Spring is FINALLY here. You know that it’s said that March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb, and that was really true this year. I think that our freezes are over although there are a couple of nights predicted to be down in the 40’s — but the high 40’s at least. We can all be planting pretty much any of the heat loving plants that we want right now – whether from seed or transplant, except for tomatoes. It’s too late to plant them from seed now because they won’t be able to produce much, if anything, before the intense heat sets in, slowing down or stopping production. Better to wait until June, then plant seeds for the fall harvest. Of course we can continue to plant all of the beans and Southern peas, but English peas and all of the pod-peas should be producing well now, but will begin to decline as the temperature rises. Now is a great time to start melons of all types. They will mature in the heat of summer and produce the sweet, juicy fruit that makes summer tolerable.
You can still plant Swiss chard, which is a wonderful green. I like the new, tender leaves in salads – they make a nice replacement for lettuce when it gets too hot for its liking – and all of the leaves can be cooked like any green. I must say that I really like it lightly steamed with garlic and onion and seasoned with a little ham or bacon. It’s delicious either way, raw or cooked. If you’ve never tried it before, plant some. It only takes a two or three plants to provide for the two of us. You certainly don’t need a row full. And chard is such a beautiful plant that you can plant it in the front yard as an accent plant as I do.
Some varieties, like Bionda de Lyon or Forkhook, have white midribs, others, like Rhubarb chard, have brilliant ruby colored midribs, or the neon pink of Flamingo chard. Then there are the varieties, like Bright Lights, that provide a delightful mixture of white, yellow, orange, pink and red. Of course you can continue planting collards all month long, as well as eggplant and all types of peppers, from seeds or transplants. Okra can be planted now without fear of losing it to the cold.
If you are in the mood, you can plant peanuts now, although that is one plant I’ve never tried to grow. You can plant squashes all month long and sweet potatoes after the 10th. If you want to try an unusual, but delicious squash – it’s really one of my favorites – try the scalloped squashes. The Ag Center recommends Patty Green, Peter Pan, and Sunburst as varieties that do well here. The spring vegetables are winding down now. All of my cauliflower has been harvested and there is quite a bit in the freezer. I am still harvesting the broccoli side shoots and will probably continue to do so until the summer heat makes them too bitter. Then, maybe I’ll pull them up, but not as long as they keep producing well.
Now is a good time to treat the soil with worm castings over any bare spots or side dress any plants that that are showing buds or fruiting. It won’t burn anything, but it can be a little pricey, so use it sparingly. Twenty percent seems to be the optimal quantity to get great growth without spending too much. Of course, if you ‘grow your own’ it doesn’t cost too much. I have a storage container that serves as my worm bed. Drill holes for air and give them good things to eat, that is, a great deal of the kitchen waste. Don’t feed the worms fats, or dairy, citrus, or any other acid food, like tomatoes, or meat, or anything that’s really rotten, and they don’t seem to like seeds. They thrive on most other things, anything green from lettuce to asparagus to zucchini. Add some slightly moistened, shredded paper, and shortly, you will have worm castings. You can look up worm bins on the internet and you will find a wide variety of designs, but I find the simple 5 gallon bucket or Rubbermaid-type storage container to be the simplest for me. Well, I’m going to cut this a little short tonight. This cast makes typing quite uncomfortable – not to mention full of errors that have to be fixed.
So, until next month when this horrible thing is off,
Good Gardening,
MaryAnn Armbruster
You can still plant Swiss chard, which is a wonderful green. I like the new, tender leaves in salads – they make a nice replacement for lettuce when it gets too hot for its liking – and all of the leaves can be cooked like any green. I must say that I really like it lightly steamed with garlic and onion and seasoned with a little ham or bacon. It’s delicious either way, raw or cooked. If you’ve never tried it before, plant some. It only takes a two or three plants to provide for the two of us. You certainly don’t need a row full. And chard is such a beautiful plant that you can plant it in the front yard as an accent plant as I do.
Some varieties, like Bionda de Lyon or Forkhook, have white midribs, others, like Rhubarb chard, have brilliant ruby colored midribs, or the neon pink of Flamingo chard. Then there are the varieties, like Bright Lights, that provide a delightful mixture of white, yellow, orange, pink and red. Of course you can continue planting collards all month long, as well as eggplant and all types of peppers, from seeds or transplants. Okra can be planted now without fear of losing it to the cold.
If you are in the mood, you can plant peanuts now, although that is one plant I’ve never tried to grow. You can plant squashes all month long and sweet potatoes after the 10th. If you want to try an unusual, but delicious squash – it’s really one of my favorites – try the scalloped squashes. The Ag Center recommends Patty Green, Peter Pan, and Sunburst as varieties that do well here. The spring vegetables are winding down now. All of my cauliflower has been harvested and there is quite a bit in the freezer. I am still harvesting the broccoli side shoots and will probably continue to do so until the summer heat makes them too bitter. Then, maybe I’ll pull them up, but not as long as they keep producing well.
Now is a good time to treat the soil with worm castings over any bare spots or side dress any plants that that are showing buds or fruiting. It won’t burn anything, but it can be a little pricey, so use it sparingly. Twenty percent seems to be the optimal quantity to get great growth without spending too much. Of course, if you ‘grow your own’ it doesn’t cost too much. I have a storage container that serves as my worm bed. Drill holes for air and give them good things to eat, that is, a great deal of the kitchen waste. Don’t feed the worms fats, or dairy, citrus, or any other acid food, like tomatoes, or meat, or anything that’s really rotten, and they don’t seem to like seeds. They thrive on most other things, anything green from lettuce to asparagus to zucchini. Add some slightly moistened, shredded paper, and shortly, you will have worm castings. You can look up worm bins on the internet and you will find a wide variety of designs, but I find the simple 5 gallon bucket or Rubbermaid-type storage container to be the simplest for me. Well, I’m going to cut this a little short tonight. This cast makes typing quite uncomfortable – not to mention full of errors that have to be fixed.
So, until next month when this horrible thing is off,
Good Gardening,
MaryAnn Armbruster
MaryAnn Armbruster, Ph.D.
MaryAnn Armbruster, Ph.D. is a certified Advanced Master Gardener and member of the Lafayette Parish Master Gardeners.
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