Many of you have asked “What should I be doing for my plants right now?” so I’ll try to be better about keeping you up-to-date with the weekly tasks as they’re happening here.
Mondays are generally set aside for maintenance here. It’s easier for me to stay on these tasks when there’s a schedule, so to speak. Most often, this means weed, seed, tuck, train and trim plants. Those are general terms, but here’s the specific list for the week.
First up is weeding. It’s so much easier to keep the gardens weed-free by taking time to weed on a weekly basis. Sure, I pull random weeds here and there, but a thorough weeding happens weekly. Weeding includes pulling, hoeing, or using a tool to undercut/disturb the small weeds. I try to remove as many of the weeds as possible, and this is one reason for 5 gallon buckets in all the gardens. Just toss the weeds in, let them bake in the sun and then they go into the compost bin.
This week I’ll also be using a tool to open up the top layer of the soil. Our weather and watering schedule has created a slight crust on top, and by breaking that up, water and nutrients can more easily be absorbed. There’s rain in the forecast, so now’s the time to get the soil ready to accept the water rather than allow it to run over that crust.
The peas will get side-dressed with compost to help keep them growing and prepare for flowering. Soil will get slightly hilled at the base of radishes, beets, kale and chard. This helps to get them standing straight and tall again after these extremely windy days. Any lower leaves on tomato plants that appear to be touching the soil or showing signs of dying back will be removed (with sterilized snips).
Seeding this week will include more beets, carrots, sunflowers, zucchini, yellow squash, and chard. Birds have been plucking the baby chard plants out!! This means more metallic objects need to be put out. For example, long metallic ribbon will be attached to supports. The breeze will make these move easily and reflect light to help scare the birds. Noisemakers will be added and can be anything you have on hand. For me, this includes old canning lids and rings hanging to clatter against metal fencing or plant supports. You can use old silverware, small pie tins, small bamboo pieces or whatever else you have. For any ground critters like rabbits and squirrels, something like hanging old CD’s to spin in the wind can be helpful. They move, reflect light, and can be hung low so that those critters are deterred.
If you’ve seen growth on your tomato and pepper plants, it’s time to see if they need another tie added. Each of my plants have a wooden stake and get two or three soft strips of fabric used as a tie-up to keep the plants upright during windy weather. Once the plants get to about half their mature size, tie-ups are generally no longer needed because the main stem should be thick and sturdy. This may change if the plant becomes heavy with fruits.
After all this maintenance, everything will get a good watering. When you water, the goal is to water through the soil and to the deepest roots. This helps the plants stay hydrated and encourages more deep root development. Did you remember to plant your tomatoes and peppers deeply? Typically, those plants get planted halfway into the soil. This shocks most people, but here’s the logic behind it. There’s more consistent moisture deeper in the ground, so put the roots there from the first day. Additionally, it encourages new root production along the main stem and creates a stronger underground support structure. Lastly, it leaves only half the plant above the soil to contend with evaporation, wind, sun, and other elements. This means less stress overall for the plants.
It’s not too late to get your garden planted! And, there are still great tomato, pepper, dwarf sunflower and a few other plants here if you need them. Buying locally grown plants obviously supports local growers, but it also gives you plants that have been growing right here in your weather. They haven’t been pulled out of a greenhouse and shocked by real outdoor weather. Get in touch if you need plants or if you need help with a gardening problem.
One goal for me this year was to keep everyone informed about what to do with their gardens to keep them growing and producing, but another goal is for me to have a better work/life balance. In doing this, I hope to be out and about a little more and maybe I’ll pop in and see some more gardens, too! There have been two garden visits in the last week and hope there are many more throughout the summer.
Hope you have a great Sunday! Oh, if you want fresh lettuce, just let me know!