Garden Basics with Farmer Fred

It’s a rather general garden question we received that has a lot of possible answers: "Why am I not getting any tomatoes or zucchini?" But that very general question, with no other details, gives us the opportunity to go through a checklist of all possible causes. One of those reasons just might hit home for you. Blueberry harvest is ending here in California, but it’s still going on in...

Don’t let drip irrigation become drip irritation. Today’s entire show is on drip irrigation basics: how to install it, how to run it, how to maintain it. We talk with garden author Robert Kourik , he wrote the seminal book about the subject, it’s called “ Drip Irrigation for Every Landscape and All Climates. ” He’ll tell us that not only will drip irrigation save you money by using less water, dri...

Welcome to another edition of the Garden Basics podcast, once again with the subtitle, "I didn’t know that!" College Horticulture professor (retired) Debbie Flower tackles the question, is it better to fertilize your plants in the morning or the evening? Or does it matter? Debbie points out…it depends on the temperature.  It’s not celery, it’s not a lettuce you'd recognize, it’s Cel...

We pick up where we left off with the last episode, with a taste test of one more edible flower that you just might have growing in your yard: roses. Both the rose petals and the rose hips from the rose plant are edible. We talk with Master Rosarian Debbie Arrington who says, some rose petals and rose hips taste better than others. Which taste the best? Stick around. When it comes to applying pest...

Clipping off the flower heads on your basil plants to send the energy back to the plant to produce more green leaves? Good idea! Are you tossing out those cut flower heads of the basil? Bad idea. How about serving them as a garnish in a salad or soup? For that matter, why not start serving many of the flowers you might have in your garden on the dinner table? Today, vegetable expert and Master Gar...

We do read the comments you post at the various podcast services. And we respond. Recently, at the Apple Podcast site, Sage posted: “Will you please address the mystery seeds being mailed to Americans? This is super scary and I believe you can help prevent something awful since you have the audience. Thanks in advance!” You’re welcome, in advance, Sage. Yes, here’s one mystery in which there are s...

We’re into that time of the summer when, with a very serious look in her eye, and wearing a tomato-stained apron, my wife sternly says:  "Next year, don’t plant so many cherry tomato plants!"  In my defense, there were only five cherry or grape-sized tomato plants in the ground this year: Sungold, Sweet Million, Gardeners Delight, Juliet and Valentine. Still, my wife is the one who has t...

If you’ve ever talked with a gardener who uses the excrement of worms around their plants, you may be familiar with their wide eyed look of rapture talking about all the benefits of using, to put it more politely and accurately, worm castings. Today, we will dig deep into the Farmer Fred audio archives to hear gardeners sing the praises of raising worms, and using their output, if you will, in the...

Bees are one of the best pollinators to have flying around your food garden. It’s been said that bees are responsible for one out of every three bites of food you eat. Today, we take attracting bees to your garden one step further: how about raising your own hive of honeybees? We talk with one of the world’s foremost bee authorities, Dr. Norman Gary, on how you can become a successful backyard bee...

Confused about that tall wall of soil products you see in the nursery? Garden Soil, Planting Mix , Potting Mix , which do you choose for your plants? We talk with soil educator Gisele Schoniger about the right soil amendments for you. Fruit tree questions abound this time of year, we tackle your peach and apricot issues. And, college horticulture professor Debbie Flower insists, your roses do not...

Looking for easy-to-grow fruit trees, loaded with tasty  fruit, every summer? It’s hard to beat peaches and plums. Today we talk with fruit tree expert Phil Pursel of Dave Wilson Nursery about the delicious choices available. For peaches, try the O'Henry , Harken , the Donut Peach , Red Baron , Contender, Elberta, Babcock, Garden Gold . For plums, it would be the Weeping Santa Rosa , Burgundy...

You think you’re learning something new every time YOU listen to the Garden Basics podcast? Heck, I learn something new in each episode, as well. So, this time around, it’s a compilation of garden knowledge that will definitely make you a better gardener, and a better food shopper. We will call this episode, I DID NOT KNOW THAT. College horticulture professor Debbie Flower talks about the benefits...

It seemed like a simple enough garden question to answer: The writer of the email said: “I have never cared for a young peach tree or any other variety so I don't know what to do since I got it in the ground. Now what?” The writer included a picture of the tree, which you can see attached to this episode. Our favorite retired college horticulture professor, Debbie Flower, and I ended up havin...

Today, we’re talking about two of the ten most popular backyard garden vegetables: sweet peppers and hot peppers. We talk with the man whom the New York Times dubbed the Pope of Peppers, Dave Dewitt. Besides offering up tips on how to grow hot peppers, but also how to overwinter them for a second year crop (some varieties are better than others for this). Plus, he has the remedy for what to swallo...

Maybe the only sunny area you have for a garden is currently a lawn. How about reducing the size of that lawn and converting it to a food and flower producing garden? Or, maybe you’re trying to get rid of persistent weeds in a current garden. Or maybe your soil has pests or diseases such as nematodes or verticillium wilt. This is the time of year to tackle all those tasks…with soil solarization. ...

It's every gardener's wall of confusion: the shelves and shelves of plant fertilizers, available at the local nursery. Which one should you use? The granular, the liquid, the box, the bottle or the bag? And do you really need separate fertilizers for each kind of fruit or vegetable you're growing? And what do all those numbers on the fertilizer label mean? Do you really need to use...

Today we find out how plants work. And how you can have a successful garden with even less work by helping those underground workers. Washington State University Horticulture Professor Linda Chalker Scott , author of the book, "How Plants Work" , talks about the amazing intersection of plants, plant roots, your soil and your mulch … once again proving, your working too hard and spending...

Today, we are all about tomatoes! We do some tomato troubleshooting with Don Shor, owner of Redwood Barn Nursery in Davis, CA. We tackle typical tomato issues: the flowers fall off (it will solve itself, unless you are loving it to death with too much nitrogen fertilizer); blight diseases (avoid overhead watering, unless it's rain-caused. In which case, prune out and discard the damaged parts...

We want to make gardening easier for you. Garden author (and contrarian) Robert Kourik explains the benefits to your soil and plants if you not only don’t rototill the soil, but also limit your digging. “No-dig” your way to your best garden ever! This episode is brought to you by Smart Pots . Visit smartpots.com/fred for a money-saving offer on the original, award-winning fabric planter, made in t...

Today we tackle a summertime evening tradition: drinking while watering. No, we’re not going to try to sober you up. But we do have advice on how long to stand there with a hose, while mindlessly watering the lawn and garden. (hint: half a beer per plant)   While you’re mindlessly watering, you might be thinking: why aren’t my squash plants having sex? What? YOU never used the excuse, “It’s too ho...

Today, we’re talking greenhouse basics. You don’t have to be a gardener for very long to realize the advantages of having a backyard hobby greenhouse. It's an ideal place to start seeds, get cuttings to root, overwinter tender plants, or turn it into your own, personal, year-round food and flower factory! This episode is brought to you by Smart Pots . Visit smartpots.com/fred for a money-savi...

What's the easiest fruit tree variety to grow? Apples! We talk with Phil Pursel of Dave Wilson Nursery about the wide variety of apple trees available for the home gardener, as well as tips for growing a 6 or 7 foot tall apple tree (and yes, you will still get plenty of fruit!). This episode is brought to you by Smart Pots . Visit smartpots.com/fred for a money-saving offer on the original, a...

This episode is brought to you by Smart Pots . Visit smartpots.com/fred for a money-saving offer on the original, award-winning fabric planter, made in the USA. Ladies and gentlemen, this is how we water a plant. No! Don’t hit pause! Really, we have some tips about watering your garden that just might be new to you, no matter how many years you’ve held a garden hose! College horticulture professor...

Today, we take a look at your tomato garden. Are they in small containers? Are they sprawling along the ground? Does it resemble more of a tomato jungle than a tomato garden? Those are three of the most common mistakes new tomato growers commit. Don Shor of Redwood Barn Nursery in Davis, California talks about how to correct those mistakes, and many others. He points out that one of the biggest ca...

The college horticulture professors take over Episode 14, but we keep it to the basics. Don't worry, none of this will be on the Final. Linda Chalker-Scott teaches at Washington State University, but she may be better known as the author of a couple of best-selling garden books: "The Informed Gardener" and "The Informed Gardener Blooms Again" . Both books deal with persist...