Weedingbetween the lines

By Jim McGinty

 

My earlier weather prediction for Spring 2021 has fallen by the wayside:  cool (yes), long (yes), wet (a decided NO).  The National Weather Service reports that in the month of March 2021, we received one quarter of an inch of rain, while normal March rainfall is about two inches.  April’s precipitation looks to be similar, with most of the alleged “moisture” falling as a heavy mist, with occasional drips.

In the home garden and orchard, this means we should have already started watering our garlic, asparagus, berry bushes, and fruit trees.

This looks to be a “water-wise” gardening year, so remember to water early in the day (reducing “hot” weather water evaporation), water deeply and infrequently (to encourage deep root growth), and water efficiently (use timers, check soil moisture using your Mark I digital finger probe, install drip irrigation and weep hose, and apply a thick organic mulch to retain your expensive moisture).  

Here at Rancho McGinty, the garlic crop is looking really good, while the asparagus patch may not have survived the +1 degree Fahrenheit temperatures of mid-February.  So far, we’ve already planted crops that can handle a modicum of frost:  potatoes, onions, leeks, and cabbage.  Next up will be the kale, spinach, and beets, with the heat lovers (tomatoes, peppers, ornamental squash, pumpkins, and sweet potatoes) all impatiently awaiting the end of May or maybe early June.

Out in the orchard, pruning time is about over, with the bud break emergence of blossoms and leaves – unless you are more concerned with long term fruit production from neglected trees, in which case, remember to prune out only one third of the tree canopy.  You will lose fruit production this year, but you will see more and better fruit in the coming years.  Also, please remember that all those water sprouts, or suckers, can be pruned out at any time – they just suck energy from the tree.

Speaking of fruit tree blossoms, many local gardeners and orchardists have commented to me on the reduction in the numbers of pollinators:  seems we have fewer bees buzzing around, and that’s a serious problem for those of us who like to eat!

There are a number of valid-sounding theories on what is happening to our favorite pollinators, but for us home food growers, the bottom line is that we are harvesting fewer fruits and veggies.

Some food crops do not need outside pollination (wind, insects, birds, etc.), such as tomatoes, peppers, beans, tubular Styrofoam ® (I mean eggplant), okra, and peas.  Longtime wife Pat bought me a battery-powered hand pollinator (it looks kinda like a yellow and black striped electric toothbrush!), which makes ME an outside pollinator, or maybe a “pollen pimp” 😉:  I’ll let you know if human pollination efforts are worthwhile.

Some food crops do not need outside pollination because we eat them before the fact:  potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and most herbs.

For the most part, pollination is important for most of our food; even the alfalfa flowers in our local hayfields must be pollinated in order to produce sustenance for our beefy herbivores.

What can we home gardeners do to attract more pollinators?

Plant colorful flowers that will bloom in waves throughout the Summer (honeysuckle, zinnias, daisies, marigolds); plant shade trees (especially nectar-producing trees like Tulip Poplars); encourage the native flowering plants (currently known as “weeds”), like yarrow, service berry, and Oregon grape; provide clean water (bees gotta drink too, ya know!) that will NOT attract mosquitos; and if you must use pesticides, wisely use them (spray in early evening, and don’t spray the flowers).

GARDEN CALENDAR:

On the 13^th of May, local Pend Oreille County Master Gardener Jane Bolz will be teaching an on-line “Zoom” class from 6:30 P.M. to 8 P.M., on how to grow and use micro-greens and sprouts.  Micro-greens and sprouts are essentially baby veggies, provide more nutrition than their mature versions, and they are easy to grow indoors – they are a space-saving, nearly-instant food.  You can register for the $5 “Zoom” class by calling the Pend Oreille County Extension office at 509-447-2401.

Finally, don’t forget to check the blogsite and/or Facebook page for our local garden club, to see what we are up to, and whether we need bail money: www.elk-camdengardenkeepers.blogspot.com, and Elk-Camden Garden Keepers on Facebook.  

That’s it for now – Summer is on the way, no, really!