How Is Root Beer Made

If you want to try your hand at growing these colorful veggies, here's how. If you'd like, you can mulch newly planted slips with straw, untreated grass clippings or shredded leaves, but if you're using the plastic, there's no need to add extra mulch...

I asked a farmer friend who said that she always learned that you should plant daikon as a fall crop, not a spring crop. I had read that early-sprouting radishes can be a great way to help mark the rows where slow-germinating carrots are planted.

For smaller, shorter carrots, you won't need a pot quite as deep, but again, the wider the pot's diameter, the more carrots you can grow. You can more carefully monitor the nutrients the plants receive.

After thinning, mulch with a layer of straw or shredded leaves to cut down on future watering needs. Thin the seedlings to 3 or 4 inches apart when they're about an inch tall. Work the garden's soil to a depth of 6 to 8 inches and add lots of organic...

Keep the largest bulbs for use in the kitchen, and immediately replant the smallest ones for the next crop. If this happens to your shallot crop, don't bury them or put mulch over them as this can lead to bulb rot.

If the soil is still too wet to till, I simply spread a 2-inch thick layer of compost over the planting area and sow the seeds in shallow furrows directly in the compost. Carrot seeds take a very long time to germinate, so be patient with them.

The first tubers are ready for harvest in late August, and the harvest usually continues until early November. Sweet potatoes are best cured by storing them in a humid, dark and warm (80 to 90 degrees F) room for a week or so before being moved to temperature-controlled...

As with your spring crop, keep it watered and well-cultivated to produce the best bulbs. Plant In Well-Drained Soil The main disease fennel suffers from is root rot, which can be avoided with well-drained soil.

That's a lot of spuds! If you grow potatoes and you don't harvest new potatoes, you're missing out. Then I dig around in the loosened soil with my hands and gently remove all the tubers.

It has also been found to be effective as a topical poultice for arthritic joints. With the first of the cold snaps these roots regain their firmness and are ready to dig. I, however, like to grind it when someone in my house is suffering from sinus congestion.

Where to plant: Garden; containers When to harvest: 30 to 40 days after seeding, when leaves are 1 to 2 inches in length (baby spinach); 40 to 50 days after seeding (full-sized) Produce storage: Store, unwashed, in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.

Beneficial nematodes are microscopic, worm-like organisms that seek out and attack ground-dwelling pests. If overhead watering is necessary, water only in the morning to allow enough time for the foliage to dry before nightfall.

Harvests begin anywhere from 20 to 40 days after planting, depending on the variety. If the plants begin to flower before the root has formed, no root will develop, or if the plant is gearing up to flower, it puts its energy into making the flower instead...

Jerusalem artichokes, aka sunchokes, can be eaten like a potato and are great for restoring the digestive fire in your gut. My favorite benefit for eating the Jerusalem artichoke is that inulin is an important food source for the healthy flora in your...

Raised beds are an option for growers in areas with clay or other hard soils. Carrots and celery require a lot of moisture, while parsnips can get by on less. If you still need to thin your carrot or parsnip plants after careful planting, Findley suggests...

Where to plant: Garden; containers When to harvest: 55 days after seeding, when roots are 3 to 4 inches in diameter. Size: 12 inches Sunlight requirements: Full to partial sun (A minimum of four to six hours is ideal.) Water requirements: About 1 inch...

Starting them too early can mean they get hammered with pests. Some years are just better for crops than others. Maintaining healthy soil and buying your seeds or starts from a reputable source is the best recommendation I can give to avoid disease.

Be sure to prepare the beds well with an inch or so of compost and a good preemptive cultivation before planting. The rutabaga variety called Joan is arguably the most popular heirloom variety on the market, though Seed Savers Exchange also sells a white,...

A repotted plant will suffer less from transplant shock than it would from suffocation or drowning in substandard conditions. Then I found plants with glued stones as mulch, with spongy moss where I expected bark, or with some other impenetrable surface...

Loosen the soil to a depth of 12 to 18 inches before sowing seeds 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep. “Flea beetles can do a lot of damage to the leaves, weakening the plants,” Bozelli says.

As consumers of fruits and vegetables, the compounds found in these different plant pigments not only provide us with nutrition, but many of them also contain antioxidants with anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties.

Put the box or bin in a cold garage or root cellar, but do not let it freeze. In-Ground Storage Some gardeners prefer to leave their potatoes in the ground for storage and dig them only as needed.

However, rutabagas are primarily grown for their starchy root that has a texture similar to a turnip or parsnip . But, on the inside, well, that's a different story. Rutabaga seeds should be sown directly into the garden in spring, anytime after the danger...

Peel the rough, gnarly skin by cutting a slice off the top and the bottom (the way you would peel a melon or pineapple). The two look completely different, but I challenge anyone to tell the difference in taste.

The one plant that continues to grow strong is my artichoke . That being said, many of the other veggies in my garden are still going strong. Artichokes ( Cynara scolymus ) do best where temperatures are consistent year-round because the plants are susceptible...

Butter salt and pepper to taste 2 T. By the time October rolls around, your celeriac crop will be ready to harvest. Jessica Walliser Using Celeriac To prepare celery roots for the kitchen, you'll need to peel them.

With a flavor I'd describe as mellow, buttery and earthy, a frost-kissed turnip picked at its prime can be the belle of the ball. You won't be disappointed. I put frost-kissed turnips in the same category as sun-warmed tomatoes and fresh-picked asparagus.