By CHRISTINE LYNCH
“To everything there is a season.” This is true, yet many gardeners wish to stretch out the growing season. It may not be an endless summer, but with thoughtful planning, getting an early jump with seeds, utilizing the sunny and shady areas of your garden, turning over spent vegetables and planting some more, you can generate a cornucopia of produce.
Dedicated gardeners enjoy rising to the challenge of maximizing their productivity. It’s up to the individual gardeners to see what works, what doesn’t, and what to try next. For instance, is it better to have raised beds in addition to in-ground planting? Do I need additional fertilizers with the compost? What style of trellis is best? There exists a mountain of helpful pointers to sift through online. Also, how-to books, such as “Four-Season Food Gardening” by Misilla dela Llana (Cool Springs Press, 2022), include a lot of information.
General Tips
Use enriched good quality soil. Add your own or purchased compost, and use a fish emulsion such as Neptune’s Harvest, or even better toss in pieces of actual fish, which is a ready source of nitrogen. My son-in-law uses this method and gets a superb yield of high-quality produce.
In the spring, prune overwintered herbs. Having these already in the garden before the growing season begins helps pollinators until there are plentiful plants for them to find. Prune any dead or diseased stems. Note: It’s best to avoid pruning plants just before or during rain. The moisture can help spread microbes and potentially infectious spores, which could cause disease in the plant.
When the sun is too intense on the plants (as it was this hot, dry summer), string shade cloths over them. In fact, beneficial worms may appreciate the difference in temperatures under these covers.
Some gardeners trust cold frames, which can be cobbled from wood and old glass doors, adding bubble wrap to keep out drafts. More structured growers may consider a greenhouse; relatively inexpensive kits can be found online. Incidentally, there is a difference between a greenhouse and a hothouse. A greenhouse has glass or plastic walls that let in the sun, whereas a hothouse has an actual source of heat to keep it in a certain temperature range.
A few local experts offer their thoughts about the challenges and successes of gardening on the Cape:
Alda Barron is a Master Gardener with the Aptucxet Garden Club. Her work has been featured in the Bourne Historical Society and at Heritage Museums & Gardens. With all the volunteer gardening that she does for various organizations around the Cape, including Aptucxet Trading Post, St. Anthony’s Catholic Church in East Falmouth and the Mary and Joseph Gardens of the St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Woods Hole, she still finds time to nurture her redolent flowering plants and vegetables throughout the growing season.
“Yes, I try to expand the growing season because Cape Cod is a great place to do so.” To maximize her harvests, she gets an early start with lots of plants in the sunny windows, encouraging the seedlings with grow lights. The light’s bulbs have a higher intensity, which helps the plants with photosynthesis. The bulbs, racks and holders can be purchased in garden centers and, of course, online. Regular LED bulbs do not have the same effect. However, LEDs are now made in specific light spectrum ranges, and the green range is effective for initial growth and the red range helps encourage blooms to grow further. Besides jump-starting your springtime planting, these bulbs also give constant light to indoor houseplants.
“In spring I start with arugula, lettuce, spinach,” she said. “As soon as the soil is workable, I start my parsley and cilantro outside.” One crop that she plants in a timely manner is garlic. “That goes in in the fall, last week of October.” She keeps it in the ground for nine months, “just like a baby.” And then, that last week of July, she pulls it out so it can dry. Once the soil in that area is turned, she puts in more kale, beans and tomatoes to grow until it’s time to plant next year’s garlic. Into the fall, she’s still adding tomatoes, zucchini and more greens. “They’ll grow very healthy without frost. They’ll grow into November.”
Her secret for success simply is loving to garden. “Plants are very, very wonderful,” she said. “I’m not fussy; if they grow, they stay.” She shared a quote from her father who used to say, “Soil that doesn’t produce weeds isn’t good soil.” She doesn’t mind some weeds hanging around. “I don’t overwork things.”
Coonamessett Farm
Ron Smolowitz is the owner of the popular Coonamessett Farm in Hatchville. Established in 1982, the farm features environmentally friendly farming with pick-your-own and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) memberships. With his innovative work toward sustainable farming and aquaculture, he makes it his business to get the most out of the Cape’s growing seasons.
“Basically, in the spring, you need to protect the plants early.” To get them out when it’s safe, he suggests measuring the soil temperature. To do this, use a basic soil or compost thermometer pushed into the soil 3 to 4 inches. Take measurements during the night to see the lowest temperatures. For optimal germination, cold weather plants like soil to be at least 50 degrees Fahrenheit, and warmer plants prefer 60-plus degrees. You can check planting guidelines for more variety specific information.
Later in the season, he said people can plant non-flowering vegetables, such as leafy lettuces, keeping in mind that it’s important to protect them from frost. As for dealing with different climate conditions, he said it’s often hard to predict what the season’s weather will be and how much water you need to provide the plants. This summer, contending with the drought and heat, he sent out word in mid-August that the farm’s sugar pumpkins were ready early, joking that he beat out Dunkin’s, which starts serving its pumpkin spice drinks earlier every year. Regarding the weather, he said, “always have a planting strategy.” If certain plants aren’t thriving, “experiment with plants you wouldn’t normally try, such as sweet potatoes, even peanuts now that we have a warmer growing season.”
Mahoney’s Garden Center
Mark Heinlein is operations manager of Mahoney’s Garden Center in Falmouth. He said, “Our advice in the spring is to start seeds indoors, in March.” That includes tomatoes and peppers, which aren’t available commercially as plants until May. Set them in a warm place. He suggests using grow lights and placing them on heat mats to bolster a steadier warmth and light. As the seedlings continue to grow, he said to increase the pot size as needed until they’re ready to go into the ground.
He feels that the Cape is fortunate to have a good long growing season. Knowing this, people can keep planting more herbs and vegetables (kale, cabbage, hardier lettuces) into the fall, which has stayed warmer in recent years. “I consider September and October to be the best time for planting, even for shrubs and trees.”
He mentioned that gardeners can be inspired by visiting Mahoney’s Winter Market. This is a cold-weather treat, running weekly from mid-January into March. Local vendors display fresh produce, food items, meats, fish, sauces, jewelry and crafts. “Mr. Heinlein said, “Gardeners can be inspired to see people continuing to grow produce at this time of year.”
Whether you are a commercial farmer, garden nursery manager or home gardener, see what works for the time and area you have. With some experimentation, practical sense and extra soil toil, your garden will keep producing as long as you like.