You can put a few of these eggshells together next to each other in a plastic container - just keep them in a light and warm place - the eggshells being placed in the same container will help keep eachother warm as well.

My mother and I tried planting a few times with no luck and so far this is the only method that worked for us, so if you find yourself in a similar position it might be worth at least trying!

Ideas for growing your own pandemic garden

A Beauty King Tomato I grew in my garden. It was about 3/4 of a pound. I’m hoping to get many more of these in my “pandemic garden” in 2020.

Are you doing your pandemic garden, even if it’s on a balcony or windowsill? How’s it going? If not, you might consider it as a source of both fresh produce and some peace from the COVID-19 stress.

The other day I went to one of my favorite nurseries here in…

For any of you in Vancouver who have experienced the shock of thes udden change in weather, you are not alone. For the most part in the last week, "small talk" has centered around how quickly the weather has shifted from a beautiful (and hopelessly LATE) Summer to a wet and (hopelessly EARLY) Fall. Although I do look forward to my Fall sweaters, my Summer/hot vegetable and fruit plants DO NOT. So a quick tip for the people with tomatoes, squash, peppers and eggplant:

Pinch off the flowers! I know it's really hard to do, but there is no time left for those little ones to mature. The point is to re-direct the energy from new production, to the ripening of the existing fruit.

If you have a greenhouse, you're in a different league and I have no pointers for you. Next year, after my first greenhouse season is over, I'll keep you posted.

If you've managed to raise healthy tomato plants this year despite the cool temperatures and lack of sun, you 1: ARE A VERY GOOD GARDENER and need to keep up the good work and 2: could maybe use a few extra tips to ensure that your plants are most likely going to produce food. If your tomatoes have not survived, you deserve a pat of the back for trying and feel free to take the below as a premature lesson for next year.

1: Remove the leaves on the bottom 1" of the plant. These leaves are the first to drop and the most susceptible to fungus and soil born pathogens. *Some gardeners choose to remove a majority of the leaves so the plant can send all of its energy into producing fruit, I do not adhere to this rule entirely and instead, remove what appears to be getting in the way, shading fruit and taking up a lot of space, also see next tip.*

2: Pinch and remove suckers that develop in the joint of two branches. They won’t bear fruit and will take energy away from the rest of the plant.