Gardentalk

Gardentalk

By KTOO Public Media
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Gardentalk episodes

  • Gardentalk – Season finale on fall clean up of yard and garden, bringing in perennials
    Homegrown onions, cucumbers, peppers, and mushrooms get pickled in a North Douglas kitchen. (Photo by Matt Miller)
    In the final edition of Gardentalk for the 2018 season, Master Gardener Ed Buyarski recommends clearing our garden of harvested and dying plants that will provide a good habitat for slugs laying eggs this fall.
    Horse manure, seaweed, and the tops of almost all dead and dying plants can go into the compost pile, except for cabbage family roots, which may be infested with root maggots.
    Add some fresh compost or another soil amendment to your freshly cleaned garden beds and then cover with tarps or plastic. That will protect the soil from the fall rains and allow worms and beneficial microorganisms to grow and thrive.
    “So, in the springtime whenever the days start getting longer, we can start gardening a few weeks earlier,” Buyarski said.
    Listen to the October 11 edition of Gardentalk:
    https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2018/10/garden101118aired.mp3
    And, don’t forget to bring in your begonias, dahlias and fuchsias from outside and store them in a dark, dry place like a root cellar or corner of the garage. Be sure to check the fuchsias on a regular basis throughout the winter so that they don’t dry out. They may need a few waterings over the winter to keep the roots from getting too dry.
    Finally, everyone is invited to bring a recipe or dish to the annual Garlic Lovers Potluck at the Canvass, Oct. 21 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
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  • Gardentalk – How to check for fruit ripeness

    Pair of cherry tomatoes grown indoors remain green in early October 2018. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)

    In a recent edition of Gardentalk, Master Gardener Ed Buyarski said some fruits and vegetables may ripen slowly with lack of sun and cooler temperatures. He explained how to check the ripeness of kiwi, apples, pears and tomatoes.

    Listen to the Sept. 13 edition of Gardentalk:

    https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2018/09/garden091318.mp3

    Kiwis typically fall off the plant when they are ripe. Since kiwis ripen very quickly, Buyarski recommends being vigilant and checking the fruit often for softness.

    Apples have been ripening for several weeks, but it largely depends on variety. He recommends checking apples on your particular tree for taste.

    For those gardeners who have plum and pear trees, Buyarski also suggests checking for softness and taste. But most pears can be picked now and will continue to ripen off the tree.

    As for tomatoes, Buyarski recommends doing a little research on your plants since they are so many different varieties of tomatoes.

    “Some of them will soften a little and certainly they change color,” Buyarski said. “But there are tomatoes which are green when they are ripe.”

    And, no matter the variety or their stage of ripeness, Buyarski said homegrown tomatoes will always taste better than the so-called “ripe tomatoes” usually found in the grocery store.

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  • Gardentalk – It’s sugar time for veggies
    The first, late-planted cherry tomato ripens in a North Douglas kitchen in early October 2018. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
    Southeast Alaska gardeners may be worried about the recent rainfall and imminent cold temperatures affecting their still unharvested vegetables. But gardeners can take precautions against their crop getting deluged, and an occasional overnight frost may actually enhance vegetables’ taste.
    “The season isn’t over,” said master gardener Ed Buyarski. “The sugar content of lots of our plants, especially root vegetables, are increasing.”
    Listen to the Oct. 4 edition of Gardentalk:
    https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2018/10/garden100418aired.mp3
    In recent editions of Gardentalk, Buyarski recommended covering recently planted garlic or unharvested potatoes so they don’t start rotting as the fall rains intensify.
    “Sometimes it makes it easier for mice, voles and rats to get in underneath those covers and find a great home to eat these tasty root vegetables,” Buyarski said.
    He recommends regularly checking for rodents hiding under the plastic.
    For other vegetables and fruits like greenhouse tomatoes or apples, sunshine and cool, dry weather will actually boost the sugar content.
    “The plants may be killed (from a series of frosts), but the tomatoes can hang on,” Buyarski said.
    Carrots, kale, beets and Brussels sprouts will also taste better if you can wait for a later harvest. Buyarski said carrots can be harvested well into November as long as the ground is covered and insulated against freezing.
    Buyarski said he just planted a new crop of spinach in his greenhouse, which should be ready for harvest in the early spring. Parsnips planted this summer will actually last through the winter and be ready for harvest next spring.
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  • Gardentalk – Gotta get that garlic growing in the ground
    Close-up view of hardneck garlic which awaits planting in a North Douglas garden. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
    KTOO listener Carole P. writes: “This fall is so unusually warm. When should I plant the garlic?”
    Master Gardener Ed Buyarski said he’ll actually be planting garlic this weekend, even if it stays mild for the next few months. But he said anytime before the ground freezes in October is ideal.
    First, he suggests seed hardneck garlic — not the typical California softneck garlic found in grocery stores — as the best type for Alaska gardens.
    Gently break the garlic bulbs into individual cloves, and set aside the small cloves for cooking instead of planting.
    Plant the biggest cloves in rich, well-drained soil in a sunny location. They should be planted about 2 inches deep and 6 to 8 inches apart with each clove’s pointy end up.
    “It is a fairly heavy feeder,” Buyarski said. “Working in compost and organic fertilizer into the soil before planting really is an important item.”
    Gently cover the cloves with soil and then add a layer of compost or seaweed. Adding a layer of plastic on top will prevent the soil from becoming too wet during the fall rains.
    Ideally, Buyarski said garlic should not sprout in December or January. That’s too soon.
    Adding mulch and then covering with spruce or hemlock boughs may provide enough ground insulation to prevent the ground from repeated freezing and thawing, and keep the garlic on schedule for sprouting in March or April.
    Listen to the Sept. 28 edition of Gardentalk about garlic planting:
    https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2018/09/garden092818.mp3
    Listeners have also asked for links to seasonally-sensitive episodes of Gardentalk that recently aired. Click on the link to bring up the page for that particular segment.
    Gardentalk – How to treat your freshly harvested potatoes with TLC
    Gardentalk – How to protect your veggies from the coming frost
    Gardentalk – How to collect your own flower and vegetable seeds
    Gardentalk – Great Alaska Slug Hunt: Fight back against invading mollusk…
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  • Gardentalk – How to treat your freshly harvested potatoes with TLC
    A North Douglas gardener robs his potato plants for some fingerlings for dinner. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
    There’s a wrong way and a right way to harvest potatoes. The wrong way would be blindly digging into a potato mound with a shovel. The right way includes carefully reaching underneath the potato plant and gently pulling out each potato by hand.
    Master Gardener Ed Buyarski explained during a recent edition of Gardentalk that he handles fresh potatoes very gently during harvest.
    “Don’t toss them, dump them, drop them into a bucket because they can crack very easily,” Buyarski said. “We don’t want to crack them because that can let bacteria or fungi into the potatoes to start them rotting.”
    Buyarski suggests immediately eating any potatoes that may be scabby or damaged. Save the good potatoes for long-term storage.
    First, he recommends against thoroughly washing or scrubbing those potatoes. That could damage the thin and fragile potato skin.
    Some gardeners avoid washing off any of the dirt. But Buyarski says he usually does a very light washing and then places them in trays or crates in a cool place so the skins can thicken and toughen up as they dry.
    He will then cover them with blankets, cardboard or newspapers. If light hits the potatoes while they are curing, then they’ll turn green and bitter, and become mildly poisonous.
    What if your potato plants are already turning yellow and dying back, but you’re still not ready to harvest?
    Buyarski suggests cutting back the vines and covering the potato mound with a tarp or heavy plastic. The thin and fragile potato skins will toughen and cure in dry soil. Potatoes will begin to rot if they are left in damp soil.
    Listen to the September 20 edition of Gardentalk about potato harvesting and curing:
    https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2018/09/garden092018.mp3
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  • Gardentalk – How to protect your veggies from the coming frost
    Hoar frost accumulates on grass, leaves and other vegetation in this picture taken on Douglas Island in November 2014. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
    Overnight temperatures in Juneau this weekend are expected to dip down into the 30s, perhaps even under freezing in wind sheltered areas in the Mendenhall Valley.
    Master Gardener Ed Buyarski explained during a recent edition of Gardentalk how gardeners can protect their tender vegetables and plants from the effects of freezing temperatures.
    One option includes bringing potted plants into a garage or other protected space.
    Alternatives for garden plots include gently covering plants with old blankets or cardboard boxes. That will provide insulation for retaining heat close to the soil.
    If you initially started some of your vegetables with hoops and later removed them, then Buyarski advises replacing the hoops before the temperatures drop.
    Other option is to place buckets or milk jugs of water in various locations around your garden or in your greenhouse. The water will slow the freezing process.
    Buyarski said that’s why orchardists or commercial growers spray water on their trees and plants in the early evening to prevent them from freezing overnight.
    He discourages using single layers of plastic to cover vulnerable plants since it doesn’t have any real insulating value.
    Listen to the Sept. 6 edition of Gardentalk about frost protection:
    https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2018/09/garden090618x.mp3
    Buyarski said carrots, cabbage and potatoes are some of the more hardier vegetables that can either withstand frost or their sugar content will actually increase with cool temperatures. But squash, cucumbers and tomatoes are sensitive to cold.
    For annuals like begonias, geraniums and fuchsias, Buyarski said hanging pots may fare better compared to those sitting on the cold ground in the middle of the yard. But the sheltered ground next to the house may offer more warmth and better protection.
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  • Gardentalk – How to collect your own flower and vegetable seeds
    Kale, columbine and mustard seed pods selected from the KTOO Agricultural Test Station and Garden of Science! by Ed Buyarski. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
    Many vegetables and flowers are now releasing their seeds as part of their usual propagation cycle.
    In this week’s edition of Gardentalk that airs every Thursday morning on KTOO, Master Gardener Ed Buyarski describes how to create your own seed bank or collecting seeds for your own use.
    “Collection time essentially is now,” Buyarski said, noting that some varieties can be collected as late as early fall. “I can collect some as late as October (and) November, like wild iris because the pods hold the seeds very well and they don’t shed out that quickly.”
    Using columbine as an example, Buyarski explained that the stems to the seed pod may turn brown before the pod top opens, revealing the seeds inside.
    Gardeners also can collect primrose and lupin seeds in a similar fashion.
    For gardeners who want more control of the seed release timing, Buyarski recommends bringing the stem indoors and placing it in a vase with water.
    As for vegetables, Buyarski said many are biannual and will only flower and go to seed in the second year if they survive the winter.
    Buyarski usually plants kale in the late summer so they will drop the seed during the following summer. He also leaves a few spinach plants to ripen and turn brown before he collects the seeds.
    Listen to the Aug. 24 edition of Gardentalk about seed collecting:
    https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2018/08/garden082318.mp3
    The Food Festival is from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 25, at the JACC in downtown Juneau.  There will be fresh produce, garlic, and jams and jellies for sale. Workshops also will be held on a variety of gardening and preservation topics.
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  • Gardentalk – Great Alaska Slug Hunt: Fight back against invading mollusks
    An invading slug checks out the beer trap, but then moves on without falling for it. The beer may have been diluted or washed out by recent heavy rains. After posing for this photo, the slug was exterminated when it was picked up by a human and dropped into the refreshed beer trap. It didn’t feel any pain. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
    Southeast Alaska’s August rains always seem to signal a spike in the resident slug population, which usually leaves its mark by devastating and devouring the leaves of garden vegetables.
    Master Gardener Ed Buyarski, in his annual slug extermination edition of Gardentalk, reminds gardeners that the best measure to prevent a slug onslaught is simply cleaning up the yard and garden.
    Remove any dead or dying vegetation and clean up debris, which provides great hiding places for the slugs.
    For those slugs that still hanging around and feasting on your leafy greens, various types of slug bait are usually available at hardware or gardening supply retailers.
    Depending on the compound’s main ingredients, they may be slow-acting or be very toxic to pets and wildlife.
    A diluted ammonia solution will kill slugs while providing an extra fertilizer for plants.
    Salt or salt water usually is an effective deterrent.
    Beer traps also work well.
    Pick up a few cans of mass-produced swill (no craft beer or homebrew unless it’s gone skunky) and pour it into cups set into the garden soil.
    The lip of the cup should be even with the soil so that slugs — attracted by the beer — will fall into the cup and die a happy death.
    Bottles with a little beer remaining and placed on their side in the garden will also attract and trap slugs.
    Protect the traps from any rain that may dilute the beer.
    Buyarski actually prefers more practical and immediate methods of exterminating slugs, like squishing them between a pair of bricks.
    Listen to the Aug. 9 Gardentalk segment about sacrificing slugs to the gardening gods:
    https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2018/08/garden080918.mp3
    Eww! – A pair of slugs attack a squash blossom during a break in the summer rains. The devastated flower was removed and both slugs died a horrible, horrible death moments after this picture was taken. (Photo by Matt M…
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  • Gardentalk – When home improvement projects require emergency tree and shrub care
    Fortunately, painters could easily work around this kiwi plant at the KTOO Agricultural Test Station and Garden of Science! Otherwise, it would have been cut back. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
    Things don’t always happen according to plan and sometimes things happen unexpectedly — requiring homeowners to engage in emergency yard care.
    In this week’s edition of Gardentalk, Master Gardener Ed Buyarski recalls how two Juneau residents are currently being forced to trim or transplant trees and shrubs to make room for contractors hired for home improvement projects.
    Buyarski describes what’s happening and his solution for each dilemma.
    In the first instance, a mature apple tree is located on the edge of a property and right inline of a new fence that will be built next week.
    Buyarski said he will prune the top branches before digging out the tree.
    Next, he’ll trim the roots, dig a new hole for the tree’s new location, and layer compost on top of the root ball during replanting.
    The tree should be heavily watered in its new location.
    Buyarski said it will also be staked up so that it won’t fall over before the roots regrow and the tree re-establishes itself.
    “This is not the ideal time for moving trees,” Buyarski said. “At least it’s not hot and dry like earlier.”
    In the second instance, work on a house’s siding and installation of new windows will require the homeowner to either remove or severely trim back bushes so the contractor can gain access to the side of the house. A 9-foot-tall rose bush, for example, was trimmed back to only 18 inches.
    “It may end up getting dug up yet because a deck is going to go over it,” Buyarski said.
    Other shrubs and small trees close to the house will be temporarily bent or pulled away from the house with ropes until the contractor finishes his work.
    A hole may be left in that new deck to allow another bush to continue growing without being transplanted.
    For some homeowners, Buyarski warns bushes that climb up the side of a house may accumulate moisture and accelerate rot in wooden siding and the foundation footings.
    Listen to the August 17 segment of Gardentalk:
    https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2018/08/garden081618.mp3
    Buyarski also reminds gardeners that the annual Harvest Fair and Farmer’s Market is Saturday, Aug. 16, at the Juneau Community Garden. Judging of vegetables, flowers, and preserves starts at 10:15 …
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  • Gardentalk – Thyme for a deep chive featuring sage advice; homegrown herbs are a big dill for cooks
    Even prolific weeds cannot crowd out these chives and prevent them from returning year after year in a North Douglas garden. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
    What is an Alaskan chef to do if they need fresh herbs for their latest dish?
    Harvest from their own garden or check their freezer, of course.
    Fresh, homegrown herbs such as sage, rosemary, thyme, cilantro, chives, dill, basil, tarragon and oregano can really add that extra pop to any dish.
    In a recent edition of Gardentalk, Master Gardener Ed Buyarski provided a short primer on growing and preserving herbs.
    Dill and cilantro are a few herbs that are easy to grow.
    But most herbs — like thyme, sage, rosemary and oregano — are very slow to start from seed, and Buyarski suggests buying new plants in the spring or dividing up existing plants.
    Listen to the Aug. 8 segment about growing and preserving herbs:
    https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2018/08/garden080218.mp3
    Buyarski notes that some herbs retain their flavor and aroma best depending on whether they are frozen or dried.
    “Cilantro loses its flavor when it’s dried,” Buyarski said. “But dill is terrific when it’s dried. Basil, likewise, you almost have to freeze it to keep that.”
    Chives and tarragon should be frozen rather than dried to retain their flavor. Oregano, on the other hand, is best fresh and it dries well.
    Buyarski recommends growing plants indoors with lights if you want fresh herbs all year-round.
    “If you’ve got a light set up, then you can keep them going all winter and you can continue to harvest from them during the winter when it’s more of a challenge to get fresh herbs,” Buyarski said. “That’s a great thing.”
    Buyarski has been growing a single rosemary plant indoors in a 5-gallon pot for the past five years.
    This hydroponically grown basil plant is still enormously productive even though it was started from seed nearly two years ago. (Photo by Matt…
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Gardening tips and information from KTOO in Juneau