03-15-12 FR low res.pdf - Fluvanna Review

Gardening how–to
BY RUTHANN CARR
CORRESPONDENT
Fluvanna residents interested in
gardening fl ocked to the library Saturday
(March 3) to hear about how to get started
with vegetables and herbs.
Master Gardeners Val Roberts asked
the group of about 30 how many never
before gardened. About 10 raised their
hands.
“My advice is to start small and use
disease resistant vegetables,” Roberts
said.
She told the group that unless they
already amended their soil in the fall,
they should limit gardening this season
to containers or raised beds. Fluvanna
soil is basically clay and needs to have
compost and other things added to it to
create a better growing environment, she
said.
Marie Prosser was a little saddened to
here that, but got advice on why tomatoes
she planted last year in containers didn’t
thrive. Roberts said small tomato varieties
like grape and cherry tomatoes work
best in containers. They also need to be
watered more frequently if container–
grown. Prosser said she planted regular
sized tomatoes in the containers.
Roberts talk was full of information.
Besides passing out print–outs from the
Virginia Cooperative Extension website
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on such topics as “Seed for the Garden”
and “Vegetables Recommended for
Virginia,” she also gave the group a page
of useful websites, telephone numbers
and other VCE gardening publications.
Other tips included:
Don’t plant in low–lying areas
Plant on level ground to prohibit erosion
Put the garden close to the house, tools
and a water source
Keep a log
Put tall plants on the north side of the
garden
Only use well–composted manure
Soaker hoses and drip irrigation are
best ways to water
Don’t guess, soil test
Even though most soil in Fluvanna
tends to be more acidic than alkaline, the
only way to know exactly what you’re
dealing with and how to amend it is to
send a soil sample to VCE.
“Soil test for each area you will be
gardening,” Roberts said. “If you plan to
have a vegetable garden in the front yard
and back yard, get a sample from each
place.”
Once the soil sample is taken, there is a
place on the form to let extension agents
know what you will be planting, Roberts
said.
VCE will send back and analysis with
recommendations on how to improve the
soil.
Master Gardener Val Roberts spoke to Cindy Hay, Sharon Wolford and Eileen Anderson
after her presentation on growing vegetables. Photo by Ruthann Carr.
Eileen Anderson said she planned to
have her soil tested after hearing Roberts’
recommendation.
“I need to make sure my soil is
acceptable for planting,” Anderson said,
adding she attended the workshop “to
see if I’m doing things correctly.”
Cindy Hay is another beginning
gardener. She wants to start a garden
because, “I have the property and it’s not
being used.”
Master Gardener Cathy Seroski talked
to the group about growing herbs, which
said is easy.
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“Herbs do well here,” she said. “Just
don’t over fertilize because you’ll end up
with a lot of show and not much punch
(fl avor)”
At the end of her presentation, Seroski
shared shortbread cookies she baked
with a popular herb as fl avoring and
asked people to guess what it was.
Few guessed that the delicious, sweet,
lemony cookies were fl avored only with
rosemary.
For more information go to the VCE
website www.ext.vt.edu or call the
Fluvanna Master Gardener Help Desk
434–591–1950.
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