New Brunswick Garden Mentors Question of the Week: What can you plant in July in New Brunswick?
Elaine and Archie gardening mentors 0

This week’s question for our New Brunswick Garden Mentors is: What can we plant in July in New Brunswick?
A little note from the editors
Our mentors are willing to answer your questions. Check out their bios for the best way to contact them. We type out phone numbers and the @ sign so bots can’t get hold of the info. Elaine and Archie
Karen Rogers

In the heat of July consider sowing those plants that tolerate heat and mature quickly. Check the backs of seed packages for maturity information. Following are a few suggestions:
Summer squash
Peas
Beans
Carrots (check maturity dates)
Collards
Kale
Radish
Celery
Beets
Herbs such as basil, parsley.
Some things to do:
Perhaps add a thin layer of compost to the garden between successive crops.
Keep track of what is planted where.
Rotate based on nutrient needs. Different vegetables use different amounts of nutrients. For example, leafy crops like spinach need lots of nitrogen and beans are nitrogen fixers. So, plant leafy crops where your beans were and beans where your leafy crops were.
You can also consider sowing seeds indoors for those cold hardy plants to go into the garden in the Fall.
A great local resource is Niki Jabbour’s book ” The Year-Round Vegetable Gardener.”
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Contact Info:
karen.rogers(at)nbed.nb.ca
Alicia Clarkson

Mario Doiron

Beans and radishes can be planted right now and be ready for harvest this season.
Garlic can be planted for harvest next summer (don’t forget to harvest your scapes so it makes a bulb instead of flowers).
Lettuce and spinach could be planted in areas that are shady from 1pm to 5pm (hottest part of the day) to prevent bolting. The south east side of tall things would give cooler morning light but nice shade in the afternoon.
And there’s still time to plant beets for their yummy greens.
It’s easy to contact me through Facebook Messenger
We asked our local garden mentors: What gift under $20 would you buy a new gardener?

This week’s question for our New Brunswick Garden Mentors is: What gift under $20 would you buy for a new gardener?
A little note from the editors
We started this project to provide good, local gardening information to our friends, but have started to realize we really appreciate the tips ourselves. You can never learn everything.
Our mentors are willing to answer your questions. Check out their bios for the best way to contact them. We type out phone numbers and the @ sign so bots can’t get hold of the info. Elaine and Archie
Bernadette Goguen

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Contact Info:
I can be reached best by texting: five-zero-six-nine-six-one-two-three-four-three
Mario Doiron

It’s easy to contact me through Facebook Messenger
Jossilyn Flewelling

We asked our local garden mentors: How have you adapted your gardening to changing climate?

This week’s question for our New Brunswick Garden Mentors is: This is shaping up to be a weird year weather-wise for gardening. How have you adapted or changed your gardening practices in relation to climate change and more unpredictable weather?
A little note from the editors
We started this project to provide good, local gardening information to our friends, but have started to realize we really appreciate the tips ourselves. You can never learn everything.
Our mentors are willing to answer your questions. Check out their bios for the best way to contact them. We type out phone numbers and the @ sign so bots can’t get hold of the info. Elaine and Archie
Alicia Clarkson

Karen Rogers

Plant native species with low summer water requirements.
karen.rogers(at)nbed.nb.ca
Jossilyn Flewelling

Pests. You Know They’re Coming. Some Advice from Our Local NB Garden Mentors
Elaine and Archie gardening mentors 0

This week’s question for our New Brunswick Garden Mentors is: What are the most common garden pests in your area and how do you deal with them?
A little note from the editors
Our mentors are willing to answer your questions. Check out their bios for the best way to contact them. We type out phone numbers and the @ sign so bots can’t get hold of the info. Elaine and Archie
Bernadette Goguen

Pests!!!!… Well, striped cucumber beetles are always a problem. We use insect netting and good rotation and removal of plant material in the fall (not always possible).
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Contact Info:
I can be reached best by texting: five-zero-six-nine-six-one-two-three-four-three
Alicia Clarkson

Karen Rogers

Keep in mind that the majority of insects in your garden are beneficial Thank goodness for predators that eat the pests; parasitoids that kill or weaken a host; decomposer/recyclers that promote healthy soil; and pollinators that facilitate fruit and seed growth. It is therefore important to first identify the “pest” you are looking at before acting to get rid of them.
A few ways to outsmart those pests are:
Use row covers on new seedlings to allow them to grow sufficiently to build resistance to undesirable insects.
Avoid overcrowding plants. The lack of air flow around plants is an important factor in the spread of insects and plant diseases. Aphids in particular multiply where there is inadequate air circulation.
Scout out your garden frequently for pests and disease so that you can get an early handle on problems. Hand picking early can prevent larger infestations.
Inter-plant flowers in your vegetable garden that attract the beneficial insects and repel the pests such as Marigolds and Nasturiums. Members of the carrot family such as fennel and dill attract Ladybugs.
One unwelcome critter in my garden is the potato beetle that attacks my tomato plants. Generally, it is best to just pick them off. However if you have lots of them, lightly sprinkling diatomaceous earth around the plants and on the underside of the leaves has worked for me in the past.
You can also combine 30 ml of diatomaceous earth diluted in 4 litres of water and spray on the plant. You should take some safety precautions by wearing gloves and be careful not to inhale the diatomaceous earth as it can irritate. We all have masks now!
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Contact Info:
karen.rogers(at)nbed.nb.ca
Mario Doiron

Slugs tend to devour tender seedlings before they get a chance to grow. I usually remove any mulch especially around cucumbers and cabbages so there re fewer places for them to hide.I tried slug bait this year to great effect.
After they’ve grown a bit, the plants are less vulnerable so the mulch could be re-applied. The rest of the season, old fashioned slug (beer) traps keep them out of trouble — mostly.
It’s easy to contact me through Facebook Messenger
Hugelkultur starter page
Archie Nadon gardening hugelkultur, permaculture 0
Hugelkultur is a good addition to any permaculture project because it’s a naturalistic way to create a bed for growing plants. In its purest form, it uses a lot of waste from the property, namely trees, preferably ones that were thinned, fell over in storms, or cut to make way for other permaculture projects.
This post is not a definitive hugelkultur primer. It’s just a collection of links we like or wished we had seen before we started our own.
We’re writing this in mid-June in New Brunswick, Canada, which is too late to really get the most of a new hugel, but if you’re starting other projects, then it might be the best investment of time and found resources that will pay off next year.
RichSoil
RichSoil’s hugel page is an excellent resource with lots of videos, photos and diagrams. We believe he’s based in California, but hugels were originally German.
Insteader's Hugelkulture Page
The founder’s of Insteaders are homesteaders themselves and are based in Seattle. The hugelpage is another excellent collection of hugel links to get you started or experimenting with a new kind, if you’ve already built one.
Maritime Gardener Hugel Video
If you like your videos slow and folksy, this is for you. The Maritime Gardener, Greg Auton, rambles through this video of making a hugel-style raised bed. The Maritime Gardener is based in Nova Scotia.
As we find more hugelkulture gems, we’ll add them to this post.
It’s Getting Hot — Finally. Our New Brunswick Garden Mentors Share Their Watering Advice

This week’s question for our New Brunswick Garden Mentors is: Now that the hot weather is here, what is your best watering advice?
A little note from the editors
We started this project to provide good, local gardening information to our friends, but have started to realize we really appreciate the tips ourselves. You can never learn everything.
Our mentors are willing to answer your questions. Check out their bios for the best way to contact them. We type out phone numbers and the @ sign so bots can’t get hold of the info. Elaine and Archie
Karen Rogers

Make sure your soil has a good amount of organic matter. This will help to retain water during dry spells and prevent leaching of nutrients during heavy rains.
Use mulch such as straw, bark/wood chips, or leaves to help to retain moisture.
During heat waves make some temporary shade for your plants with shade cloth or lath covers. Did you know that photosynthesizes stops at very high temperatures as well as very low? Also, some plants’ pollen, such as tomatoes, are sterilized above 30-32° C.
Water in the morning.
New plants and seedlings will require more regular watering than established plants.
Use a slow drip soaker hose for deep watering to support root health. You can easily make a soaker hose out of an old water hose.
Use a gutter system to collect rain in a barrel. Eco-Container Co, in Dorchester has many water collection container ideas.
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Contact Info:
karen.rogers(at)nbed.nb.ca
Bernadette Goguen

Water early in the morning.
I try to do one inch a week when I use a drip irrigation system. I find it best to water heavily every few days instead of lightly every day. I have extremely porous soil (sand), so addition of organic matter and not overworking the soil is important.
I use black, biodegradable “plastic” made out of cornstarch to help retain soil moisture and repress weeds. This works well for me because I am older and weeding is not as fun as it was when I was 30
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Contact Info:
I can be reached best by texting: five-zero-six-nine-six-one-two-three-four-three
Alicia Clarkson

Mario Doiron

It’s easy to contact me through Facebook Messenger
Our Mentors Share Some of Their Composting Tips

This week’s question for our New Brunswick Garden Mentors is: What is your number one tip for composting and soil building?
Karen Rogers

Alicia Clarkson

Whether it’s by hand, with a paper shredder, lawn mower, or a weed whacker in a bucket, breaking compost ingredients down into small pieces really helps speed up the process!
Jossilynn Flewelling

Mario Doiron

Jossilynn Flewelling: A New Brunswick Gardening Mentor
Elaine and Archie gardening mentors gardening, New Brunswick 0

My background in growing is mostly in mixed garden crops (veggies, small fruits, herbs) and one of my latest interests is cultivating perennial food plants and propagating fruit trees from cuttings. I also have a background in integrated pest management from years of work on strawberry farms. If there’s a natural control method to manage garden pests, I’ve probably tried it!
I’m easiest to reach by text five-zero-six-nine-five-five-five-nine-six-zero but email is ok too. jossilynn.flewellig (at) gmail.com
Alicia Clarkson: A New Brunswick Gardening Mentor
Elaine and Archie gardening mentors gardening, New Brunswick 0

I have my Bachelor of Science Degree in Agriculture from Dalhousie University (Formerly the Nova Scotia Agricultural College) in Truro. I graduated in 2016, and for the last three years, I’ve been working with the Peter McKee Community Food Centre of Food Depot Alimentaire running their community garden. I teach my gardeners how to grow their own food, and I manage 50 of the plots myself to grow fresh produce for the Food Bank.
I can be contacted by email at alicia.clarkson (at) fooddepot.ca