Check the watering schedule, sign up for a date/time, and then read this.

Keep these things in mind and the rest follows logically:

– For proper growth plants need adequate light, water, and air circulation.

– Plants take up nutrients through their roots. If the soil dries and pulls away from the roots, the plant starves.

– Soil that is wet only on top encourage plant roots to remain close to the surface making the plant vulnerable to drought, disease, and damage from hoeing, if the ground is bare.

1 – Water as infrequently as possible.

Constant moistening of only the upper layer of soil encourages shallow root development and can lead to disease.

Stick your finger in the soil before watering. If it’s damp 4”–6” down, you can skip watering.

A raised bed should be irrigated with 1”–2” of water or rainfall equivalent once or twice a week. During the summer more frequent watering may be needed.

Our soil is rich in organic matter and we’ll be mulching. Both these things encourage the soil to hold water.

2 – Water thoroughly.

Give the plants a steady soaking, enough to make the soil wet 4”–6” down.

(About 2–4 gallons of water per square yard of growing surface, or about 4–8 gallons per one of our raised beds.)

3 – Water deeply.

Soak the ground around the plants. You want to water every last little rootlet so the plant takes up optimum nutrients. (Use low water pressure and put your thumb over the end of the hose to reduce water force.)

4 – Water the soil (roots), not the leaves.

Whenever possible, water the soil directly around the plant rather than spraying the plant with a hose.

Wet foliage increases a plant’s susceptibility to fungal diseases.

Our garden is planted densely; the plants’ leaves won’t dry out and air circulation will be impeded as the plants grow larger.

Containers:

Monitor containers daily. Allow potting soil to dry to about 3” deep before watering.

Stick the hose under the plant, between the plant and container, when watering and use low water pressure.

Water a container to its maximum capacity to ensure that water has soaked through the entire container.

In case you weren’t in the play area this afternoon, we’ve got trellises, one up, one constructed but not up yet . . . more supports may be coming soon, we’ll see what’s needed!

In the works, and then UP:

And also, lettuce is growing like crazy, and the beets and sugar snap peas we planted a week ago today have sprouted! 

Free urban gardening workshops, info sessions, kid activities

Saturday, May 12, 2012 9am – 6pm 

From the Farmers Almanac Gardening by the Moon Calendar

May 2012
5th-7th Plant Carrots, Beets, Onions, Turnips, And Other Root Crops At This Time. Cabbage, Lettuce, And Other Leafy Vegetables Will Do Well. Planting Seedbeds. Good For Transplanting.

8th-9th Do No Planting.

10th-12th Plant Late Beets, Potatoes, Onions, Carrots, And Other Root Crops.

13th-14th Kill Plant Pests On These Barren Days.

15th-16th Favorable Time For Planting Late Root Crops. Also Good For Vine Crops That Can Be Planted Now. Set Strawberry Plants. Good Days For Transplanting.
17th-18th Poor Planting, Fine For Cultivating Or Spraying.
19th-20th Favorable Planting Days: First Day For Root Crops. Good Day For Transplanting. Last Day For Beans, Corn, Cotton, Tomatoes, Peppers, And Other Aboveground Crops.
21st-22nd Any Seed Planted Now Will Tend To Rot.
23rd-24th Most Favorable For Planting Corn, Cotton, Okra, Beans, Peppers, Eggplant, And Other Aboveground Crops. Plant Seedbeds And Flower Gardens.
25th-29th A Barren Period. Good For Killing Plant Pests, Cultivating, Or Taking A Short Vacation.
30th-31st Excellent Time For Planting Corn, Beans, Peppers, And Other Aboveground Crops. Favorable For Sowing Hay, Fodder Crops, And Grains. Good For Planting Flowers.

Read about June and more here

The “Concord Village Play Area Garden” is a member, and we are thus invited to lots of great give-aways and events.  Here’s a schedule of events through the summer that we recently received:

Anything look interesting?  Call Greenbridge at (718) 623-7250 to get more info, if you’d like!

Ansley

Here’s a revised veggie garden layout from Shari with additions from me:

And here’s a tentative plan for each of the beds:

Any thoughts?  There would also need to be a smaller trellis at the end of the community picking bed to support the sugar snap peas . . . 

Deb, you mentioned having Japanese eggplant; don’t know if those are different from regular eggplant, in that you might plant more than one per square foot; if they needs supports, probably not.  Do you want more than 2 squares for them?  If yes, we could reduce the space devoted to peas at the end of the trellis bed . . .  

Ansley