Gardening Q&A

Spring 2024 California Bountiful magazine

As a California Bountiful reader, you have the opportunity to get your seasonal gardening questions answered by gardening expert Pat Rubin. Here are a few questions from our readers.

I planted my garden early since the nurseries offered starter plants, and a late frost damaged all of the tomatoes and the basil has turned black. Will they recover?

The short answer is no. It’s always a risk to plant early. Sometimes it works and you get a jump-start on the season. But plants put in at the proper time grow quickly, so you really haven’t gained much. Just because the garden centers offer vegetable plants in March doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to plant them.

Your basil is finished, and by the time your tomato plants recover, newly planted tomatoes will be much farther ahead. Toss them all.

In the future, if you want to plant tomatoes early, protect them from the frost. Most garden centers sell frost protection items for veggies.

My cosmos and tomato seedlings are tall and spindly. What went wrong?

Do two things differently next time to ensure success. Give the plants more light, especially direct sunlight. Take the flats of seedlings outside for a little morning sun each day. Start when they get their first set of true leaves. Leave them outside for only a few minutes at first and gradually work up to a couple of hours. Make sure they are watered before you take them out. Be careful since fragile seedlings can burn up if the sun is too hot.

Second, run your hand across the seedlings several times each day, or put an oscillating fan on very low near the seedlings. This movement will help them grow stronger stems.

What’s the difference between a winter squash and a pumpkin?

Both are in the Cucurbita family but have their own identities. Pumpkins are typically bigger and rounder, while winter squash comes in many shapes. Both have hard outer skin to protect them. Some believe the term pumpkin doesn’t really mean anything, but to gardeners and cooks alike, the terms pumpkin and winter squash conjure up two different crops. So, while a pumpkin may really be a winter squash, not many gardeners or cooks think of them that way. Oddly enough, the giant pumpkins you see people entering in contests and growing upwards of 1,000 pounds are just giant winter squashes. They aren’t traditional pumpkins at all.


Every garden book says to add compost to soil and to keep doing it. Why do I have to constantly add compost?

The nutrients don’t last forever, so it’s important to keep feeding the soil. Your soil is like a living being and needs nourishment if it is to keep producing bountiful crops for you. If you are gardening in containers, it’s especially important to add nutrients to the soil, whether in the form of compost, time-release fertilizer granules or liquid fertilizer.

January/February 2024 California Bountiful magazine

As a California Bountiful reader, you have the opportunity to get your seasonal gardening questions answered by gardening expert Pat Rubin. Here are a few questions from our readers.

My daffodils don’t bloom, and my neighbor said it’s because they’re blind. What does this mean?

“Blind” is a term that gardeners use for seemingly healthy, well-tended plants that don’t bloom. Usually, the problem is in the way the plant is being grown. With daffodils, the problem is either they are too crowded and need to be divided or the foliage from the previous year was cut back too soon and the plant was unable to feed the bulb. Daffodils bloom on food stored in the bulb from the previous year. That’s why it’s important to not cut back the dying foliage until it is absolutely dead.

My vegetable garden was OK last year, but I didn’t get a huge harvest. What can I do to help? I have raised beds and I bought bags of soil that said they were for raised beds.

Sounds like the soil could use some help. I’d suggest adding chicken manure. It comes in bags as well. Since it can be a bit aromatic, I’d also suggest mixing it into your existing soil. A good rule when gardening: When you harvest a crop, add compost before planting the next one so you are always feeding your soil.

November/December 2023 California Bountiful magazine

As a California Bountiful reader, you have the opportunity to get your seasonal gardening questions answered by gardening expert Pat Rubin. Here are a few questions from our readers.

I haven’t picked my pumpkins yet. Is it too late?

Pumpkins need to be left on the vine for as long as possible for the best color and ripeness. As long as the rind (the skin on the pumpkin) is hard, the pumpkin is still good to pick and use. It’s best to wait until after the first frost but before freezing weather sets in to pick pumpkins (and winter squash).

What should I be doing in the garden in December?

December is a great time for garden cleanup. Remove all dead foliage, clean away any weeds. Add compost to the vegetable garden and mulch around the shrubs and trees. If you have fruit trees, now is the time to prune them. This is the time of year I start sprinkling flower seeds in vegetable and ornamental garden beds.