Sustainable, OrganicVegetable Gardening

Presented by: Kent Phillipskent.a.phillips@gmail.com

2

Maryland Master Gardeners’

Mission

To educate Maryland residents about safe, effective and

sustainable horticultural practices that build healthy gardens,

landscapes, and communities.

www.extension.umd.edu/growitGrow Your Own Food

We Can Show You HowClick on Classes TabAnd Scroll down to

Howard County

Reduce Your Carbon Footprintby Vegetable Gardening

• Less trips to the store• Sequester carbon in your vegetable beds

– Healthy plants capture carbon– Create compost – Put it back in your beds

• Better tasting vegetables

5

We teach a common-sense, ecological approach

• Rely on local materials and resources– Compost neighbors leaves and your grass– Local animal manure– Leafgro

• Maximize biological and genetic diversity to strengthen your garden eco-system. – Example: Plant an assortment of annual flowers

and herbs to attract and feed beneficial insects.

6

Unbordered raised beds

Ingredients to a Successful Vegetable Garden

• Healthy soil• Lots of organic material• Proper soil pH• Proper nutrient levels

• NPK• Secondary and micro nutrients

• Sufficient soil moisture• Practice Integrated Pests Management (IPM)• Grow recommended vegetable varieties

• HG 70 Recommended vegetable cultivars for Maryland home gardens

Importance Of These Ingredients

• Healthy plants resist grow insect attack• IPM

• In nature, bad insects are predated by beneficials• Use physical controls and erect barriers to pests • Use targeted applications for specific pests • Use broad spectrum insecticides only as a last resort

• Recommended vegetables grow

What is Healthy Soil

• Soil rich in organic matter with lots of invertebrates• Has lots of pores for air and water • Six inches of OM for new gardens• One inch for established gardens

• Soil with proper pH and nutrient levels• Do a soil test• Follow recommendations

Healthy soil (cont.)• References at www.extension.umd.edu/hgic click on

“Soils” or click on “Information Library”, “Publications” and “Soil, Mulch and Composting”• HG11 Soil test basics• HG110 Selecting and using a soil testing

laboratory• HG 42 Soil amendments and fertilizers• FS782 Basics of soil and plant fertility• http://www.youtube.com/UMDHGIC to see video

on collecting a soil test sample

Fertilizer Recommendation

• U of Mass recommendation is .25#s/100 square feet• 1# of 30-3-3

– 30% N, 3% P and 3% K– .3#s of N, .03#s of P and .03#s of K

• 4#s of dried blood meal 12-0-0– 12% N, 0% P and 0% K– .48#s of N – probably too much– Large amount of N is readily available to plants

Soil Moisture

• On average plants require one inch of water a week• On a 4 by 8 foot bed, that’s 20 gallons of water

• Moisture needs to be delivered to the plant roots• Most efficient method of delivery is drip irrigation

• http://www.youtube.com/UMDHGIC look or search for video on “Drip Irrigation”

• Mulching plants helps conserve soil moisture • http://www.youtube.com/UMDHGIC look or search for

video called “Mulchzilla”

Intensive planting

• Assume a four foot wide bed– In a 2 or 3 foot long area plant 5 broccoli plants in

an x pattern – Plant 4 lettuce plants between the broccoli plantsB L B

L B L

B L B

Intensive planting (con’t)

• Plant three row of green beans in a four foot square

• Plant four rows of beets or carrots or onions in the same area

• Plant tomatoes three feet apart on the north or west side of the garden

• Plant peppers and eggplants in the same pattern as broccoli above

• Vegetable spacing on Pub HG 16

Succession Planting

• Use transplants when possible – Cool weather crops (spring and fall)

• Broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce, etc.

– Warm season crops (summer)• Tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, squash, etc.

• Rotate crops– Plant beans after broccoli (adds N to soil)– Don’t plant tomatoes, eggplant or potatoes where

they have been before.

Start early, end late

• Garden from 4/1 to 12/15– See Pub. GE 007 or HG 16 for planting times– Cool season crops (Mid March & April)– Warm season crops (mid-May & early June)– Cool season crops (August & September)– Garlic (mid-October)– Winter over spinach and kale for spring crop

Integrated Pest Management

• Simple steps and common sense• Study• Spy• Squish

• An once of prevention is worth a pound of cure• Companion planting• A healthy garden with good soil, adequate

moisture and proper nutrition can withstand some pest predation

Beneficials v. Pests

• Attract predators and parasites by planting open faced flowers which attract predators that require nectar in their adult stage

• Ultimately, predators will increase as prey is available

• Purchasing predators tends not to be effective• Ducks, chickens and toads

Common PredatorsPraying Mantid

Common PredatorsLady Bird Beetle and Larva

Common PredatorsYellow Argiope

Jumping spider

Wolf SpiderOrb Weaver

Wheel bug

Common Predators

Common PredatorsSyrphid fly and larva: predator of aphids

Common PredatorsParasitized Tomato Hornworm

Common Vegetable PestsMexican Bean Beetle

Adult Eggs & larvae

• Row cover• Crush• Pyrethrum, neem, spinosad spray top and bottom of leaves

Common Vegetable PestsCucumber Beetle

Stripped Spotted

Floating row coverPyrethrum, neem oil, spinosad

Common Vegetable PestsHarlequin bug

Adult Eggs & nymphs

• Row cover• Crush• Insecticidal soap alone or with pyrethrum or neem

Common Vegetable PestsFlea Beetle

Adults

Floating row cover over hoopsSurround (kaolin clay) – reapply after rainPyrethrum, neem, spinosad

Common Vegetable PestsImported Cabbage Looper

Adult Larvae

• Floating row cover• Bacillus Thuringensis (BT), insecticidal soap• Pyrethrum, neem, spinosad – use with sticker spreader

Common Vegetable PestsSquash Bug

Adult Eggs & nymphs

• No pesticide for homeowners• Floating row cover• Hand pick tear out section of leaf with eggs• Kill nymphs with neem or hort oil or insecticidal soap

Common Vegetable PestsSquash Vine Bore

Larvae

• Floating row cover• Cut out borer and mound soil over wound

Common Vegetable PestsStink Bugs

BMSB Adult Southern Green Stink BugBrown

• True hard shell bugs like squash and stink bugs are hard to kill• Use row cover where possible• Hand pick and destroy adults and eggs• Insecticidal soap and botanicals can be used on 1st and 2nd instars (nymphs)• No pesticide available for homeowners to kill adults

Targeted Applications for Specific Pests

• With all pesticides– Always read the label– Follow label instructions

• Bacillus Thuringiensis– Cabbage looper and other caterpillars

• Horticultural oils• Insecticidal soap

Broad Spectrum Killers• With all pesticides

– Always read the label– Follow label instructions

• Pyrethrums– Pyganic

• Rotenone• Spinosad• Neem oil

Resources• Home and Garden Information Center (HGIC)

– 800-342-2507– http://www.extension.umd.edu/hgic

• Grow-It-Eat-It website– http://www.extension.umd.edu/growit– YouTube - Search subjecthttp://www.youtube.com/UMDHGIC

This program was brought to you by

Maryland Master Gardener Program

Howard County

University of Maryland Extension