This is the time of year to start thinking about what to grow in your vegetable garden this summer. If you’re considering spinach, this informative piece from the National Garden Bureau is a must-read.

Forget Popeye! Spinach contains many more nutrients than just iron. Actually, the amount of iron in spinach comes way down the list after vitamins A and C, thiamin, potassium and folic acid (one of the B complex vitamins). Dark green leafy vegetables, like spinach, contain lutein and zeaxanthin, both carotenoids. Studies show carotenoids help your eyes stay healthy as you age by preventing macular degeneration and the formation of cataracts. Vitamins A and C, both antioxidants, keep your cardiovascular system healthy, thereby reducing the risk of strokes and heart attacks. Folic acid is essential for the production of red blood cells and for normal growth, and may reduce the risk of certain cancers. It’s particularly important for pregnant women.

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Flickr / Steve Drolet
An apple blossom amaryllis in bloom.There is no better way to brighten your home during winter than growing some bulbs indoors. Here’s a good story from nj.com to get you started:

After the Christmas tree comes down and the wreaths are tossed, a long spell of bleak days looms ahead with nary a hint of green in sight. Fill the void with winter’s brightest bulbs and you won’t have to pine for vibrant, living color.

The key species for winter bloom are two showy flowers: amaryllis and paperwhites narcissus. Both are easy-to-grow windowsill plants offering quick, if not instant, gratification. Delicate paperwhites can bloom in as little as four weeks and gaudy amaryllis in six.

Unlike familiar spring-flowering bulbs, including tulips, daffodils and hyacinths, these two species don’t require a long period of cold temperatures to trigger bloom. Native to regions of the Southern Hemisphere, they are programmed to flower on an upside-down schedule in our winter months.

Read the rest of the story about indoor bulbs at NJ.com

Interesting story from mlive.com about two enterprising Flint gardeners that are doing their part for job creation and urban renewal with their commercial startup:

Urban gardening projects have been sprouting all over the city, but one new project may be the city’s most visible, even before a single seed has been planted.

A massive hoop house — a kind of greenhouse that uses a plastic covering to hold in heat from the sun — now stands covered in Christmas lights on a plot of land off Court Street just west of Miller Road.

Read the rest of the story here…