Beginner Gardeners' Guide

Plant now for your Fall Garden! Most every gardener has probably harvested at least something from their garden at this point in the summer...  but don't let that beautiful bounty fool you! It will come to an end...  unless you plant a Fall Garden!  There is hope for extended harvests! A good portion of the United States has conditions favorable...

Due to the hot and humid weather, lately many gardeners are noticing "blossom drop" on their tomato plants. Blossoms are drying up and dropping off before the tomato fruit sets. As explained by J.M. Kemble, Extension Vegetable Specialist and associate Professor, Alabama Cooperative Extension System: "This condition is NOT related to any nutritional disorder, or any disease or insect damage...

Summer is finally here…time to start thinking about the fall!  This might sound funny, but very true when planning your fall harvest.  In regions with a shorter growing season, such as ours in Northeastern Vermont, most all of the fall crops are already in the ground.  In regions where the frost doesn’t hit until later in the fall, like October...

Got inoculants? If you’re on your second or third succession planting of beans or anticipating a fall planting of peas, it may be important for you to think about using inoculants in your garden or field. Why use inoculants?  Inoculants help to maximize plant growth and yields by increasing the number of naturally occurring Rhizobia bacteria in the soil directly...

It’s springtime - probably the busiest time of year for farmers and gardeners and anyone with a need to seed.  We know you’re busy, so we’ve decided to keep this month’s Variety Spotlight short and sweet.  We’re going to talk about melons. For those of you in cooler climates with shorter growing seasons, now is the perfect time to plant...

Are you using last year's seeds (or even older) and aren't sure if they're still viable? Try this germination test at home to see if they're worth planting, or if you should be buying new seeds this year. Use a double thick paper towel.  Moisten with water and fold in half. Open paper towel and place a minimum of 10...

One of our Hybrid Varieties: Organic Drago F1 Cabbage Seeds -by Holly Simpson, HMS Sales Associate At High Mowing Organic seeds we often get questions concerning our "Hybrid" seeds. Hybridization is a naturally occurring process that happens all the time as plants can potentially get pollinated by bees and insects or even by the wind.  Then those two parents create a variety...

Cover cropping and green manuring are good gardening practices for a number of reasons: they improve soil structure and fertility, increase organic matter, loosen compacted soils, reduce weeds, control erosion, and attract pollinating insects.  Although the two terms are often used interchangeably, generally speaking, green manures are tilled into the soil while they are still green and growing, while cover...

Every year, more and more people are opening up new ground for gardening, either to create a plot or to expand an existing one. I am a big fan of smaller lawns and bigger gardens, as long as a little space is saved for lawn games like bocce (or croquet). Having planted directly into tilled sod (ground that was previously...

Did you know that certain lettuce varieties are more suited towards growing in cooler temps, such as early spring and late fall, and certain varieties can tolerate heat better? Now's the time to start (or just think about for all of you in colder climates) your spring planting of lettuce!  And now is also the time to start making...