Starting a Successful Vegetable Garden

1. Starting a Successful Vegetable Garden Subtitle Jon Traunfeld- jont@umd.edu

3. Why do people grow vegetables? • Flavor, freshness, pesticide-free • Save money; learn new skills • Health benefits exercise, nutrition, phytochemicals • Connection to nature and family traditions • Introduce youth to gardening v

4. Join the Grow it Eat it Network! • A program brought to you by Maryland Master Gardeners and the Home and Garden Information Center (HGIC) • Goals: • teach people how to grow food • increase the number of Maryland food gardeners • create a network of food gardeners who will keep learning and sharing through classes, workshops, events, web site, blog

5. We teach a common-sense, ecological approach • Rely on locally available materials and resources- (rocks, leaves, animal manure). • Feed the soil (with organic matter) to increase garden productivity. • Maximize biological and genetic diversity to strengthen your garden eco-system. • Example: Plant an assortment of annual flowers and herbs to attract and feed beneficial insects.

6. Ingredients for first year success Good, deep soil; add organic matter. Give your plants the nutrients, water, and sunlight they need. Prevent weeds from growing. Make a plan; give it a little time each day Observe and take notes ENJOY!

7. What type of vegetable garden? • In-ground- convert turfgrass to vegetables • Containers- on back step, deck, or balcony or along driveway • Edible landscape- pepper, cabbage, Swiss chard, etc. mixed into ornamental beds • Combination of the first three

8. Vegetable crops • 5-10 plant families may be represented in the average garden (almost all of our vegetable crops are non-native- not even from North America!) • Most are annuals with a life cycle somewhere between 25 days (radish, baby greens) to 110 days (big pumpkins.) • Require good growing conditions to produce high yields. • Can be incorporated into ornamental landscape.

9. Making a plan • Good planning will save you time, work, and $ • Garden size; how big?- consider time, space, mouths to feed, motivation • Always best to start small • What should I grow • Easy crops • What your family will eat

10. 7 good crops for starters… • Tomato- productive and popular • Pepper- slow-growing but worth the wait • Cucumber- make them climb to save space • Summer squash- feed the neighborhood! • Bush bean- plant them twice • Lettuce- grow best March-June and Sept.-Nov. • Leafy greens- mustard, kale, collards, Asian greens, and Swiss chard (grows during hot weather)

11. Sample 8 ft. X 8 ft. garden • Two raised beds- 8 ft. X 3 ft. with a 2 ft. path in the middle • Time: late May • Both beds could have been planted in salad greens from April 1 through mid-May row of bush beans 1 squash plant 3 tomato plants 3 pepper plants Swiss chard and kale leaf lettuce 8 ft. 2 cuke plants 3 ft.

12. Can I really save $? • Yes, but have you heard the one about the $100 tomato? • Only buy what you really need; be resourceful • An 8 ft. X 8 ft. garden with 48 sq. ft. of growing space should produce $175-300 of fresh produce

13. Picking a site • Level ground; close to water source. • Southern exposure; tallest plants on North side. • Protection from critters.

14. Digging and aerating tools

15. Soil prep Kill sod and control weeds- • Cover area with newspaper or cardboard, and cover with leaves, and compost OR • Dig up the area by hand or with a tiller

16. Soil prep Slicing off sod Loosening subsoil Turning soil

17. Sheet compost your way to a vegetable garden

18. You need “good soil” • Well-drained • Friable- deep, crumbly; allows for maximum root growth. • Regular additions of organic matter will improve soil structure and create a reservoir of slow-release nutrients. • Test your soil; 6.0-6.8 is preferred range for soil pH. • Urban/suburban soils are often low quality soils

19. Ways to add organic matter • Farmyard manure (fall) • Compost • Shredded leaves and grass clippings • Organic mulches • Plant roots • Cover crops • Large amounts of organic matter may be needed for several years. • Thereafter, 1 in. of compost will help maintain high yields.

20. Cover crops improve and protect soils • Increase soil organic matter. • Mine the soil for nutrients. • Protect soil from erosion.

21. Raised beds some advantages… • Warm up quickly in spring. • Drain well; less compaction and erosion. • Increase available rooting area. • Can produce greater food production per square foot. and some disadvantages… • Up-front labor and expense. • Dry out quickly if weather is hot and dry. • Don’t work on slopes, unless terraced.

22. 2-4 ft. wide; usually 6”-8” above grade; can be bordered with wood, stone, brick Raised bed basics “Instant” raised bed filled with a purchased soil/compost mix

23. Good info on most seed packets

24. Growing healthy transplants

25. Intensive gardening: getting the most per square foot • Close planting • Vertical growth • Inter-planting • Succession/relay planting

26. How close is too close?? Correct spacing for big onions Okra plants are too tight

27. Interplant to maximize production purslane is edible!

28. Mustard greens on north side of tomatoes

29. Keep the harvest coming with succession planting • Requires planning • Transplants fill the space quickly • Special attention to water and nutrient needs • Floating row cover for protection from pests and excessive heat

30. An entire raised bed of Asian leafy greens.

31. Get the most from every square foot: succession planting examples • Garlic (11/1)-cucumbers (7/1)-oats/clover (9/20) • Peas/favas (3/1)-squash (6/1)-kale (9/1) • Lettuce (3/20)-green beans (5/15)-broccoli (8/1) • Radish (3/1)-Asian greens (4/15)-eggplant (6/1)-rye (9/15) • Cucumber (4/15)- green bean (7/1)-spinach (9/20)

32. Most commonly available commercial organic fertilizers • Fish emulsion: 6-2-2 • Seaweed extract: 1-.5-2 • Bloodmeal: 15-1-0 • Cottonseed meal: 6-2.5-1.5 • Guano: 8 to 13-8-2 • Bone meal: 4-21-0 • Rock phosphate: 0-22-0 • Alfalfa meal: 3-1-2

33. Fertilizing tips • Nitrogen is nutrient most often in short supply. Use one of the “meals” (kelp, fish, cottonseed, alfalfa) to supplement N from organic matter. • Follow label directions. • Organic fertilizers can be over-applied and burn plants or stimulate excessive leaf growth at the expense of fruit. • Add 1 inch of compost each year to contribute to long-term nutrient reservoir.

34. Weed management • Weeds are plants that thrive in disturbed soil. • Best control methods: • crop cover • hand-pull • sharp hoe • mulch • Other methods: vinegar, flame weeder, commercial herbicidal soap.

35. Organic mulches • Prevent weed growth. • Moderate soil temperatures. • Conserve soil moisture. • Add to soil organic matter. • Should be spread after soil warms up. • Can provide habitat for pests along with beneficial critters. Examples: grass clippings, newspaper covered with straw, shredded leaves, compost

36. Synthetic mulches • Black plastic mulch warms the soil for earlier, higher yields of warm-season crops. • Red plastic mulch may produce higher yields of tomato than black plastic. • Landscape fabric warms soil and allows water and air into soil. Can be re-used.

37. Drip irrigation: saves time and water

38. Growing up: using vertical space • Increase yields per sq. ft. • Fewer fruit problems; easier to pick, water, and spray. • Adds complex texture to garden; enhances ecosystem (shading, micro-climates.)

39. Fence out the critters

40. Container vegetables 8 cu. ft. of growing media Whiskey barrel- 1-2 plant capacity

41. EarthBox- “self-watering” container

42. Univ. of MD Salad Table: Growing salad greens at waist height March-November

43. Mixed greens cut at 1” above soil line

44. Univ. of MD Salad Box

45. Resources Grow it! Eat it!- http://extension.umd.edu/growit Access to valuable and practical gardening tips and information. Share your experiences in our blog. Maryland Master Gardener Program- http://extension.umd.edu/mg Consider becoming a MG volunteer Home and Garden Information Center-http://extenstion.umd.edu/hgic Can answer your gardening questions… Call the “hotline” Mon-Fri, 8am-1pm. 1-800-342-2507 Send questions and photos 24/7 through this web site for a quick and thorough answer.

46. This program was brought to you by Maryland Master Gardener Program Howard County University of Maryland Extension