Kenai Garden Talk

Join this month's Kenai Garden Talk to celebrate Alaska Agriculture Day, get a jump on local foods with a look at some spring harvestables and hear about an initiative to offer more agriculture opportunities in the Kenai Peninsula Borough.

Information from this episode:

Wild plant guides:

May 7 was Alaska Agriculture Day, celebrated the first Tuesday in May since 2007 to highlight the importance of home-grown sustainability in Alaska. Did you know that the Kenai Peninsula has more than 260 farms? And that total sales of Kenai Peninsula agricultural crops in 2017 was $5.4 million?

Today’s Tune-In Tales is a story celebrating Alaska Ag Day, read by Kenai Peninsula farmers, Lou Heite and Steve Dahl, of Eagle Glade Farms, in Nikiski.

Just when you thought it might be time to risk moving plants outdoors, freezing temperatures and even some snow flurries returned to prove that you can’t rush spring in Alaska.

But that doesn’t mean you can’t play in the dirt this time of year. This is prime seed-starting season. In this month's Kenai Garden Talk, we’ve got wisdom from veteran gardeners about how to start seeds efficiently and cost-effectively. After that, we’ll visit an asparagus farm down in Homer, proving that even persnickety crops can be successful on the peninsula with the right knowledge and care.

On the calendar, spring officially begins March 21. In reality, we’ve got a while yet before anyone in southcentral Alaska is digging in the dirt, but that doesn’t stop intrepid growers from getting started.

On March 2, the Central Peninsula Garden Club had its annual get-ready-for-spring roundtables event at Peninsula Grace Brethren Church on Kalifornsky Beach Road in Soldotna, and a new opportunity for year-round greens has sprouted up in Soldotna.

Dave Ianson thinks rhubarb could be the next big thing in Alaska agriculture, if only growers would show it a little love.

And if you're thinking about raising dairy goats, make sure you plan ahead so your experience doesn't turn sour.

Links from this episode:

Karluk Acres, Julie Wendt and& Paul Vass:

Phone: 907-252-3980

Website: www.karlukacres.com

Facebook: Karluk Acres

It continues to be a slow, cold, soggy start to spring this May, but the gardening scene is heating up.

The Central Peninsula Garden Club is holding workshops every Saturday this month, giving gardeners a chance to pick the brains of experts on a variety of topics. Last week, KDLL tagged along for some sweet insight into growing berries at Alaska Berries farm and gathered snippits of information on tree pruning with Curtis Stigall of An Arboristic View.

It's April — the snow is melting but not fast enough to be gardening outside anytime soon. But that doesn’t mean you can’t be harvesting. Greenhouses get you a jump on spring and hydroponics can be a vault toward productivity. Tour Cheryl and Steve Beesun's hydroponic greenhouse in Soldotna, with cucumbers, lettuce and zucchini already ready to eat.

With the growth of agriculture on the Kenai Peninsula, the next opportunity could be agritourism. Margaret Adsit, founder of Alaska Farm Tours in Palmer, was in Soldotna Thursday to give local growers some insight into another way to get people to their products.

Spring is in the air, if not quite evident on the ground yet. We’re at least a month from digging in the dirt but if you’re planning to grow or raise your own food this year, now is the time to get started — and we’re here to help. On this month's Kenai Garden Talk, we’ve got the buzz on beginner beekeeping, some tips for your chicks and a plea for pest patrol. And if you're fresh out of patience waiting for farmer's market season, there's now a mobile option on the Kenai Peninsula, bringing produce to a parking lot near you.

Sink your teeth into one of fall’s tastiest treats, cozy up for fall with a different kind of fleece and take a walk on the wild side with local plants that can be used for medicinal purposes.

Links in this episode:

O'Brien Garden and Trees:
https://www.facebook.com/obriengardenandtrees/

The Alpaca Guy:
http://www.thealpacaguy.com/

It’s harvest time on the central Kenai Peninsula. But what to do with all that garden goodness? On today’s show, we’ll turn flowers into food, follow food from the high tunnel to the soup pot at the Kenai Peninsula Food Bank, and we’ll grill local chef Willow King for a quick-and-easy preparation for fresh, local produce.

UAF Cooperative Extension Service fireweed recipes

Kenai Peninsula Food Bank

We've got tips on what to do with spruce tips, a food guide that makes harvesting local produce way easier than growing it yourself, greenhouse grow boxes that'll about raise the roof, and there are some farmers who are loving the cool, wet weather this year. Thanks to our guests, Jacki Michels, Marcia Kardatzke, Wayne and Patti Floyd of Cool Cache Farms and Heidi Chay with the Kenai Soil and Water Conservation District.

Don't have your own garden but still want to eat fresh and local? Never fear — farmers markets and the Kenai Food Hub are here. While you're at it, get the dirt on how to maintain healthy dirt. And Brenda Adams, author of “Cool Plants for Cold Climates,” offers advice to avoid the perils of impulse planting.

High tunnels can mean high yields for Kenai Peninsula crops. Rupert Scribner with Kenai Feed tells us how to avoid high stress by installing them correctly. Then, kids at Soldotna Montessori have the dirt on what it takes to grow good gardeners. Finally, May is morel mushroom season on the central Kenai Peninsula. Dr.  George Spady shares tips for finding fungi on the forest floor.