Q: Can you remind us what you put on top of your soil to make your watermelons grow so well? Is it some sort of mulch? — Cassie L. A: Pioneering research was conducted at North Dakota State University ...

If you’ve ever tried to keep your crops alive through the cold bite of winter, you know it’s a battle between frost and survival. Many gardeners and farmers reach for plastic mulch because it looks ...

It may seem trivial, but home gardeners who choose to use plastic mulch may want to note the advantages that research has shown for colored mulches over the more traditional black plastic mulch.

Each year, on our fruit-and-vegetable farm in New England, my family covers about a quarter of our 50 acres with plastic mulch. Rolls of it, five feet wide and 4,000 feet long, sit on a machine that ...

Consumer interest in organically produced fruits and vegetables is growing and to help growers meet this demand, Clemson University scientists are studying watermelon production methods to develop ...

In Washington’s Skagit Valley, the beginning of summer is largely marked by the first ripe, red strawberry. Just off of State Route 20 headed west out of Burlington sits the Skagit Valley location of ...

So back to “What’s new in mulch?” It’s wool. Yes, from sheep. It can be used right off the sheep or in the form of wool ...