How to Plan Your 2010 Vegetable Garden

Today’s topic is on choosing vegetable varieties for a year-round harvest.  If you live in Zone 9, this may be particularly helpful because you can use or modify may plan. (see attached)  Gardeners in other areas can modify this plan based on your local growing conditions and interests. Please note, that I have a greenhouse to help provide shelter but I don’t use heaters or lights for winter gardening.  My garden plan is designed to maximize dietary variety by including lots of different types of vegetables, allow for over-wintering or storage of some vegetables to add variety in the lean winter months, and optimize plant selection so that they are grown at the right season for each type of veggie.  Most of you are familiar with summer vegetables, so I won’t dwell on them.  Please consider the following as good candidates for winter growth or storage: kale, chard, arugula, radish, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, peas, winter squash, carrots, beets, parsnips, and here are some you may not be as familiar with: upland cress (tastes like watercress), salsify (tastes a little like oysters – really!), pak choi or bok choi, mache.  The attached plan shows when I plant each vegetable and when they are ready for harvest. When one crop is finished, I replant the same space with the next crop so that I maximize my space.  I grow in containers in the greenhouse, in raised beds and in pots outside the greenhouse.  Green boxes on the plan show the month sowed, orange shows months where you can begin to expect some harvest, and red is peak harvest period. (PDF attached at bottom of this post)

Download PlanterTomato.com 2010 Garden Plan