Beautiful spring. This is a great time of year to dig holes and plant. Plant. Could be vegetables, fruit trees, shade trees, bushes, flowers, grass. Anything that grows in the ground could go in now. As you select a plant for your yard, please choose a plant that is not invasive to the area. Landscaping with native plants promotes diversity for our woodlands. These plants are easier to maintain, as they have the genetics to live in the Middle Tennessee environment.
Some invasives love this environment and take over. They offer nothing to the wildlife. Stay away from planting the Kudzu vine, Purple Loosestrife, Japanese Honeysuckle, Shrub honey suckle, Autumn olive, Privet, Common Privet, climbing euonymous, burning bush, tree of heaven, multiflora rose, vinca, English ivy, lespedeza or crown vetch. This is only a partial list of invasives. Try to remove and destroy whatever invasives you can. If there is a question as to the plant’s invasiveness, check with the nursery people or research it. Do yourself and the wildlife a favor and aim to stay with natives.
Here’s another challenge: can you select the right plant for the right spot? Doing so will make you and the plant happiest. Read the labels. What type of growing conditions does the plant want? How tall does it grow? How wide? Do their watering needs agree with plants already in the area? Select carefully. You’ll be happier.
The summer plants are generally going into the gardens around Mother’s Day. If you started your plants from seed, “harden” your plants to outside conditions before putting them in the ground. Reduce your watering schedule. Allow the seedlings to be subject to greater fluctuations in temperature.
If you decide to buy your seedlings, here is the opportunity to ask your local nursery about their practices and the practices of their suppliers and the products that they carry. Then, of course, you would have to trust your nurseryman. Go with reputable people.
If you planted in the same location before, remember to rotate your crops. Rotation of your crops occurs when you plant a vegetable from a crop group in the different area from one year to the next. Rotation is the first line of defense against pests and diseases, as it minimizes problems from insects attracted to a specific plant group.
A list of crop groups:
Cantaloupe, cucumber, pumpkin, squash and watermelon are in one group.
Group B is comprised of Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, lettuce, mustard, radish, rutabaga, spinach, Swiss chard and turnip.
Eggplant, Irish potatoes, okra, pepper and tomatoes are similar to one another.
Beets, carrots, garlic, shallot and sweet potatoes comprise Group D.
Sweet corn is in its own group.
The final group is comprised of beans, cowpeas and peas.
The area in your garden for annual plants should have a different vegetable each year.
In addition to rotation, intercrop the current plantings. Raising two or more crops in the same area at the same time has several advantages. The growth of each does not interfere with the other; in fact, it often is beneficial. Insects are deterred from interplanted vegetables; they prefer rows of the same crop. Disease spread is also slowed down.
There are several ways to intercrop:
Grow vertically when possible with squash, beans, cucumbers, peas, melons and tomatoes. Large fruits can be supported with mesh slings. Growing upward frees space at the base of the plants for another crop.
Insert narrow leaf vegetables such as onions and leeks between leafy vegetables like kale or lettuce.
Taller, sun-loving plants can extend the growing season of beans, beets, chard, leeks, lettuce, peas, radishes and turnips. The shade from the taller plants will extend the season of the cooler season crops.
Plants that have large structures or leaves provide shelter for vines, such as beans.
Small, fast-growing vegetables like radish and lettuce can be planted near tomatoes and peppers. The tomatoes and peppers will grow large enough to need their space, too, but only after the small ones are finished producing.
Plant corn earlier in the planting season to avoid an abundance of pests, as many pests do more damage when the corn is planted late in the season.
Here is a list of intercropping combinations:
Asparagus – Tomato, parsley and basil
Bush beans – Potato, cucumber and corn
Cabbage (Cole) – Aromatic herbs, celery, beets, onion family, chamomile, spinach and chard
Carrots – Radishes, lettuce, rosemary, onion, sage and tomato
Corn – potato, beans, pumpkin, cucumber and squash
Eggplant – Beans and marigold
Lettuce – Carrots, radish, strawberry and cucumber
Onion – Beets, carrots, lettuce and cole family
Parsley – Tomato and asparagus
Pole beans – Corn and radish
Potato – Beans, corn, cole family, marigolds and horseradish
Pumpkins – Beans, corn and marigold
Radish – Carrots, nasturtiums, lettuce and cucumber
Spinach – Beans
Squash – Nasturtiums, corn and marigold
Tomato – Onion family, nasturtiums, marigold, asparagus, carrots, parsley and cucumber
Turnips – Aromatic herbs, celery, beets, onion family, chamomile, spinach and chard
Before you use any fertilizer, chemical or pesticide, do your research. What do you know about that product? First, read the label. What is its purpose? What do the supporters and detractors say about it? Second, read the directions. More is not better. More can be a killer or a poison. Be responsible for its usage and storage. Thirdly, do you need it or is it routine application? If you use pesticides, it very important that directions be carefully followed, including recognizing the days to harvest that should pass before consumption. Herbicides are not recommended for home gardens.
Remember, you are what you eat. Select wisely.
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Activities at the Lane Agri-Park facility in May:
Fridays, May 3, 10, 17 and 24
Master Food Volunteer Training Program
10 a.m.–4 p.m. The goal is to expand Extension education towards safe food handling, nutrition, food prep and food preservation. 30 hours of training followed by 30 hours of volunteering. $120. Register by calling 615-898-7710.
Saturday, May 4
Growing Vegetables
Linebaugh Library, upstairs boardroom at 9 a.m.. Join this free class taught by Master Gardeners on soil prep, sun and water needs, garden structures, typical and “wow” vegetables. Register by calling 615-893-4131.
Friday, May 10
Opening Day of Rutherford County Farmers Market
7 a.m.–noon
Lane Agri-Park Community Center producer-only market
FREE Classes are held at the Community Center Classroom each day the Farmers Market is open. They start at 9 a.m. and last about one hour.
May 10 – Backyard Chickens
May 14 – 4-H Steam
May 17 – Container Gardening
May 21 – STEM, 4–6 grades
May 24 – Promoting and Protecting Pollinators
May 28 – Seasonal Eating
May 31 – Fermentation (Bread/Vinegar)
June 4 – 4-H Stem Build a Boat
Saturday, May 11
Master Gardener Plant Swap
9 a.m.–noon in the Community Center
Bring your extra vegetable plants, flowering plants, bulbs, corms, trees or houseplants. 1 plant = 1 swap. Plants need to be labeled with plant name and growth habits. No small seedlings, seeds or invasive plants.
