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Easy Ways To Create A Bee-Friendly Garden

Anne Gibson

Bees help fertilize up to 90% of the earth’s major food crops, including what you likely put on your plate every day. These hard-working insects are suffering from many pressures globally including chemical herbicides, viruses, mites, genetically modified crops, and harsh weather conditions. Many urban gardeners are noticing a decline in bee populations in their backyards and balconies, producing lower yields and reduced quality, size, and flavor of the food grown.

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Medicinal Weeds: Stinging Nettle

Caroline Rivard

Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica) has an impressive defense system. The stems, leaves, and flowers are covered with tiny hairs called spicules. These spicules, made from minuscule silica needles, are similar to sharp glass; they puncture the skin and cause painful irritation.

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Protecting Your Eyes From Grow Room Light

Rich Hamilton

An often overlooked essential tool for growing is eye protection. Every grower should be wearing horticultural eyewear that offers 100% protection from the harmful glow of the lights, while also not compromising on color or clarity of vision.

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Latest Posts

Detox with Fruit And Fasting

We might live longer, but do we live better? The developed world eats more than ever, and yet, we grow sicker. We grow plenty of food, yet people go hungry. The U.S. spends more money on health care than any other country, yet we rank towards the bottom in results. We are more connected through the computers in our pocket, yet lonelier than ever. Something big is wrong.
August 18, 2019

Ask a Tomato Expert: Q & A With Jason Johns

The Garden Culture team recently came across a book for anyone as intrigued by growing tomatoes as we are. It’s called Growing Tomatoes: Your Guide to Growing Delicious Tomatoes at Home. Who doesn’t want to grow beautiful tomatoes at home? So we had a chat with author Jason Johns to learn more. Happy reading! Why…
August 16, 2019

Fresh Farmer’s Market Meals: Perfect Pesto

The growing season means fresher meals for many of us. Whether buying from a farmer’s market or harvesting from the home garden, make this perfect pesto today!  There’s no question my family and I eat healthier this time of year. Between the locally grown produce at the farmer’s market and the abundance of organic fruits…
August 14, 2019

Grow Aztec Ancestral Veggies In Your Garden

If looking for an exotic touch in your garden this summer, consider growing edible plants from hot Central America. Mayans and Aztecs cultivated these plants in the pre-Columbian era before the coming of the Europeans. By growing them in your garden, you will feel like you’re traveling without moving!
August 12, 2019

Put Leftover Plant Material To Good Use In The Garden

It can be tempting to clean things up and get rid of the dead or dying biomass from crops after their harvest. Many people dispose of organic debris by either burning it, burying it or by throwing it into the waste container at the end of the road. But, there are many advantages to leaving…
August 9, 2019

Powdery Mildew In The Garden

I’m always amazed by how quickly zucchinis grow; they seem to appear overnight, sometimes. Unfortunately, so does powdery mildew.  During a recent stretch of hot and humid weather, I noticed my zucchini plants weren’t looking so perfect anymore. Their big leaves had white spots all over them.  The panic set in; was this the end…
August 7, 2019

Turning Suckers Into Free Tomato Plants

Getting something new out of something old is always satisfying, especially when it comes to tomato plants. After pruning your existing crop of its suckers, save some of them from the compost heap and start new plants with them!  Saving Suckers It’s very easy to do. I learned about the technique in Growing Tomatoes: Your…
August 2, 2019

Born To Be Wild: Add Wildflowers To Your Garden

Most of us probably remember childhood car trips out of town, our windshields covered with insects hit on the way. We had to stop and clean them off; but these days, we hardly ever have to turn the wipers on. The countless stories about the human effect on biodiversity are nothing short of harrowing. The…
July 31, 2019

How To Grow Vietnamese Coriander

You either love it, or you hate it. When it comes to cilantro, I add it to anything and everything; it’s rare when this delicious herb isn’t a part of my meal prep. So was I open to growing a variety in my herb garden that I had never tried before? Hell, yeah! Don’t mind…
July 26, 2019

Wild Parsnip Burns Little Boy In Ottawa, Canada

What happens when you come into contact with wild parsnip? Unfortunately, a 4-year-old boy in Ottawa, Canada, recently found out. George Young was walking to a splash pad with his summer camp group this month when he picked the plant in a local park, says CTV News. Shortly after, his hand broke out in big,…
July 24, 2019

How To Grow Ginger In Colder Climates

Ginger is recognized for its exceptional medicinal and culinary properties, but unfortunately, is a rather expensive commodity. If you want to grow your own ginger, either to save money or for fun of it, the technique is relatively simple, even if you live in Northern USA or Canada!
July 22, 2019

Top 5 Reasons Why We (And Gardens) Love Vermicompost

I have to admit; I wasn’t so sure about having thousands of worms eating food scraps in my basement. But I’m glad I did it! Six months after setting up my vermicompost center, I have a ton of beautiful, rich castings ready to use on my plants. Here are the top five reasons why we…
July 19, 2019

Pruning Leads To Healthier And More Abundant Tomatoes

To prune, or not to prune? That is the question.  Anyone who has grown tomatoes before will tell you a crop can quickly overtake the garden, especially when growing indeterminate varieties.  While some gardeners choose to leave every leaf and stem intact, there are many valid arguments as to why a little pruning should be…
July 17, 2019

Product Spotlight

The NEW SANlight Q6W

An LED that combines all the features desired by growers; for the cultivation of ornamental and crop plants, the Q6W is an adequate and eco-friendly replacement for HPS lamps. Designed for large cultivation areas for top-lighting applications as well as in the vegetative and generative phases of the crop.

Passive cooling, best efficacy, and sophisticated secondary optics, the Q6W is also adaptable. For larger grow spaces, daisy-chain up to 7 units with the optional y-connector.

The Q6W can boost the quality, quantity, and homogeneity of your crop. It also increases the usable cultivation area while reducing the temperature inside the cultivation room, water consumption of the plants, the use of chemical, and overall running costs.

Visit SANlight.com to learn more about the complete line.

Royal Gold

Capturing the hearts of plant enthusiasts far and wide.

A coco fiber-based soils and medium company based in Northern California, Royal Gold continue to bring Humboldt County ‘s decades of cultivation leadership to the world. With quality and consistency as the building blocks and experience and insight the tools of the trade, Royal Gold products give gardeners a foundation for success.

With a product line that ranges from pure coco and inert soilless mediums (Tupur) to traditional style potting (Basement Mix) and planting (Mendo Mix) mixes amended with high-quality dry amendments, they offer solutions for all garden types. With their most recent offering, Kings Mix, Royal Gold combines innovation and tradition with a peat-coco blend that has taken the cultivation community by storm. Solution-oriented, plant-in bags in convenient .75 cubic foot (about 5 gallons) and 3 cubic foot (about 20 gallons) sizes give cost and labor-saving convenience that make scaling up your garden a breeze.

From home growers to commercial facilities, Royal Gold brings professional-quality mediums to every garden! Visit RoyalGoldCoco.com to learn more.

NextLight Veg8 Switch – New & Improved

Now comes with with a wattage toggle that offers reduced wattage for cloning and acclimation purposes. This new fixture combines the Veg8 and lesser-known, NextLight Clone into one – now known as the NextLight Veg8 Switch. Located on the bottom of the fixture to allow for easy access when the unit is racked, you can toggle from HI (190w) to LO (60w) at the flick of a switch.

NextLight manufactures a range of full-spectrum LED grow lights designed to meet the needs of commercial and home growers alike. NextLight’s Full Spectrum provides the sun-like qualities plants love without the negatives of high energy requirements and high heat.

Visit NextLight.com for more information.

RIOCOCO

Non-toxic, renewable, and biodegradable.

Propagate faster and produce healthy plants organically. RIOCOCO’s 100% organic coconut fiber grow medium is super-washed five times and blended without fine particles. This super-clean coco medium promotes bigger, faster, and stronger roots and delivers optimum water holding capacity without the dust.

RIOCOCO PCM is available in Open Top Bags (4 sizes), Closed Top Bags (1 gallon), and Starter Blocks. They’re even packed in biodegradable bags!

Learn more: Hydrofarm.com

Growth Science

Growth Science Nutrients offers an easy-to-use, complete 5-part liquid fertilizer line designed for commercial cultivation. Growth Science Organics was explicitly crafted for organic production, using organically certified, sustainable materials. These nutrients adhere to NOP standards, feeding the plant, and stimulating soil microbial communities. This helps to establish a regenerative soil life cycle that allows growers to reuse their soil time and time again.

Visit Hydrofarm.com to learn more about all the Growth Science products.

Active Air Humidifiers

Maintain optimum humidity levels for your indoor grow.

Cold, dry conditions slow photosynthesis and inhibit respiration, leading to stress, slow growth, and compromised yield. Active Air humidifiers feature a multi-directional fogging head and an easy-to-install direct water connection. These premium humidifiers are built to last, with an industrial-grade motor for many years of use. Active Air humidifiers are available in two sizes, with coverage of 320 square feet (75 PPD – AAHC75P) to 1614 square feet (200 PPD – AAHC200P).

Visit Hydrofarm.com for more details.

Black Dog LED PhytoMAX-2 series

Designed and manufactured in Colorado, the PhytoMAX-2 series provides growers with the flexibility to have the right light for their space, whether a small tent or a large commercial cultivation facility.

Available in five different sizes ranging from 210 watts to the industry-leading PhytoMAX-2 1000 at 1050 watts, which can yield 2.5-4.5 pounds per light. Driven by proven science and groundbreaking research, the innovative PhytoMAX-2 series leads the industry photobiology and artificial light spectrum technology. A full-spectrum solution that also incorporates UV light, the PhytoMAX-2 series increases trichome production, as well as levels of THC, CBD, and terpenes, vastly improving quality and marketability. The lights are backed by a team of passionate industry veterans, growers, and scientists that work with clients to help them make the most of their passion, whether professional or hobbyist.

Go to BlackDogLed.com for more info.