Gardening Suggestions

Here is another short article that was in a former gardening newsletter. Hope you find some suggestions you can use.


Early spring or winter makes it difficult for those of us who love to garden or are thinking of taking up this wonderful hobby. It’s hard to get out to do anything in our gardens or yards when it is cold, windy and sometimes snowy. Plus it is the ‘rest’ or ‘sleep’ time for all of our trees and plants. Most plants need to have this dormant period in their lives to be able to put on new growth and flowers during spring, summer, and fall.
But don’t despair. It is the perfect time to plan what you will do and grow in your garden. Winter is the time to sit down, relax, put your feet up, and look through all the seed and plant catalogs to plan your garden for the next growing season. Or if you prefer to use your computer most gardening catalogs have extensive websites with lots of information besides their online catalogs. Gardening catalogs seem to come quickly to your mailbox but the web sites are always faster.
I’m not pushing or even recommending these particular web sites, but these catalogs have been around for a long time. I have used them as did my parents and grandparents. Henry Fields Catalog has been in business since 1892.
www.HenryFields.com
www.Jackson&Perkins.com
www.Burpee.com
www.Parkseed.com
At these websites you can find out which “zone” you live in. The United States is devided into plant hardiness zones by the USDA These zones tell you which plants will live in your area. Each zone is based on the average last frost date in the spring for an area and the average first frost date in the fall. Knowing your frost dates will help you know what plants you can grow, when to put your seeds out in the spring and when to harvest vegetables in the fall before it freezes. The above mentioned websites have a place where you can put in your zip code and it will tell you which zone you live in. Many of us will have problems figuring out which zone we live in when we look at the map. I know I always have. You may find that different sites say you live in different zones. I live in New Mexico. Some sites say I live in Zone 6 and some say I live in Zone 7.
This just goes to prove that gardening is not an exact science or art. A lot of times gardening can be fun and interesting by experimenting to find which plants we can grow and which ones we can’t. I have found that I can grow certain plants that the books or professionals say won’t grow in my high desert garden. Other times I have bought plants that those same professionals and books say will grow in my yard and they don’t, even with the best TLC, and years of trying. Gardening can be different from your yard to your neighbors.
Here is a list of websites that have lots of plant and gardening information with out a catalog.
www.organicgardening.com
www.plantsofthesouthwest.com
www.livingthecountrylife.com

Early spring is also a good time to review your gardening books or buy some new ones, either online, or at your local bookstore or plant nursery. So many of us buy those pretty gardening books, put them in our bookshelves and forget about them. Most gardening, landscape or plant books will have at least a little bit of information that will be valible for your particular yard or garden.
Did you know you can contact your local county extension agent for more information about your area? You can look up the number in your phone book or online. Each county has someone who is good at knowing about what plants, trees, or scrubs grow well in your area and can advise you on how to grow them. Many Extension agents have handouts they can send you for free.
Remember there are several good TV shows, like The Victory Garden, that give great advice for gardeners. Check your local TV guide for The Victory Garden on PBS or Making it Grow on RFD.
Northern states are mostly covered with snow so actually working in the garden is difficult. If you live in an area that doesn’t get much snow, like I do, put on some warm clothes, get out, and plan your garden. You can take a single piece of blank paper and draw a design or you can use a tape measure and graft paper. You might want to consult with others in your family on what they would like to grow. This is a great activity for the kids on a winter day, which can be expanded into a full summer project.
If you still need to, now is the time clean up dead plants, and weeds. It’s a perfect time to put a layer of mulch on your vegetable garden area and around your shrubs and trees. Local nurseries should have different kinds of mulch as well as steer manure. Mixing steer manure in with the mulch for a top dressing of fertilizer that will slowly release into the soil. Manure can be either turned into the soil now or allowed to sit on top of your garden as a mulch until you are ready to plant.
I have an unlimited supply of horse manure. You can use horse, cow, or chicken manure on your garden. But be careful. Fresh manure can be way to ‘hot’ and will burn plants if you get it to close to them. You need to put the manure into a compost and let it set and fry for about six months to a year before using it. Then that manure becomes a great fertilizer. Steer manure you buy at a store or nursery has been heat treated and is ready to use.
So don't be afraid to try some gardening this spring and summer. Turn over a garden plot, get some seeds and plants and go for it. You might even find you like it, especially those fresh veggies that taste some much better than the ones you get at the store.