thus promotes the penetration of water and moisture into the lower layers of the soil.
What other gardening terms do you know?
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Hello Gardeners!
How to get rid of parasites, what natural remedies can you use to get rid of them? In this article I will show you some home remedies to get rid of pests in a simple way and using products that you can find at home and that are inexpensive.
What is a pest?
Pests are a group of living organisms (animals or plants) that destroy plants, crops, etc. Examples of pests we may find in our garden are: ants, caterpillars, snails and slugs, altisas, cabbage flies and moles or sap worms, etc.
What is a Pesticide?
Pesticides are substances used to destroy pests to protect the garden. They help prevent crop loss and, potentially, human illness. There are artificial pesticides that are not environmentally friendly and can be dangerous to people when applied in the garden. However, in biodynamics there are natural alternatives to artificial pesticides.
Natural and home remedies:
- Cinnamon: This spice is effective in controlling aphids. First, remove the aphids already present. In a spray bottle, put natural water, add cinnamon oil. You can use it at any time to fight this pest. A super easy remedy to make.
- Garlic: This remedy is effective against aphids, mites and onion flies. It is prepared with garlic peels. In a pot of water, put these garlic peels or you can also use garlic cloves. Let it boil for 5 minutes, then let it cool down before straining and applying to the plants.
- Onion: This remedy is effective against aphids, mites and carrot fly. In a saucepan with water, put the onion peels. Let it boil for 10 minutes, strain it, let it cool and pour it into a spray bottle. It is now ready to be applied to the plants, preferably in the evening and twice a week. Another remedy is to use chopped onions and put them in a container with water. Place them in your garden or home to keep pests away.
- Banana: This remedy is effective against aphids. Banana peels are placed in the soil near the stems of plants. This helps to eliminate weeds and pests. It also adds some nutrients to the soil.
- Coffee: This remedy is effective against snails and fungi. After drinking a cup of coffee, you can reuse the coffee grounds and put them in your garden or in a flower pot. Many insects can’t stand the smell of coffee grounds. Coffee grounds are also used as food for earthworms and as fertilizer for plants. Also, you can use it to improve compost and soil.
- Baking Soda: is effective against ants, cabbage worms or aphids. You can use a solution of baking soda and rainwater. Then add a touch of oil or black soap to help the baking soda mixture adhere to the plants being treated. Finally, put it in a spray bottle and you are ready to apply it to your garden.
What other natural and easy-to-do home remedies do you know? What do you think of these remedies? Have you used them?
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Take care of the earth, grow at home! 🙂
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Hello Gardeners !
What is biodynamic agriculture?
This concept was born during a series of lectures given by the Austrian-born philosopher Rudolf Steiner in the 1920s. It is a type of organic agriculture, which is characterized by a responsible use of natural resources. It does not use chemicals, fertilizers or pesticides. Its main characteristic is that it is based on a spiritual aspect of the relationship between man and the earth as a being with a life of his own, based on cosmic forces. Biodynamics considers the earth, plants, animals and man as a whole that must function in harmony, and that each of them is connected to the others and influenced by natural forces, the sun and the moon. It is practiced in over 50 countries.
What are the advantages of biodynamic agriculture?
- They are free of chemicals. This alternative is a perfect choice if you want to prevent some of the diseases (e.g. heart and digestive problems, osteoporosis…) associated with these types of products.
- These are fully environmentally sustainable crops. This is a great advantage because no energy source emitting greenhouse gases will be needed for production.
- This is an economic advantage, especially considering that, although the short-term investments are higher, the return on investment is easy.
- Biodynamic cultivation is of increasing quality. The quality of these crops has never been better and biodynamic agriculture is constantly growing. For example, in France, there is the MABD (Mouvement de l’Agriculture Bio-Dynamique) which is an association for the development of biodynamic agriculture. It is aimed at gardeners, farmers and consumers interested in the biodynamic approach. On their website, you will find a lot of information on how to understand and practice biodynamics. They also offer training courses and a variety of products. The Demeter International Biodynamic Federation is for example another association around biodynamics. It was born from the merger of Demeter International (the federation of national Demeter certification associations) and the International Biodynamic Association, and its goal is to strengthen the biodynamic movement internationally. The lunar calendar provided by the Moon and Garden application guides you in the application of biodynamic agriculture.
Do you use biodynamic agriculture? What has been your experience with this type of agriculture? Are you already a member of one of these associations? Which associations are you a member of?
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