Posted by Joan Williams
Vegetables that are picked on your own backyard are more delicious than those on the market. There is a certain gratification on eating vegetables that you yourself have planted. It is recommended that you should have a bigger and wider backyard if you're starting to have a vegetable garden. But if you don't have enough space, you can also plant your vegetables on your window boxes. Now, you and your family can enjoy the crops that you've planted.
Advance planning is required for your future vegetable garden. Without planning, it can affect the success and manageability of your vegetable garden. The traditional method of planting your crops was to plant them in long and orderly rows. It can usually ruin your soil structure by walking between rows. Thus most home gardeners now plant their crops in a bed. Using this method, you can concentrate your compost in an area where your crops are.
Beds are usually made in 8 to 12 inches to enhance the drainage system and make our soil warmer in cold weather. Another method is portage. This type of gardening mixes flowers, herbs, and vegetable in an ornamental way. So, it makes your garden looks beautiful at the same time functional.
And also location should be considered when planning for a garden. Plants need a lot of sunlight and needs open area to grow well. And vegetables need 8 long hours of sunlight each day to grow well. To economize your garden, you should grow your crops next to each other that mature at different time. So that your garden crops can have all the sunlight and space they want when needed.
Your location should have a good soil. Good soil is not easy to find. To check the nature of your soil, squeeze a handful of soil for moisture content. When it forms a clump then the soil is not good for gardening because it is too wet to work. In order to enhance your soil quality, you should use the right tillage and good organic and soil amendments.
This type of soil might form into hard cemented clumps. In order to enhance the quality of your soil at the same time increase your yield. You should use the correct tillage and good organic and soil amendments. Also, you should plant on ground level for ease in irrigating. Planting on a slope level can wash away your soil during irrigation. To solve this problem, put rows across the slopes. For vining crops like tomato, squash, cucumber and pole beans, plant them in a vertical manner. By using trellises, stakes, cages or other supports can minimize your spaced used and also maximize your work area.
Finally, make sure to plant enough crops for your family. When planting vegetables you should consider factors like disease resistance, maturity date, compactness of plant, and also the size, the shape, and the color of the vegetables. Also, gardening is a way to ease stress. So try to enjoy it.
Dont be left in the dark when it comes to learning how to grow vegetables. Check out my site, howtogrowavegetablegarden.com for ideas on planning a vegetable garden.
categories: vegetables,vegetable garden,gardening,outdoors,hobbies,growing vegetables
Tags: Gardening, Gardening Articles, growing vegetables, hobbies, Outdoors, vegetable garden, vegetables
Posted by Carrie Smith
Gardening means unusual things to different people. Many people vision gardening as a hobby, an exercise or a soothing get away from the pressures of city environment. For these people, the food produced may be just about secondary. Growing fresh vegetables, herbs, or fruits gives a great sense of happiness and accomplishment. A vegetable garden can also lessen the food budget of a family. One of the major reasons that people garden is that vegetables from the supermarket cannot compare in taste, class, or cleanness with vegetables grown in the home garden.
Weather changes erratically. A quantity of vegetables will grow like weeds in a certain temperature and others will shrink up and die. It just depends. It's vital that when setting up your garden, you chat to the gardening specialist at the shop where you buy your seeds.
In setting up a garden of your own, the first step is to choose the kind of vegetable you want to plant in your garden. Yes, you can choose whatever you want to plant, but you should be aware that there are various veggies that are not suitable because of the limitation of space and the different weather
The second thing you should do is to create a plan in your garden. This includes the different vegetables you want to be there in your garden, the space amid the rows and the moment you plant your vegetables.
The third concern is soil. You do not need to have the perfect type of soil to grow an excellent garden. If possible the soil should be productive and easy to till, with just the right texture -- a loose, well-drained loam. Keep away from any soil that remains squelchy after a rain. Weighty clay and sandy soils can be improved by adding organic matter. Of course, gardening will be easier if you start with a naturally rich soil.
In addition, water is also a concern. Vegetables need a constant supply of water as well as rainwater and irrigation. So, it is essential to locate your garden close to a source of water.
Lastly, there should be good air drainage. Avoid positioning the garden in a low spot such as the bottom of a hill or the foot of a slope bounded by a solid barrier. These areas are slow to warm in the spring, and frost forms more readily in them because cold air cannot drain away. Vegetable gardens placed on elevated ground are more possibly to escape light freezes, permitting an earlier start in the spring and a longer crop in the fall.
Want to know how to grow a vege garden the right way? Well, then check out this site, howtogrowavegetablegarden.com, for awesome ideas on starting a vegetable garden.
Tags: Gardening, Gardening Articles, growing fruit, growing vegetables, hobbies, how to grow a vegetable garden, Outdoors, vegetable garden, vegetables
Posted by Sarah Duke
Local experts can be a great place to start your vegetable gardening odyssey. You may not get the one-on-one garden advice you need from a place like Home Depot, but local nursery store owners and master gardeners are great sources of gardening information. Be sure to visit the Farmer's Almanac page to learn about your local growing season and when the last frost is expected to arrive. This can help you plan when you'll begin your gardening season. If you're beginning in late spring or summer, there are still a few quick-growing crops like lettuce and transplanted tomatoes that you may be able to salvage.
The first step in starting a vegetable garden is choosing the best location and size. Firstly, make sure your site gets as much sunlight as possible. Most vegetables require around six to eight hours of direct sunshine each day for the best results. If you have a shadier location, you can plant your spinach and lettuce there. As you evaluate your yard, make certain to take into consideration the shade cast by your house, trees and storage buildings during specific times of the day.
In a perfect world, the garden will be conveniently located near the kitchen, so you can tend to it with less effort and bring in your crop without traveling a long way. The best soil will be full of nutrients and drain properly, so you might need to add organic compost and use the right tools to aerate the earth before you start.
First you must plan how large your garden will be. Usually, several beds in a 20 x 20 plot for space hogging vegetables like corn, tomatoes or squash is good, or a 12 x 16 plot for cucumbers, peppers and herbs. Once you plot out your garden, you'll need a few garden supplies, such as a tape measure, string, 12 to 18-inch stakes and a hammer. Situate the rows running from east to west, with the taller plants on the north end. Stake down the four corners of your garden and then set to work roto-tilling to turn up the soil. Get rid of all the weeds and test the soil before your vegetable gardening can officially commence. Ideally, you want a pH between 6 and 6.8. For low pH, use limestone. For high pH, use sulfur.
Over the years, you'll begin to fine-tune your vegetable gardening. You may find some crops do extraordinarily well, while others are a flop. You may decide to add new veggies to the mix or plant more of a certain crop that worked very well. Once your cool season crop finishes its season (like peas), you can try planting a warm season crop (like zucchini). You may also try a technique known as "interplanting," which involves planting a quick-maturing crop like lettuce next to slow-growing broccoli. The idea is that you'll harvest all your lettuce by the time the broccoli is looking to stretch out. Try growing plants from several different varieties to increase your chance of success and to find the best performing types.
The benefits of a vegetable garden can't be beat. You'll get to enjoy fresh picked produce and you'll get some great exercise at the same time! From fall vegetable gardens to a raised vegetable garden, you'll find the information you need at the Vegetable Garden Site.
Tags: Gardening, Gardening Articles, vegetable garden, vegetable gardening, vegetable gardening basics, vegetable gardening for beginners
Posted by Sarah Duke
For as long a time as humans have planted and reaped, fertilizer has had a role in farming. Countless kinds of fertilizer have been experimented with in the search for a bigger and higher quality harvest. Some of them have been more effective than others. Among the well established ways to improve the quality of soil, surprisingly enough, is with seaweed fertilizer.
For centuries, coastal regions around the world have relied on seaweed fertilizer. In England, in the Channel Islands, there's in fact an industry explicitly devoted to harvesting and drying seaweed. It is utilized for diverse purposes such as soil fertilization.
In Ireland, seaweed also enjoyed popularity as an effective fertilizer. The soil would be lifted up in rows, the seaweed put down, and then the earth would be replaced. Even though it's not as widespread nowadays, this was the typical practice for sowing and cultivating potatoes in that nation. Even nowadays, the coastal industries of Ireland gather large amounts of seaweed and kelp.
Seaweed is an astonishingly valuable means by which to improve the soil quality of a garden. The explanation behind this is that the large bodies of water that are home to seaweed include every substance known to mankind. Seaweed takes in these elements and transfers them to the soil when you add it to your garden.
Seaweed fertilizers are a popular choice among conscientious gardeners. The explanation for this is that it is an organic product derived from plants, and can enhance the soil in combination with other forms of organic fertilizer. There is no downside to it as there is with a number of the chemical laden commercial fertilizers. These products often contain uncertain ingredients. In addition, the manufacture of these products releases a significant amount of impurities into the air.
Seaweed fertilizer can be additional straight on to the soil, similar to mulch. Place it around and in between the plants. It tends to decompose quite swiftly.
It can also be added to your compost bin. It will assist in the process of decay and will add precious nutrients. You can also make it into a tea, either making use of the liquid or powder varieties. You then mist this potion onto the leaves to supply another source of nutrients.
Seaweed has a long and successful history in gardens around the world. If you're fortunate enough to live near a large body of water, you can likely find it at the water's edge. But for the rest of us, a a trip to the local nursery is just about as easy. Request kelp meal or other types of seaweed fertilizers. And while you're there, ask them to give you some strategies on how to add it to your garden to give it new life.
It's hard to go wrong when you plant a vegetable garden. You can enjoy delicious fresh produce while getting some exercise. Visit The Vegetable Patch for advice on getting started with vegetable gardening.
Tags: garden fertilizer, Gardening, Gardening Articles, seaweed fertilizer, vegetable garden
Posted by Susan Honeywell
You may have heard about the new White House vegetable garden, or maybe you have already thought about organic vegetable gardening for a while. In any case, if you too want to get rid of some or all of your labor-intensive, environmentally unfriendly lawn, here's how to do it.
Many people who would like to turn to organic vegetable gardening are put off by the idea that it must be a difficult and time-consuming endeavour, and that a lot of tilling and other back-breaking work is involved. In fact, if you follow some basic permaculture precepts and let nature do its work, it will be very easy work. Unless your lawn is contaminated by a lot of pesticides, you won't even have to remove the grass.
First, delimit the lawn area for your organic vegetable garden with some thread, or with chalk. You can make it as big as the White House veggie garden patch, thirty by thirty feet, or smaller. Water this area generously, making sure that the ground is thoroughly soaked.
Cover the area with a six inch thick mix of sand or gravel, old grass clippings, soil, and some ready-made organic compost or manure. This will ensure a solid nutrient base for your organic vegetables to grow on in years to come. Cover everything with cardboard, or with several layers of newspaper. This cover will eventually become compost too.
Now build a raised bed frame around the whole area for your organic vegetable garden, providing for walk paths if the area is big. It's best to use solid, untreated wood planks. You can add dividing frames if you like. The previous paper layer needs to stick out from the sides of the main frame.
Now fill the frame or frames with organic compost and topsoil. In the beginning you will have to buy the compost, but after your organic vegetable garden has gotten underway you will be able to make your own. Add some porous pebbles or vermiculite to the mix for aeration.
You should now leave everything as it is for at least a couple of weeks, ideally for a month. In this time, your old lawn and the organic materials on top will decompose, with the help of earthworms that will return to the previously sterile earth, and everything will turn into a fertile mixture for your seeds.
Now you can start your kitchen garden, either using seedlings from other plants or from a nursery, or by growing vegetables from seed. In the latter case, it is best to use certified organic seeds. There are several online retailers that sell them if you can't find them in your area.
To make sure that you'll enjoy the produce don't just pick the most typical plants for an organic vegetable garden, go for the ones that you like and that often turn up in your kitchen, and don't be afraid to leave any popular plants out. But make sure that you plant according to season.
If you have kids, make sure to involve them in the new garden from the start. They will love it and it will also be a great educational experience for the. Besides, you are going to spend more time with them and get help tending your organic vegetable garden.
While you're at it, you should start a compost heap. You can use a plastic composter, which are often available for free from local government, or build a couple of wooden frames to start two compost heaps. This will allow you to supply your organic vegetable garden with fresh soil and nutrients by recycling kitchen waste and lawn clippings.
OrganicHerbalGardening.com is the premier resource for organic gardening on the Net, with updates on topics such as seasonal gardening, as well as on indoor herb gardens, organic cooking, organic fertilizers - click the links above to find out more!
Tags: cooking, food garden, Garden, garden tools, gardening advice, Gardening Articles, gardening equipments, gardening techniques, gardening tips, herbal garden, leisure, organic cooking, organic garden, Organic herbal garden, vegetable garden
Posted by Althea Joy Ingrid
by Althea Joy Ingrid
A garden landscape is a wonderful and relaxing place to be in away from the hassle and bustle of the noisy downtown. Garden landscaping is usually laid out in a large area but still some gardens are also made in limited space.
Formal Garden Landscaping was Popular in Europe during the Renaissance Era and in 1880s in the United States. Formal gardening landscape are made of geometric patterns that has boundaries that are defined by stone walkways, walls, hedges, fences, fountains, and statuary. Still Formal gardening landscape exists today in Botanical gardens and large estates. While the Modern/Domestic Garden landscape are the ones made on limited available space especially for people who live in urban areas. The following are the types of Garden landscaping that are widely use today which are the Organic, Herb, Roof, Vegetable, Rock, Water, Flower, and Public gardens.
The Organic garden landscape is highly emphasize nowadays because it will not use artificial pesticides and fertilizers that harms living things. This garden landscape they use only biological fertilizers and pesticides to keep the plants healthy.
The Herb garden landscape is found in medieval gardens and botanical gardens. The plants found in this garden landscapes are those with medicinal purposes like parsley, fennel, thyme, marjoram, dill, and rosemary which can be used also in flavoring foods.
Roof garden landscape are found in urban areas which have limited space. The plants are usually in small pots and containers.
The healthiest Garden Landscape is the Vegetable garden landscaping. This garden landscaping type needs an open and sunny location. Rotation of crops is important to prevent disease transmission of the plants to each other. It's also vital that you are knowledgeable on the season that you should plant a vegetable because not all vegetables withstand the same season.
Rock Garden landscape mimics rocky hillside or a slope. In this garden landscape it's vital that it should be part of a hillside. The use of a bit of large boulders looks better than small rocks. The rocks should be arranged to provide various exposures to sun-tolerant plants like rock roses and shade-tolerant plant like primulas.
The location, culture, and climate is important for the water garden landscape. In Europe and North America, the shape of the water garden landscape are rectangular or circular pools that contain one water lilies and a fountain. While the informal water garden landscape in United States and Europe is irregularly shaped and profusion of water lilies. In Japan the water garden landscape have particular and beautiful patterns that has been preserved for centuries. In temperate countries, the water garden landscape is grown under the glass with pools that are heated. The water garden landscape is the oldest form of garden landscape. In Egypt, about 2000 BC the records shows the cultivation of lilies.
Flower Garden Landscaping is perhaps what really caught our attention due to its colorful blooms. The vital components of this garden landscape is the blending and contrast of colors as well as the forms that are stressed in the design. It's important to know which flowers can be planted in the garden.
Last type of garden landscape is the Public garden landscaping. Some Public Garden Landscape are world-famous an example of which is Japanese Garden in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park.
There are many varieties of plants available now. So choose which garden landscape you want to have and enjoy.
Tags: Flower Garden, garden landscape, Gardening Articles, Herb Garden, organic garden, public garden, Rock Garden, roof garden, vegetable garden, water garden
Posted by Michael McAfee
Tomato Selection Tomato varieties are as vast and many as there are stars in the sky. Your nursery should sell those plants which perform best in your area. Be sure to select the dark green plants which are shorter with the thickest stems, with no holes in the leaves. Stay away from plants that are tall and thin. Tomato plants come in a vast array of sizes, shapes and colors. Selecting the best plants to grow is vital to a healthy tomato garden.
Indeterminate vs. Determinate Indeterminate plants require support, usually in the form of a cage or stake. They produce earlier and larger yields than determinates. Many say they have a better flavor as well. Indeterminates will grow until they are killed by frost. As long as conditions stay favorable these plants will continue to produce. Determinates are typically short and stocky. They are bred for this and ripen the bulk of their fruit in five weeks or less. They normally do not need to be supported. However, some vigorous determinates may need to be aided to keep from lying on the ground. Dwarfs do not need support and do well in containers. Miniatures are very small plants with penny-sized fruits which are grown more for decoration rather than consumption.
Resistance Tomatoes are susceptible to quite an assortment of diseases. Included are: bacterial spot, botrytis fruit rot, bacterial canker, bacterial wilt, fusarium wilt, mosaic, septoria leaf spot, curly top, tobacco mosaic, and early and late blights. Choosing disease-resistant plants is vital since many of these diseases cannot be treated. This is especially true in hot regions where humidity is high, which provides the perfect environment for many of these infections.
Disease resistance is noted by the following abbreviations: As, alternaria stem canker; A, alternaria (early) blight; L, gray leaf spot; T, tobacco mosaic virus; V, verticillium wilt; N, nematodes; F, fusarium wilt, race 1; F2, fusarium wilt race 2.
Listed below are some of the best tomatoes and their resistance:
Beefsteak- Indeterminate; open-pollinated red beefsteak with meaty, faintly ribbed 1-pound fruits.
Better Boy- Indeterminate; high yield of twelve ounce fruits (VFNAs).
Big Beef- Indeterminate; hybrid red beef-steak with good-flavored, meaty 10-ounce fruits; exceptional disease resistance; All-America Selections Winner; (VFF2AsLNT)
Brandywine- Widely perceived as the best tasting tomato available; no resistance; pink heirloom with 10 ounce fruit.
Caro Rich- Low acid, does well in cool temperature, orange five ounce fruit, high in Vit A.
Celebrity- Red hybrid with large production of seven ounce fruit, AAS winner, exceptional disease resistance; (VFF2AsNLT).
Early Girl- Indeterminate; red hybrid with high yields of rich-flavored 4-ounce fruits; early fruit production; garden favorite; (V).
Jetstar- Must be staked or pruned, yields large production of red eight ounce fruit; lower in acid.
Marglobe- (F); cracks easily, produces sweet 7 ounce red fruit.
Rutgers- (F); red hybrid with enormous yield of 9 ounce mildly flavored fruit.
Michael McAfee has almost nearly forty years of gardening experience, and has composed a very practicle guide to growing tomatoes. For a limited time you can get a free copy by visiting Your Tomato Garden. Get a totally unique version of this article from our article submission service
Tags: food, Garden, Gardening, Gardening Articles, growing tomatoes, hobby, homegrown tomato tips, homegrown tomatoes, how to grow tomatoes, tips on growing tomatoes, tomato, tomato garden, tomato gardening, tomatoes, vegetable garden
Posted by Connor Schnitzinflurbin
Selecting Tomatoes As far as tomato variety goes, your choices are endless. Your local nursery will stock tomato transplants that suit your climate. Choose dark green stocky plants with no blooms and no holes in the leaves. The ideal plant should be as wide as it is tall. Avoid the tall spindly plants. They are available in a myriad of sizes, shapes and colors. The key to a triumphant tomato garden is choosing the right type of plant.
Determinate (bush) vs. Indeterminate (vine) Determinate tomato plants are short and bushy. They are bred for their small size, and to ripen the majority or their fruit all at once. Most determinates do not need caging or staking, but some plants called vigorous determinates, could possibly need help keeping themselves off the soil. Dwarfs, however, do not need support and are idea for growing in containers. Miniatures are tiny plants with short stems and marble-size fruits that are usually grown for decoration rather than for consumption. In contrast, indeterminate tomatoes continue to grow until they are killed by frost. They do require support, and will produce earlier and greater fruit yields than determinates. Some say the taste better too. As long as the conditions are favorable, indeterminate plants will remain productive.
Resistance Tomatoes are susceptible to quite an assortment of diseases. Included are: bacterial spot, botrytis fruit rot, bacterial canker, bacterial wilt, fusarium wilt, mosaic, septoria leaf spot, curly top, tobacco mosaic, and early and late blights. Choosing disease-resistant plants is vital since many of these diseases cannot be treated. This is especially true in hot regions where humidity is high, which provides the perfect environment for many of these infections.
Tomato plant disease resistance is labeled with these abbreviations: N, nematodes; T, tobacco mosaic virus; V, verticillium wilt; A, alternaria (early) blight; As, alternaria stem canker; L, gray leaf spot; F, fusarium wilt, race 1; F2, fusarium wilt race 2.
Listed below are some of the best tomatoes and their resistance:
Beefsteak- Indeterminate; open-pollinated red beefsteak with meaty, faintly ribbed 1-pound fruits.
Better Boy- Indeterminate; red hybrid bearing large crops of 12-ounce fruits with fine flavor; good leaf cover; (VFNAs).
Big Beef- Red beef steak with meaty ten ounce fruits, exceptional disease resistance; All America Selections Winner; (VFF2AsLNT).
Brandywine- Widely perceived as the best tasting tomato available; no resistance; pink heirloom with 10 ounce fruit.
Caro Rich- Low acid, does well in cool temperature, orange five ounce fruit, high in Vit A.
Celebrity- Vigorous determinate; red hybrid with heavy yields of 7-ounce fruits, outstanding disease resistance; All-America Selections Winner; (VFF2AsNLT).
Early Girl- Indeterminate; red hybrid with high yields of rich-flavored 4-ounce fruits; early fruit production; garden favorite; (V).
Jetstar- Indeterminate; red hybrid with high yields of firm, meaty, low-acid 8 ounce fruits; does best when staked and pruned.
Marglobe- Vigorous determinate; red with sweet 6-ounce fruits; susceptible to cracking; (F).
Rutgers- (F); red hybrid with enormous yield of 9 ounce mildly flavored fruit.
Michael McAfee has almost 40 years of gardening experience, and has written a very practicle guide to growing tomatoes. For a short time you can get a free copy by visiting Your Tomato Garden. Click here to get your own unique version of this article with free reprint rights.
Tags: food, Garden, Gardening, Gardening Articles, growing tomatoes, hobby, homegrown tomato tips, homegrown tomatoes, how to grow tomatoes, tips on growing tomatoes, tomato, tomato garden, tomato gardening, tomatoes, vegetable garden
Posted by Liam McDurbish
by Liam McDurbish
Your tomato garden will provide you with one of the greatest pleasures of summer: fresh homegrown tomatoes.
If you have been lucky enough to taste a tomato fresh from the vine you will agree with the lyrics of Guy Clark, "There's only two things money can't buy. That's true love and homegrown tomatoes". Tomatoes not only taste wonderful, they provide many vitamins and nutrients as well, such as
Vitamin C ( boosts immune response, gingival health, produces collagen which strengthens muscle and bone, as well as an excellent antioxidant).
Vitamin A ( allows your eyes to better adjust to dramatic changes in light, wonderful antioxidant, keeps all mucous membranes well hydrated).
Lycopene-Tomatoes are the richest source of lycopene in the US diet (shown to be beneficial in reducing the risk of prostate cancer, ongoing research suggests that lycopene may be heart protective and may aid in blood pressure and bone health).
Studies have shown that the more tomatoes people ate, the lower their risks of many different kinds of cancer. Your tomato garden will produce much more succulent tomatoes than those available at your local grocer. This is largely due to the fact that the juiciest varieties cannot be shipped without damaging the fruit.
Tomatoes are not traditionally considered a fruit. A fruit is the ripened ovary or ovaries of a seed-bearing plant, containing the seeds and occurring in a wide variety of forms. A vegetable is the edible seeds, roots, stems, leaves, bulbs or tubers of any herbaceous plant. Therefore tomatoes are fruits. To make the matter more confusing, in 1883 the United States Supreme Court declared the tomato a vegetable.
Throughout history tomatoes have been vastly mistaken. Tomatoes are perennials, however, they are treated as annuals because they cannot live through fall frosts. They are a member of the nightshade genus with heritage tracing back to South America. Originally mistaken for a poisonous plant, they were used for decoration and nothing more. Not until Thomas Jefferson came along were the edible prospects discovered. Now, on a yearly basis, every American will swallow nearly 90 pounds of tomatoes.
Since modest beginnings, tomatoes have become the most popularly grown garden plant in America. Easy to care for, good for your health, and great to eat, tomatoes make a wonderful contribution to any garden.
Tags: Garden, Gardening, Gardening Articles, growing tomatoes, homegrown tomato tips, homegrown tomatoes, how to grow tomatoes, outdoor hobbies, outdoor recreation, tips on growing tomatoes, tomato, tomato garden, tomato gardening, tomatoes, vegetable garden
Posted by Michael McAfee
by Michael McAfee
Your tomato garden will provide you with one of the greatest pleasures of summer: fresh homegrown tomatoes.
As noted by singer-songwriter Guy Clark, "There's only two things money can't buy. That's true love and homegrown tomatoes". Anyone who has had the good fortune of tasting a tomato fresh from the vine will surely agree with Clark. Not only do homegrown tomatoes taste scrumptious, they offer many health benefits as well. Your tomato garden will be an excellent source of
Vitamin C (essential for a healthy immune system, keeps gums healthy, has antioxidant properties, and is partially responsible for producing collagen found in muscle and bone).
Vitamin A ( allows your eyes to better adjust to dramatic changes in light, wonderful antioxidant, keeps all mucous membranes well hydrated).
Lycopene- of all the foods you eat, tomatoes are the best source of lycopene anywhere ( lycopene reduces the risk of prostate cancer, and is proving to protect the heart as well as decrease blood pressure).
Studies have shown that the more tomatoes people ate, the lower their risks of many different kinds of cancer. Your tomato garden will produce much more succulent tomatoes than those available at your local grocer. This is largely due to the fact that the juiciest varieties cannot be shipped without damaging the fruit.
Fruit? Botanically speaking, tomatoes are a fruit. A fruit is the mature reproductive body, or ovary, of a plant (a bloom that develops into a fruit and contains seeds). A vegetable is the edible part of a plant such as a root, stem or leaf. Therefore the tomato is technically a fruit. But in 1893, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that tomatoes are a vegetable, not a fruit.
Throughout history tomatoes have been vastly mistaken. Tomatoes are perennials, however, they are treated as annuals because they cannot live through fall frosts. They are a member of the nightshade genus with heritage tracing back to South America. Originally mistaken for a poisonous plant, they were used for decoration and nothing more. Not until Thomas Jefferson came along were the edible prospects discovered. Now, on a yearly basis, every American will swallow nearly 90 pounds of tomatoes.
Since limited beginnings, tomatoes have exploded into the most popular garden inhabitant in the U.S. They are easy to grow, excellent source of vitamins and delicious, tomatoes are a splendid addition to any garden.
Tags: Garden, Gardening, Gardening Articles, growing tomatoes, homegrown tomato tips, homegrown tomatoes, how to grow tomatoes, outdoor hobbies, outdoor recreation, tips on growing tomatoes, tomato, tomato garden, tomato gardening, tomatoes, vegetable garden
