What Is Valerian Root Good For

The wood is heavy, but that helps keep sparks and smoke at enjoyable minimums. Age your hackberry wood one year to get the best it has to give, Dried hackberry logs burn much better than freshly cut or unseasoned wood.

Moreover, the combination caused a moldy substance to coat the plant's soil, preventing absorption of any nutrients from the soil.Plants need a combination of light, water and soil that contains minerals such as nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium, magnesium,...

When the leaves are totally dry, cut off the leaves and roots and brush off any dry soil. Individual bulbs should have their dried stalks removed for sales or for storage in mesh potato or onion bags.

The tubers can also be sliced and eaten raw in salads. To get a jumpstart on the season, you can plant oca tubers in pots kept indoors under grow lights as early as March and then transplant them into the garden when the danger of frost has passed.

Do not add nitrogen-rich fertilizer to sweet potatoes, as it encourages excessive vine growth at the expense of tuber production. If you'd like, you can mulch newly planted slips with straw, untreated grass clippings or shredded leaves, but if you're...

An early-season mistake turns into a win for this farmer. As I thought about it, I realized that we had a very cool spring here in Kentucky, which may have prevented the daikon from bolting and going to seed too quickly.

Harvest your carrots all at once, or just pull a few a day and use them as needed. Because phosphorous is fairly immobile in the soil, it needs to be close to the root zone of the plant.

Golden beets, Chioggia beets and Albino beets are my personal favorites. Beets and other root crops need an ample amount of phosphorous to grow large roots. Leave an inch or so of stem intact.

Do not wash the bulbs before curing them. When To Harvest Just like garlic and onions, shallots are ready for harvest when the leaves turn yellow and begin to die back. Shallot bulbs are beautiful: They're tapered at both ends and have pink or brown,...

Root crops are some of the earliest spring vegetables you can plant in the garden. For staggered harvests, sow 20 to 30 seeds every two weeks throughout the spring. Try these varieties: Purple Top: my family's favorite Golden Globe: cherished for both...

Growers often continue taking cuttings and transplanting them to the fields throughout April, May and June. The small seed potatoes are planted about 2 inches deep in the seeding beds when the soil temperature reaches 65 to 70 degrees F, usually sometime...

Combine 1 cup ammonia with 2 cups of white distilled vinegar, then add it to 5 gallons of water. This will encourage fruiting. Do this about once every two weeks in the spring. For that reason, it can be used on edible as well as non-edible plants without...

If you do this, keep fronds misted and cool: Like dill, they will readily wilt. To avoid a disappointing growing season next year, renew the soil with good compost after harvesting fennel and rotate your fennel plantings away from the aforementioned crops...

I ended up planting 8 pounds of Kennebec seed potatoes. The process is known as “curing.” When I harvest my mature potato crop, I use a digging or pitch fork to gently lift the entire plant up and out of the ground.

It has also been found to be effective as a topical poultice for arthritic joints. In short order, you'll have a large patch to share with friends and family. A potent aromatic that can release congestion in many systems of the body, horseradish is a...

Soil pH should be 6.5 to 7.5. When to plant: Direct-seed in very early spring (ideal soil temperatures for germination are between 55 and 65 degrees). Where to plant: Garden; containers When to harvest: 30 to 40 days after seeding, when leaves are 1 to...

Beneficial nematodes are microscopic, worm-like organisms that seek out and attack ground-dwelling pests. The soil area from which phosphorous can be absorbed is limited to a very small space around the root itself.

These lightweight, white fabric covers rest on the plant tops and create a physical barrier to all kinds of pests. It will be readily available come spring. To stagger my harvest, I sow a handful of seeds every week or two through the spring up until...

For their medicinal value, it's really best to grow your own and harvest them just as you need them. These colonies are there to digest our food properly. In a couple months we'll trim off the tops to prepare for digging, though some people use a mower.

So many farmers' market vendors focus on tomatoes, summer squash and other popular crops. Planting Because the vegetables of the Apiaceae family often require a lengthy growing season, you'll want to get started early.

Direct-seed when soil temperatures are between 60 and 70 degrees F. Produce storage: Store roots unwashed just above freezing at a high humidity (a root cellar is ideal) for several months.

It's row cover. Why They're Easy Few crops go from seed to plate as fast as a radish —sometimes in as little as 25 days! Radishes are relatively pest-free in comparison to the rest of the cabbage family and rarely suffer from disease because they grow...

And according to Louise Riotte in her classic book Carrots Love Tomatoes (Storey Publishing, 1998), hairy vetch seems to make a good companion for the turnip family. They store better than your average turnip—up to six month under the right conditions—so...

I knew that I'd be repotting "Denny" in a pot with a drain hole; that didn't faze me. I used to think that any plant up for sale had been lovingly nurtured.Surely it had led a charmed life in some lovely rural setting, allowed to stretch its roots and...

If you follow a few simple guidelines, baskets full of crisp, peppery radishes will find their way to the dinner table or market in a mere 30 days. The greens can also be sauteed or braised.

White Hailstone Radish Although another white radish, Icicle, has become quite popular, White Hailstone hasn't found the same level of fame. The thin skin of this gorgeous tomato turns a creamy, very pale yellow when fully ripe.

The potatoes are shriveled by the time planting-time arrives next spring and they might have already sprouted, but the tubers can still be used. Get way down under the plant so you don't spear any spuds.