Sunday, December 9, 2018

Low Cost DIY plant trellis

As promised, this year I want to post DIY’s and low cost/budget gardening ideas. I’ll start with this DIY trellis system that is affordable, easy to put together, easy to put away, and doesn’t require you to drill holes (easpically good for those living in rentals).
What is a trellis? It’s a structure that supports vining  plants and is great way to garden vertically. This is especially useful for people with small gardens, those who garden on a balcony, and anyone who wants to make the best use of their space. Plants that will grow up the trellis are plenty. Tomatoes (indeterminate ones, more on this in this post indeterminate vs determinate), beans (the runner/climbing/pole ones), peas (agin the climbing ones), gourds, flowers like nasturtiums (did you know they’re edible too?), cucumbers, Malabar spinach, some squashes and others. Trellises come in many shapes and sizes, and are made of different materials. Sadly, specialty trellises can be expensive, while gardening doesn’t have to. I believe everyone should be able to garden and I also believe gardening should be affordable. Plus, I love DIY’s and this is another hobby of mine.
The trellis I’m showing you today is not my idea per se. I saw a similar set up in one of my books (though that one was unstable) and it hit me. I was like: why didn’t I think of this before. I had the perfect “trellis to be” right there in my home. And it’s a cheap one but good quality one. The trellis to be is nothing but an inexpensive clothes rack from Ikea. Yes, a clothes rack. It’s a Mulig clothes rack for 29 aed.


To make this trellis you’ll need Mulig clothes rack from Ikea, a gardening net (I happen to have a couple from Daiso) or a twine or strong rope of some sorts.


Assemble the clothes rack as directed and attach the gardening net. If you don’t have one then use strong twine or a rope and use that instead. You can wrap the twine vertically and then horizontally, creating a net (I’ll post a tutorial if I have the time InshaAllah). That’s it, you made a trellis. Your new trellis is 99cm wide and 151cm high.
Please not that the maximum weight this particular trellis will bear is 20kg. If you use another rack the maximum load may be different. Plan what you will grow up the trellis accorsingly. For example, some squashes can weigh a lot, so don’t grow too many up one trellis. Another tip is to put this trellis against the wall or push it into the soil, so that it doesn’t tip/blow over with the wind. 
I hope you like today’s post. If you did, please comment below. If you have other ideas please share.

Happy Gardening
Yana


Monday, December 3, 2018

How to protect seedlings from birds

This may be a little late but still useful as there’s still time to sow seeds. Every year I encounter a big problem when I sow seeds: the birds eat my seedlings. It’s annoying as planting seeds is the hardest part of gardening, it takes the longest time. The only way that works for me is the physical barrier of some sorts. I tried sticking sticks into the ground around the seedlings before but the bigger birds would push these away. This year I’m using three types of protection: the shading net, the bird netting, and bottles. Yes, plastic bottles.  How do you protect your garden from birds?







Thursday, October 11, 2018

Gardening Calendar - October


Hello Gardeners,
It’s finally the season. Finally, we can work comfortably in our gardens. Finally, we can see the signs of green life. Finally we can plain enjoy the outdoors. I love October. First of all  I can spend more time in the garden. And second of all, I was born in October.  And though I hated it as a child (cuz in Russia the weather would start getting cold, and it would get dark and dusty and dirty cuz of the rain), I love it now. October is when we plant most of our plants in this part of the world, or actually anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere where the summers are too hot to plant most things. It is the busiest time in a gardener’ year. We are busy with buying plants, starting seeds, amending and preparing our soils, decorating our Zens and so on. I think the plant shops love this time of the year as much as we do 😃.  It’s like a long green Friday.. This is the time of the year where our gardens come alive again, after the harsh, hot summer. And there’s so much to do. In fact it’s so much that it can get overwhelming at times, for both new and experienced gardeners alike. That’s why our little gardening calendar for the month of October was created. To help you stay on track, at least a little. I apologize for writing this late. I wasn’t feeling well the past week and am a bit behind myself. But the beauty of gardening here is that our season is pretty long so we still have a lot of time to plant. If you have followed the previous month’s calendar then you have saved yourself some time. If you haven’t followed last month’s calendar then add the things from September Calendar to your to do list in addition to things below.
Here are the things to do in your garden this October:

1. PLANT. Planting will take the majority of your gardening time. You are able to plant most of the veggies this month. Cold loving and heat sensitive plants, such as spinach and lettuces, should be left for next month though. Heat loving plants can all be planted now. You can start from seeds or buy transplants from nurseries. I’ve seen some already but honestly, it’s still early in the season so you can plant/start your veggies yourself. Either way, the time is good now. I direct seed all root veggies, corn, okra, and some herbs and greens. I start as transplants tomatoes, cabbages and some herbs and greens. I have noticed that for some reason these do well as starts. Start planting the plants that have the longest growing times, such as broccoli and cauliflower, so that you can harvest them before it gets too hot in spring. At the same time you must plant veggies sensitive to cold first, such as cucumbers. Follow with quick growing plants. I usually dedicate October for edibles and plant ornamentals in November. But it’s totally up to you.
2. PROTECT. The weather is still hot in the afternoon and this can stress the seedlings. Insects start creeping out again so watch for that well. Birds willl start visiting your garden more often as they usually figure out very quickly that you have a garden growing. If given the chance, they will destroy your seedling very quickly. From my observations over the years, I have noticed that birds are attracted to new seedlings mostly and will leave the older, moremature plants alone. So protect your young seedlings from the birds, pests and from the afternoon sun.
3. FERTILIZE. Lots of plants will be putting on new growth now. It is a good time to fertilzie your trees and other perennial plants. The summer heat is gone and some plants will benefit from a fertilizer boost, preferably after the middle of the month. This is sort of generic suggestion as each plant has its own requirement, so please consider each of your plants requirement.
4. PRUNE. Pruning can be done for some plants. The suggestion is generic as for fertilizing, and each plant would have its own requirement.
5. REDUCE WATERING. As the weather is cooling down you don’t need to water your plants as often. I gradually reduce the number of times I water per week. Water less times but deeper. This will not only help you save on water bill. It will help your plants stay healthier and grow bigger roots that will help your plants cope better the coming summer.

Happy Gardening
Yana


Tuesday, September 25, 2018

The Soil Matters - basic soil mix recipe


Hello my fellow gardeners,
Today  I’d like to briefly talk to you about soil and how do we create the perfect soil mix. This is one of the questions I receive most often. I grew up in Russia, as some of you may know already. We lived in a part of Russia where soil is called “chernozem”. It is a kind of soil with black color and contains high percentage of humus. It is very fertile and is sometimes called black gold. I grew up thinking that all soils around the world are black and when I took up gardening I had no idea that things can be otherwise. You can imagine my surprise when I found out that there are many different types of soils around the world. Turns out not only the color of soils differ but the composition too. I won’t go into details about soil composition and types of soils in this post, will leave it for later.. Soils can be of three major types: sand, clay and silt. Different combination of these make the soils around the world. In this part of the world we have sand. Like pure sand mostly. This is a tricky soil to work with but it has its advantages too. Our soil here has almost nil nutrients,  is too alkaline (high pH, will discuss it some time later) in most parts, is often salty which prevents water absorption, dries out too fast and doesn’t hold whatever nutrients we add to it. It’s main advantage is that it’s easy to work with.
You may wonder why I don’t use potting soil from the market. Well, there are many many choices. Some appear and then disappear. Some contain things I don’t want in my garden, like chemical fertilizers. Some are not very suited for our climate. Some are simply incomplete to serve as a good potting mix. That’s why reading labels is important. I still use some of these soils from the market, but I add things to it to create that perfect mix. If you saw my video about how to make a potting soil mix, you’d know that to create a perfect soil mix we need to consider the basic elements that make for good soil. These are:


  • water and nutrient retention
  • air and good drainage
  • anchorage
  • fertility (not mentioned in the video but it’s important)


I have made that video a while ago and have since changed the proportions by the way. So after trial and error, research and observation I have come up with a basic formula for potting soil. This basic soil mix works great almost anywhere, not only in our part of the world. This recipe can be altered to suit different purposes and plants’ needs. You can use this mix to build your raised beds, mix with present sand/soil in your yard (don’t add extra sand then), in pots and containers, and even for starting your seeds (make sure you use new compost, that is preferably sterile, for that). So to create the potting soil that would contain the needed elements mentioned above, you need the following in EQUAL PARTS (by volume)*:

  • Compost
  • Coco Peat and/or Peat Moss
  • Perlite and/or vermiculite (if you have find it)
  • Sand (optional) 

*you will need to add something for fertility to the above mix.        

Compost
Compost is decomposed organic matter. Compost is a great addition to any kind of soils. It adds a good amount of nutrients, holds on to nutrients, yet provides good drainage. Compost improves soil structure, and is great for any types of soils. Compost is not very readily available here so I use potting soil as well, since it usually is just organic matter of some sorts which compost actually is. I follow the square foot gardening methods in my garden, so I follow their recommendations and use at least 5 different compost/potting soil sources to create my soil. It is done because most compost brands are a byproduct of some industry, so to create diversity different sources are used.  Please read the labels to see the composition.Manures are also considered compost so you can use that too (note, no more than 5 kg per square meter total manures, as this is the recommended use; also if you add manure it’s preferred you wait a couple of weeks before you plant anything).

Coco Peat / Peat Moss
Neither of these carry much nutrients but they’re important to add. Peat’s water absorbing quality helps with water absorption and nutrient retention. Peat moss also helps bring the pH of the soil down a bit, which essential as our soils are alkaline, or on other words  have high pH. Most plants prefer pH of aroun 6-7. I prefer to use coco peat because it is more sustainable and renewal source unlike peat moss. But I still add peat moss, but not as much as coco peat. Make sure to mix it well, and it’s eaier if you wet it first.

Perlite/Vermiculite
These two are great for creating good drainage, water and nutrient retention. They’re intert and won’t affect soil pH. Vermiculite is more expensive and a little hard to find, but it holds more moisture than perlite. Since there are different grades of both, make sure you get the agricultural grade. Perlite comes in two grades for garden use: fine and coarse. Use coarse type for pot cuz it’s lighter, and use fine type for gound mix as it’s heavier yet retains more moisture. Wear a mask while working with any of these as they’re dusty.

Sand
You can add sand to your mixture, or use the sand already present in the soil (if your building garden soil). If you’re making the mix for container plants make sure you use sweet sand from the nursery, as it doesn’t contain salt unlike most garden sand. If you’re mixing the soil into your garden soil make sure you water it well for a few days, especially after summer.

Fertilizer 
The mix above is a basic soil mix suitable for container and the ground. You want to add nutrition in a form of slow release organic fertilizer. It will feed your plants over the season and is a great alternative to hemical fertilizers. If you added manures to your mix you can still add a fertilizer separately, just don’t use as much. I personally use Sustane. I like the fact that’s it’s certified organic, is easy to use and my plants love it. I will talk about fertilizing in more details in another post.

HOW TO MIX:
I suggest you wear a mask cuz some materials mentioned can be dusty. Like I mentioned earlier I use equal parts of mentioned above materials. I wet coco peat and peat moss before I use it otherwise it’s impossible to mix well. You can leave it to absorb the water. Then measure everything by volume and mix. For small quantities you can mix in a wheelbarrow. I usually use a spare as my measuring tool.. If you’re mixing big quantities add materials onto a thick, heavy duty material, and add in layers then mix. Don’t add all of the materials at once at it can be very difficult to mix well.

This is a basic recipe for basic soil mix. There are other soil amendments and conditioners we can add, and InshaAllah I will talk about them in upcoming posts.

For info on where to get the basic gardening supplies in UAE please visit this page:

I have covered the basics of soil mix in this post. If you have anymore questions please comment below.

I’d like to ask you for a favor. If you like this post consider sharing it with your friends on your social media accounts. Let’s spread some garden love.

Happy Gardening
Yana




Wednesday, September 19, 2018

September Gardening Calendar



UPDATE: all the videos on my channel are gone so the links to the videos are not functional. I’ll do my best to reshoot the videos in the near future. I also added the potting soil recipe link.

Hello my fellow gardeners. Old and new, experienced and  beginners, and everyone in between. I have missed writing this blog over the summer. I started this blog 4 years ago and I can’t believe it’s actually really been 4 years already.  MashaAllah. Time flies. But here I am: still writing, still gardening, still committed and still learning. Alhamdellah. I am thankful to God for all the blessings upon me. I am thankful to still be here. Thankful to have the land to garden. Thankful to be able to spread my knowledge and experience. Thankful to be able to try and experiment and write about it.
A lot of things have happened this year. I won’t go into details as this is not my purpose. There were times when my knowledge of gardening and my experience was taken advantage of. There were times when my work was stolen. But I am not here to point fingers. These things don’t bring me down, they only make me stronger. And smarter. I know better now and  it was a lesson I hope I have learned well. But I have also met wonderful people, some of whom became friends. I believe there’s more good than bad afteall. I am here to spread my knowledge, to help others whenever and however I can, and to bring people closer to nature. Gardening has many benefits, so many that I in fact plant to write a post about it InshaAllah.
I have so many new plans for this blog. With God’s help and hard work,  I hope to accomplish these plans and goals that I have in mind. I am planning to introduce a lot of things like the gardening calendar (fist entry is today by the way), DIY’s and How To’s, features of other gardeners’ gardens and many more InshaAllah. I have everything planned out and have written some notes already. If you have ideas you’d like to add please let me know and/or if you’d like me to feature your garden please drop me a line.
I am posting this month’s calendar a little late and I apologize for that. Procrastination is a bad habit of mine and I am working on getting rid of it. I really am, trying. I kept saying I’ll write the post tomorrow and didn’t notice that it was a middle of the month already. This is not crucial though, as many of us have just come back from the holidays and it’s still too hot to really garden anyways. I will keep it short and simple despite how excited I really am. This time of the year brings new hope, new dreams and new beginnings into my life. In anticipation of green views, scents and harvests my mind starts working in turbo mode. I make many, many plans and this makes me feel so good, even though I know that not everything I plan for I achieve. I have come to terms with it and just enjoy everything I do as I do it. My gardens are never the same every year, as I try new things, change things, add things. Nonetheless, there are certain things I do in a specific order (more or less) and I will be posting these into the gardening calnedar post every month InshaAllah.
Without further ado, let’s get to the things we should (or at least try to) be doing this months:

Things to do in your garden in September:
1. Remove old debris from last season, if you haven’t done so already.
2. Clean out your pots, tools and throw away/take to recycling damaged stuff that is beyond repair or use. Tidy up your garden, as it’s easier and more inspiring to work in a clean and organized environment.
3. Make a plan (ideally, it should have been done in summer). Decide what you’d like to grow this season. Include a few things you haven’t tried before. Try Asian Veggies, they grow fast and grow well here, and taste great too. Draw you garden plan. Watch out for our downloadable garden graph paper download soon Inshallah. Will keep you posted if you subscribe to my blog.
4. If you haven’t already, buy seeds and other gardening things you need. Check this page for more info on where to get your gardening supplies in Dubai: Gardening Notions
5. Buy soil, soil amendments and organic fertilizers that you’d be using (use the link above for where to get your stuff). I only use organic and only suggest organic too, but the choice is yours. For more details about what gardening amendments I use in my garden and how I was building my soil visit this posts: post 1, post 2, video (I now use equal parts of what I mention in the video).
UPDATE: I now use a basic recipe, and modify it as needed, described in this post: Basic Soil Recipe Mix
6. Prepare the soil in your garden beds and containers. To see how I prepare my soil watch the videos on my channel, and read the posts above. If you prepare your soil now, it will have time to settle for your October planting. My Little Garden In Dubai YouTube Channel.
7. Start the seeds of veggies that take time to mature but that still can’t be planted directly in the soil yet. These include things like veggies from cabbage family. For more info on how to start the seeds in this part of the world, check my post: How to start your seeds (transplants) and succeed.
8. Towards the end of the month, or once it starts cooling down and it’s under 30c degrees for a few nights in a row, plant a few plants directly in the soil.  You’d probably want to shade them at first. Heat loving plants could be planted, but watch out for heat spells. I personally don’t plant much as the weather is unpredictable. One that is most suited to plant directly now is cucumber. Other plants you can try: okra, eggplant, mulukhia, kangkong. Some suggest to try peppers but for me they never succeed so I usually start them as transplants or wait till it’s cooler. I suggest you check my Useful Downloads Page for planting calendars you can follow (there’s other useful downloads there as well).
9. Check my 12 Steps to a Succeful Garden in Dubai post. It’s one of my most popular posts and it summarizes what you need to do to succeed at edible, and not only, gardening in UAE.

These are the things I believe you should be doing in your garden this month. This is just a guide and you can adapt it to suit your needs. If you believe I should add something please let me know in the comments or by contact me through a contact form. Do subscribe to my blog so you can receive notification once a new post is out. Also visit my social media accounts:
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube

Happy Gardening
Yana

Sunday, July 8, 2018

We’re featured on the 100 Dubai blogs to read in 2018

I started writing this blog almost 4 years ago. I didn’t expext much back then and was writing to mostly document what I do and to help a few others interested in gardening. I wanted others to avoid the mistakes that I made. Back then, I didn’t realize that there is a big gardening community in UAE and I honestly thought that not many people would be interested in what I do and what I write. As I immersed more and more, I realized that there’s a huge community of gardeners, new and old, experienced and beginners. I started receiving messages, even from residents on nearby countries, for advise and just thanking me for what I do. I believe I answered each and everyone, sorry if I missed your message, and I genuinely care for every reader. I even received messages from far away countries with similar climates. It was a goal reached, that is to help at least one person.
This year we reached another unplanned milestone. We just got featured in feedspot.com of 100 Dubai Blogs and Websites to read in 2018. This was a very pleasant surprise and it is defienly an encouragement to continue writing.

Happy Gardening
Yana

Tuesday, June 5, 2018

Shop for your plants online now, with 20% discount

Hello,
I was contacted by a plant shop recently, Dibba Garden Center, about their online shop. They are located in Dibba but will also deliver your order to Dubai, Sharjah and Northern Emirates. They have a variety of plants, such as indoors and outdoors, as well as cacti in addition to fruits and veggies (availability is seasonal). As readers of my blog you guys get a special DISCOUNT of 20%. Just use  coupon  LITTLEGARDEN

Happy Gardening
Yana

Sunday, June 3, 2018

Disclaimer

You may have heard that there’s a new law that regulates social media. According to this law, anyone who get compensated for writing/talking/promoting a product on social media is required to register for a social media license. I would like to assure you that I do not review/promote any products for any kind of compensation, at this moment. I only link to or suggest/recommend products/sites/shops I have either personally tried or think are worth trying. At this moment,  I do not get paid, or compensated in any other way, when I mention any kinds of products/links/services/shops/etc. on this blog as well as Facebook/instagram. I only do what I do, blogging about my gardening journey, because I like it and it’s my hobby. I do so at my own will for informative purposes only. If you decide to try/read a product/site/shop or anything I write about, you do so at your own discretion and I am in no way responsible for your actions and consequences as a result of you reading my blog/Facebook/instagram.

Happy Gardening
Yana

Two guides I think you may like to read

Hello fellow gardeners,
I know I have been ignoring this post but I swear I don’t meant to. Things get in the way and I don’t always have time to write. I have been more active on Facebook and Instagram though, so if you like you can follow me there, search by @mylittlegardenindubai or follow the links below:
My Little Garden in Dubai - Facebook 
My Little Garden in Dubai - Instagram 

I was recently contacted by two people who also write about gardening. I was asked if I would add their posts to my blog and I gladly did so in the Useful Sites Links page. I think both  posts have something we can learn from. Here are the links:
Yard Care Guru’s Guide to Gardening with Kids
Beginner’s Guide tin gardening -16 tricks uncovered

Happy Gardening
Yana

Tuesday, February 6, 2018

How to start your seeds (transplants) and succeed

  Three and half years ago I wrote a post about how to start your seeds and not kill the seedlings. The reason I named the post like that is because I had lost lots of seedlings in the past. I have a learned a few things since writing, and even updating that post, that I think it deserves another update. I am writing a  new standalone post because the old one is a bit outdated in my opinion. I think it comes at the right time, as some of us are doing our second round of planting and preparing for our spring garden of warm weather veggies. We are blessed to have a long growing season.

  I often receive emails and messages from new gardeners asking me why their seeds won't grow. In fact I think this is the question I get asked the most, especially during the planting season. And I try to answer everyone who messages me or emails me and very often after they follow these basic rules they succeed. I receive so many of these messages that I think it's time I write the updated post and create a permanent page for it on the blog.

   Oftentimes, we start seeds only to lose them all, or most of them, later on. Or, they grow but their growth gets stunned. Or, they grow in a weird way. Or, they die in a weird way. And there's many other "or's". I have had most of these happen to me and I think I have mastered the art of starting seedlings now, and I want to share it with you. Starting seeds is not hard. In fact it's easy, I promise, as long as you follow some basic steps. Like REALLY follow some basic steps.
Here are the steps you NEED to follow to succeed at starting seeds:




1. Start your seeds at the right time. I can't stress that enough. Starting seeds at the wrong time will head you to a disaster. Most seeds can be started around mid October. Some seeds, such as tomatoes and courgettes, can be started earlier. And some, such as spinach and lettuce, should be started closer to mid November. Hello

2. Choose the seeds that CAN be started as transplants. Not all seeds should be started as transplants. Some, such as radishes and carrots, should only be direct seeded. Some can be started as


 transplants, but do better when direct seeded. Do your homework before you plant anything

.




3. Avoid starting your seeds indoors. Why? Well, there are two reasons for that. First, is that there is no adequate lighting indoors to start your seeds and have them grow. Often, our windows are tinted or have some light filtering on them. Sometimes, it's plain lack of light that is so much needed for the emerging seedlings, well most of them. Once the seedlings have germinated ALL of them need light to grow, and they need an adequate amount which the indoor environment usually can not provide. This will cause leggy seedlings that usually die. Unless you can provide special artificial lighting for starting your seeds, avoid it altogether. Another reason you don't want to start your seedlings indoors is a little bit more complicated. In this part of the world we usually start seeds around beginning of fall. We want to start seeds indoors to be able to have our plants ready to harvest earlier, or to extend the planting season in other words. What happens, is that our seedlings are usually ready to be transplanted while it's still too hot (this is provided we did manage to grow them successfully). The transplant shock is usually very strong (so strong that most plants don't make it). So unless you are able to plan and time everything wisely, and/or you have time and enough space indoors to pot up and keep the growing seedling at, avoid starting seeds indoors.

4. Start outdoor seeds in dappled shade. So if you follow step 1 above, then you'll be starting your seeds outdoors. To have a better chance of succeeding at this you want to provide some shade for your seedlings. If you plant them in full sun they run a chance of frying up. If starting in the beginning of fall, which most of us do here, then look for the coolest place in your garden that still gets some dappled. You want some sun. Preferably, you will provide dappled shade. In my garden, I built this shade house using an old gazebo and shading net. It worked great and the only thing I would change, is move it out of that spot because it receives full sun all day long.







5. Choose the right containers.  To start seeds you can use many containers. Note, smaller containers will need more frequent watering. You can buy special seed starting trays, cells, flats. But you can also reuse nursery containers as long as you wash them and disinfect them well. You can also reuse things such as yogurt containers and disposable cups. Any container you choose will need to have drainage holes. 


6. Use the right soil mix. There are many soil recipes for starting soil. My personal favorite is equal parts of very well aged compost, coco peat and perlite. You can also use peat moss instead of coco peat, but coco peat is more sustainable. Another mix that is often used in nurseries is half peat half perlite. Whether you choose these recipes or use another, the most important things is to use new soil. It's ok to reuse soil in your garden, but not for the purpose of seed starting. Young seedlings can be vulnerable to diseases that may be present in old soil. To my mix I add a little bit of a slow release fertilizer, such as Sustane. It helps the seeds to get going once they've used up their own reserve. Do not add fast acting fertilizer as it can inhibit the seeds' growth.
A basic soil recipe is described in this post Soil Matters Basic Soil Mix Recipe


7. Soak the seeds prior to planting. Some seeds, such as parsley, will benefit from soaking. Soaking will improve germination rate for almost all seeds. Research soaking time for your particular seeds, as some, such as beans, will get damaged with prolonged soaking. For most seeds warm to hot (not boiling) water works great. 

8. Plant correctly. Wet the soil mix well, fill the container, and pat it or press gently. If you don't press, the mix will settle once you water it and you'll end up with very little soil in your container. Plant two to three seeds per pot. A planting depth depends on what you're planting, but as a general rule you plant at a depth of 2-3 times the size of the seed. Some seeds need to be covered lightly with soil only as they won't germinate without light and vice versa. The seed packet will usually provide that info. If all of the seeds germinate you can later snip the weakest ones leaving only one strong seedling. If you're planting in trays then make furrows and plant your seeds, thinning them later.

9. Water your seeds correctly. This is a very important step. I repeat: this is a very important step. If you're starting your seeds in the beginning of the fall then this is especially important. Once seeds get wet they start "waking up". For most seeds, if they dry out at this stage they'll  die. So keeping them moist at all times till they germinate is very important. But, at the same time you don't want your seeds to be in a soggy soil either. Depending on when you're starting your seeds, it means watering them anywhere between once to trice daily. Once they germinate, watering once a day is usually enough, just keep an eye on them especially during dry spells. 
There's a concept of bottom watering, but I don't have enough experience with that. Here, you water your seedlings from the bottom rather than from the top. Sometimes the pots are placed in a tray and water is added as needed. Sometime watering mat is used. I hope to experiment more and write about it sometime.

10. Fertilize. This is a tricky one and can be confusing too. Some sources tell you that seeds have their own nutrient reserve and don't need to be fertilized for the first few weeks of their life. Other sources tell you that you need to start fertilizing once the true leaves occur. From experience, I noticed that seeds that get supplemental feeding perform better. I go with the feeding once true leaves appear. Whatever fertilizer you choose, make sure you only use half dose. It's a good idea to water your plants before applying the fertilizer to avoid fertilizer burn. Personally I use seaweed extract and liquid fish fertilizer. I alternate them weekly and

11. Harden off. A week or two prior to transplanting, start hardening off your seedlings. When you plant your seedlings in their final position the conditions there usually differ from where your seedlings were kept. To reduce transplant shock, you want to get your seedlings used to the sun exposure. Get them out in the sun everyday. Start with morning sun for a few minutes, gradually increasing the time.

12. Transplant. Transplant your seeds in late afternoon, preferably on a cloudy day.

Bonus. Let the children touch the seeds and do their magic. I don't know what it is about kids and seeds, but it seems that seeds touched by children grow much better.

I hope this guide was helpful to you. If for some reason your seeds fail, don't be afraid to start again. It happens all the time.

Happy Gardening
Yana

Tuesday, January 30, 2018

We are on Instagram

Hello my dear readers,
I’d like to let you know that we finally have an Instagram account. I honestly don’t know why I didn’t do it earlier. If you’re on Instagram too do take a look and follow us:
Instagram: @mylittlegardenindubai

And here’s a picture of our first post ever:


Saturday, January 20, 2018

My garden now, updates January 2018

Hello my gardening friends,
I hope you're all having a great gardening journey this year. We had our ups and downs. My downs were weather that hotter than usual (I guess we shared this one), late planting time and being overwhelmed because I wanted to grow so much. I also wanted to do a deep amendment of my soil so I have spent a little more than I had initially intended (this is not a down but a budget challenge). But my ups were more and I'm happy with the results. 
I have done a deep amendment of my soil, written about in this post , and I was honestly afraid that I went a little overboard. My main concern was the manure that I have added. I didn't know if it was well aged, though I had been assured that it was, and I was worried about it inhibiting germination and burning the plants. Well, manure still contained some seeds though that attracted some birds. There was also an issue of "weeds" all over the garden that came from the seeds in manure. This was taken care of: manually pulling the seeds with your hands is a great exercise and a way to bond with your garden, so we handled that. 
Another up this year is starting transplants. I was in way forced to start some seedlings in advance (due to heat and the fact that it took time to amend my soil). I'm not a fan of transplants and was afraid I'd be wasting time, seeds and my patience with it. I started indoors which proved to be a disaster. There was not enough lighting and the indoor ones were 99% a waste. But being a stubborn person that I am I started outdoors again. I diy'ed this shadehouse (greenhouse) using a gazebo frame, written about in my Facebook post here, and used it to start seeds. Guess what? It worked and I had a great success. 

I did learn that some plants, such as cucumbers, are indeed better of planted directly in the soil, and that some should be started after the heat is gone, such as lettuces and spinach. But, I also did learn that planting under shade net can give you a jumpstart on your season. Cool weather plants, such as cabbages and lettuces, can be planted a couple of weeks earlier under shade than in open ground. So more experimenting with seed starting next season Inshallah. 
Another thing I learned that works, is consistent use of liquid fertilizer and seaweed. It works and it works very well. Seaweed is more like growth stimulator rather than a fertilizer, though can be labeled as such. Seaweed also helps plants adapt to weather extremes. Organic liquid fertilizer, I use fish fertilizer, provides essential nutrients to your plants and makes them available right away, and are less likely to burn your plants. So why do we need them? Well, our desert sand is not very fertile, if at all, and any nutrients available tend to leach out over time. That is why additional feeding throughout the growing season works great. I alternate between weekly feeding of seaweed and liquid fertilizer. This also helps me bond with my plants and my entire garden. 
I was also able to grow plants I failed at before. I have successfully grown borago for example. It would only grow a few inches tall before, but has grown properly this year. Maybe it was due to being starred under shade first, or because it was planted in a very rich soils, or even because it is not in full sun but rather shaded by the tomatoes behind which it is growing. More experimenting in sight. 
Here are some pics from my garden, hope you enjoy them. 






















Happy Gardening
Yana

Tuesday, January 16, 2018

Updated - Useful Downloads page

Hello everyone,
I have updated the Useful Downloads page. Some links were broken and I replaced them. If you find anything on the blog that needs fixing please let me know. You can find it in the tab above or find it here:

Updated Post: 12 steps to successful garden in Dubai

Hello everyone,
I have updated the most popular post on my blog. I wrote it back in 2014 and most of it still stands true today. I did learn a few things since then and have experimented a lot. I have minor, but important, updates that are worth posting. Enjoy the updated version of the post here:

Saturday, January 13, 2018

Upcoming Seed Exchange meetup

Hello everyone,
I hope you're all enjoying the season as much as I am. I would like to invite you to our upcoming meet up at Desert Oasis Petting Farm this coming Friday (Jan 19, 2018). The Petting farm is having an Inauguration Day and there will be lots of stalls and other things to do. For more info check the event page on our Facebook page https://m.facebook.com/events/547448038945419?ref=bookmarks
If you have any question don't hesitate to contact me.
Location: Desert Oasis Petting Farm, Khawaneej, Dubai
Date/time: January 19, 2018; 12pm-2pm