Nurture Your Green Thumb With Tips From 'Gardening For Geeks'

STUDIO CITY (KCAL9) — Have you ever wondered if you have a green thumb?

Christy Wilhelmi, author of Gardening for Geeks, stopped by KCAL9 Monday to share the secrets and science of successful gardening!

Get planting!

• The best produce to plant in May is tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, squash and melons.
• They grow best in warmer weather and home growers can expect to start harvesting zucchini within a month of planting.
• Tomatoes, eggplant and peppers take a little longer to mature, but by mid-summer you'll be enjoying them.

Irrigation for a dry climate

• California had hardly any rain this year that's why you want to install drip irrigation.
• Drip irrigation waters at the soil surface, which means less evaporation.
• Setting up a drip system can be as easy as 1) getting a battery operated timer and hooking it up to your hose spigot. Then you attach a series of 1/2" or 1/4" tubes with connectors and strategically anchor them in your yard to water plants right at the roots.

Water as needed

• Clay soil will not need as much water as sandy soil.
• New seeds and seedlings will need water every day until established.

Keep pests away naturally

• The best pest control is a walk through your garden in the morning or afternoon.
• Snails head home in the morning. You can catch them and drop them into soapy water, or put out pie pans of beer. They love beer.
• You can also use physical barriers like floating row cover and bird netting to keep pests away from your garden rather than using sprays or chemicals

For more information, visit Gardening for Geeks.