GardenersCardiff answers:

Http://www.plantmaps.com/interactive-colorado-usda-plant-zone-hardiness-map.php This is from USDA climate map You’re in 5a and 5b

GardenersCardiff answers:

No where in the world cant garden look at existing plant types and match up cultivated varieties and experiment. Enjoy

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Im not sure what you mean by a mini greenhouse; something say 8ft x 8ft you can walk in? A cold frame on the ground? (i have both, in ohio)
it may be late to start tomatoes in minnesota, when they give a “75day” maturity on the packet, thats time from transplanting…typically one would start seed 6 to 8 weeks before transplanting…

With that caveat, i think an egg carton is too shallow to seed in, but you might get away with it if you transplant quickly after you get 2 true leafs…growing tomatoes in a pot takes at least 2 gallons, with 5 gallons size better; the roots of onion and herbs wouldnt compete, so id imagine you could grow a few alongside…if youre going to keep the pot in your greenhouse, it will grow faster than outside; and to keep the greenhouse warm in the fall use 5 gallon black water buckets to absorb daytime heat, and thus keep the greenhouse warmer at night

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No, I’m not interested.

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Go to the Garden and Landscape section and post your question there. You ll get good answers from the people that know gardening. They ve helped me there. Flooring I know and got my gardening question answered.
From my limited experience, I d guess not enough sun or to many plants in the container and they are root bound or choking each other out. GL

GardenersCardiff answers:

That’s a bit too much for me. I love a good steak and good Lamb roast, but I have no heart to be involved in the process. I suspect I’d turn vegan if I were to do that.

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The only way is to put up a fence.I metre jackal wire or chicken wire,or the chick wire,and bury at least one quarter of a meter into the ground ,
they dont jump or like to climb very high on wire.
They are very cute though and ,are becoming endangered in many places.
Some people actually have them as pets but they carry a lot of vermin on their shells.
Their favorit food is earth worms and they raided our worm cultures.
And the fence stopped them.
So please dont kill them ,I know they are destructive like small pigs ,they will root up gravel drive ways ,and i let one loose in my garden ,and only one does not do to much damage , i used to see his marks all over the place.But i can imagine that in a small garden one would get to hate them very quickly.

A small dog will deter them .but the fence is realy the correct solution.

If one plants a garden it is only natural that the better the garden gets and the more productive and lush ,the more other aspects of Nature will apreciate you efforts,
this is a complement if any thing else that you are making a good garden,Try to see it in that light.
I have made many gardens for people who had nothing to start with.to convince them to put up a fence is difficult because there was originally nothing to steal and the fence is costly and work.However once a garden gets going it becomes like an open free supermarket for chickens,wildlife,cows ,horses,sheep,goats,pigs,birds and armadillos .And even people

.And it is up to the owner to protect his investment

and to call the cops on these little creatures,as the others suggest is the fascist,cop out solution

GardenersCardiff answers:

A couple of things you can do. The easiest and least gross is buy diatomacious earth (not the swimming pool kind) and run a 2″ band of it around your garden beds or individual plants. The DE is made of diatoms which are basically like sharp pieces of glass to the slugs and they will not cross the barrier. This needs to be inspected and replaced as needed.

Hand pick the slugs and place them into a container of either salt or wood ash. The salt/wood ash melts the buggers. Do this either early in the morning or evening when the slugs are active. A week of hand picking will dramatically reduce your slug population.

You can place a board by your garden and the slugs will crawl under it during the day. Flip it over and remove the slugs and toss them into the salt/wood ash container. I would suggest sprinkling salt directly on them but since the board will be in your garden there is a big risk of the salt getting into the soil and making the soil pretty sterile and unable to grow much.

I have never had much luck with beer traps and you have to replenish them after any rain as the rain dilutes the beer and becomes unattractive to the slugs.

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I would like to believe that home grown foods would have three major advantages:
Save more when you grow your own food
Eat healthier as you wont be using excessive fertilizer that affects the human body
Get fresher garden vegetables and fruits.

Now of course there are other advantages but these I picked up off the Better Homes And Garden.Info Blog. They also have an extensive list of the vegetables that you should grow.
Http://betterhomesandgarden.info/2007/11/15/grow-your-own-food/
As to how healthy it is it would just depend on the seeds, fertilizer and how you care your garden. Soil and plant care have a lot to do with nutrient retention. What was astounding to me was that vegetable soup works wonders on plants. I really don’t mean vegetable soup that we eat but actually the water thats left when we boil or steam vegetables. Any way visit the blog and you should find its much better to grow your own food.

GardenersCardiff answers:

You would need to grow foods suited for your area. Many people presume all food crops are a snap when they are not. [Tomatoes, for example, are very heavy feeders that deplete soils, but also have ridiculous temperature demands (they will not pollinate above 90*F, for example) and are VERY disease prone and attractive to pests.]

I recommend researching local garderner blogs and farms for what is easily grown in your area, then determine what you like from that and plan accordingly. Some plants actually need cold weather to produce (garlic, most berries, all apples/pears, many brassicas, etc.). Others will not grow at all until the temps are above 70*F (melons/squashes, nightshades, etc.)

Composting: Very easy. Humanure composting is not legal in most places, but it can be done safely if you are 100% methodical about it and don’t mind carting and mixing human waste. Otherwise, yes, you can start composting now for future use. This guide is helpful:

Why Make Compost?

Fertilizer: NOT the same thing as compost. You will need to get your soil tested to check for what’s lacking. Compost only adds organic bulk, beneficial microbes, and trace nutrients to plants. It will not supply the phosphorous needed for nightshades (peppers, potates, etc.) on its own. Green manure is a cheap (but lengthy) way to get high, bioavailable nitrogen in your soil.
Http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_manure

Water: Consider a rain water collection system. They are afforable and many cities offer serious rebates. A grey water system is possible, too, if you have high water needs, but these are pricier.
Http://rainwaterharvesting.tamu.edu/collection-and-storage/
http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/ContentDisplay.aspx?id=45756

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Good question. Back yard or middle of the forest, I doubt if most vegans grow their own food. And I seriously doubt that any vegan grows all of his food….at least in the USA.

On the other hand, there are wild rabbits in and out of my yard all the time. I could easily trap them (no need to create and raise them), clean them and even eat them raw if I wanted.

But, like the vegans, I prefer to get my food from my local supermarket.

There are many, many sources of meat besides cows, chickens and pigs. This guy, for example, is teaching people to hunt for their meat and to process it. He’s part of the “locavore” movement. Who could argue with removing excess animals from the environment? This certainly has a smaller ecological impact than eating fresh exotic fruits and veggies that were shipped in from around the world. Or even grains. What sort of environmental impact does your serving of Quorn or Quinoa have? I’d bet more than killing a deer locally.

Http://rule-303.blogspot.com/

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I’m cultivating my own cheese.

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For control over us taking our freedom away. Why are we being harrassed at the airports or cameras on all the street mind control? People wake up not just blacks anyone who doesn’t have billions of dollars will be slaves in 20 yrs.

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Cos I don’t have room..?