• Juvenile Justice Garden Reaps Rewards for Kids & Seniors - Wednesday, October 21, 2009 at 3:43 PM
  • The County of Ventura Probation Agency and the Area Agency on Aging recently created a vegetable garden site at the Juvenile Justice Complex in Oxnard. Kids at the complex were responsible for planting, growing and caring for the garden. The recent inaugural harvest was just picked and the garden-fresh vegetables were distributed through the Senior Lunch Program, on-site at the Juvenile Justice kitchen and at local food banks. The garden was made possible through contributions and support from Agromin and other businesses and community-based organizations. The first crop of tomatoes looks great!

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  • September is Time to Plant Fall And Winter Flower And Vegetable Gardens - Tuesday, August 25, 2009 at 4:13 PM
  • 4While most gardeners around the country are winding down their gardens for the year, Southern California gardeners can plant a fresh crop of vegetables and blooms in September and October for enjoyment during fall and winter, says Agromin, an Oxnard-based manufacturer of premium soil products and one of the state's largest green materials recycling companies.

    Prepare Your Soil For Fall Flowers: Remove annuals. Break up and till the soil and generously add compost or organic planting mix. You may want to wait a week or two before adding fresh plants. This will give weeds enough time to germinate. Remove the weeds while they are small so they will be less of a headache later on.

    Plant Your Winter Flower Garden: Begin planting your fall and winter flower garden towards the end of September. While blasts of hot, Santa Ana winds will blow from September through November, September nights are generally cool and days pleasantly warm--perfect growing conditions. Your fall garden can include calendula, delphiniums, larkspur, Iceland poppy, pansies, snapdragon and stock. In shady areas, plant primrose, daisies and cineraria.

    Trim Perennials: Perennials are beginning to lose their summer luster. Trim excess plant growth and remove sagging summer flowers.

    Plant Wildflowers: Instead of scattering wildflower seeds on the surface of the soil and hope they will grow, for best results, rake the soil gently, spread the seeds and cover lightly with soil. The seeds will begin to germinate once wet weather arrives.

    Plant Spring Bulbs: Spring bulbs will soon be available at local nurseries. Now is the time to plant bulbs for such plants as tulips, daffodils and hyacinth.

    Plant Your Vegetables: When summer vegetable plants stop producing a robust crop (late September or October), remove the plants and replace them with vegetable plants that will produce through winter. Cool weather vegetables include cabbage, peas, broccoli, lettuce and green onions.

    Prepare for the Santa Ana Winds: Santa Ana winds can wreck havoc on newly planted trees, shrubs and gardens. New, shallow root systems can't replace water as fast as water is drawn from leaves by the winds. The winds can devastate a garden in a matter of days if water is not provided. When winds kick up, be prepared to quickly get out the garden hose and give your plants the moisture they need.

    For more gardening tips, go to www.agromin.com.

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  • Container Gardening for Vegetables - Friday, July 10, 2009 at 4:50 PM

  • Many living spaces do not have ample room to plant vegetable gardens. One option is container gardening. Nutritious and fresh vegetables can be grown in containers on a balcony, patio or windowsill.

    Crop Selection

    Containers are ideal for almost any vegetable that would thrive in a backyard garden. Vegetables that are specifically suited for containers are peppers, green onions, tomatoes, beans, radishes squash, parsley, cucumber, eggplant and beans. Carrots also grow well in containers if the container is deep enough (eight inches).


    Ideal Soil For Container Gardening

    Container-grown vegetables do best in soil made of woodchips, sawdust, perlite, vermiculite or a variety of other materials. The four most important criteria regardless of the soil mixture are that it 1) be free of weed seeds and disease, 2) can retain nutrients and moisture, 3) can drain well and 4) is lightweight. Many products contain nutrients in the soil so fertilizing is unnecessary.

    Containers

    You can use just about any container to plant your vegetables including bushel baskets, wooden boxes or containers specifically designed for container gardening. Green onions, parsley and herbs thrive in pots from six to 10 inches in size. Peppers, tomatoes and eggplant are best suited in larger containers.

    Adequate drainage is very important for container growing. Place about one inch of gravel in the bottom of the container before adding soil. This will help improve drainage. If your container doesn't have drain holes, drill them yourself-- about 1/4 to 1/2 inch on the bottom.

    Seeding and Transplanting

    You can purchase transplants from your local garden center or nursery to place in your container, but you can also grow the plants from seed at home. Use a baking pan to germinate your own seeds. Fill the pan with soil and plant the seeds to a depth of 1/4 to 1/2 inch.

    Place the baking pan in an area that receives adequate warmth and sunlight about four to eight weeks before planting them in the final container. The general rule is to transplant the seeds once they show their first two or three real leaves. Be careful when transplanting so you don't injure the root system.

    Light

    Full sunlight is ideal for almost all vegetables. However, some plants can do well in partial shade: lettuce, greens, cabbage and spinach. Root vegetables actually prefer more shade than those that bear fruit. An advantage to container growing is that you can move the containers as needed.

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  • Agromin Teams Up With Ojai Valley Green Coalition - Tuesday, June 30, 2009 at 3:40 PM



  • A "Grow Food Party" crew from the Ojai Valley Green Coalition installed 16 vegetables gardens in June throughout the Ojai Valley. Half were created in raised garden beds measuring 4' x 10', others were in 2' x 20' borders and some were contained in wine barrels. Agromin supplied compost, while Commonwealth Financial Network supplied plants and other materials. The gardens are donated to residents.






    The Ojai Valley Green Coalition has over 500 members in Ojai dedicated to working together to create an environmentally sustainable community. Its goal is to educate themselves and others about ecological issues, to promote sustainable practices locally, advocate environmental responsibility as a priority to elected officials and to bring green consciousness into their lives.

    Agromin applauds the Coalition's efforts!

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