Transcript Vegetable Gardening

Vegetable Gardening
For fun and flavor!
Site Selection
• Where?
• Water
• Rotation
Gardening equipment
• Minimum tools
needed are a shovel,
a rake, a hoe, and a
hand trowel.
• Buy good quality
tools
• Power Rotary tillers
Planning
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QUESTIONS:
Who will do the work?
What does the family like to eat?
How will the produce be used?
How much space is available?
Preparing the soil
• Ideal garden:
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Soil is deep
Easily worked
Well-drained
Contains at least 5% organic matter
• Soil testing
• Tilling
Water
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Watering is a must
Drip irrigation
How much?
When do I water?
Why mulch?
Fertilizing
Intensive gardening
• The purpose of an
intensively grown
garden is to harvest
the most produce
possible from a
given space.
• It gives better yields
with less labor and
uses water more
efficiently without
wasted space
Raised Beds
• What is a raised bed?
• How do I make a raised
bed?
Planting
• Choose varieties
suitable for our
climate
• Look for shortseason, quick
maturing varieties
• Read seed packets
When to plant
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Soil temperature
Soil consistency
Frost tolerance
Air Temperature
Read the seed
packet
Peas
• One of the earliest
and easiest to
grow.
• Adds nitrogen to
the soil
• Staking is required
if not planting bush
varieties
• Use innoculant
Onions
• Most successful
starting from sets
or transplants.
• Size of bulbs.
• Red, yellow, and
white sets – yellow
store the best
Broccoli, Cauliflower &
Cabbage
• These are best set
out as transplants.
• Make sure to
harden off if
coming from
indoors or warmer
conditions.
• Susceptible to
cabbage lopper
Root Crops
• Small seed –
shallow planting
• Can be interplanted
• A light frost makes
the carrots sweeter
• Radishes need to
be planted while
weather is cool.
Potatoes
• Plant in hills
• If frost threatens
cover whole plant with
soil
• A must to rotate
• Evenly moist soil
• Dig in fall after tops
have frozen
Greens – Lettuce, Chard,
Spinach
• Don’t pull whole plant keep cutting to
keep producing
• Evenly moist
• Good air circulation
Green Beans
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Plant after danger of frost
Pick when leaves are dry
Pick often to keep plants producing
Innoculate
Adds Nitrogen to
the soil
Summer Squash
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No frost tolerance
Keep evenly moist
Plant in hills
Use season extenders
Corn
• Plant short season varieties
• Not reliable but stocks are fun to use in
fall decor
Tomatoes
• Use season extenders
• Cold season varieties
• Not frost tolerant
Herb gardens
SEASON EXTENDERS
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Cold Frames
Greenhouse
Wall-o-water
Frost blankets
Cloches and Row
covers
Cover crops
• Decreases soil erosion
• Prevents compaction
• Adds organic material when
incorporated
in the spring
• Reduces
leaching of
nutrients
Beneficials
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Spiders
Lacewings
Ladybeetles
Praying mantids
Etc.