Agent Articles

Vegetables and Fruit

So you are motivated to try to grow your own vegetables and fruits. Not sure where to begin? Maybe you have tried before without much success? Even the most seasoned gardener had to start somewhere. Don’t worry. We have all the resources you need to succeed.

There are many benefits to a vegetable and/or fruit garden. We all know consuming fresh fruits and vegetables is the basis of a healthy diet. What better way to supplement your diet than from your own garden? As an added bonus, gardening helps reduce stress by getting you out into the fresh air and sunshine. Gardening is also a great source of exercise.

The Johnson County Extension program has a wealth of knowledge provided by our Horticulture Agents and our Extension Master Gardeners. They have developed numerous articles for the local media and press releases on timely topics. These articles can assist you with finding the information you need to make wise choices in the lawn or garden.

The Gardening Calendar and average Frost Dates will help you plan when best to plant your garden. It is a good idea to begin your process with a Soil Test.

Fall Gardening Tasks

• Cleaning Vegetable Gardens
• Cover Cropping in the Backyard Garden
• Crop Rotation
• Fall Clean Up of the Fruit and Vegetable Garden
• Fall Salad Gardening
• Fall Vegetable Garden Cleanup Prevents Problems Later
• Fall Vegetables Gardening I
• Growing Transplants for Fall Gardening
• The Four Season Garden
• Last Chance Vegetable Seed Sowing
• Pawpaws: The Native Fruit
• Planting Your Fall Vegetable Garden
• Season Extension Methods

Winter Gardening Tasks

• Late Winter Fruit Pruning
• Low Tunnels for Winter Production
• Making Sense of Seed Catalogs
• Winter Planning and Prep for the Spring Season

Spring Gardening Tasks

• Building a Better Raised Bed
• "Critical" Temperatures for Fruit Trees
• Mitigating Transplant Shock
• Sprays for Fruit Trees
• Starting Seeds Indoors
• Placing a Vegetable Garden
• Preventing Bolting
• Transplanting Perennial Vegetables

Summer Gardening Tasks

• Choosing Watermelons
• Container Gardens versus Traditional Gardens
• Easing Fruit Loads
• Fertilize Strawberries in August
• Growing Vegetables in Containers
• Growing Vegetables in Pots
• Lacking Vegetable Production
• Peach Harvesting
• Summer To-Dos in the Backyard Orchard

Crop Specific Topics

Asparagus

• Growing Asparagus

Garlic

• Garlic Curing and Harvesting
• Garlic Planting

Herbs

• Growing Herbs Indoors

Onions

• All About Onions

Potatoes

• Growing Potatoes

Pumpkins

• How to Pick the Perfect Pumpkin

Squash

• Squash Bugs

Sweet Potatoes

• • Harvesting Sweet Potatoes
  • Sweet Potato: Starts and Plantings

Tomatoes

• Blossom End Rot
• Growing Tomatoes: Tips to Help Ensure a Good Harvest
• How to Grow Your Own Tomatoes
• Pre-Frost Tomato Harvest
• The Root of It
• Troubleshooting Tomato Issues

Zucchinis

• Zucchinis: Not That Easy to Grow Anymore

Garden Basics Videos and General Best Practices

This series of short videos will provide you with timely tips and information to help you harvest a bountiful crop. Step-by-step, they are your guide to success.

• • Container Gardening
  • Deciding What to Grow

• Garden Fertilization
• Gardening in a Raised Bed
• Getting a Handle on Weeds
• Getting a Soil Test
• Growing Seasons - Spring, Summer and Fall
• Inground Garden Bed
• Introduction to Vegetable Gardening
• Locating the Vegetable Garden
• Raised Bed Garden Spacing
• Space Saving Tips – Go Vertical

• • What’s Bugging You? Pest Control
  • What type of garden bed is right for you?

Environmental-Best Management Practices

• Composting in the City
• Heat Waves and Humidity
• Intensive Spacing for Raised Beds*
• Mulching the Garden Saves Time
• Organic Fertilization Methods
• Weeding the Vegetable Garden
• Produce Safety in the Vegetable Garden

Garden Equipment and Tools

• Grow Lights for Home and Garden
• Lighting Options for Starting Seed (LEDs vs. Flourescent)
• Slow Tools for Small Farms and Home Gardens

Watering

• Watering the Garden

General Resources

The Kansas Garden Guide is a fantastic resource that combines knowledge gained from decades of gardening, making it an essential sourcebook to garden throughout communities in Kansas. This is available to purchase in our office or access it online.

An additional resource is the Midwest Fruit Pest Management Guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Vegetables

• Cauliflower
• Crop (vegetable) rotation
• Indian corn
• Insects — broccoli/cauliflower
• Onions
• Pumpkins
• Seed storage
• Tomatoes

Fruits

• Bulge on dwarf apple tree
• Blueberries
• Strawberries

 

 

Dig Your Dinner

From sowing seeds to sautéing your vegetables, and picking produce to preserving it, there is much to be known in the world of vegetable gardening!

This monthly webinar series features Agents Anthony Reardon (Horticulture-Small Farms) and Chelsea Reinberg (Nutrition, Food Safety, and Health) who discuss the connections between growing and serving foods, suitable to the seasons. Learn more

Have questions? The Garden Hotline is staffed by trained EMG volunteers and Extension staff who will assist you with questions.

Phone: (913) 715-7050

Email: garden.help@jocogov.org