Vegetable Demonstration Garden
This week’s harvest includes:
Okra—5.95 pounds
Sweet peppers—1.81pounds
Hot peppers—1.67 pounds
Eggplant— 3.9 pounds
Lima beans—1.3 pounds
Tomatoes—0.57 pound
A total of 15.2 pounds of produce was harvested this week. These vegetables were donated to the Caring Place and the Round Rock Area Serving Center. To date, Williamson county master gardeners have donated a total of 3,445.065 pounds of demonstration garden produce to local charities.
Weekly rainfall: no rainfall was measured the week ending 10/30/2016.
Summary of garden activities
Garlic seed arrived this week! So, row 8 was amended and planted with garlic seed. Raised bed gardens were also planted with garlic. Swiss chard seed was planted in row 3 and hand watered in. Row cover was removed from the fall tomato plants. No irrigation leaks were diagnosed on Tuesday but one leak was repaired on Friday. A second row of irrigation was added to the east half of row 3. That area was subsequently planted with broccoli and mustard transplants. Rabbit fencing was installed to protect those new transplants. More nut-grass was removed from the east end of row 4. Compost was added to the east ends of rows 4 and 5. Trial beds were weeded. All brassicas in the garden were treated with BT to control cabbage loopers and fall webworms. Fire ants were also treated. Newly planted garlic seed and Swiss Chard were hand watered. Raised beds containing Elbon rye grass were turned. The diversion wall project near the orchard was completed. The wall will be extended all the way to the end of the orchard area. On Friday, the compost pile temperatures read 80 and 120 degrees F. Grass clippings were added to the cold bed to stimulate some heat!
Fire ants love fall weather…
It’s a great time of year to work in our flower and vegetable gardens. Chances are you’ll find fire ants under some mulch, nesting under your fall tomatoes or crawling up your leg! Fire ants are a major problem for central Texas home gardeners. Despite our efforts with different eradication methods, those ants just pick up and move right over to your broccoli transplants! What’s a veggie gardener to do?
Like most avid gardeners, I’ve spent a lot of time employing recommended organic methods to rid my garden of fire ants. These pests get into the roots of susceptible plants like okra and cucumbers or kill seedlings before you know it! They can decimate basil and other tender herbs as well. Sometimes you’ll get lucky when those ants move and find a home in your neighbors yard. But, they will inevitably return after a rain event! I’ve recently reviewed several articles published by various extension offices with their recommendations for fire ant eradication. So, I thought I’d share some gardening nuggets with you from my research efforts!
First nugget: a garden that is frequently tilled has fewer fire ants! Tilling disturbs fire ant homes and causes them to move. Unfortunately, they’ll move to another veggie or flower plant and set up home again. So, the next option is bait!
Second nugget: before applying bait to the mound, treat the turf surrounding the garden! This is very important to do and will result in optimal suppression. There are organic turf products on the market available for ant control. A hand spreader works well for granular turf products. Baits shouldn’t be applied to wet grass or if a rain event is expected within 24 hours of application.
Third nugget: use a product containing the active ingredients spinosad and pyriproxyfen. Spinosad is a metabolite produced by Saccharopolyspora spinosa, a soil microorganism, which affects the ant’s central nervous system—fast kill! Many products with spinosad are approved for organic vegetable gardens. Pyriproxyfen is a growth regulator that reduces the production of viable ant eggs. It prevents the development of worker ants but doesn’t kill existing adults. Slower kill. Check the label on your favorite product. There are several organic products on the market to choose from.
Fourth nugget: apply bait in early morning or late afternoon when ants are foraging. When applying bait to the mound, spread the granules or liquid bait around the base of the mound first before sprinkling or drenching the top. Follow instructions on the product label.
Final nugget: during seasons when everyone in your neighborhood is battling a fire ant army, consider joining forces! If neighbors on all sides of your home treat their turf and you treat your yard, fire ant suppression is more successful!
October Gardening in Central Texas
The Texas A&M Agrilife Extension vegetable garden planting guide suggests the following vegetables for fall planting:
Artichoke transplants
Asian greens (seeds or transplants)
Beans, snap and lima
Beets
Broccoli (transplants)
Brussels sprouts (transplants)
Cabbage (transplants)
Collards (seeds or transplants)
Carrots
Cauliflower (transplants)
Cool season greens
Fava beans
Garlic
Swiss Chard (seeds or transplants)
Kohlrabi (seeds or transplants)
Kale (seeds or transplants)
Lettuce (seeds or transplants)
Onions (bunching/multiplying)
Mustard (seeds or transplants)
Spinach (seeds or transplants)
Shallots
Radish
Turnip
Come and visit us!
Our demonstration garden is located beside the Williamson County Extension Office driveway at 3151 SE Inner Loop Road, Georgetown, Texas. Master gardeners are usually at work in the vegetable garden on Tuesday and Friday mornings from 8:30 AM to noon, weather permitting. Anyone is welcome to stop by to see the garden or to ask questions of the master gardeners!
Click here for location on Google Maps