In Episode 330, Q&A - Gail from Orangevale, CA wants to start a vegetable and flower garden in her backyard, which is currently covered in Bermuda grass. Debbie Flower,  America’s Favorite Retired College Horticulture professor, and I suggest waiting a year and using soil solarization to kill off the Bermudagrass. We also recommend starting small with container gardening and using organic mulch to keep the soil soft. We discuss the challenges of dealing with Bermudagrass and the bene...

330 Q&A Bermudagrass Control? Black Plastic for the Garden?

Tips for beginning and experienced gardeners. New episodes arrive every Tuesday and Friday. Fred Hoffman has been a U.C. Certified Master Gardener since 1982 and writes a weekly garden column for the Lodi News-Sentinel in Lodi, CA. A four-decade fixture in Sacramento radio, he hosted three radio shows for Northern California gardeners and farmers: The KFBK Garden Show, Get Growing with Farmer Fred, and the KSTE Farm Hour. Episode Website: https://gardenbasics.net

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If you’re the type of gardener that buys flowering plants at a nursery that are covered in blooms, America’s Favorite Retired College Horticulture Professor, Debbie Flower, will explain why you shouldn’t do that, and a lot more nursery plant shopping tips!Also, we have tips for starting an elementary school garden. And you don’t have to be a school teacher to do it. We talk with a couple of very enthusiastic California Master Gardeners who are spreading the word with tips on how to start a sc...

337 How To Choose Nursery Plants. Tips for Starting a School Garden.

In this episode, Farmer Fred answers a listener's question about burying kitchen scraps in the garden. He discusses the potential problems with this method, including attracting scavengers and affecting the quality of the soil microbiology. He suggests composting the kitchen scraps first or using alternative methods like African keyhole gardens. Debbie Flower recommends  the Green Cone composter. In the second part of the episode, Farmer Fred and Debbie Flower discuss the best time to pl...

336 Q&A Kitchen Scraps in the Garden? When to Plant a Magnolia Tree?

The first chat today involves roof rats (and is an encore presentation while construction is ongoing here at Barking Dog). It will be particularly useful for those of you with large yards, or acreage, or even a small farm, in which you have a large orchard. And for those of you suburban dwellers who might have a few citrus trees, or, for that matter, any tree with fruit, well, you know the damage that rats can do to that fruit. But it’s not just the fruit. Roof rats, especially, can girdle yo...

335 Roof Rat Controls, Asparagus-Lemon Recipes

The first question on the Tuesday Q&A edition of the Garden Basics podcast is about growing rhubarb in hot weather. Fred and his guests, Master Gardeners Kathy Morrison and Ruth Ostroff, discuss their experiences with growing rhubarb in Sacramento. They also share a rhubarb recipe. The second question is about grow lights for starting tomato and pepper seeds indoors. Fred  and Debbie Flower explain the importance of using wide-spectrum light systems and mixing different types of bulb...

GB 334 Q&A Rhubarb for Hot Climates? Lights for Seedlings?

We are in the midst of spring construction here, so we are taking the opportunity to not shout over the whine of power saws and the banging hammers. Instead, we will be revisiting some of the most popular segments ever aired on our podcast. In Episode 83, we explained why feeding your soil yields better results than feeding your plants. Sound confusing?  We get the lowdown from Gisele Schoniger of Kellogg Garden Products.Also, America's Favorite retired college horticultural professor, D...

330 Q&A Bermudagrass Control? Black Plastic for the Garden?

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