Welcome to 2012 Executive & Board Members! At our first Grow Regina Board Meeting held on February 1st, the following Executive positions were filled: Chairperson… »
Dirty Little Secrets
Plant Green Manure to boost soil and add nitrogen
Here’s a quick, inexpensive way to build and aerate your soil and boost nitrogen in your garden. Fall is the perfect time to take advantage of Mother Nature and improve our garden soil. As we reap the harvest of the vegetable garden, we need to consider how to give back nutrients to the soil for… »
Health Hazards in the Garden
Gardening is not something we commonly associate with danger unless we are using motorized equipment or chemicals, but a recent article by Friday, September 24, 2010 by Jeremy Dore on gardening safety dangers reminds us “hidden in your garden are a number of dangers which are rarely talked about but which can have a profoundly… »
Weedless Gardening
It seems sometimes that for every weed we pull out of our gardens, two more appear overnight. Not only do weeds steal nutrients from our flowers and vegetables, they can also release seeds and spread very quickly. But with a few tricks and techniques, gardeners have the power to control weeds without the use of… »
Frost Protective Covers
Even though gardeners at YARA-GRCG are anxious to transplant their seedlings, I recommend waiting until after May 30th or protect them. According to The Old Farmer’s Almanac the last day of frost for the Regina area is May 21st, but a closer look at the 14 Day Trend Weather Report shows another dip in the… »
What is Lasagna Gardening?
It is a no-dig organic gardening method that uses waste from your kitchen and yard and composts it “in place” to produce nutrient-rich soil. The garden is constructed by putting down layers of organic material, these layers give the method it’s name. It is also commonly known as “sheet composting.” The Perks of a Lasagna… »
Companion Planting
There’s an old garden tradition based on the belief that growing certain plants together can make them healthier and give you better yields. Based on my research on the web, most of the information is still anecdotal but more research is being done as gardeners look for alternatives to pesticides and fertilizers. We encourage you… »
Seed Viability & Germination Testing
Whether you have collected your own seeds or had some left from packages purchased last year, here are a couple of tips to know whether they will grow? A seed viability test is a method of sprouting a few seeds to determine the percentage of seeds that are viable. In other words, what is the number… »
Do you know your NPK?
Scientific shorthand for nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, the three major nutrients used in greatest quantity by plants. The three-number formula (5-10-5, 20-20-20) on fertilizer labels identifies a product’s NPK content. We have all looked at the soil mix packages in the store and wondered, “What do the numbers mean?” Most soil mix packages contain a… »
How to Plant a Tree
Some people choose to plant a fruit tree to commemorate a special occasion or person at YARA-Grow Regina Community Garden, while others plant a fruit tree simply to enjoy the bounty. Since 2008 up to 50 fruit trees, shrubs and vines are now planted at the north eastern and north western corners of YARA-Grow Regina… »
Best Dates for Planting Seeds In The Ground
According the The Old Farmer’s Almanac, the best dates for planting seeds in the ground doors is listed below. When determining the best planting dates for seeds, the date of the last spring frost is important to your success. NOTE: Our chart calculates frost dates only, based on historical data. Keep records of your garden’s… »
Recommended varieties for Saskatchewan producers
If you are still deciding what type of seeds to purchase, you may want to consider a variety based on research done by the Vegetable Program at University of Saskatchewan. The varieties listed below represent some of the best performing vegetable varieties based on cultivar evaluation trials conducted annually by the Vegetable Program at the… »
Best Indoor Planting Dates for Seeds
According the The Old Farmer’s Almanac, the best dates for planting seeds indoors is listed below. When determining the best planting dates for seeds, the date of the last spring frost is important to your success. NOTE: Our chart calculates frost dates only, based on historical data. Keep records of your garden’s conditions each year… »
Winter Gardening
It’s called “winter gardening”, and it happens when die-hard gardeners and those who simply can’t wait for spring to tend to their gardens even when heavy snow buries the soil and bitter cold winds whip the bare branches of the trees. They pore over seed catalogs, imagine the layout of their gardens, and create visions… »
Weeds Common to YARA-GRCG
We may have heard the advice jokingly given by parents to children who are pulling garden weeds for the first time: if it looks healthy and it’s growing vigorously, pull it out. But there is some truth in this; at least a few of us have probably looked over our gardens at some point this… »
Low-Maintenance Gardening
Those of us who spend warm spring and summer days digging in the soil and getting our fingernails dirty don’t mind a bit of work; after all, as the cartoonist and illustrator Lou Erickson once said, and as we all know, “gardening requires lots of water-most of it in the form of perspiration.” But no… »
Ten Basics of Square Foot Gardening
Would you like a garden filled with beautiful flowers, luscious vegetables, fresh herbs, but NO WEEDS or HARD WORK? Well, that is what Square Foot Gardening is all about. I’ve taken all the hard work out of gardening. No heavy digging, watering, weeding, thinning, or over-flowering harvest. What is left is a productive, well-kept, colorful… »
How to grow potatoes in a burlap bag
According to friends, this technique was recently popularized by Jamie Oliver. You can place your potato sack anywhere that has enough sunlight (6 hours or so midday)—even on the back steps, or where ever. Get a coffee sack or, I guess, a potato sack if you can find one. Roll the sack down. This is… »