Vegetable Gardening for Beginners Your Garden Throughout the

Vegetable Gardening for Beginners Your Garden Throughout the Year

You don’t need a green thumb to garden! � Nature does it for you! � The goal of this series is to help even the most inexperienced gardener successfully raise as many vegetables as they would like. � Looking for a new and productive hobby? Try gardening!

Why garden? � Fresh vegetables! � Save money! � Try new varieties! � Exercise! � Build family and community ties!

What do plants need? � Light � Water � Growing medium with available nutrients

Positive inputs � Proper soil (proper nutrients and texture) � Temperature � Proper day length � Biology in the soil, such as mycorrhizae

Negative inputs � Weeds: competition for nutrients � Pests: eats plants or deprives it of sugar and nutrients � Disease: any bacteria, virus, or fungus that attacks a plant by feeding on it. � Toxins: soil contaminants, inorganic or organic in origin

Best time of year for different actions � Based on the needs of the plants � Based on your own needs, ie time management.

January � High 47, low 30 � Plan, learn, and read! � Map your yard and plan your garden � Learn by asking UT Gardens staff, extension agents, or Master Gardeners � Read seed catalogs to learn the differences between plants. Look for “cultural” information.

February � High 52. Low 33 � You can till/prepare your garden plot toward the end of the month if conditions are right. � Order seeds!

March � High 61, Low 40 � Start seeds indoors according to the recommendation for each variety. This is usually dependent on frost date, which in Knox county is around April 1 -15. � Depending on weather, plant potatoes, peas, and onions around St. Patrick’s Day.

Example � This is from my packet of cherry tomato seeds from Johnny’s Selected Seeds � Six weeks before April 15 th is about March 2 nd.

April � High 71, low 40 � Cool-weather crops such as lettuce, cole crops, beets, carrots, and radishes love this month. � Plant onion sets, plants, or transplant out onions you have started yourself. Due to our southern latitude, pick a “short day” or “day neutral” onion. � Mulch now to save yourself weeding time later.

May � High 78, Low 57 � Watch out for high temperatures this month, and water appropriately. � Plant warm-season seeds such as beans, corn, and okra � Plant out hot-weather transplants such as tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants. � Peppers and eggplants love warm soil and long days.

June � High 85, Low 65 � If you’re lucky, harvesting will be your main work for the next few months. � You may begin to see summer squash, cucumbers, beans, and similar crops ready for harvest. � Keep those weeds under control! � Keep track of rain and water when appropriate. � Write down when it rains in your garden journal. � A drink of one inch of water once a week is normal for many plants.

July � Average high 88, low 69 � Expect squash and beans to continue to produce early in the month, with sweet corn and tomatoes coming in later. � Therefore, garden in the morning if possible. � This month, your focus will be on pest prevention and disease prevention. � If possible, water in the morning rather than in the evening.

August � Average high 87, low 68 � Still hot and still a high-production month. Hopefully you will get lots of tomatoes! � Task for August: � See which plants can’t take the heat anymore and cull them from your garden. Examples are cucumbers and beets.

September � Average high 81, low 62 � In Tennessee, our growing season is so long that we can squeeze in an extra set of cool-season vegetables! � Continue to clear out space for your fall garden and research what you would like to grow. � In my experience, you can have success with kale and collards, as well as lettuce. Try some green onions, beets, and carrots.

October � Average high 71, Low 49 � Cooler nighttime lows mean a dip in pest pressure! � Now is the time to set out those cole-crop transplants.

November � Average High 60, low 41 � We usually get a hard freeze around the middle of November, effectively ending most of the work for the growing season. � You can use season extenders such as row covers or a cold frame, or you can let the cycle begin again. � Freezing soils does benefit the garden in reducing the amount of pests that can overwinter in the soil.

Conclusion � For everything there is a season. � Take time to enjoy your garden!