All the Dirt on Gardening

Peas are an ancient vegetable from the Mediterranean and Central Asia. Peas dating from 7,000 B.C. were found in Egyptian tombs and the Bible reports that they were one of the foods brought to David in the desert. Fresh peas as we know them were developed in Holland. They were such a sensation in the court of Louis the Fourteenth that poems and songs were written praising them. Thomas Jefferson’s gardener-chef James Hemings grew 30 varieties. U.S. President Andrew Jackson's favorite dish was Pease Pudding with onions, carrots, celery, butter, nutmeg, sour cream, and sugar. Peas are actually legumes or beans. Today over 1,000 varieties are grown. Legumes from Europe and Southwest Asia include peas, chickpeas and lentils. India and East Asia gave us Soybeans, Azuki and Mung beans. Black-eyed peas are from Africa and Peanuts and Butterbeans are from South America. English peas (Pisum sativum) are either smooth or wrinkled, with the smooth having more starch and the wrinkled being swee...

Sunny and 70-degrees - what a great day for being outside in the garden. The photo on the left is Dragonwing Begonias in the greenhouse at Blossoms Garden Center in Muskogee. Those of us without a greenhouse were outside planting beets, lettuce and other cool weather seeds. You could also scatter seeds of poppy, bachelor buttons and other flowers that enjoy a chill before bloom. The seeds I planted in the fall are up and now I'm going to put more in the bare spots. Tree trimming continues with the sound of chain saws having become a part of our neighborhood environment. Wait a little longer to trim and prune shrubs. Any shrub that blooms in the spring has already set its flower buds and trimming will cut them off. Just wait until the bloom ends - then prune. Arnold's had vegetable plants in stock and people were grabbing them left and right. If you have little vegetable plants, hold off on putting them out yet. Keep them under lights and warm until we see if there is another h...