Growing a Pizza Garden Kent Phillips

Why do we want to grow a Pizza Garden Flavor, freshness, pesticide-free Health benefits exercise, nutrition, phytochemicals Connection with the food you eat Introduce you to gardening v

We teach a common-sense, ecological approach Rely on locally available materials and resources- (rocks, leaves, animal manure). Feed the soil (with organic matter) to increase garden productivity. Maximize biological and genetic diversity to strengthen your garden eco-system. – Example: Plant an assortment of annual flowers and herbs to attract and feed beneficial insects.

Simple Steps Planning Soil Planting and growing Sustaining

Planning A good plan saves time, work, and $ Location – Full sun is best, minimum is 8 hours/day Miller Library Pizza Garden – Garden is 8 feet in diameter – It has six sections – It is a raised bed

Miller Pizza Garden

Your Pizza Garden It doesn’t have to be round It can be square or rectangular Tall plants on north or west side TomatoesTomatoes Peppers & Basil Onions & Galic Oregano 3 ft. 8 ft.

Soil test Test you soil before adding fertilizer or amendments. click on “Information Library”, “Publications” and “Vegetable, Fruit and Herb Gardening” for HGIC Pub 110 on soil tests – Tests for pH+, heavy metals, macro and micro nutrients N, P, K Ca, Mg, etc. Follow the testing labs recommendations for nutrients and pH+

Pizza Garden Soil Test

Amendments added to soil Rock Phosphate for phosporus Sulfur to acidify the soil Soybean meal for nitrogen

SOIL Soil is a living organism – feed it Improving soil’s fertility is critical if you want a successful pizza garden Improve your soil quality by adding six inches of organic matter We have done this by adding Leafgro to the pizza garden

Soil preparation for your Pizza Garden Kill sod and control weeds – Cover area with newspaper or cardboard, and cover with leaves, and compost OR – Dig up the area by hand or with a tiller

Alternative soil preparation Slicing off sod Turning soil Loosening subsoil

Sheet compost your way to a vegetable garden

Raised beds some advantages… Warm up quickly in spring. Drain well; less compaction and erosion. Increase available rooting area. Greater food production per square foot. and some disadvantages… Up-front labor and expense. Dry out quickly if weather is hot and dry. Don’t work on slopes, unless terraced.

What do you like on your pizza Tomatoes Peppers Broccoli Spinach Garlic Onions Oregano Basil

Pizza Garden planting schedules Garlic (late October thru early November) Onions (Mid March for sets, late March for plants) Oregano (Mid March) Tomatoes, peppers and basil (Mid May) – Check last frost date for your area. On May 12, you will be planting tomatoes, peppers and basil

Weed management Weeds are any plant growing where you don’t want it. Best control methods: – hand-pull – sharp hoe – mulch

Organic mulches Prevent weed growth. Moderate soil temperatures. Conserve soil moisture. Add to soil organic matter. Should be spread after soil warms up. We will use compost from our compost pile Examples: LeafGro, compost, dry grass clippings, newspaper covered with straw, shredded leaves

Caging our tomatoes Increase yields per sq. ft. Fewer fruit problems; easier to pick & water Adds complex texture to garden; enhances ecosystem (shading, micro-climates.)

Enjoy the harvest Home grown summer tomatoes Ripe peppers are delicious Basil, onions, spinach, and oregano

Join the Grow it Eat it Network! What is the Grow It Eat It network. Goals: – teach people how to grow food – increase the number of Howard County food gardeners – create a network of food gardeners who will keep learning and sharing through classes, workshops, events, web site, blog

Resources Home and Garden Information Center (HGIC) – – Grow-It-Eat-It website – Master Gardener state website –

This program was brought to you by Maryland Master Gardener Program Howard County University of Maryland Extension