New Hardness Zone Map

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has produced a new “USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map” (PHZM).  Most of the info I am presenting here I gleaned off  USDA websites.  When you log on to the USDA website -  http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/ , you first want to select "Interactive Map".  You will be asked to enter the security question, this is called a “Captcha”. 

You will enter the Captcha.  Remember these are case sensitive. Next ckick "Validate" to access the Interactive Hardiness Zone Map. Next enter the zip code for your area of interest and click "Find".  At the “Choose Base Map” pull down, select “Satellite”. To see the satellite view, slide the “Zone Color Transparency” from “0” to “100”.  Using the "Zoom Level" on the left, zoom in on the map as tight as you can.  Move your mouse/pointer over your property/garden area and Click on your location and your data will Pop up.

This data, the “Plant Hardness Zone Values”, will give you your Hardness Zone, Avg. Temp., Range of Temp. and Latitude & Longitude

If you slide the Zone Color Transparency from “100” back to “0” you will be able to see the color depiction of your area.

If you select “About” it will give you topics such as “Maps & Gardening” and “Map Making”.  The hardiness zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum temperature during a 30-year period, not the lowest temperature that has ever occurred.

The USDA web site says USDA will not produce posters/maps of the Hardiness Zones.  State, regional, and national images of the map can be downloaded and printed in a variety of sizes and resolutions.

With the addition of  Zones 12 and 13 the new map now has 13 zones. The zones are still divided by 10˚F graduations but are further broken down to A and B subdivisions (these are divided by 5˚F increments). 

Compared to the old 1990 map many zone boundaries have shifted.  This is mostly a result of using temperature data from a larger period of time (1974-1986 vs 1976-2005) and using more reporting stations to report the temperature.

Cutting back the Pampas Grass for next summer's growth

Well it is February 19 and here in the Ozarks of Missouri it is 48°F (9°C).  So today I am cutting back the Pampas Grass.  This is a project I should have taken care of in the fall as a part of preparing my rural property for the fall fire season. 

Things you will need: Medium weight rope, Twine, Scissors

and a Chain Saw.

 

The first thing I do is to tie the grass into a tight bundle with the medium weight rope

Next I take the twine and re-tie the bundle of grass.  You may want to tie the bundle in a few places. This will help you with keeping the grass in a bundle and not fall apart should you mistakenly cut the twine when cutting with the saw.  Remove the rope. 

 

Using your chain saw, cut the bundle of grass off.   Leaving about 8 - 12 inches of stubble.  

Some people will burn off the “stump” of stubble, but I will need to wait until the winds are correct before I burn.

Finished!!!
Photos taken by Sarah 

Earlier I talked about doing this project in fall as a part of preparing my rural property for the fall fire season here in the Ozarks.  If you live near forested lands or in rural areas where your neighbors burn off their forest or pastures you will want to make sure you clear away things like Pampas Grass and dead leaves from around our home.  Go on-line to http://www.firewise.org/ to learn more about building a “Defensible Space” around your home so you don’t lose your home to a wild land fire. 

Buying Garden Seeds with Food Stamps?

Buying Garden Seeds with Food Stamps?

The other day I heard that you can buy vegetable seed with food stamps.  After checking around and looking on the internet it turns out that indeed you can purchase “seeds and plants which produce food for human consumption” with Food Stamps.  This came about under the Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act of 1973 (P.L. 93-86, August 10, 1973). 

There are many blogs and articles about this on the internet.  There are two things they do recommend about doing this.  The first is to check with your state office that is in charge of the Food Stamp Program, or SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) program as it is called in most states today, to make sure your particular state has not placed any restrictions on the purchase of seeds and plants.  The second thing is to check with the retailer you will be purchasing your seeds and plants from that, 1 - they are aware you can purchase seeds and plants and  2 - they have the means to accept your EBT (Electronic Benefit Transfer) card.

The logic behind this is that people can increase the purchasing power of their food stamps by growing their own vegetables.  Think about it.  A $2.50 tomato plant will give you tomatoes all summer long and at the end of the season you can have fried green tomatoes (be sure to buy “Indeterminate” tomatoes and not “Determinate” tomatoes).  If you were to buy a $1.25 packet of tomato seeds, you would have enough tomatoes to give to your neighbors.

Now if you do not have a place to have a garden you can grow most vegetables in pots or containers and grow them on your porch or patio.  You can also ask if there is a “Community Garden” in your community where you can have a small plot of land to actually plant a garden.  In the case of my community, the local Methodist Church has provided an area for a community garden.  There is no fee and tools and water are provided.

So now you can have fresh, flavorful and inexpensive vegetables to serve yourself and your family. 

How to make seed starter pots from recycled news paper

Items needed: 

     News paper     Stapler      6oz tomato past can      
     Potting soil
 This is an idea I got off the net. I adapted it to fit my local news paper that measures 23.5 “ tall by 22” wide.  

 

 

Fold the paper in 4th"s along the 22” edge 

and cut folds (I used a knife).

Now you will have 4 strips of news paper that
measure 23.5” by 5.5”.

Note: I painted the back side of the paper Yellow so you can better see what is going on.

 

Next, along the 23.5” edge of the paper,
fold over a 1/2” - 3/4” strip. This will
become the collar for the finished pot.

 

Turn the paper over so the newly folded collar is underneath the paper. Take the tomato past can, lining it up with the folded collar's edge of the paper.

NOTE: Keep the collar folded to the outside so you can remove the can easer.

 

Carefully start to roll the news paper around the tomato past can.

 

When finished warping the can, place the can

collar down on the table.

Starting with the seam of the news paper, start

folding the edges over the can.

 

Gently remove the can from the newly formed pot.

 

Lastly, staple the seam of the pot to help secure

everything. 

 

Add potting soil and plant your seeds.

 

How to make seed starter pots from recycled news paper

Welcome to my gardening Blog

This gardening blog is dedicated to my Grandma Dorcelle.  She's the one who sparked my interest in gardening at the age of 5.  She always had a garden and a house full of potted plants.

One day I told her "I wanted to plant a garden."  She showed me how to dig up and prepare the soil.  We planted my vegetable seeds in neat rows, placing the empty seed packets on sticks at the beginning of each row to identify what I had planted.  I was so excited!  The next day I went out to my garden.  I got the rake and started raking away at the soil just like I had seen my Grandmother do hundreds of times.  I did not know that when she was raking, she was loosing the soil and removing the small weeds. With my raking, all I did was mixing up all the newly, neatly, planted seeds.

The name "Baxter Street Gardener" comes from the street she lived on in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  She taught me so much and I hope this blog will help others with their gardening.

Thank you Grandma.  And thank all of you for following my blog.  Thom