Page 43 - Sonoma County Gazette April 2020

GARDEN cont’d from page 42
We will still get a sense of sanctuary and peace from a casually maintained garden, but the satisfaction that comes from it looking fabulous is priceless.
The Covid crisis has shut down many businesses, including Planet Horticulture. Employee layoffs are heartbreaking and widespread. Consider providing ongoing support to your gardeners and related support people while they are unable to support you and need help to support themselves. Eventually, we will get past this and rebuild it together.
Gardening makes it easy to practice social distancing while achieving something that affects the quality of life for you and your family. Involve your family members if they are looking for something to do.
You can also interact with your neighbors – from a distance. Ask for plants or offer plants and produce to your gardening neighbors – these can readily be accepted or provided safely – wash any shared surfaces. While our traditional supplies of gardening materials – plants, tools, supplements, etc. have been reduced, hopefully, some plant nurseries will be able to stay open as well as online sources.
Love your home and be kind.
Sonoma County Master Gardeners
Bloomin’ Backyards tour of six Petaluma gardens on May 17, 2020 have been canceled due to the COVID-19 crisis and its unknown outcome. More information about how to proceed is being developed and will be posted here as it becomes available.
Harvest for the Hungry Plant Sale - GOOD NEWS!
Harvest for the Hungry is still having a plant sale. In fact we have just up- potted thousands of peppers and tomatoes, as well as dozens of flowering and habitat plants, many of which are California natives. We are working on alternative ways to hold our sale while taking extra precautions to keep our customers and volunteers safe. We will post additional information on our Facebook page at facebook.com/HarvestForTheHungryGarden/. As we get closer to our April 25th plant sale, please check in early to mid-April for up-to- date news. Stay safe and healthy, and enjoy your garden: harvestgarden.org
Fresh herbs, along with radishes and scallions, salad greens are some of the easiest early spring crops to cultivate. TIn addition to beautifully colored and patterned lettuce, dwarf kale, spinach, bok choy, mâche (corn salad), mustard greens, arugula, etc. add nutrients, interest and tastiness to your spring salad.
Food Gardening - Greens!
Cool-weather salad greens can tolerate a light frost. Some (kale, collards) can tolerate a light freeze. By choosing the right varieties (e.g., “late bolting” or “heat-tolerant” on seed packets) you will be able to harvest greens into early summer and, depending on Mother Nature, beyond.
Plan to position tall or trellised summer vegetables to provide lettuce and greens respite from the mid-day sun once hot weather arrives.
Look for leafy greens that are “cut and come again” meaning that you harvest the outer leaves and the plant continues to provide a harvest over
a long period of time. If you desire a spring crop that has long “days to maturity” like bok choy, start out with a transplant versus direct seeding. Or look for a dwarf or “baby” variety of a crop that can be harvested sooner. .
Beets are a terrific spring and fall cool-weather crop. Both the greens and roots are edible, and the roots have a long storage life in the ground. If you have pesky nematodes, these microscopic worms are difficult to control and you may need to grow beets in pots or raised beds with fresh soil. In any event, friable soil is desirable for the best root development. A raised bed or a well- amended, rockless in-ground bed will provide a good growing
Applying one to two-inches of aged compost to your vegetable gardens will improve soil tilth and plant nutrition. Place the compost on top of the existing soil and let the spring rains and soil macroorganisms move nutrition down. In a drought year, plan to add three to four inches of mulch (e.g., compost, rice straw, leaf mold, etc.) to the top of the soil to keep it cool, retain moisture and to inhibit weed growth.
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