Helpful Hints for Cool Weather Crops

 You can grow lots of yummy vegetables in the Spring and Fall like lettuce, spinach, kale, peas, cabbage, and kholrabi to name a few. However, as I myself am still learning, there are some helpful

tricks to ensure gardening success and I want to share with you some of what I'm learning first hand. 

It's super important to know your climate. If you live in the North wear temps rarely, if ever get over 90 degrees, then you can grow cool weather crops all summer, no problem! If you live in the South were it rarely gets below 20 degrees in the winter, then you can grow cool weather crops through the winter. However, if you live in the middle like I do (Zone 6b) then both the winter and summer are no good for cool weather veggies. The ideal time to be growing them is April - June and Sept - October and that can be tricky since many of these veggies need more time to grow. Here is how you can get around that. 

First, go for faster growing varieties. You'll notice that on the seed packets, it will tell you how long it takes to grow. Be sure to pick out the varieties that have the fewest "days to maturity". 

Second, consider buying seedlings from the nursery. I know, I hate spending the extra money too and would rather just use seeds but to get a plant to maturity in the days we have available, it would really help you out. 

Third, conversely, you can set up a seed starting station in your house to grow your own seedlings. This will require special grow lights but the investment could be worth it over time. In the summer, I started fall crops outdoors in the shade in a container. It worked great until the slugs found it. So next year I'll try again with some slug repellant. 

Fourth, you'll need to start some fall crops in July while it's still hot. I always plant them near my hose so it's easy to keep them well watered which will help them combat the heat. I also mulch them as soon as they're about 4 inches tall to help keep the soil cool. Some people also use shade cloth which would help as well. 

Finally, you can also extend the growing season in the fall by mulching around your plants or covering them with a clear covering. 

Harvesting fresh veggies in the fall and winter is very rewarding. It's worth the extra effort to make it happen. What do you like growing in the Spring and Fall? Feel free to write in the comments below!

How To Grow Onions and Radishes

 To be frank, onions and radishes have nothing in common besides being edible, growing under the ground and enjoying cool weather. However, they are the last two Spring vegetables I'm writing about and are easy enough I didn't feel they needed separate posts. If you enjoy radishes and onions then rejoice! because they are both relatively easy to grow. 

Radishes are a great veggie for beginners. You can buy seeds for cheap, toss them on some soft soil and water. In 4-5 weeks, you'll have radishes to eat. Honestly, the only down side is that a lot of people don't like them. I enjoy them grated up in a salad so I'll grow a few but not too many. They are great succession crops, you can just toss out a few more seeds every few weeks and have a steady supply of radishes all spring and again in the fall. Here in York County, I'll start planting them towards the end of March and again in Mid August. 

Onions are a little more tricky. Growing onions from seeds takes a LONG time. You have to be willing to start them indoors and now that it's the end of February, it's really too late for that. I always buy onion sets. These are little baby onions that you can plant out in mid March and let them grow up. Onion sets have the advantage of being dirt cheap. You can find them at any garden center or hardware store. White and purple onions are best for fresh eating. I always get yellow onion sets because they are the best for storage. 

Plant onions out as soon as the ground is workable. I plant mine around St. Patricks Day. Onions NEED full sun. If you skimp on the sunlight, you will get small onions. Seriously, give them at least 8 hours of sunlight. They also need rich, well drained soil. I will sprinkle some general purpose fertilizer over the ground after I've planted the sets. Later around Memorial Day, I give them another feeding. When the tops start falling over, it's a sign the onions are ready to harvest. For me, that's usually around the 4th of July. (Yes, it's typical for gardeners to do things around holidays. ) If you leave them in the ground for too long they will start to rot. 

If you grow a lot of onions and want to store them, you'll need to cure them. You can read about that here. 

The only pest I've ever had for radishes are rabbits. They can be easily deterred by chicken wire fencing. I've never had any pests on onions. The biggest problem I have with those is root rot from too much rain. 

You can totally grow your own radishes and onions. Do you have any favorite tips? Be sure to write about them below. 

More Peas Please!

Mature pea plants.

 My 7 year old daughter loves peas. I mean, LOVES peas. You don't even have to cook them, she will eat them raw. Now, if your kid who can be a bit picky loves a certain kind of vegetable, that's good reason to grow it, right? Fortunately, peas are really easy to grow. Here's how.

Peas are another kind of cool weather vegetable. They don't do very well in hot July weather. Here in York County, PA it's easy to grow 2 crops of them a year, once in spring and once in fall. It is important that you get them planted on time. The plants will likely die in the hot July sun and at a certain point in the fall, they will stop growing all together due to a lack of sunlight. So, in Spring I plant peas between St. Patricks Day and the first week of April, no later. In summer, the second planting goes in around the end of July or beginning of August. 

There are basically two kinds of peas, those you grow to eat the pods (snap peas or snow peas) and those you grow to eat the seeds (traditional peas). I grow mostly traditional peas since that's what my daughter loves but snap peas ripen quicker and are delicious. 

Pea seedlings

Peas don't require any special kind of soil. They aren't heavy feeders so I wouldn't worry about fertilizing them unless you soil is truly deplorable. Adding compost or other organic soil amendments (read, manure) is always a good idea. Their water needs are also typical. In the Spring, I don't need to water them but in the summer, as with all fall crops I'm trying to start, I need to water them frequently due to hot dry weather. 

What peas do need is structure. They grow up and do best when they have a fence, tee pee, or trellis to support them. I've even used tomato cages with good success. 

Finally, once your seedlings get to about 4 inches tall, as with most veggies, it's a great idea to mulch them with either shredded leaves, straw or even dried out lawn cuttings. This will help the soil retain moisture and will also keep down the weeds. 

That's really all there is to it. Peas are a great veggie for the beginner grower. Do you grow peas? What kind do you like? Feel free to comment in the section below. 

Grow Your Own Carrots

 Carrots are a very popular vegetable. Most people eat them in one form or another and it's one vegetable even kids are willing to eat. My kid being a  big exception. Anyways, carrots are delicious raw, steamed, boiled or roasted. Even better, you can grow your own carrots twice a year! 

First off, carrots are cool weather vegetables so they grow best in the Spring and Fall. Hence, you can grow them twice a year. 

Secondly, carrots MUST be grown from see
d. You can't transplant a carrot because the root (the edible part) will be all messed up. You can find carrot seeds just about anywhere in the spring but not in the fall so be sure to buy enough for both seasons. Spring is good for smaller sized carrots (fingerling, parisienne, danvers half long, etc) and fall is better for full sized carrots because they'll have longer to grow. 

Third, when you plant them, be sure to break up the soil well and remove all rocks. Then scatter the seed carefully and cover with a thin layer of soil. Remember, they can't be transplanted and they will HAVE to be thinned so don't over seed them. Keeping the soil damp in the Spring shouldn't be a problem but it will be difficult in the fall. In York county, PA where I live, fall carrots should be planted the end of July so getting the seeds started and keeping them damp is a challenge. 

Fourth, carrots are notorious for taking a long time to germinate. Give them at least 2 weeks before giving up on them. Honestly though, I've never had trouble getting carrots to germinate in spring or fall. You just need to be patient. 

Fifth, when the seedlings are around 2-4 inches tall you HAVE to thin them. Each carrot needs at least 1 inch of personal space or the roots can't fill out. 

Sixth, not only is hot summer weather not good for carrots to grow in, it also brings bugs. I always pull all my carrots out by the end of June no matter what because if I leave anything in the ground, the bugs will chew it up. I've not had that problem in the fall and can leave the carrots in the ground until January if I wish. 

And that, my friends is all there is to it. I've never had to treat any pests or diseases on carrots in my garden, just so long as I don't leave them in all summer. Also, fun fact,  carrot leaves make nice greenery in cut flower arrangements. So try growing your own carrots! You can totally do it. Feel free to comment about your experiments with carrots in the comment section below.