- 1). Begin soil preparation, and plant the first spring vegetables one month before the last frost when the ground thaws enough to work. This gives you an early start with some cool-season vegetables. Find a site with good drainage where the plants receive full sun for eight hours every day. If you can, locate the site where the vegetables are protected from cold winds.
- 2). Break into the soil and turn over the top 10 inches to loosen and warm it. Add 2 inches of quick-draining loam and 3 inches of organic compost to warm and aerate the soil, add drainage and increase nutrition in the site. Add starter fertilizer such as 10-52-17 to the top 3 inches of soil to help roots grow for quicker establishment. If you're planting an organic garden, use bone meal instead of commercial fertilizer.
- 3). Plant cool-season vegetables that mature quickly for an early harvest. These plants include lettuces, mustard, radishes, rhubarb and spinach. Put the entire garden on a schedule of 2 to 3 inches of water every week, and spread 2 to 3 inches of organic mulch over the soil to maintain warmth for the plants.
- 4). Plant again two weeks later with more quick, frost-hardy vegetables such as beets, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, kohlrabi, parsnips and turnips. Maintain your watering and mulching schedule.
- 5). Plant warm-season vegetables only after the last frost lifts. Since you're getting a late start with these, choose fast-growing vegetables such as summer squash, snap beans, cucumbers, swiss chard and mustard. If you want to plant tomatoes, choose short-season varieties such as Sub Arctic Plenty, Early Cascade, Early Girl and Quick Pick. These cultivars grow to full fruiting maturity in under 60 days and will give you a late summer tomato harvest.
next post