by Eddie Powell | Apr 14, 2015
Growing wholesome, healthy vegetables in a container are a way of life these days. Here are some easy and less expensive tips for creating that bucket garden.
- In a large container or on a plastic mat on the ground, mix garden soil and compost in a 2:1 ratio. Two scoops of soil and one of compost, add the recommended quantity of slow release fertilizer from product label
- Drill 6 to 8- ½ inch holes in the bottom of the 5-gallon buckets. Make sure that the buckets did not contain toxic materials!
- Line the bottom of the bucket with gravel. You may substitute broken pottery or sticks that are broken in short links
- Fill the bucket to within 3 inches of the top of the container
- Place container in sunny spot that will allow drainage
- Plant chosen vegetable with two seeds in center of the container
- Water well and keep moist but not wet
- Place plant support around seeds
Plant requirements:
- Nutrients. Basic needs in plants are Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K). These are listed on all fertilizers as a ratio, example – 8-8-8 contains 8% Nitrogen, 8% Phosphorus, and 8% Potassium and the remaining 76% is a filler. Soils contain many more trace minerals and they are listed on the fertilizer label including directions for use and amounts
- Sunshine or artificial sources of light (grow lights).
- Water. Soil must be kept moist but not wet. Wet soils will create root-rot and encourage fungus. Measure moisture by pinching the soil to see that the soil is moist but never wet. Adding water as needed; plants in hot areas will need much more water than plants in cool spots. Wilted plants need more water!
- Carbon Dioxide (CO2). Plants absorb CO2 and give off Oxygen making them VERY important to human and all animal life.
- Proper Temperatures. Plants will die when it is either too hot or too cold. Make sure that if your plants are outside and the temperature goes below freezing, the plants must be protected or brought inside.
Resources:
by Les Harrison | Mar 24, 2015
Onions are simple to grow and take up very little space. This is an easy selection for a beginning gardener.
The winter weather is finally giving way to springtime. While temperatures have been erratic, the rain has been sufficient.
There are still plenty of cool season leafy garden crops in production, but they will not last long as the temperatures rise.
One in-ground selection does offer some options. Onions planted last fall provide the greens and the bulb for a nutritional flavor enhancer from salads to a variety of dishes.
The common onion, Allium cepa, has many varieties within the species, and is grown and consumed worldwide. Garlic, chives and leeks are in the same genus as onions with their use similar to onions, but not nearly as frequent.
This popular and simple to grow fall vegetable easily handled the harshest north Florida winters. The multiple mornings of subfreezing temperatures and hard frost had no appreciable effect on this versatile vegetable.
Most regional soils can provide a good growing medium for onions. The lack of sulfur in the dirt and the excellent drainage are two requirements for producing a potentially mild bulb, depending on the cultivar planted.
The high levels of available phosphate in most soils also are an advantage when growing onions.
The Granex yellow onion cultivar is likely the current favorite among many gardeners. This is the same cultivar which produces some the premium branded mild onions on the market today.
Onions can be planted from August to March, either by seed or bulbs. Two inch spacing between plants provide enough space to grow and does not waste limited cultivation area.
Days to harvest depend on how the onion is to be used. Green onions, sometimes known as scallions, take four months with bulb onions taking five months or longer.In reality, onions are biennial but are usually grown as annuals.
Historical evidence of onion usage dates back 7,000 years to the Bronze Age. It is uncertain if these bulbs were cultivated or collected in the wild.
Their ease of transportation, long shelf life, and many uses made them an ideal candidate for long distance travel and trade in the days before refrigeration and high-speed movement of vegetables. Every culture and nation has its own special uses for onions.
Today’s onions provide the consumer with a combination of excellent nutrition, and good storage and handling qualities while enhancing the flavor of many meats, vegetables and salads. The bulbs come in three colors (red, yellow and white) which add to the visual quality of the dining experience.
Onions deliver vitamins B-6, C and Folic Acid. They are naturally low in sodium and fats, and contain four percent sugar.
Onions have compounds such as favonoids and phenolics which have had numerous positive health benefits attributed to them. Their consumption can be part of a healthy diet.
Properly handled onions have a potentially long storage life. Store in a cool, dry, well-ventilated area with 45 to 55 degrees the ideal temperature range.
To learn more about growing onions grown in north Florida, visit your UF/IFAS County Extension office or read the Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide.
by Eddie Powell | Mar 17, 2015
Site selection of your vegetable garden is a very important part of vegetable gardening because if the appropriate site is not selected than success may be limited.
Identify distance between vegetable garden and water source. Image of a Walton County Community Garden site in DeFuniak Springs, FL.
Photo Credit: Eddie Powell
First, the gardener should place the garden in a convenient location near the house so it will be easier to maintain. The garden area also needs to be located near a good water source. Second, the gardener needs to determine how well-drained the soil is in the area and make sure that the soil is not compacted. If it is compacted, tilling will be needed to reduce compaction of the soil and help roots reach out into the soil so that optimal nutrient uptake is ensured. Third, the garden needs to be located in an area that receives at least six hours of direct sunlight daily.
Vegetable plants can be added in the landscape with other ornamental plants with proper care. Garden sites along coastal areas are also suitable places for gardens. It is good, when possible, to rotate the garden from place to place to prevent soil diseases and other pests with specific host species from accumulating in one location. One helpful tip for gardeners is to have a vegetable garden plan drawn out including the names of the plants, their location, and the dates they were planted.
Determine how many hours of sunlight is available to the garden. Image of a Walton County Community Garden site in DeFuniak Springs, FL.
Photo Credit: Eddie Powell
Stop by your local University of Florida IFAS extension office to pick up a Vegetable Gardening Guide. It contains the dates for planting vegetables and maturity timeframes. This guide will also help you decide if you prefer ordering seeds or transplanting bought plants. If using transplants, seeds need to be sowed 4 to 6 weeks before the recommended planting date to allow time for adequate growth before transplanting. The vegetable gardening guide also includes a list of plants that do best as transplants and ones that perform better directly seeded. To learn more on this topic please feel free to stop by your local University of Florida / IFAS Extension office or visit http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/
by Blake Thaxton | Jan 27, 2015
Raised bed spring vegetable garden in NW Florida – photo credit: Blake Thaxton
Growing spring vegetables in northwest Florida can be challenging! Sometimes failures seem more numerous than successes. Extreme cold events in the winter and blistering hot summer days make it tough on vegetables. One suggestion is to get the garden started earlier than usual!
The climate in northwest Florida challenges the gardener due to very high insect pest pressure and it being the perfect environment for fungal and bacterial diseases to grow. Hot and humid summers with moderate winters can be disastrous because diseases will be very active and the insects are not eliminated by extreme cold temperatures. Random cold temperatures in the spring make it hard to know when to plant the vegetable garden.
[important]Because insects and diseases become more active as it gets warmer in the spring, getting a head start may aid the success of your vegetable garden.[/important]
How can a gardener get a head start? Here are a few suggestions:
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Start Vegetable Transplants Inside
Seems simple, but just getting seed started in a temperature controlled environment can help the vegetable plants get a leg up on the insect pests and diseases that are eminent. If you have a greenhouse structure, that would work perfectly. If not, consider starting your plants in a room with as much possible natural light. On warm days take the plants outside to get some sunshine.
Tomato Plants grown with black plastic mulch – photo credit: Blake Thaxton
Black plastic mulch is commonly used in commercial vegetable production. One of its main functions is to help warm the soil to encourage root growth of the vegetable plants. Other benefits include good moisture and weed control.
Learn more from this Penn State Extension website: Plastic Mulches
Row Covers protect vegetable plants in the ground when temperatures drop lower than expected in the early spring. Row covers are transparent or semitransparent flexible materials used to cover a row of plants to help insulate the air around the plant from the colder temperatures and wind. If you can not find this kind of material you can always use black plastic nursery pots, Styrofoam cups, or other materials to protect individual small plants.
Learn more from this UF/IFAS publication: Row Covers for Growth Enhancement
A High Tunnel with end walls and side walls removed for cooling warmer temperatures – photo credit: Blake Thaxton
Another method of protecting your vegetable garden from cold early spring temperatures is to construct a high tunnel, also known as a hoop house. A high tunnel is a structure that looks very much like a greenhouse but the crops are planted in native field soil and the structure lacks an active temperature control. The temperature is passively controlled by rolling up end walls and side walls on warm days and closing the walls when cool temperatures are expected.
Learn how to build a high tunnel from this video from Utah State Extension: How to Build a High Tunnel
For more information on any of these topics please contact your local UF/IFAS Extension Agent or email Blake Thaxton: bthaxton@ufl.edu
by Eddie Powell | Nov 17, 2014
Northwest Florida homeowners enjoy growing their own vegetables every fall, but are faced with cold weather issues, especially during the first few days of December. For example, most cole crops can be planted until November, but they must be protected from the cold weather or they will need to be replaced. A good variety of cold tolerant plants should be used in order to prevent total devastation of the garden by extremely cold weather.
Below are a few tips to assist the home gardener in growing a successful winter vegetable crop.
- For tender plants, site selection should the top priority when preparing for a freeze. Vegetable plants need a site with good air drainage; not in a low area where cold air settles. Arranging tender plants along a barrier to protect them from cold winds improves the plants cold protection, especially from very hard freezes.
- Poorly drained soils result in weak and shallow roots which are more susceptible to cold injury.
- Plants grown with the correctly applied rate of nutrients will tolerate colder temperatures better and recover from cold injury faster than plants grown with little to no nutrients.
- Watering vegetable garden plants before a freeze can help protect plants. A well watered soil will absorb more solar radiation than dry soil and will radiate heat during the night. This may increase cold tolerance by as much as 2°F.
- Saturated soil conditions can damage the root systems of most plants over a few days, so make sure the ground is well-drained.
- Healthy vegetable plants are more resistant to cold than vegetable plants weakened by disease, insect damage, or nematode damage. Routine inspection for pests and implementation of necessary control measures are essential.
- Plastic or cloth coverings can help protect vegetable plants more from frost than from extreme cold. Covers that extend to the ground and are not in contact with the vegetable plants foliage will reduce cold injury. If the vegetable plant foliage is in contact with the cover it is often cold burned or injured because of heat transfer from the foliage to the colder cover. Some examples of excellent plant covers are cloth sheets, quilts or black plastic. If plastic covering is used, it is extremely important to remove the covering during the day to provide for ventilation of trapped heat.
- Feel free to contact your local county extension office for information on cold protection, pest identification and recommended control measures.
by Beth Bolles | Sep 30, 2014
Some vegetables and herbs like lettuce, carrots, collards, basil, and radish have very small seeds. It is difficult to plant these seeds so there is space between emerging plants for proper development. These plants will often need thinning after they mature. Thinning allows for adequate space for leaf and root development during the growing season. Crowded vegetables will compete with each other for water, nutrients, and sunlight and never produce quality plants. Here are the tips for thinning seedlings:
- When plants are about 1 to 2 inches tall or have two sets of ‘true’ leaves’, it is time to thin out any crowded plants.
- Look up the proper spacing between plants and thin out appropriately. Use the chart in the Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide to determine spacing for specific fruits and vegetables.
- You may pull out seedlings with your hands or forceps to make space or use small scissors to cut off seedlings at the ground level.
Using scissors to cut unwanted seedlings prevents you from dislodging the root system of plants that will be left to mature. Photo by Beth Bolles, Escambia County Extension UF/IFAS
It will initially look like you have lots of room in the garden but realize plants will quickly grow to utilize available space. Some young seedlings like those of radish or lettuce can added to dishes and eaten as sprouts.
