Vegetable Production

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Vegetable Production
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Objectives

1. To learn the importance of vegetable production
2. To learn the environmental factors involved in
   vegetable production
3. To understand marketing practices of vegetable
   production

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Vegetables

• Where do vegetables in grocery stores come from?
• What were grocery stores like in 1945? 1900?
  1776?
• Why did stores change?

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History

• Around 8000 B.C. men and
• women began planting grains
• and keeping domestic animals
• Potatoes and other crops were
• cultivated 10,000 years ago
• All modern crop plants are
• derived from wild plants

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Historical Crops

• Early cultivated crops in the Americas included
  maize, avocados, squash and chili peppers

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Types of Vegetable Markets

• Fresh market
• truck farms
• farmers market
• pick-your-own operation
• Processing
• canned vegetables
• frozen vegetables
• tomato sauce, ketchup, etc.

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Types of Vegetable Markets

• Forcing (greenhouse production)
• hothouse tomatoes, peppers, etc.
• hydroponic lettuce
• Niche markets
• specialty vegetables
• ethnic foods
• herbs

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Nutritional Importance

• Source of vitamins and minerals
• Vitamin A
• Vitamin C
• Beta-carotene
• Calcium and iron
• Fiber
• Antioxidants

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Vegetable Classification

• Vegetables are often grouped by
• Use - salad vegetables
• Appearance - green, leafy vegetables
• Edible parts - root crops
• Sensitivity to temperature - cool season
  vegetables or warm season vegetables

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Site Selection

• Full sun
• No competition from trees
• Windbreak for protection if needed

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Soils

• Vegetables can be grown in a wide range of soils
• Clay soils are heavy, can be slow to warm in the
  spring, are rich in nutrients and can hold water
  well
• Sandy soils warm up quickly and drain well, but
  nutrients leach out easily

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Soils

• Addition of organic amendments can break up clay
  soils and increase water holding capacity of
  sandy soils
• A deep, loamy, friable soil is ideal
• Vegetables extract
• nutrients from the soil,
• especially nitrogen,
• which must be replaced
• by fertilizer, organic
• materials or green
• manure crops

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Water

• Most gardens need supplemental watering,
  especially at certain times of fruit development
• Vegetables have high water content

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Environmental Conditions

• Frost dates
• Temperature range
• Rainfall amounts
• Humidity
• Wind
• Heat units

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Variety Selection

• Select varieties which are adapted to climatic
  factors of a specific region
• May include insect and disease resistance

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Preparation for Planting

• Remove weeds and
• existing vegetation
• Test the soil
• Apply a 3 to 5 layer of organic amendment
• Add fertilizer according to soil test
  recommendation
• Till amendments into the soil
• 8 to 12
• Rake the area

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Planting

• Vegetables can be grown from
• seed or from transplants
• What are advantages of using
• seed? Transplants?
• Soil temperature affects germination
• Seeds must be kept moist until seedlings emerge

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Planting

• Hardy plants are resistant to frost and can be
  planted before the last killing frost, e.g.
  broccoli, onions
• Tender plants are killed or damaged by frost,
  e.g. tomatoes, peppers
• Check planting dates for your region

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Planting

• Cool season crops
• Tolerant of frost
• Grow in spring or fall
• Require cool temperatures
• Onions, broccoli, cauliflower

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Planting

• Warm season crops
• can be killed or damaged by frost
• planted after the last killing frost
• need warm temperatures
• tomatoes, pepper, squash, watermelon

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Planting Methods

• Plant tall plants at the north end of the garden
  so they will not shade smaller plants

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Planting Methods

• Provide support for climbing or trailing
  vegetables to use space efficiently and keep
  fruit off the ground

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Spacing

• Plant at recommended spacing
• When planting seed, thin seedlings to recommended
  spacing to prevent crowding

• Interplant a fast growing crop with a slower
  growing crop, harvesting the rapid growing crop
  as the slower one grows

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Planting Methods

• Diseases and pests may be associated with
  specific families or groups of plants
• Rotate the planting location within the garden
  from year to year

Beans
Cabbage
Corn
Potato
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Watering

• Soak thoroughly rather than
• frequent light watering
• Water early in the day to let foliage dry and
  prevent diseases
• Use drip irrigation to conserve water
• Mulch around plants to conserve moisture

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Fertilizing

• Depends on crop, soil and watering frequency
• Incorporate into the soil before planting
• Top-dressing is the application of additional
  fertilizer after the plant is established
• Water soluble liquid fertilizer can also be used

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Fertilizing

• Green, leafy crops require nitrogen
• Fruit and pod development requires phosphorus
• Root crops require potassium

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Controlling Pests

• Monitor crops daily for insects diseases
• Plant resistant varieties
• Keep plants healthy to minimize plant stress
• Remove plant debris and dead or diseased plants

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Harvesting

• Harvest at peak maturity
• Harvest early in the day
• Harvest regularly to promote further fruit
  development

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Benefits of a Home Garden

• Source of fresh produce
• Reduces grocery bills
• Provides exercise
• Stress relief
• Childrens projects
• Social interaction in community gardens

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Assessment

• Select a garden site located in
• a. full sun
• b. full shade
• c. partial shade
• An example of a cool season crop is
• a. tomatoes b. peppers
• c. broccoli d. squash
• The best time to water the vegetable garden is
• a. mid-day b. evening
• c. night time d. early in the day

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Assessment

• Green leafy vegetables require high quantities of
• a. nitrogen b. phosphorus
• c. potassium d. magnesium
• Plants that withstand frost are
• a. tender
• b. hardy
• c. annual
• To minimize disease problems,
• a. select resistant varieties
• b. remove dead plant debris
• c. rotate crops
• d. all of the above

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Vegetable Production
Acknowledgements Decoteau, Dennis R. Vegetable
Crops. New Jersey Prentice Hall, 2000. Swiader,
John M., et al. Producing Vegetable Crops.
Illinois Interstate Publishers, 1992. Acquaah,
George. Horticulture Principles and Practices.
New Jersey Prentice Hall, 1999. Sandra Balch
Production Coordinator Jennifer Donaldson
Graphics Coordinator Geoff Scott Production
Manager G.W. Davis Executive Producer
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