Steps For Planning A Vegetable Crop

Gardening knowledge can be subtle, and is gained over time from experience, asking people and reading books. The wealth of knowledge needed to grow food was traditionally carried orally by villages, or more recently “farming communities.” The erosion of the farming communities by technology and economics has left this knowledge in the hands of very few people. You, as gardeners, are in the role of keepers of this knowledge, a unique and rare joy that you can share with others and pass on to younger generations.

This worksheet offers one way to plan a gardening season. You can use the method for any vegetable. Be sure to use the time and temperature information that is specific to each crop.

Many books discourage starting corn in flats, saying it doesn’t transplant well. In general this is true. Specifically, corn will transplant best if done within 10 days after the first shoot emerges. It is fine to direct sow corn, yet if sowing an early crop, cool temperatures make seed more susceptible to rotting, disease and pests. Transplanting increases your chance of an early and successful harvest.

Process

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Example

Pick a vegetable and know its growing season and needs. / Rainbow Inca Sweet Corn (Seeds of Change)
Soil temp for germination:60-85
Days to germination: 4-12
Plant spacing: 12-18”
Days to maturity: 85-120 (= 3-4months or 12 to 16 weeks). This avg.: 102 days or 15 weeks.
Determine time needed for crop to mature. You can choose varieties based on maturity time, e.g. Rainbow Inca takes about 102 days to mature; another variety, True Platinum, takes about 79 days. / “Days to maturity” is from the date of emergence (when you can see the sprout from the germinated seed) except for tomatoes and peppers which is from the transplant date.
Estimate when you want to harvest. /

Estimated harvest date: July 15

Count back from that date to find when you need to sow. Using a calendar makes it visually easy to do this. /

July 15 minus 15 weeks = April 1

So, April 1 is the emergence date, or when the seed you sowed has sprouted.
Find “sow date” by counting backwards from “emergence date” the number of days the crop variety needs to germinate. In this case, 4-12 days. We’ll use 8 days for this example. /

April 1 (emergence date) minus 8 days = March 24 (sow date).

Note: Germination + flat time = 13 days
Find the estimated “transplant date” by counting forward from the “emergence date” the number of days the crop variety needs to be in the flat. Corn does best if transplanted in less than 10 days of sprouting. We’ll use 5 for this example. / April 1 (emergence date) plus 5 days = April 6 (transplant date)
Note weather trends and frost date to determine if seeds could be started outdoors.
If you started them indoors would weather be warm enough come time to transplant?
April 15 is last hard frost. In our region, corn can be sown outdoors as early as April 1 (in theory, assuming favorable conditions). / Germination rate and plant vigor will be better if you either start seeds indoors early, or wait until at least April 15 to start seeds outdoors (see Note above).
If necessary, adjust your indoor sowing date so that the transplant date will be at a time appropriate for the crop’s weather needs. / In our region, corn can be sown outdoors as early as April 1. You could also set transplants out at that time, so seed could be started indoors as early as mid-March.

HARVEST PLANNING

Estimate when harvest will begin from the emergence/sprouting date, and how long the harvest period may be (per crop variety). / Start of harvest:

Emergence at April 1 + 15 weeks = July 15

Harvest period:

Corn harvest approx. 2 weeks: July 15-July 31

SUCCESSION PLANTING

allows you to extend your harvest period and to provide you with an appropriate amount of produce per your need. To do this, start new crops at 1 to 2 week intervals after the first crop… (continued) / First crop:
Sow March 24
Transplant April 6
Harvest beginning July 15 for 1-2 weeks
This way you can avoid having a large crop ripen all at once with more than you can use, and prolong the joys of harvesting, especially if your growing space is limited… (continued) / Second crop: 1-2 weeks after the first.
Sow April 1
Transplant April 14
Harvest beginning July 28 for 1-2 weeks
Instead of planting 30 corn plants, plant 10 at 3 different times. Instead of planting a few corn plants once, resulting in a short harvest, plant the same number a few times to enjoy the crop over several weeks. / Third crop: 1-2 weeks after the second.
Sow April 14
Transplant April 27
Harvest beginning August 10 for 1-2 weeks
Corn is best planted in blocks or clusters………….. / See Philly Green’s “Tips for Intensive Vegetable Planting.” Call for a copy.

Books with vegetable garden planning chapters:

Square Foot Gardening

by Mel Bartholomew

1991, Rodale Press

Available from: Square Foot Gardening

1-877-828-1188

The Vegetable Gardener’s Bible

by Edward C. Smith

2000, Storey Books

Available from: Your local bookstore

The Sustainable VegetableGarden

by John Jeavons and Carol Cox

1999, Ten Speed Press.

Available from: BountifulGardens

(707) 459-6410

The New Organic Grower

by Eliot Coleman

1999, Chelsea Green Publishing.

Available from: Chelsea Green Publishing

(800) 639-4099

PennStateUniversity

College of Agricultural Sciences

and

PennState Cooperative Extension

Cooperative Extension in PhiladelphiaCounty

4601 Market Street, 2nd Floor
Philadelphia, PA19139-4616

Phone: (215) 471-2200
Email: