WASHINGTON — Bins of asparagus and delicate greens at the farmers market are beginning to thin out. Now that it’s nearly June, it’s time for summer vegetables.
Kathy Jentz, editor and publisher of Washington Gardener Magazine, shares some of her favorite things to plant, plus tips for maintaining a healthy summer garden.
The “cool veg” season is winding down and the soil is finally warm enough to start summer vegetables — we’re talking tomatoes, squash, melon, cucumbers and more. “This is a great time to make a little mound, stick a couple of seeds in the middle of that little mound and watch them go and give them space,” said Washington Gardener’s Kathy Jentz, who added that a 3-foot circumference for each cucumber or squash vine allows for the perfect amount of growing room.
(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
Okra
In D.C.’s summer climate, Jentz has had a lot of success with okra.
“And that’s one of my favorite things to grow, just because it’s a beautiful plant. It has hibiscus-like blooms on it,” she said. “That one takes off in July, and basically, I just have to keep up with going out there every day and snapping off the okra. If you don’t keep up, all of the sudden you’ll have one okra that’s 18 inches long.” Don’t worry about finding recipes for your harvest. Jentz said one of the best ways to eat okra is raw and in the garden. “You can snap it and eat it right off the plant; it tastes just like a green bean,” she said, adding that pickled okra is another favorite snack.
(AP/Rogelio V. Solis)
AP/Rogelio V. Solis
Green Beans
Speaking of green beans, the vegetable does very well in mid-Atlantic summers — just make sure you pick the right variety for your needs. Jentz said if you want to can or pickle a bunch of green beans all at once, go with the bush variety. Those who prefer to harvest green beans in small amounts, but over the course of several weeks, should choose pole beans.
“(These are) easy to do in containers, just give them a little trellis or something to wind around,” Jentz said about the vining green beans.
One word of caution: Bunnies love to eat green bean vines, so keep the plants protected.
“The second they emerge from the soil, they’ll eat them down to soil level,” Jentz said.
(AP/J. Scott Applewhite)
AP/J. Scott Applewhite
Tomatoes
Tomatoes are a summer favorite, and Jentz said if you want to enjoy the fruit before fall, grow a few cherry tomato plants, which are “prolific and [are ready] much earlier.”
“So by mid-July you’ll be able to snack on Sun Gold or Sweet 100, and you’ll just have them by the handful,” she said.
Heirloom tomatoes tend to come about in September.
“The plants really need that cooling off period to send their energy into forming big fruit … and we just don’t cool off at night anymore,” Jentz said.
(AP/J. Scott Applewhite)
AP/J. Scott Applewhite
Tomatoes
When it comes to caring for tomato plants, Jentz recommends using fertilizer since the plants are “heavy feeders.” (She uses an organic fish fertilizer and mixes in a capful each time she waters.) She also suggests adding extra calcium to the soil to prevent blossom-end rot.
When it comes to watering your tomato plant, be sure to do so at the root level, not from the top.
“Tomatoes have a lot of fungal disease issues, and splashing up the water onto the leaves doesn’t help,” she said.
Instead, mulch around the root to retain more moisture and to prevent water from splashing up on the leaves.
(AP/Dean Fosdick)
AP/Dean Fosdick
Herbs
Jentz said “fleshy-leaf herbs” (basil, cilantro and other soft-stem herbs) do well in the mid-Atlantic climate “because they like our wet springs and don’t mind clay soil too much and are fine container-grown.”
Woody herbs — rosemary and lavender — struggle a bit more.
“They want to be on a cliff side in the Mediterranean with terrific drainage and just an occasional splash of water, and that would kind of be the opposite of our climate,” Jentz said.
(AP/KENT GILBERT)
AP/KENT GILBERT
Herbs
If you plan to make a few big batches of pesto this summer, Jentz recommends seeding in new basil plants every few weeks.
“Then you could do one row of basil or one pot of basil and then start a second a couple weeks later and a third a couple of weeks later, and that way you could not feel guilty about cutting it all back at once,” she said.
(AP/Martha Irvine)
AP/Martha Irvine
Herbs
Gathering herbs? Jentz said basil, cilantro, and other similar plants are pretty forgiving.
“So you can cut them back at least by a third, if not by a half, and you can just pinch it out with your finger,” she said.
However, some of the woody herbs might not regenerate if you go too far back into the stem, and Jentz advises not to take more than a third of the plant at a time.
(ASSOCIATED PRESS/Dean Fosdick)
ASSOCIATED PRESS/Dean Fosdick
Herbs
As far as maintenance goes, there’s no need to fertilize or overwater, but you may have to take precautions if you find you have bugs attracted to your cilantro. Jenz said a simple covering can help keep critters away.
“You can just use a sheet of gauze or cheesecloth from the kitchen too, if you find that bugs are really decimating your cilantro,” she said.
And if you’re growing mint, make sure you give it its own container.
“Because it’s a monster and it will take over,” Jentz said.
(AP Photo/Larry Crowe)
AP Photo/Larry Crowe
Herbs
Cilantro starts to taper off as summer’s heat intensifies. It will even bolt, flower and set seed.
“And of course, when cilantro sets seed, that’s coriander, so you can collect those seeds and use them in the kitchen too, and of course save some seeds to plant this fall for our other shoulder cold season,” Jentz said.
Basils and the Mediterranean herbs, on the other hand, thrive in the heat.
“As long as we don’t get thunderstorm after thunderstorm after thunderstorm, they’re pretty happy here,” Jentz said.
(AP Photo/Larry Crowe)
