Growing Potatoes in a Barrel

Growing Potatoes in a Barrel

Start in spring. Potatoes take all season to fully mature, so begin this project around your average last frost date (which you can find out from your county extension agent).

Select the spuds. They grow from chunks of last year’s crop — chunks with an “eye,” or rootlet, are referred to as “seed potatoes.” Each “eye” produces a cluster of new tubers. You can find countless potato varieties at Danville Gardens, but small to medium-size ones work best in a barrel.

Pick a barrel. Plain or fancy, it’s your call. A whiskey barrel or a common trash can. If your container has been used before, be sure to scrub it out well to get rid of fungi that might cause your potatoes to rot before you harvest them.

Drill for drainage. If the barrel doesn’t already have holes in it where excess water can drain out quickly, drill a few in the bottom and in the sides close to the bottom. Quarter- to half-inch holes are big enough

Give it a lift.  Set the barrel in a sunny spot and get it up on blocks or bricks so it sits a few inches above the ground and air can circulate around it.

Add the soil mix. Make up a soil mix by blending three parts of compost with two parts of peat moss. Fill the bottom of your barrel six inches deep with the mix. Dampen the mix.

Plant your spuds. Place the seed potatoes a couple inches apart in the soil mix. Keep the mix moist but never soggy (which can cause the potatoes to rot).

Cover after sprouting. In a week or so the seed potatoes will have sprouts about six to eight inches tall. Add more soil mix to cover them up to their bottom leaves. Again, keep the mix moist, but not soggy. Repeat the process of allowing the sprouts to grow, adding more soil to cover the sprouts and moistening the soil until the barrel is filled to the top.

Keep the moisture constant. Remember to keep the soil damp but not wet. Feed the plants with liquid fish and seaweed fertilizer (available at nurseries and home centers) weekly or biweekly until you see little white or yellow flowers on the vines, which indicate that the new potatoes have begun forming.

Dig for buried treasure. At the end of the growing season, the vines turn yellow and die back. The potatoes are fully grown. Carefully tip the barrel over, and sift through the soil for the potatoes. Brush the dirt off them (don’t wash them until you’re ready to cook them), and store them in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight

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Danville Gardens
1307 Cleary Ave
Danville IL 61832
217-442-4944
customerservice@danvillegardens.com

As of April 7th: Danville Gardens Tomato Varieties and Sizes:

As of April 7th:  Danville Gardens Tomato Varieties and Sizes:

Beef Master - 4Pk 
Beef Steak - 4Pk - 4" - Gal
Better Boy - 4Pk - 4" - Gal
Big Beef - 4Pk
Big Boy - 4Pk - 4" - Gal
Bradley - 4Pk
Celebrity - 4Pk - 4" - Gal
Cherry, Red - 4Pk
Early Girl - 4" - Gal
Fantastic - 4Pk
Jet Star - 4Pk - 4" - Gal
Juliet(Grape) - 4Pk
Lemon Boy - 4Pk - 4" - Gal
Orange Jubilee - 4Pk
Roma - 4Pk - 4" - Gal
Rutgers - 4Pk - 4" - Gal
Supersonic - 4Pk

$1.75 - 4PK - 4 Packs
$2.00 - 4" - Single tomato in a 4" Pot
$5.00 - Gal - Single Large tomato in a Gallon Pot

http://www.danvillegardens.com/

Danville Gardens
1307 Cleary Ave
Danville IL 61832
217-442-4944
customerservice@danvillegardens.com

Danville Gardens is proud to introduce MIGHTY 'MATOS

Danville Gardens is proud to introduce MIGHTY 'MATOS.

Like superheroes, Mighty 'Matos GRAFTED TOMATOES are stronger, faster, more able to fend off foes than regular tomato plants - and their harvests are bigger.

Grafting joins the top part of one plant (the scion) to the root system of a separate plant (the rootstock).  As their tissues heal, they fuse into one super plant that combines the rootstock's vigor and the disease resistance with the scion's exceptional fruit quality.  The graft must stay above the soil level, and prune lateral suckers for best fruiting.

Grafted Tomato Plants Available only in Gallons:

Pineapple

Amish Paste

Early Girl

Big Beef

Sun Sugar

Brandywine

http://www.danvillegardens.com/

Danville Gardens
1307 Cleary Ave
Danville IL 61832
217-442-4944
customerservice@danvillegardens.com

Are my old seeds still good?

Are my old seeds still good?

If you have unused vegetable seeds in packets leftover from the last several year.  Are they still good to plant this spring?

Under ideal conditions - dry and dark, with a temperature in the 40 degree F range - some seeds with germinate well for five or more years.  Per Iowa State University's Department of Horticulture:

Onions - One Year

Corn and peppers - Two Years

Beans, carrots, peas - Three Years

Beets, pupkins, squash, tomatoes, watermelon - Four Years

Broccoli, cabbage, cucumbers,

 lettuce, cantaloupes, radishes, spinach - Five Years

http://www.danvillegardens.com/

Danville Gardens
1307 Cleary Ave
Danville IL 61832
217-442-4944
customerservice@danvillegardens.com

Put a HIPPO in Your Garden!

Put a HIPPO in Your Garden!

When pest insects attack crops, many plants release chemicals that signal to beneficial insect that lunch is nearby.  One of the more common HIPPOs - Herbivore Induced Plat Protection Odors - is Methyl salicylate, aka oil of wintergreen.  Numerous studies have confirmed that oil of wintergreen attracts a variety of beneficial insects, including ladybugs, lace wings, minute pirate bugs and aphid eating hover flies.  Although available commercially, a DIY approach would be soaking cotton balls in the oil of wintergreen and placing them in the garden inside an empty cottage cheese container with perforated lid. 

http://www.danvillegardens.com/

Danville Gardens
1307 Cleary Ave
Danville IL 61832
217-442-4944
customerservice@danvillegardens.com

Why should I use Mulch?

Why should I use Mulch?

Mulching is used primarily to prevent weed growth and retain moisture.  It also can add to nice manicured fresh look.

 Mulching is mostly known to be put around trees and shrubs, but also adds a lot to perennials, annuals and even vegetables.  Mulching is usually in a wood/bark form but with vegetables grass clippings, leaves and even paper can be used.

Here at Danville Garden we sell a composted hard wood bark that we call Less Care.  This mulch is all natural, brown color and breaks down over the year.  It can be worked in to the soil the next year.  It looks nice, adding moisture retention and nutrients to the soil. 

We sell Less Care in bulk by the yard.  You may pick it up or we can deliver.  Please call 217-442-4944 for pricing.

We also sell Top Soil and Compost in bulk.

http://www.danvillegardens.com/

Danville Gardens
1307 Cleary Ave
Danville IL 61832
217-442-4944
customerservice@danvillegardens.com

How far and when do I cut down my perennial grasses?

How far and when do I cut down my perennial grasses?

Grasses do not need to be cut down before winter.  They add great interest and texture to the winter garden, plus the foliage helps insulate the crown of the plant. 

In the spring before growth begins, cut back the foliage to about 4-6 inches (late February to early March is a good time for this area).  When foliage is removed, spring growth will begin earlier.  Old foliage left on the plant can delay the crown’s warming and will delay the new growth from emerging.  If old foliage is left on too long it becomes more difficult to remove without damaging the new growth. 

Ornamental grasses are a beautiful addition to any garden, adding height, visual interest and movement.  They are easy to grow and require little maintenance.

http://www.danvillegardens.com/

Danville Gardens
1307 Cleary Ave
Danville IL 61832
217-442-4944
customerservice@danvillegardens.com