10 COMMANDMENTS OF GRILLING
FOR A SEASON OF SIZZLE
Celebrate the Grilling Season with these Ultimate Tips and Tricks

A day of playing in the dirt can really work up an appetite, and there’s nothing better than enjoying a tasty, hot-off-the-grill meal. To kick off the season of sizzle, we’re here to help grill masters everywhere start the fire and satisfy those summer cravings with the 10 Commandments of Grilling. Whether it’s for a Memorial Day grilling extravaganza or a family picnic on the patio, here are the perfect tips, tricks and grill accessories to get homeowners grilling and barbecuing like a pro!

1. Be prepared and organized. Before you start, make sure you have everything you need – food, marinade, basting sauce, seasonings and equipment – at grill-side.

2. Gauge the fuel. When using charcoal, light enough to form a bed of glowing coals three inches larger on all sides than the surface area of the food you're planning to cook. When cooking on a gas grill, make sure the tank is at least one-third full. For charcoal that burns cleaner, hotter and longer than other brands, use Kamado Joe 100% Natural Lump Charcoal. This is a must if you’re grilling in a ceramic grill like the Kamado Joe.

3. Preheat to the correct temperature. Grilling is a high-heat cooking method. To get the perfect seared crust, charcoal flavor and grill marks, you must cook over a high heat of at least 500 degrees. For grill masters looking to perfect this high-heat cooking method, the Kamado Joe Ceramic Grill offers high quality heat retention properties and even includes a smoker and an oven for maximum cooking versatility.

4. Always keep it clean. Clean the grate twice: once after you've preheated the grill and again when you've finished cooking. Use the edge of a metal spatula to scrape off food debris and a stiff, long-handled wire brush to finish scrubbing the grate.

5. Grease the grate. Lubricate the grate just before placing the food on top, but only if necessary (some foods don't require it). Using a pair of tongs, rub the grate evenly with a folded paper towel soaked in oil to help eliminate sticking.

6. Marinade at the right time. Bastes and marinades based from oil and vinegar, citrus or yogurt can be brushed on the meat throughout the cooking period. When using a sugar-based barbecue sauce, apply it toward the end of the cooking time to protect the sauce from burning. Don’t hesitate to mix fresh herbs into your marinades.

7. Never stab. Stabbing the meat can drain its juices and dry it out. The proper way to turn meat on a grill is with the appropriate equipment, such as tongs or a spatula.

8. Keep it covered. When cooking larger cuts of meat and poultry, such as a whole chicken, leg of lamb or prime rib, use the indirect method of grilling and keep the grill tightly covered. Every time the lid is lifted, you add five to 10 minutes to the overall cooking time. The Kamado Joe Heat Deflector is a helpful tool to use when cooking with indirect heat. It circulates the heat around your food slowly, which keeps meats moist and tender and reduces the potential of charring.

9. Let it sit. Remove the meal from the grill and let it sit for a few minutes before serving. This allows the meat juices, which have been driven to the center of a roast or steak by the blazing heat, to settle and return to the surface.

10. Stay with the grill. It's easy to cook on a grill, but it demands your undivided attention. Once you start grilling something, stay with it until it's cooked.

Find more recipes and tips on our Pinterest board - Grilling >

Learn more about our Grills and Outdoor Living >

Enjoy the fruits of the garden with this easy to make fresh, bite size caprese salad. The perfect appetizer or salad for summer cookouts.

Ingredients

Sweet 100 or Cherry Tomatoes

Fresh Basil

Fresh Mozzarella Cheese

Olive Oil

Fresh Cracked Pepper

Toothpicks

Directions

Pick the cherry tomatoes from your garden, or in a bind cherry tomatoes from the store, and rinse them. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half. Cut the fresh mozzarella into pieces about ½ inch thick and an 1 ½ tall and wide. Pluck a handful of basil leaves from the plant, rise and pat dry. Tear the basil into 1 ½ inch pieces.

Grab a tooth pick and start to assemble your salad. Place half the tomato on the tooth pick, add a piece of the mozzarella cheese, next add a piece of your basil and lastly place the other half of the tomato on the toothpick. Place all your assembled toothpicks on a serving dish and lightly drizzle with olive oil and grate some fresh cracked pepper over the top of the salad. Enjoy!

June 1 & 2

Ladybugs are the friendly garden bug that eats the bad bugs that create troubles in your garden. On June 1 & 2^nd Pike Nurseries is giving away over half a million ladybugs. Visit your neighborhood Pike Nurseries to receive one FREE packet of ladybugs per family. Supplies are limited.

Learn more about ladybugs at the free Beneficial Bugs class Saturday, June 1 at 10am.

June 1 at 10 am

While some insects wreak havoc on your plants, there are others that help plants thrive. Find out which bugs benefit your garden during this free class. Plus, we’re giving away over a half a million ladybugs June 1 & 2 during Ladybug Days, so you’ll get to take a sample packet home with you. 

Growing herbs is easy and fun. Whether you grow a few herbs on your kitchen window sill or have a raised garden bed dedicated them, you will find the rewards of growing your own herbs both on your plate and in your wallet.

Walking out into your garden and snipping a little rosemary to go with your chicken, a little tarragon for your potato salad, or mint for your mojito is a truly satisfying experience.

All of the herbs we list here will need to be planted in a sunny spot (a spot that receives 6 - 8 hours of sun a day). If you are planting them in the ground amend your native soil with Foothills compost and Pike Vegetable and Flower planting soil. If you're planting in pots (most herbs grow great in containers) use a high quality potting soil that provides nutrients and adequate drainage, like Pike Potting soil.

1. Basil - you will love the fragrance of the leaves of the basil. Start with Sweet basil, it is a must-have for Caprese salads and pestos. But then, branch out and try other basils. Each has a slightly different taste and growing habit. We love Thai Basil, it's great for Asian style cooking and has a slight clove undertone. Purple Ruffles and Red Rubin have pretty purple foliage and they both have milder flavors which works great in a mixed green salad. Boxwood Basil has small leaves and a compact growing habit which makes them great for smaller containers and mixed container gardens. Basil is an annual for warm weather. Plant it in spring and enjoy them till frost. Read our previous blog to learn how to harvest and store your basil before the first frost to use all winter.

2. Chives - are easy to grow and are perennial. Plant them this year and enjoy them for years to come. Onion chives and Garlic chives have slightly different peppery onion flavors. Not only is the foliage edible, the pretty pink flowers are too. Sprinkle the pretty flowers on your next salad.

3. Oregano - if you love cooking Italian dishes, you simply MUST plant oregano in your garden. Dried oregano is a kitchen staple, but once you've cooked with the fresh stuff, you won't want to go back. Oregano is perennial too and is a spreading groundcover. Plant it where it has room to trail or spread.

4. Parsley - what you need to know most about parsley is, it's not just a garnish! Parsley is full of vitamins and minerals. Add the leaves to soups and sauces, salads and meat dishes. Parsley is a hardy biennial herb. Biennials are plants that complete their life cycle in two years. It performs great in cold and warm weather. Parsley is an essential plant for butterfly gardens as it's a host plant for caterpillars. So, be sure if you want to attract butterflies to your garden to plant extra parsley. Some for you, and some for them.

5. Tarragon - is an underused herb with amazing flavor! It has hints of licoriceand is similar to a rosemary and oregano blend only milder. Try it in stews (you'll find the aroma amazing as the stew slowly simmers), it's great with chicken, in pastas and really livens up a southern potato salad. French tarragon is the most common culinary tarragon however, it's an annual. Texas Tarragon is a semi-hardy perennial and is equally delicious. Fun fact: Tarragon is closely related to marigolds. Texas Tarragon is Tagetes lucida, the common marigold is Tagetes patula.

6. Rosemary - might be the most popular herb to use in cooking and to grow and with great reasons. Rosemary is not only perennial, it's also evergreen. Plant rosemary and you'll be able to snip it fresh from your garden to use for your Easter brunch, Fourth of July Celebrations, and Christmas dinners. It is also easy to grow because it is quite drought tolerant and requires very little maintenance. Rosemary can be used with many different dishes. Read  our previous Rosemary blog and find some of our favorite ways to use Rosemary and get our Roasted Spicy Rosemary Pecans Recipe. Rosemary grows in different habits. Upright rosemary like Arp, Tuscan Blue and Barbecue grow straight up while Huntington's Carpet, Irene, and Prostratus are spreading varieties.

7. Mint - you must grow mint, and we suggest you grow it in a container. Mint is a very vigorous spreader that will root in as it grows and continue spreading. Mint is delicious on desserts, in salads, in drinks, with fruit or when chewing a leaf freshly picked from the plant. There are too many mint varieties to name and we recommend you try a few different varieties because they all have different flavors. A few of our favorites are Spearmint, Peppermint, Apple Mint, Pineapple Mint, Chocolate Mint, Grapefruit Mint, Orange Mint, and Mojito Mint.

8. Sage - is another perennial herb. Apart from it's culinary uses, there are several varieties of sage with quite beautiful foliage, most notably Tri-color Sage and Golden Sage. Fun Fact: Sage is a Salvia and therefore is closely related to the popular annual flower Salvia splendens. There are many culinary uses for sage you can pair it with eggs, chicken, polenta, pasta, beans and bread.

9. Thyme - is a beautiful creeping groundcover. All thyme is fragrant with Lemon Thyme having a particularly lovely citrus fragrance. Wooly Thyme is soft, fuzzy and gray and is a great container garden accent. Elfin Thyme grows completely flat making it a great plant to grow between pavers in a garden path. When you brush past thyme in a pathway the fragrance is a warm welcome. Snip the leaves of Thyme to use when cooking lamb, poultry, stews, chicken and tomatoes.

10. Lavender - Lavender would be a great plant to grow in your garden for its fragrance, the gorgeous flowers, and its drought tolerant nature alone. Throw in other uses and it's a 'must-have' for your garden. Lavender is easy to dry for fragrant potpourri and is lovely as a fresh cut flower. It's also growing in popularity for its culinary uses. Use lavender with chicken, ham, and salmon. And try lavender with breads, desserts, and drinks.

Herbs are versatile, hardy plants with multiple uses. Find a spot to plant an herb garden, or incorporate herbs into your existing beds and containers. Then, have fun snipping them and trying new recipes and other ways to use them.

Tuesday, June 18 at 10 am

Did you know worms are good for your garden? Bring your kids to this class to learn how worms benefit soil.

 Full Sun Project

This mailbox garden will show off your patriotism. It’s designed with easy-care red, white, and blue summer flowering plants. 

Bed is roughly 8 foot by 6 foot triangular

CLICK HERE for a Printer-Friendly Download

Get inspired with other ideas in the Playing in the Dirt Blog >

View Inspiration Magazine for more ideas >

Growing tomatoes is easy and you’ll be rewarded with juicy, flavorful tomatoes you can use on sandwiches, in salads or salsa and more. Visit your neighborhood Pike Nurseries and let us help you pick the perfect tomatoes for your garden.

• Find a Sunny Spot
• Tomatoes need at least 6 hours of sunlight
• If there’s not a sunny spot in your garden you can also grow tomatoes in a large pot

• Choose Your Tomato
• There are two basic types of tomatoes: determinate & Indeterminate
• Determinate
• All blossoms and fruit develop on the plant at about the same time. Harvest time is short. The plant is self-topping and does not continue growth from the terminal bud.
• Indeterminate
• The terminal bud of an indeterminate tomato does not set fruit, it always produces leaves and more stem from the growing tip.
• The vine can grow indefinitely if not killed by frost in the fall.
• The blossoms and fruit develop progressively as the vine grows so tomatoes in all stages of development may be on the vine at one time and harvest may last several months.
• Pike Nurseries has a huge selection of tomatoes from sweet cherry tomatoes, large beefy tomatoes like ‘Big Boy’ and even yellow tomatoes

• Plant Your Tomato
• Good soil
• It has the nutrients plants need to establish a healthy root system
• Good soil will provide the plant with good drainage so it gets enough water but it’s not sitting in water which would cause the roots to rot
• In the Garden
• Amend soil with Pike Vegetable and Flower Mix at a 50/50 ratio with the native soil
• In a Pot
• Use a high-quality Potting Mix like Pike Potting & Container Soil
• Tomato Cage
• Tomatoes get large quickly
• Place a Tomato cage on your tomato as soon as it’s planted

• Care
• Watering
• After planting, water plants extremely well. Thereafter, water only when the soil indicates the necessity of watering.
• As a general rule of thumb, water your tomatoes often enough to keep the soil cool and moist.
• It’s important to keep tomatoes on a regular watering schedule
• Irregular watering can cause the fruit to split

• Feeding
• Regular feeding is important.
• We recommend E.B. Stone Tomato and Vegetable Food (100% organic).
• Apply 6-8 weeks.
• Dry fertilizer should never touch the main stem and should be lightly cultivated into the soil.

View on overview of some of the tomatoes we carry >

Check out our video on planting different types of Vegetables >

Scrumptious Strawberries

It's strawberry season! This time of year we celebrate our strawberry harvests by making wonderful desserts, salads, drinks and smoothies with this delicious fruit.

Growing your own strawberries is easy and harvesting the plump juicy fruit will be the real treat. Whether you're topping your morning cereal with them, making a fresh smoothie or making strawberry jam or a strawberry cake, your home-grown strawberries will taste even better than store-bought berries. Plus, growing them at home saves you money! Strawberries are perennial plants that come back year after year. Plant them this year and enjoy the literal fruits of your labor for years to come.

Planting your Strawberries

Plant strawberries in the ground in spring in a spot that receives full sun, that's an area that gets 6 - 8  hours of sun each day, and has well-draining soil. They will grow no more than a foot tall and wide.

In the ground, space your plants 2 - 3 feet apart and space rows leaving a foot in between. Dig a hole for each plant. Mix the native soil at a 50/50 ratio with E.B. Stone Planting Mix. Remove the plants from their nursery containers and place the plant in the hole. Backfill the holes with the mixed soil and tamp down to remove any air pockets.

Water your new strawberry patch thoroughly after planting. Spread a layer of straw or mulch around your plants to retain moisture and cut down on weeds.

For everbearing strawberries, remove the first set of flowers so you have bigger berries with the next set. If you plant June bearing strawberries, its best to remove all the flowers the first year and wait to let it fruit the second year.

Strawberries grow great in containers as well. Plant strawberries in hanging baskets and strawberry jars. Use Pike potting soil when planting in containers. Its a nutrient rich potting soil that allows for good drainage. 

Now, enjoy yummy strawberry and basil salads, strawberry jam on biscuits, chocolate covered strawberries....the recipes are endless...or just pop them in your mouth and enjoy their natural sweet flavor.

Take a look at our Strawberries board on Pinterest for delicious strawberry recipes >

Learn about pink blooming 'Lipstick' Strawberry plant >

Succulents are one of the biggest trends in gardening.  They're easy to grow, drought tolerant and require almost no maintenance. 

What are succulents?
Succulents are plants that store water in various structures, such as leaves and stems. They are very heat and drought tolerant.

Why are succulents popular?
Succulents are extremely diverse and come in many colors, shapes and sizes. They have clean lines which make them very architectural and modern. They are super easy to grow.

How to grow succulents
The most important thing for succulents is well draining soil. Succulents store their own water, so they need very little water. Succulents love the sun, so plant them in a spot that receives 8 or more hours of sunlight.

To get enough drainage, plant soils in E.B. Stone Cactus Mix in containers or mix into the ground. Succulents thrive on warm, hot weather and many varieties won't make it through our winters. Plant succulents in containers and bring indoors when the average night time temperature is similar to the temperature inside your home.

View an overview of Succulents we carry in our plant library >