Sharon Hull, This Week in the Yard

Do you like to guidance area enterprises? If so, you will want to get a glance at the seeds grown by our incredibly own internationally regarded seed producer residing ideal listed here in Santa Cruz County.

The new-for-2021 seeds from Renee Shepherd’s firm Renee’s Backyard Seeds are offered now in your most loved backyard center, or from her site www.reneesgarden.com.  (The website is a gold mine of gardening info if you haven’t checked it out, do!  You can subscribe for the no cost month to month newsletter there, obtain mouth watering recipes – most tested in Shepherd’s possess kitchen – and browse how-to articles or blog posts or enjoy instructive films.) The site is consumer-pleasant, with seeds searchable by supposed usage (these types of as pollinator-pleasant vegetation) as very well as alphabetically. They have all been examined in Shepherd’s demo gardens for good creation and vigorous expansion in local problems.

Some new veggies from Renee’s Backyard Seeds:

Early Flame Jalapeños – compact plants, best for container expanding. Really glossy fruit with thick walls. These peppers are not only a culinary style to insert to your preferred recipes but the vegetation and the fruits are interesting enough to combine in amid flowering crops.

Romance Carrots – outstanding flavor, crisp texture and vigorous manufacturing make these bright orange carrots worth seeking this spring. Acceptable for all local weather zones.

Webb’s Wonderful Lettuce – if you have experienced issues escalating head lettuce in warm summer time temps with prolonged daylight hrs, this heirloom is rather warmth tolerant. Large crisp leaves are great in salads and tacos and keep organization even in sandwiches.

Some new bouquets from Renee’s Back garden Seeds:

Hestia Dwarf Edible-flower Runner Beans – an additional compact introduction from Renee. Quick to mature 12 to 14 inch crops have lush foliage with very coral-pink and white flowers beloved by hummingbirds. The flowers are edible – try them scattered more than a salad. Cascading behavior is attractive in containers, window packing containers or hanging baskets.

Orange & Yellow Beast Marigold – 3 to 3.5 foot tall crops generate nonstop large vivid double-double bouquets that are very desirable to pollinators. Extensive-lasting in the backyard and in bouquets.  The blue-green foliage is interesting far too.

Rainbow Bouquet Strawflowers – if you’ve grown strawflowers in the previous, you know how prolonged-long lasting they are, on the plants but also when placed in preparations or air dried for crafting.  These are dwarf vegetation so are proper at residence in containers or in the floor. The seeds develop plants with considerable flowers in shades of pink, rose, golden yellow and white.

Start seed now for late spring and even a handful of summertime vegetables and flowers, specifically individuals like tomatoes that need some safeguarded growing time before they can go into the garden. When it is also early to direct-sow heat-loving and quickly increasing seed like environmentally friendly beans (the seed tends to rot in chilly soil), you can get quite a few vegetation likely in pots now for later transplanting into the backyard. You are going to help save income by starting off your crops from seed as well as you’ll have a far wider assortment of plants from which to pick out.

Backyard garden tips are offered courtesy of horticulturist Sharon Hull of the San Lorenzo Garden Middle. Make contact with her at 831-423-0223.