Tiger Melon, aka Tigger Melon, an heirloom melon, similar to honey Dew in taste, also related to canary melons. Yellow and orange tiger stripes are believed to be its name source. The plants are reminiscent of other melons such as muskmelon or cantaloupe, but the fruit ripens later in the growing season than related varieties, … Read more
Purchasing a raspberry plant that’s already begun, such as a year-old dormant plant to put out in the spring is the most common and easiest way to start Raspberry or Blackberry bushes. You can however start a new raspberry bush from a cutting or root division. Red Raspberries are best started from primocanes [see diagram] … Read more
Watermelons, Cantaloupe, Honeydew, even most exotic melons such as Tiger Melons and Canary melon are extremely easy to save seeds from. They’re a great place for novices to get started. Use Seed From Open Pollinated Melons Seeds from Open Pollinated melons are the best bet for seed saving. Open Pollinated means that the seeds should … Read more
About the Malus Hopa Crabapple Tree Hopa is a hybrid crabapple useful for ornamental and edible purposes. Some say it is an heirloom being that it has been around long enough. “Hopa” in the native Sioux language means beautiful, and beautiful it is. It averages 10 -20 feet but can reach 20 to 25 feet … Read more
Raspberries are not good plants for a novice to grow hydroponically. That’s not to say it can’t be done. It can and has been done successfully. However, keep in mind that. They are long term plants that generally are quite large. They produce a lot of suckers and canes that require vigilant pruning. Raspberries are … Read more
“Companion Planting is the growing together of all those elements and beings that encourage life and growth; the creation of a microcosm that includes vegetables, fruits, trees, bushes, wheat, flowers, weeds, birds, soil, microorganisms, water, nutrients, insects, toads, spiders, and chickens.” – John Jeavons – How to Grow More Vegetables Than You Ever Thought Possible Raspberries … Read more
What are Chestnut Crabapples? Chestnut Crab apple is frequently used as a pollinator for other apples. It is also one of the few cultivars that are self-pollinating, although another cultivar nearby is advisable. Introduced by the University of Minnesota in 1946 and released in 1949, the 15 to 20-foot trees produce a yellow crab apple … Read more
What Are Champagne Grapes? Champagne Grapes are compact pea sized grapes tightly clustered on fragile thin stems. They are actually so well clustered that they resemble giant raspberries. Contrary to what their name implies, they are not used to make Champagne but are tasty table grapes. Champagne grapes are used commercially as raisins and are … Read more
The banana melon has the appearance of a really big banana but it’s actually a muskmelon, a sister of cantaloupe, and cousin of cucumber. It not only looks like a banana but also has a hint of banana taste coupled with cantaloupe, as well as a hint of banana aroma. It has a salmon-colored flesh, … Read more
Dragon Fruit Dragon Fruit [pitaya or pitahaya] is produced by several different cactus species. Pitaya is the original name of what we now call Dragon Fruit. In the early 90s, it was marketed in North America as dragon fruit and the name has stuck. It is sometimes referred to as strawberry pear or thang. Dragon … Read more