Starting a Successful Vegetable Garden Kent Phillips kent.a.phillps@gmail.com You can edit your own title, sub title, author and email.

College of Agriculture and Natural Resources

Grow It Eat It A new campaign brought to you by Maryland Master Gardeners and the Home and Garden Information Center (HGIC) Goals: teach people how to grow food increase the number of Maryland food gardeners create a network of food gardeners that learn and share best practices The HGIC is our partner in this. They add new information every day on the GE web site and answer questions by phone and e-mail. All of our contact information is on the next to last slide I’ll show you and on the hand-outs you received. We can also help you learn to grow fruit and herbs, but this class will be on vegetables with an emphasis on in ground beds.

We teach a common-sense, ecological approach Rely on locally available materials and resources Feed the soil (with organic matter) to increase garden productivity Maximize biological and genetic diversity to strengthen your garden eco-system Develop a sustainable garden Rocks from your yard can form the sides of a raised bed; leaves from neighborhood trees can be shredded and added to the garden to improve soil quality and plant growth. Don’t buy bagged manure or soil amendments from out west when there are locally available sources. Feed the soil and the soil will feed the plants. Adding organic matter is one of the most important things you can do as a gardener. OM improves the structure of the soil so that it’s easier to work with, holds water and nutrients and improves root growth. 3.Diversity is another key to success. Different types of organic matter added to the soil will increase the diversity of critters in the soil. This ultimately benefits plant growth. What is a Sustainable Garden: Sustains itself through reliance on inherent resources; mimics natural eco-system. Needs a minimum of purchased “inputs” and relies on locally-available materials. It’s not sustainable to buy compost or chicken manure from 5 states away when we have plenty in Maryland. Builds soil health (feeding the soil food web and recycling nutrients). Also, keep the soil covered (when you are not tilling or turning) with plants, mulch, cover crop, leaves, etc. Increases biological diversity above and below ground- plants, insects, microbial life Does not pollute; strengthens the community eco-system. Requires knowledge, planning, and timing. There is no need to use chemical insecticides, herbicides, or fungicides in a vegetable garden. What is Organic Gardening: no chemical fertilizer or pesticide. No rules (list of allowed and not allowed materials) for gardeners- just for farmers who are part of the National Organic Program. More info on organic gardening and farming and a list of certified organic farmers in MD is on the GE web site. Organic doesn’t mean simply substituting purchased organic pesticides and fertilizers for synthetic products.

Why do you want to grow vegetables? Flavor, freshness, pesticide-free Save money; learn new skills Health benefits exercise, nutrition, phytochemicals Connection to nature and family traditions Introduce your children to gardening v Can I really save money Yes, but have you heard the one about the $100 tomato? Only buy what you really need; be resourceful A small garden with 48 sq. ft. of growing space should produce $175-300 of fresh produce

What type of vegetable garden? In-ground- convert turfgrass to vegetables Containers- on back step, deck, or balcony or along driveway Edible landscape intersperse vegetables into ornamental beds Combination of any of the first three There is a way for everyone to grow something to eat. There is one type of garden you won’t find in Maryland: a no-work vegetable garden. It takes time- especially the first year when you are breaking new ground and getting established. Timing is everything. If you have a good plan and give your garden a little time and attention each day you can produce a lot of food.

Vegetable crops 5-10 plant families may be represented in the average garden (almost all of our vegetable crops are non-native- not even from North America!) Most are annuals with a life cycle somewhere between 25 days (radish, baby greens) to 110 days (big pumpkins.) Require good growing conditions to produce high yields. Can you name a native vegetable? Jerusalem artichoke (a relative of sunflowers) is about it- and it originated on the American Plains! Native fruits are a different story: blueberry, blackberry, raspberry, crabapple, elderberry, fox grape (Vitis labrusca) Here you can introduce various schemes for classification- by plant families; cool-season and warm-season; annuals, biennials, perennials; crops that are grown for leaves, fruits, roots, stems or combinations thereof, etc.

7 good crops for starters… Tomato- productive and popular Pepper- slow-growing but worth the wait Cucumber- make them climb to save space Summer squash- feed the neighborhood! Bush bean- succession plant Lettuce- grow best March-June and Sept.-Nov. Leafy greens- mustard, kale, collards Refer to revised HG #70 “Recommended Cultivars…” fact sheet for list of cultivars AND to see which crops do well in containers and less than full sun.

Ingredients for first year success Make a plan Good, deep soil; add organic matter Plants need nutrients, water, and sunlight Garden a little every day Weeds compete so pull them Observe and take notes ENJOY! This is especially important for vegetable crops because they are mostly annuals and mostly relatively shallow-rooted. For maximum growth, yield, and eating quality, they must be grown at a rapid pace with no major checks in growth. Providing water and nutrients when needed by plants is also very critical. Other ingredients for success-fresh seed/health transplants; planting and harvesting at the correct time; monitoring for plant and pest problems. MD growing conditions: growing season days- 150 (Garrett Co.) to 225 (Lower Eastern Shore); four distinct seasons; quick changes in weather; wide range of soils- (many urban and suburban soils are greatly changed from native soils.) A wide range of warm and cool season crops can be grown (with planning and care.) 9

Making a plan Good planning will save you time, work, and $ Garden size; how big?- consider time, space, mouths to feed, motivation Always best to start small What should I grow – be successful Easy crops What your family will eat Do you want to ensure a steady supply of salad greens? Are you psyched about the idea of having enough cucumbers for pickling? Are you most interested in tomatoes and basil for great Italian dishes? Does your family go bonkers for fresh green beans (you’ll want to plant some every 2-3 weeks from mid-May through July?)

Sample 8 ft. X 8 ft. garden Two raised beds- 8 ft. X 3 ft. with a 2 ft. path in the middle Time: late May row of bush beans 1 squash plant 3 tomato plants 3 pepper plants Swiss chard and kale leaf lettuce 8 ft. This garden can produce: 30 lbs. of tomatoes; 8 lbs. of snap beans (planted twice); 8 lbs. of cukes; 3 lbs. of squash; 5 lbs. of pepper; 10 lbs. of lettuce (planted twice); 15 lbs. of leafy greens (planted twice). These are moderate yields. In early April, these beds could have been planted in lettuces, spinach, other salad greens, radishes or other cool season crops. As those crop are finished or as transplants are ready, just clear out a small area and plant. While these beds are three feet apart, there is not uniform size. You should be able to reach the center of your bed from either side. Remember, you don’t want to compress the soil by walking on it. If you were starting a new garden of this size, you should add three to six inches of organic material to the beds. This equates to 12 to 24 cubic feet or 6 to 12 two cubic foot bags. My suggestion for organic material would be Leafgrow which is a local product made up of Montgomery county leaves and grass clippings. This product is available in bulk at many local outlets. 2 cuke plants 3 ft.

Picking a site Level ground; close to water source. Southern exposure; tallest plants on North side. Protection from critters. Part of you gardening plan should be picking a level site. If your site isn’t level, you can terrace it (as shown here) to create level planting surface. And as the last side showed, you also need to be concerned with the direction you garden faces; distance and direction from trees, hills, and buildings; can’t change easily Soil type- texture, structure, fertility, drainage; can always be improved Slope- can be very difficult for planting annual crops; loss of soil, water, and nutrients; terracing recommended Note: tallest crops (tomatoes) are to the North of the pepper plants.

Digging and aerating tools Shovel or spade; mattock/pick axe; garden fork (not a pitch fork). Three good hand tools for creating a garden and working in organic matter.

Soil prep Kill sod and control weeds- Dig up the area by hand or with a tiller Cover area with newspaper or cardboard, and cover with leaves and/or compost Image on left is just a cross-section of a pretty decent soil that is in sod, prior to making a vegetable garden. Notice the earthworm and small channels made by roots and small invertebrates moving through the soil. Image on right taken after the gardener used a mattock and spade to turn the sod. Notice that soil slices are laying sideways. Organic matter was then added and chopped into the soil creating a great vegetable bed. The thing to avoid is inverting the soil slices so that the subsoil is on top. There is no need to use glyphosate or other total vegetation killers. Roto-tiller can be very good tool for large garden if used properly. Benefits of a roto-tiller: great for turning under cover crops, residues, and manure; makes soil loose and weed-free for planting; can disrupt pest populations in the soil. Potential problems: damaged soil structure if you till wet soil, soil compaction if machine is over-used; fresh tilled soil is more erodable; “burns up” organic matter if over-used (this means that excessive tilling is bringing a lot of air into the soil which accelerates the degradation of organic matter and release of carbon dioxide). One should not need to rototill more than a few times each growing season. Tilling/turning test: you know the soil is dry enough to “work” if you pick up a handful and squeeze it and then bounce it up and down in your hand. If it does not fall apart do not till. No-till gardening. The idea is to maintain biomass on soil surface at all times. This means planting cover crops, planting vegetable crops through cover crops, and using organic mulches. It is the best way to manage soils but takes some thought and experimentation.

Sheet compost your way to a vegetable garden Sheet composting (a.k.a. “lasagna bed” gardening) is getting popular, but it takes a couple of months. This involves laying down thick layers of cardboard (unwaxed)/newspaper/leaves/compost and other organic materials. If you start the process in Sept.- Nov. the pile of materials will be broken down by spring. Some gardeners don’t till the compost in. They plant directly into the new bed. If you start the sod-killing process in spring it’s best to use newspaper (the cardboard may not have time to break down completely prior to planting. The breakdown of all materials is dependent on soil and air temperature, moisture, etc.

You need “good soil” Well-drained Friable- deep, crumbly; allows for maximum root growth. Regular additions of organic matter will improve soil structure and create a reservoir of slow-release nutrients. Test your soil; 6.0-6.8 is preferred range for soil pH. Urban/suburban soils are often low quality soils Deep, rich soil that allows for un-impeded growth is critical. (Soils with well-formed crumbs have high number of large and small pore spaces to allow for good movement of roots, water, air, and soil critters.) Note that adding lots of manure can drive up soil pH, so check it every 3 years. All gardeners should have their soil tested for lead levels prior to garden establishment. U. of Mass has $9 complete soil test, including lead test. All info on HGIC website and in Soil Testing Lab fact sheet. Soil testing will give you a pH reading (how “sweet”- pH above 7.0 or “sour”- pH below 7.0). A soil in the 6.0-6.8 range will give you the greatest nutrient availability. A basic soil test also tells you nutrient levels for N, P, K, Ca, Mg, and S.

Ways to add organic matter Farmyard manure Compost/Leafgrow Shredded leaves and grass clippings Organic mulches Cover crops Large amounts of organic matter may be needed for several years. Thereafter, 1 in. of compost will help maintain high yields. Food scraps can be buried in trenches in your garden and allowed to decompose. Nutrients are then available in the rootzone. Plant roots are very important for improving soil structure. Cut plants off at ground level with pruners or loppers. Compost the tops and leave the root system to decompose in situ. However, don’t compost diseased plants such as tomatoes infected with late blight. University of Conn. Research shows that continuous applications of compost builds up a reservoir of slowly available N that is sufficient to produce veg. crops w/out supplemental fertilizers. Animal manure: Should be thoroughly composted or well-decomposed (> 6 months); till manures under in fall when possible; wash all produce thoroughly after harvest; never use pet manures in the vegetable garden.

Raised beds some advantages… Warm up quickly in spring. Drain well; less compaction and erosion. Increase available rooting area. Can produce greater food production per square foot. and some disadvantages… Up-front labor and potentially expense. Dry out quickly if weather is hot and dry. Don’t work on slopes, unless terraced. Idea is not to walk on the beds. This prevents unnecessary compaction. With greater rooting volume of soil one should have increased plant growth and the capacity to move plants a little more closely together. Instead of watering and fertilizing foot paths and un-used portions of the garden, we focus all inputs on the growing areas.

Raised bed basics 2-4 ft. wide; any length; above grade; can be unbordered (soil is mounded) or bordered with wood, stone, brick, etc. Instant raised bed can be made by purchasing soil/compost mix and adding it to selected sight Talk about treated lumber. CCA treated lumber (chromated-copper arsenate) no longer being produced or sold. For folks that have CCA raised beds- they can plant food crops 6 in. from edges. No one really knows the level of risk. So many variables. New ACQ lumber has no arsenic but has more copper than CCA lumber had. US EPA is wishy-washy on the use of ACQ lumber in food gardens. On right is an “instant raised bed”. There are companies selling mixtures of topsoil and compost. Always examine the material prior to purchase.

You can intensively plan your raised beds Correct spacing for big onions Okra plants are too tight The onion bulbs grew large because they were well-tended and had plenty of room between plants. The okra will never make much fruit because the plants are way too close. Okra plants should be 12-18 inches apart. Check seed packets for plant and row spacing.

Interplant to maximize production purslane is edible! Two broccoli plants spaced 2 or 3 ft. apart with anise hyssop, lettuces, and cosmos planted between and around. Fast growing, shade tolerant plants can be grown and harvested without interfering with the broccoli. This can also be done with tomato, pepper, eggplant.

Keep the harvest coming with succession planting Requires planning Transplants fill the space quickly Special attention to water and nutrient needs Floating row cover for protection from pests and excessive heat This is where a lot of people give up. It’s hot, they are worn out and several crops were just harvested for the last time and ripped out. What now? If you have a plan and the will, you can make use of every sq. ft. from March-Nov. If not, at least plant a cover crop to build and protect the soil . Spring and fall - cool season crops Summer - warm season crops

Get the most from every square foot: succession planting examples Garlic (11/1)-cucumbers (7/1)-oats/clover (9/20) Peas/favas (3/1)-squash (6/1)-kale (9/1) Lettuce (3/20)-green beans (5/15)-broccoli (8/1) Radish (3/1)-Asian greens (4/15)-eggplant (6/1)-rye (9/15) Cucumber (4/15)- green bean (7/1)-spinach (9/20) Each bullet represents one space- one bit of ground that can have three crops per year. Spring: Sow seed as soon as the ground can be worked; set out transplants of vegetables that are cold hardy. Summer: Plant warm season crops as soon as the danger of frost has passed (melon, eggplant, pepper planted last); succession plant squash, bean, cucumber. Fall: Starting in late July (sowing broccoli seed); the same crops grown in early spring (add in an extra 10-14 days due to decreasing light and temp.) Winter: Cover crops or over-wintered spinach, arugula, mach, etc.

Grow vertically Increase yields per sq. ft. Fewer fruit problems; easier to pick, water, and spray. Adds complex texture to garden; enhances ecosystem (shading, micro-climates.) You can surround squash plants with fencing to keep them more upright and reduce sprawl. Peppers and eggplant benefit from staking

Whiskey barrel- 1-2 plant capacity Container vegetables 8 cu. ft. of growing media Whiskey barrel- 1-2 plant capacity In general, the larger the plant, the larger the container should be. The foam box on the right is an example of a recycled container Containers should be filled with soilless mix such as BX promix or a combination of compost and soil. If you use a soilless mix you will need to provide nutrients throughout the year,. Osmocote is one such slow release fertilize that can be added at the of filling the container

EarthBox- “self-watering” container In general, the larger the plant, the larger the container should be. The foam box on the right is an example of a recycled container Containers should be filled with soilless mix such as BX promix or a combination of compost and soil. If you use a soilless mix you will need to provide nutrients throughout the year,. Osmocote is one such slow release fertilize that can be added at the of filling the container

Univ. of MD Salad Table and Salad Box Detailed info on web site. Low-cost, easy to find materials (about $35); construction with hand tools. Portable and productive. Tables are 30 in. X 58 in. and are made from 2X4s. Can be built to any set of dimensions and height desired. Some gardeners have put casters on these tables. Others have added a cold frame lid to protect plants in early spring and late fall.

Resources Home and Garden Information Center (HGIC) http://www.extension.umd.edu/hgic Click on “Information Library” and “Publications” Grow-It-Eat-It website http://www.extension.umd.edu/growit Click on “Vegetables”, “Common Vegetable Problems” and “Insect Pests” YouTube - Search subject http://www.youtube.com/UMDHGIC

This program was brought to you by Maryland Master Gardener Program Howard County University of Maryland Extension Remember to put in the correct county!