2020: Lessons in Gardening from the Sky Staff
We hope you have enjoyed and learned a lot from this year's growing season. It has certainly been a unique one, for new & experienced gardeners alike, with lots of opportunities for growth.
Take a look below for some wisdom, laughs, and observations from the Sky garden folk you know and love. Here's what they said when asked, "What did you learn from your garden this year?
Cavorting Carnivores
"Through my work at Sky Nursery this year, I learned a lot more about the intricate and sometimes unexpected relationships between plants and animals, fungi, arthropods etc. Some of my favorite examples are carnivorous plants, which have adapted to the lack of environmental nutrients in several different and extremely interesting ways. Did you know: carnivorous adaptations have happened at least 9 different times in plant species from 5 different families across the world – some species have even traveled between continents!" – Ryan
A Container Trick
"When designing a container, after determining water and light needs, I’ve learned the next step is to find a plant I’m excited about! No matter if it’s a ‘thriller,’ ‘spiller,’ or ‘filler.’ I use that inspiring plant to drive the rest of the design. Choosing a single plant creates a limitation or perimeter to work within, and reduces the infinite world of possibilities down to something more manageable." – Theresa
Observations from a Garden Nut
"Tomatillos are the best bee plants. The garden spiders living on the tomatillos grew the biggest. Next year relocate the spiders away from the tomatillos."
"One zucchini is enough."
"Powdery Mildew should be dealt with immediately."
"Squirrels have no appreciation nor respect for straight rows of veggie starts."
"The Nuthatches at the bird feeder have formed some sick alliance with the squirrels." – Brian
Powdery Mildew, Tomatoes, & Speedwell
"Milk and H2o solution really works to prevent powdery mildew on squash, cucumber and ornamentals."
"Clearing 50% of the leaves on all my tomato plants helped tremendously with maturing and ripening the fruit."
"Veronica (Speedwell) can be cut all the way down after the first bloom is spent and the leaves show disease. It will come back and bloom again in one season." - Jen
In Defense of the Rabbit
"How did the Eastern cottontail not only survive being shipped to the opposite end of the country, and shoved into urban and suburban environments, but also cats, dogs and other unnatural predators, all while thriving on unnatural foods? I wonder what this rabbit could teach us about living with urban and suburban wildlife, and how to garden and appreciate an environment that we humans cannot truly control." – Jesse
For the First Timer
"Grew my 1st tomato plant this year (cherry). Learned that too much water (at the end of the season when the rains come) = split tomatoes! Also learned that I can pick as many green ones I can, (before they split on the bush), let them sit out and they ripen! Prevents them from splitting on the bush."
"Planted my 1st grass patch! It was easy, but learned to always apply a thick layer of grass seed, as not all of them may germinate. Kinda thin my first try." – Ash
Garden Where you Are
"This year, my garden helped me (re)learn that a garden doesn't have to be perfectly planned or tended to be productive and rewarding. I moved into a new house last winter, where I finally had a sunny space to grow some vegetables after years of making do with a shade garden and few containers. I had many lofty goals and dreams of creating an amazing edible oasis right off the bat, but that turned out to not be realistic at all given all the changes and transition this year brought. In the end, I did a very little bit of weeding and digging out grass, and threw in some compost and fertilizer I had lying around as preparation. Then I planted some seeds and a few starts, and aside from watering from time to time, pretty much let the plants do the rest.
The results were hit or miss and far from perfect, but I still harvested lots of great stuff and had fun with the moments I was able to spare for gardening!" - Toby
Seed Cycles, Shade & Spring Harvest
"It’s very fun letting veggies like lettuce, kale, chard, and parsley go to seed; to collect the seed, see the plant in its different stages of life, and see the insects that are attracted to the blooms. I had never seen orange soldier beetles (very beneficial) until I let parsley go to seed."
"We removed a large tree on the south side of a beautiful maple tree in our yard. The winter sun split the bark of the maple and almost killed the tree. Wish I had known to shade the trunk."
"I visited a friend in February one year and she had Russian red kale growing. Now I plant it in late summer and let it go through the winter. I eat the buds in spring, they are individual little broccoli heads and the blooms bring lots of bees." - Celeste
Taters & Tremendous Growth
"Potatoes are so much fun to grow! I highly recommend giving it a try. It seems like magic that you can burry a couple potato chunks in the ground then come back a few months later and have so many more to dig up. I’ve also noticed that potatoes grown in containers are generally smaller in size, but it’s easier to find than those grown in the ground."
"Really pay attention to the average finished growing size when you choose a plant. A little guy in a 4’ pot just might grow big enough to block your 2nd story door in only a couple years if you don’t cut it back." - Laurel
Time is Relative
"People think in terms of weeks & months, but trees grow over years and decades. It's good to have a little patience." - Helen
Cousin of Asparagus
"Hostas are edible! Wow!" - Zach
An Abundant Year
"This was my first year ever creating (and not killing) a proper outdoor garden. It was just a collection of large black plastic pots, filled with a tomato, a delicata squash for my mum, medicinal & culinary herbs, & a few pollinator plants, and it grew more than I could have thought possible. I learned that plants and nature as a whole are far more abundant than is common knowledge. Literally thousands of plants (and LOTS of food) can be made & shared from just one little backyard garden. I've never been so sure that there is more than enough to go around."
"Also, gardeners can be such weird and wonderful people." - Sarah
Long Term Rewards & Creative Combos
"My good watering procedures don’t really pay off until the following year. It’s really important to water deeply – it’s for the long term."
"Clematis is a great companion plant to other deciduous shrubs."
"Burlap makes a great weed barrier." - Gretchen