DESIGN     INSTALL      ENJOY

PREPARATION

Before you start, get organized.

SOIL

FERTILIZER

SUPPORT

ORGANIC COMPOST. Use well-balanced organic soil to improve fertility and structure of native soil.  Organic matter should make up approximately ten percent of the garden soil.  Organic matter provides a continuous source of nitrogen and other nutrients required for healthy plants.  Organisms in organic soil (worms, insects and microbes) carry out the process of decay, making nutrients available to root systems in the most efficient manner.  Work organic matter into the native soil about 8” deep.

GOT SEAWEED?  Yes, you’ll want something from the sea for your land-locked vegetable garden.  Powdered organic seaweed (kelp meal) releases nutrients gradually into the soil.  Liquid organic seaweed makes the nutrients available immediately to the plant.  Because seaweed contains 60 micronutrients (iron, zinc, copper, boron, manganese, and more), it will stimulate root growth, reduce transplant shock, promote more rapid budding, and provide protection against frost.  Research suggests that seaweed also contains antitoxins which help plants fend off viruses and pests.  This is not a complete fertilizer because it does not provide nitrogen and phosphorus, but it provides many benefits for both soil and plants, and should be a part of any organic gardener’s regimen.

NITROGEN. Vegetables usually require the most nitrogen once they have grown considerably and begun to set fruit.  The application of too much nitrogen before this reduces flowering and production.

FRAMES. Use trellis structures, teepees, tripods, and lattice fences (1) to provide support for climbing plants, (2) add vertical accents to the garden plot, and (3)  save space by growing plants upwards, allowing room for additional plants in the vegetable garden.

BEAN - Pole Bean ‘Blue Lake’ (Phaseolus vulgaris):   high quality bean.  The dark green pods are stringless and fiberless at all growth stages, filled with seeds, and an incomparable flavor.  Sow after danger of frost has passed.  Better than dwarf varieties, but requires a frame for climbing.  Days to maturity:  60

BEET ‘Red  Ace’ (Beta vulgaris): sweet and delicious, edible leaves.  Vigorous, early to produce, maintaining flavor with size.  This is a cool weather crop, so sow in early spring as soon as the soil can be worked.  Days to maturity:  50

CARROT ‘Scarlet Nantes’ or ‘Nelson’ (Daucus carota): a short, tubular-shaped carrot, deep orange, sweet and crisp.  It roots and grows quickly.  Ideal for small urban jungles.  Days to maturity:  58

Favorite Vegetables to Grow from Seed

best taste,  greatest yield, easy-to-grow vegetables for the Southeast

CUCUMBER ‘Diva’ (Cucumis sativus):  AAS winner.  Miniature cucumbers, sweet and delicious, with a no-peel skin, no bitterness. Sow after all danger of frost has passed.  Thrives in the heat.  Pick often to promote abundant production.  Days to maturity:  58

KALE ‘Red Russian’ (Brassica napus pabularia): new leaves are good in salads, produces more leaves for months afterwards.  Easily grown.  Days to maturity:  25 baby leaves, 55 mature

LETTUCE ‘Green Oak Leaf’ or ‘Red Oak Leaf’ (Lactuca sativa): keep cutting, and these plants keep on growing!  Sweet leaves, never bitter.  Mature and baby leaves are equally delicious.  Easy to grow.  Days to maturity:  28 baby leaves, 48 mature

PEA ‘Sugar Sprint’ (Pisum sativum ‘Sugar Spring’) (snap pea): stringless, sweet and crunchy peas and pea tips.  Sow early spring.  The two-foot vines do not require support.  Good heat tolerance and disease resistance.  Abundant producer, spring and fall.  Days to maturity:  58

MIZUNA ‘Kyoto’ (Brassica rapa): a spicy Japanese green with serrated, fringed leaves and excellent taste.  Very easy to grow, tolerant of most weather conditions.  Keep picking to prevent flowering, and it will produce for months.  Days to maturity:  38

TOMATO ‘Sungold’:  a superb cherry tomato, ripens from green to gold, but matures to apricot-orange with an intense sugary taste.  Slow to start, but yields non-stop till frost.  Very reliable.  Days to maturity:  65

SWISS CHARD ‘Ruby Red’ or ‘Rhubarb’ (Beta vulgaris): Featured in French potager gardens like Château de  Villandry, this chard produces uniform garnet-red stalks and full crumpled leaves.  Very productive member of the beet family.   Sow late spring to avoid frost damage to new seedlings.  Days to maturity:  32 baby leaves, or 58 bunching leaves.

ZUCCHINI ‘Costata Romanesco’ (Cucurbita pepo): delicious flavor and texture.  Nutty and firm, can be eaten raw or cooked, the flowers are edible.  Best picked when small.  Days to maturity:  50

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