I help gardeners grow
& beginners blossom.

No seed left behind,
no soil unturned.

Together we can have lots of fun growing
great gardens using simple practical tips.

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Trouble With Winter Greens

by Donna Balzer | Dec 26, 2015 | Bugs & Buggers, Food, GARDENING, Greenhouse, Soil | 0 Comments

Gardening is all about playing and “experts” like Elliot Coleman, in his book “The Winter Harvest Handbook” stress plants won’t actually grow when there is less than 10 hours of sun per day (this happens at different latitudes but in Calgary and in most of Canada we are probably down to eight hours of sun a day right now and I am not sure when we crossed the 10 hour threshold.)

Make a Simple Christmas Planter on Porch

by Donna Balzer | Dec 8, 2015 | Garden Decoration, PLANTS & DESIGN, Trees & Shrubs | 0 Comments

I help gardeners grow & beginners blossom. No seed left behind, no soil unturned. Together we can have lots of fun growing great gardens using simple practical tips. - Featured in - A gardener’s journal is the place to track your sprouting efforts and follow your...

Learn to Slow Down and Choose Your Bites Carefully

by Donna Balzer | Nov 27, 2015 | Food, GARDENING | 0 Comments

It was a great opportunity I couldn’t pass up so I went to Italy last fall and found out all about slow food both from eating it and experiencing the wonders of Terra Madre and Salon Du Gusto.

What Price Organic? Beneficial Bugs in my Greenhouse

by Donna Balzer | Apr 27, 2015 | Bugs & Buggers, Food, Gadgets, GARDENING, Greenhouse, Landscaping Tips | 0 Comments

I had a few aphid skeletons in my closet. Well in my greenhouse actually. These are the little white skins shed from aphids as they grow. They are more obvious than the aphids themselves. It’s all my fault really because I had a big plan to bring in some strawberries from my garden last fall and keep them alive in my greenhouse so that when they started growing I would have the first crop of aphids – oops I meant strawberries.

Seeds Are Germinating!

by Donna Balzer | Jan 15, 2015 | Food, Gadgets, GARDENING, Greenhouse | 0 Comments

My babies wake up before I do. They take a drink and grow patiently while I lay about in bed. This is because i set up a timer for my seedlings so I no longer need to pop out of bed in the morning to make sure they are up and growing.

Farm Tour in Southern Alberta Shows where food really comes from

by Donna Balzer | Aug 27, 2014 | Food, GARDENING, Greenhouse, Soil | 0 Comments

My recent farm field trip in Southern Alberta, courtesy Rudy Knitel, Galimax Trading Inc. was an amazing journey into my own back yard. I found out how difficult it is to farm organically in Southern Alberta. The carrots, for instance, are on a 16 year rotation at Leffers’ Organic farm where the cost to raise a carrot is ten times that of conventional farming.