Garlic is a great introduction to growing your own. It’s absurdly easy to plant and care for, tastes great, looks beautiful and it takes up very little ground. Your job is to choose the right variety, plant it at the right time in the right soil, harvest, cure and store! 1. Choosing Types of Garlic There are dozens of varieties of garlic, commonly divided into several groups: Rocambole, Purple Stripe, Porcelain, Artichoke, Silverskin, Asiatic Turban and Creole. This is just … Continue Reading →

  Botrytis – by Vando Bertaccini Botrytis season is upon us! Grapes are about the only crop that might welcome this rapid spreading pathogen, but for the rest of us, Botrytis Cinerea is not a good thing. When conditions are right, the Botrytis fungus (most commonly known as “grey mold” or “brown rot”) can spread rapidly through an entire garden in a matter of days. With heavy fog or rain, it’s important not to let moisture accumulate on your plants. … Continue Reading →

HVAC / Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning. There are several things that make up your atmosphere when it comes to growing plants indoors. You have air temps, the amount of CO2, and the percentage of humidity in the air.  When dealing with HVAC you’re trying to achieve the perfect balance of all three to enable the best possible growth of your plants year round.  In the first part of this column we’re going to focus on correct temps and how … Continue Reading →