News from Bob's Market & Greenhouses, Inc.

Issue 12.10

March 8, 2012

Welcome to the NEW Garden News!

NewsletterTeam

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John Morgan

Editor and Chimp

Preparing Your Garden's Soil

March is the month that gardeners become eager to start planting. You can dig up and work your soil as soon as it is dry enough. With sandy soils you can start whenever you like, but test clay or silty soil to see if it is dry enough.

Squeeze a handful of soil into a ball in your palm. If the lump falls apart easily when you tap it, it's ready. If it dents but holds together when you tap it, let it dry out some more. Working wet soil will hurt its structure and make clods that will dry like bricks.

Good soil is 50 percent solids and 50 percent porous space, which provides room for water, air, and plant roots. The solids are inorganic matter (fine rock particles) and organic matter (decaying plant matter). The inorganic portion of the soil can be divided into three categories based on the size of the particles it contains. Clay has the smallest soil particles; silt has medium-size particles; and sand has the coarsest particles. The amount of clay, silt, and sand in a soil determine its texture. Loam, the ideal garden soil, is a mixture of 20 percent clay, 40 percent silt, and 40 percent sand.

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March 2012

1st Seeds Planted Now Tend To Rot In The Ground.

2nd-4th Best Planting Days For Aboveground Crops, Especially Peas, Beans, Cucumbers And Squash, Where Climate Is Suitable. Plant Seedbeds And Flower Gardens.

5th-8th A Most Barren Period, Best For Killing Plant Pests Or Doing Chores Around The Farm.

9th-11th Favorable Days For Planting Root Crops, Fine For Sowing Hay, Fodder Crops, And Grains. Plant Flowers.

12th-13th Excellent Time For Planting Root Crops That Can Be Planted Now, And For Starting Seedbeds. Good Days For Transplanting.

14th-16th Poor Planting Days.

17th-18th Any Root Crops That Can Be Planted Now Will Do Well.

19th-20th A Barren Period, Best Suited For Killing Pests. Do Plowing And Cultivating.

21st-22nd Favorable Planting Days: First Day For Beets, Carrots, Radishes, Salsify, Turnips, Peanuts, And Other Root Crops. Good Day For Transplanting. Last Day For Aboveground Crops. Both Days Good For Planting Cucumbers, Melons, Pumpkins And Other Vine Crops, And For Setting Strawberry Plants.

23rd-24th Cultivate And Spray, But Do No Planting.

25th-27th Favorable For Planting Crops Bearing Yield Above The Ground.

28th-29th Seeds Planted Now Will Rot In The Ground.

30th-31st Best Planting Days For Aboveground Crops, Especially Peas, Beans, Cucumbers And Squash, Where Climate Is Suitable. Plant Seedbeds And Flower Gardens.

Uncle Jim's Almanac is based on the age-old method of using the moon to determine fertile and barren periods. It can be used in any region where the climate is suitable for growing.

"He that speaks much, is much mistaken."

-Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard's Almanack, 1736

Texas Caviar

by: Jim Daugherty

Mix:

-1 cup Olive Oil

-1 cup Sugar (maybe a little less)

-1/2 cup Cider Vinegar

Bring to a boil. Stir a couple of times. Set aside to cool.

Chop:

-1 cup Celery

-1 small Onion

-1 (8oz) jar of Jalapeno Slices

Drain:

-1 medium jar Pimentos

-1 can Black Eyed Peas

-1 can Black Beans

-1 can Shoepeg Corn

Instructions

Rinse black eyed peas, black beans, and corn. Mix all ingredients and let set overnight. Drain most of the liquid off before serving. Serve with tortilla chips.