Weeding between the lines

By Jim McGinty

Warmer, drier weather is upon us, so the question is, “is it now safe to plant directly into the garden?” 

For cool weather crops (potatoes, radishes, beets, onions, parsnips, rutabagas, etc.), now is a great time to transplant or plant seeds for veggies that can handle a minor frost. Some plants (I call them “the drama queens”) cannot survive 33 degrees Fahrenheit without some damage, or wilting, or looking like you drove a herd of bison down the row – these plants (tomatoes, peppers, basil, eggplant, melons, ornamental squash, etc.) will prosper and thrive if planted at the end of May - probably. Just remember the killer frosts we suffered in early June 2016, and (to borrow a motto), be prepared: frost blankets or light flannel sheets ready to cover the sensitive little green darlings, or maybe overhead water sprayers, or even strings of electric Christmas light ropes or seasonally appropriate bulbs.

This year, my gardening partner and full-time wife, Pat, and I are planting giant sugar beets (called mangels or mangelwurtzels) for our livestock – we grew the plants in the past, and the chickens really enjoyed the soccer-ball-sized roots, AND the dark green, dinner-plate-sized leaves. Historically, farmers in our weather-challenging Northeast Washington region grew thousands of acres of mangels for both conversion to beet sugar (the sweetener of choice before the advent of cheaper cane sugar), and as a winter livestock feed. I made sure to heavily fertilize the beet garden with LOTS of over-wintered chicken poo and mostly-fermented goat and sheep straw bedding. Old farming records show that chopped mangels were successfully fed to cows, horses, goats, sheep, and poultry – and the tender, early season mangels and their leaves were eagerly eaten by the farmers and their families after a long winter. Our mangel seeds came from the Sustainable Seed Company, and from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company.

Out in the garden, it’s time to hill up dirt around your potato plants as they grow taller, and now is a great time to pump up the process in your compost bins, by adding all those newly mown grass clippings.

In the orchard, it’s time to stop pruning the trees, until after the leaves have filled the canopy (late June?), though you can still cut out all those “water sprouts” or “suckers” at any time.

GARDEN CALENDAR

On the 9^th of May, our local gardening club will tour a local home garden – details on the tour are still firming, but it looks to be a fun and informative evening.  We’ll meet at Camden Grange (21 Camden Road, Elk) for a 7 p.m. departure, and the public is always welcome to join us. If you want to know more about the tour as details become available, check back, as we'll post them to the blog.

On the 10^th of May, I’ll be teaching a class on plant propagation from 6-8 p.m., at the Newport College Center (1302 W. Fifth St., Newport). Students will learn how make more of the plants they want, cheaply and quickly. You can register for the class by calling 800-845-3324, or you can visit the college website.

On the 11^th of May, those twinkle-toed, twig tweakers, the Master Gardeners of Pend Oreille County, will offer a class on building and using a greenhouse or hoophouse designed for gardening success in our area of the world. The class will run from 6-8 p.m., and will cost $5 for the general public – the class location is still firming (either at the Newport Extension Service Office or at the Camus Center in Cusick). You can call the Newport Extension Service Office at 509-447-2401 for more details or to register for the class.

On the 13^th of May, The Inland Empire Gardeners will offer their Garden Expo 2017, at Spokane Community College (1810 N. Greene St., Spokane), from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Expo features hundreds of vendors with offerings that include veggie and fruit plants, garden art and tools, classes and demonstrations, complete with live music and fresh food.  Expo entry and parking are both free, but remember to bring a wheeled carrying conveyance, and some money for all those cool, rare, or misunderstood plants.

On the 24^th of May, I’ll be teaching a class on fruit tree pruning, from 6-8 p.m., at the Newport College Center (1302 W. Fifth St., Newport).  We’ll talk about and demonstrate how to prune your fruit tree for maximum production and minimum maintenance. You can register for the class by calling 800-845-3324, or you can visit the college website at sccel.spokane.edu/ACT2.

That’s it for this month – time to enter the garden, and either plant something, or weed something – I’m thinking the taller, good-looking plants are probably the weeds.