Here’s a gardening question about growing and harvesting broccoli that was sent in by Joyce from Inman, Kansas: “I started broccoli plants in the spring and they are now sprouting and not forming heads. From what I have read, fall broccoli is the best. Can I keep these plants alive until I want to produce in the fall, or do I need to plant again?

I received the following question from Andreas who is seeking information related to sustainable agriculture and organic farming internship opportunities in the Pennsylvania or Virginia areas. It’s been more than twenty years since my three year organic farming internship and the scene has changed but there are fundamental issues that should always be considered.

Two recent questions, both related to growing okra, addressed gardeners’ concerns over okra plants that seem to be maturing a bit too slowly. Is it just a coincidence or is there something sinister going on out in the garden plots? Here are the specifics of a couple of okra inquiries from the gardens of Lynn and Cynthia:

Kim, who gardens in sunny Southern California just shared the following strange and puzzling experience that sounds like something right out of the X-Files: “I love your gardening newsletter. I find it very helpful and full of useful information. I have a question about pepper plants.”

I received an interesting comment yesterday from an avid gardener who responded to my Top 5 Gardening Tips post. She agreed with my gardening tips for the most part, but raised an interesting question regarding the nutritional differences of food produced through organic gardening vs. conventional growing methods.

I received an e-mail today from a gardener in North Carolina who shared some concerns that many of us may have regarding the cold weather that is forecast to strike our gardens over the next few days:

I received a question recently regarding using newspaper as a mulch to control weed growth in the garden. Diane made the following inquiry: “I was wondering what you think about using layers of newspaper covered with straw as weed control. We have such a prolific weed problem in our community garden that straw alone does not work and I refuse to resort to black plastic as many other garden members have done for understandable reasons.”

If you are wondering exactly where in the world Manitoba is located, you’re not alone. I believe that it’s part of Canada and was just about to look it up, but changed my mind when I saw that they still have five feet of snow on the ground. Here’s a letter that I received from Michele who grows a vegetable garden in not so sunny Manitoba: