Vegetables
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Let’s Grow: Bumper Crops
A lot of people daydream about starting their own garden. Whether it’s in your yard or in containers on your deck or windowsill, the idea of growing fresh vegetables and fruits seems like a delightful use of your property and time. It’s also a potential budget boon, as growing your own food can be a lot cheaper than paying for food someone else has grown, harvested, and trucked to your area. So what stops us all from having majestic victory gardens in our back yard? Gardening is a lot of work, honestly. And too many of us have had the bitter experience of trying to keep a plant alive only…
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Companion Planting for Vegetables
Make the most of your space and your efforts with this age-old technique of growing certain vegetables and herbs together for mutually beneficial purposes like soil condition, sun requirements, pest and weed control, climbing support, and more. Here are some classic vegetable companion groupings. Tomatoes/Eggplants/Peppers + Herbs + Borage Nightshades must be planted after the last threat of frost has passed. Edge the beds with herbs that like the same growing conditions, such as basil and parsley. Borage can also help keep away destructive tomato hornworms (and its periwinkle flowers taste like cucumber). Potatoes + Beans Plant seed potatoes in spring, after the soil thaws. Beans on poles or trellises…
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Asparagus is the King of Spring
Asparagus is one of the first plants that greets us in springtime! It’s a perennial, which means that once it gets established, the tender spears will return year after year. In addition, its ferny foliage makes an excellent ornamental. Is there a more delicious return on investment than growing asparagus? We don’t think so! After getting established, asparagus can share its healthy bounty for up to 20 years. It’s one of our favorites to plant in a central Texas garden. How long does it take to grow? Newly-planted asparagus plants may take 2 to 3 years to truly get started and produce, so patience is needed! After they’re established, however,…
