Buffman and Gram's Veggies for Vitality: Beets

As many of you know Allen, Sterling & Lothrop's fourth generation has been getting more and more involved in the business.  You may have met Jenn's (AS&L's seed room manager) daughter Nadia running the front with her grandmother Shirley or  you may have had one of Shawn's boys help you with a Christmas tree.

This year Buffman (Shawn's middle son) has joined forces with his grandmother, Shirley, to bring you their thoughts on the healthiest vegetable's you can grow.  They consulted Shirley's vast knowledge of gardening and nutrition and  www.whfoods.com

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Beets are one of the most nutritious vegetables you can eat. They are high in fiber, iron

and antioxidants. Like all dark leafy greens, beet greens are also nutritious—and very delicious.  When you “thin” your beet rows be-sure to cook and eat your thinnings for a special treat.

(What is thinning? When your beet plants are about 5-6” tall pull out some of the plants so that you leave 2-3” of space in between—this helps to ensure well formed, good sized beets---for more info on beet varieties)   

Beets have a way of pushing themselves out of the ground during the growing season, so it is a good idea to hoe the dirt up around them during the season.

Beets make a tasty side dish. When cooking beats you can peel them before or after cooking, but it’s good to note that they peel much more easily after they have been cooked. You can eat them warm with butter, cold as a condiment, or peeled, shredded raw, and then eaten as a salad. They can also be pickled.

Bill's Gardening Projects for January

This year our nursery manager, Bill, will be giving us gardening tips and projects for each month.

January: Indoor plants

With the cold months of Old Man Winter upon us, we gardeners need to think of things to keep the “green spirit” alive!

Some of us like to look through seed and plant catalogs and start planning for the next year.  One of the things I enjoy doing because I have more time, and need to have my hands in the soil, is to work with my indoor plants, which fill every available inch of window space in my home.

Usually when I start this process I survey which plants need to be jumped up into larger containers—this inevitably leads to cleaning, cutting back and general maintenance of all my plants.

When transplanting you generally go up 1 or 2 plant pot sizes.  You need to be cautious not to over water the plant—once the roots have time to start to fill the pot you can be a little more generous.

Use a good quality potting soil that drains well—I like the soils in the Farfard line, but there are many other good choices out there. Sometimes I use ¾ Pro-Mix mixed with ¼ potting soil to make the potting soil go further.  It depends on how much potting I am doing.  We also sell an organic, locally made potting soil from Living Acres called Lite-Mix; it has a small amount of compost in it which the plants really love. 

A few other tips for transplanting…

1)      I do my repotting on my regular scheduled watering days, this helps keep the plants from being over watered.

2)      I make sure my pots are clean.  When using pots I have on hand I clean them with soap and water.

3)      I inspect the roots to see if I need to root prune.

4)      I try to work on my plants earlier in the day so when I water them they are not sitting with “wet feet” at night-- especially since my house tends to be a little cool.

5)      I also like to use stones or bark on the top of the soil which helps the soil retain moisture especially with the dry hot air from the heating system being on this time of year.

So, have some fun with your indoor gardens and maybe treat yourself to one or two of those new pots you’ve been eyeing. 

As the days start to get longer, your plants will come alive … it’s their way of thanking you for the attention.