Summer Gardening Tips

PLANT EXTINCTION

We don’t realize the importance of seed saving. Just like animals, plants can become extinct. It is important to not only be active in nature but to plant heirloom vegetables as well. It is also helpful to use many native plants on your property.

Basic Gardening Tips

• Avoid getting leaves wet during irrigation.

• If you have to water plants with a sprinkler, do it early in the day so that the leaves have time to dry. This will help with fungus problems.

• Always water plants well when transplanting.

• Most plants need 1 inch of water a week. Here are two ways to make sure this happens:

1. Bury one gallon plastic containers between plants as you are planting. Make sure to poke holes in the bottom of the plastic jug to allow the water to seep out. Leave just an inch or two of the jug showing. This method saves water, provides deep watering and helps form a good root system.  
2. If you are using sprinklers for watering, monitor the amount of water the plants are receiving by placing an empty tuna can in the middle of the garden while the sprinkler is active. When the can is full, an inch of water has been delivered.

• Use soaker hoses. Soaker hoses are most efficient if used in lengths of 200 feet or less. By burying the hose, water will go right to the roots.

• Mulching will deter weeds, warm the soil, and retain moisture. It also prevents water splash up which can cause disease such as early blight, powdery mildew, and other diseases.

• Rotating crops every two to three years helps prevent disease.

• When setting out tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, squashes and other tender plants it is advised to surround the stem with a cardboard collar to avoid worm damage. This may not be necessary if you are growing in raised beds.  

• Plant additional seeds to take into consideration insect damage and to produce the healthiest plants.

• Soil temperature should be at least 60 degrees for planting cold-sensitive crops and for mulching. This is usually when night time temperatures are consistently 55 degrees.

Growing Organically

To grow organic means to keep a watchful eye on plants, be creative about finding methods that work, and to spend time picking insects off of the plants. It is also useful to learn which insects are beneficial. Some insects cause no harm while others are detrimental and must be eradicated before they destroy your crops. One insect which is harmful is squash vine borers.

Squash Vine Borers

From about the middle of June to the end of July is the time that squash vine borers are active. To protect your plants there are many things that can be done. The basic idea is to surround plants with something over which a soft bodied worm will not like to crawl. Try these suggestions to see which one works best for you.

• One method is to wrap aluminum foil around the plant stem. Be sure that some of the foil is below ground level. If you have a plant that trails, you will have to wrap each part of the plant that touches the ground.

• Dust ashes or hot pepper powder (any type) around the plant stem. Repeat after each rain fall.

• Dust Diatomaceous Earth around the stem. Repeat after each rain.
  (Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diatomaceous_earth)

• Egg shells. Save them all year. Keep them in the garage, etc. and cover them to prevent odor leakage. When the time comes for use, crush the shells in a blender till they are a powder. Dust it around the plants.

• Some people have had luck using sandpaper.