We continued to spend a good bit of time on irrigation projects this week. We usually try to test the irrigation system this time of year when there is not a lot of planting going on in the garden. We did that this week and discovered several problems. We had a few leaks and the emitters in some of the quarter-inch lines had become clogged with calcium. We replaced the lines we weren’t able to fix and repaired the leaks. After more than two weeks of work we think we have the system in shape for the upcoming gardening season.
The weather has been a problem for us, as it often is this time of year. We have covered some of the raised beds with row cover to protect young seedlings from the cold nights but the recent windy weather has been blowing the covers loose. In addition, the wind has dried out the areas where we have newly-planted seeds, so we have had to hand-water frequently in order to keep the soil damp enough so that the seeds can germinate and break through the surface.
Much of the work we have done in the garden lately has been to prepare for our Spring Garden Fair on April 6th. We have been working diligently to remove the nut sedge and other weeds from the row garden and to cover the paths between the rows with a heavy layer of mulch in an effort to keep the weeds from coming back. In the culinary herb bed we pulled out some of the larger herbs, such as the garden sage (salvia officinalis), divided them and replanted some of the smaller divisions. That’s a lot of work because some of these herbs can grow quite large and they usually have an extensive root system which requires a lot of digging to remove.
Some of the winter and early spring plants are beginning to bear now. We have been picking kale from the row garden off and on all winter and will continue to do so until the weather becomes quite warm. The asparagus is beginning to sprout now and we have harvested small quantities for the last week and a half. Based on its performance last year, we expect the number of sprouts to increase a good bit over the next two or three weeks. The strawberries are developing fruit now too. There was only one red-ripe berry this week, but it looks as though there will be more in the next week or two.
The beginning of March is the time of the average date of last frost in our area. So we will start planting the early summer crops such as tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, beans and squash, although it is likely that we will have to keep them under row cover for much of this month to guard against damage from a late frost before the Garden Fair.
The demonstration garden is located north of the Williamson County Extension Office driveway at 3151 SE Innerloop Road, Georgetown, Texas. Master gardeners are usually at work in the vegetable garden on Tuesday and Friday mornings from 9:00 to 11:00. Anyone is welcome to stop by to see the garden or to ask questions of the master gardeners.
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