How well the garden does in any particular year depends on a number of variables beyond the gardener’s control: the weather, seeds that don’t sprout, insect infestations, birds that eat seedlings, gophers, and so on. While you have no choice about many of these developments, I provide some gardening expertise to make your work a little easier, increase the yields of your crops, and solve some troublesome gardening problems.
Vegetable growing requirements don’t change.
For a complete list of vegetable varieties see Heirloom and Hybrids.
ARTICHOKES
BOTANICAL NAME: Cynara scolymus
DAYS TO MATURITY: Artichokes bear one year after planting, sometimes the first summer.
PLANTING TIME: Plant root divisions during the spring. You can also sow seeds indoors at 70 degrees F about three months before the last frost. Set them out in a protected area with southern exposure.
SOIL: Light, sandy, well-drained.
NUTRIENTS: In summer, apply a fish emulsion at 10-day intervals.
WATER: Water well and often through spring and summer. Never allow roots to dry.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Space plants 3 feet apart.
HARVEST: Cut the unripened flower heads before the bracts begin to separate.
STORAGE: Artichokes can be stored in a refrigerator drawer only a few days.
Artichoke Growing Tips
Better Taste
When summers are especially hot, the heat will open the leaf buds, causing the edible part of the artichoke (the leaf bract) to become tough and leathery. To avoid this, harvest the buds when they are still closed tight. At this stage, they’ll be absolutely succulent.
Summer Artichokes
Gardeners in hot areas sometimes have trouble growing artichokes because they dry out. Spreading lawn clippings around the roots will retain moisture and keep the artichoke happy.
ASPARAGUS
BOTANICAL NAME: Asparagus officinalis
DAYS TO MATURITY: The first crop will come during the third year if the plant is grown from seeds. It will take two years if it’s started from year-old roots.
PLANTING TIME: Sow seeds indoors in midwinter or in a hotbed in early spring. Transplant the seedlings outdoors in the spring when all danger of frost has passed.
SOIL: Sandy loam; pH 6-9-8.0.
NUTRIENTS: In early spring, feed with a “complete” organic fertilizer. Fertilize again in the summer with fish emulsion (follow the directions on the package) after harvesting the spears.
WATER: Do not irrigate during winter months. Soak the roots thoroughly whenever the soil begins to dry out.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Dig a trench 8-10 inches deep and 12 inches wide. Then form a shallow ridge 8 inches high at the base. Space the crowns 12-18 inches apart with the small, stringy roots spread over both sides of the ridge. Cover the crowns with 2-3 inches of soil.
HARVEST: As the young plants grow, fill in the trench little by little. Don’t harvest any spears the first year. During the second year, when the foliage turns brown in late fall, cut the stems to the ground.
STORAGE: Use fresh or pickled.
Asparagus Growing Tips
Cut Low
To keep asparagus growing at top speed year after year, cut the stalks to within 2 inches of the ground after the first fall frost. Do this after the leaves turn yellow but before the berries on the female plants fall. If the berries are allowed to drop, they will produce seedlings that will compete with the established plants and reduce overall production.
Straight Spears
When gardeners cultivate too vigorously with a hoe, they wind up with misshaped, crooked, or curved asparagus spears. Slow down and take care not to nick the spears when you weed. These nicks affect the spears’ growth.
More Asparagus
Cutting back asparagus foliage always reduces the next crop. To make your asparagus go that extra mile, support the growing foliage with stakes and wires. This keeps the bed tidy and ensures the biggest crop possible each year.
Better Production
To increase your asparagus yield almost immediately, strip off the green peppercorn-size berries as they appear on the fronds of the female plants.
BEANS, GREEN
BOTANICAL NAME: Phaseolus vulgaris
DAYS TO MATURITY: 40-80, depending on variety.
PLANTING TIME: Plant after the ground has warmed to at least 60 degrees F. You can also start them under glass or polyethylene two or four weeks before the last frost date. For a continuous supply, plant every two weeks.
SOIL: Do not plant beans where other beans have grown in the past three years. pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: With the help of soil bacteria, beans draw nitrogen from the air for growth. Feed plants every three to four weeks with organic fertilizer or fish emulsion.
WATER: Water regularly and thoroughly all season. Avoid overhead watering.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1-1 1/2 inches deep, 3 inches apart. If you are growing pole green beans, place them 6 inches apart along fences or bean poles.
HARVEST: Pole beans are best harvested when young. Bush beans can be picked at any stage but have a better flavor when young. By keeping the beans picked, you will extend the season.
STORAGE: Use fresh, canned or frozen.
Green Bean Growing Tips
Bush Pole Beans
To magically turn pole beans into bushy vines, pinch off the growing tips every time they exceed 12 inches. This keeps the plants at easy-picking height and doubles the crop over comparable bush beans.
Bean Tower Power
Beans go crazy when properly supported by a bean tower. A tower of bean tower grows up to 20 pounds of Kentucky Wonder beans a season. Construct the tower from 3/4-inch PVC pipe. Drill 1/8-inch holes 6 inches apart in the bottom crosspieces. By hooking them up to a hose, you can irrigate the plants’ root zones below grown.
Bean Jungle
You can double the harvest of beans per vine by growing them up a trellis or large-mesh wire fencing rather than up wires or strings. Sow seeds 1 inch deep, 3 inches apart, after the soil temperature exceeds 60 degrees F. Although this creates a jungle of foliage, the beans can be picked easily at all levels.
Protecting Beans
Radishes planted around both pole and bush beans enhances the beans’ flavor and repel bean beetles. Radishes are ready every 24 to 30 days, so reseed every 10 days or so.
The Snap Test
To pick green beans when they’re first-rate, apply the snap test. If a pod breaks in half with a succulent crack, it is ripe. If the older pods are not diseased, throw them into the compost.
Bean Sculpture
To create a unique bean tower, nail two old 26-inch bicycle wheels to a fence or post. Plant pole beans 6 inches apart along the base of the first wheel. The beans will eventually grow in and out, up and sideways, along the spokes, creating some unusual patterns.
BEANS, LIMA
BOTANICAL NAME: Phaseolus lunatus
DAYS TO MATURITY: 60-90.
PLANTING TIME: Sow outdoors about four weeks after the last frost.
SOIL: Light, warm, and sandy: pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Lima beans supply their own nitrogen. Feed them every three or four weeks with fish emulsion.
WATER: Avoid overhead watering. Keep moist and don’t allow a crust to form over the soil surface. Don’t over water.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1-1 1/2 inches deep. Thin bush beans to 3 inches apart. Thin pole beans to 6 inches apart.
HARVEST: Pick the pods of limas as soon as they begin to look lumpy and before they turn yellow.
STORAGE: If you have too many beans, dry them for future use by letting the pods mature on the vine and turn beige. Remove the dried beans and heat them in a 130 degrees F oven for an hour to kill any weevils. Store them in sacks or seals jars in a dry place. Some varieties can be frozen.
Lima Bean Growing Tips
Peak Flavor
The large white or speckled lima beans are at their peak flavor when the beans are fully formed in the pods. To test, simply shell several pods that seem to be full, then choose pods with a similar feel. This test will not work for baby limas or baby butter beans.
Early Harvest
You can gain a couple of weeks on the season by sprouting lima bean seeds on a windowsill inside wet paper towels. When they start to sprout, set them outside. Stick the sprouting seeds with sprout tips showing in the ground the minute the soil warms up.
BEANS, DRIED OR SHELL
BOTANICAL NAME: Phaseolus vulgaris
DAYS TO MATURITY: 90-125.
PLANTING TIME: Plant outdoors when the soil has warmed to 65-70 degrees F and all danger of frost is past.
SOIL: Well-drained; pH 6 .0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: These legumes supply their own nitrogen. Apply fish emulsion every three or four weeks during the growing season.
WATER: Water weekly to a 1-inch depth.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1-1 1/2 inches deep, 3 inches apart. For row planting, space 2 feet apart. For pole beans, space 6 inches apart.
HARVEST: Pick pods in the fall when plants’ leaves have fallen. Dry on a screen or hang plants upside down. Shell by threshing in a burlap sack or by hand.
STORAGE: Keep the dried beans in a capped jar.
BEETS
BOTANICAL NAME: Beta vulgaris
DAYS TO MATURITY: 48-80.
PLANTING TIME: The first sowing should be done two to four weeks before the last spring frost date. Sow additional crops every two weeks or so.
SOIL: Light, loamy, and well-drained; pH 6.0-7.5
NUTRIENTS: When seedlings are 3-4 inches high, feed them with fish emulsion. A light application of organic nitrogen is the only fertilizing they need.
WATER: In dry weather, water thoroughly to prevent wilting. Water overhead to keep both the tops the the roots crisp.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Beet seeds come in clumps containing three or more seeds. Sow these clumps 1/2 inch deep and 1 inch apart; stamp on the soil after the seed has been covered. Rows should be 14-16 inches apart. For intensive beds, you can plant about 20 beets per square foot.
HARVEST: Start harvesting beets when they are 3/4 inch in diameter. Most varieties lose their flavor if they are allowed to grow larger than 3 inches in diameter.
STORAGE: Beets should be used fresh or pickled.
Beet Growing Tips
Redder Beets
To produce bright red beets, sprinkle the bed lightly with table salt–about a spoonful per foot. this improves the growth and color of the roots and eliminates white rings.
Tough Beets
Tough beets are often caused by insufficient water or irregular watering. Water beets when the soil is dry 2 or more inches down (check with a trowel). Do not let the soil dry out at any time during the growing period.
Winter Beets
Every good cook likes to grow a few beets to pop into winter salads. Space 30 beet seeds in a 8-inch pot filled with potting mix. Keep this watered and on a windowsill. Thin to 10 well-spaced plants. Use the beet greens and roots when needed.
BROCCOLI
BOTANICAL NAME: Brassica oleracea italica
DAYS TO MATURITY: 47-90 plus.
PLANTING TIME: Broccoli can be started indoors or in a hotbed two to three months before the last spring frost. Plant seedlings in the ground four to six weeks before the last frost. Broccoli does best when temperatures remain between 40 and 70 degrees F through the growing season.
SOIL: Rich, heavy; pH 6.0-7.0.
NUTRIENTS: Broccoli is a heavy feeder. Nourish once a month with fish emulsion or with an organic liquid nitrogenous fertilizer, such as 1 tablespoon of blood meal mixed with 1 gallon of water.
WATER: Never allow its roots to dry during the summer months. Neither should you water log broccoli. A light mulching will help keep the soil moist.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow 1/2 inch deep, 1-1 1/2 feet apart. For a traditional row garden, space rows 3 feet apart.
HARVEST: The plants are ready for picking just before the buds begin to open. Harvest them with a knife, cutting the stems 6 inches beneath the bud clusters. Some varieties produce edible side branches; other produce a central head with so side shoots.
STORAGE: Use broccoli fresh.
Broccoli Growing Tips
Fully Packed
Broccoli often produces premature, small, scattered heads when young plants are subjected to temperatures below 40 degrees F before or shortly after planting. Shield your plants in early spring with hot caps or other protective devices.
Broccoli Factory
Some gardeners continuously produce edible broccoli buds like they’re running a production line. Their secret: after harvesting the main head, you must pick the developing buds every three or four days as long as the plant continues to produce. Once you let a few developing buds flower, the action stops, and you’re out of business until next season.
Firm Anchor
To stop mature broccoli plants from tipping over, make a hole with a trowel. Plant each seedling so the base of its leaves is only a finger’s breath above the soil surface. Since the plant develops a heavy superstructure, this extra depth provides firmer anchorage.
BRUSSELS SPROUTS
BOTANICAL NAME: Brassica oleracea gemmifera
DAYS TO MATURITY: 80-140.
PLANTING TIME: Sow seeds 120 days before the first expected frost. The minimum soil temperature is 40 degrees F.
SOIL: Almost any kind of soil is fine, although they don’t like overly acidic conditions; pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Fertilize the plants three times during the growing season. Apply fish emulsion or use 1 tablespoon blood meal mixed into 1 gallon of water.
WATER: Sprouts need plenty of water.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/4 inch deep. For rows, plant 3 feet apart.
HARVEST: When the sprouts are firm and deep green, snap or trim them from the stalk. They have the best flavor when they are 1-1 1/2 inches in diameter. Mild frost improves the flavor. Pick the lower leaves off when you harvest the sprouts but don’t remove the top leaves.
STORAGE: They are best used fresh.
Brussels Sprouts Growing Tips
From Bottom to Top
To harvest brussels sprouts properly, start at the bottom, snapping them off as you go up. Always remove the leaves below the picked sprouts. Leave the small top sprouts and any that are smaller than 1 1/2 inches in diameter.
Hungry Birds
The birds in your garden probably love brussels sprouts as much as you do. Save these vegetables for yourself by pulling wire or plastic netting over the top of each row (leave the ends open). This stops the birds’ feasting and lets you harvest the entire crop without interference.
Good Anchorage
To stop brussels sprouts from tipping over just before harvest time, shore up the soil around the plant stem one month after planting. This anchors the plant firmly.
CABBAGE
BOTANICAL NAME: Brassica oleracea capitata
DAYS TO MATURITY: 45-120.
PLANTING TIME: Set out transplants four to six weeks before the last frost. In mild winter areas, plant in fall or winter.
SOIL: Medium light, well-drained; pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Apply fish emulsion every three to four weeks, or use 1 tablespoon of blood meal mixed in 1 gallon of water.
WATER: Never let cabbage wilt. Mulch helps keep the soil moist and cool.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep, 2-2 1/2 feet apart. Plant rows 3 feet apart.
HARVEST: When the heads are firm, cut cabbages off at the base of the stalk.
STORAGE: Use fresh, ferment for sauerkraut, or store in a cool place.
Cabbage Growing Tips
Cut-and-Come-Again
You can easily turn your cabbage plants into a vegetable factory. When you remove a head, cut squarely across the stem leaving four or more leaves. Then cut a shallow slit across the top of the stump. The cabbage plant will produce up to five smaller cabbage heads within six weeks after this cutting.
Bolting Solution
Nothing is quite so frustrating as cabbage that grows furiously in the spring and then suddenly changes from the leafy to the flowering stage (bolt). This frequently occurs when young plants are exposed to temperatures below 50 degrees F for two to three weeks. The larger the transplants, the faster they seem to flower. To avoid this, select and plant seedlings with stems about the size of a lead pencil.
Super Cabbages
To create colossal cabbages, try this technique before transplanting. Dig or rototill 4 inches of dried horse manure into the top 6 inches of the bed soil. When you’re finished, spread out 10 pounds of wood ashes per 50 square feet of bed. Rake the bed smooth and put in the transplants. This helps increase the size and weight of the heads.
Variety Soil Typing
Veteran gardeners select their cabbage varieties to fit the type of soil they have. Early cabbages (those that mature in about 75 days) do best in light soil. Fall/winter cabbages (those that need at least 110 days to mature) do best in heavy, damp soil.
Color Coding
Purple is your clue when it comes to selecting cabbage transplants in the spring. A purple coloring on green cabbage indicates that the seedlings have been properly hardened off (conditioned to outside temperatures) and will be able to survive spring conditions in the garden.
Plate-Size Cabbage
To produce dinner-plate-size cabbages, space plants 8-10 inches apart. Although the closer spacing means the heads will be smaller, you will produce more pounds of cabbage in the same soil.
Head Start
give your cabbage transplants a head start; dig the hole deeper than usual–at least 12 inches deep–and fill it with peat moss. The roots can then spread out and grow down. If cabbage transplants are placed in a shallow hole, the roots grow toward the surface and the plants develop slowly.
Doubling Up
An experienced gardener likes to get double and triple duty out of every garden. To double up in the cabbage patch, plant leaf lettuce between your cabbage transplants. When the cabbage begins to squeeze out the lettuce, pull out the lettuce plants and allow the cabbages to take over.
Put Them on Hold
If too many cabbage heads are ready at the same time, pull up the extra heads with their roots and place them head down on a bed of straw, hay, or dry leaves. An alternative is to hang the plants upside down on a nail or wire. Either way, they will keep well into winter.
Bird Attack
You can protect cabbage seedlings from marauding birds by covering them completely with a few wire loops and netting. When the plants are about 8 inches high, remove the netting.
CARDOON
BOTANICAL NAME: Cynara cardunculus
DAYS TO MATURITY: 110-140.
PLANTING TIME: Plant the seeds in late spring.
SOIL: Rich and moist.
NUTRIENTS: In late summer, feed them weekly with fish emulsion.
WATER: From late spring to early autumn, water well.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow groups of 3-4 seeds in a trench 1 inch deep at 1 1/2-foot intervals.
HARVEST: Allow a month of blanching before harvesting cardoon. To blanch, wrap long strips of thick, brown paper around the plants, starting at the bottom, then pack soil around the bottoms. If you don’t want to blanch them at the end of summer, you can wait until winter and simply eat them as you want them.
STORAGE: Cardoon must be kept in a completely dark place.
Cardoon Growing Tips
Taste Treat
Pamper cardoon with a cup of fish emulsion or a diluted chicken-manure solution every two to three weeks as they grow. This prevents the leaf stalks from becoming pithy and tasteless due to sluggish growth. At the same time, make sure the plants never dry out.
Black Plastic Magic
If you can’t wait for a bite of cardoon, wind black plastic mulch around the stems, leaving the leafy tops exposed, and tie with brown cord. The stalks will be blanched and ready to eat in about four weeks compared to the six to eight weeks required when you use other materials.
CARROTS
BOTANICAL NAME: Daucus carota sativa
DAYS TO MATURITY: 50-110.
PLANTING TIME: Sow carrots in the ground two to four weeks after the last frost. Continue to sow at three week intervals. In warmer regions, where winter temperatures rarely fall below 25 degrees F, sow in late summer for a fall/winter crop.
SOIL: Light, sandy loam that’s free of rocks; pH 6.0-7.0.
NUTRIENTS: Fertilize twice during the growing season. Apply fish emulsion. Push soil up around carrot base to prevent the root tops from turning green.
WATER: Maintain even soil moisture.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow 1/2 inch deep, about 4 seeds per inch. Space rows 14-17 inches apart.
HARVEST: Carrots store well in the ground; dig them up as you need them. You can also keep carrots between layers of dry sand in a box that you should put in a frost-proof shed (cut off the tops and pack them evenly) or store them outside covered with straw.
STORAGE: Leave in ground: use fresh, canned, or frozen.
Carrot Growing Tips
Sprout Them Fast
To ensure uniform germination, try covering your seedbed with a sheet of clear plastic. Carrots are a cool weather crop but won’t germinate well in early spring when the soil temperature is below 49 degrees F. The plastic covering heats up the soil and maintains moisture. Uncover the seedbed on warm, sunny days to keep the soil temperature from exceeding 95 degrees F.
Scorched Earth
Home gardeners who have weed problems should take a tip from commercial growers. Wait seven or eight days after sowing your carrot beds, then scorch the earth lightly using a small propane tank equipped with a nozzle (home building stores will sell them). This kills the weeds to give the growing carrots a better chance.
Mix and Match
To grow a great carrot crop in less-than-perfect soil, you’ll need to match the carrot variety to the soil type. In rocky or shallow soil, plant Oxheart or Nuggets. In heavy, clay soil, plant short to medium carrot varieties such as Red Cored Chantenay, Royal Chantenay, or Nantes types. In light, sandy soil, plant the long, slender varieties such as Imperator.
Pot Magic
To take the guesswork out of growing carrots, try starting them in clay or plastic pots. Fill several 4-6-inch pots with a good potting mix to within 1 inch of the rim. Sow 10-12 seeds evenly over the surface. Water the soil thoroughly, and keep it damp until the seeds sprout. When each plant has two to three fern-like leaves, thin until you have around seven evenly spaced seedlings per pot. When the plants are 6-9 inches high, remove the entire root mass from the pot and plant this intact in the garden. The contents of 10 pots planted close together (intensive style) yield about 70 carrots.
Speedy Germination
Carrots take twice as long to germinate as most other vegetables. To shorten the process, pour a teakettle of boiling water over the seeds before covering them with soil. This makes them sprout in about half the usual time and increases overall germination.
Automatic Spacing
to avoid the backbreaking work of thinning carrots by hand, rake the carrot bed with a steel rake when the baby carrots are 2-3 inches high. You’ll save a lot of effort and space out the carrots automatically. A few plants will be squashed, but they will recover in a day or two.
The Perfect Carrot
Want to grow long, slender carrots like you see in the grocery store? Sow the seeds of Imperator or Imperator type 1/2 inch deep and cover them with 1/4 inch of compost or peat moss. Keep this layer moist until the seeds germinate. When the plants are about an inch tall, withhold watering until they start to wilt, then resume normal watering until harvest. This tactic encourages fast downward growth and produces appealing carrots.
Warm Weather Solution
When hot weather makes germination impossible, one solution is to sow carrot seeds along a pencil-size 1/4-inch furrow, then cover them with 1/4 inch of soil. The trick is to plant these fragile seeds deep enough so they won’t dry out yet shallow enough so they can break through easily. Water with a fine mist so the seeds won’t wash away.
CAULIFLOWER
BOTANICAL NAME: Brassica oleracea botrytis
DAYS TO MATURITY: 30-180.
PLANTING TIME: Plant in spring four weeks before the last frost. For fall harvest, plant in late spring. In hot areas where winters are mild, plant in late summer for a winter crop.
SOIL: Light and rich; pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Feed the plants every three to four weeks with fish emulsion or use 1 tablespoon of blood meal in 1 gallon of water.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep, 18-24 inches apart. If row gardening, space rows 3 feet apart.
HARVEST: Be sure to blanch the heads by pulling a few outer leaves together over the buds and securing them. Harvest the heads when they are still tight; cut the stalk just below the head.
STORAGE: Use cauliflower fresh or pickled.
Cauliflower Growing Tips
Blanching Made Easy
To blanch cauliflower easily, cover each head with aluminum foil when it is about the size of a softball. First, crinkle up a square of aluminum foil that’s approximately 14 x 14 inches. Unfold the square and loosely place it over a cauliflower head, allowing as much air space as possible. tuck the edges around the head. At harvest time, your cauliflower will be pleasingly white.
Healthy Cauliflower
Select seedlings that have about four green leaves; as short, straight stem; and plenty of root. Reject seedlings with a bluish tinge (since they will produce only small curds), seedlings with six or more leaves (they have matured too quickly and will die), and blind seedlings (those with no growing points).
Easy Storage
It’s a snap to store cauliflower. Pull up the entire plant, and hang it upside down in a cool, dark place. While cauliflower plants are in storage, spray them with water every night.
CELERIAC
BOTANICAL NAME: Apium graveolens rapaceum
DAYS TO MATURITY: 110-120.
PLANTING TIME: Germination of celeriac seed requires a soil temperature of 60 degrees F. Sow seeds or seedlings in spring.
SOIL: Rich, and well-drained; pH 6.0-7.0.
NUTRIENTS: Fertilize every two to three weeks during the growing season with fish emulsion or use 1 tablespoon of blood meal mixed into 1 gallon of water.
WATER: Water frequently but don’t saturate.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Space transplant seedlings 1 foot apart. Rows should be 12-15 inches apart.
HARVEST: Pull up the plants, and cut off their tops. If you plan to store, don’t lift them until the hard frost makes it necessary.
STORAGE: The roots can be stored in damp sand for several weeks.
Celeriac Growing tip
Starting Celeriac
Gardeners whose local nurseries don’t carry celeriac as seedlings can find seeds in some garden catalogs. Prepare a seed tray with planting mix, an sow the seeds evenly and thinly across it. Water the surface, then cover the tray with black plastic, and place it in a warm place to germinate. After germination, replace the black plastic with a clear plastic bag.
CELERY
BOTANICAL NAME: Apium graveolens dulce
DAYS TO MATURITY: 60-140.
PLANTING TIME: Plant celery seedlings in the garden two to four weeks before the last frost. Since celery seeds require a temperature of 55-61 degrees F for germination, sow them in peat pots 10 to 12 weeks before planting time.
SOIL: Rich, light, and sandy; pH 6.0-7.0.
NUTRIENTS: Feed every two to three weeks during the growing season with fish emulsion or use 1 tablespoon blood meal mixed into 1 gallon of water.
WATER: Water frequently, never allowing the soil to become dry.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Plant seedlings 6-8 inches apart. For row planting, space rows 2 1/2 feet apart.
HARVEST: Blanch celery first. When the plants are about 12 inches high, begin putting earth up around them. Lift winter celery as required during autumn and winter. The summer varieties are ready earlier.
STORAGE: Use fresh as needed.
Celery Growing Tips
Coffee-Can Blanching
For whiter celery, cover the lower two-thirds of the stalks with coffee cans or gallon milk cartons with the bottoms removed. The celery is blanched and ready to harvest in about a month.
Speeding Up Production
Here’s how to speed up production and blanch the stalks at the same time. In the spring dig a trench one spade deep and 12-15 inches wide. Turn well-rotted manure and/or compost into this trench and let it settle before setting out the plants 6 inches apart. Fill the soil around the stalks as the plants grow.
Planting Close Together
An easy alternative way to blanch celery is to plant your seedlings close together (about 12 inches apart) in a square or rectangle. Erect a framework of stakes around this. Cover the stakes with a sheet of black plastic. Move both the stakes and the plastic in around the celery as it is harvested.
Finicky Seed
To safeguard the germination of celery seed planted in spring, pay close attention to the light conditions in your celery bed. When the seed is kept in complete darkness, it won’t germinate if the soil temperature is above 50 degrees F. But give celery seed a little light, even diffuse light (by covering it with clear plastic or a very thin layer of organic material instead of soil) and the seeds will germinate in soil that’s as warm as 70 degrees F.
CHARD
BOTANICAL NAME: Beta vulgaris cicla
DAYS TO MATURITY: 50-60.
PLANTING TIME: Sow seeds two to three weeks before the last frost. If your area’s winter temperatures don’t fall below 25 degrees F, sow seeds in fall for a winter crop.
SOIL: Any well-drained garden soil; pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Feed every four to six weeks with fish emulsion.
WATER: Never let chard wilt. Mulch helps keep the soil moist and cool.
LIGHT: Sun to partial shade.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1 inch deep; thin to 8 inches apart. For row planting, space rows 18-24 inches apart.
HARVEST: Use as needed when the outer leaves are 6-10 inches tall. Cut leaves near the base of the plant with a sharp knife.
STORAGE: Use chard fresh.
Chard Growing Tip
Rejuvenating Chard
To rejuvenate chard, but off the leaves an inch or two above the crowns. The whole plant will take on new life in a few weeks and produce an abundance of fresh, tender shoots and leaves.
CHICORY
BOTANICAL NAME: Cichorium intybus
DAYS TO MATURITY: 55-110.
PLANTING TIME: Sow in early summer.
SOIL: Rich, with well-rotted manure.
NUTRIENTS: If soil is supplied with plenty of manure beforehand, there is no need for additional feeding.
WATER: Keep the bed well watered.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Plant 1/2 inch deep; thin to 9-10 inches apart.
HARVEST: During the summer, use the outer leaves in salads as needed. In autumn, remove the soil down to the point where the heart joins the roots. Cut the heart off with a sharp knife, or pull the plant up and trim the heart afterwards. The roots of some varieties should not be lifted and stored, while other varieties may be stored in boxes.
STORAGE: Store the roots in boxes of moist sand. These roots can be forced for a second season of chicory.
COLLARDS
BOTANICAL NAME: Brassica oleracea acephala
DAYS TO MATURITY: 45-80.
PLANTING TIME: Where winter frost is expected, sow seeds in early spring as soon as the soil can be worked. Where winter temperatures rarely drop below 25 degrees F, sow seeds anytime from late summer to early fall.
SOIL: Medium light, well-drained; pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Feed collards every three to four weeks with fish emulsion or use 1 tablespoon blood meal mixed in 1 gallon of water.
WATER: Collard roots lie close to the surface of the soil. Keep them moist.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep; thin to 3 feet apart. If you want rows, space them 3 feet apart.
HARVEST: When you’re picking the leaves, do not disturb the central bud.
STORAGE: Use fresh.
CORN
BOTANICAL NAME: Zea mays
DAYS TO MATURITY: 58-110.
PLANTING TIME: The germination temperature for corn is 50-59 degrees F. Sow in late spring.
SOIL: Sandy, somewhat fertile; pH 6.0-7.0.
NUTRIENTS: Feed the plants whenever they show any signs of wilting, and keep them moist when the tassels appear because that means the ears are forming.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 2 inches deep; thin to 10-14 inches apart. For row planting, sow in rows of 30-36 inches apart. Be sure to plant in blocks since corn is pollinated by the wind. Never plant super sweet varieties next to regular corn.
HARVEST: Never leave the ears on too long before harvesting. To pick, pull each ear down and twist it free.
STORAGE: Corn is definitely best when it has just been picked. Some varieties can be frozen, canned, or pickled.
Corn Growing Tips
Baby Corn
If your mouth waters for those 3-inch ears of corn used in Chinese cooking, don’t bother to plant special varieties. Just place the corn seed close together (6 inches or so), then harvest the tiny ears when the silks start to emerge from the husks; at this point the cobs will have barely developed but perfect kernels.
Pick Flavor
To pick corn at the peak of its flavor, try this test. Pop a kernel 2 inches from the top of an ear with your fingernail. If the fluid is watery, wait a few more days; if the fluid is milky, pick the corn immediately. If the fluid is gummy or starchy, you’ve waited too long.
Plant in Blocks
Corn doesn’t produce well in single rows. The reason? Corn is wind pollinated, and pollen must reach the silks of each kernel to fill out the ear. Knowledgeable gardeners with space for only one or two rows solve this problem by shaking the tassels over the silks of each plant. On windless days, an occasional shake of each plant will ensure almost 100 percent pollination.
Container Corn
Sometimes the only way gardeners with limited space can obtain garden-fresh corn is to grow it in containers. The secret? Start corn seeds in a small pot, moving to progressively larger pots but keeping the plants slightly root-bound. Start seedlings in 6-inch pots. Move the plants into the next larger container as soon as the roots start to crowd (when the white roots poke out of the holes again, it’s time to move on). Finally, plant in 5-10-and 15-gallon plastic containers. To keep the plants growing steadily, water twice a day and fertilize often. When the tassels mature, encourage the ears’ development by hand pollinating. Run the tassels through your hand to strip them of pollen, then pour this fine dust over the silks at the end of each ear.
On The Deck container corn from Burpee is perfect for growing in 24″ containers, grows 4-5′ tall and produces three 7-8″ long ears per stalk.
Sunflower Solution
If cornstalk borers are a problem, try planting giant sunflowers on the outside row. The sunflowers will be infested, but the corn will be left almost worm-free.
Bird Barrage
When birds raid your corn patch to devour the kernels at the ear tips, stop them by slipping a paper bag over each ear. Hold the bags in place with string or rubber bands.
Sweet Corn Varieties
The following definitions of the types of sweet corn listed in seed catalogs will help you choose what’ best for your needs.
Homozygous “shrunken” 1 gene type (sh2). Full homozygous (100 percent of the kernels are super sweet), with two to three times the sugars of normal sugary types at peak harvest. Kernels are characterized by high sugar content, low water-soluable polysaccharides, and crisp texture. Conversion of the sugars to starch is much slower than for normal sugary types, allowing longer storage. Isolation required.
Homozygous sugary enchancer gene type (se). Full homozygous (100 percent of the kernels are sugary enhanced). Each tasty kernel has a higher sugar content than normal sugary types, but comparable levels of starch contribute to its creamy texture and corn flavor. Kernels also have very tender pericarps. Best used within two days of picking. Isolation is suggested but not required.
Heterozygous “shrunken” 2 gene type. Several sweet corn varieties have some super sweet parentage, so approximately 25 percent of the kernels on each ear have the extra-high sugars of sh2. Use immediately after picking because the sugar converts to starch rapidly. Isolation is suggested but not required.
Heterozygous sugary enhancer gene type. Many so-called “se” types fall into this category, with approximately 25 percent of the kernels on each ear being sugary enhanced. This gene provides about 15 percent more sugars at peak harvest than normal sugary types. Use immediately after picking because the sugar converts to starch rapidly. Isolation is suggested but not required.
Normal sugary gene type (su). This type produces sweet, creamy kernels with tender skin and is best used immediately after picking; conversion of sugar to starch is rapid. Isolation is not required.
Synergystic hybrid. Synergystic hybrids were pioneered in an effort to widen the soluable sugar base and increase the sugar levels in su/se types. By combing 25% Sh2 kernels with 75% Se or su/se kernels, the taste and tenderness is excellent under normal weather conditions.
Isolation
Just as gardeners isolate white corn from yellow corn, they should isolate super sweet (sh2) types to prevent cross-pollination with normal sugary sweet corn or field corn. Do this in one of three ways: by maturity (10 days to two weeks), by distance (100-150 feet upwind), or barrier planting.
CORN SALAD
BOTANICAL NAME: Valerianella locusta
DAYS TO MATURITY: 45-80
PLANTING TIME: In cooler climates, sowing can begin in midsummer. Elsewhere, sow in late summer.
SOIL: Sandy, well-cultivated.
NUTRIENTS: Feed plants at least once during the growing season with fish emulsion.
WATER: Since this is a hardy annual that grows during the winter, don’t worry about water. A light mulching with straw or hay will keep the plants moist and protected from harsh winter weather.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep; thin seedlings until they’re 6 inches apart. Rows should be 6 inches apart.
HARVEST: Harvest either the entire plant or only the leaves.
STORAGE: Use corn salad fresh.
CUCUMBERS
BOTANICAL NAME: Cucumis sativus
DAYS TO MATURITY: 50-75.
PLANTING TIME: Plant seeds directly in the ground after the soil temperature has warmed to 60 degrees F. To get a jump on the growing process, sow seeds indoors in peat pots three weeks before the regular planting season.
SOIL: Sandy to loam, with well-rotted manure or compost mixed in; pH 5.5-7.0.
NUTRIENTS: Fertilize with nitrogen (blood meal) only during the growth period before blooming.
WATER: Water these plants deeply.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep; space them 10-12 inches apart for the trailing variety.
HARVEST: Cut cucumbers from the vine when they are dark green.
STORAGE: Use fresh or for pickles.
Cucumber Growing Tips
Bitter Cucumber Cure
To salvage bitter cucumbers for eating, first remove the stem end. Peel off the skin and the thin layer of flesh just beneath the skin where the bitterness is concentrated. The remainder of the cucumber will taste just fine.
Compost Ring
For cucumber salads all summer long, try planting a few cucumbers in a “compost ring.” Bend a section of wire into a cylinder 4 feet wide and 10 feet long, and fasten the wire together. Locate the ring where it will receive full sun and fill with leaves, grass clippings, wood chips, sawdust, and other organic matter, alternating these materials with a few shovels full of soil and a handful of blood meal. Mound the earth into two small hills opposite each other just outside the ring, and plant 2-4 seeds in each hill. As the plants come up, remove all but the two healthiest ones from each hill. Train these plants to climb the wire. Add grass clippings and other plant waste to the ring during the growing season.
Pickle Pole
Organize your garden space by building a pickle pole from a 6 foot, 6 x 6-inch pole or an 8 x 8-inch post with foot-long, 1/2-inch dowels drilled stair-stepped around the sides of the post 18 inches apart. Plant eight cucumber vines spaced 6 inches apart around the post. Pickle poles produce all the cucumbers you can eat while take up little space.
Hanging Baskets
Amaze your friends with hanging baskets of acrobatic dwarf cucumbers. Line wire baskets with moss to hold planter mix. Fill each container with 2-3 gallons of lightweight mix and two or three plants. Cut out all but one of the plants with a pair of scissors. When the plants have grown to be about a foot long, pinch off the growing tip. This will encourage your cucumbers to grow out, over the edge, and down.
EGGPLANT
BOTANICAL NAME: Solanum melongena esculentum
DAYS TO MATURITY: 53-125.
PLANTING TIME: Eggplant likes night temperatures to remain above 55 degrees F. Sow seeds or seedlings in the spring.
SOIL: Fertile and well-drained, with decomposed manure added; pH 5.5-6.5.
NUTRIENTS: Feed every three to four weeks with fish emulsion. Excess nitrogen results in all foliage and little fruit.
WATER: Soak the soil deeply, but never keep it saturated. Water in basins around the individual plants.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep; space seedlings 2 1/2 feet apart. For row gardens, space rows 3 feet apart.
HARVEST: Eggplant is ready when it is shiny purple. If the color is dull , it is overripe.
STORAGE: Use this vegetable fresh.
Eggplant Growing Tips
Large Fruit
For replete, bushy plants that produce a number of large fruits, pinch off the growing tips when the plants are 6 inches high. This encourages several branches to form. After some fruits have started to form, clip several branches. This encourages the plants to produce fewer and bigger fruits.
Planting-Mix Culture
Produce eggplants on the front porch, in a child’s wagon, or up against the corner of the garden. Just buy a 10-pound (or larger) plastic bag of organic planting mix. Cut a hole in each side (on top), and pop in a couple of eggplant seedlings. With full sun exposure they will grow quickly and produce fully formed fruits.
KALE
BOTANICAL NAME: Brassica oleracea acephala
DAYS TO MATURITY: 47-75.
PLANTING TIME: In mild climates, sow seeds from mid to late spring. Wait until midsummer in cooler climates.
SOIL: Use rich soil that was manured for a previous crop.
NUTRIENTS: Feed every three to four weeks with fish emulsion or use 1 tablespoon of blood meal mixed with 1 gallon of water.
WATER: Water kale well in dry weather.
LIGHT: Full sun to partial shade.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep; thin seedlings until they’re 1 1/2 feet apart.
HARVEST: The inside leaves are generally tastier than the outer leaves. You can harvest the outer leaves or cut the entire plant.
STORAGE: Use fresh.
Kale Growing Tip
More Kale
To make the leaf and spear varieties produce a bounty of kale, harvest the loose crowns in the spring. Then remove the leaves from the top down. Without crowns or leaves, side shoots will develop; pick these just as you would broccoli.
KOHLRABI
BOTANICAL NAME: Brassica oleracea
DAYS TO MATURITY: 44-70.
PLANTING TIME: In areas where frost is expected during the winter, sow seeds in early spring as soon as the soil can be worked. Where winter temperatures rarely fall below 30 degrees F., sow seeds at two-week intervals beginning in late summer.
SOIL: Fertile and loamy; pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Feed every three weeks with fish emulsion or use 1 tablespoon of blood meal to 1 gallon of water.
WATER: Keep well watered.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep, 6 inches apart. In row gardening, plant the rows 18-24 inches apart.
HARVEST: Cut the stems at soil level when they are about the size of an apple (2-2 1/2 inches in diameter).
STORAGE: Use fresh.
Kohlrabi Growing Tips
Prime Eating Size
Kohlrabi connoisseurs say that a kohlrabi is just right when it’s about 2 1/2 inches wide. After that it matures into a tough, elongated root. To salvage an overdeveloped kohlrabi, peel off the tough skin and discard it. Slice the center thinly, then steam or saute.
More Kohlrabi
To double your pleasure with kohlrabi plant in rows about 2 inches apart, then thin to 4 inches apart when the swollen stems reach 2 inches in diameter. Lift every other plant to let the remaining kohlrabies grow larger. You’ll have almost twice the yield.
LEEKS
BOTANICAL NAME: Allium ampeloprasum porrum
DAYS TO MATURITY: 70-150.
PLANTING TIME: Plant leeks outside about four weeks before the last frost. In frost-free regions, plant directly into the garden in late summer.
SOIL: Light, sandy to loam, and well-manured; pH 6.0-8.0.
NUTRIENTS: Feed every four weeks with fish emulsion.
WATER: These plants need steady watering.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow groups of 3-4 seeds together, 1/8 inch deep. Space the groups 6 inches apart in trenches or rows, which should be 15-18 inches apart.
HARVEST: Be sure to blanch the vegetables first by pushing soil up around the stems. Blanching will keep the leeks white and tender. Leeks are edible from the baby stage through full maturity. Lift leeks with a spading fork.
STORAGE: Use fresh.
Leek Growing Tip
Blanching Leeks
To blanch leeks easily, tie black plastic around the individual plants, then hoe some soil up between the rows. An alternate method is to place a 6-inch paper collar around each plant shortly after putting them into your garden bed.
LETTUCE
BOTANICAL NAME: Lactuca sativa
DAYS TO MATURITY: 45-100.
PLANTING TIME: Lettuce can be planted four to six weeks before the average frost-free date in your area. Where summers are hot, plant in early spring and again in the late summer for a fall crop. To get a jump on the season, plant lettuce in simple protective devices such as cloches or cold frames.
SOIL: Moist but well-drained, mixed with well-rotted manure; pH 6.0-7.0.
NUTRIENTS: Because lettuce grows so fast, it’s best for the nutrients to be in the soil at planting time. Otherwise nourish with fish emulsion every three weeks.
WATER: Keep moist.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep, 6-12 inches apart (depending on the variety). For row gardening plant in rows 1 1/2 feet apart.
HARVEST: Lettuce leaves are edible at all stages of growth. To harvest the whole head, cut just above the lower leaves.
STORAGE: Use fresh.
Lettuce Growing Tips
Summer Lettuce
In the summertime, try planting lettuce in shaded ground beneath a bean or cucumber A-frame tepee. As soon as the sprouts poke through the warm soil, tuck mulch around them to keep the roots cool. Keep the growing plants well watered.
Bigger Heads
As your head lettuce starts to grow, pick the outer leaves a few at a time just as you would leaf lettuce. This doesn’t affect the heading since the heads grow from the center out. What it does is make the plant smaller in comparison to the root structure, which gives the roots time to gain the strength to produce larger tops.
Season Extension
When the weather turns hot and sunny, many cool season leaf vegetables, such as lettuce and chard, flower and set seed (referred to as bolting). To extend your harvest by about a month, place a light lattice over the garden supported by 4-foot-high, 1-2-inch-square cedar or redwood stakes. This slows the bolting process.
Hanging Salad
You can grow a big, leafy salad bar in a standard size, moss-lined, hanging wire basket. Soak the moss in water, then line the basket with it, starting at the bottom and packing it tightly between the wires. Make planting holes by pushing your fingers through the basket’s sides. Plant about 15 lettuce seedlings in these openings, starting at the bottom. Fill the basket with potting soil, and plant four or five seedlings on top. (The basket will look especially nice displaying various colors of lettuce.) Finally, bend a wire hanger around the basket top and hang it in partial sun.
Pot Lettuce
Apartment dwellers can easily grow leaf lettuce in a pot on a windowsill or outdoors on a patio. Keep the plant watered and protected from direct sunlight.
Baby Lettuce
These days, everybody’s raving about baby lettuce. At maturity, its heads are only 5-6 inches in diameter. The bite-size leaves are more tender than standard varieties. Just toss them whole into a mix of greens. These babies fit beautifully on a salad plate.
MELONS
BOTANICAL NAME: Cucumis melo
DAYS TO MATURITY: 70-120.
PLANTING TIME: Plant melons outdoors around the date of the last frost. They grow best when nighttime temperatures are above 55 degrees F and daytime temperatures are no lower than 80 degrees F.
SOIL: Light, sandy; pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Feed melons every six weeks with fish emulsion.
WATER: Water thoroughly in dry weather. Keep a 6-inch-deep trench around each plant and fill when needed. Do not keep the soil soaked; and do not overhead water.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: All melons spread (unless they are the bush variety) and need plenty of space. Plant them at least 4-6 feet apart.
HARVEST: Cantaloupes can be picked at what is called the “slip” stage: they slip easily from the stem and have a fresh melon aroma. Casaba and honeydew melons are ripe when the skins turn yellow and feel slightly sticky. Crenshaw and Persian melons are ripe when they develop a fruity scent.
STORAGE: Eat melons fresh or pickled.
Melon Growing tips
More Melons
to turn your vines into a melon factory, pinch off each vine’s growing tip when the main stem has produced five large leaves. Nip subsequent side shoots when the tip develops three leaves. This halts leafy growth and forces more fruit production. When the plants are growing vigorously, keep them well watered and give them a liquid organic feeding as the first fruits reach walnut size.
Bitter Melons
Uneven watering leads to bitter melons. Therefore never let the soil dry out completely. Ideally you should water deeply, then don’t water again until the soil has dried to about 8 inches down.
Cantaloupe Tree
To create a cantaloupe tree, plant three midget cantaloupe vines about 12 inches apart in a wire mesh cage (3 feet high, 18 inches in diameter) set over a container filled with planter mix or soil fortified with manure. The cantaloupes will grow upward both inside and outside the cage.
Better Tasting
For delicious cantaloupes, rototill a 10 x 10-foot area with rotted horse manure. Three to four weeks later, rototill the plot again, adding 10 more bushels of horse manure. Plant your cantaloupe in hills, three to a hill, 5 feet apart. In about 100 days, you’ll have all the toothsome cantaloupes you can eat.
Early Female Flowers
Melons have a lazy streak: they sometimes produce too many male flowers before they start growing the female flowers that bear fruit. But you can give them a push in the right direction. Count four adult leaves from the base, then pinch off the growing tip. This hastens side growth and the formation of female flowers. If none appear, again remove the growing point beyond the fourth or fifth leaf.
Increased Melon Production
Although bees are great at pollinating melons, you can increase production by taking on the job yourself. To pollinate artificially, remove the male flowers, which grow in clusters and have a prominent central core. Shake this powdery core into the center of the open female flower–the one with a flattish center and a swelling behind the flower.
MUSTARD
BOTANICAL NAME: Brassica juncea
DAYS TO MATURITY: 34-85.
PLANTING TIME: Plant mustard in the spring as soon as the soil can be worked, two to four weeks before the last frost.
SOIL: Rich, mixed with rotted manure; pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: If the soil has been prepared with plenty of organic matter, no fertilizing should be necessary.
WATER: Regularly.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep; thin seedlings to 4-6 inches apart. Separate rows by 18 inches.
HARVEST: Cut individual leaves as needed, or harvest the entire plant.
STORAGE: Use fresh.
Mustard Growing Tip
The Right Temperature
As the daily temperatures begin to rise above 85 degrees F, mustard leaves become inedible. In hot areas, grow mustard only in the cool weather (under 65 degrees F) of early spring and fall.
OKRA
BOTANICAL NAME: Hibiscus esculentus
DAYS TO MATURITY: 48-90.
PLANTING TIME: Plant the seeds outside when the soil temperature has reached 75 degrees F. You can also sow seeds indoors or in a hotbed about a month before the last frost. Soak the seeds in water 24 hours before planting.
SOIL: Rich, loam, pH 6.0-8.0.
NUTRIENTS: Fertilize twice during the growing season with fish emulsion.
WATER: Keep moist but don’t over water.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep, 18 inches apart. Space rows 3 feet apart.
HARVEST: The pods produce rapidly and should be picked daily, beginning a few days after the flower petals have fallen, whether or not the pods are to be used. If the pods ripen, the plant stops producing.
STORAGE: Use fresh or as pickles.
Okra Growing Tip
Cut, Don’t Pull
Instead of straining to pluck okra pods, cut them off with scissors. Do this when they are young and tender, with half-grown, immature seeds. If left on the plant, the pods become hard and unpalatable.
ONIONS
BOTANTICAL NAME: Allium cepa
DAYS TO MATURITY: 95-150.
PLANTING TIME: Plant sets, seeds, or plants outside four to six weeks before the last frost.
SOIL: Firm, sandy to loam, fertile; add generous amounts of organic matter, rock potash, and bone meal before planting; pH 5.5-7.0.
NUTRIENTS: Fertilize twice. Use fish emulsion.
WATER: Water steadily, never letting the soil dry out.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: It is best to plant seedlings or sets. Set 2 inches deep, 2-4 inches apart. If you sow seeds, plant them 1/2 inch deep and 2 inches apart. For rows 12-18 inches apart.
HARVEST: Bunching onions should be harvested as needed. Storage onions are ready when the tops bend over. Discontinue watering for at least a week before harvesting. Lift onions with a spading fork, and allow the bulbs to dry on the ground.
STORAGE: Bulb onions can be stored on trays of wire netting, ties with string and braided or placed on wooden shelves. Store them in a dry, frost-proof area where air circulates freely.
Onion Growing Tips
When Onions flower
Onions planted from sets sometimes form flowers and fail to produce mature bulbs. Avoid this by selecting and planting smaller size onion sets. When flowers appear, break off the flower buds and use these poorer onions first.
Drying Onions
To dry onions, hang them from string. Knot a loop of string around a bottom shoot and twist the string around upper shoots. Hang onions outside in dry, warm weather.
PARSNIPS
BOTANICAL NAME: Pastinaca sativa
DAYS TO MATURITY: 94-145.
PLANTING TIME: Sow seeds as soon as the ground can be worked in early spring. In areas where winter temperatures rarely fall below 25 degrees F, sow seeds in early fall for harvesting the following spring.
SOIL: Parsnips need rich, recently manured soil. Cultivate the bed to a depth of at least 18 inches and remove all rocks.
NUTRIENTS: Fertilize once a month during the growing season. Use fish emulsion.
WATER: Some watering is necessary, especially in the early stages while the roots are small.
LIGHT: Full sun to partial shade.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep. For row gardening, space rows 2-2 1/2 feet apart. Thin seedlings to 6 inches apart.
HARVEST: Parsnips’ flavor is enhanced if the roots are left in the ground all winter.
STORAGE: Pull them as needed, and keep the rest stored in the ground.
Parsnip Growing Tips
Top Flavor
For the best flavor, life a few roots in early fall and leave them on the surface of the soil through several hard frosts. This brings them to top flavor long before the roots in the ground reach the same stage. Others can be stored in peat or sand.
Germinating Parsnip Seed
Enticing parsnips to peek through the soil can be tricky. The seed won’t stay moist and is slow to germinate. Try sowing 8-12 (or more) seeds per foot, 1/2 inch deep, and laying down a clear plastic covering. Remove this plastic when the seeds germinate. Later, thin the plants so they are 3-4 inches apart.
PEAS
BOTANICAL NAME: Pisum sativum
DAYS TO MATURITY: 57-100.
PLANTING TIME: Start your peas in the spring as soon as the soil can be worked, and continue to sow seeds every 10 days until 60 days remain before the average daytime temperatures are expected to be about 75 degrees F. In milder regions, start successive planting in the fall.
SOIL: Rich and recently manured; pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Peas supply their own nitrogen. Fertilize them with fish emulsion only while the plants are developing. Too much nitrogen encourages bushy growth and little yield.
WATER: Peas need plenty of water.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow these seeds 2 inches deep, 2 inches apart. If you plant rows, space them 18-30 inches apart.
HARVEST: Edible podded peas should be picked when the pods are still flat and the peas barely there. Pick regular peas while they are firm but still succulent. Hold the vine in one hand while picking peas with the other to prevent pulling the vine from the ground.
STORAGE: Some varieties of peas are eaten fresh, some dried, others frozen.
Pea Growing tips
Pollinating Peas
When peas yield a profusion of blossoms but no pods, the pollen isn’t being transferred from the male parts to the female parts of the flower. Peas are self-pollinating, but once in a while they need a little help. Shake them a couple of times a day for about a week. Then get ready for a bumper crop.
Presprouting Peas
To ensure that peas will come up fast, sprout the seeds ahead of time. Spread a paper towel on a waterproof surface, scatter the pea seeds evenly over it, and cover this with another paper towel. Dampen your pea sandwich, roll it up, and put it in a plastic bag in a warm room. A few days later, unroll the towels and remove the germinated seeds. Plant them outdoors. They’ll even grow in cold soil.
Pea Sticks
You can use what the English call “pea sticks” to support your growing peas. These are long branch cuttings from deciduous shrubs and trees that gardeners simply push into the ground. An alternative method is to construct a short bamboo fence, with pea-stick supports. As the peas spread, both the fence and the pea sticks disappear.
PEPPERS
BOTANICAL NAME: Capsicum fruterscens (sweet peppers) and C. annuum (hot or chili peppers)
DAYS TO MATURITY: 45-86.
PLANTING TIME: Start these indoors in the spring, six to eight weeks before average nighttime lows are expected to stay above 55 degrees F. Set the plants out in the garden around the date of the last frost.
SOIL: Rich, well-drained loam; pH 5.5-7.0.
NUTRIENTS: Fertilize every four weeks with fish emulsion. Excess nitrogen produces a bushy plant with little fruit.
WATER: Never let these plants droop. Provide an even water supply.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Space pepper plants. 18-24 inches apart. Leave 24-36 inches between rows.
HARVEST: Cut the peppers from the plant with a sharp knife. The flesh is much sweeter when left on the vine to turn red. Hot peppers should ripen on the vine to obtain full pungency.
STORAGE: Peppers can be used fresh, frozen, or pickled. When handling hot peppers never put your hands near your eyes or mouth. Use rubber gloves. Milk can help soothe the pain on the skin.
Pepper Growing Tips
Increasing Pepper Production
To double and triple production, plant only stocky seedlings that show well-developed root systems. Leggy seedlings that are already blossoming will not produce like younger, fuller plants. When the first first pepper appears, pick off the first “crown set” to encourage the development of additional big fruit throughout the season.
Night Temperatures
When nighttime temperatures are below 55 degrees F, spring-planted peppers may just sit passively with their leaves turning yellow. Wait until the weather turns warm before popping your peppers into the ground.
Helping Hand
If your peppers are slow to set set fruit in hot weather, spray the plants with water. Then, when the first fruits start to swell, dose the plants with liquid fish fertilizer every seven to 10 days. They will produce larger, heavier crops.
Adding Sulfur
Some old-time gardeners swear that peppers and sulfur are bosom buddies. They put about half a teaspoon of garden sulfur in the bottom of the planting hole before setting out their transplants. Sulfur lowers the soil’s pH, which leads to an abundance of peppers.
Cool Climate Peppers
Growing good pepper crops in cool climates takes some know-how. The problem is that when night temperatures dip below 50 degrees F peppers usually won’t set fruit. In addition, several 40 degree nights in a row can stunt growth. To ease such difficulties, use the short season varieties, and set them out when the soil is above 55 degrees F. Plant them through black plastic, and cover them with hot caps.
Early Peppers
You can force peppers by spreading aluminum foil, shiny side up, for 12 inches on each side of the plants, leaving a little space for moisture penetration. The foil reflects sunlight upward, warming the plants, which then give earlier peppers.
Greener Peppers
Green your peppers by spraying them with a dilute solution of one tablespoon Epsom salts in a quart of water. Start at blossom time. This also aids fruit production.
POTATOES
BOTANICAL NAME: Solanum tuberosum
DAYS TO MATURITY: 70-120.
PLANTING TIME: Plant as soon as the soil can be worked thoroughly. You can start sooner in a raised wooden bed covered with polyethylene.
SOIL: Light and sandy to loam will serve potatoes. Add generous amounts of manure or other organic materials, plus phosphorus and potash. Spade thoroughly; pH 4.8-6.5.
NUTRIENTS: The only fertilizing the plants should need is a light application of organic nitrogen when they are about 6 inches high. Seaweed dug into the soil the previous autumn is an excellent conditioner. Check with seed catalogs, some carry seaweed.
WATER: Potatoes need continuous moisture. Never saturate the soil, however.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: You can buy potato seed or certified seed potatoes. Cut pieces about 1 1/2 inches square with one good eye per piece. Sow the pieces with the cut side down, 4 inches deep, 12 inches apart. For row gardening, align rows 24-36 inches apart. When the plants are 5-7 inches high, work the soil up around the plant and cover the stems. This keeps the sun from turning the potatoes green.
HARVEST: Dig up early varieties when flowers form on the plants. For later varieties, wait until the vines yellow and die.
STORAGE: Store in a cool, dark place.
Potato Growing Tips
Windowsill Potatoes
To grow potatoes on your windowsill, cut seed potatoes into pieces, one eye per piece. Plant 1-3 pieces in an 8-inch pot filled with planting mix. Set this in a sunny window. You’ll have a slew of small potatoes within a few months.
Plastic Cylinders
You can grow five potato plants in an plastic cylinder (available as a potato or compost bin from mail-order seed catalogs). Fill the cylinder with 12 inches of planting mix. Cut seed potatoes into sections with at least one eye each; plant with the eye up. When the plants are about 10 inches high, fill the cylinder with more planting mix. Continue this process until the cylinder is full. You can start harvesting the small potatoes; remove one of the slats of the cylinder so the rest of the slats fall away, exposing the potatoes.
PUMPKINS
BOTANICAL NAME: Cucurbita pepo
DAYS TO MATURITY: 75-120.
PLANTING TIME: Plant pumpkin seeds outdoors around the time of the last frost or when the weather warms up and night temperatures are expected to stay above 55 degrees F.
SOIL: Rich, well-manured’ pH 5.5-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Nourish plants with fish emulsion or another organic fertilizer only during the growth period before blooming.
WATER: Do not cover the crowns with water or keep the soil continuously moist. Mulch to conserve moisture.
LIGHT: Full sun to partial shade.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1 inch deep; thin the seedlings of vining pumpkins to 8-10 feet apart, 4 feet apart for bush pumpkins.
HARVEST: Harvest when the leaves die and the pumpkins are a bright, rich orange. Cut the stems because pumpkins will rot faster if they’re pulled from the stem. Leave the picked pumpkins in the sun for a week before storing.
STORAGE: Store in a cool, dry place.
Pumpkin Growing Tip
Prize Winners
To grow a blue-ribbon pumpkin, first select one of the large varieties from a seed catalog. When it’s time to plant, dig a big hole and put in about a bushel of aged manure and a cup of organic fertilizer (equal parts bone meal, blood meal, and rock phosphate). Spread a layer of dirt over the manure, and plant three seeds.
When the seedlings have two or three leaves, choose the healthiest plant and pull up the other two. As soon as the vine has three small pumpkins, break off the fuzzy end so it won’t grow any farther. If new female blossoms form, pluck them off. When the pumpkins get to be about the size of a man’s fist, select the one with the best shape and pick the other two; all the growing energy will go into the remaining pumpkin. Roll it a little now and them to maintain round contours. This pumpkin will be the biggest one you’ve every grown.
RADISHES
BOTANICAL NAME: Raphanus sativus
DAYS TO MATURITY: 21-150.
PLANTING TIME: Sow radish seeds when the soil can be worked; then plant every 10 days for a continual crop. Start sowing in late summer for a fall crop. In areas with mild winters, you can also sow in the early fall.
SOIL: Mix in ample well-rotted manure; pH 6.0-7.0
NUTRIENTS: All organic material should be added to the soil before planting.
WATER: Keep the soil moist.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep, 1/2 inch apart. Arrange rows 4-6 inch apart.
HARVEST: Harvest each variety when the roots reach the size listed on the package.
STORAGE: Use as needed by picking from garden.
Radish Growing Tip
Plant Radishes with Carrots
Mix carrot and radish seeds together and scatter them across a bed or down a row at the approximate spacing for carrots. The radishes will come up quickly and mark the bed. Harvest the radishes shortly before the baby carrots need thinning.
RHUBARB
BOTANICAL NAME: Rheum rhaponticum
DAYS TO MATURITY: Rhubard should not be harvested until the second year.
PLANTING TIME: Buy and plant the crowns in early spring as soon as the soil can be worked. Rhubard does not fare well in areas with warm winters.
SOIL: Deep, rich, and slightly acid; pH 5.5-7.0.
NUTRIENTS: Work bone meal and rock potash into the root zone area. Administer a liberal dose of organic nitrogen in early spring and again in midsummer, especially when you have cut a number of stalks.
WATER: Give the plants plenty of water, but never waterlog the soil.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Plant the crowns 1-3 feet apart.
HARVEST: Grasp each stalk near the base and twist sideways. Harvest rhubarb in the spring when the leaf stalks are 1 inch or more in diameter.
STORAGE: Use fresh as needed.
Rhubarb Growing Tip
Rhubarb Incubator
In cooler climates you can also try incubating rhubarb. In springtime, dig a 1-foot hole and add 6 inches of manure or decomposed organic matter; plant the root in the hole and cover it with 1 inch of soil. During the first year, give it plenty of organic fertilizer. The second year, the plant will start to put out seed pods. If you keep cutting these, the roots will produce tasty stalks all season long. The more leaves and stalks you harvest, the more the plant will produce.
RUTABAGA (SWEDE)
BOTANICAL NAME: Brassica napobrassica
DAYS TO MATURITY: 88-92.
PLANTING TIME: Plant rutabagas in the garden four to six weeks before the last frost. Plant again in late July or August for a fall crop.
SOIL: Light, sandy to loam; pH 5.5-7.0.
NUTRIENTS: Feed the plants with a light application of organic nitrogen when they are about 5 inches high.
WATER: Steady moisture is required. Mulch to prevent drying out.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seed 1/2 inch deep, 1-4 inches apart. For row gardening, space rows 12-15 inches apart.
HARVEST: Grasp the tops and pull up.
STORAGE: Rutabagas can be left in the ground and pulled as needed. If you decide to dig the roots up, cut off any top growth and keep them in a box or barrel filled with moist soil or peat, they need darkness and moderate warmth.
SALSIFY (OYSTER PLANT, VEGETABLE OYSTER)
BOTANICAL NAME: Tragopogon porrifolius
DAYS TO MATURITY: 120-150.
PLANTING TIME: Sow salsify as soon as the ground can be worked. Harvest the roots in the fall.
SOIL: Deep, rich loam, with no manure or stones.
NUTRIENTS: Spread a layer of well-rotten garden compost around the tops.
WATER: Keep well watered.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2-1 inch deep; thin the seedlings to 3 inches apart. Space rows 10 inches apart.
HARVEST: Don’t lift the roots from the ground until you need them. Lift with care so the roots don’t bleed and lose flavor.
STORAGE: Use as needed. Store in the ground.
SPINACH
BOTANICAL NAME: Spinacia oleracea
DAYS TO MATURITY: 39-70.
PLANTING TIME: Plant spinach outside four to six weeks before the last frost-free date in the spring, then again in late summer for a fall crop. In warm areas, plant it during the winter.
SOIL: Light, thoroughly worked, with plenty of organic matter added; pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Add nitrogenous fertilizer while the crop is actively growing. Use fish emulsion or 1 tablespoon of blood meal mixed in 1 gallon of water.
WATER: Give spinach plenty of overhead watering.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep; thin to 6 inches apart. For row gardening, separate rows by 12 inches.
HARVEST: You can harvest just the leaves or cut the whole plant off at the soil line.
STORAGE: Use fresh; some varieties can be frozen.
Spinach Growing Tips
Flowering Spinach
Some spinach varieties bolt to flower after a few warm spring days, while others will stand quite a bit of heat. In general, longer days and higher temperatures (above 75 degrees F) hasten flowering. If your spinach tends to bolt early, try planting three or four long standing varieties. From these, select the one that works best in your garden.
Cut Back
To stop spinach from flowering, cut the plant back to the ground when it has just four or five
leaves. As soon as new leaves appear, harvest again. If you wait too long hoping the leaves will grow big, you end up with less spinach.
SQUASH, SUMMER
BOTANICAL NAME: Cucurbita pepo
DAYS TO MATURITY: 47-90.
PLANTING TIME: Plant seeds directly in the ground after the last frost, when night temperatures are staying above 50 degrees F.
SOIL: Very rich and well-manured; pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Fertilize squash with nitrogen only during the growth period before blooming.
WATER: Keep well watered.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds of bush varieties 1 inch deep; for row gardening, space rows 18-24 inches apart. The seeds of vine varieties should be sown 1 inch deep; for row gardening, space rows 5 feet apart. Vining squash can be grown up along a fence to save space.
HARVEST: Pick squash that’s tender, and easily punctured. All fruit should be picked (whether it will be eaten or not) to keep the plant producing.
STORAGE: Use fresh or pickled.
Summer Squash Growing Tips
Playing Bee
If mature squash plants produce few fruit, the problem may be a lack of bees. So collect the yellow pollen with an artist’s brush and dust the female flowers (the ones with tiny squash at the base). Put pollen on the tip of the small fruit above the flower (the stigma).
Baby Squash
You don’t need any particular variety to create a baby squash. Simply pick miniature-size squash with the blossoms still on the fruit. Cook and serve them whole for a tasty delicacy.
Greater Yields
Few gardeners actually want to improve the yields of summer squash. But if you don’t mind being overrun with squash, try mulching with aluminized film. Experiment-station research shows this significantly boosts yields.
SQUASH, WINTER
BOTANICAL NAME: Cucurbita maxima and C. moschata
DAYS TO MATURITY: 50-220.
PLANTING TIME: Plant seeds in the ground after the lst frost. When night temperatures are remaining above 50 degrees F.
SOIL: Rich and well-manured; pH 6.0-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Fertilize the plants with nitrogen only during the growth period before blooming.
WATER: Give squash plenty of water.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1 inch deep, 10 feet apart.
HARVEST: Let winter squashed mature fully on the vines until their skins are extremely hard. Cut them from the vine, leaving a 2-3-inch stem on each squash.
STORAGE: Cure the squashes in the sun for a week or more; store them in a cook, dry place over the winter.
Winter Squash Growing Tip
Squash Basics
Before harvesting winter squash for storage, push your thumbnail against the squash as hard as you can. If the outer skin doesn’t break easily, the squash will keep a long time. If you can cut the skin with little effort, it will probably rot in storage. In the latter case, cook the squash within a few days.
SWEET POTATOES
BOTANICAL NAME: Ipomoeabatatas
DAYS TO MATURITY: 90-150.
PLANTING TIME: Plant sweet potato from slips in the spring.
SOIL: Light, sandy, and shallow; pH 5.5-6.5.
NUTRIENTS: Add fish emulsion only to the planting soil. This vegetable doesn’t need much to keep it happy.
WATER: Sweet potato can tolerate dry soil once it’s established.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Give it plenty of spreading room. Plant slips 9-12 inches apart. Space rows 3 feet apart.
HARVEST: When the foliage begins to yellow, carefully dig out the tubers. Dry them in the sun for several hours, then cure (let them dry and harden) for about a week.
STORAGE: Store at 55-60 degrees F in a dry area. They will keep about 10 weeks.
Sweet Potato Growing Tip
Sweet Potato in a Box
Try growing sweet potato in a box or tub. Select a container that’s at least 12 inches deep and 15 inches wide. Use a light porous soil mix. Place a 4-foot stake in the center to support the vine. The vines will grow up, then out and down the sides of the container. Harvest the tubers at the end of the season.
TOMATOES
BOTANICAL NAME: Lycopersicon esculentum
DAYS TO MATURITY: 50-100.
PLANTING TIME: Tomatoes should not be planted until the night temperatures are above 55 degrees F. Low temperatures–below 55 degrees F–prevent fruit set.
SOIL: Enrich the bed with well-rotted manure or garden compost, and dig deeply; pH 5.5-7.5.
NUTRIENTS: Once the fruits begin to swell, feed the plants with fish emulsion every two weeks. Too much nitrogen produces much growth but little fruit.
WATER: Regular and adequate watering is required; maintain an even moisture by mulching.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep, 2-3 feet apart. For row gardening, space rows 4 feet apart.
HARVEST: Tomatoes are ready when they develop their full color. Lift each tomato until its stem snaps.
STORAGE: Use fresh, frozen, dried, or canned.
Tomato Growing Tips
Improving Fruit Set
A battery-operated toothbrush can improve the fruit set of your tomatoes. Use it to give individual clusters of flowers a daily vibration, which will scatter pollen from top to bottom. The best time to jiggle your tomatoes is midday, when the air is warm and the humidity is low.
Extending the Season
Keep from losing tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants to the first frost by layering a wide strip of black plastic over each row or cage at night. These strips will protect the fruit and extend the season by as much as three weeks.
Too Much Foliage
Sometimes tomato plants keep producing foliage but seen reluctant to switch gears and start churning out ripe, juicy tomatoes. Too much nitrogen, too much water, and too much shade in the first stages of growth often cause this. To help the plant move on to the fruiting stage, pluck out the terminal shoots and withhold water. This checks root growth so the plant can put all of its energy into fruit production.
Root Pruning
To force tomatoes to ripen, prune their roots by cutting into the soil halfway around the plant with a long knife. Killing some roots puts stress on the plant and triggers the ripening mechanism.
Use Grass Clippings
Grass clippings make a great mulch, but most gardeners won’t use this material on warm weather crops because it usually retards fruiting. Research shows, however, that if grass clippings are applied after the first flower clusters set, overall yields increase significantly. Tomatoes mulched with grass clippings also need less watering during the season.
Vertical Supports
Portable 5 x 5-foot racks made of rough-hewn redwood laths can be used to support sprawling, cucumbers,melons, squash, or tomatoes. A hinged 1 x 2-inch brace will allow you to angle the rack as you wish.
Larger Tomatoes
Here’s how to have a beer with your tomato plants. When their fruits begin to appear, poke a ring of holes around the base of each plant, using a pencil or some stiff wire. Penetrate at least 6 inches into the ground. Fill the holes with beer. Repeat at two week intervals for large, juicy, delicious tomatoes.
Wire Mesh
Wire mesh stretched horizontally along 1-foot posts will hold sprawling vines off the ground. In time, the vines spread together over the wire to produce a huge raised tomato patch. You can also use wire mesh cages to contain tomatoes.
Hanging Tomatoes
You can stretch your garden space by hanging a few tomato plants from the eaves of your house. Plant varieties especially bred for containers or hanging baskets (see Vegetables). Fill the containers with potting mix, keep the plants moist and fertilize them every two weeks with fish emulsion. Hang with rope slings.
Ripening Green Tomatoes
There are tomato varieties that are meant to remain green when ripe. to protect unripe tomatoes from that first frost, pick the green tomatoes and wrap them immediately in newspaper or packing tissue. Then store them in a cook, dry place. They will ripen over a few weeks.
Blossom End Rot Solution
Blossom end rot starts as a small, sunken spot at the base of a tomato that expands as the fruit grows. The cause is a combination of water, stress and calcium deficiency within the plant. During the day, young tomatoes draw little sap from their leaves, but at night, root pressure forces sap up the plant, giving the developing fruits their share. If the tomato plant is water stressed at night, the system breaks down and the fruit gets little calcium. Tissue at its base is damaged, setting the stage for blossom end rot.
To keep harm to a minimum, feed your plants with a good organic fertilizer. Also, don’t let the soil dry out, especially when the weather is hot and dry. If the plants are on the point of wilting by the end of the day, water then to make sure there is sufficient moisture at night.
TURNIPS
BOTANICAL NAME: Brassica rapa
DAYS TO MATURITY: 28-80.
PLANTING TIME: Plant turnips four to six weeks before the last frost. In regions where winter temperatures rarely fall below 25 degrees F, start successive planting in late summer.
SOIL: Turnips do best in loamy soils but will grow in any soil supplied with phosphates. Avoid fresh manure; pH 5.5-7.0.
NUTRIENTS: The only fertilizing turnips might need is a light application of organic nitrogen when the plants are 5-7 inches high.
WATER: Keep well watered.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep, 4 inches apart. Rows should be 12-15 inches apart.
HARVEST: Gather your turnips when they are young and tender–about 2-2 1/2 inches in diameter. Grasp the tops, and pull them up.
STORAGE: Hardy varieties can stay in the ground until you need them. Alternatively, you can cut the tops off and store turnips boxed in layers of dry sand or peat.
Turnip Growing Tip
Aborted Roots
Sometimes turnips go to seed in the spring before good roots can form because the plants have been overexposed to 40 degrees F temperatures. To avoid this problem, plant them in the spring four to six week before the last frost. In areas where late spring and summer have many days in the 80s, plant for a fall harvest.
WATERMELON
BOTANICAL NAME: Citrullus vulgaris
DAYS TO MATURITY: 65-100.
PLANTING TIME: Transplant watermelon outside when night temperatures reach 55 degrees F and daytime temperatures are no lower than 80 degrees F.
SOIL: Light, sandy; pH 6.0.
NUTRIENTS: Feed the plants every six weeks with fish emulsion.
WATER: Water thoroughly in dry weather. Keep a 6-inch-deep trench around each plant to fill as needed. Do not keep the soil soaked, and do not overhead water.
LIGHT: Full sun.
SPACING: All melons spread (except the bush variety) and need plenty of space. Sow seeds 1 inch deep, 12 inches apart. For row gardening, space rows 4-6 feet apart.
HARVEST: Thump them: ripe melons have a dull sound. The discolored spots on the melon bellies turn from white to pale yellow when the fruits are ready.
STORAGE: Use fresh or pickled.
Watermelon Growing Tips
Off the Gound
To make midget watermelons, even sweeter, set each small melon up on a small can such as a tomato sauce can. This makes them ripen faster and helps increase the sugar content.
Vertical Melon Patch
You can grow a vertical watermelon patch in your garden by running nylon cord up an open A-frame. Tie the cord to a wire strung across the bottom. As the vines grow, attach them to the cord with garbage bag ties. Train them upward until they grow over the top of the structure and then let them ramble down the other side. The growing fruits will balance each other and hence won’t pull the vines down. Even though the melons are heavy, most of them will hand. To keep them from blowing down in the wind, you can support them with slings made from garden netting or panty hose.