Cucumber Marketmore

Should I pick off male cucumber flowers?

I have 2 Cucumber plants, ‘Marketmore’ growing in 6inch pots inside the house. They now stand 18inches (46cm) tall. They are in flower and a few flowers have wilted and dropped off.

Do I need to pinch off the male flowers on these cucumbers?

Do I need to hand-pollinate? There are no bugs/bees inside the house to do the job.

Should I plant them outside now? I live in South-East England.


Cucumber plants have both male and female flowers, but only the female flowers will produce fruit. However, in order to do so, they must be pollinated by pollen from the male flower. This important transfer is usually conducted by bees, but the gardener can increase the quantity of fruit by carrying out some judicious hand pollination. The female flowers are easy to identify because each has a tiny cucumber at the base. Use a small brush to remove some of the pollen from the male flower and gently brush it onto the centre of the female flower. Sowing Outdoors
For the outdoor varieties, you have the choice of starting them off indoors or you can plant them directly into the ground where they are going to grow after the threat of frost has passed. Generally cucumbers are best sown directly where they will remain, but to start off your outdoor varieties indoors you now have the opportunity of avoiding root disturbance by planting them in bio degradable pots – such as Jiffy Pots. You can plant both pots and plants directly into the soil … no mess, no problem … no root damage … and they get well established quickly.
Your cucumber plants will thrive best in a well protected, sunny spot with them spaced about 18” apart. You should dig down between 8-12” into the soil before planting, enriching the soil with loads of organic matter before planting … and keeping your plants topped up with fertilisers when the fruits start to set.
Or, you can grow your outdoor cucumbers on little ‘hills’ or mounds of soil, compost and organic matter combined.
Dont plant out-doors if there is still frost on the ground
If cucumbers drop off the vine just after they start to develop, it’s usually because they haven’t been properly pollinated. Good growing conditions — watering and fertilising — will also improve the size and quality of a cucumber crop.

Limagrain Presents its Annual Results, up on Last Year

CHAPPES, France, December 22, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- In the period from July 1st 2009 until June 30th 2010, Limagrain achieved sales up more than 9% and a net income on line with expectations. The environment of the fiscal year was again characterized by the economic and financial crisis, and difficulties with the prices of agricultural raw materials. All the divisions achieved positive economic results.

Consolidated sales came to EUR1,349 million, as opposed to EUR1,233 million in 2009, an increase of 9.4%. Net income stood at EUR69 million, as opposed to EUR58 million for the previous fiscal year. The operating result fell to EUR108 million from EUR117 million in 2009, with the impact of exceptional items.

Equity rose from EUR618 million in 2009 to EUR927 million. This strong increase can be explained by the entry of the Strategic Investment Fund (SIF) into the capital stock of Groupe Limagrain Holding (GLH), and the capital stock increase of Vilmorin & Cie[1]. Net financial indebtedness represents EUR539 million in 2010. It is down compared with 2009, when it stood at EUR633 million. Investment in research was intensified considerably reaching EUR141 million as opposed to EUR124 million, representing 14% of "professional" sales. During the fiscal year, the group had 6,700 permanent employees spread over 38 countries.

Daniel Cheron, Limagrain's CEO, commented on the Group's results: "Limagrain is pursuing its progression with sales up by 9.4%. This progression is the fruit of sustained internal growth, higher than 5%, stimulated by a flow of novel products and considerable investment in marketing. It is also the result of a dynamic international external growth policy with targeted acquisitions. In seeds this was the case with distributors such as Clovis Matton, for field seeds in Belgium, and Su Tarim, for vegetable seeds in Turkey. Our research programs were strengthened for wheat in the United States with Trigen, Genesis Seed Research, BSF Ag-Research, and Trio Research; and in Argentina, with DonMario. We also acquired research programs in vegetable seeds, in tomatoes with PHRO, in Poland; in cauliflower with Trinity Growers, in the United Kingdom; and in sweet corn with Meza Mais, in the United States. In France, we also consolidated our cereal products activity through the acquisition of Creperie Lebreton and the Moulin de Verdonnet."

Limagrain is an international co-operative group, specialized in field seeds, vegetable seeds and cereal products. It conducts its business within the framework of a global, sustainable vision of agriculture and agri-food based on innovation and regulation of agricultural markets. It is the 4th largest seed company in the world through its subsidiary Vilmorin & Cie, European leader for functional flours through Limagrain Cereales Ingredients and 2nd largest French industrial baker through Jacquet. The Group makes annual sales of more than 1.3 billion Euros and has a headcount of 6,700, spread out over 40 countries, including 1,300 researchers.

A winter garden in Austin can be a wonderland of good food

In Central Texas, winter is the most wonderful (and easiest) time of the year to grow food. Most of the cool weather crops — mustard greens, kale, broccoli, Swiss chard, carrots, potatoes, fennel, leaf lettuces, onions, beets, asparagus, spinach and so on — love our mild winters.

So while most gardeners up north are taking a break about now, Central Texas gardeners (especially the obsessive overachieving ones) are busy outside planting seeds for cool weather crops, harvesting cool weather vegetables from seeds that were sown in the fall, and starting seeds for warm weather crops indoors in tiny pots under grow lights. (Note: Now is the time to start tomato seeds indoors if you want to set out your own transplants in the spring.)

If you’re new to vegetable gardening, you’re probably going to want to spend a little time studying a planting guide for Central Texas. (Some vegetable seeds are quite picky when it comes to growing conditions.) These guides, which are based on average soil temperatures and sunlight requirements needed for optimum seed germination and fruit production, can take some of the guesswork (and head-scratching and foot stomping) out of creating a productive vegetable garden. Among the most useful guides are the chart created by Travis County Extension Director Skip Richter and Master Gardener Patty Leander (available online and at most nurseries around town); The Travis County Planting Guide, and the Austin Organic Gardeners’ Planting Calendar.

Here are some additional winter gardening tips you might find useful

SOIL PREP

— Most of the soil in our area is either deep black clay or shallow rocky clay. Both are alkaline and neither can sustain the growth of vegetables. So before you even think about planting anything, be sure to dig in plenty of organic materials, especially compost. If your soil isn’t deep, build a raised bed or plant in containers. Also, dig in some decomposed granite and greensand to elevate the mineral content of your soil (your vegetables will thank you) and improve drainage and moisture retention.

— One of my favorite ways to get started on a new planting bed is to layer a bunch of organic materials right on the ground, a gardening method that is known as sheet composting: First, cover the ground with overlapping pieces of cardboard or sheets of newspaper (about 10 sheets deep). Then top the paper with about 3 inches of chopped dry leaves, decayed straw, or partially composted lawn and shrub trimmings. Wet thoroughly. Then spread about 2 inches of good compost topped with a sprinkling of greensand and well composted manure. Next comes a thin layer of decomposed granite, and then 2-3 inches of bagged garden soil (or soil dug from some other part of your yard) mixed with compost. And finally, top with about 2 inches of mulch (I like to use pine straw or chopped leaves). If you like, you can make it look tidy by edging it with stones, bricks, metal or cedar boards.

— In the last few years Mel Bartholomew’s “Square Foot Gardening” (and its many variations) has caught on in a big way among beginning urban gardeners: Build a square out of 4 feet long, 1-inch x 6-inch cedar boards (or strips of metal for a more permanent bed), set it on top of a weed barrier (thick cardboard or newspapers) and fill with good quality garden soil mixed with plenty of compost. (Bartholomew calls for a soil mix that contains peat moss, but a lot of gardeners prefer to use leaf mould or other more earth-friendly alternatives.)

PLANTING

— Seeds germinate best in fine-textured soil that contains humus (the stuff that’s left after organic matter has decayed). Try topping your planting area with a 1-inch layer of sifted compost. (You can build your own sifting device out of scrap lumber and hardware cloth, or purchase one for around $25.) Make narrow, shallow (1x1 inch) trenches in your bed and then fill with sifted compost. Plant your seeds in the trench at depth recommended on seed package. (When in doubt, plant shallower.) After planting, water seeds gently with a weak solution of liquid seaweed.

— Another good way to start seeds in the garden during dry spells is to fill the planting trench with straight vermiculite (available by the bag at most nurseries). Vermiculite holds moisture well, but whether you use sifted compost or vermiculite, during really dry weather you may need to moisten your seed bed twice a day — once in the morning and again in the evening.

— Check your seed bed regularly to make sure the soil stays moist, but not soggy, until the seeds sprout. When your seedlings are about 3 inches tall, thin according to the seed packet instructions. When your plants are about 3 inches tall, mulch with 1-2 inches of chopped dry leaves, pine needles or straw.

— Consider planting seeds for winter greens and lettuces in small batches, staggered a few weeks apart, so you don’t have to harvest and eat everything all at once.

— If you’re sowing seeds directly into a mulched garden bed, be sure to push the mulch aside to plant seeds. After seeds germinate and seedlngs are a few inches tall, you can replace the mulch.

— To get a jump on a winter garden, start with transplants of greens, broccoli, lettuce, etc., from your favorite nursery. Water your transplants in with a weak seaweed solution to help stimulate root growth, and keep a close watch so they don’t dry out.

WATERING

—During a dry winter, keep your vegetable garden soil adequately moist, especially before freezes. In general, vegetables grow and produce best when the soil they’re growing in is not allowed to dry out completely. Soil that contains plenty of organic matter plus, some decomposed granite, holds moisture longer. Mulch will also help the soil retain moisure.

— The dry, dry winter we’re having this year has been hard on all our plants, even the trees, shrubs, and perennials. Our landscapes usually get adequate rainwater during winter and early spring, but when that doesn’t happen, trees and shrubs can become stressed. Sometimes that stress can cause enough damage that they have trouble bouncing back in the spring. So give all but your most drought tolerant plants a deep drink at least once every 2 weeks during dry spells. Plants that need more water to thrive (including vegetables) will be happier with a deep soaking once a week if no rain has fallen.

— Also, since plants with dry root zones are more likely to suffer freeze damage, be sure to water tender perennials and recently planted shrubs right before a freeze. But don’t go overboard and create a soggy bog. Overwatering in the winter can lead to root rot, especially if your soil is heavy.

A FEW WORDS ABOUT ONE OF MY FAVORITE WINTER VEGETABLES:

— I love fennel. I love how it looks in the garden. I love how it attracts beneficial insects and butterflies. And I especially love how it flavors some of my favorite dishes. All that said, it isn’t one of the easiest vegetables to grow in our climate. It needs about 70-80 days to produce a good size bulb and it grows best in cool (50s and 60s) weather. Once a bulb has formed, a few days of temperatures in the high 70s can cause the plant to bolt (start producing seed instead of bulbs and stems), so good timing is key. After a few years of experimenting with different approaches to growing fennel, here’s what I’ve decided works (at least some of the time):

—If planting from seed, sow seeds in late fall. Be sure to keep them moist until they germinate and watch that soil doesn’t dry out completely during hot spells. Regular moisture and lots of compost are key to getting good bulb production from fall-planted fennel seeds.

— Fennel transplants set out in late October have a good chance of producing decent bulbs. Well established fennel plants can withstand freezing temperatures, usually down to the 20s. On the rare occasions when our temps dip into the low 20s or below, it’s a good idea to cover your plants with row cover. During last winter’s hard freezes, I didn’t cover my fennel, and some of my mature plants were damaged. I peeled away the damaged outer bulb layers and trimmed the droopy fronds and the plants started putting on new growth and looking good again. It could be that I was just lucky, but I’m thinking these frilly plants are much sturdier than they look.

— I’ve also started fennel seeds in December and January during mild winters. But one hard freeze will kill baby seedlings, so if you decide to try this, be ready with row cover or other warming devices.

— When your fennel plants flower and start producing seed in warm weather, some of those seeds may plant themselves for your next winter garden. Keep an eye out for volunteers seedlings in the fall.

— Sometimes well established, well cared for fennel plants will act like perennials, which technically, they are. After your plants have flowered and gone to seed in summer, try this: Cut the stems to a few inches above the ground, water enough through the hot months to keep plants alive, and then come fall, look for new baby plants to shoot up from the base. When the shoots appear, side dress the plant with compost and/or organic fertilizer, mulch, and water regularly.

— And finally, fennel is a host plant for swallowtail butterflies, so don’t kill the larvae chowing down on the leafy fronds. The leaves will grow back.

Roasted Fennel and Potato Soup

Ingredients

1-2 Tbsps butter

3 Tbsps olive oil

3 small yukon gold potatoes, peeled, halved and sliced

3 large fennel bulbs, fronds and core removed, sliced, and any bruised outer layers peeled away

3 Tbsps shallot, chopped

1/4 cup onion, chopped

1/4 cup dry white wine

4 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped

3 cups chicken stock (homemade is best)

1/4 cup cream

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup grated white cheddar cheese (sharp)

Salt and pepper to taste

Filtered water, if needed to thin soup

Small fennel fronds for garnish
To a hot heavy skillet add 1 Tbsp. butter and 1 Tbsp. olive oil. Add potatoes, generous pinch of salt and pepper, and stir to coat potato pieces with oil. Cook over medium low heat until potatoes are tender and begin to caramelize. Add more butter or oil if potatoes seem too dry. (Aim for some browned potato bits on bottom of pan, but don’t allow to burn.) Pour wine (or a bit of stock) into pan, and stir to loosen brown bits. Then pour mixture into a soup pot.

Meanwhile, lightly salt fennel and toss with remaining olive oil. Spread out in a single layer on baking sheet so that pieces are not overlapping. Roast at 375 for about 15 minutes, or until fennel is brown around edges and tender. Add cooked fennel and stock to pot of potatoes and cook over low heat. Meanwhile, sautee onion and shallot in remaining olive oil over medium low heat until edges start to brown, then stir in garlic and sautee a few minutes more.

Pour onion garlic mixture into soup pot. Add milk, cream, cheese and continue cooking over medium low heat for about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Remove from heat and puree in small batches in a processor or simply puree in pot using an immersion blender (my most favorite kitchen tool!). Thin soup to your liking by adding water or additional stock. Serve hot, garnished with fresh fennel.

Variations: Top each bowl of soup with a Tbsp. of cooked, crumbled spicy Italian sausage. Or top with a chiffonade of baby kale leaves instead of fennel. For vegan soup, omit milk, cheese and butter.

With Modified Seeds, the USDA Breaks the Rules Yet Again

If you want to understand the Obama administration's schizophrenic attitude toward agricultural issues, consider Tom Stearns. He is the founder and president of High Mowing Seeds, a small Vermont company that sells 100 percent organic fruit and vegetable seeds, primarily to commercial growers. The seeds sown in the First Lady's chemical-free White House garden are ordered from High Mowing each spring, and Stearns has been to Washington, D.C., to consult with Sam Kass, the chef who oversees the nation's most high-profile organic plot.

At the same time, Stearns is suing the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). High Mowing, along with the Center for Food Safety, the Sierra Club, and the Organic Seed Alliance, took the agriculture department into court in 2008, charging that it had disobeyed its own rules—and the law—when it granted farmers permission to plant sugar beets that were genetically modified to survive applications of Monsanto's Roundup herbicide without first compiling the legally required Environment Impact Statement.
Of all the plaintiffs in the case, Stearns has the most to lose. By the USDA's own definition, crops grown from genetically modified (GM) seeds cannot be labeled "organic." Sugar beets are notoriously promiscuous, breeding not only with themselves but also with their close cousins, table beets and Swiss chard, both of which Stearns sells. If his seeds became contaminated with GM genes, they would have to be destroyed.

But all of us have a stake in the game. Widespread contamination could mean that consumers would no longer have the option of buying non-GM beets and chard. Half of the sugar we consume comes from beets, and does not have to be labeled as being made from GM sources, meaning that Americans are being force-fed GM products.

Because of climactic conditions, the vast majority of sugar beet, table beet, and Swiss chard seed in this country is grown in a small, confined area of Oregon's Willamette Valley. And since beet pollen can be carried for distances of over a mile by the wind, Stearns has good reason to worry about the threat of contamination.

A federal court judge agreed with Stearns and his fellow plaintiffs. In August, Judge Jeffrey White decreed that GM sugar beets could not be planted on a commercial scale until the USDA conducted the required environmental work. If this were a normal case, that would have been the end of the matter.

But it wasn't. The USDA had powerful allies, including agrichemical and seed giants like Monsanto, Bayer CropScience, and Syngenta, who signed on to the case as intervenors, the legal term for parties not directly involved in a case but who have an interest in its outcome. Instead of obeying the judge's orders, the corporations met with the USDA behind closed doors—"the ink wasn't even dry on the judge's order," according to George Kimbrell, senior staff attorney for the Center for Food Safety—and came up with an end run around the judge's decision. The USDA gave the corporations special permission designed to allow limited cultivation of experimental crops to plant the GM beets that would become 2011's seed crop.
The plaintiffs tried again, asking that the judge order the young GM beets destroyed. Ironically, the legal system rewarded the USDA and its corporate pals for circumventing the judge's original order. Once the beets were growing, the plaintiffs had to meet tougher standards. "It's much easier to get a pre-emptive injunction than a mandatory injunction, which we now faced," Kimbrell said. "It's like if you're challenging a timber sale. You want to go in before they have logged the trees and say, 'Don't allow them to log the trees.' Once they've logged the trees, you're up the creek."


Courtesy of High Mowing Organic Seeds
Despite the more rigorous standards, the judge came down firmly on the side of the plaintiffs, saying in his order that the legal issue "does not even appear to be a close question." In a December 1 decision, he said that the baby GM beets had to be destroyed. It was the first time a federal court had issued an order to destroy an entire crop. "It was extraordinary," Kimbrell said. "The law and the facts were very clearly in our favor."

No matter. The USDA and its corporate cronies promptly filed an emergency appeal, which will probably be decided sometime in late February or March.

This appeal is just the latest move in a game of legal brinksmanship that the chemical and seed companies, along with their allies at the major sugar producers, have been playing with the tacit support of the USDA.

When the case was in its preliminary stages in 2007—before the first commercial GM sugar beet was planted—the tightly-knit sugar industry had three options. It could have continued growing conventional sugar beets, as it had for the previous century or so. Or it could have acted cautiously in the face of litigation, moving ahead with GM beets in the event that it won the case, but maintaining a supply of conventional seed as a precaution. Instead it decided to completely abandon conventional beets.

Now, at the court of appeals, the corporations and USDA are hoping that the judges will not call their bluff a second time.

Paul Achitoff, another attorney for the plaintiffs, said in a statement, "The USDA's persistent refusal to comply with environmental laws in the face of one court decision after another is remarkable. This is another instance of USDA serving Monsanto's interests at the expense of the public interest without regard to the rule of law."

Back at the head office of High Mowing Organic Seeds, a busy place this time of year as employees rush to fill a steady flow of orders for the 2011 growing season, Stearns has a somewhat more straightforward assessment of the case. "The USDA has rules and the USDA did not follow them," he said. As for the corporations: "They made their own stupid mistake—maybe on purpose."

Gardener reaps seeds in online quiz

Shanika Hewitt has never even eaten a turnip, but thanks to that favorite of Southern grandmothers, she'll be on the receiving end of a year's worth of vegetable seeds.





Shanika, of Shreveport, was named the winner in a contest sponsored by Mike the Gardener Enterprises of New Jersey.

More than 14,600 people took the online quiz about turnips and Shanika came out on top, even though she admits she guessed at most of the answers.

But those seeds couldn't be landing in a better mailbox.

Shanika, who has five children, planted her first vegetable garden last year.

"I was trying to get them to eat more vegetables," she said. "I was reading online and I didn't like things about what we ate, so I decided to try growing my own to make sure everything was organic."

In her small front yard, she planted lettuce, broccoli, tomatoes, basil, cilantro and cauliflower and was thrilled with the results on everything except the tomatoes, which were planted too late to produce.

"Everything I learned was off the Internet," she said.

"Next time I'll know when to plant everything."

She's already received her first batch of seeds — lettuce, spinach, cucumber and basil.

"I just think it's great, growing your own vegetables. You just walk out. Everything we have is so fresh."

Garden Seed Catalogs

Last summer, we decided to plant vegetables in a local community garden. We started late and didn't know a lot, but we had fun and some success. We thought that this spring we would like to try seeds instead of the more expensive plants.

We have the "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Vegetable Gardening" that you recommended, but we are unsure of the best place to buy seeds. We have decided that we want to support companies that don't modify their seeds. Do you know of some good sources?

A: Congratulations on your first gardening attempt and the willingness to learn more and try again. I think you will like the catalogs that I am suggesting to you. First, there are many people like you who want unmodified seeds. About 35 years ago, some of them formed an organization called the Seed Savers Exchange. They offer over 600 plant varieties to the public in their catalog and provide tens of thousands of seeds to members of the nonprofit organization.

The 13,000 members work to collect, maintain and distribute heirloom vegetable varieties. They maintain a list of members who want to exchange with each other, but you don't have to do that to become a member. One of the member benefits is getting discounts on seed, plant or book purchases. Check them out at www.seedsavers.org.

Seeds of Change has 100 percent certified organic seeds, so the plants producing the seeds for your garden were grown organically. Organic farmers across the country supply seeds to this Minnesota-based company. They have over 1,200 varieties of seeds, including some annuals and perennials. Their website has more options than their catalog.

Comstock, Ferre & Co. has sold vegetable garden seeds for 200 years at its Wethersfield, Conn., location. It was purchased in the past year by the Gettle family, which already owns Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. Their catalog is fun to read as they often mention the date and name of the discoverer as well as other old facts. Did you know that Thomas Jefferson liked to plant white beets in his garden, so he may have planted the Albino variety?

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds has a farm, a village, monthly festivals and other vacation destination opportunities located in the Missouri Ozarks and a seed bank retail store in Petaluma, Calif. They provide vegetable seeds found in a variety of small villages and markets around the world.

Gardeners peruse seed catalogs

A new year is upon us, and I doubt if 2011 will be much different from any other, at least in one aspect. It seems each year about this time, seed catalogs arrive in the mail and I eagerly ponder which varieties of vegetables to plant. I love seed catalogs. They offer colorful photos and oftentimes terrific cultural information. With that said, I still end up purchasing most of my vegetable seeds from local garden centers.




I always look for the red, white, and blue shield which certifies a variety as an "All-America Selections" winner. My recommendations:

Mariachi pepper (2006): This fleshy chili pepper ripens from creamy white to rose and finally to red. Mariachi peppers are moderately pungent, with Scoville ratings in the 500 to 600 range (about one fourth the heat of jalapeno peppers). Use in salsas, sauces, or roast whole.


Sweet Beauty watermelon (2004): With sweet flavor and crisp texture, there is no wonder Sweet Beauty is praised by judges for its superior eating qualities. Melons weigh only 5 to 7 pounds and have dark green skin and medium green stripes.


Diva cucumber (2002): Cukes have a sweet, non-bitter with a crisp texture. Normally seedless, but a few seeds may be present if pollinated by other cuke plants. Expect high yields of mature cucumbers in about 58 days from sowing seed in warm soil. It is resistant to scab and tolerant to powdery and downy mildews. Diva is a good slicing cucumber.


Each of these varieties should be available at better garden centers and through online catalogs.

Sowing Seeds of Tradition

The 1930s brought much more to then mostly-rural Guadalupe County than the economic ravages of the Great Depression. It actually brought about an increased awareness of the need to be self-sufficient - especially to non-rural residents.

Much like the resurgence of an interest by many in learning how to do more for ourselves during this current economic recession, there was a scurry of activity each January during the depression as local residents were learning about and actually preparing and planting home vegetable gardens.

Not unlike today, those with an interest in vegetable gardening turned to "older" (senior citizen) friends and relatives for guidance as they worked towards providing fresh home-grown food for their tables.

But, quite unlike today's busy society, many Guadalupe County residents kept their heirloom vegetable seeds and often would trade seeds with others in the community. If pumpkins didn't "make" during last year's growing season for one family, they probably did "make" for another.

Back then, it was just common "country" courtesy to share seeds with each other.

Fortunately, many county residents kept the tradition of country-life alive by passing on gardening information on to the "younger" generation.

Even today, as Guadalupe County transitions from rural to semi-rural to "rurban," a small but active local group of the Guadalupe County Master Gardeners Association and other horticultural-rooted organizations keep the gardening traditions alive.

This January is no different than those Januarys during the depression. Hopefully, the compost pile has been "cooking" for many months and is ready to be added to be applied to the vegetable garden spot.

Some readers are probably now saying "You needed to do that last October!" ... and, you're correct. However, with compost ... it is never too late! Our county's 1930s rural gardeners had the advantages of having all of the compost "ingredients" readily available, i.e., once-living vegetation refuse, livestock manure, moisture, pitch-fork, hands-on experience ... and a little extra time.

Today's gardeners can have a working compost pile "almost" anywhere they live. Or, if resources are available, then can alternatively obtain organic compost material from a variety of local providers.

As of today, the weather forecast "predictions" are for a couple of local early-morning freezes about the same time that you would logically be reading this column Freezing weather is not unusual for the month of January.

And, it was not unusual for those in the 1930s to continue to work their vegetable gardens during our infrequent cold spells ... to include "planting" during the month of January.

The same holds true today. English peas were and are a favorite of Guadalupe County gardeners set to be planted early in January with subsequent plantings all the way up to about mid-February. Today's recommended varieties for Guadalupe County include Wando, Lincoln and Little Marvel.

The months of January (mid-to-late) and February also welcome the plantings of other garden vegetables such as turnips (try Purple Top White Globe); radish (good varieties include Champion and Cherry Belle); potatoes (including white Kennebec and Red LaSoda); parsnips (consider trying Large Hollow Crown or Harris Model); parsley (Moss Curled or Plain Italian); and many different varieties of leaf lettuce, leeks, kohlrabi, beets, cabbage, carrots, Swiss chard and collards.

As the days get longer and the soil warms, you'll be able to add tomatoes, peppers, squash, beans and more to your growing home vegetable garden.

Most of these "early" vegetables do well when planted in raised beds with lots of organic materials mixed in with good top-soil.

Hopefully your chosen vegetable garden site is located where it will receive as much direct sunshine as possible, is near a good water source, drains well and is located close enough to the house so that you will tend it when needed and harvest and use the bounty of your garden often.

Raised beds (with dirt-holding frames built to almost any size) can be easily made using 2"x8" treated lumber with treated 2"x4" for corner and splicing stakes. Use galvanized screws for fasteners. The ground inside the framed-in raised-bed "box" should be scraped (usually with a hoe) clean of vegetation to a depth of about one inch. Multiple layers of newspapers, magazines, cardboard and other biodegradable paper products should be placed on top of the scraped soil area to provide an effective weed barrier before adding top-soil and compost.

New plantings will require gentle watering (or rain) to keep the seedbed soil just moist. The compost will help in draining off excess water keeping seeds and new trans-plants from effectively drowning for lack of oxygen.

When your garden starts to flourish, don't forget to begin planning for your next crop. In Guadalupe County you can grow vegetables successfully all year long.

Good gardening.

Bob Grafe is a former managing editor of the Seguin Gazette Enterprise and a former chief juvenile probation officer for Guadalupe County.