Weekly Gardening Outlook

This will be a continuing series. Each Monday we will look ahead at the coming week in gardening for the Northwest Arkansas area.

It has been so hot and dry that even the sun loving cucumbers are moving into the shade!  Amazingly, they were able to span the two foot gap between the top of our eight foot tall trellis and the branch of a neighboring silver maple.  We will leave them alone for now as they aren't hurting anything.

Spaghetti Squash / Squash Vine Borer Update:

The vines grew about a foot in the last week.  They are thriving in this hot weather.  The package says they take 100 days from seed to harvest.  We are giving them about 107 days unless we have an early frost.  Actual days to maturity is variable depending on growing conditions (temperature, sun exposure, moisture, etc.).  We feel good about getting a harvest from these late planted vines.  We'll continue to keep you updated.

Things to be on the lookout for:

Leafhoppers come in a variety of colors and are usually very brightly colored as seen here on a sweet potato vine.  Adults are about 3/8" long and jump away with a strong, quick motion when disturbed.  They suck juice from leaves and can cause leaf spots and wilting.  Of more concern is their ability to transmit viral diseases.  We've always had a few around the garden without a problem, but they can build up to point where they need to be treated for.  If they do, handpicking or vacuuming is difficult due to their quickness.  Use insecticidal soap or diatomaceous earth, but as always treat late in the day and do not get it on flowers to avoid killing bees. 

Weather outlook:
-Low 90s all week, with a very slight chance of rain
-Ten day forecast

What's being harvested:
-Peppers

-Watermelons

-Chard 

-Tomatoes
-Cucumbers
-Celeriac leaves, basil, mint, and other herbs

Saving Seeds (Spring Radishes)

Saving seeds is simple for some plants and somewhat complex for others.  In this post, we focus on spring radish seeds which are quite simple to save.  We will look at more complex seed-saving processes for other crops in future posts.

Why save seeds?  Saving seeds is free to do and quite easy for most plants.  Not doing it is throwing money out the window.  More importantly, saving seeds allows you to select the best of the best plants each and every year.  Over the years, this will develop a genetic line that is adapted to your area and it's specific growing conditions.  Certain traits can be selected, such as: early production, disease resitance, pest resistance, flavor, color, texture, etc.  Whatever traits you most cherish can be enhanced through seed saving.

Some quick terminology: 

Variety - plants of the same species, but with different traits.

Open pollinated plants - produce offspring that are identical to the parents.

Hybrids - a cross of two different varieties.  Hybrid offspring will not be identical to the parents.

Cross pollination - pollen from one plant fertilizing another.

Saving Spring Radish Seeds:

Start with one open pollinated variety.  It is very important to only have one variety flowering at any one time to avoid cross pollination between varieties resulting in hybrid seeds.  We prefer Pink Beauty for it's thin skin and mild flavor.  Plant them in the early spring 4 to 6 weeks before the last frost (mid-March in Northwest Arkansas).

Allow 5 to 10 of the best radishes to go to seed.  They will send up a tall, central stalk with pale flowers.  Butterflies LOVE these flowers.

The flowers will form green seed pods.  Leave the plants in place until these pods have turned brown and dried completely.

Once they have dried, pull the plant and pluck off the seed pods.

With your fingers, split these pods to remove the small, brown seeds.

Label and store them in a cool, dry place until next year.

Further Reading:

Here's an excellent, free resource for saving seeds of the most popular crops.

Seed Savers Exchange's forums are a great place to get ideas and ask questions.

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Weekly Gardening Outlook

This will be a continuing series. Each Monday we will look ahead at the coming week in gardening for the Northwest Arkansas area.

    Fresh from our garden salsa ingredients, ready to be mixed

We are now in the dog days of summer.  The weathermen are calling for temperatures in the upper 90s all week.  Keep a close eye on your soil moisture and water as necessary.  Water deeply when the soil is dry 3" from the surface.  

Spaghetti Squash / Squash Vine Borer Update:

Planted in a customer's garden on July 1st, these spaghetti squash vines are now about 3 feet long and remain untouched by the squash vine borer.  The late planting date was done to avoid the egg laying period for this dreaded pest and that has been a success.  Now the question remains, will the vines have enough time to produce fruit before the first killing frost hits in the middle of October.  We'll keep you updated.

Things to be on the lookout for:

HEAT.  The garden isn't producing at it's peak right now due to this excessive heat and that is normal.  Like us gardeners, most of our plantings are just trying to make it to the cooler days and nights ahead.  There isn't much to do other than wait it out and keep the plants from drying out too much.  There will be another flush of produce when the days drop back into the 80s.

Weather outlook:
-Mid to upper 90s all week, with a very slight chance of rain
-Ten day forecast

What's being harvested:
-Peppers

-Watermelons

-Chard 

-Tomatoes (the heat is curtailing production, but it will bounce back)
-Cucumbers
-Celeriac leaves, basil, mint, and other herbs

Cucumbers

Cucumbers are a very space efficient crop, growing readily on a trellis and giving large numbers of fruits per plant.  Vines can reach 12-14' long. Four plants of a standard straight eight type cucumber will easily yield a fruit a day and even more in optimal conditions. 


Planting:

Sow seeds in a sunny location after all danger of frost has passed (early May in Northwest Arkansas).  In square foot gardening , we've found that one plant per square foot provides plenty of production and avoids overcrowding.  Seeds don't germinate 100% of the time.  To increase the odds of a seedling in each spot, sow two seeds in each hole.  Keep well watered until they come up (about a week).  Using scissors, thin the seedlings to one plant per hole by cutting the smallest plant off at its base.

Tips and Tricks:

• Save some money and buy cucumber seed rather than seedlings.  Save unused seeds in a ziptop bag and keep them in a cool, dark place until next year.
• If the soil in your garden is clay based and clumpy, create a pocket of finished compost or peat in which to plant the seeds.  This will hold moisture around the seed and give it a loose medium to push through as it emerges. 
• To reduce fungal disease and maximize space efficiency, provide the cucumbers with a trellis to grow on.  Half of a cattle panel cost $8.00 and gives a solid 8' tall trellis.  
• At the first sign of powdery mildew or downy mildew, treat with Serenade.
• The only other serious problem that we've run into is bacterial wilt.  Once a vine has this disease, there is no treatment.  It is transmitted by cucumber beetles.  Inspect the vines often and if these beetles are found, treat with neem oil.  
• It is normal for cucumbers to have small spines on them.  Run your hand up and down them under cold running water to remove.

Putting Up the Harvest:

• We prefer to eat these fresh.  They store best at room temperature.  We've found that they dehydrate somewhat after several days in the refrigerator.
• They can obviously be pickled.  We haven't yet made pickles, but we suggest following direct instructions from a good pickling book in your first attempt.  You will want to grow a variety of cucumber that is bred to have a size and texture especially for pickling.  An example is Snow's Fancy Pickling.
• Another option is chutney, which can be canned.  As always, we suggest following canning instructions from the ball blue book.

Weekly Gardening Outlook

This will be a continuing series. Each Monday we will look ahead at the coming week in gardening for the Northwest Arkansas area.

HEAT ADVISORY until Thursday evening.  The weathermen are calling for temperatures at or above 100 degrees for the next three days.  During this time check your soil moisture every day and water as necessary.  Water deeply when the soil is dry 3" from the surface.  Depending on the amount of clay and organic matter in your soil, daily watering may be needed. 

Serenade / Blueberry Bush Update:

        

We continue to be impressed by the turn around our blueberry bushes are making after suffering from a pretty serious case of leaf spot.  Serenade is proving to be a very good organic fungicide.  

Things to be on the lookout for:

Insects aren't the only critters that want to eat the fruits of our labor.  This week we will look at how to control some of the larger garden pests.

Moles:  These pests will devour tender plant roots, causing promising young plants to wilt and die for no apparent reason.  If you are using raised beds like we are, putting a simple layer of 1/2" screen on the bottom of the beds during construction will eliminate the problem.  If not, use traps to thin the population.  This will not get rid of all of them, but it will reduce it.

Birds:  Whether it's cardinals chomping on just ripe strawberries or blue jays leaving tomatoes in tatters, these aerial bandits can make gardeners pull their hair out.  The most effective (and most expensive and troublesome) method of protecting your crops from birds is to cover them with bird netting.  Build some sort of a frame to keep the netting off of the plants.  Anchor the netting to the ground and ensure that there aren't any gaps.  Birds are very smart and will find any hole left in this netting.  Another option is hanging ball-shaped Christmas ornaments that are colored like the produce being protected.  An example is hanging red balls on a tomato plant.  They will peck the balls and learn that there isn't anything good to eat here.  Do this 2 weeks before the produce is ripe to give them time to learn.  Finally, and maybe the most fun option, is the motion-activated sprinkler.  Set this up in the garden and it will spray anything that moves.  No animal likes being hosed down and they will seek easier pickings.

Rats and Squirrels:  They will attack a garden from every angle.  From following along a row digging newly sprouted seeds to stealing corn right off of the stalk, they can do it all.  A midsized, active dog around the garden will keep them at bay.  Removing habitat such as brush (rats) or trees (squirrels) around the garden will help.  Trapping will reduce the population.  The motion-activated sprinkler is an option as well.

Rabbits:  A 18" tall fence surrounding the garden will exclude them from your garden.

Cats and Dogs:  Dogs can be excluded with a fence.  Cats are more difficult.  Like with squirrels, keeping a mid-sized, active dog around the perimeter will keep cats away.  If fencing isn't an option, try the motion-activated sprinkler.

Deer:  An 8' tall fence will absolutely keep them out.  A cheaper alternative is a 3 foot high electric fence around the garden.  A few shocks on the nose and they will look for a different food source.  This has worked well for us.  The motion-activated sprinkler may also be an option.

Weather outlook:
-Over 100 early in the week, cooling to the low 90's late in the week with a chance of rain
-Ten day forecast

What's being harvested:
-Green beans

-Peppers (Really loaded down with new peppers)

-Watermelons

-Chard (the kale's taste has gotten too sharp with this hot weather)

-Tomatoes (Picking several pounds a day)
-Cucumbers (Getting several a day)
-Celeriac leaves, basil, mint, and other herbs (all going strong)

Gardening Resources (Audio)

For you gardeners on the go, we thought we'd share with you three of our favorite gardening podcasts.  Listen to these every week and you will be well on your way to being a better gardener.  If you don't have an MP3 player, you can listen to all of these on your computer.

Who do you listen to?  We'd love to hear your suggestions in the comments section at the end of the post.




The Self-Sufficient Gardener

Jason commented on our blog recently and that gave us the idea of sharing some of our favorite gardening resources.  His 20-30 minute podcast comes out every week or so and is a great source of information.  He shows how to have a great garden using what you have on hand without spending a fortune.

iTunes link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-self-sufficient-gardener/id336488749

Direct feed link: http://www.podfeed.net/podcast/The+Self-Sufficient+Gardener/20483


You Bet Your Garden

Mike is the former editor of Organic Gardener magazine and his show airs on radio stations around the US.  His 50 minute show comes out weekly and is the best gardening podcast out there.

iTunes link:  http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/whyys-you-bet-your-garden/id295432673

Website:  http://whyy.org/91FM/ybyg/


Gardening with GLT's Dean of Green

Don Schmidt is a professor at the University of Illinois.  In his weekly NPR show, he spends 10 minutes answering one listener's question from his mail.  It's not always about edible plants, but it is an entertaining and informative show.

iTunes link:  http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/gardening-glts-dean-green/id203017732

Direct feed link:  http://www.wglt.org/podcasts/Dean_of_Green.xml

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