Transcript Vegetable Production - WVU Master Gardener Program

Vegetable Production in the
Home Garden
Larry G. Campbell
WVU- Harrison County Extension Agent
WVU Assistant Professor
Typical Home Garden Production
Methods
• Single Row
• Hills
• Wide Row
Wide Row
• Raised Bed
Single Row
Hill
“Wide Row Gardening”
An intensive system of vegetable production
that utilizes less space to produce at least
double the harvest of a traditional single row
system.
Reasons to Wide Row
• 2-3 times the harvest of traditional
systems ( initial seed cost can be 20%
more).
• More soil being utilized.
• Easier to plant crops from seed.
• Less weeds due to intensive planting.
Reasons…
• Helps soil stay cool & moist in the heat of
the summer:
-Leaf canopy keeps sun from drying the
soil.
-Edge plants act like a wind break for
other plants in the row.
-Leaf canopy slows evaporation of dew
from soil in the mornings.
Reasons…
• Earlier and longer harvest:
-Natural competitiveness of plants results
in some plants producing sooner than
others in the row.
-Strongest plants are harvested first which
in turn makes room for weaker plants to
begin production.
Crops Recommended for Wide Row
Beans
Chinese
Cabbage
Leeks
Peppers
Beets
Collards
Lettuce
Radishes
Cabbage
Endive
Carrots
English
Peas
Onions
Southern
Peas
Cauliflower
Garlic
Parsley
Spinach
Celery
Kale
Parsnips
Turnips
Chard
Kohlrabi
Mustard Rutabagas
Plants Raised from Seed in WR
• 15-16” wide row (width of standard garden
rake)
• Scatter seed evenly across the row.
• Tamp in.
• Cover seed using rake to pull soil in from
outside the row.
15-16’’
Transplants in WR
• 3-2-3 planting pattern @ 10-12” apart.
• Good for cabbage, cauliflower, & head lettuce.
• 2-1-2 pattern best for broccoli, eggplant, &
pepper.
Wide Row Beans
Wide Row Lettuce & Spinach in
Raised Bed
Raised Beds
An intensive
gardening system
that uses elevated,
wide beds 8-10”
deep. Beds can be
free standing or
timbers and other
materials can be
used to define the
beds.
Advantages of Raised Beds
• Reduce soil compaction.
• Drain better allowing timely planting.
• Turn low-lying areas into productive
gardens.
• Makes heavy clay soil productive.
• Allows earlier & later planting since more
soil is exposed to the sun.
• Longer, straighter root crops.
• Easier to plant, weed, & maintain.
• Space-saving.
Selected Vegetables
• pH
• Cool or Warm Season
• Culture
• Harvesting
Cole Crops
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Brussels Sprouts
• Broccoli
• Kohlrabi
Cabbage
Cabbage
• pH: 5.5-7.0
• Cool season
• Culture:
-WR 3-2-3 @ 10-12”
-Pick off lower leaves of
each seedling at
planting.
• Harvest: 70-100
Cauliflower
Cauliflower
• pH: 6.0-7.0
• Cool Season
• Culture:
-Less tolerant of hot
weather.
-Set plants out early to
avoid “buttoning” of
heads.
-WR 3-2-3 @ 10-12”
-Blanch when heads are
4-5”
Cauliflower
-Tie up outer leaves to
blanch head.
-Or partially break outer
leaves & lay them
over the head.
-Some varieties are selfblanching.
-Blanch for 4-8 days.
• Harvest: 55-120
-Cut before flower buds
open.
Broccoli
Broccoli
• pH: 6.0-7.0
• Cool Season
• Culture:
-WR 2-1-2 @ 12-16”
-Cut center head before
it blossoms even if
small otherwise it will
not produce new side
shoots.
Broccoli
• Harvest: 60-100
• Note: Broccoli Raab is
not a true broccoli but
a type of turnip
grown for its flower
head.
Brussels Sprouts
• pH: 5.5-6.5
• Cool Season
• Culture:
-WR 2-1-2 @12-16”
-Sprouts appear on
bottom of stalk first.
-Larger sprouts are best
in cool weather of fall.
-In summer pick
sprouts when marble
size for tenderness.
Brussels Sprouts
-To speed growth of early sprouts, strip off
bottom leaves 6-8” up the stalk when
sprouts first appear.
• Harvest: 80-100
Kohlrabi
Kohlrabi
• pH: 6.5
• Cool Season
• Culture:
-WR from seed & thin to
3-5”.
-The “above ground
turnip”.
• Harvest: At 2-3”.
Solanaceae Family
• Tomato
• Potato
• Peppers
• Eggplant
Tomato
Tomato
• pH: 5.5-6.8
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-Plant in raised bed 2436” apart.
-Lay stem horizontally
in shallow trench &
remove lower leaves.
-Roots will form along
buried stem.
Tomato
-Stake, trellis, or cage
tomatoes.
-Indeterminate: vines
continue to grow
until killed by frost or
disease.
-Determinate: grows to
a certain size,
produces fruit, & then
declines.
Tomato
• Many varieties
• Select VFNT resistant
varieties if possible.
• Harvest: 55-105
Potato
Potato
• pH: 4.8-5.5
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-Plant certified seed
potatoes.
-Cut seed pieces so that
there are 2-3 eyes per
piece.
-Allow pieces to heal
over 2-3 days before
planting.
Potato
-Plant in trenches 6-8” deep.
-Space 8-10” in row and 36” between rows.
-Hill when 3-5” tall & again @ 8-10”.
• Harvest: 100-200
-Can harvest new potatoes early.
-Dig with garden fork/manure fork.
Eggplant
Eggplant
• pH: 6.0-7.0
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-WR 2-1-2 @ 12-14”
-4-6 fruit per plant
typical.
-Very heat & drought
tolerant.
• Harvest: 100-150
when skin is glossy.
Peppers
Peppers
• pH: 5.5-6.5
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-WR 2-1-2 @10-12”
-Don’t over fertilize.
-Blossom drop occurs
during cold spells &
when temps go above
75 degrees.
Peppers
-Spray with Epsom salts when they start to
blossom and this will help to provide
magnesium which peppers need to set
fruit.
Mixture: 1 tsp Epsom salts in a Windex
spray bottle filled with lukewarm water.
Spray on leaves & blossoms at first
blossom & again 10 days later.
• Harvest: 100-120
Hot vs. Sweet Bell Peppers
Very Hot Peppers
Leafy Greens
• Lettuce
• Spinach
• Chard
• Kale
Lettuce
Lettuce
• pH: 6.0-7.0
• Cool Season
• Culture:
-WR loose leaf lettuce &
direct seed. Rake thin.
-WR head lettuce 3-2-3
@ 10-12”.
-Subject to bolting in the
heat.
• Harvest: 40-80
Bibb lettuce (loose head)
Spinach
Spinach
• pH: 6.0-6.8
• Cool Season
• Culture:
-WR direct seed & thin
with rake.
-Subject to bolting
• Harvest: 40-50
Kale
Kale
• pH: 6.0-6.5
• Cool Season but
tolerates heat with
water.
• Culture:
-WR direct seed & thin
to 4-6”.
-Leave plants for a
winter crop.
• Harvest: 50-65
Chard
Chard
• pH: 6.0-6.8
• Cool Season but
tolerates heat with
water.
• Culture:
-WR direct seed & thin
to 3-4”.
-Cut back to inch above
soil for successive
harvest.
Cucurbits
• Cucumbers
• Melons
• Pumpkins
• Squash
• Tips on cucurbits:
-Row planting more efficient than hills.
-Don’t worry about cross-pollination if you
don’t save seed. Otherwise plant vine
crops 100’ apart.
Cucumbers
Cucumbers
• pH: 5.5-7.0
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-Plant 8-12” in row x 46’ between rows.
-Can be trellised.
-New gynoecious
varieties have all
female flowers, thus
more fruit.
• Harvest: 50-70
Melons
Melon
• pH: 6.0-7.5
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-Plant 18-24” in row &
6’ between rows.
-Melons need welldrained soil, steady
water supply, and
plenty of heat at
ripening.
Melons
-For extra heat, bury the open ends of large
coffee cans in the ground near melons
when softball size. Place melons on cans.
• Harvest: 70-130
-Harvest muskmelons when stem separates
easily from point of attachment.
-For watermelons use the “thump” test
(head, chest, stomach).
Pumpkins
Pumpkin
• pH: 6.0-7.2
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-Plant 2-3’ in row & 6-8’
between rows.
• Harvest: 100-120
Pumpkin
• Formula for Super Pumpkin:
-Dig large hole & fill with bushel of aged
manure or compost.
-Use seed from large varieties.
- Plant 3-4 seeds & select the hardiest plant
that sprouts.
-Allow 3 pumpkins to set on vine & pick
off the rest & any additional blossoms.
-When softball size, save the best pumpkin
& pick off the rest.
-Side-dress 3-4 times and give plenty of
water.
Squash
Squash
• pH: 6.0-7.2
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-Plant 2-3’ in row & 6-8’ between rows
(bush=3’).
• Harvest: 50-70 (summer) & 85-120
(winter).
-Pick summer squash no larger than 6” long.
Winter Squash
Summer Squash
Onions
• Onions
• Leeks
• Garlic
Onions
Onions
• pH: 5.5-7.0
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-WR plant sets &
transplants 2-3” apart
& thin as needed for
green onions.
-When growing bulbs
from sets, only use
sets dime size &
smaller.
Onions
• Harvest: 85-120
mature bulbs.
-Harvest when tops
dieback—don’t leave
in ground at this
point.
Vidalia
Leeks
Photo by L.G. Campbell
Leeks
• pH: 5.5-7.0
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-Can be grown WR
from seed or
transplants.
Photo by L.G. Campbell
Leeks
-Best planted in a
narrow furrow 4-6”
deep.
-Fill furrow with soil as
plants grow in order
to blanch stems.
• Harvest: 80-130
-Will keep with
mulching in moderate
winters.
Photo by L.G. Campbell
Garlic
Garlic
• pH: 5.5-7.0
• Cool Season (for big bulbs).
• Culture:
-WR plant cloves 3-4” apart.
-Plant cloves in fall.
• Harvest: Fall planted cloves
can be harvested in early
summer when tops fall over.
Asparagus
Asparagus
• pH: 6.0-6.7
• Cool Season
• Culture:
-Plant 2 yr. old crowns
in well drained soil.
-Set 2’ apart in row & 45’ between rows.
-Set root crowns in
trench 12-18” deep.
Asparagus
-Add 6-7” of aged manure or
compost in bottom of trench.
-Mound dirt in trench at 2’
intervals.
-Place crowns on mounds at least
4” below soil surface & spread
roots evenly over mounds.
-Cover crowns with 2-3” of soil.
-As crowns grow continue to fill
trench until filled.
Asparagus
• Harvest: 2-3 years
-Yr.1: don’t cut shoots & let ferns
grow.
-Yr.2: cut old ferns & harvest a
few finger size spears, or better
yet don’t harvest at all.
-Yr.3: cut last year’s ferns &
harvest 6-8”, finger size spears
for a period of 5-8 weeks.
Sweet Corn
Sweet Corn
• pH: 6.0-7.0
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-Raised bed 6-8”.
-Plant seed in furrow 4” deep.
-Space seed 10” apart in row & 30-36” betweens rows.
-Cover with 1” of soil & fill the furrow as plants grow.
Sweet Corn
-Plant in blocks of 4 for
good pollination.
-Super sweet &
standard varieties
should be separated
by 400 yards.
-Isolate from field,
popcorn, and
ornamental corn.
• Harvest: 63-100
Silk: female
Tassels: male
Mature Sweet Corn
Beans
• Snap Beans: bush
• Snap Beans: pole
• (Shell Beans: Lima, Southern pea)
• (Dry Beans: Kidney, Navy, Pinto,
Cranberry)
Snap Beans
Snap Beans
• pH: 5.8-7.0
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-WR direct seed bush
type & thin to 3-6”.
-Plant several successive
crops of bush beans.
-Sidedress only @ bloom
& pod set.
Snap Beans: Bush
• Standard varieties: Tendercrop, Greencrop, Bush Blue Lake,
Tenderpick, Purple Queen, Gold Mine.
• White Half Runner: 3’ vines but grown as a bush bean.
Snap Beans: Pole
• Culture:
-Make tepee of 4 poles
6-7’ long & tied @ top.
-Plant 5-6 seeds around
each leg & thin to 3-4.
-Varieties: Kentucky
Wonder, Blue Lake,
Scarlet Runner.
Snap Beans: Pole
Snap Beans
• Harvest: 50-60
-Pick before seeds grow
large & pod looks
lumpy.
Root Crops
• Beets
• Carrots
• Radishes
Beets
• pH: 6.5-7.0
• Cool/Warm Season
• Culture:
-WR in raised beds
-Thin to 2-4”
• Harvest: 50-65
-Leave about 1” of top
when harvesting.
Carrots
• pH: 6.5-7.0
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-WR in raised bed.
-Thin to 2-3”
-Plant no deeper than
¼”
-Intolerant of dry seed
bed.
• Harvest: 55-80
Radish
• pH: 6.5-7.0
• Cool/Warm Season
but will taste strong
in hot weather (except
daikon type).
• Culture:
-WR in raised bed &
thin to 1”.
Harvest: 25-30 (longer
for daikon type).
Forgotten Root Crops
• Parsnips
• Turnips
• Rutabaga
• Celeriac
• Salsify
• Horseradish
Parsnips
• pH: 6.5
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-WR in raised beds &
thin to 3-4”.
-Slow to mature.
• Harvest: 120-150
-Flavor best after frost
in fall.
Turnips
• pH: 6.5-7.0
• Spring & Fall crop—
intolerant of hot
weather.
• Culture:
-WR in raised bed &
thin to 4-6”
• Harvest: 40-60
-Turnip tops are used
for greens.
Rutabaga
Rutabaga
• pH: 6.5-7.0
• Grown as a fall crop.
• Culture:
-WR raised bed & thin
to 4-6”.
-Originated from a cross
between cabbage &
turnip.
-More flavor & vitamin
A than turnips.
• Harvest: 80-90
Celeriac
Celeriac
• pH: 6.5-7.0
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-WR in raised beds.
-Transplants set at 4-8”.
-Flavor like celery.
• Harvest: 120
-Harvest bulbous root
at 2-3”.
Salsify
Salsify
• pH: 6.5-7.0
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-WR in raised beds &
thin to 3-4”.
-Known as “oyster
plant” because of
faint oyster flavor.
• Harvest: 150
-Harvest after 1st hard
frost.
Horseradish
Horseradish
• pH: 6.5-7.0
• Warm Season
• Culture:
-Raised bed.
-Grown from root cuttings taken
primarily in the fall, but also in
spring.
-8-14” cuttings cut slanted on
bottom for reference.
-Plant in furrows 6-8” deep.
Horseradish
-Plant cuttings at 45 degrees @
24” apart in rows 30” apart.
-Cover top of root with 2” of soil.
-Twice during growing season
remove top & side roots (@ 810” leafing & 6 weeks later).
-Called “lifting” & produces
smoother root.
-Gently lift top of root with hoe to
remove roots.
• Harvest: early fall at end of
best growth.
This PowerPoint program was assembled by Larry G. Campbell, WVU-Harrison County Extension Agent and
WVU Assistant Professor. In addition to this author’s material, some photographs, illustrations, and supporting
materials were assembled from various sources publicly available on the Internet. The information was gathered
over a period of time and from sources too numerous to list individually. The author would like to acknowledge the
assistance of these web sites and publicly express his sincere appreciation for the assistance.
This program was assembled solely for educational purposes and primarily for use with statewide WV Master
Gardener training programs. The author did not nor will ever receive financial compensation for the preparation of
this program.
The program may be copied and distributed in parts or in its entirety for educational purposes. If any part of this
presentation is distributed, the efforts of Mr. Campbell in assembling the materials must be recognized. The
distributor may not receive any financial compensation for this service.
Larry G. Campbell
WVU-Harrison County Extension Agent and
WVU Assistant Professor
[email protected]
WVU-Harrison County Extension Office
301 West Main Street
Room 507 Courthouse
Clarksburg, WV 26301
(304) 624-8650