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Florida gardeners? thoughts turn to spring vegetables

Now is the time to plant, transplant and take preventive steps against weeds and disease rot.

By Pam Brown and Carol Suggs, Special to the Times
Published February 2, 2008

It's time to plant your spring vegetable garden. Two weeks before you put seeds or starter plants in the ground, till the soil and incorporate organic matter.

You'll need about 25 pounds of organic material per 100 square feet of garden: cow manure, compost, peat moss, or any combination of materials.

Almost any vegetable is suitable for a spring garden. You might want to consider bush beans, lima beans, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, peppers, sweet potatoes, summer squash and tomatoes. Vegetable Gardening in Florida by James Stephens is a great reference book.

STOP THE ROT: Blossom-end rot is often a serious problem for tomatoes, peppers, squash and cucumbers in the home vegetable garden. The bottom ends turn soft and dark. This is a sign of calcium deficiency. Correct it by using lime in the garden or treating existing plants with calcium chloride, commonly sold as Stop Blossom-End Rot.

BLOOM WATCH: Watch for the blooms on your avocado and mango trees. Spray the blooms with a fungicide to prevent disease that aborts them. Fertilize your trees using an 8-3-9, 4-6-6 or 4-6-8 mixture that also has 1 to 2 percent magnesium.

WEEDS AND SEEDS: Apply a pre-emergent fertilizer now to stop the seeds of weeds from taking root. Summer weeds will sprout soon after night temperatures rise above 70. Check your garden center to find the one labeled safe on your type of lawn. Some common pre-emergent herbicides are Balan, Betasan, Atrazine, Surflan, Treflan and Corn Gluten. Always follow directions. Even an herbicide that says it can be used on your particular grass may still cause injury if the lawn is under stress or during hot weather.

TRANSPLANT: Most plants are in a dormant or slow-growth mode at this time of year, so it's a good time to transplant a tree or shrub that's in the wrong place. You need not prune plants when you move them, but if you do need to prune, do so before transplanting. Newly transplanted shrubs and trees will drop leaves they can't support.

DIVIDE AND CONQUER: Divide crowded perennial plants such as cannas, gerberas, day lilies and stokesia. Cut large clumps into smaller sections, making sure that each has an adequate supply of stems, leaves, roots and buds to survive transplanting. Ferns, orchids, day lilies, bulbous plants, nandina and liriope are commonly propagated by division. This is an excellent way to increase the area in the landscape covered with groundcover plants and decrease the amount of turf grass.

COOL IT: All newly planted trees, shrubs and vegetables should be mulched to conserve moisture and keep down weeds. A layer 2 to 3 inches deep should be sufficient. Keep mulch at least 2 inches away from the trunk or stems of plants. Mulch may help prevent slugs from eating your strawberries. Pinellas County provides free, recycled yard-waste mulch. Call the county recycling hotline at (727) 464-7500 for locations where you can pick it up.

PRUNE ME: This is the right time for annual rose pruning. This involves removing some healthy top growth as well as shortening main canes and lateral branches, and completely removing small twigs and some of the oldest canes, which will improve the plant's form. It also regulates height and produces better light and air circulation conditions within the plant.

Leave at least half the length of each main cane that is 1 to 3 years old. The first flowers can be expected eight to nine weeks after pruning.

To avoid dieback and encourage rapid healing, pruning cuts should be made about 1/4 inch above a dormant bud (eye) that faces out from the center of the plant. Make the cut at a 45-degree angle.

Sterilize pruning equipment before each cut by dipping in alcohol or a mixture of one part bleach and nine parts water. When an entire branch is removed, make a smooth cut at the point of juncture.

Prune camellias after flowering. Cut branches just above the point where last year's growth ends. Remove most of the new growth. Rake up any fallen blooms to help avoid petal blight next year.

Prune hibiscus the end of this month or early March. Hibiscus can be pruned throughout the summer to keep it from becoming leggy, but you will sacrifice a certain amount of blooms whenever you prune.

PLANT ME: For garden color almost year-round, plant marigolds. These hardy little plants, heat- and drought-tolerant, will bloom about six weeks after seeds are sowed and will continue to bloom until the first frost. They may stop blooming during extended hot periods, but will quickly start again once temperatures cool. To encourage flowering, keep faded blossoms removed. Fertilize every three to six weeks with a bloom-boosting fertilizer.

Continue to plant pansies and petunias this month for color into spring. Older plants can be pinched back to encourage new, compact growth. Fertilize monthly.

Compiled by Pam Brown and Carol Suggs of the Pinellas County Extension Center/Florida Botanical Gardens. Questions? Call them at (727) 582-2100.

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Mark your calendar

Introduction to Flowering Plant Identification, 9 a.m.-noon today and continuing each Saturday in February. Pinellas County Extension & Florida Botanical Gardens, 12520 Ulmerton Road, Largo. Cost: $50 ($45 for Master Naturalists and FBG members). Class size is limited. To register, please call (727) 582-2581.

Compost Happens Workshop, 10-11:30 a.m. today, Pinellas County Extension, 12520 Ulmerton Road, Largo. Free; registration required; call (727) 582-2673. Pinellas County residents attending will receive a free plastic compost bin after completing a short survey.

Discovery Tour of the Florida Botanical Gardens, 1-2:30 p.m. Feb. 10, Pinellas County Extension Welcome Center, 12520 Ulmerton Road, Largo. Free; registration required; call (727) 582-2581. Suitable for all ages and abilities; no pets.

Small Flowering Trees, 2 and 6 p.m. Feb. 13, Crystal Beach Community Hall, 517 Crystal Beach Ave. (This is an interim location while the Palm Harbor Library is being renovated.) Free; registration required; call (727) 582-2581.

Annual HerbFest, 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Feb. 16, Pinellas County Extension, 12520 Ulmerton Road, Largo.

"The Wonderful World of Herbs," 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Feb. 16, Pinellas County Extension & Florida Botanical Gardens, 12520 Ulmerton Road, Largo. Free; registration required; call (727) 582-2581. Family fun class: Tour herb garden, make a tasty treat.

Discovery Tour of the Florida Botanical Gardens, 1-2:30 p.m. Feb. 24, Pinellas County Extension Welcome Center, 12520 Ulmerton Road, Largo. Free; registration required; call (727) 582-2581. Suitable for all ages and abilities; no pets.

[Last modified February 1, 2008, 13:23:53]