Image provided by: Friends of the Sandy Public Library; Sandy, OR
About Sandy post. (Sandy, Oregon) 1938-current | View Entire Issue (April 21, 1983)
'Density planting' is new gardening trend Garden Plan now fo r sum m er's crops by STEVE HUNTER of The Outlook staff To grow or not to grow a vegetable garden may be the question and some East County experts have the answers to why a garden is worth the tim e and effort. "Growing a garden is a lot of fun,” said Judy Berg of Drakes 7-Dees Nursery "Most everything grows well in this area,” said Lindy Pero of Original Landscapes and Garden Center In order to be a successful gardener, however, preparation is needed. “ Planning is real im portant," said Berg “ You need to pick a spot with as much sun as possible — with south exposure.” Berg said a small garden, about 10 by 10 feet, can handle tomatoes, lett- tuce, beets and other small crops. But a large garden, with about 200 square feet, is needed to handle such large crops as corn and potatoes. Once the garden site has been pick ed, the soil must be prepared for the crops. “ The best thing to work in is o rg a n ic m a t t e r , " s a id P e ro . “Sawdust, barkdust, peat moss and manure can all be used .” Berg said the clay soil in this area should have about two inches of organic m aterial worked into it. She advises to test the soil before working it, because if it is too wet, it is hard to work with. "Take a handful of the soil and squezze it,” said Berg. " I f the soil JUDY BERG Planning is important crumbles, it ’s okay to work. I f it, forms together like a snowball — i t ’s too e a rly .” Pero recommends designing the garden rows from east-to-west for m axim um sun exposure. She also said to be sure to plant the taller crops, such as corn, in the back of the garden so it does not shade the other crops. Some crops — called cold-weather crops — can be planted now, such as lettuce, peas, broccoli and cabbage. The warm -weather crops such as tomatoes, squashes, beans, com, peppers and others should be planted in M ay, “ It depends on the kind of sping we have,” said Berg about a planting date. " If we have a cold, wet spring — i t ’s best to wait until the end of M a y .” “ I f tomatoes are put in too ea rly,” said Berg, “ the cold can stunt their growth.” Tomatoes and some other crops can be started inside now and moved outside when the weather warms. Tomatoes and other vegetable plants can be started from seed, which costs about 49 cents a pack or they can be bought already started for a slightly higher price. Corn does take quite a bit of space and Berg believes to grow it suc cessfully at least five rows are need ed for pollenation. Berg said when planting seed it is important to fertlize the row, too, and after about six weeks fertilize it again. She said com needs a lot of fertilizer, but tomatoes should only be fertilized once. The seeds should be watered when planted and kept moist while under ground. It takes most of them about seven to 14 days to germinate. Pero suggests to also use insec ticide when planting seeds to kill the insects that are in with the seeds She said liquid or powder slugbait can be put around the vegetable rows and is real effective and safe to use. A couple of uncommon crops that Pero believes more persons might like to plant are asparagus and a r tichokes. Both grow back every year and look more like small shrubs than vegetables How often should a garden be watered? Both experts agree that it depends on the rainfall, but about once a week should do it. Tomatoes, however, need more water than the other crops. It is best to w ater the garden in the early morning. Pero said numerous books are available on how to garden and how to grow specific crops. If your garden plot is a little sm aller than you would prefer and you want increase the vegetable yield, try density plan ting this year. Density planting is just what it sounds like, says Ray McNeilan of Gresham, an Oregon State University Extension home gardening agent I t ’s a m atter of putting more plan tings in a sm aller area during the growing season Here are some density planting techniques. Use closer spacing between rows and within the row. Close spacing calls for more fertilizer and w ater than normal spac ing. It also means watching carefully to make sure the vegetables aren ’t too crowded, which could keep them from maturing. Rather than plant radishes and lettuce in rows 2 Vk feet apart, leave only one foot between rows. You may want to lim it the row length to 5 or 6 feet to allow access for weeding, thinning and fertilizing and harvesting. Or, leave the rows at their traditional width, but instead of planting the seeds in single file, scatter them over a 3 or 4 inch strip within the row. Use succession planting Plant one crop several times by spacing the plantings a week or more apart This w ill keep the vegetables from maturing at the same tim e and yield fresh vegetables for the table at a manageable rate. Sweet com, beans, leaf lettuce and turnips are some crops suited to this type of planting Another type of succession planting calls for replanting an area of harvested vegetables with a new vegetable. This works best with early and late crops An early crop of peas could be followed by a late crop of cauliflower, broccoli or kale. Lettuce, onions and radishes could be followed later in ’ he summer by crops of carrots, spinach, chard or cabbage. Plant fast and slow growing crops in the same row For in stance, plant radishes between cucumbers, lettuce between hills of com. Just be careful that the fast-growing vegetable doesn't grow so tall that it shades the slower-growing one. Use stakes or trellises to get bushy, sprawling plants such as tomatoes and cucumbers up in the air. Choose vegetables varieties that take up less space, such as bush-type squash If they are available, dw arf and m iniature varieties — for example, miniature watermelon — can be used • NOW . . . HUSQVARNA SAWS IN SANDY Tuesday Special! Crispy Deep-fried BURRITOS O to fM Ofr (M eat or Bean) Sandy, Oregon X 66X-4C22 Only 75‘.. G ood a t . . . Sandy • Gresham Estacada e Parkrose "lacofime* C ed ar D e ckin g C ed ar Fencing C e d a r S iding A la s k a Y e llo w C edar Fir - Pine P eno fin, o il-fin is h A g e d B a rkd u st unique safety helmet when you buy any new Husqvama. ONLY *334»» Fergusons Power Equip. Pioneer Square Sandy, Or 668-4727 'W . ««Il th«b««t and fix the reef.”
