Garden Basics with Farmer Fred

Crop rotation isn’t just for farmers. Backyard gardeners can improve their food and flower production while improving their soil at the same time, simply by moving plant families from bed to bed each season. College horticulture professor Debbie Flower has the lowdown on the advantages of crop rotation. If your clay soil has you worried that it’s not very good for a garden, worry no more. Soils specialist Steve Zien says there are a lot of benefits to gardening with clay soil, and he has tips for improving it, as well.

It’s on episode 114 of the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast, brought to you today by Smart Pots. 

And we will do it all in under 30 minutes. Let’s go!

Pictured:
Crop rotation, explained as a pizza.

Links:
Smart Pots
Farmer Fred Rant: Crop Rotation Plan for the Home Garden
Farmer Fred Rant: Crop Rotation and the Circular Garden
Working with Clay Soil (UCANR)
Spading Forks
This is what a broad fork looks like

More episodes and info available at Garden Basics with Farmer Fred

Garden Basics comes out every Tuesday and Friday. More info including live links, product information, transcripts, and chapters available at the home site for Garden Basics with Farmer Fred. Please subscribe, and, if you are listening on Apple, please leave a comment or rating. That helps us decide which garden topics you would like to see addressed.

Got a garden question? There are several ways to get in touch: 

Leave an audio question without making a phone call via Speakpipe, at https://www.speakpipe.com/gardenbasics
Call or text us the question: 916-292-8964.
E-mail: [email protected]
or, leave a question at the Facebook, Twitter or Instagram locations below. Be sure to tell us where you are when you leave a question, because all gardening is local. 

And thank you for listening.

All About Farmer Fred:
Farmer Fred website: http://farmerfred.com
Daily Garden tips and snark on Twitter
The Farmer Fred Rant! Blog
Facebook:  "Get Growing with Farmer Fred"
Instagram: farmerfredhoffman
Farmer Fred Garden Videos on YouTube

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from possible links mentioned here

Thank you for listening, subscribing and commenting on the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast and the Beyond the Garden Basics  Newsletter.

If you live in USDA Zone 9, chances are you have attempted to grow an avocado tree. Sure, it’s easy…if you live in Santa Barbara, Ventura or San Diego, where the temperature range is between 50 and 85 degrees, usually. But for the rest of us, growing avocados is a challenge. Tom Spellman of Dave Wilson Nursery says he can make it a heck of a lot easier for you to grow backyard avocados throughout USDA Zone 9. He has tips. And the Plant of the Week is a low water use succulent that attracts squadrons of hummingbirds: the coral yucca. Warren Roberts of the UC Davis Arboretum tells us all about it.

It’s all on episode 113 of the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast, brought to you today by Smart Pots and Dave Wilson Nursery. 

And we will do it all in under 30 minutes. Let’s go!

Pictured:
The Bacon Avocado

Links:
Smart Pots
Dave Wilson Nursery Fruit Tube Videos
Avocado Growing Advice (from UCANR)
UC Davis Arboretum
Fruit basket picker with pole

More episodes and info available at Garden Basics with Farmer Fred

Garden Basics comes out every Tuesday and Friday. More info including live links, product information, transcripts, and chapters available at the home site for Garden Basics with Farmer Fred. Please subscribe, and, if you are listening on Apple, please leave a comment or rating. That helps us decide which garden topics you would like to see addressed.

Got a garden question? There are several ways to get in touch: 

Leave an audio question without making a phone call via Speakpipe, at https://www.speakpipe.com/gardenbasics

Text us the question: 916-292-8964. E-mail: [email protected] or, leave a question at the Facebook, Twitter or Instagram locations below. Be sure to tell us where you are when you leave a question, because all gardening is local. 

And thank you for listening.

All About Farmer Fred:

Farmer Fred website: http://farmerfred.com

Daily Garden tips and snark on Twitter

The Farmer Fred Rant! Blog

Facebook:  "Get Growing with Farmer Fred"

Instagram: farmerfredhoffman

Farmer Fred Garden Videos on YouTube

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from possible links mentioned here.

Thank you for listening, subscribing and commenting on the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast and the Beyond the Garden Basics  Newsletter.

Making the rounds in gardening pages on social media: mulch will rob your soil of nitrogen. College horticulture professor Debbie Flower (retired) and I do a deep dive into the mulch pile to explore that rampant rumor.
Also, summertime is soil solarization time, to rid your garden soil of pests or a quick way to kill off a portion of your unused lawn area, in preparation for a new garden bed. We talk sheet mulching, as well. It’s all about the soil!
It’s on episode 112 of the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast, brought to you today by Smart Pots.
And we will do it all in under 30 minutes. Let’s go!

Pictured:
Mulch

Links:
Smart Pots
Farmer Fred Rant: Which Mulch is Best?
Farmer Fred Rant: How To Kill Your Lawn in Two Easy Steps
Sheet Mulching (University of California)
Soil Solarization (University of California)
Solarization improves soil nutrition

More episodes and info available at Garden Basics with Farmer Fred

Garden Basics comes out every Tuesday and Friday. More info including live links, product information, transcripts, and chapters available at the home site for Garden Basics with Farmer Fred. Please subscribe, and, if you are listening on Apple, please leave a comment or rating. That helps us decide which garden topics you would like to see addressed.

Got a garden question? There are several ways to get in touch: 

leave an audio question without making a phone call via Speakpipe, at https://www.speakpipe.com/gardenbasics

Text us the question: 916-292-8964. E-mail: [email protected] or, leave a question at the Facebook, Twitter or Instagram locations below. Be sure to tell us where you are when you leave a question, because all gardening is local. 

And thank you for listening.
All About Farmer Fred:
Farmer Fred website: http://farmerfred.com
Daily Garden tips and snark on Twitter
The Farmer Fred Rant! Blog
Facebook:  "Get Growing with Farmer Fred"
Instagram: farmerfredhoffman
Farmer Fred Garden Videos on YouTube

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from possible links mentioned here

Thank you for listening, subscribing and commenting on the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast and the Beyond the Garden Basics  Newsletter.

Much of the Western United States, right now, is under extreme drought conditions. Watering restrictions are already being established in many places. If this is the new normal, and you want a landscape, low-water use plants, especially native plants, may be part of your future. But just because they will eventually become able to thrive with less water, they still will need regular watering after planting for a short time. Today, we talk about the watering precautions necessary when putting in low water use plants. And the Plant of the Week is a plant that does its best in poor soil, and puts on a show for an extended period throughout its wide growing region: the smoke tree. Plus we’re talking the best tart cherry varieties to plant,

It’s all on episode 111 of the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast, brought to you today by Smart Pots and Dave Wilson Nursery. 

And we will do it all in under 30 minutes. Let’s go!

Pictured:
The Smoke Tree (Continus coggygria 'atropurpurea')

Links:
Smart Pots
Dave Wilson Nursery
UC Davis Arboretum

More episodes and info available at Garden Basics with Farmer Fred

Garden Basics comes out every Tuesday and Friday. More info including live links, product information, transcripts, and chapters available at the home site for Garden Basics with Farmer Fred. Please subscribe, and, if you are listening on Apple, please leave a comment or rating. That helps us decide which garden topics you would like to see addressed.

Got a garden question? There are several ways to get in touch: 

leave an audio question without making a phone call via Speakpipe, at https://www.speakpipe.com/gardenbasics

Text us the question: 916-292-8964. E-mail: [email protected] or, leave a question at the Facebook, Twitter or Instagram locations below. Be sure to tell us where you are when you leave a question, because all gardening is local. 

And thank you for listening.

All About Farmer Fred:
Farmer Fred website: http://farmerfred.com
Daily Garden tips and snark on Twitter
The Farmer Fred Rant! Blog
Facebook:  "Get Growing with Farmer Fred"
Instagram: farmerfredhoffman
Farmer Fred Garden Videos on YouTube

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from possible links mentioned here

Thank you for listening, subscribing and commenting on the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast and the Beyond the Garden Basics  Newsletter.

Last time, here on the Garden Basics podcast, we were talking about Tomato Troubleshooting with Don Shor, owner of Redwood Barn Nursery in Davis, California. We talked about dealing with blossom end rot, sunburn issues and problematic watering, which can cause your tomatoes to suffer. Today, it’s Tomato Troubleshooter 2021, Part 2, with Don. We’ll delve into the scary world of tomato hornworms and fruit worms, beautiful but deadly diseases such as late blight, wilts. And, more troublesome tomato critters, such as the leaf-footed stink bug.

On a happier note, it’s coming up to garlic harvest time! We have tips for getting the garlic out of the ground and into storage…and that takes awhile.

It’s all on episode 110 of the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast, brought to you today by Smart Pots. 

And we will do it all in under 30 minutes. Let’s go!

Pictured:
Tomato Hornworm

Links:
Smart Pots
Farmer Fred Rant: Plants That Attract Beneficial Insects
Farmer Fred Rant: Tomato Troubleshooting
Nematode Control
Leaf Footed Bug pictures, description
Redwood Barn Nursery, Davis CA
Filaree Farm garlic catalog
Book: Growing Great Garlic
Book: The Complete Book of Garlic
University of Minnesota: Growing Garlic

More episodes and info available at Garden Basics with Farmer Fred

Garden Basics comes out every Tuesday and Friday. More info including live links, product information, transcripts, and chapters available at the home site for Garden Basics with Farmer Fred. Please subscribe, and, if you are listening on Apple, please leave a comment or rating. That helps us decide which garden topics you would like to see addressed.

Got a garden question? There are several ways to get in touch: 

leave an audio question without making a phone call via Speakpipe, at https://www.speakpipe.com/gardenbasics

Text us the question: 916-292-8964. E-mail: [email protected] or, leave a question at the Facebook, Twitter or Instagram locations below. Be sure to tell us where you are when you leave a question, because all gardening is local. 

And thank you for listening.

All About Farmer Fred:
Farmer Fred website: http://farmerfred.com
Daily Garden tips and snark on Twitter
The Farmer Fred Rant! Blog
Facebook:  "Get Growing with Farmer Fred"
Instagram: farmerfredhoffman
Farmer Fred Garden Videos on YouTube

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from possible links mentioned here

Thank you for listening, subscribing and commenting on the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast and the Beyond the Garden Basics  Newsletter.

Gardeners around the northern hemisphere have their tomato plants in the ground. They’re growing, but some of them are developing problems, already! Why are there cracks appearing in the tomatoes? Why is the skin yellowing? And what is that big ugly brown spot on the bottom of the tomato? What’s a gardener to do? Today, it’s Tomato Troubleshooter 2021, Part 1.
It’s all on episode 109 of the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast, brought to you today by Smart Pots and Dave Wilson Nursery.  And we will do it all in under 30 minutes. Let’s go!

Pictured:
Blossom End Rot in a San Marzano paste tomato.

Links:
Smart Pots
Dave Wilson Nursery
Farmer Fred Rant: Tomato Troubleshooting
Farmer Fred Rant: Blossom End Rot
UC Davis Arboretum

More episodes and info available at Garden Basics with Farmer Fred

Garden Basics comes out every Tuesday and Friday. More info including live links, product information, transcripts, and chapters available at the home site for Garden Basics with Farmer Fred. Please subscribe, and, if you are listening on Apple, please leave a comment or rating. That helps us decide which garden topics you would like to see addressed.

Got a garden question? There are several ways to get in touch: 

leave an audio question without making a phone call via Speakpipe, at https://www.speakpipe.com/gardenbasics

Text us the question: 916-292-8964. E-mail: [email protected] or, leave a question at the Facebook, Twitter or Instagram locations below. Be sure to tell us where you are when you leave a question, because all gardening is local. 

And thank you for listening.

All About Farmer Fred:
Farmer Fred website: http://farmerfred.com
Daily Garden tips and snark on Twitter
The Farmer Fred Rant! Blog
Facebook:  "Get Growing with Farmer Fred"
Instagram: farmerfredhoffman
Farmer Fred Garden Videos on YouTube

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from possible links mentioned here

Thank you for listening, subscribing and commenting on the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast and the Beyond the Garden Basics  Newsletter.

Using livestock water troughs to grow plants is a great idea. You can grow just about anything from food crops to flowers, shrubs and even small trees or bamboo. Livestock water troughs, also called stock tanks, come in various sizes, and many have plugs along the side to allow for drainage. And you can always improve the drainage by drilling several one-inch diameter holes in the bottom. Painting the troughs can help reflect the heat and the color can blend in better with your outdoor decor. And, of course, you can custom mix the soil for a watering trough, to fit the exact needs of whatever you might be growing. An acidic soil for blueberries, for example. We’ll have a recipe for that today.
Retired college horticulture professor Debbie Flower and I explore livestock water trough gardening today, on episode 108 of the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast, brought to you today by Smart Pots.
And we will do it all in under 30 minutes. Let’s go!

Pictured:
Water Trough with Blueberry Plants

Links:
Smart Pots
Water Troughs
Tractor Paint
Blueberry Soil Mix for Containers/ Dave Wilson Nursery

More episodes and info available at Garden Basics with Farmer Fred

Garden Basics comes out every Tuesday and Friday. More info including live links, product information, transcripts, and chapters available at the home site for Garden Basics with Farmer Fred. Please subscribe, and, if you are listening on Apple, please leave a comment or rating. That helps us decide which garden topics you would like to see addressed.

Got a garden question? There are several ways to get in touch: 

leave an audio question without making a phone call via Speakpipe, at https://www.speakpipe.com/gardenbasics
Text us the question: 916-292-8964. E-mail: [email protected] or, leave a question at the Facebook, Twitter or Instagram locations below. Be sure to tell us where you are when you leave a question, because all gardening is local. 

And thank you for listening.

All About Farmer Fred
Farmer Fred website: http://farmerfred.com
Daily Garden tips and snark on Twitter
The Farmer Fred Rant! Blog
Facebook:  "Get Growing with Farmer Fred"
Instagram: farmerfredhoffman
Farmer Fred Garden Videos on YouTube

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from possible links mentioned here.

Thank you for listening, subscribing and commenting on the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast and the Beyond the Garden Basics  Newsletter.

You’ve seen it with the bagged soils goods at the nursery: worm castings. What role should they play in your garden?
The Plant of the Week is a big family of different plants: the poppy. There’s probably one, or two, that are right for you.
Just because a homegrown fruit is smaller than what you might see at a grocery store doesn’t mean it’s inferior. On the contrary, that smaller, homegrown fruit may be healthier for you. We’ll explain.
It’s all on episode 107 of the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast, brought to you today by Smart Pots and Dave Wilson Nursery.
And we will do it all in under 30 minutes. Let’s go!

Pictured:
California poppies

Links:
Smart Pots
Dave Wilson Nursery / Tom’s Picks
Farmer Fred Rant: Supermarket vs Homegrown Nutrition
Worm Castings
UC Davis Arboretum

More episodes and info available at Garden Basics with Farmer Fred

Garden Basics comes out every Tuesday and Friday. More info including live links, product information, transcripts, and chapters available at the home site for Garden Basics with Farmer Fred. Please subscribe, and, if you are listening on Apple, please leave a comment or rating. That helps us decide which garden topics you would like to see addressed.

Got a garden question? There are several ways to get in touch: 

leave an audio question without making a phone call via Speakpipe, at https://www.speakpipe.com/gardenbasics

Text us the question: 916-292-8964. E-mail: [email protected] or, leave a question at the Facebook, Twitter or Instagram locations below. Be sure to tell us where you are when you leave a question, because all gardening is local. 
And thank you for listening.

All About Farmer Fred:
Farmer Fred website: http://farmerfred.com
Daily Garden tips and snark on Twitter
The Farmer Fred Rant! Blog
Facebook:  "Get Growing with Farmer Fred"
Instagram: farmerfredhoffman
Farmer Fred Garden Videos on YouTube

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from possible links mentioned here.

Thank you for listening, subscribing and commenting on the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast and the Beyond the Garden Basics  Newsletter.

Another dubious garden idea is making the rounds on social media: if you prune out the first tomato you see on your plant,  you’ll get more tomatoes as a result. Fact or Myth? We explore that with retired college horticuture professor Debbie Flower.

Ed Laivo from TomorrowsHarvest.com is back on Fabulous Fruit Friday, with a white apricot variety. A white apricot? Yes. And it’s delicious, too. Plus, Ed talks about where you can find more information, including videos, about the benefits of summer pruning of your peach, nectarine, plum, apricot, apple and other deciduous fruit trees.

It’s all on episode 106 of the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast, brought to you today by Smart Pots and Tomorrow's Harvest.  And we will do it all in under 30 minutes. Let’s go!

Pictured:
The First Tomato on a Better Boy plant today (May 27)

Links:
Smart Pots
White Knockout Apricot Tomorrow’s Harvest
Summer Pruning Videos / Tomorrow’s Harvest Nursery/ You Tube
Pruning Tomato Flowers? No! The Farmer Fred Rant

More episodes and info available at Garden Basics with Farmer Fred

Garden Basics comes out every Tuesday and Friday. More info including live links, product information, transcripts, and chapters available at the home site for Garden Basics with Farmer Fred. Please subscribe, and, if you are listening on Apple, please leave a comment or rating. That helps us decide which garden topics you would like to see addressed.

Got a garden question? There are several ways to get in touch: 

leave an audio question without making a phone call via Speakpipe at https://www.speakpipe.com/gardenbasics

Text or call us the question: 916-292-8964. E-mail: [email protected] or, leave a question at the Facebook, Twitter or Instagram locations below. Be sure to tell us where you are when you leave a question, because all gardening is local. 

And thank you for listening also to the Green Acres Garden Podcast with Farmer Fred .

All About Farmer Fred:

Farmer Fred website: http://farmerfred.com
Daily Garden tips and snark on Twitter
The Farmer Fred Rant! Blog
Facebook:  "Get Growing with Farmer Fred"
Instagram: farmerfredhoffman
Farmer Fred Garden Videos on YouTube

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from possible links mentioned here.

Thank you for listening, subscribing and commenting on the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast and the Beyond the Garden Basics  Newsletter.

High chill apples. Known for their great flavor, these apples that supposedly require a lot of cold winter temperatures to thrive, are finding a new home. Trials in southern California, in areas that seldom get below freezing, are proving to be a good place for several high chill apple varieties. Tom Spellman of Dave Wilson Nursery tells us about some great tasting apples that should now be grown more often in USDA Zones 9 and 10.

The Plant of the Week is a very popular, widely adaptable shrub with a lavish springtime display of funnel shaped, one inch long reddish-colored flowers, the weigela.

It’s all on episode 105 of the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast, brought to you today by Smart Pots and Dave Wilson Nursery. 

And we will do it all in under 30 minutes. Let’s go!

Pictured:
Arkansas Black Apple

Links:
Smart Pots
Dave Wilson Nursery / Arkansas Black Apple
The Weigela
UC Davis Arboretum

More episodes and info available at Garden Basics with Farmer Fred

Garden Basics comes out every Tuesday and Friday. More info including live links, product information, transcripts, and chapters available at the home site for Garden Basics with Farmer Fred. Please subscribe, and, if you are listening on Apple, please leave a comment or rating. That helps us decide which garden topics you would like to see addressed.

Got a garden question? There are several ways to get in touch:
leave an audio question without making a phone call via Speakpipe, at https://www.speakpipe.com/gardenbasics

Text us the question: 916-292-8964. E-mail: [email protected] or, leave a question at the Facebook, Twitter or Instagram locations below. Be sure to tell us where you are when you leave a question, because all gardening is local. 

And thank you for listening.

All About Farmer Fred:
Farmer Fred website: http://farmerfred.com
Daily Garden tips and snark on Twitter
The Farmer Fred Rant! Blog
Facebook:  "Get Growing with Farmer Fred"
Instagram: farmerfredhoffman
Farmer Fred Garden Videos on YouTube

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases from possible links mentioned here.

Thank you for listening, subscribing and commenting on the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast and the Beyond the Garden Basics  Newsletter.