Brummet's Conscious Blog

Explaining Garden Terms Have you ever noticed how happy gardeners tend to be? Perhaps this comes from communing with nature, sharing nutrient-rich harvests with others, or knowing that every increased amount of food-producing greenery helps battle the environmental problems our world faces. For Dave and I, gardening– a.k.a. playing in the dirt - is just that. Play time, time for meditation and to listen to the birds. Yet, gardening can mean so much more. About 25 years ago our family became members of Canada's Heritage Seed Program - now known as Seeds of Diversity Canada - and have never looked back. This organization works with hundreds of seed-saving groups, government departments, individual gardeners and farmers all over the world to preserve a vast global seed bank. We have been proud to help save several varieties from extinction, forever, through our donations and activities for this organization.  In various discussions over the years we have noticed that there is a lot ...

Understanding Garden Terms Do you find yourself confused by terms like: hybrid, genetically modified, heirloom, open-pollinated, heritage and microsystem? In this article we will go over some basics that will help clear up some of the confusion. First, let’s look at the difference between a microsystem and an ecosystem. To gardeners an ecosystem would be used to describe the region’s average high and low temperatures, sea level, rainfall and moisture and the zone. A micro-system  (also spelled: microsystem) could be your entire property or sections of the property. For instance, if you have one corner that tends to remain moist, and another that gets mostly shade, while a different area has full sun… those are all examples of different micro-systems. Each microsystem will have plants and wildlife that will thrive in those particular conditions. Open-pollinated  means the plants produced naturally with nature doing all the work. Heritage  has come to mean open-pollinat...

You've likely heard me talk about greening buildings, yards, balconies etc. on the radio show, or read posts about it here or in our Trash Talk book series... Today I'd like to share a few thoughts on how planting a little green can save you a lot of green - cold hard cash.  First - landscaping can increase the value of your home by 15-20%! This works best when you are considering curb appeal, planting for privacy and also diversity. Mature landscapes or those a few years old are much more likely to drive up the value of your home. Simply installing a patio area and entrance area with interesting plants can increase the value of your home by 4-12%! It really is that easy.  As you've heard me talk about on the radio show, you can use plants to increase the energy efficiency of your home. If you plant deciduous trees (those that drop leaves in the fall) on the south and west sides of your home - shade will be created, keeping the home cooler i...

Eco-Events: 38th Annual Tryon Creek Trillium Festival and Native Plant Sale When : Saturday, April 7 , 10:00 to 4:00 pm. Where : 11321 SW Terwilliger Blvd., Portland, OR (USA) ...an educational event for the whole community that celebrates spring.  -- Invasive Species Removal When : April 7 @ 9:00 am - 11:00 am Cost : Free; volunteer event Where : Siegel-Kline Kill Conservation Area, 1452 Garage Place Road - Ghent, NY (US) Details : Get down and dirty removing invasive weeds at our first volunteer workday of 2018! We’ll be removing invasive Japanese Honeysuckle at Siegel-Kline Kill, continuing our habitat restoration project led by Master Gardener volunteers Tim Kennelty and Glenda Berman. Please be sure to register for this event so that we can be in touch if the details change. https://clctrust.org/event/invasive-species-removal/ -- Backyard Habitat Spring Plant Sale When : April 13 - 14 Whe...

It’s Alive! The Living Soil  * Today's article, written by Andy Lopez of the Invisible Gardener, will help us understand about the relationship between the nutrients your plants need and biological activity in the soil. The article was edited by the blog owner, however, and a few corrections made. There are two ways to get minerals needed by plants: The first and fastest as well as easiest is to apply through foliar spraying onto the leaves and trunk. Trees and most other plants are much like humans in that they can absorb nutrients thru their "skin". Another way to get minerals to the plants is to provide it in the soil by adding compost, which is rich in minerals and bacteria. This is the main reason we make compost piles or bins - to provide the proper condition for bacteria and minerals to get together and produce these nutrients in the form that the plants can then use. ( *Blog Owner's Note: Remember a few days ago on this blog we talked about t...

-- Quote of the Day --  “Never forget who you are and where you come from,  or you will never arrive at where you want to be.” ~ Mary Medico  -- Choosing The Right Plant --  * Today's article was written by: Todd Wessel - Certified Professional Horticulturist, Landscape Technician and Maryland Pesticide Applicator. He welcomes feedback via: twscapes@gmail.com When it comes to any new landscape planting, especially a small garden, it's crucial to fully understand the conditions your plants will encounter on a daily basis. All plants have specific needs for sun, shade, water etc. but small gardens can exacerbate these needs because of the restricted design of the layout. With limited space for growth, drainage, airflow etc., even small gardens can have micro climates: - increased wind stresses and dries out plants - decreased airflow greatly increasing humidity and disease - drainage problems keeping soil wet an...