- North Shore News - 47 | mea eae tthe tan TW dea ow to grow more vegetables in less space SOMETHING AMAZING is happening in vegetable gardens. Despite a trend toward shrinking lot sizes with less space available for gardens, innovative gardeners are harvesting just as much — if not more — than before. The yield-increasing tips described below are becoming in- creasingly important as smaller gardens become the norm. Besides those techniques, here are some other factors to consider as you develop a plan for this season’s vegetable garden. @ Determine how much = space you have available for growing vegetables. If this is your first garden, make measurements. Be as accurate as possible, then transfer the measurements onto graph paper. @ Make a list of the vegetables you want. Take into account the likes and dislikes of family members, so you aren’t left with piles of unwanted produce. After you know which vegetables you want, mark the locations of rows on the graph paper, and the names of the vegetables that will occupy those rows. @ Avoid mid-season gaps in the garden by planning ahead. Again, the techniques outlined here will help you achieve this. @ Plant at the proper times. Some vegetables are long-season types, which take the entire season to grow, flower and produce mature fruit. Cantaloupes, watermelons, winter squash, potatoes, tomatoes, corn, cucumbers, purnpkins, pep- pers and eggplant fall into this category. Short-season vegetables prac- tically explode out of the ground, and can be replanted several times over a season. Some of these in- clude radishes, beans, lettuces, beets and carrots. Whether a plant is a cool- season crop or i warm-season crop must also be considered. Cool-season crops can be planted in the spring as soon as you can work the soil. Warm-scason crops must be planted after the threat of frost has passed. Raised beds Raised beds can be enclosed or merely mounds of improved soil. These types of beds are ideal because crops grow in loose, fer- tile soil. The beds are made by moun- ding soil six to eight inches high, and about four feet across. The width makes it easy to weed, thin or pick vegetables from either side. Leave one- to three-foot- wide paths between beds. Raised beds are most ap- propriate in cool, wet climates because they heat up quickly in spring and dry out- rapidly in summer. They are excellent if you have problem soil — with hard clay or rocks, for example — in your yard. Containers Almost anything that can be grown in the ground can also be grown in a pot. Balconies, patios or porches can become compact vegetable gardens if you grow crops in containers. Because containers are portable, you can take advantage of the different conditions offered in your yard. For example, put plants that like hot conditions where they will receive full sun, and leafy crops that like cool, moist conditions in shade. Other benefits of growing in © Permanent mold aluminum top, boltom & base castings ¢ High‘Temp baked-on ename! paint * Heat-resistant phenolic side handles * Chrome plated utility rack © Heavy duty commerciat grade stainless steel side shelves © All-atuminum side shelf brackets « Stainless steel fasteners * Heavy duty parcelainized steel Vari-Grids © Pre-ormed ceramic Flare- Guard Radiant Rock © Flare-Guard grates « Continuous spark Sure Start electronic ignition Stainless steel Cool Touch control panel * Solid brass control valves « One-piece pedesta! design (stainless or powder coated steel) * Quick Disconnect Satety Coupters for portable units * independently controlled high- output twin burners pots are that you don't have to till a pot, and there is less weeding to do. Drawbacks are that containers need to be watered and fed often because soil dries out quickly and nutrients wash away with the water. Vertical growing Fences, trellises, poles and wire cages are just some of the vertical supports you can use to raise more vegetables in less space. Yields from vine crops will in- crease greatly when grown on trellises, and craps grown this way often have better shape and less disease than those grown on the ground. One drawback, however, is that they need more water. Melons grown vertically may need some type of sling for sup- port (old nylons, sheets or towels work well) so they don't break off of the vine. In addition to melons, other vegetables that grow well on ver- tical supports include climbing peas, pole beans, pumpkins and squash. Wide rows Wide-row gardening works on the principle that plants sown close together will produce up to four times more than if the same area were planted single file. Individual plants might not produce as much this way, but overall production will be much greater, Besides saving valuable garden- ing space by planting in wide, short rows, this method will also eliminate some of your maintenance chores because the thick growth chokes out weeds. Crops are also easier to pick. Wide rows will help extend the harvest of cool-season crops like lettuce, spinach and peas because plants will shade each other dur- ing hot weather. interplanting WINDOW/OFFICE CLEANING Quality at fair rates Capilano Office & Window Cleaning Ltd. 987-4322 wane | a | ~~ FANTASTIC SA Using one area of the garden for more than one crop at the same time is known as interplan- ting. See Techniques page 20 Tee AND apie LACE 1g AAR Hp Guess who's selling d KARIM REMTULLA (Tele.) 984-9711 VINGS ON ALL HUNTER DOUGLAS PRODUCTS => Custom Draperies, Bedspreads plus a great selection of samples to choose from. 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