Q: I am ready to start my own garden, what and when should I plant?
A: So much goes into planning a home garden it is difficult to know where to start. Space available and individual preferences play an important part in deciding what to grow. Beans, beets, summer squash, peppers, tomatoes, lettuce, onions, radishes, and turnips are well adapted for growth when space is limited. Sweet corn, vine squash, cucumbers, pumpkins, and melons require more space for growth and should be considered only if adequate space is available. Don’t be afraid to experiment with unfamiliar vegetables, but plan to be able to use most of the vegetables you produce. Most home gardeners have too much to produce maturing at the same time. This is desirable if you plan to can or freeze the vegetables. For table use, it is better to stagger the plantings. Plant a few radishes every 4-5 days instead of all at once. This will provide a steady supply of radishes of ideal maturity over a long period of time. Also stagger plantings of lettuce, beans, sweet corn, and peas. Mid May is an appropriate time to start planting your snap or lima beans, cucumbers, eggplants, peppers, squash, tomatoes and okra. Be sure to monitor night temperatures and cover everything up if there is any danger of a frost. According to the Kansas Garden Guide, published by K-State Research and Extension, Rawlins County experiences roughly 160 frost free days per year. Our last spring frost is typically between April 29th and May 1st, while the average first fall frost is October 5-9. Check out qqq.krse.edu/bookstore/pubs/s51.pdf for more information. You may also refer to the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone map, which determines which plants are mostly likely to thrive at a location based on the average annual minimum winter temperature. Rawlins County is in the USDA zone 5.
