Frost Protection

Frosty nights are just around the corner so now is the time to get prepared to protect your frost sensitive plants. In San Luis Obispo, the first average frost date is right around Thanksgiving. Understanding how to protect your plants can save them from damage and even death.

On clear, windless nights when temperatures dip below 45 degrees at 10 p.m., it may be a signal to protect your plants before going to bed. Move any tender container plants under a porch roof or into the garage. Cover plants in the ground using burlap, sheets, blankets or specially designed Frost Protection Blanket. If possible, support the covering material so it isn't in direct contact with the plant. Freezing may occur where foliage touches the covering material. Remember to remove the covering during the day. Continue to water your plants as needed during the winter. Properly hydrated plants fair better during frosts than dry plants.

If plants have suffered damage from frost, it's best to wait to prune. Pruning too soon will stimulate new growth that can suffer damage from later frosts. Also, the already damaged areas still serve as protection for the undergrowth. It's best to wait until new growth begins to show in spring to determine what is clearly dead.

Continue to water your garden as you normally would during the winter but don't over water. Increasing the watering will not help your plants recover any quicker from frost. And don't feed your plants until new growth begins in the spring.

Topiary Gifts

With the many holiday dinners, gatherings and celebrations coming up, we often find ourselves in need of a hostess gift. One suggestion for a great holiday gift is a topiary. No longer limited to mere ivies, you may now choose from a variety of plant types in topiary form. Rather than give a mum or a poinsettia that will most likely be discarded after the holiday, give a lasting gift than can be used throughout the year.

Topiaries can make great accents to indoor decor. They can serve as a centerpiece during a holiday meal and then decorate a mantle the rest of the year. Some, like the Swane's Golden Italian Cypress (pictured left) can double as a small holiday tree. They can also be planted in the landscape and allowed to grow to their full size of 15'-20' providing a stunning golden feature.


For avid cooks, rosemary and bay topiaries make attractive and useful gifts. Small standards and globes are easy to keep on the kitchen counter and dining room table providing an elegant way to keep your fresh seasonings handy. Because they respond well to frequent trimming, using them just makes then more attractive.

Finally what could be more classic than a topiary olive? In their landscape form, Little Ollie Olives grow only to 4'-6' making them a perfect choice to be trained into globes or standard. And unlike their fruiting cousins, Little Ollie's are fruitless so their is no mess to worry about.



To care for your topiary place it in a location that will get several hours of direct sunlight each day or outside in location that will get full sun. Make sure to check the water needs often and keep the root ball moist. Most topiaries require a bit more water than their landscape counterparts because of the way they are trained. Never let the root ball dry out completely.

The Bones of the Garden

The phrase “good bones” often conjures up an image of a gorgeous model with chiseled features. But the phrase can also apply to garden landscape design as well. The bones of the landscape are the hardscape elements, (like pathways and decks) and plant elements like trees and shrubs that hold the design together. Without good bones, gardens lose structure and have a much less memorable impact on the viewer. Creating a garden without first considering its structure is like decorating a house before the framing goes up.

Once you have decided on what your hardscape will be, it is time to look at the placement of evergreen shrubs and trees. One way to think about the bones of the garden is to imagine how the garden will look in winter without all the flowers and deciduous foliage; much like imagining Las Vegas without all the lights. Once all the flash and color is gone, what will be left? Will the garden still be interesting or will it lack appeal.

Evergreens are important because they add interest and texture to the garden through all four seasons. Conifers make up a large group of evergreens that include trees like pines and spruces but also junipers and podocarpus. From giant redwoods to groundcover junipers, this group of plants can keep your garden interesting at all levels when the leaves have fallen and the blooms faded for the year.

Confiers come in a variety of shades and can add color when there isn’t a bloom in sight. The foliage of Gold Coast Juniper varies from a golden yellow to chartreuse and green. The foliage of the Blue Angel White Pine or Hoop’s Blue Spruce sparkles in shades of blue to almost grey. For the greenest greens, the Austrian Pine or Oriental Spruce can make a garden feel spring-like in the middle of January. Adding a variety of conifers and overlapping them in the landscape can add interest with contrasting colors and texture.

With a large range of sizes and growth habits, conifers can be used in almost every aspect of design. For easy care evergreen groundcovers select a Dwarf Japanese or Blue Chip Juniper. Both get a mere one foot high and can spread 6’-8’. For small to medium sized shrubs check out the Gold Coast Juniper at 3’-4’ wide and as high or a compact Little Gem Norway Spruce which grows a mere 18”. If a medium sized tree is needed, the Fat Albert Colorado Blue Spruce which gets only 10’-15’ high should fit the requirement. And if you need something really large, the Blue Atlas Cedar can get up to 50’ tall.

Conifers can also be planted and kept happily in appropriate sized containers. For exciting container interest, look for Feelin’ Blue Deodar Cedar trained as a standard or a staked Weeping Blue Atlas Cedar. With their needle like foliage and unusual shape, they can make a bold statement near an entry way or on a patio.

By adding conifers and other evergreens to your yard, you strengthen the structure which holds the design together and makes it cohesive. You also add interest and make your garden attractive all year long. Once you have added the bones, then and only then should you move on to the rest of the garden design.

Written by Kat White. All images are copyright Monrovia Nursery and used with permission.

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day November

To start off this month's Garden Bloggers Bloom Day post why not have something so vibrant it practically jumps out of the screen? This red flower carpet rose has been blooming since late March. Definitely a workhorse in the border.


This fuchsia autumn sage will need to be cut back pretty soon, but right now the hummingbirds are just loving it.



This is a great one to put on your wish list because it is normally only available April-August, but blooms here as long as it is warm. The Lotus Vine has lots to recommend. Bright unusually shaped flowers and flowing, delicate pine-like foliage. Great in containers.




Echinacea still going strong. Great combined with the red carpet rose.




Look at what a great pairing this pink carpet rose makes with this apple blossom penstemon.




Calandrinia spectabillis is a long blooming succulent. The bright violet/purple flowers are held high above the plant on almost three foot long stems. The grey/green succulent foliage stays low and compact.


And finally my assistant on every nursery photo shoot, Mama Kitty, is checking the light on these salvia blossoms. It's hard to believe that just a little over a year ago this beautiful cat decided to make us her family when she had her kittens in the barn. Her kittens have all gone to good homes within the county, but Mama remained as our resident mouser and photographic assistant (She likes to help with paperwork and computer work as well). If you stop by you will most likely find her in one of two places. Out in the nursery terrorizing the lizard population or curled up on some soft surface in the barn.

Saving Seeds

As we continue with fall cleanup here on the Central Coast, we find that many of our summer annuals and summer blooming perennials have gone to seed. Saving seeds is an easy, money saving way to increase the number of plants in your garden and now is the time to do it. Care must be taken, however, to harvest and store the seeds properly in order to assure successful germination.

1. First, you must be patient. Seeds must be fully ripe before harvesting. Usually this means that the flower head has completely dried and the seeds detach easily. Avoid collecting seeds that are damp because they will most likely mildew in storage.

2. Let seeds dry and keep them dry. Moisture will destroy a seed's viability so it is important to let them dry for about a week in a dry location, out of direct sunlight. Spread them out in pie tins or baking pans so that they will dry completely. Then store them in either an airtight mason jar or ziplock bag.

3. Keep seeds cool. Store seeds in a cool location out of direct sunlight. One place to store seeds is in the refrigerator (not the freezer as too low a temperature can kill seeds). Place the jar or ziplock bag inside until they are needed in spring.

4. Keep a record. It's easy to forget what seeds came from what plant, so it's best to fill out an index card or slip of paper with the plants name and cultural needs as you go. If you want to be super organized, keep a list of seeds that you have saved so you won't accidentally purchase something you already have. Plus, it's a good way to know what you have in stock should you want to share.

5. Share your seeds. One way to increase the variety of plants in your garden is to trade seeds with other gardeners. If you don't know any seed savers locally, check out online seed saving websites like Seed Savers Exchange.

And don't throw out any seeds you don't use next season. Seed will keep for more than one season. Seed viability doesn't just stop in a years time, but rather slowly decreases. You may have 90% germination the first year, 50% the second and so on.

The Gift of Fall Leaves

Fall comes slowly on the Central Coast, but it does come. And soon the autumn leaves that look so lovely on the trees will be covering our lawns & flower borders. Many of us are in the habit of raking up our leaves and sending them off in the green waste containers. But did you know that leaves can actually be a source of nutrition for your soil and plants?

In her recent blog on Leaves and Mulch, Catherine Dougherty calls leaves the "final gift of the season" and she couldn't be more correct. If added back to the soil as composted leaf mold, this fall's leaves will break down and add nutrients to the soil for seasons to follow.

Leaves, however, can take a long time to break down and must be shredded before being added back to the soil. One can either process the leaves through a shredder or simply rake them onto the lawn and run the lawnmower over them. Once shredded the leaves can either be added directly to the flower beds or the compost pile. Either way in several seasons time they will completely break down and become nutrients for the plants from which they came.

If you would like to learn more about composting, please check out The Art of Composting for easy steps to create one.

Catherine Dougherty is an avid, experienced gardener living in rural Oklahoma where Halloween barn dances are still quite common. You can read more about her gardening experience and wisdom on her blog In the Garden and More.

Cyclamen Combos

Although cyclamen are showy enough to hold their own in the garden as a mass planting, I think they are particularly lovely when grouped with complimentary plants. In the container left, we have a gorgeous Laser Scarlet cyclamen combined with a Frosted Velvet Heuchera, Snowstorm Bacopa and a yellow variegated ivy. Done as a hanging basket, this combo would also work well in an urn or tall pot. The grouping could also be planted in the ground in a spot that gets filtered light during the day or just a bit of morning sun then shade (in the ground I would substitute glechoma or more bacopa for the ivy so you don't have to worry about it becoming invasive).










This combination also works very well with white cyclamen and white variegated ivy giving it a very classy look. The coir lined hanging baskets work perfectly for these combos because although cyclamen like adequate moisture they don't like sitting in water logged soil. A long lived combination of perennials and tender perennials, this grouping will flourish and bloom for you from fall until next spring when only the cyclamen will go dormant. At that time, the cyclamen can be replaced with some tuberous begonias to keep the planting going.

Hummingbird Feeder Cleaning

Did you know that hummingbirds will shun food that has spoiled? If you want hummingbirds to visit your feeder as often as possible, now is a good time to give it a good cleaning and some fresh food.

Take the feeder down and disassemble it. Let is soak in a warm water that has had 1/4 cup of vinegar added. After soaking, scrub parts with a stiff nylon brush to remove any dirt or mildew. Rinse the feeder well and drain. (It isn't necessary to let feeder completely dry before refilling). If you find that your feeder is exceptionally dirty, you may want to try using the BBs cleaning method as explained over at Bird Watchers Digest.

When you make a batch of food, keep any excess in the refrigerator to keep it fresher (up to two weeks). Keep in mind that feeders hung in sunny locations may need to have the food replaced more often because it spoils faster. Also, never use honey because this spoils quickly when mixed with water and can be toxic to hummingbirds.

Follow these simple steps to keep your hummingbird feeders clean and filled and you will have a constant stream of these lively birds beating a path to your feeder.

Citrus Leafminer

It's always a little sad when we start noticing a pest problem cropping up with more frequency. Such has been the case with the citrus leaves like the one pictured left. The wavy trail running through this young leaf is a sign that something has burrowed inside. Or perhaps an older leaf has just started to look gnarled and bumpy. In either case, the culprit is most likely the citrus leafminer. The adult leafminer is a tiny moth that looks like a slightly dustier version of a whitefly, almost invisible to the naked eye unless you are looking closely. But it isn't the adults that do the damage, once again, it's the kids. The adult (who has a lifespan of about 1-2 weeks) lays its eggs on citrus trees and once the young hatch, the larvae burrow into the leaf creating the wavy maze-like pattern . Over the next several weeks, the larvae will continue to burrow through the leaf and molt several times. The larvae then burrows out of the leaf as a prepupa and curls the leaf around itself. Inside the curled leaf it becomes a pupa, hatching into an adult about 1-3 weeks later. The entire life cycle takes about 3-7 weeks and normally occurs when temperatures are between 70-80 degrees.

Although the wavy mines and the curled leaves can look unsightly, in normal cases, the leafminer offspring don't do enough damage to the tree to affect its health or fruit production. Chemicals like Greenlight's Spinosad may be used to control the adult populations, but adults are difficult to see and without pheromone trapping it may be near impossible to know when they are most active. Probably one of the best controls is to maintain trees in a way that will make them less appealing to the larvae. Because the larvae prefer new, succulent growth, avoid continually pruning trees which will result in more new growth. Also do not apply nitrogen fertilizer when when leafminers are most active (normally summer and fall) so that trees won't produce succulent new growth on which the larvae will feed. (Instead feed with an organic slow release fertilizer in early spring and late fall.) Also remove suckers which tend to grow vigorously and produce new leaves often to help reduce the larvae population.

Drought Tolerant Fall Combo

Who says fall color means just mums? How about a more drought tolerant combination. Whether in a container or the landscape, these drought tolerant beauties will give you long lasting color with minimal care. Featured starting at the top center we have Helena's Blush Euphorbia, Little Rev Flax Lily, Correa Wyn's Wonder and Ceanothus Tuxedo for some contrast.







Look at all the colors in this closeup of the Helena's Blush Euphorbia. Imagine all the color combinations in which you could feature this lovely plant.

Bringing Your Houseplants Back Inside

If you have been giving your houseplants a bit of a vacation outdoors for the summer months, now is the time to bring them back inside. Once evening temperatures drop below 50° its best to bring your tropical plants inside where it is warmer so that they remain healthy and happy. If you are concerned about the possibility of bringing hitchhiking pest inside, just follow these simple techniques to rid your plants of them.

If you haven't already done so, treat each pot with a bit of Sluggo Snail Bait to kill off any snails and slugs that may be hiding in the foliage or pots. Sluggo is safe around pets so you don't to worry about your indoor dog or cat eating the bait. Treat again in a couple of weeks to catch any tiny, late hatching snails as well.

Treat the foliage with Safer's Insecticidal soap to rid the plant of any aphids, mealbugs or spider mites. Give the foliage a good spraying making sure to get the undersides of the leaves as well. Sometimes bugs crawl up into the drainage holes of pots. (This can be prevented by placing a layer of two of drywall tape over the holes at transplanting time. This allows excess water to drain and keeps bugs from crawling in.) A soil drench made of Safer's insecticidal soap concentrate will help rid the soil of critters.

Clean out any dead leaves and remove leaf litter from the top of the soil. Scrub salt deposits off the outside of the pot with a stiff nylon brush and some vinegar, then water the plants well.

To prepare the location for the plants, vacuum the area to remove any bugs that made be hiding out in the new location. It's also a good idea to clean the windows to make sure plants will receive the brightest possible light conditions.

Cabbage Moth Caterpillars

It doesn't take long from the time you put in your cabbage, kale or broccoli (actually anything related to cabbage) before you will have to deal with the offspring of the Cabbage Butterfly. Yep, that small white butterfly that has been flitting about visiting your cauliflower, Brussels sprouts and kale is evil. Well, at least her children are. A few weeks after she's stopped by, you will start noticing holes in the leaves of your plants. A quick inspection may reveal nothing, but if you look closely, underneath the leaves, you can usually find the caterpillar. They can be difficult, really difficult, to see at first. For a week or so, they are only about 1/4" or length. But as they feed, they grow quickly. And in about two weeks or so, you will find the green caterpillar about the size of the one pictured below.

For small populations (when you have only minimal damage) you can merely pick them off and squish them. But for larger infestations you need something more. One of the best ways to stop caterpillars from feasting on your cabbages is to stop them in the first place. Placing a lightweight row cover over your plants right after planting will prevent adults from being able to lay their eggs on the leaves. This however can be problematic in warmer climates because it can raise the temperature too much should we get a heat spell in October. It can also be unattractive and annoying to move out of the way should you want to tend your crop.
If the row cover or the manual method of dispatching the caterpillars doesn't appeal, you do have another organic option; bacillus thuringiensis or BT. Sold under the brand name by Safer called Caterpillar Killer, or Garden Dust (which is OMRI certified), BT is the natural choice for controlling leaf-eating caterpillars. Caterpillars stop feeding shortly after eating foliage sprayed with Caterpillar Killer and die within a few days. Caterpillar Killer does not harm honey bees or beneficial arthropods and does not harm earthworms.

Chrysanthemum Care

This time of year Chrysanthemums can be found in almost every color of the rainbow from bright yellows and oranges to pinks and lavenders. A traditional choice for your fall floral displays, mums can also make a nice addition to your garden. While mums enjoy full sun conditions, they can be used temporarily on porches or in the home. While being used for decoration, pinch off spent blooms to keep them neat and water the soil when it begins to feel dry to touch.

Once mums have served their display purpose, they can be planted outdoors. Pinch off any remaining fading blooms (most plants will give you a second bloom this season). Find a full sun location with well drained soil and amend with Whitney Farms Planting Compost. Mums bloom in response to the shorter daylight hours in fall, so don't plant them near street lights where the evening light will mess with their bloom cycle. Feed with a good organic fertilizer in spring and then again in June to promote growth and fall bloom. Mums need to be pinched to maintain their bushy shape. In spring in start pinching when new growth is about 6" long. Then about every 2-3 weeks afterward, pinch out the center of any more growth that is about 4-5" in length. Stop pinching the beginning of summer or you might pinch off potential flower buds. Divide the plant every couple of years to reinvigorate it.

If you would like to see just how lovely mums can look in your garden, take a look at the photos posted by Rebecca Sweet in honor of Bloogers Bloom Day October at Gossip in The Garden

Terra Cotta Gravel Topper

Just about every gardener has a stack of chipped and cracked terra cotta pots just lying around the garden waiting for something to do. Here at the nursery, that stack has been growing for some time. We use part of the broken pottery to add extra drainage to large planters, but that still doesn't utilize all we acquire. The rest, so far, has been stacked in our potting shed waiting for a purpose until now.





Well how about this for a use? Terra cotta gravel. It's easy to do and works the same as any other gravel mulch. It helps finish the surface of a pot (hiding the unsightly specks of perlite), keeps down weeds and improves moisture retention without becoming waterlogged at the based of plants. To make your own terra cotta gravel, you will need a hammer, safety glasses, gloves and an old sheet or pillowcase ( I say old because once you start hammering, that pillowcase is history). First break pots into several large pieces. Then place the pieces inside the pillowcase and start hammering away (best on a firm surface like a concrete driveway). Keep hammering until the pieces are the size you desire or you've taken out all the day's frustrations. For best results match the size of the chunks to the size of the pots. Large urns and pots can utilize large pieces whereas small pots look best with tiny gravel sized bits. Here we've used the pottery shards to add a finishing touch to a succulent planter. Doesn't it look lovely?

How do you re-purpose your broken pottery? Let us know in the comments.

Pineapple Sage

In our herb garden, the pineapple sage is looking absolutely stunning right now. In full bloom, the plant is a buzz with visiting bees and hummingbirds. A great source of nectar this time of year, the flowers offer much needed food to our visiting wildlife as the warm season starts to close.

As attractive as the flowers are, their beauty is not the only reason to plant pineapple sage (Salvia elegans) in your garden. The fragrance of the leaves, as the name suggests, smell like pineapple. The leaves can be used to make tea, while the beautiful flowers can be added to all sorts of dishes from salsas to smoothies where they impart a slightly sweet flavor reminiscent of pineapple and honeysuckle.

In locations free from heavy frost, Salvia elegans is easy to grow year round. The plant prefers a sunny location (but will tolerate a little shade) and nice loamy soil. Not quite as drought tolerant as some of its relatives, it does require average water to do its best (Here at the nursery it seems quite content in the herb planter alongside plantings of marjoram, oregano, borage and mustard.) In an average season it can grow about 4 feet tall and as wide. During a particularly cold winter, it can die down to the ground only to reemerge from the roots come spring. In locations that frost heavily, the quick growth of the herb makes it valuable to grow as an annual or a container plant that can be taken indoors during the winter.

A beautiful addition to a flower border or herb garden, the plant is most thoroughly enjoyed if planted near a walkway where garden visitors will brush against its leaves and release its fresh pineapple fragrance.

If you already have some Salvia elegans on hand try tossing some lovely red flowers into your salad or use the leaves to make a lovely tea.

Pineapple Sage Tea
1 quart water
1/2-3/4 cup packed fresh pineapple sage leaves
honey or sugar
1 lemon

Bring water to boil and pour over leaves. Let steep for approximately 20 minutes. Stir in juice of one lemon and sweeten to taste. Strain into mugs and serve.

Pumpkin Picking Time

Halloween is hands down my favorite holiday. So it makes perfect sense as a gardener to grow a few of my own decorations for the season. I love pumpkins of all shapes, sizes and colors. The more variety I can have, the better. The drawback, however, is that the vines can be huge. The Jarrahdale pumpkin pictured left is on a vine that spans over 12 feet. So as much as I would love to have one in each color, I must pick and choose. This year, the blue-gray Jarrahdale and some mini pumpkins won out.

It is about this time of year that my pumpkin vines start to look a little ragged. This means that they are about done producing for the season and it will soon be time to harvest my pumpkins. But just how do you know when your pumpkin is ready to be harvested? Just follow these tips and you will be able to enjoy your pumpkin at Halloween (and if you don't carve it) and beyond:

1. Your pumpkin is ready for harvest when they are the appropriate color and the skin has hardened enough that you can't easily poke a hole in it with your fingernail.
2. Cut the pumpkin from the vine leaving about 3-4 inches of stem with a pair of pruning shears. Leaving a stem is not only more attractive, but it stops the pumpkin from rotting at the top.
3. Never carry the pumpkin by the stem. It may not be able to hold the weight of the pumpkin.
4. Allow them to "cure" in the sun for about 10 days to cause the stem to harden and dry.
5. Once cured, store pumpkins in a cool location (50-55 degrees) to promote longevity.

The photo of the Jarrahdale above was taken about 3 weeks ago and it has since ripened to a beautiful blue-grey color. Since the weather is still warm and I'm not quite ready to start decorating for Halloween, however, I've decided to leave the pumpkin on the vine just a bit longer.

Let us know how your pumpkin growing season went by leaving us a comment below.

Reprinted with permission from www.thekatsgarden.blogspot.com

Delivery Day

Wednesdays at the nursery are usually quite busy because that’s the day we get our deliveries from Monrovia nursery. Although unloading the trucks and stocking the merchandise can leave all of us tired for the day, it is always fun to see what’s new. Today was particularly exciting because we received one of our favorite unusual plants Gunnera manicata. This gorgeous plant has leaves that get up to 8’ in its native region of Costa Rica and Brazil. The deciduous plant normally grows about 4’-5’ high each season. Particularly well suited for plantings along streams and ponds, Gunnera prefers a full sun location with regular watering to keep the soil moist. Looking like something that hasn’t changed since prehistoric times, it is easy to see where it gets its common names of Dinosaur Food and Giant Rhubarb.

Another unusual plant in today’s delivery was the Golden Spirit Smoke Tree. The unexpected chartreuse leaves of this plant make it an excellent choice as a focal point planting. Great in full sun, it also makes partial shade areas simply glow. We love paring it up with some of the new varieties of Heuchera like Mahogany, Southern Comfort or Black Beauty for added drama.

The best part about Monrovia deliveries is the quality of the cargo. One of the most frustrating things in the retail nursery business is to order a plant, get totally excited about it and then have it come in sub standard condition. With few exceptions, the plants come off the truck in perfect condition. (Considering some of the plants come all the way from Oregon, that takes some real effort on their part). Their holding quality in the nursery is also phenomenal and the reason for that is the quality of soil they are planted in. This in turn gives the plants a head start on the road to success in our customer’s gardens.

Congratulations to our Winner!

Congratulations to George M. of San Luis Obispo, winner of this tropical container garden from our "Staycation" sale giveaway.

If you would like to duplicate this container for a shady spot at home, you will need:

One awesome red pot

Whitney Farms potting soil

Variegated Shell Ginger

Shrimp Plant

Heuchera "Mahogony'

Ipomoea batatas 'Margarita'

Impatiens 'Fusion Heat'

Colorful Cool Season Vegetables

Now is a great time to start cool season vegetables from seed. For most people, the spring/summer vegetable garden is the most favored because of the variety of plants that can be grown. With fewer choices for cool season, the fall/winter gardens can seem a little boring. But this doesn’t need to be the case. If you would like to add some variety to your cool season garden, now is the perfect time to try some of these more unusual varieties of plants available from Botanical Interests seeds. Botanical Interests is one of my favorite seed companies. Not only for the awesome seed varieties they carry, but for the beautiful package illustrations. I love spreading my seed packet collection out on a table to decide just what I’ll be growing for that season.

Beets-Gourmet Blend. I have to admit that it wasn’t until recently that I became a fan of fresh beets. I grew up with the canned, pickled beets and that was all I knew. But once I tried fresh cooked beets, the canned beets paled in comparison. This gourmet blend is not only tasty but beautiful as well. The vivid gold, orange, purple and red beets maintain their lovely colors even when cooked. Both the tops and the roots are edible so you double the amount of production in your gardening bed. Although all the beets are sweet and delicious, my personal favorite is the orange. Easy to prepare by simply cubing and cooking in the microwave or roasting to increase their sweet flavor, I find they need very little additional seasoning.

Bright Lights Chard. Now that you have your gourmet beets, why not plant some matching chard? This variety of chard is easy to grow and lovely in the garden. I find that the colorful stalks and full, ruffled leaves make great filler for fall/winter container gardens. Pair them with edible flowers like brightly colored violas, nasturtiums, or calendula for a bold splash of color that can be added to salads. Use young, fresh leaves chopped in salads to add color and texture. Cook larger stalks and leaves like spinach and enjoy their rich buttery flavor. Try this recipe from Simply Recipes

Carrots-Carnival Blend. Since we are already growing the colorful chard & beets, why not round things out with these delightful carrots? I think colored vegetables are particularly fun for children and fresh carrots are jam packed with nutrition. For better germination success, soak your seeds 12 hours before planting. I’m a big fan of ginger and love this Honey Ginger Carrots recipe from allrecipes.com

reprinted with permission from www.thekatsgarden.blogspot.com