Ruth's Blog

Notes from the Garden

Plain answers, priced out. Which tricks work, which are bunk, and what each one saves you.

How I Make Free Garden Soil From Fallen Leaves (No Bags, No Turning)

Those sacks of leaves at the curb are the best free garden soil you'll ever get. Here's how I turn them into leaf mold with nothing but a wire ring, a hose and time.

Epsom Salt on Tomatoes: I Tested It. Here's the Honest Truth.

Everybody swears a spoonful of Epsom salt makes better tomatoes and stops blossom-end rot. I grew eight plants side by side and weighed every tomato, and here's the honest truth.

How to Grow Potatoes in a 5-Gallon Bucket (and Why Yours Got Too Hot)

If your bucket potatoes came out the size of marbles, the bucket wasn't too small. It was too hot, and here's how to plant, cool and water a 5-gallon bucket for a real harvest.