This is my first garden and it wasn't ready to plant until now. According to the local planting schedule I missed the planting dates for some of my early crops.
Can I plant late and still get healthy plants? Peas, Spinach, Broccoli, potatoes?
Yes, most likely you can still get a good crop but that depends a lot on the weather. Be sure to use the right variety of seeds (or plants) for your area.
If you are in southern California, peas and broccoli (and possibly spinach) are a winter crop. They should have been planted in October. Harvesting is almost over.
If you are in northern Minnisota, you really have to wait until the frozen soil defrosts.
Don't worry about phases of the moon unless you are an astrologist.
This is out'en Charlie's archive. I only steal from the best.
Late Planting Guide From Seed From an Old Organic Magazine
Frost date is Oct 15 Last frost May 15
Your dates may differ due to your climate
July 4 100 days till Oct 15
Frost tender
85 days Snap Beans by July 25
97 days Corn by July 4
86 days Cucumbers by July 25
110 days Tomatoes by June 25
81 ays Squash by Aug 1
Survive Light Frost
90 days Cauliflower by July 25
84 days Chinese Cabbage by July 25
74 days Beets by Aug 15
113 days Endive by June 25
63 days Kohlrabi by Aug 30
76 days Loose Leaf Lettuce by Aug 1r
96 days Head Lettuce by July 4
70 days Peas by Aug 15
Survive Heavy Frost
99 days Cabbage by July 4
85 days Carrots by July 25
70 days Chard by Aug 15
90 days Collards by July 4
95 days Broccoli by July 4
120 days Brussels Sprouts by June 15
95 days Kale by July 4
42 days Radishes Summer by Sept 5
72 days Radishes Winter by Aug 15
64 days Spinach by Aug 25
51 days Turnips by Sept 15
-- People need to remember that these are average frost dates, for zone
I'm also zone five.
Some years things will be done in around the average date, other years it may go much later. Three years ago we were still harvesting tomatoes aaround thanksgiving time. I had covered a few plants when frost hit the end of october. No frost or freeze until around thnksgiving.
Plants that produce vines can be grown on trellises, fences, and other supports. By growing up instead of out you concentrate much more production into each square foot of garden. Crops grown off the ground also tend to be healthier because they are less likely to contract fungus infections or soil-borne leaf diseases.
The list below shows some of the most popular vegetables suited to this technique.
Vegetables Suited to Vertical Gardening
Tomatoes. Choose indeterminate varieties, which continue to grow and produce over a long period -- often until felled by frost. Tomatoes can be grown in wire cages or supported by tying to 7-foot-tall wood stakes driven 2 feet into the ground. Cage-grown tomatoes require minimal attention, but are more prone to fungal diseases. Tomatoes grown on stakes benefit from being pruned to a single stem; this means constantly pinching out new branches that arise in the crotch between the main stem and a leaf. * Pole beans. Although they take longer to mature than bush-type beans, pole beans produce over a much longer period. Train pole beans up tall wooden poles or a tepee of sturdy bamboo. * Cucumbers. Vine-type cucumbers (as opposed to the bush varieties) do well on fences and trellises. Vertically grown cukes also tend to be straighter and more uniform than those grown on the ground. * Snap Peas. These super-sweet edible pod peas are among the most productive vegetables in the spring garden. By selecting tall vining varieties (such as the original Sugar Snap pea), you can easily grow them on 5- to 6-foot-tall mesh trellises. Pick carefully to avoid damaging the brittle vines. * Melons and winter squash. These long-season crops require heavy-duty support if you choose to grow them vertically. Larger varieties may even need slings made of cloth or cut-up panty hose to support the growing fruit. You'll also need to tie the vines to the support using strips of cloth; avoid string or wire, which can cut into the vines.
Succession Planting and Interplanting
These two techniques will increase the yield of your garden, and they may lengthen a particular vegetable's harvest. Succession planting means replacing a finished crop with a new crop, or planting a single crop in small amounts over an extended period. Interplanting means planting a fast-maturing vegetable in the spaces between slower-maturing vegetables, or growing a low variety under a tall variety.
The information below explains each technique in detail.
Succession Planting
Succession planting takes two forms. First, you can replace a spring crop with a summer crop. For example, after the peas are fully harvested, you can pull out the vines and plant cucumbers in their place. The key to success of this system is to have a new batch of seeds or seedlings ready to go when the first crop is done. This system works best when you are starting with vegetables that do well in cool weather, but not so well in summer's heat. In addition to peas, you can use this technique with lettuce, spinach, and radishes.
The second form of succession planting addresses the fact that some vegetables produce only for a limited time. Bush beans, for example, should be planted every two weeks to ensure a continuing supply. If you want to have three crops, plant one-third of the bed every two weeks. Other crops that benefit from this type of succession planting include corn, carrots, radishes, and heading lettuce.
A related technique is to plant several varieties with different maturities. For example, you might plant an early-maturing tomato like 'Early Girl' at the same time as a main season beefsteak variety. Corn is another vegetable that comes in early, mid-season, and late-maturing varieties.
Interplanting
This technique takes advantage of the fact that some vegetables grow quickly, while others take their time. For example, if you plant carrots and radishes together, you can harvest the radishes in about 30 days, when the carrots will still be quite small. Another option is to combine a vertical vegetable (like tomatoes)with a low-growing crop (like melons).
Here are some interplanting combinations that work well.
*
Grow sprawling melons and squash under stake-grown tomatoes. *
Surround corn with lettuce or peas with radishes. *
Combine quick and slow vegetables like lettuce with tomatoes, beets with pole beans, spinach with winter squash, leeks with sweet potatoes, and radishes with sweet corn.
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What to Plant How Many Plants Yield
1 bed potatoes 92 plants 145 pounds 10 = 15.5 lbs
1 bed beans (bush) 180 plants 68 pounds 20 = 7.5 lbs
1 bed peas (bush) 362 plants 90 pounds 12 = 3 lbs
1/2 bed broccoli 26 plants 14 pounds
1/2 bed cauliflower 26 plants 75 pounds
1/2 bed lettuce (head) 26 plants 56 pounds
1/2 bed cabbage 26 plants 70 pounds
1 bed sweet corn 92 plants 92 ears
1 bed zucchini 20 plants 120 pounds 6 = 36 lbs
1 bed banana squash 20 plants 120 pounds
1 bed cantaloupes 26 plants 182 pounds
1 bed watermelons 20 plants 182 pounds
1 bed tomatoes 26 plants 156 pounds 16 = 96 lbs
Here's what can be planted later in the fall for a second harvest. What to Plant How Many Plants Yield 1 bed potatoes 92 plants 145 pounds
1 bed beans (bush) 180 plants 68 pounds
1 bed peas (bush) 362 plants 90 pounds
1/2 bed broccoli 26 plants 14 pounds
1/2 bed cauliflower 26 plants 75 pounds
1/2 bed lettuce (head) 26 plants 56 pounds
1/2 bed cabbage 26 plants 70 pounds
1 bed sweet corn 92 plants 92 ears
To harvest two crops with the assortment of foods listed above in one season, it is important to transplant well-grown potted plants in the beds.
Shoot....much as I appreciates gettin' strokes and credit fer summit worthwhile, I gotta 'fess up to gettin' this chart from our own Bill W, Keeper of All Sorts of Arcane and Not-So-Arcane Knowledge, but I do sorta like bein'g referred to as one o' the best. ;-)
I'm behind on my posting and will be back later, I hope, but the weather and the solunar tables look most excellant for goin' out and wettin' a line in the morning, and I be a roundin' up my gear, which, believe it or not, was properly stored last fall! I awoke from my afternoon snoozy, dreamin' of fishin'. Lovey and all are mightily desirous of some fresh crappie and/or walleye and/or catfishies.....gonna have to see of old Charlie still has it.
Boy howdy... gonna brew me a thermos of strong java, a bacon, egg and sprout sammie, grab a pouch of Redman and a cigar and go set a couple trotlines with some rotten shrimp from last year and then try and jig me up some crappies !!!!!
I'll be thinking of ya', old trout, as the sun is warming me back and few sounds of civilization intrude upon me reverie.
"Because children are particularly sensitive to some contaminants, DHSS makes special recommendations for sensitive populations, which include pregnant women, women of childbearing age, nursing mothers and children under 13 years old. Other recommendations are made for everyone. To minimize the amount of contaminants in fish you eat, DHSS recommends that you fillet your fish, remove the skin and trim away fatty portions. The meal advice in the summary table is based on this preparation technique. Generally, DHSS recommends eating smaller, legal size fish that have not lived as long and have not had time to accumulate as much contaminants in their bodies. The complete Fish Advisory provides further details on specific contaminants and on cleaning, cooking and other preparation techniques to minimize contaminants."
Worse day fishing is better than a good day at work.
I select my fishin' holes based upon observation: ie: surrounding acres of runoff from whatever sources. Pasture influx to fishin' hole is a good thing, depending uponst animals utiliziing pasture and pond.. Spring fed and only timber runoff, good thing. Crop runoff is a badthing. River fishin', which much data is based upon, is a bad thing. I no longer river fish.
I'm fishing a seventy-acre "pond" that has no crop runoff. Somehow the State financed a watershed and catchment that included no toxic runoff! Somebody fscked up, eh?
Ya' ever investygate farm raised fishies and the effing s**te that they contain? Farmed salmon......yikes!!!! Farmed shrimp? Farmed tilapia???? Yickkkkkkkkkk!
Amen, bruddha!
Charlie
"Carpe Diem" does not mean "fish of the day." ~ Author Unknown
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