SUCCESS WITH SPRING VEGETABLE
GARDENS
by Keith C. Hansen, Extension Horticulturist, Smith Co. - Tyler,
Texas
There's nothing better than harvesting fresh garden produce right out of a backyard
garden. A successful garden harvest depends on many important steps, from the
garden site itself to proper care of the plants. Here are a few tips as you get ready
for this gardening season.
Site Selection: Shade trees grow larger every year and can slowly
shade a once
sunny garden spot. Vegetables need sun and lots of it. The more direct sun, the
better the yield. Leafy vegetables, like lettuce and cabbage, and root crops such as
carrots and turnips, will get by with some shade. But beans, okra, tomatoes,
peppers, melons, cucumbers, squash and other fruiting vegetables need at least 8
to 10 hours of direct sun for healthy plants and maximum yield.
Soil Preparation: The best garden soils are rich and highly organic.
Unless you have
been working a spot for years, constantly adding compost and other organic
matter, your soil will need amending. Just prior to planting you can add rotted
barnyard manure and finished compost.
The soils in east Texas typically are low in some nutrients, particularly nitrogen,
potassium, and sometimes calcium and magnesium. Soil tests for phosphorus
usually indicate adequate levels of this element, which can be supplied to individual
transplants or the seed row by banding, or with a starter solution for transplants.
Soil pH is a critical factor often overlooked by many gardeners. Most vegetables
grow best with a pH of 6.0 to 6.5. Some, like beans and beets, just won't do well
at all in acid soil below pH 6.5. Poor growth and disappointing yields result from
acidic soils. Our east Texas soils can be very acidic, and often require the addition
of lime to raise the pH to an acceptable level. How much lime depends on your soil
type and the actual pH of your soil.
Soil Test: For the best results, take the guesswork out of the picture
and have your
soil tested by a reputable soil testing lab. Every county Extension office has the
information you need to submit a soil sample to the Extension Soil Testing Lab at
College Station. The report will tell you exactly what and how much, if anything,
you need to add. The Smith County Extension office offers a pH-only test for
$4.00. Be sure to take several random samples from you garden spot, thoroughly
mixed together, for the test.
Two other very important factors in a successful garden is to plant the right
varieties at the right time.
Variety Selection:. For every type of vegetable there are dozens, even
hundreds, of
varieties to choose from. Seed catalogs entice with beautiful pictures and luscious
descriptions. But, what produces bumper crops in New York, Michigan or even
Arkansas may not necessarily do well in East Texas. Find out what varieties are
recommended for our specific area. Every county Extension office has a list of
recommended varieties that should produce well
under local conditions. Also, local
farmers and long time gardeners are good sources of information for favorite
varieties.
Some important traits to look for in vegetable varieties include disease resistance,
high yield and early maturity. The less time a plant is in the garden before harvest,
the less you have to worry about disease and insect pests, watering and extreme
summer heat prematurely ending harvest.
Planting Date: Timing is everything.
You want most crops to mature before the
onslaught of hot weather (except okra, southern peas and sweet potatoes which
require warmer weather). So, most crops need to be planted as early as possible.
Mid-March is the "average" last freeze date for the Tyler area, so crops sensitive to
frost like beans, corn and watermelons can usually be seeded just prior to and after
that date. Tomatoes can be transplanted before that time if you are prepared to
give them frost protection. A quilt or blanket draped over a cage will protect them
from a frost, but won't help much in a severe, late freeze.
Cool-season vegetables like broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower should be
transplanted in early February. Other crops to be seeded in January and into
February include beets,
carrots, Swiss chard, collards, lettuce, mustard, radish and turnips. These crops
grow best in the milder weather of early spring. Also, try them again for a fall crop.
Not only is air temperature important, but it is also wise to wait until the soil has
warmed to the upper 60's or low 70's before planting seed of warm-season
vegetables. Peppers do best if transplanted a few weeks later than tomatoes, once
the soil has warmed up.
Again, local county Extension offices are a source of information for vegetable
planting dates, plus you can find specific bulletins for most vegetable crops in the
Home Vegetable, Fruit & Nut Section of Extension Horticulture at Aggie Horticulture.
Another source of educational information on vegetable production is the East
Texas Fruit and Vegetable Conference, every third Tuesday in February, at he Tyler
Rose Garden Center. For more information, see the Programs section of East Texas Gardening.
Keith Hansen is Smith County Horticulturist with Texas Cooperative Extension. His web page is http://easttexasgardening.tamu.edu. Educational programs of Texas Cooperative Extension are open to all individuals without regard to race, color, sex, disability, religion, age or national origin.
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