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    Mid-Season Pepper Problem Cures

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    Peppers are tropical plants and can be temperamental–especially the further they grow away from the tropics. They demand warm temperatures—not too cool and not too hot, organically rich soil, and even soil moisture—not too little and not too much. Give peppers these optimal conditions and they will produce until the first frost in autumn.   […] More

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    in Fruit Vegetables, Prepare

    Squashes for Winter Cooking

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    Butternut squash, acorn and Delicata squash, Hubbard and kabocha squash—all of these are winter squashes—you cook and serve them when the weather turns cold. Winter squashes are grown in the summer just like summer squashes, but instead of picking and serving them tender and immature (like summer squash), winter squashes mature on the vine, are […] More

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    in Fruit Vegetables

    Growing Early-Season Tomatoes for Great Taste

    Sungold tomatoes

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    Early season tomatoes ripen fruit 55 to 70 days after being transplanted to the garden as 6-week old plants. Because great tomato flavor comes with just the right combination of sugars and acids that are the product of sunlight and photosynthesis, early-season tomatoes are often dismissed as less tasty than mid- and late-season tomatoes (which […] More

  • in Fruit Vegetables, Gardening Tips

    Planting Melons and Squash Early

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    Long-season vine crops such as melons and squash can be started early in the season if you adequately prepare and warm the soil. The right preparation will ensure even growth and ample yield. Melons, watermelons, winter squashes, and pumpkins can require 125 to 160 days from sowing or transplanting to harvest. Getting an early start […] More

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    in Fruit Vegetables, Gardening Tips, Tips

    Pea Growing Tips

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    Grow peas during the winter in mild-winter regions. In cold-winter regions grow peas in the spring and sometimes in the fall. The optimum seed starting soil temperature for peas is 75°F; this makes growing peas for fall harvest a strong option when they are planted 55 to 70 days before the first frost–depending upon variety. […] More

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    in Fruit Vegetables, Gardening Tips, Tips

    Pepper Harvest Tips

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    Sweet peppers can be picked when immature or full size, green or red–as soon as they are big enough to use. Hot peppers can be picked at any time–any size or color–for fresh use; hot peppers for drying or pickling should be picked when fully ripe. Pick all peppers before the first light frost. Most […] More

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    in Fruit Vegetables

    Tomato Feeding

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    Tomatoes are heavy feeders. Keep them well fed over the season. Simple Schedule for Feeding Tomatoes: Seedlings. Give tomato seedlings a balanced fertilizer once a month while they are still in the greenhouse or hothouse. Use a dilute fish emulsion, 3-3-3, or a nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium formula that is similar. Transplanting. When tomatoes are ready to go into the garden, […] More

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    in Fruit Vegetables, Gardening Tips, Plant, Tips

    Cucumber Growing Tips

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    Cucumbers–natives of India–love warm weather. Wait until soil and air temperatures averages 70°F each day before sowing or transplanting cumbers to the garden. While warm temperatures are required for growing, cucumbers require a relatively short season–55 to 60 days from sowing to harvest. In long-season regions, you can plant successive crops. In cool or short-season […] More