There's Still Time to Plant Your Garden

By B. Rosie Lerner
Extension Consumer Horticulture Specialist

Many gardeners have found it difficult to get their gardens tilled and planted this spring, due to unending spring rains. But don't get in a hurry. It's important to the long-term health of your garden to resist the urge to work the soil when it's still wet.

Whether you use a tiller, plow, or just a garden spade, wet soil will form large, compacted clumps that will be very difficult to work. It takes many years to create garden soil of good tilth, but it takes only minutes to destroy that good structure.

The rule of thumb is to wait until the soil is dry enough to crumble through your fingers when squeezed in your hand. If the soil forms a muddy ball when squeezed, it's still too wet. But even if it takes several more weeks to dry enough for planting, there are plenty of flowers and vegetables that can be planted in late spring and even into summer.

Crops such as beans, beets, sweet corn, cucumbers, eggplants, melons, okra, peppers, squash, and tomatoes can be planted until early to mid-June in most parts of the state. Starting with transplants rather than seeds will help save several weeks of growing time. Also, look for fast-maturing cultivars when possible. Most annual flowers can still be planted anytime.

If the weather should turn hot and dry, you'll need to pamper your new planting to help plants adjust. You may need to shade plants from hot sun in the afternoons for a week or so, until the new foliage has a chance to adapt to the brighter light outdoors. Young plants may need to be watered more frequently, since their small root systems will not have much reach into the soil.

For those of you who did get your gardens tilled, planted and fertilized earlier this spring, you might find yourself starting over. Seeds that have been sitting in cold, water-soaked ground may rot before they have a chance to get started. Newly germinated seeds also may be at risk.

If plants do survive, you may need to apply additional fertilizer as a side-dressing this summer. Heavy rains wash away much of the nitrogen fertilizer, since it is generally quite water soluble. Apply about 1/3 pound of actual nitrogen per 100 foot row alongside the plants (for example, about 2 cups of ammonium nitrate). Then water the fertilizer into the soil if rain is not likely that day.

Cold, rainy weather likely will decrease, if not prevent, pollination activity on fruit trees that rely on bees or other insect pollinators. The results may not be obvious until later in June, when what appears to be small fruit start dropping off the tree from inadequate pollination. Short of hand-pollinating individual flowers, not much can be done to prevent this problem.

Last updated: 11 April 2006
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