It's summer veggie planting time!

Sage in bloom in mid May garden

Sunday, May 13, 2018

Mother's Day is when old timers say it is the best time to plant your summer garden.  Prior to May 1, there is still a good chance of poor weather, chilly temps, and frost in our Zone 6 garden.  This can be catastrophic for tomatoes, eggplants, basil and other heat lovers.

Today, we have the added advantage of the 15 day forecast!  I checked out ours and it showed warm temperatures for the next 15 days.  Warm temperatures and weekly rain is the perfect recipe to get the summer lovers off to a good start.  Planting earlier is not necessarily better.  Summer lovers will shiver in their holes in the garden bed if the soil and air temperatures are chilly.  I like mulching right before planting summer veggies as the heat from the mulch helps warm the earth and keep the transplants toasty.

Summer vegetables include tomatoes, peppers, basil, summer squash (zucchini), winter squash (pumpkins, butternut squash), cucumbers, melons, watermelons, corn, okra, and eggplant.

So, what did we plant this year?  

So, what are we planting this year?  Of course, we planted the number one veggie in the USA-tomatoes!   This year, I bought most of them as plants.  There is a great selection of heirlooms at local nurseries these days.  There are a few I am growing from seed.  We are planting a variety of heirloom, chocolate types, paste tomatoes, small and large tomatoes and a couple of new varieties.  Choosing which tomatoes to grow  Loving the purple tomatoes with all their fantastic antioxidants!   I am trying a new multicolor and purple variety, too.  Different colors in tomatoes give different nutrition

I have planted several varieties in the garden bed: Brandywine True Black and the traditional pink Brandywine, Cherokee Purple which always does well in our garden, Black Krim, Box Car Willie, Costoluto Genovese, San Marzano, and Amish Paste.    Am growing Boronia in a pot as it is an heirloom compact type.  Tomatoes 101, everything you need to know to grow great tomatoes

Those should be more than enough for all our needs, but there are a few more that I can't resist growing from seed.  There is an Italian Paste heirloom that always does great in the garden.  I save seed from it every year.  There are two purple tomatoes that I saved seed from that I bought from Whole Foods, a medium black and a very large black tomato.  There is also an heirloom, compact paste tomato that I wanted to try Little Napoli.  Then there was this multicolor small tomato that I bought seed for Indigo Pear Drops that would be great for salads.  I have settled on the medium black, Italian Paste and Indigo Pear Drops.  There are just so many choices!   The Power of Purple

The new varieties for my garden are the black Brandywine, Box Car Willie, Costoluto Genovese, Boronia, the medium black tomato from Whole Foods seed, and Indigo Pear Drops.

If you have limited space, look for the dwarf/bush types like Bush Early Girl (only 54 days till ripe tomatoes), Patio, Husky Red, Lizzano, and Tumbling Tom. Typically, you can expect to have your first ripe tomatoes around the 4th of July.  The earliest tomato bearing variety I have grown is Yellow Tumbling Tom that gave me tomatoes in June.  They grow great in the garden or pots.  Compact tomato plants for small spaces   Typically, you can expect to have your first ripe tomatoes around the 4th of July.  The smaller tomatoes are the first to ripen.  

We also planted several peppers-Cayenne, Jalapeño, Pimento, Chipetin, Poblano, Lipstick and some sweet peppers I grew from seed from last year.  The Chipetin pepper is one that I overwinter in the garage every year.  It is an ancient pepper with tiny, hot peppers.   Peppers are for every taste and garden

I am doing 2 eggplants this year, a white one "White Star" and one that is advertised to stay sweet, even in the heat "AO Daimaru".   Eggplant-add this native from India to your garden

I started from seed 2 kinds of zucchini-Cocozelle and Early Prolific Straight Neck.  They are susceptible to being killed by the squash vine borer if planted before June 1.  You can protect the vine to keep the insect from boring into the vine by wrapping the vine or just replant if they do get infected.  Zucchini grows fast!  Growing zucchini and summer squash  This may seem like overkill on the zucchini as one plant produces as much as a typical family needs during the summer.  I didn't have the greatest luck with zucchini last year.  Too much rain caused disease and insect pressure.  I also found some great ways to use and preserve zucchini that any extra will be stored for many new ways of using.  What to do with all that zucchini?!  I really liked shredding the zucchini and using in place of spaghetti.  I'll shred and put into freezer bags so I have a low carb, nutritious option anytime.

Trellis in background for the cucumbers

 I planted extra cucumbers this year to make green smoothies.  Grow your own juice garden   I planted seeds for a yellow that can weigh up to 5 pounds (Jaune Dickfleishige), a red (Hmong Red), and 1 white cucumber "Miniature White" that is a good container variety that's good for a single salad.  Cucumber info and tips for growing.  Cukes are tropical plants so they grow best when the temperatures are hot.

The summer herbs I am planting this year are basil, rosemary, oregano, parsley, garlic chives, lavender, thyme and stevia so far.  I overwinter my bay trees.   Start a kitchen herb garden!  I planted 3 types of basil-Cardinal, Lettuce Leaf, and Sweet Genovese.  Cardinal basil has a beautiful garnet flower top.  Lettuce Leaf has large leaves that are perfect for making pesto.  Basil basics-harvesting, preserving, growing basil

It is also time for another round of lettuce.  The first planting of lettuce is bolting.  We planted Bloomsdale Longstanding spinach which lasts about two weeks longer in the heat than other types of spinach so the spinach, but doesn't last for long after the temperatures hit the 80's.  For lettuce, I am trying a heat resistant variety pack as well as Red Romaine, Red Sails and Simpson Elite.  Growing summer salads

We had already fertilized, added compost, and mulched a month ago.  I will add Azomite around each plant along with fertilizer in another month.  Azomite has lots of trace minerals.  If you notice your plants really taking off after using it, you know they were missing some needed minerals.  Plants are like us, they need trace minerals.  When your plants have them, you will, too!  

If planting in pots, be sure to recharge the potting soil for this year's growing season  Re-energize your potting soil!

Overwintered Egyptian walking onions

When we planted the summer veggies, I powdered the roots of each plant with plant starter.  It contains mycorrhizal microbes and root support.  Mycorrhizal fixes nitrogen to the roots of the plant, helping it to grow sturdier, bigger and faster.  Once added to the soil, mycorrhizal will continue in the soil in that spot.

Before you send your new transplants into the garden, insure they have been sufficiently "hardened off."  If you started your own seeds indoors, take your plants out daily over a week or so into a partially shady spot, letting them get used to the strong sun.

If you purchased your transplants and they were already outdoors, they are ready to be plopped into the ground and grow!

I also planted summer loving flowers I started from seed, Moonflower vine, Hummingbird vine, Cock's Comb, Morning Glories, alyssium, and zinnias.

Now it is time to watch everything grow, water and fertilize as needed, and eat!