Dynamic Yet Consistent

As August rolls on, more and more rows in our summer garden come to their end.  Just yesterday the last of our sweet corn was harvested and the stalks cut down.  While the okra is still going strong, the tomatoes are reaching the end of their production, the zucchini is winding down (never really produced too well — too wet), the basil needs to be cut, and the only peppers left are the jalapenos.  The asparagus is growing up and hopefully will be ready to harvest next spring.  So far we have been able to track our gardening season along with Mikayla’s life — we planted most of the crops 2 days before she was born.  It seems like just yesterday the crops were first coming in and Mikayla was  beginning to sleep through the night.  We have come a long way.

Now that our third year of gardening is wrapping up, it is a good chance to look back on this year (and the others) and make note of the lessons learned.  Here is what I have learned from our mistakes, and accidental successes:

• Each year we have started in a new location.  Every other year we have struggled with weeds, but this year we beat them early on.  We tilled in early April, then covered it with black plastic for two weeks to kill the grass.  When we pulled the plastic we tilled again and never had a major week problem.
• It takes at least 4 dry days before you can till a garden.  Be on the look out starting in mid-march because there are only a few good opportunities.
• When it comes to planting, while the average last freeze is April 20th around here, there is nothing wrong with planting into mid-May.
• Get your transplants at the school greenhouses or the farmer’s market — they are exponentially cheaper.
• Plant less squash and zucchini than you think you need, but more broccoli.
• Don’t forget how freakin’ tall okra gets.
• If you want a steady stream of corn, plant it in stages separated by about 2 weeks.  You can plant as late as June if you are willing to water.
• If working with stage-planted corn, or small batches, you really need to pollinate by hand.  Cut a tassel or two off every other day or so and rub it on the silks.
• It is better to harvest corn too early than too late
• After the corn reaches 2′ you can stop weeding, but make sure you weed the first few weeks or it will affect the production.
• Planting two tomato plants per cage doesn’t produce any more.
• Bucket tomatoes (hung upside down) do in fact produce, but not nearly as much (25% or less) of a regular planting.
• Don’t underestimate the weight of a tomato plant — use a cage and a tobacco stick or rebar to support it.
• Broccoli gets bitter after the first cutting or two.
• Okra can grow off the main stalk, so be sure to look carefully.
• It is easier to weed every other day or so than to let things go for a week or more and try to catch up.
• Asparagus takes a year to produce
• You have to plant garlic the autumn before, so plan ahead — we have missed our opportunity each year.
• It is a great experience to do community gardens, but it is less stressful to be able to walk out into your backyard to harvest or weed.

So what about you, what have you learned in your time gardening?