Video: Tying up & Fertilizing Tomatoes with Bloom and Grow Radio!
Are your tomato plants growing out of control? Time to tie them up with Bloom and Grow Radio‘s Tying and Fertilizing Tomatoes video featuring Tomato-tone!
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Tag Archive for: Tomatoes
5 Ways to Give Your Summer Garden a Boost
There’s no better way to enjoy your garden than by encouraging it to grow bigger and better. Before your summer veggies and flowers peak, take your garden to the next-level by refueling it.
Knock-out these 5 essential tasks and your garden will thank you. You’ll extend your summer season and ensure that your lawn and garden are in tip-top shape.
5 Ways to Give Your Summer Garden a Boost
1. Hydrate. When it’s hot, dry and muggy, the best thing is a nice cold drink. Your plants need some H2O, too. The trick to keeping your garden hydrated during the hottest days is not to water more. It’s to water smarter. Water plants deeply in the morning so they have the entire day to soak it up.
Image courtesy of Garden Answer
2. Keep plants fed. Your summer veggies and flowers are hungry. Feed hanging baskets, container gardens and annuals with liquid Bloom! plant food every 2 to 4 weeks. Vegetables such as tomatoes and peppers are heavy feeders. Continue to feed every 2 weeks with organic fertilizers Tomato-tone or Garden-tone.
3. Prune and deadhead. Extend the life of perennials by deadheading flowers as soon as they are spent. This will encourage plants to keep blooming as long as weather permits. Your roses will thank you. Prune tomato suckers and shrubs now, for fuller plants later.
4. Mow lawns strategically. When mowing, keep the mower blades high (3” or higher) to encourage healthy roots. Cut grass in the evening to give it time to recover and keep yourself cool.
5. Plant more! There are many quickly maturing plants that will thrive in summer gardens and be ready for harvest in the fall. Try planting radishes, cucumbers, beans and more.
Sit back and relax! Take a good look at your hard work and dream about the rewards and bountiful harvests you’ll enjoy in the months to come.
If you’re looking to get a better tomato harvest this summer, be sure to check out our complete tomato guide!
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May Gardening Checklist: 5 Essential To-Dos for a Thriving Garden
May is one of the busiest and most exciting months in the garden. Flowers are blooming, veggies are sprouting, and summer crops are ready to go in. But to keep your garden thriving naturally, it’s important to use the right organic products to nurture your soil, plants, and harvest.
Here’s your Espoma-approved May checklist to prep your garden for a healthy, productive summer season.
1: Tidy Up Your Garden Space
Start fresh by clearing out weeds, dead plants, and old debris — this keeps pests and diseases in check and opens up space for new growth. As you tidy up, top off your beds with Espoma Organic Land & Sea Gourmet Compost to enrich the soil with nutrients and improve texture.
Once your garden is clean, you can apply a layer of mulch to help conserve moisture and regulate soil temperature. This simple prep sets the stage for everything that comes next.
2: Harvest Early Spring Crops
Your cool-weather crops like lettuce, spinach, radishes, and peas are likely ready to harvest. After picking, don’t leave that soil depleted! Replenish it by working in Espoma Organic Garden-tone or Plant-tone to restore nutrients before planting your summer vegetables.
For container gardens, refresh the mix with Espoma Organic Raised Bed Mix or Potting Mix so your new plants have a rich, organic base to grow in. Healthy soil = healthy crops.
3: Plan Your Garden Layout Thoughtfully
Before you rush to plant, take a little time to sketch out your garden plan. Group plants with similar needs together, and research what varieties perform best in your area. If you’re unsure, visit a local garden center and look for recommendations — and while you’re there, pick up organic fertilizers suited for what you’re planting (like Espoma Organic Tomato-tone for tomatoes, Berry-tone for berries, or Rose-tone for roses).
Planning ahead ensures you can match the right organic products to the right plants, maximizing growth and minimizing problems down the line.
4: Get Planting — and Feed Organically
Once your area is frost-free, it’s time to plant! Whether you’re planting veggies, flowers, or herbs, give them the best start by enriching the planting hole with Espoma Organic Bio-tone Starter Plus. This starter fertilizer contains mycorrhizae, which help plants establish strong root systems and reduce transplant shock.
As the season goes on, continue feeding regularly with Espoma Organic Tone Fertilizers, depending on what you’re growing. These slow-release, organic fertilizers keep plants nourished naturally, without the risk of burning or chemical buildup.
5: Transfer Indoor Seedlings Outdoors Carefully
If you started seeds indoors, harden them off gradually before moving them outside. Once ready, plant them in your garden or containers and mix Espoma Organic Bio-tone Starter Plus into the soil. This ensures young plants have access to the nutrients and beneficial microbes they need to get established and grow strong healthy roots.
For containers, fill pots with Espoma Organic Potting Mix, which provides excellent drainage and moisture retention while feeding plants with organic ingredients. Don’t forget to water thoroughly after transplanting to help roots settle in.
🌸 Bonus Tip: Keep Feeding and Caring All Season Long
Throughout the summer, keep an eye on your plants. Feed every month or as needed with the appropriate Espoma Organic fertilizer for each plant type. Water deeply at the base, mulch to retain moisture, and enjoy the lush, organic garden you’ve worked so hard to create.
With the right products and a little care, you’ll be harvesting beautiful, homegrown food and flowers all summer long — the organic way!
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The April Garden Checklist
Spring is here! Shed off those winter blues and head outdoors to restore your lawn and garden. The days are getting longer and your soil is beginning to wake up. April is a great time to get out in your yard and begin again.
Wondering where to start? We’ve got 6 tasks you can accomplish this month in your own yard.
April Garden Checklist:
1. Start tomato seeds.
The best way to get a head start on growing tomatoes is to start seeds indoors 4-6 weeks before the last spring frost date in your region. See our Guide to Growing Tomatoes. Start your seeds with Espoma Organic Seed Starter and feed your tomatoes with Espoma Organic Tomato-tone.
2. Get planting.
Hydrangeas embody everything we love about gardening. They have billowy textures, come in bright colors, and are easy to care for. Plant some this month for the best blooms. Feed your Hydrangeas with Espoma Organic Holly-tone fertilizer.
3. Grow berries.
Did you know blackberries have almost as many antioxidants as blueberries? And raspberries make the perfect addition to jam, cobblers, and pies. Berries are just so delicious, scrumptious, and oh-so-juicy. Plus, many berries are easy to grow and care for. Find out when, where, and how to plant your favorite berries. Feed your berry-producing plants with Espoma Organic Berry-tone fertilizer.
4. Revitalize lawns.
Perform a soil test to find out what your lawn needs, then amend and choose organic. Organic lawns need less watering, fertilizing, and mowing all summer long. Yes — that means you get to spend more time enjoying your beautiful lawn and less time caring for it! Plus, as natural lawn foods break down, your soil becomes stronger on its own and needs less help. Feed your lawn with Espoma Organic All Season Lawn Food.
5. Plant blooms.
Azaleas and Rhododendrons are some of the most popular flowering shrubs. Blooming from late spring to early summer, these shrubs thrive in almost any garden. Plus, they come in virtually every color of the rainbow — from bold pinks, purples, and reds to soft, muted yellows and whites. Make sure you’re adding these bloomers to your garden this year. Feer your beautiful Azaleas and Rhododendrons with Espoma Organic Azalea-tone fertilizer.
6. Feed roses.
Your roses are waking up now, they’ve made it through a long winter and they are starving! Choose Espoma’s organic Rose-tone. It includes more nutrients than any other rose food. Most rose fertilizers contain three nutrients — nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (N-P-K). Here’s how to feed with Rose-tone.
Sit back and relax once you’re done.
April showers will give way to May flowers in no time at all.
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Check out our Total Guide to Growing Organic Berries!
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