Willi Galloway

This simple, functional trellis creates a scaffolding that cucumbers climb up readily. It takes less than 15 minutes to put together, can be built almost entirely with recycled material, and looks cute when it is covered with vines.The trellis isn’t fancy and it doesn’t need to be. Cucumbers have beautiful heart shaped leaves, tendrils that curve like scroll work, perky yellow flowers, and fruits that look like ornaments dangling off the the vines.

I’ve been known to drive around my neighborhood in autumn and snag bags of leaves off the curb. Why? Because there are so many ways to use them in the garden! I add dry leaves to compost, use them in my chickens’ run as bedding, mulch with them and more. Here are 5 great reasons why you should leave your leaves in the garden.Chicken Bedding. My hens love nothing more than scratching around in a nice thick layer of leaves.

Name: Andrea Bellamy and Ben Garfinkel, their daughter Lila, and Schnoopette the cat Location: Vancouver, British ColumbiaYears lived in: 5 yearsAndrea Bellamy and Ben Garfinkel grow plants in every nook and cranny they can find around their urban townhouse. Potted tomatoes and herbs grace their balcony and front patio, the couple share raised beds with their neighbors above their parking garage, and they planted a woodland garden in their cozy back patio area.

Q: My Swiss chard has white blisters all over its leaves. It looks like there are little black worms squirming around inside the blisters. What is causing this problem and how can I deal with it?Asked by Becky Evans, Cheyenne, WyomingSwiss chard belongs to the Chenopodiaceae family and is closely related to beets and spinach. All three of these vegetables are susceptible to spinach leaf miners (Pegomya hyoscyami).

I use galvanized water troughs as raised planters in my vegetable gardens because the big containers look great, offer plenty of planting space, and will last for years. As a bonus, their soil warms up faster than adjacent in ground beds, which means that warm season crops like tomatoes and eggplants love to call the troughs home. Converting a trough into a planter is easy and takes less than an hour.

image:ce823b1a6ce83a6b9c97728f3ee1e2fbe10b0550 w:540 s:"fit" class_name:"mt-image-center" show_pin_button:"true" show_image_credits:"true" Aphids are one of the most common pest problems because they attack everything from peppers to peaches and they like both indoor and outdoor plants. Aphid damage alone does not usually kill plants, but the little insects transmit diseases like bacterial wilt and pea enation virus as they feed.

As spring drifts into summer vegetables like spinach, broccoli rabe, radishes, and peas will finish up, which means now is the ideal time to plant new vegetables in their place. This planting strategy is called succession planting and the goal is to plant food all summer long so you have a continuous harvest. I’ve listed some of my favorite crop combos after the jump, but I am also curious what you are planting in your garden right now.

Q: I have a few raised bed veggie garden beds. I was wondering if you had any ideas for diy trellises for tomatoes, cucumbers, pole beans, and small melons. I want to conserve space and grow up instead of out. ~Amanda LeuthyThe best way to squeeze more food into limited space is to utilize the vertical space in your garden. Peas, pole beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, summer and winter squash, and melons, all grow exceptionally well up trellises.

Vegetable and herb seedlings are often sold in a clump in a small container. One of the biggest mistakes beginning gardeners make is planting the whole clump instead of separating out the individual plants. The crowded seedlings end up growing into a hopeless jumble because they have to compete for water, nutrients, and sunlight. Teasing the plants apart before planting helps get them off to a healthy start.

Q: I am hoping to start a container garden on my back patio, but it faces west … is this a lost cause? ~Jenna O’BrienActually, you are totally in luck! A west facing patio or balcony is the perfect spot for a container garden, especially an edible one, because they get plenty of afternoon sun. All plants require a certain amount of sunlight to properly photosynthesize.