How to Water - over head or at the base of the plant

Which way should you water your plants? When it comes to vegetables there are certain plants it is best to take precautions with and NOT do overhead watering. Tomatoes, peppers, squash, cucumbers and watermelons in particular are all plants that get fungal diseases (blights and powdery mildew.)



These tomatillos have lots of space at the
bottom so they can be watered easily at
the base without getting the leaves wet.

Wet leaves set up the perfect conditions for disease to get established. For these plants it is much better to water at the base (ground level) and not get the leaves and stems wet.

You can't control the amount of water that comes from the sky but you can control where you place the water when you are hand watering.

There are 4 or 5 tomatoes in here. Only one
is easy to water without getting the foliage wet.
The only choice IS to water through the leaves.

But....there is always a BUT....if we haven't had any rain for several weeks it is a good idea to give the plants a shower to wash the dirt and grime off the leaves.

Carrots






Any time you wash a plants leaves off, do it early enough in the day (at least an hour before dark) to give the foliage time to dry before dark.

Carrots, lettuce, and greens on the other hand, like to get their foliage washed when they get watered. So you can do overhead watering frequently on them. As you can see above, it is hard to water just at the base of a carrot in a bed of carrots so you do have to get the foliage wet every time you water.

Vicki - Bed 41

Plants in Peat Pots

If you buy plants in peat pots there is one thing you should always make sure you do - bury the edge of the peat pot completely under the soil. When it is sticking up it acts like a wick and causes moisture to evaporate faster from the area surrounding your plant.

Myself, I like to totally remove the peat pot from the roots (gently to minimize damage to the roots) so I don't have to worry that the soil level will go down around the pot. I always put the peat pot remains under the mulch so it will decay and add organic matter to the soil.

Check your engines, errr Onions

Notice how the thumb is mushing INTO
 the onion bulb. It should be firm
and hard, not mushy.

Unfortunately for us, all the rain that we continued to get at the end of 2013 has contributed to another problem in the garden. It isn't obvious because it looks like the onions are doing good. Healthy green bits are above the ground.

But...below the ground, the bulb is in a sorry state. In fact, the onions are demonstrating what happens if you over water them.

I know John and Denise both checked and found they had mushy onions. The best thing to do is to dig an onion up (or down to the onion bulb) and test to see if it is mushy.


The onion on the left  is still full, plump and firm.
The onion on the right is the one that is mushy.

If it is mushy you have two choices. Dig it up and then remove the mushy bits and use it as you would a green onion. Or, leave it to grow and see what happens.

If you let it continue growing, it may bulb but it won't have good keeping qualities. You would need to eat them right away when you harvest them. (Just remove and toss any mushy bits. The remaining part is fine to use..)

At this point, why not just remove them and have space for more plants this spring.  Or you can replant onions and get another change of growing a nice sized onion. Maybe this is the last of the nasty side effects of too much rain in 2013!

The onion sets in the shed have been removed as they too were past their prime for planting.  Denise is going to put some fresh ones in the shed early next week if you are thinking about planting onions this spring.  Spring planted onions will do very well however the bulbs will be somewhat smaller compared to those planted in the fall. Small size but still great tasting!! Mmmmmm....

                     Vicki

Water wand and Shut off valve tips

Shut off valve - either for a single hose or to attach two hoses.
The yellow rings is the gasket. Gaskets can be any color.

Several people have asked me about where to get the shut off valves for water wands if they don't come with them.

My favorite one is made of brass and I get it at Home Depot. It does cost around $6 dollars but it lasts for a long time.

One thing to check on any water wand or shut off valve that you buy is how hard the little on/off lever works. If it sticks or won't turn or is really hard to turn, chances are, it will keep doing that or get worse after you buy it. I always test mine before I buy them.

If your water wand is leaking where you have attached the hose, it could be because the gasket has come loose and needs to be pushed back in place. Or you may actually need a new one. Replacement gaskets are easily found.

One reason the nozzle things don't come off the hoses very well at the garden is they are frequently missing gaskets. Put a gasket in and voila...they come off easily again.

You can also put shut off valves on the water faucet/spigot at home and then you can run two hoses at the same time. Or leave the hose on and still fill a bucket or whatever you want to do.

Water Spigots, Leaks and Pressure Problems

This past week we had a water leak which made the ground around one of the spigots very wet.  The problem was caused by a spigot handle that had become loose.  We were afraid it was about to break off like it did once before and cause a flood.  This time the fix was easy.  The county came out this morning to double check everything and they went over a few tips on handling the spigots.

 



Grasp the faucet with both hands

Lever fully extended correctly

The spigot needs to be turned on in a way that does not push or pull the water pipe. The proper way is to grab the lever with one hand and hold the spigot with the other.  This way the pressure will be even and you will not be pulling or pushing the pipe.  

 

Also, the lever needs to be pulled up until it is completely extended for the water to be on.  If you only pull it up half way, the water with not be on at all or not on fully. 

Lever half way up



Once you have extended the lever fully and the water is flowing, you can always bring the lever partially down to slow the pressure if needed.



Lever at right angle to the hose is
in the closed position

We have put ball valve controls on all of the hoses.  These allow you to turn the water fully on at the spigot and, with the ball valve in closed position, you will not have the water flowing from the hose.  You can then easily get the hose back to your bed before switching the ball valve control to open.

Lever in straight line with hose is in the
open or water flow position



Most of you already know all of these things but I thought it would be worth going over just in case there might be a gardener that is not familiar with the spigots and valves. If anyone notices water leaking or has any kind of problem, please be sure to let us know so we can get the county involved when necessary.  

Thanks, Carol

 

Water Wands

What are the advantages of using a water wand or an adjustable nozzle? LOTS!

Yes, the "pump" handle on our faucets at the garden help control the water flow that comes out but you need even more control when your plants are small and tender, especially when the seedlings  start coming up. You don't want to beat your new plants to death when you water them.

Shut off valve/water regulator

Water wands are long so they reach further into your bed and you can direct the water exactly where you want it to go.  They also make it easier to get down under the bottom of a plant when the plants get big.

All my water wands have a water regulator/shut off valve on them. In fact, all my hoses have shut off valves to make it easier to control how much water comes out at any given time. If you are standing right next to the faucet the entire time, you wouldn't need a shut off valve but to reach all parts of my bed I have to move around and depending on the plant I'm watering, I adjust the water.

My latest, greatest water wand is from Tractor Supply over on Hwy 278 in Hiram. Besides it being a beautiful color it works like a dream. After Denise tried it out, she really, really wanted it.

Ouch! Ouch cry the seedlings!

Oh, much better the seedlings say.

Ahhhhhh.....the seedlings say

Checkbooks, Stools and the Three Bears

Growing Vegetables is like:

Maintaining a healthy checking account

A 3 legged stool – all legs have to be in balance to stay up right

Using the 3 Bears scale

Out of balance means unhappy and unproductive plants

Remember we talked about the Three Bears Scale previously when it came to the soil level in the garden beds? Well, the Three Bears scale applies to all aspects of gardening.

  Too much       –       Too little         –             Just right 

 



 Too much or too little water. Too much or too little fertilizer. Too much or too little sun.  To achieve that Happy Medium (as in getting the scales to balance to Just Right) think of your bed as a checking account.

 

  You have to make regular deposits because the soil only holds a finite amount of water and fertilizer. When the plant uses fertilizer and water (makes withdrawals) you need to make deposits again.  When the plant has a negative balance in the account….it suffers, quits producing fruit and ultimately dies if no deposits are made. Even if deposits are made to prevent death, the health of the plant has been harmed.

Besides watering and fertilizing, there is a 3rd component to a happy garden. Mulching.

                                                                 photo by Bob Myers

 Gardening is a never ending cycle of adding water, fertilizer and mulch to maintain the health and productivity of the plants we are growing. There is one more aspect you could add to this so that instead of a 3 legged stool it is a 4 legged table - amending the soil.

To amend your soil properly every year, work in 1 – 2 inches of organic matter into the top 6-8 inches of soil. Adding organic amendments increases moisture holding capacity in sandy soils and drainage in clay soils. It also breaks down further to stabilize soil structure and feed microorganisms and add micro nutrients. Denise talked about her favorite method of amending her soil a couple of days ago in her post on Prepping Garden Beds.

Amy Whitney at the Cobb County Extension Office made a post on her blog about Plant Health Management. It is really excellent reading about how important it is to prevent problems from occurring in the first place.

If we water, fertilize, mulch and choose the right plants for the right time of year, we can prevent many of our problems. 

How to keep your Veggies Happy, Healthy and Productive

Tuesday March 12, 2013
6:30 - 7:30 pm
Lost Mountain Park
Western District Operations Building

You are invited to attend a free gardening class sponsored by The Green Meadows Preserve Community Garden.

How to Keep your Vegetable plants Happy, Healthy and Productive

Come learn more about the Three Bears Scale -
       Too Much,  Not Enough and Just Right

See how it applies to:

• Fertilization
• Watering
• Mulching

Please RSVP to greenmeadowscg@gmail.com
We want to make sure we have enough handouts for everyone.

Directions From the Community Garden:
Take Dallas Hwy West 2.0 miles (to the 2nd traffic light from the garden.)
Turn left at the traffic light into Lost Mountain Park . 
Take the first left.
Once you turn, go straight and the road dead ends into a parking lot between Boots Ward Recreation Building and the Western District Operations Building. If the parking lot is full, park in the parking lot in front of the ball fields.

Lost Mountain Park
Western District Operations Building
4845 Dallas Highway
Powder Springs, GA 30127

Water, Water, Water and more Water

We have been getting rain over the past month but not enough for those of us wintering plants for spring production. I know it's cold out but that is one of the best reasons to water. The ground stays warmer and the plants still need water and food. So get out there and water. Your plants will love you now and in the spring.

What do Nutritional Deficiencies in Plants Look Like

The next 10 days will be a great time to fertilize your plants if they are showing signs of nutritional deficiencies.  If you are using organic fertilizer, remember you have to fertilize more frequently because the fertilizer has lower numbers (3-4-3 or 4-5-4).  If you used 10-10-10, think back to when you put it down and how long is it supposed to last.

Remember to look at the instructions on the package the fertilizer came in to figure out

the proper amount to use and how frequently to use it!

How can you tell if plants are having problems?
Look at the plants in this picture and try to answer the following questions.

Kale and Cabbage

 

Are the plants stunted?

Think about when you put them in and check the tags to see how big they should be. If they have barely grown and they weren't miniatures, they are probably stunted.  Fertilize!

 

Do they just look puny (as in they grew but aren't as big as other plants near by)?

Maybe the plants have grown but they seem to have stalled out and just aren't as healthy and vigorous as plants in other beds. Check when they were last fertilized. If necessary fertilize!

 

Are the leaves chlortic ie yellowish?

This means are the leaves yellowish or a lighter green in places. Look at the kale above. The leaves are turning yellow. Fertilize!  (The leaves on all the peas have turned yellow but that was because of cold/frost damage. They were a beautiful green before the freeze last week.)

 

Are the leaves purple or pink?

If you aren't growing purple cabbage, Swiss chard, or another "on purpose" purple leaved plant, your plant is suffering mightily. The deeper the color the more they are suffering. Fertilize immediately!

 

 

How frequently are you watering?

If you are only watering once a week that isn't nearly enough. The plant has reverted to survival mode and is intent on just maintaining what it has. And sometimes that includes letting leaves die on purpose so it has less vegetation to keep alive - example the kale in the first picture.

Are you watering before heavy frosts/freezes?

Plants withstand the stress of cold weather MUCH better if they have been watered deeply before a frost/freeze occurs. Everyone needs to water deeply (even those using row covers) the day before the frost hits. Your plants will thank you.

 

Some beds will have more cold damage than others because of their placement in the garden. Even though Mark (Beds 45 & 46) waters frequently, his broccoli leaves have yellowed AND purple areas on them which is cold damage because his bed is the first to get frosted.

                                    Vicki

 

Warm Weather next 10 days

Hey Everyone,
   We are going to be having exceptionally warm weather for the next 10 days and it is going to be exceptionally dry as well. True, 2 days call for showers (30% and 40%) but you know that doesn't really mean it WILL rain and if it does rain it might not be very much. Therefore, supplemental watering will be necessary.

  If you water deeply and thoroughly every couple of days when you water you don't have to go quite as frequently. It is also better for the plants to really water good.   I'm going to be going down to the garden to water every 2 days so the plants aren't as stressed and susceptible to bug attack.

  Speaking of bugs, watch your veggies, especially the undersides of leaves because this warm weather will also cause lots of bugs to hatch out and go for the yummy greens. There are some weird looking critters on the plants right now but they are good critters. Lady bug beetles have funny looking larva but don't kill them because if you do you have destroyed a very beneficial aphid predator.

Here is a link to lady bugs if you want more information about them:  Lady Bugs - adults and larva pictures

 

Jane has a nice lady bug larva on her brussel sprouts

  Also, anyone with carrots or parsley needs to be on the watch for swallowtail caterpillars. That cold weather we had did NOT kill them off.  Susan (Bed 18) and I (Bed 41) have been removing caterpillars this past week. Instead of smashing them, just put them in the bluebird feeder by the birdbath to feed the bluebirds.

 

This one has grown quite a bit. When they are small they are mostly black, without

 the yellow and white spouts you see on this one.

 

  Enjoy the beautiful weather!

          Vicki