Sanhedrin Nursery – Garden Blog

• Holland flower bulbs are now available for fall planting. These lovely gems will bloom for you next spring.

• Naked lady amaryllis have lovely, fragrant pink flowers that bloom in late summer with little or no care. Plant the bulbs, available at local nurseries, now.

• Wildflower seed broadcasted with the first rains will take root over the winter and burst into flower next spring.

• Divide artichoke plants which have been in the ground for three or four years. Mulch established plants with steer manure.

• Protect the pond from the worst of the leaf fall with a fine-mesh net over the surface of the pond.

Growing Great Garlic

Garlic is a staple in the kitchen, turning ordinary food into gourmet delights. And it should be a staple in the garden as well. Homemade garlic oil spray makes an effective deterrent for many garden pests. And garlic, when interplanted with other crops, will help repel some insect pests.

Garlic grows best in deep, rich well-drained soil, and full sun. Bulbs will not develop to their full size if it is shady. It should be planted in the fall as close to the autumnal equinox as possible. This gives the bulbs time to develop some roots before winter. Garlic likes cool weather, so it is a good winter crop. It will be ready to harvest around the summer solstice.

A garlic bulb is separated into cloves and each clove is planted 4-6 inches apart and 1-2 inches deep. Weeds are garlic’s biggest enemy so weed the bed regularly. Gophers love garlic so protect your crop with gopher wire or traps. Newly planted garlic should be watered twice a week until the rains start.

One pound of garlic plants a 25-foot row or a bed 4 by 6 feet at 4-inch spacing. For most garlics, you can harvest 10 pounds for every pound you plant.

In the early spring, encourage vigorous leaf growth by fertilizing the bed. Use fish emulsion, blood meal or a high-nitrogen fertilizer every two weeks. Foliar application is especially helpful once the leaves get bigger. Stop fertilizing as soon as you see the base begin to swell as the plant begins to form a bulb.

Keep the plants well watered during the last few weeks when the bulbs are forming. The extra water and fertilizer will result in large bulbs. Sometimes flower stalks will start to grow. It is important to cut or break them off as soon as you see them or they will reduce the size of your crop.

Garlic is harvested in late June or July. The leaves will turn yellow and then brown when the garlic is ready to harvest. Let it dry on the ground for a day or two. You can braid the dried stalks and hang them on a wall where they will be decorative and handy.

There are hundreds of kinds of garlic grown throughout the world. They can be divided into two groups: hard-necked garlic and soft-necked ones.

The most common here is California Early White, which is grown commercially around Gilroy, California. It is vigorous, productive and has a pungent flavor. It is the easiest to grow and seems to be less fussy about growing conditions than the others. It is a softneck variety.

Late Pink garlic has smooth bulbs and pinkish cloves with a fairly strong flavor. It has a soft pliable neck that lends itself to braiding and stores for 6 to 8 months in proper conditions. It matures late and is usually the last garlic to come out of the ground.

Spanish Roja is an heirloom garlic with rich, spicy flavor. This large hardneck variety has a blushed pink-red color with bulbs usually over 2 1/2 inches in diameter. The bulbs have thin bulb wrappers and 7-10 easy-to-peel cloves per bulb.

Elephant garlic is a very large, easy-to-peel garlic with a mild flavor. It is a good keeper and full-sized bulbs weigh up to 1 pound. Plant the cloves 3 to 4 inches below the soil surface and space them from 8 to 10 inches apart in the row.

October is the best time to plant garlic, so grow yourself some great garlic this year.

• Fuchsias will bloom all summer if you remove faded flowers and seed pods and fertilize every ten days with a liquid fertilizer like Miracle Gro.

• Roses need water and fertilizer to keep blooming well throughout the summer. Watch for pests and treat immediately to prevent infestations.

• Check for squash, or “stink”, bugs on squash and pumpkins. Hand-pick grey-brown adults and destroy red egg clusters on the leaves. Use pyrethrins to control heavy infestations.

• Prune rhododendrons, camellias and azaleas to shape them now. If you wait much longer, you will be cutting off next year’s flowers.

• Birdbaths will attract our feathered friends to your backyard so you can enjoy them close-up. Place them a few feet from a bushy shrub to give the birds protection.

Growing Table Grapes

Grapes have been cultivated since ancient times. Many European grape varieties, brought to California in the 19th century, have provided the basis for today’s thriving grape industry. Home gardeners can still grow some very old European varieties, such as Muscat of Alexandria, but there are some outstanding new varieties to grow as well. Grapes are some of the most versatile and adaptable of all the small fruits.

Grapes make an excellent backyard crop. The vines do not take up much space when trained against a fence or arbor, and there are varieties that do very well in our climate. Even an inexperienced gardener should be able to produce a good crop.

American and European grapes and their hybrids are grown throughout California. Each type has its climatic preferences.

American grapes are distinguished by their skin which slips easily off the soft flesh. They usually have seeds and a strong, distinctive flavor reminiscent of Concord, the best known American grape. They can be eaten fresh and make excellent juice and jelly. Other fine American grapes are Interlaken, Himrod and Golden Muscat, which are all very sweet.

European grapes are firm with nonslip skin and relatively mild flavor. They do better in warmer areas of the state because they need long, hot summers to mature. Thompson Seedless does very well in the Central Valley, but seldom ripens here. But there are some European varieties, like Perlette and Flame, that will do well here.

Most wine grapes are European grapes, so many of them will not ripen here. But you can try Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot or Zinfandel particularly if you have a warm, sunny, southwest-facing slope. Sunlight is the key to producing grapes high in sugars which, after fermentation, become alcohol. These varieties are successfully grown in Redwood Valley, Potter Valley and Ukiah.

Homegrown grapes are not likely to be as large as those found in grocery stores. Commercial growers treat their table grape crops with gibberellic acid, a growth hormone that causes the cells to grow larger and longer than normal.

Grapes will tolerate a wide range of soils. They have deep root systems and therefore need deep but infrequent watering. However, they should not be allowed to dry out. Watering prior to harvest will increase fruit size. Keep weeds pulled or hoed, especially when vines are young.

Grape vines can be grown on fences, trellises or arbors. A standard 8’ x 8’ arbor will support one vine nicely. Grapes can be grown unpruned, forming a thick mass of canes and dense shade. Or they can be carefully pruned to a cordon that runs across the middle of the arbor. Arbors are a nice way to incorporate a grapevine into your landscape design, and they lift the vines up to receive maximum sunlight and air.

Grapes are one of the easiest fruits to grow in our climate and make “good-eating” in the summertime.

• Keep flowers and vegetables in peak condition by giving them a midsummer feeding with a fertilizer that is higher in phosphorus than in nitrogen.

• Dig and divide crowded spring-flowering bulbs and tubers including daffodils, scillas, muscari, and bearded iris.

• Tree collards make a delicious winter vegetable. Set plants out now to give them time to grow before the winter chill that makes the leaves so sweet.

• Japanese maples may be pruned now in order to shape them.

• First-year fruit trees need to be well-watered through the dry weather. If they are neglected the first year, they may never be strong, productive trees.

Growing a Fall Vegetable Garden

Planting a fall garden will extend the gardening season so you can continue to harvest fresh produce after summer crops have finished. Many vegetables are well adapted to planting in the summer for fall harvest.

Many cool-season vegetables, such as broccoli, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts, produce their best flavor and quality when they mature during cool weather. In spring, the temperatures often heat up quickly. Vegetables, such as lettuce and spinach, tend to bolt or develop bitter flavor when they mature during hot summer weather.

Growing a productive fall vegetable garden requires thoughtful planning and good cultural practices. August and early September are the main planting times for the fall garden.

Vegetables that have a 60 to 80 day maturity cycle should be planted around August 1. This includes broccoli, cabbage, carrots and collards. Quick maturing vegetables, such as turnips, lettuce, kale and other leafy greens, can be planted in late August or early September.

Transplant seedlings into well-prepared moist soil in the evening, so they have the cool night temperatures to settle in and minimize shock. In hot weather it is best to shelter newly transplanted seedlings for a few days with shade cloth or row covers.

You can start seeds of leaf lettuce, bok choy, spinach, Swiss chard and roquette or arugula now. These are fast-maturing crops that will be ready before frost. Although most seeds will germinate quickly in the warm summer soil, some, such as lettuce and spinach, will not germinate well if the soil temperature is above 85°F. Shading the soil with a board or a light mulch will keep the soil cooler, enhancing germination. Remove the temporary shade when you see sprouts emerging.

There are many kinds of lettuce to choose from on seed racks that will give you color and variety in your salads. Swiss chard comes in green, red or “rainbow”, a mixture of colored stalks.

Root crops, such as beets, carrots, parsnips, rutabagas and turnips, can be left in the ground through the fall. Green onions, chives and radishes can also be planted through September for harvest in the fall.

It is important to rotate your crops from year to year. Do not plant the same crops in the same place that they were planted in the previous year because the soil will be weakened through continual loss of the same nutrients and the plants will also attract the same insects and diseases to that part of the garden.

Before planting your fall crops, turn over the soil and mix in some fertilizer to replace what earlier plants have used up.

A major benefit of a fall garden is that it gives you fresh vegetables long after most of your summer crops have been harvested and killed by the frost. So start your fall garden now to extend the productivity of your garden.