We spent some time in the raised bed and container area harvesting some late summer veggies and pulling out those that were spent. We picked some okra, which has been really productive during the hot weather the last couple of weeks. We also harvested a few tomatoes, most of which came from a volunteer Juliet that grew from some tomatoes we had planted last fall. The majority of the spring tomatoes looked pretty bad, though, so we bit the bullet and pulled them out this week. Many of the tomatoes were supported by a bamboo pole matrix. Taking that out was more work than was removing the tomato vines. We had installed the bamboo as a support for the tomatoes in that bed because we had run out of the remesh cages that we usually use for them. It did the job, but we will probably invest in more remesh next year because it is easier to use and easier to pick the tomatoes than it was with the bamboo pole supports.
We had planted some Southern peas in a couple of the beds a week or two back. We got them in a couple of weeks late and were worried that they might not be able to sprout because the soil surface tends to dry out from the heat and wind this time of year. The unseasonable rain, coupled with some extra water from a microsprinkler, seems to have taken care of that problem because they are all up and doing well now. If the first frost this year is late enough we should get a good yield from the peas.The herbs are growing at an unprecedented rate. We had to prune back the pineapple sage, lemon verbena and scented geraniums again this week to keep them from overrunning the bed. Even after pruning them we still had to move the tarragon, which was getting crowded out by the more aggressive plants.
We reworked some of the irrigation in the beds this week because of removing old plants, planting new ones and general wear and tear. In the container area there were half a dozen pomegranates in large pots. Only one of them had leaves on it, so we moved it into the area where we are growing veggies in pots. The rest of the bushes looked dead so we decided to throw them out. However, in cutting them up to make them fit in the trash can better, we noticed that several of them had some green material in them. So we decided to try to root them anew and repot them if we are successful. We’ll let you know how that turns out.
In the row garden we harvested nearly fifty pounds of produce including squash, cucumbers, tomatoes and blackeyed peas. We delivered over half of that to the Annunciation Maternity Home in Georgetown. We will deliver the rest to The Caring Place early this week.Our previous attempts to plant okra in the row garden this summer have been mostly unsuccessful. We finally decided that the ground was drying out too quickly and keeping the seeds from sprouting. So we started some in pots and this week we transplanted them into the garden and then watered them by hand for a couple of days to try to get them started. So far all looks well so we’ll see how this approach works out. This is one of the things that makes gardening fun. If you follow the general wisdom and things don’t work as you need them to, you are free to experiment and find the approach that works for your individual situation. All of us in the vegetable garden crew do this and then share our results with the rest of the team. This is only one of the reasons why we are always excited to have new master gardeners and interns join the vegetable garden team. We learn as much or more from each other as we do from formal classes.
We did some maintenance in the row garden this week, as we usually do. We whacked down the weeds at the edges of the rows and spent more time getting rid of nut sedge. We pulled a lot of it by hand again and, because the molasses didn’t seem to be producing the desired results, we sprayed the nut sedge with 20% horticultural vinegar. This is just the same as table vinegar but much stronger as table vinegar is usually 5% or so. It acts as a desiccant. That is, it dries out the part of the plant above ground so that the plant can no longer perform photosynthesis. It usually works better on annual weeds than on perennials like nutsedge, but we are getting desperate.
Garden Calendar
Beginning this week we are going to include a brief garden calendar with each diary post. It is not our intention to compete with other, more extensive, garden calendars. Rather, we are so often asked what should be done in the garden at any particular time that we decided to include this as sort of a heads up for the next month or two. So here is our first attempt to do that.
Fall transplants of summer vegetables such as the nightshade family (tomatoes, tomatillos, peppers and eggplant) should be in the ground by mid-August. Cucumbers can be planted from seed or transplanted throughout August, as can summer squash. Winter squash should be planted by the end of the first week in August. Snap and lima beans can be planted through the end of the first week in September. Corn can be planted through mid-August. In addition, it is possible to do a fall planting of Irish potatoes in mid-August. All of these vegetables will be killed by the first frost. The transplants and seedlings may also have a problem with mid-summer heat. So you may want to shade them, at least from the late afternoon sun. Mulch them well to keep the ground moist and cool.
Fall and winter vegetable planting is mostly done in September and October. These vegetables can handle a frost but do not like hot weather. Most of them are transplanted but some, notably the root crops, are usually planted from seed. With the exception of fava beans, none of these plants need pollinators because they are harvested for the vegetative, rather than fruit, parts of the plant. The vegetables that can be planted in this time period include brassicas (cabbagey things such as cabbage, kale, collards, broccoli, broccoli raab, Brussels sprouts and kohlrabi), winter root crops (beets, carrots, radishes and turnips), winter greens (spinach, chard, Asian greens, lettuce, mustard, mizuna and mesclun), and alliums (onion, chives and garlic). In addition, leeks can be planted from seed, but not transplants, during this time period. Artichokes can be transplanted, but crowns should not be started until spring. English peas can be planted in September and fava beans in October.
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, sometimes, Friday mornings from 8:00 to 10:00. Anyone is welcome to stop by to see the garden or to ask questions of the master gardeners.
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