Time of Planting

Vegetables may be divided into two large groups warm season and cool season crops.

Warm season crops require warm weather for germination, growth, and development. They are injured or killed by freezing temperatures. They should not be planted outdoors in the spring without protection until the danger of frost is past. Those planted in summer for fall maturity should be planted early enough to mature before killing frosts in the fall.

Move transplant to garden with soil ball and roots intact. After planting, cover soil ball with light layer of garden soil, forming mound around plant to hold water. Water thoroughly so moisture penetrates roots and mounded soil.

Cool season crops grow best in relatively cool weather and may perform poorly in summer heat. They tolerate temperatures below freezing if properly hardened. They may be injured or killed, of course, by hard freezes. Cool season crops may be safely planted outdoors two to four weeks before the expected date of the last frost in spring. They continue to grow well past the earliest frost in fall, but should be started early enough to mature before hard freezes are expected.

Good gardeners plan, plant, and manage the garden to provide fresh vegetables over the whole growing season. When early crops are harvested, prepare the soil again and plant others to mature in summer or fall. Make several plantings of bush beans or sweet corn to provide a fresh supply over much of the summer. Plant broccoli, radish, turnips, kohlrabi, spinach, and other cool season crops not only in early spring but also in late summer for fall use.

Mulches need not be exclusively organic. Here, black plastic is used with tomatoes. After plastic sheeting is in place, holes are made for inserting transplants. Plastic provides warmth, retains moisture, and thwarts weeds.

Mulching

Mulches help to control weeds, regulate soil temperature, conserve moisture, and reduce soil and disease injury to fruiting vegetables such as tomatoes. Organic mulches include straw, grass clippings, wood chips and shavings, spoiled hay, etc. Black plastic, aluminum foil, and heavy Kraft paper are newer materials.

Do not add organic mulches until the soil has warmed up well and has been cultivated to control weeds, and the vegetable seeds have germinated and made several inches of growth. Earlier application keeps soil cooler and delays crop maturity.

Spread straw, hay, and leaves 3 to 4 inches deep around plants and between rows. Spread sawdust and wood chips no more than 2 inches deep.

For fall crops, organic mulches may be applied soon after planting because the soil is warm.

Organic mulching materials require nitrogen for decomposition and will compete with the crop for the available soil nitrogen. To insure sufficient nitrogen for crop growth, add a moderate amount of a complete fertilizer or a source of nitrogen only, such as ammonium nitrate, when the mulch is applied.

Black plastic mulch is unrolled over the prepared and fertilized rows in early spring. Edges of the material are fastened down, usually by covering with soil, and seed or transplants are planted through holes cut in the material. Plastic mulch tends to increase the soil temperature and results in earlier maturity of spring planted crops. It has been very beneficial when used with tomatoes, eggplants, cucumbers, cantaloupes, and summer squash.

Aluminum foil, or black plastic with a thin coating of aluminum foil, repels some kinds of insects such as aphids. By repelling aphids, it reduces damage from diseases they spread.