Contributed by Don Kinzler Forum News Service
I don’t often reveal my personal preferences, because I’d rather stick to the gardening facts in our weekly discussions, but I’ll tell you a little secret: Even though I’ve rarely met a plant I didn’t like, other than noxious weeds, I’ve had a special passion for vegetable gardening since I was a small boy.
Each year, my wife, Mary, and I tend a garden that measures about 40 feet by 150 feet. We value the fresh food and it’s a great hobby and good exercise, but it also gives me firsthand observations of how the gardening season is doing. It helps me stay in tune with current challenges and successes. Mostly, though, I just love to work in a garden.
What’s better than planting a spring crop of fresh, wholesome, tasty garden vegetables? Planting a second crop, of course.
By July, harvest of some vegetable types is nearly completed, but rather than letting the space remain unproductive, we can plant again.
Some vegetable types fill the entire growing season from spring planting until fall frost. Tomato, cucumber, pepper, squash, pumpkin, potato, melons and sweet corn continue growing through the entire season. These can be called long-season vegetables.
Other vegetables, termed short-season, require fewer days to produce a crop, and once that crop is harvested, there can be a gap in the garden for the rest of the season. That includes radish, beet, kohlrabi, broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower. Also included are types that don’t like the heat of midsummer, and begin to "bolt" by sending up seed stalks, which makes the crop bitter, as with lettuce and spinach. Peas, likewise, don’t appreciate heat, and often go downhill by midsummer.
When short-season vegetables are harvested by midsummer, there’s no need to leave the space blank. A second crop can be planted during July for another harvest in early fall, before the growing season ends. This allows a double crop, especially valuable for small-space gardens. Many short-season vegetables mature best in cool temperatures that arrive in late summer and early fall, so the yield and flavor are often great.
Guidelines for planting midsummer vegetables
• After harvesting the first crop of short-season vegetables, prepare the soil where the new crop will be planted by digging or tilling.
• By midsummer, garden soil is often hardbaked from heat and moisture. Incorporating organic material into the top few inches of soil creates a more favorable, moisture-retaining seedbed. Add peat moss, compost or bagged manure. Raised gardens or small-space gardens often contain blended soil mixes that are still in good tilth without additions.
• If the soil is dry, lightly sprinkle it a day or two before planting. Then cultivate the surface with a rake, hoe or cultivating tool, making a mellow seedbed. Organic material like peat moss can be very dry, and this step helps it pre-absorb moisture, instead of floating around during the first watering after seeding.
• Choose varieties that mature in about 40 to 60 days from seeding, as indicated on seed packets.
• Some crops are best seeded first in trays and transplanted the customary way for spring planting, such as cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli.
• Most of the crops planted in midsummer withstand fall frosts beautifully and aren’t injured by temperatures well down into the 20s. Included are lettuce, carrot, radish, turnip, spinach, pea, kohlrabi, kale, beet, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and Swiss chard. One exception is string beans, which produces a nice late-summer crop, but is killed by frost.
• After seeding, water gently to speed germination.
• Midsummer weather can be intense for newly sprouting seeds. To buffer the effect of hot sun, apply a thin surface mulch after seeding to help shade the soil. Moistened peat moss or compost works well. Lawn clippings that have never had weed killer applied are also options for a light mulch.
• The seedbed can also be shaded with temporary structures, removed after seedlings are growing well.
• The single most important factor for successful germination in midsummer is keeping the soil surface moist with frequent, light sprinklings. Seedlings that start to germinate can easily fry in hot, dry sun and exposed soil. The watering interval can increase as seedlings grow.
Fielding questions
Q: I wanted to share with you photos of my cotoneaster hedge which was successfully rejuvenated after severe rabbit injury this past winter. — Dave Stark, West Fargo.
Special to Forum News Service
From left, a before-and-after view of a cotoneaster hedge that was successfully rejuvenated after severe rabbit injury.
A: Thanks much for a great before-and-after example of how a cotoneaster hedge can recover beautifully with drastic pruning. When Dave and I discussed the recommended procedure of cutting everything back to 6 inches above ground level, I asked Dave to take before-and-after photos.
He shared his story: "The cotoneaster hedge was planted nearly 40 years ago, is 120 feet long, and I’ve kept it maintained at about 6 feet high.
"This past winter, the rabbits gnawed main branches, wherever the snow allowed them access. By spring the hedge was ruined, with bark stripped off many branches. Following the recommended advice, the hedge was completely cut down to 4 to 6 inches above ground on April
20. I’ll admit I was nervous at first.
"By June 20 the hedge has grown back beautifully, as shown by the photo. I appreciate the time you took and the advice you gave. This really worked well."
Thanks, Dave, for helping others to be more confident in following this successful procedure.
Q: What is the low-growing, yellow-flowering plant that grows in round patches that I see all over town on boulevards, vacant lots and some yards? — Sam N., West Fargo.
A: The bright yellow flowers belong to the plant called birdsfoot trefoil. The cloverlike plant is a legume with a sprawling growth pattern that can reach up to 2 feet long. It’s a winter-hardy perennial and persists easily in dry areas with its long taproot going deep into the soil.
Some people find birdsfoot trefoil attractive, others find it a nuisance. It was originally introduced into the region as possible livestock forage. It spread from both its seeds and root system. Because of its ability to persist even under adverse conditions, it can overwhelm other plants or lawngrass.
Q: I have a south exposure front yard with plenty of sun. I’ve planted a weeping birch three times, and three times it’s died. I’m done with that variety. What would you suggest as a good tree instead? — Harwood, N.D.
A: In nature, birch trees are found in cool Northern forests where the soil is slightly acidic. We find paper birches naturally in North Dakota’s Turtle Mountains and the Pembina Gorge, for example. In the forest, a layer of leaf litter protects birch roots from grass competition and keeps the soil cool and moist.
A birch in the city, however, may live under much different conditions. Beautifully landscaped yards with well-manicured lawns are a harsh climate for a birch tree.
Your location of Harwood shares similar heavy clay alkaline soil as Fargo, which is the opposite of the lighter, less compacted soil preferred by birch. Stressed birches become susceptible to insects and other maladies. An alternative to the weeping birch is a great idea.
If some type of birch is still desired, North Dakota State University developed several that are more tolerant of regional conditions. Included are Dakota Pinnacle birch and Prairie Dream birch.
Instead of birch, you might consider Ohio Buckeye, which is a wonderful shade tree, winter-hardy for our region and well-adapted to our soil. Its fall color is brilliant orange. It’s also generally free of ongoing insect and disease problems.
Locally owned garden centers carry named varieties of Ohio Buckeye, and three of the best are Autumn Splendor, Prairie Torch and LavaBurst. The latter two were developed at North Dakota State University.
Don Kinzler, a lifelong gardener, is the horticulturist with North Dakota State University Extension for Cass County. Email him at kinzlerd@ casscountynd.gov or call 701-241-5707. Questions may be published, so please include your name, city and state for appropriate advice.
July 27, 2020 at 03:12PM
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Growing Together: Plant vegetables in midsummer for fall harvest - Pueblo Chieftain
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