Keep the Harvest Going with Succession Planting

What is succession planning and how do you do it? Succession planting is when you plant new seeds or seedlings every two weeks throughout the growing season. This allows you to continuously harvest your plants without running out of the plant itself. It also helps keep plants smaller and is good for small gardening spaces. 

There are a couple of ways to succession plant. One common way is the plant a group of seeds or seedlings in week 1 and let them grow. In week 3 you plant another row or grouping of plants and seeds. You continue to do this throughout the growing season, until that plant is no longer in season. 

Another way that is possible, is to plant a bunch of seeds or seedlings at one time. Then when it comes time to thin out the plants, you actually harvest a portion of the plantings and let the rest grow. So if you’re using lettuce in this example, you plant a bunch of lettuce seedlings, closer together than recommended and let them grow for 2 weeks. Then you harvest out every third plant and can enjoy a delicious salad with young tender plants. You keep letting the lettuce grow and harvest as needed, freeing up space between the plants, allowing room for more growth. 

This is also good if you’re planting root crop seeds. Sprinkle a ton of seeds into the dirt and as they grow, pull out the larger vegetables ready to be consumed, freeing up space for the smaller ones to grow and expand. Pull these out and keep repeating until your crop has been completely harvested. 

I enjoy succession planting so you do not end up with a giant harvest of one crop and you’re not sure what to do with it. Who wants to figure out how to consume 100 radishes within a week? Not me, but I do want to have a steady supply of radishes that I can pickle and eat on everything consistently.

Don’t Grab the Hose Yet: What Wilting Plants Are Really Telling You

Do you ever get up and enjoy a cup of coffee in your garden in the morning, noticing how beautiful and vibrant your plants look, only to come back outside at lunch with them looking as wilted as you feel prepping for your afternoon meeting. Your first thought may be to get the hose and give them more water! One of you should be perky and that afternoon coffee isn’t helping. But stop! Before you give them more water, check on those plants later as the evening temperatures have dropped again. There is a good chance the plants will be looking less tired and may have perked back up on their own. If so, you have just witnessed evapotranspiration.

Way back in elementary school we learned about the water cycle and how it delivers rain to our houses and yards. What you may or may not remember is evapotranspiration. This is when water vapor is released from the plant back into the atmosphere, allowing the evaporation of water from soil.  It is a critical part of the water cycle and one that is not easily seen. 

When the plant’s leaves become wilted that indicates that evapotranspiration is happening and the water on the leaf’s surface is evaporating leaving behind the sad looking leaf. This is more obvious in our hot summers than any other time of the year. When the sun is not as high in the sky (at night), the amount of evaporation lessens, so the roots are able to move enough water  through the plant, to make it look less wilted. 

This is why it is a great test if you are giving your plants enough water or not. If you notice the plant is not wilted at night or in the morning, then the heat of the day is getting to it, but it is fine and does not need any additional water. However, if the plant is still drooping at night and in the morning it needs more water. Depending on how long this has been happening, you may have reached the plant’s permanent wilting point and there is no return. The plant will die. Or if you catch it quickly, there is still a chance of saving the plant by increasing the amount of water you give it or the frequency, depending on your garden.

How to Preserve Herbs

Once your herb plants begin growing gangbusters you may not know what to do with all the excess. There is only so much thyme and rosemary you can give away before friends and family start running when they see you coming with an armful. Although we will never get enough caprese with fresh basil. 

So what do you do with all of it? There are two tried and true methods of herb preservation: drying it out and freezing it. We will discuss both methods.

Drying herbs works great when preserving hardy herbs like rosemary, thyme, sage, oregano and marjoram (the perfect herbs for spaghetti sauce!).

You can air dry the herbs or use a dehydrator. If you’re going to use a dehydrator refer your manufacturer’s recommendations. A dehydrator works great for high moisture herbs like mint and basil but they can still be aired dried if you don’t have a dehydrator. If you plan on airdrying the herbs first cut off how much want to preserve and rinse under cold water. Use a towel to dry off the herbs as much as possible. Next bunch some herbs together and use kitchen twine, string or anything else available to tie the bunch. We once used dental floss! After the herbs have been tied in a bunch, tie the other end of the string somewhere they can hang and have good air circulation. If it is not going to rain or be very windy we hang our herbs outside to dry. In the Arizona heat it takes a week at most to dry out, if your bunches are small enough. If your bunches are too big they won’t have enough circulation and can mold. Once the herbs have dried you can remove the stems and store the leaves in a container with a lid in a cool dark place. Herbs stay fresh in the pantry for about six months before they start to lose their potency.

What Else Can I Do?

Another option for air drying is laying them out on a screen. You’ll have to make sure they are held down by something so they do not blow away.

For more tender herbs like cilantro and parsley you can freeze them in oil or water.

First you want to wash and dry the herbs. Then cut into the size you prefer or leave them whole. Fill an ice cube tray with water or oil then add the herbs in. Place in freezer until frozen, then remove from the tray and store in a plastic bag. They will last in the freezer for several months. If you freeze in oil, you can just plop a cube or two into your pan and use it to cook your meal. It is almost like infused oil at that point.

Other options for herbs:

• Add to beverages
• Infused oils

How Switching Things Up Keeps Your Garden Thriving

If you’ve ever planted tomatoes in the same spot year after year, you’re not alone. It’s easy to get into a garden groove, especially when you find a bed that really works. But here’s the thing: your soil gets tired of the same routine. Just like your plants, it needs variety to stay healthy.

That’s where crop rotation comes in. And trust us, it’s easier than it sounds.

How to Do It, Why It Helps, and When It’s Totally Worth It

Let’s clear this up first: you don’t need compost to grow a garden. Your plants can survive just fine without it. But if you’ve ever looked at your garden and thought, “Huh, I was hoping for more tomatoes than this,” or wondered why your peppers didn’t grow quite as large as you expected, compost might be your missing ingredient.

What is Compost, Really?

Compost is basically nature’s way of recycling. It’s made from broken-down organic material, think veggie scraps, coffee grounds, dead leaves, and even eggshells. Over time, these materials decompose into a rich, earthy mix full of nutrients. When added to your garden, compost helps feed your plants naturally.

You can buy compost at most nurseries or garden centers. But honestly, you can make your own for free with a few basic ingredients and a little bit of patience.

Benefits of Trellising and How to Do It

Trellising offers many benefits for plants and are great if you have a small place. By
growing plants on trellises you can increase how much you grow without using more
ground space, but instead take advantage of your vertical space.

Benefits include:

• Saving space
• Create shade for other plants: when you put a trellis on the west or south side of your garden it will cast shade for other plants
• Reduction of disease and increased air circulation: when plants are trellised the chance of them contracting soil borne disease is less likely. Trellises also help
  with airflow so disease like powdery mildew are less likely.
• Less spoilage of vegetables: When vegetables or fruit grow on the ground there is a chance they can develop soggy bottom and get moldy.
• Easier to harvest: No need to bend down to harvest but can stand or sit in a chair
• Provide support to plants: some plants need to trellised to provide support while they are growing. Tomatoes and peppers benefit from a trellis or tomato cage.
• Aesthetically pleasing: Trellis can look beautiful when plants are growing on them. They can provide wonderful archways or cover a block wall.

We love a good trellis in a garden, with an arched trellis being our favorite.

How to Create a Simple Trellis

If you live in an apartment use the balcony railings as a trellis. As the plants begin to grow tie stems to the railing to keep the plants in place. Produce bag wire ties work great for this. Don’t make the ties too tight so the plants can continue to grow and move with the wind.

You can also buy a trellis from a gardening store or online. If your pot is big enough stick the trellis in the pot while the plant is still young so that you do not harm the roots. If your pot is not big enough sit the trellis next to it and tie stems to it as the plant begins to grow.

If your growing an in ground garden, a simple frame with cattle wire fence panels work great. Chicken wire is more difficult to use because the holes are smaller and may create problems for your plants. There are also many trellises you can buy online and use.

Be creative and use unexpected things like an old gate, broken wicker chair or something else you have laying around.

You can grow unexpected plants on a trellis like watermelon, luffa, gourds or cucumbers. If your melons begin to get too heavy tie something under them to give the fruit support. Think along the lines of your Mom’s old pantyhose that the hasn’t worn since the 90’s. You can also use the bags from the grocery store that the manager special’s veggies come in or when you buy mesh bags of produce.