Growing Your Own Vegetables

146 Pages·2010·4.72 MB·English

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Growing
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Your Own Vegetables
United States Department of Agriculture
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Agriculture Information Bulletin 409
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This is a reprint of Part 2 from the 1977 Yearbook of Agriculture, Gardening/or Food and Fun.
The Yearbook may be purchased at government bookstores or ordered from the Superinten-
dent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. Original page
numbers from the entire book are used in this reprint.
Part 2 Home Garden Vegetables
Planning Your Vegetable Garden—
Plots, PyramidSy and Planters 1^02
Groiving Vegetable Transplants:
Lights, Containers, Media, Seed Ill
The Complex Art of Planting 119
Vegetables in Containers Require
Enough Sun, Space, Drainage 126
Play it Cool With Cole Crops (Cabbage, Etc.);
They Attain Best Quality If Matured in Fall 133
The Popular, Cultivated Tomato
And Kinfolk Peppers, Eggplant 139
Leafy Salad Vegetables: Lettuce, Celery,
Cress, Endive, Escarole, Chicory 147
Onions Are Finicky as to Growing, Curing;
And Garlic May Not Be a Joy Either 152
Root Crops More or Less Trouble-free,
Produce Lots of Food in a Small Space 157
Greens or "Potherbs"—Chard, CoUards, Kale,
Mustard, Spinach, New Zealand Spinach 163
Beans and Peas Are Easy to Grow
And Produce a Wealth of Food 171
Sweet Corn, That Home Garden Favorite,
For Good Nutrition and Eating Pleasure 181
Cucurbit Crops—Cucumbers, Gourds, Melons,
Pumpkins, Squash—Have Uniform Needs 187
Asparagus Starts Up Slow But Goes On and On;
Rhubarb Also Takes Its Own Sweet Time 196
Asparagus 196
Rhubarb 201
A Few Rows of Home Garden Potatoes
Can Put Nutritious Food on Your Table 205
Sweet Potatoes—^Buried Treasure 212
Herbs for Flavor, Fragrances, Fun
In Gardens, Pots, in Shade, in Sun 217
Okra Is Produced Primarily in the South
As Main Dish Vegetable, and for Gumbos 224
Miscellany, including Celeriac, Horseradish,
Artichoke, Peanuts, Vegetable Soybeans 228
Issued in December 1977
Home Garden
PART 2
Vegetables
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Planning Your Vegetable Garden—
Plots, Pyramids, and Planters
by George and Katy Abraham
If you are fortunate enough to have out corn, squash and pumpkins, al-
plenty of space for a garden, you can though a few bush squash do very
have a traditional type v^ith enough well in small spaces and even in
space between rows to run a garden containers.
tractor.
Before you plant your garden, do Mini Gardening Is Easy
some planning. Most people make As the United States moves into
their garden too big and by late sum- its third century, we find the Ameri-
mer it may be a weed patch. For the can gardener is no longer limited to
conventional garden with ample space conventional straight rows and regu-
to use a garden tractor, a plot of 50 lated distances in which to raise vege-
feet by 50 feet is enough for a family tables. Indeed, the method of culture
of 4. With 5 or more members in is limited only by the imagination.
households who plan on doing freez- This makes it possible for the urban
ing and canning, a space of 50 feet by gardener—like his country cousin—
100 feet is not unreasonable. to have the satisfaction of raising
However, if you plan to use muscle juicy tomatoes, snappy green beans
power, a hand cultivator and a hoe, and pungent radishes.
plus some plastic mulch to keep What's wrong with a window box
weeds down, you can put rows only or a balcony planter with a few
half as far apart and make your gar- flowers in front for show, and beans,
den half the size. With this much carrots, onions, lettuce or radishes
space you not only can grow lettuce, in back for food? Many gardeners are
tomatoes, radishes, beets, carrots, on- doing just that. An incredible amount
ions, snap beans and chard, but you of vegetables can be grown in small
also can raise bush squash (both sum- spaces with a little extra plant food
mer and winter) and some corn as and a good supply of ingenuity.
well. Tomatoes, eggplants and vine crops
Corn needs to be planted so that you add color to foundation plantings.
have at least two rows side by si'de Cucumbers and melons can be
(varieties must mature at the same trained up railings, trellises and
time) for cross pollination. It is ac- fences. One cucumber vine will do
tually preferable to plant four rows very well in one cubic foot of soil if
together. The rows do not need to be it is fed once every two weeks with a
long ones but can be arranged in liquid plant food, or if a slow release
blocks to aid cross pollination. Re- plant food is added at the time of
member it is the seed which you eat— planting.
if there is no pollination you get no Even though the gardener has no
corn. patch of ground he should not be de-
If space is limited, it is best to cut terred. Container-grown vegetables
are just as tasty. Some containers
that make good mini-gardens are
George and Katy Abraham of Naples,
waste paper cans, half barrels, square
N.Y., do a column^ The Green Thumb,
for 126 newspapers. They also broadcast boxes, cement blocks (set so openings
regularly over TV and radio, and have face the sky), and pails.
written seven books on horticultural We have tried galvanized water
topics. tanks, cut in half, an eave trough,
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bushel baskets and beverage boxes.
fill the beds. The raised beds can be
You can make or buy tower gardens
any size, but the most convenient are
(called vertical gardens] made of 2-
those easily reached from all sides.
inch by 4-inch mesh wire fencing
A 4-foot square is one we find
rolled in a circle and lined with sisal
handy.
craft paper, into which has been
Used car tires make dandy small
poured one of the soilless mixes.
circular beds. In fact, when you have
Openings are cut in the paper, and
a slope the tires can be pegged in
seeds or plants inserted at appropri-
place with stakes, filled with soil and
ate intervals. You can also buy or
used to grow any number of small
construct pyramid gardens using
crops.
metal, wood or plastic. If you have a
If the sun touches any of your gar-
sloping piece of property, you can
den spots for only a short time during
build a terrace garden using the same
the day, there's a solution. The trick
principle.
is to resort to aluminum foil or
Vegetables grow faster in the
chrome reflectors or mirrors. White
warmth reflected from walks, drives
houses reflect light, as do white gravel
and concrete pads. If plants are grow-
mulches. An equivalent of six hours of
ing in containers, drainage holes pro-
sun a day (whether reflected or direct]
vide places for evaporation and you
is adequate to grow most crops if the
will have to water the containers
light intensity remains high. Vege-
more often when they are setting on
table beds should not be shaded by
concrete or blacktop.
tall trees or high buildings. We've
Even though drainage holes aid in
had peppers, tomatoes and lettuce
evaporation, containers must be well
produce with only three hours of sun
drained. Heavy rains can cause water
and good reflected light the rest of
to stand around roots. No vegetables
the day. You can also put your con-
do well in waterlogged soil. It is better
tainers on wheels and move them
to have a well drained container that
with the sun.
must be watered offener than one that
holds water and shuts out air to the
Left, bags, baskets, and buckets can be-
roots.
come minigardens. Right, limited space
Fresh vegetable lovers who have
for a garden poses no real problem. The
patches of ground available with hard
authors made this "vertical" garden by
packed cement-like soil can grow
lining a wire mesh tower with sisaJ craft
their produce in raised beds framed
paper and filling it with soil. Growing
with 1-inch by 6-inch boards. They
are squash, tomatoes, peppers, onions,
then can make their own soil mix to
and lettuce, besides some flowers.
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Vegetable Planting
Spacing
Plants or (Inches) Number
seed per days ready
Vegetables 100 feet Rows Plants for use
Asparagus 66 plants or 1 oz. 36-48 18 (2 years)
Beans, snap bush V2 lb. 24-36 3-4 45-60
Beans, snap pole V2 lb. 36-48 4-6 60-70
Beans, Lima bush V2 lb. 30-36 3-4 65-80
Beans, Lima pole V4 lb. 36-48 12-18 75-85
Beets 1 oz. 15-24 2 50-60
Broccoli * 40-50 pi. or V4 oz. 24-36 14-24 60-80
Brussels sprouts * 50-60 pi. or 1/4 oz. 24-36 14-24 90-100
Cabbage * 50-60 pi. or V4 oz. 24-36 14-24 60-90
Cabbage, Chinese * 60-70 pi. or 1/4 oz. 18-30 8-12 65-70
Carrots V2 oz. 15-24 2 70-80
Cauliflower * 50-60 pi. or 1/4 oz. 24-36 14-24 70-90
Celeriac 200 pi. 18-24 4-8 120
Celery 200 pi. 30-36 125
Chard, Swiss 2 oz. 18-30 6 45-55
CoUards and kale V4 oz. 18-36 8-16 50-80
Corn, sweet 3-4 oz. 24-36 12-18 70-90
Cucumbers Vz oz. 48-72 24-48 50-70
Eggplant Vs oz. 24-36 18-24 80-90
Garlic (cloves) 1 lb. 15-24 2-4 140-150
Kohlrabi V2 oz. 15-24 4-6 55-75
Lettuce, head VA oz. 18-24 6-10 70-75
Lettuce, leaf 1/4 oz. 15-18 2-3 40-50
Muskmelon (cantaloupe) * 50 pi. or V2 oz. 60-96 24-36 85-100
Mustard V4 oz. 15-24 6-12 30-40
Okra 2 oz. 36-42 12-24 55-65
Onions 400-600 plants or sets 15-24 3-4 80-120
Onions (seed) 1 oz. 15-24 3-4 90-120
Parsley V4 oz. 15-24 6-8 70-90
Parsnips V2 oz. 18-30 3-4 120-170
Peas, English 1 lb. 18-36 1 55-90
Peas, southern V2 lb. 24-36 4-6 60-70
Peppers Vs oz. 24-36 18-24 60-90
Potatoes, Irish 6-10 lb. of seed tubers 30-36 10-15 75-100
Potatoes, sweet 75-100 pi. 36-48 12-16 100-130
Pumpkins V2 oz. 60-96 36-48 75-100
Radishes 1 oz. 14-24 1 25-40
Salsify V2 oz. 15-18 3-4 150
Soybeans 1 lb. 24-30 2 120
Spinach 1 oz. 14-24 3-4 40-60
Squash, summer 1 oz. 36-60 18-36 50-60
Squash, winter V2 oz. 60-96 24-48 85-100
Tomatoes 50 pi. or Vs oz. 24-48 18-36 70-90
Turnip greens V2 oz. 14-24 2-3 30
Turnip, roots V2 oz. 14-24 2-3 30-60
Watermelon 1 oz. 72-96 36-72 80-100
* Transplants
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Keep Soil Moist square space is desirable to provide
Keep in mind that because growing good cross pollination.
space is restricted, container-grown Measurements do not have to be
vegetables will need more feeding exact and circular containers work
and more water than those grown in as well as square or rectangular ones.
open ground. Once fruit starts to form
on tomatoes, peppers, or vine crops Approximate
they will need even more water, as number of
plants per
will the vegetables growing under- Vegetable square foot
ground. Soil should be kept moist
Beans 3-4
for a good yield. Also keep in mind
Beets 25 i
that vegetables such as onions and
Broccoli 3
radishes will get unbearably hot tast- Brussels sprouts 2
ing if they are allowed to grow dry. Cabbage 2
True garden enthusiasts make suc- Carrots 100 2
cessive sowings of salad crops such Cauliflower 2
as radishes, onions and lettuce about Chard, Swiss 9
Corn (dwarf) 4
ten days apart [if they have the space)
Cucumber (standard) 1 ^
so that when one containerful has
(dwarf) 2 3
been eaten another is already mature
Dandelion 6
enough to enjoy. Eggplant 1
Many lettuce varieties will grow all Endive 4
season, providing tender outer leaves Garlic 36
constantly if the small center leaves Kale 4
Kohlrabi 4
are left to grow. Buttercrunch is a
Leeks 64
favorite.
Lettuce (head) 4
A perennial question is how thick (leaf & semi-head) 6
to plant so that a maximum crop can Muskmelon 13
be harvested in the space available, Mustard greens 9
wihout crowding the plants into in- Onions (cooking) 16
efficiency. The large chart gives an (hamburger) 9
(green bunching) 100 ^
approximate measure for space
Parsley 16
needed by various vegetables to help
Parsnips 25
the gardener determine how many
Peanuts 4 ^
plants a certain size area will accom- Peas 25 3
modate. Plant breeders have devel- Peppers 4
oped many mini-vegetables in dwarf Potatoes 1
forms for small-space gardeners. Look Sweet potatoes 1
for them in seed catalogs and at Radishes 144 ^
Rutabaga 5
garden centers.
Spinach 4
Summer squash (bush) 1
Chart for Small Space Gardeners
Winter squash (bush) 1
For those who must grow their Tomato (regular) l 3
vegetables in small spaces this chart (dwarf) 2
gives the approximate number of Husk tomato (Physalis) 2
plants a square foot of container Watermelon (dwarf) 1 ^
space will accommodate. Containers
1 Thin at 1-inch diameter for "greens" and let
should be at least eight inches deep remainder grow.
for medium sized and small vegetables 2 Thin every other one when "fingerlings" and
let others grow.
but a foot to 18 inches deep for veg- 3 Train on trellis.
etables such as tomatoes, eggplants 4 Can thin to eat and let others grow into cook-
ing onions.
or corn. In the case of corn a 4-foot-
5 Thin small ones to eat and let others grow.
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It's not easy to figure exactly how 30 feet of trees in the black walnut
profitable your gardening enterprise family since they produce a toxic sub-
will be but one thing is certain, it's stance called juglone through the
good for your waistline and your roots. Many vegetables such as to-
general well-being. Few things around matoes, corn, peppers and others will
the home give as much satisfaction— become stunted, wilted or even die,
as well as a bit of a boost to the bud- when their roots come in contact with
get—as your garden. Studies show walnut roots.
that for the time you spend in the Soil Texture: Sometimes a soil is
garden, you get a net return of $3 heavy clay, but don't let this discour-
to $5 per hour. One State university age you from planting a garden. There
cites figures to show that the average are ways of making it more friable
home garden in its State will be worth (workable). Here is a simple test for
$165. The average gardener will spend soil fitness: Grab a handful of moist
around $35 on his garden, which earth and squeeze it tightly for ten
means he will be getting around 75 seconds. If the soil breaks in several
cents "profit" for every $1 he spends. places when dropped from a 3-foot
And he eats better to boot. height, it's workable. Soil that forms
Location: The closer to the kitchen a mudball that will not break into
you can locate your garden plot, the pieces when the test is applied is apt
better. It's mighty handy to be able to be too difficult to work in its
to take a few steps outside and snip present state.
off a handful of herbs or lettuce. Another way to tell if your soil
It makes little difference which way has good "tilth" or working quality is
the rows run, although running them to feel it with your fingers. If the soil
lengthwise of the garden makes cul- has a nice "loamy" texture, it's great
tivation easier. If rows run east and for plants. Loam (called "loom" by
west, plant your large crops on the old timers) is simply a well balanced
north side of the garden so that they mixture of large, medium and small
will not shade the small crops. Keep particles of sand, silt and clay.
in mind that crops should get at least
six hours of sunlight daily. Try not to Organic Matter
locate the garden near trees, build- If you find you have a problem
ings, ridges or anything that will soil, the best conditioner you can get
block out the sun. is organic matter, such as compost,
While certain flowers have been peatmoss, sawdust, leaves, rotted
bred to grow in shade, vegetables are dead weeds and plants removed in
sun worshipers and do not do well cleaning up the yard (avoid any di-
near trees, both because of the shade seased materials). Lawn clippings,
and the competition from tree roots. wood chips, kitchen scraps, barnyard
A hardwood tree iy2 feet in diameter manures, and green manures—which
at shoulder height gives off as much include crops such as winter rye,
as 125 tons of water in a single sea- buckwheat and legumes—are turned
son, robbing plants not only of sun under to rot in the soil. Humus opens
but also of water for nearby soil. the clay and encourages earthworms
If you must garden in semi-shade, to be more active helpers. The earth-
try increasing the light intensity by worms in a single acre of ground may
installing aluminum sheets or other pass more than 10 tons of dry earth
reflectors to accent the sun's rays, through their bodies annually. They
as small space gardeners often do. mix organic matter with the subsoil.
Steer clear of black walnut trees. They also build up topsoil and their
Gardens should not be planted within burrows aerate the earth.
106
Don't add sand to a claylike soil to time, and because of the rosin cover
loosen it. The result may be a con- over each particle they will be re-
crete-like mixture harder than the leased at intervals during the growing
original clay. Limestone has a loosen- season.
ing effect on a heavy clay soil, coag- Pesticides: Don't douse your vege-
ulating the fine particles into larger tables with sprays or dusts so thickly
ones, allowing air and water to pass that it takes many washings to get
freely. Ground limestone or dolomi- them clean enough to eat. Most small
tic limestone can be used. Ground gardens are easily de-bugged by hand-
limestone is less expensive and is picking each day. Vigilance is the
easy to apply. Dolomitic lime has 20 watchword. A few minutes each day
to 30 percent magnesium, plus 30 to checking your vegetables will usually
50 percent calcium, and is available in be all that's needed to keep out bad
both hydrated and ground stone bugs.
types. Since magnesium is another Remember that only 10 percent of
element needed for plant growth, all bugs are bad. Our natural preda-
many prefer dolomitic limestone. tors, including beneficial insects,
Any form of lime can be used, but birds, frogs and toads will eliminate
remember the more concentrated most pests if we don't kill them off
forms such as the hydrated or burned with sprays. However, should an in-
lime forms should be used in lesser festation get the best of you, check
amounts. The big problem most gar- it with the latest control methods rec-
deners run into is using the 3 forms in ommended by your county Extension
equivalent amounts. Roughly speak- agent, State university, or the U.S.
ing, 100 pounds of ground limestone Department of Agriculture.
is equal in action to about 74 pounds Crop Rotation: Farmers for centur-
of hydrated lime or 56 pounds of ies have found it good business to
burned lime. shift their crops around each year.
Fertilizer: A good well rotted com- Home gardeners cannot rotate their
post pile is a valuable adjunct for any crops that easily because of limited
gardener. We have already mentioned space. But with careful planning, you
how it breaks up a heavy soil. It also can maintain a certain amount of ro-
adds nutrients to some degree but it tation. Some diseases—such as root
cannot be counted on to feed vege- knot, clubroot, fusarium wilt, and cab-
tables all the necessary nutrients. Any bage yellows—will build up in the
balanced fertilizer with the big three soil if one crop is planted in the same
(nitrogen, phosphorus, and potash) spot year after year. Another advan-
can be added to the garden in fall or tage of shifting crops around into dif-
spring before you plow. Many gar- ferent spaces is that vegetables such
deners use a liquid plant food, usually as peas or beans are legumes and can
applied at planting time and again take nitrogen out of the air and put
two or three times during the growing it into the soil.
season. If a regular dry fertilizer is Corn is a gross feeder and takes a
applied for a mid-summer snack, take large quantity of nutrients from the
care that it doesn't touch the plants. soil. However, you might have to com-
It can be applied as a side dressing a pensate for this deficiency by extra
few inches away so that it can be feeding, since corn plantings may need
washed into the soil near the roots, to occupy the same area year after
but if it touches the plant in the dry year since they might shade shorter
state it will burn plant tissues. vegetables if moved to a different
Many slow release fertilizers on the location.
market can be applied at planting Radishes, cabbage, tomatoes or let-
107
practice succession planting. This
means getting two crops from each
garden row—one which can be har-
vested in early summer, the other in
fall. Often the fall garden is more
productive, and fall-grown vegetables
are usually of higher canning quality
than those which mature during the
hot dry periods of midsummer. Take
beans, for example. They mature early
and are finished by early summer. The
vines can be dug and that same space
planted with broccoli, cauliflower,
Brussels sprouts, string beans or
turnips.
Summer drought and early killing
frost are two factors you have to keep
in mind in planting the late garden.
Midsummer heat can be offset by
watering and mulching. To beat Jack
William E Carnahan
Frost, concentrate on hardy vegetables
like spinach, chard, turnips, beets, and
any of the cabbage family, plus fall
tuce can easily be rotated with beans
crops of lettuce.
and peas, alternating their locations
Most of these vegetables can be
each year.
planted as late as early July in most
Many disease problems can be pre-
areas and still produce a fair crop.
vented by practicing good sanitation.
Long season crops such as tomatoes,
Plant parasites often overwinter in
peppers, or eggplants will continue to
refuse from last year's crops. Pulling
bear until frost if well cared for. Lima
vines, stalks and overripe fruits is an
beans and okra will produce a partial
effective way to control plant diseases
crop when planted as late as the first
and bacteria. If these parts of plants
of July. Garden peas such as Wando
show any disease they should not be
are a dependable fall crop.
put on the compost pile but sealed
in plastic bags and sent to the
Onion sets may be planted any time
disposal.
during the summer for green bunching
Use Good Seed: Another way to
onions. Seed can be sown in spring or
prevent disease problems is to use
early summer for a fall crop. Top sets
treated seed or certified seed and
from winter onions can be planted for
raise your own plants. If you buy
fall use. Those not used may be left in
plants be sure they are from a trust-
the row and will usually over-winter
worthy grower. Avoid any plants with
for spring use.
root swellings or lumps.
In many areas beets and carrots can
Gardeners are fortunate to have
be left in the garden all winter if a
plant breeders who are constantly de-
light mulch is added. Parsnips are a
veloping disease-resistant varieties.
welcome spring delicacy but take a
Study the seed catalog. It lists resist-
long growing season so should be
ant varieties and although they are
sometimes a bit more expensive, they
are worth it.
Succession Planting' To get the
Planting calendar helps in working out
succession planting sclieduie for garden.
most from your garden it's smart to
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