Garden Plants Information

Spring will be upon us before you know it, and it’s about time to give some serious thought to the quality and content your garden’s soilthat literal foundation for all things happening in the garden. Soils are at the heart and soul of successful gardening. Yet soils are almost universally the single most neglected “key” to gardening success!

Who in his right mind would even think of building a home without first providing a strong and reliable foundation for it to rest upon? Just as the man in the New Testament who built his house upon a bed of unstable sand soon lost it to wind and rain, the gardener who builds a home for plants without a good foundationneglecting to thoroughly prepare the soil and become aware of its nutritional content and capacityis destined to witness the rapid decline and demise of his or her hard work!

To be honest, if not downright blunt, if you don’t do a real bang-up job of preparing the soil (the “foundation”) before you plant, you’d probably be better off seeding it in wildflowers or green-tinted asphalt. That’s how important soil preparation really is. Remember: it is a vital, yet widely neglected, key to successful gardening.

How do you achieve the almost perfect, deep, rich, dark and loose soil? It takes a full-size spade, plenty of elbow grease, usually a considerable amount of organic matter, and an almost infinite amount of persistence and patience.

Some prefer to prepare their garden plot with a small rototiller, but little tillers simply cannot get the job done right. Most tillers are made to scratch the surface down to about fourmaybe fiveinches deep. A home garden sized machine that’ll cut six inches is a rarity. Tillers do have their purpose but it usually comes later, after the real work is done.

Most shovels cut eleven or twelve inches deep…and that’s what you should do: drive that shovel straight down right to the hilt and turn the soil completely upside-down. Pick out any weeds, stones, roots or anything else that doesn’t belong. A good sharp edge on your shovel helps cut through tree feeder-roots. Break soil lumps into small particles. Watch for destructive soil insectswireworms, grubs and cutworms, for exampleand send any you find into eternal oblivion.

A few gardening authorities suggest what’s called “double-digging” which involves digging another ten or twelve inches below that, into the subsoil. While it may work in the Great Plains states, that kind of soil-depth luxury isn’t seen very often in the shallow, stony topsoils of Northern New England. Do the best you can.

Continue turning the soil over until the whole plot is upside-down, cleaned up, and broken into little pieces. Now comes the fun part: add a healthy layer (two to four inches) of rich, dark compost or well-rotted animal waste. If your soil is clay and tends to be dense, “sticky” and easily compacted, an additional inch or two of coarse organic material like shredded leaves or straw will help loosen it up. It’s not a good idea to add sand to clay soil…you may end up with something like concrete. Peatmoss will help to loosen clay soil, but may strain your early spring budget. (A common misconception, widely encouraged by the peatmoss marketing industry, pronounces that this very old organic material adds health and vitality to just about any soil. Not so: peatmoss, as it comes out of the bag, is as close to nutritionally and biologically dead as it can possibly be. Don’t rely on peatmoss to add life and plant food to your garden. . .it can’t do that.)

Now turn and mix it all loosely into your topsoil. Once again, cut in as deeply as you can with a good spade. Avoid walking on it after thatif you’ve done your job well, you’ll sink past your ankles and compact your soil. I keep a couple of old 12-inch-wide boards handy to walk on while planting or doing any raking or furrowing.

One final important “key” completes the story: we use a lot of bonemeal in our fields and gardens. Bonemeal is high in phosphorus (usually 12 or 16). Bonemeal encourages and promotes flowers and fruit, strong stems and roots, foliage that can handle most summer abuse and, most importantly, is a wholly natural form of fertilizer. It is a little expensive, but once applied (then thoroughly mixed in, not left on the surface) it provides a constant source of phosphorus for about three years.

There is a down side, however: even the so-called deodorized type of bonemeal will attract skunks, raccoons, and the neighbor’s little digger-dog for about two weeks following application. The solution: either mask the faint odor with something stronger, like a “tea” made from “blenderized” garlic, or prepare your soil a few weeks before you plant so they can dig (cultivate!) to their hearts’ content without doing any real damage.

Now you’re ready! Well, almost. The final step before planting is another very important “key”a soil test so you’ll know exactly what your soil has and precisely what it needs to make your garden more productive of healthier plants and harvest…and you a better (certainly better-informed!) gardener.

Your state’s Cooperative Extension Service has free collection/mailing containers and detailed instructions. Samples are then mailed to the State Soil Testing Lab., and it usually takes about two to three weeks to get your results back. Cost is in the range of $10 - $12. Fairly economical “success” insurance!

Visit Fred’s website to view more of his gardening articles: http://www.HillGardens.com

Fred Davis is a Master Gardener, Master Composter, lecturer, and long-time nurseryman. He and his wife, Linda, own and operate a popular perennial nursery in Palermo, Maine, and maintain a no-frills gardening information website at: http://www.HillGardens.com/, where you’ll find answers to your gardening questions.

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Low temperatures, frost or dry conditions are all causes of winter injury. In our region we can expect one or all of these conditions during the winter months. The results of these conditions vary from leaf burn to the death of the entire plant.

Causes:

Low temperatures: If the temperature drops below a plant’s ability to tolerate it, this is known as low temperature injury. Generally this occurs in plants which are not suited for a particular zone. Frost cracks or sun-scald occurs when temperatures drop after the bark has warmed up. Symptoms of low temperature injury include branch or stem die-back, black or brown leaves, or splitting of the bark.

Frost: Injury from frost occurs during the late fall or early spring when plants are still growing. If temperatures drop below or near freezing, this is when frost injury will occur. Symptoms of frost injury include brown to black flowers, fruit or leaves.

Dry Conditions: This is also known as “winter burn”. It occurs when the leaves of the plant continue to lose moisture, which is not replaced. Generally plants in exposed sites to the wind in the winter are more likely to have this damage occur.

Although these are the 3 most common injuries to occur in winter, there are other problems that can occur. If there is a heavy snowfall or icy conditions occur (freezing rain), these can cause limbs to break. Food is scarce during the winter months for such animals as deer, mice and rabbits. They will seek out leaves, bud and bark to supplement their winter diets.

Solving the problem:

There are certain steps a homeowner can take to lessen the chances of winter injury. The most important step is choosing shrubs and trees that are hardy for the zone you live in. Check with your local nursery if you are unsure of the zone you live in. Ensure your soil drains well when choosing an area in which to plant. Give your trees and shrubs a good soaking before the soil freezes in the fall to ensure they have sufficient moisture for the winter months. Use some sort of windbreak for trees and shrubs in exposed areas. Good maintenance throughout the growing season by providing nutrients, water, and protection against stress to ensure your plants are more resistant to winter injury.

Paul is a Certified Pesticide Applicator in the province of Alberta, Canada. He has over 15 years experience in the lawn care industry.

For more lawn care information, please visit http://www.fairyring.ca

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Folks, this one’s a keeper, so turn on your printer and save it in your gardening library.

With cold weather soon upon us, everyone should be working to save your harvest, either by storing or preserving. Canning, drying, and freezing, are good ways of preserving your crops such as beans, corn, peas, peppers, summer squash, and tomatoes. They need to be done immediately after picking, while crops are fresh and tasty. Whether you cold-store or preserve your produce depends on the type of food you’ve grown, your facilities, and your family’s eating preferences.

Cold storage of vegetables such as cabbage, beets, carrots, potatoes, squash, and turnips can give you the best tasting and healthiest food of the four methods, and may even be the least expensive in the long run. And you can eat every one of these garden-fresh even 4 to 6 months after they’ve been harvested! However it requires some careful preparation, so let’s discuss how best to prepare for and store your fall harvest.

The details of harvesting and properly storing your crops are covered on several of the Mittleider gardening books, including Food For Everyone - all available at www.foodforeveryone.org.

Since tomatoes are many peoples’ favorite garden produce, let’s discuss them first. Before the first killing frost, pick all your tomatoes, including the green ones. Handle them gently, because cuts or bruises will cause them to spoil quickly. Fruit that’s close to ripe can be placed on a kitchen counter, out of direct sunlight, and it will ripen in a few days. Green fruit should be placed on a shelf in a cool, dry place, such as your basement or garage. As they begin to ripen you can bring them into the kitchen. Always remove any fruit that is beginning to spoil. We eat tomatoes into January this way.

Most of your other vegi’s need more help to keep them fresh. If your garden is very small and you don’t have much to store, you may be able to use an old refrigerator, or a barrel buried in the back yard. However, for those who are serious about providing fresh food for your families, I recommend a root cellar, either under the house or buried outside. A good size is 8′ wide and at least 10′ deep. This gives you 2′ for an aisle and 3′ on each side for storage. A shelf on each side is good for things like onions and garlic, which need to be kept dry.

You can set it into the side of a hill or dig a hole 4′ to 5′ deep in a corner of the yard, build the cellar, and cover it with the excess dirt. This will help insulate it and maintain the low, but not freezing temperatures you need. Provide yourself a small door and insulate it well.

Harvest your crops at peak maturity and store only those which are free of disease or damage. Don’t harvest for storage until late fall, since more starches are converted to sugars by the cool weather. Root crops should be picked fresh and stored immediately. Potatoes and squash, on the other hand, first need to be cured at 60-75 degrees for 7 to 14 days. Most produce should be stored at just above freezing temperatures, except winter squash, which does better at or above 50 degrees.

Your root crops will stay fresh and sweet for months if you harvest them with roots intact and pack them in wet sawdust. Cabbage and other brassicas also need their roots. Remove outer leaves, then pack the roots in wet sawdust, leaving the cabbage exposed. Provide separation between crops to avoid mixing flavors, and to keep squash dry.

Potatoes should not be as wet as the root crops. They will do well in temperatures below 40 degrees, but pack them in slightly moist, rather than wet sawdust. Peat moss and sand, or combinations of all three, can be substituted for straight sawdust, but are not as ideal. I recommend you work with your neighbors to find a sawmill, and obtain a truckload.

Onions and garlic also store well. They can handle cold temperatures but, like winter squash, they do better with humidity only 60 to 70 percent. Therefore these should be up off the damp floor, on shelves or hung from the ceiling. A cold basement can also work, but be sure to provide separation from living areas to avoid the strong smell.

Remember, cold temperatures are essential for good long-term storage of vegetables, but do not let them freeze! Insulate your root cellar well. Good healthy eating to you! More details are at www.foodforeveryone.org in the FAQ section.
© 2006 - James B. Kennard

Jim Kennard, President
Food For Everyone Foundation
“Teaching the world to grow food one family at a time.”
www.foodforeveryone.org

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