Growing Vegetables

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Growing Vegetables in Collin County
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Getting Started Begin planning Early!

• Ask yourself these questions
• How much space do you have?
• How large of a garden do you have time to
  maintain?
• Raised beds Yes, No?
• Organic vs. Conventional
• (Will the plants know the difference?)

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Raised Bed Gardening
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Vegetable Gardening in Containers

• limited by insufficient space or an unsuitable
  area
• window sill, a patio, a balcony or a doorstep
• easily overcome problems with soil-borne
  diseases, nematodes or poor soil conditions
• almost any vegetable that will grow in a typical
  backyard garden will also do well as a
  container-grown plant
• Good examples tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, green
  onions, beans, lettuce, squash, radishes and
  parsley

http//aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/conta
iner/container.html
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Square Foot Garden

• Limited space can be productive.
• Choose smaller varieties

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Location, Location, Location

• Vegetable gardens grow best in a level area with
  a loose, well-drained soil.
• Vegetable gardens do best with eight hours per
  day of full sun exposure.
• The garden should be
• easily accessible.
• Accessible water supply is mandatory for success.
• (excluding lawn sprinklers)
• Make room for a compost pile nearby.

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Poor site
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Draw a map.Use the information you wrote down to
get a rough idea of how to space your plants or
seeds, then start marking off the areas.
N
2 ft
Bush beans
2 ft
Tomatoes
8 ft
PATH
PATH
Radishes
Lettuce
Peppers
Onions
4 ft
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North/South Orientation
W
E
NORTH

• Laying beds on a North/South axis is useless if
  the beds are shaded by trees, fences or buildings
  on the North side.
• If possible try and leave three times the height
  of any tree, fence or building in distance from
  your vegetable patch. By doing this your
  vegetables will get full sunlight all year round.

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Positioning Crops in a Garden
Shadows
EAST
WEST
Plant short to tall
growing plants
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Poor Placement
Crops Should Have Been Reversed
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COLLIN COUNTY SOIL

• Shallow
• Sticky
• Slow-draining
• Low in organic matter

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First things first. . .HAVE A SOIL TEST DONE!
Download form atsoiltesting.tamu.edu
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SOIL PREPARATION

• Components of Ideal Vegetable Garden Soil
• Deep
• Well-drained
• Friable
• Rich in organic matter

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Add organic matter

• As a rule of thumb, till in 4-to 6 inches of
  organic material such as compost, manure and
  shredded hard-wood mulch. When adding organic
  matter to soil, supply enough to physically
  change the soil structure.

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2 Important rules for all gardeners ? Work the
soil only when it is dry enough not to stick to
the garden tools ? Try to never stand in the
planting area of the garden.
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FERTILIZATION

• Nitrogen is necessary for all vegetative growth.
• Phosphorus is essential to cell division, root
  development, flowering and fruiting.
• Stunted growth and purple or dark discolorations
  are common symptoms of phosphorus deficiency.
• The role of potassium is not well-defined, but
  experience shows that plants cannot grow properly
  without it.

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EARTH KIND FERTILIZATION

• Using a product containing 50 slow-release
  fertilizer, a sulfur-coated or plastic-covered
  urea
• Makes more nitrogen available to the plant.
• Resists leaching or washing through the soil into
  the water supply.
• Decreases risk of fertilizer burn.

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When to Water

• Determine when to water by examining the soil,
  not the plants.
• If sufficient moisture is available an inch
  beneath the surface, wait a couple of days to
  water.
• When watering, soak garden soil to a depth of six
  inches.
• An inch or two applied once a week is usually
  sufficient for most vegetable gardens in Texas.

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Watering Methods

• Drip Irrigation delivers water efficiently to the
  base of each plant.
• Soaker hoses deliver water slowly and with very
  little loss to evaporation.
• Hand watering allows you to water only when the
  plants need it.

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Pests and Disease

• Your plants can live with a Yellow Leaf or two --
  So can You!
• Use an IPM (Integrated Pest Management) program.
  
• Use Plants that are Resistant to Disease, i.e.
  Tomatoes with VF, VFN,VFNT Designations.
• Rotate Vegetable Crops from Year to Year helps
  prevent buildup of disease and pest problems.

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Seed Packs
Plant Name Description
READ

• Ideal Light Conditions
• Days to germination
• Proper Spacing (This helps with ease of planting,
  harvesting and health)
• Plant Height
• Directions can include special planting
  directions, when to plant, and other tips Vary by
  distributor

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Recommended Vegetable Cultivars and Planting
Dates for Collin County
READ
http//ccmgatx.org/Plants/Vegetables.asp
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Warm Season Vegetables
Peppers Tomatoes Beans Peas Cucumbers Corn Squash
Cantaloupe Watermelon
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PeppersCapsicum annuum

• Peppers are a warm season crop that will grow in
  most areas of Texas.
• They grow in all types of soils but do best in
  heavier, well-drained soils.
• Peppers should be planted in areas with at least
  6 hours of sunlight each day.

Sweet Peppers
Hot Peppers
Hungarian WaxLong Red CayenneJalapenoTAM Mild
JalapenoHidalgo Serrano
Bell TowerShamrockCalifornia WonderKeystone
Resistant GiantYolo Wonder
Varieties
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Tomatoes are the most popular garden vegetable
in Texas.
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Planting Suggestions

• Buy plants rather than growing them from seed
  since most families need only a few plants. Buy
  healthy, green plants 6-8 inches tall.
• Do not set out tomato plants until all danger of
  frost has passed.
• Transplant fall tomatoes in the garden about 100
  days before the first expected frost.
• Make the transplant holes 3-4 inches deep, and
  2-4 feet apart in the row.
• Space rows at least 3 feet apart for staked or
  caged plants. For unsupported plants, leave 4-5
  feet between rows.

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Plant Deep! Bury 80 of the transplant!

• If possible, set out tomatoes on raised beds of
  soil about 6 inches high.
• Transplant tomatoes in the evening or on a cloudy
  day. This will keep the plants from wilting and
  getting too dry. Before planting, fill the
  transplant holes with water and let it soak in.

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Care During the Season

• WATERING
• Water the tomato plants slowly and deeply to help
  grow a strong root system.
• Do not let tomatoes wilt severely, or yields and
  fruit quality will be low.
• MULCHING
• Mulch the tomatoes for highest yields. Place a
  2-3 inch layer of organic material such as
  compost, leaves or hay around the growing plants.
  Mulching helps stop weed growth and water loss
  from the soil.

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Care Continued

• STAKING
• When staking tomatoes, put the stake in shortly
  after transplanting to lessen root damage. A
  6-foot stake set 10 inches deep in the soil will
  work well. As the plant grows taller, tie it
  loosely to the stake every 12 inches with pieces
  of rag or twine.
• Prune the staked tomatoes to produce a more
  orderly vine. Remove the small shoots which grow
  out of the point where each leaf joins the main
  stem. Remove the shoots by bending them sideways
  until they snap. See figure 4. For two main
  vines, remove all but the lowest shoot. It will
  develop into a second branch.

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Care Continued

• CAGING
• Make a good cage with a piece of concrete
  reinforcement wire 5 feet tall and 6 feet wide.
  Put cages over the young plants. Push the cages
  down into the soil to keep them from blowing
  over. This way, the vine has support without
  being tied. Tomatoes growing in cages do not need
  to be pruned.
• WEEDS
• If you need to control weeds, then cultivate or
  hoe around the plants. Work the soil only deep
  enough to kill the weeds. Do not hurt the tomato
  plant roots.

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Fertilize when fruiting begins

• When the first fruits are about 1 inch in size,
  scatter 1 level tablespoon of fertilizer around
  each plant. Scatter it about 6 inches from the
  stalks. Work it lightly into the soil. Water the
  plants after fertilizing. Fertilize them every
  3-4 weeks with 1-2 level tablespoons of
  fertilizer.

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Beans
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• Planting
• Plant beans in the spring after all danger of
  frost has passed.
• For a good fall crop, plant them 10 to 12 weeks
  before the first expected frost. Use 1/4 to 1/2
  pound of seed for each 100 feet of row of green
  beans.
• If possible, use fungicide-treated seed to
  protect the seedling from disease until it is up
  and growing. Do not eat treated seed.

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• Corn Plant in rows 24-36 inches apart, 1-2
  inches deep and 9-12 inches between plants. Hill
  Plants as they Grow. Corn is a heavy water user.
• Okra Easy to grow in hot Texas! Plant 1 inch
  deep, 1-2 feet between plants and 3 feet between
  rows. Harvest often while pods are tender.
• Cucumber Plant ½ Inch Deep, 8-12 Inches Between
  Plants, Best to Provide Fence for Climbing Vines.
  Needs lots of moisture, no wet feet
• Squash Plant 1-2 inches Deep, 2-4 Feet Between
  Plants, Squash Bugs and borers Can be a Problem
  (see handout

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Cool Season Vegetables
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Vegetables for early spring FEBRUARY- PLANTING

• Radishes
• Rutabaga
• Mustard
• Leeks
• Kohlrabi
• Kale
• Collards
• Swiss Chard
• Cabbage
• Asparagus

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• Beets 2 Inches Between Seeds Or Broadcast
  Seeds and Rake-in, Use Hoe to Firm Soil, Thin
  Plants.
• Lettuce and Spinach Thin to 2 Inches Between
  Plants. High temperatures causes lettuce turn
  bitter and bolt best in early spring
• Peas (Snap) Same as Beans Only 2 Inches Deep,
  2-6 Inches between Plants.
• Carrots Require lots of moisture to germinate-
  Broadcast seeds, Thin Plants. Select varieties
  that are shorter and appropriate for North
  Central Texas.
• Broccoli- Set out transplants 14-24 apart

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Bulbs and Tubers
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If you have a plant or landscaping question Call
our Horticulture help line at 1-972-548-4232 or
Metro [phone], x 4232 Email us at
collin-tx_at_tamu.edu