School Garden Week of March 13th, 2023

This is a weekly look at what is happening in the school garden to assist teacher educators engage their students in agriculture.  It can be used by garden students of all ages however!

 

CCS Teachers!   Keep your eyes open on your email for an email from Lauren Preston to pick your times for end of the season focus group times. 

 

The end of the week looks like we should have an opportunity for planting and harvesting outdoors.

 


Outside in the raised beds:

It looks like we have some cold weather (for the garden,  normal for March) to start the week.  I think Thursday is a good planting day for direct seeding under row cover.   Take a look at your seeds: there is a chance to plant some of the things that we may not have gotten a chance to plant in fall like radishes, peas, spinach and kale seeds this week outside under row cover.  A good day for this would be Thursday before Friday rain. (You could also plant Friday before the rain if you are able)  That will give you a chance at a spring harvest to share with your kiddos. 

If you want to check your plants make sure it is a warmer day,  close to 50 degrees which is the last half of the week.  It is best to open the covers closer to the middle of the day when it is a little warmer, and then close the covers up tight after you view plants or take a harvest in order to build the heat back up under the cover to protect the plants.  You will need to make sure the row cover is in place Friday for sure as we get cold again this weekend.  Make sure you do not have plastic over your row cover if you were using that to provide extra protection as we will have needed rainfall for the plants and the rain will pass right through row cover, but not plastic. If you have been using plastic as supplemental heat you will probably need to water as it may be dry in the raised bed. Make sure to fertilize when you water as the outdoor plants will need the feeding. 

IF you want to plant any extra peas this week, try to plant in the middle of the raised bed as they will be your tallest plant eventually. 

 


Inside in the Aerogarden:

 

I check the water every other day right now as the tomatoes are growing fast. I need to move the lights similarly. I pollinate and prune according to the Aerogarden tomato care guide linked below.

 

Make sure to cover up your unused holes in your Aerogarden. That keeps fungal disease from growing in the nutrient solution.

Tomatoes are growing in the Aerogarden.   Follow the instructions for tomato planting carefully.  Make sure you are checking water levels and fertilize as needed.  Make sure you check water levels each Friday before you leave school so that the water level does not drop too low over the weekend.  CLICK HERE for the Aerogarden planting guide.

Make sure to check your water level and fertilize as needed to keep the plants healthy. Keep your lights about 1-2″ from the leaves to avoid leggy plants.  Remember If you started two plants in your Aerogardens, you might need to thin to only one plant or they will overwhelm the Aerogarden eventually. You will need to start pollinating your tomato flowers once they appear.  You will also need to do some pruning of your tomato plants to keep them growing correctly.

All of that is detailed very well in the Aerogarden Tomato Guide  –> tomato_planting_guide

 


Inside under LED lights.  

How do your plants look under the LED lights?   Make sure you continue to fertilize every two weeks as they grow.  The bigger they get the more you will have to water.

Make sure that you fertilize your outside plants every two weeks mixed in water according to the label.  Contact Katie if you need more fertilizer.  It is the pink crystal one for indoor seed starting and watering plants outside,  not the Aerogarden fertilizer.

This week the best day to transplant seedlings outdoors is Thursday. You would want to harden the plants off a little bit each day outdoors to acclimate them prior to transplanting. . 

Check out the transplanting video below to help with the process:

Any questions?  Feel free to email me at mcdermott.15@osu.edu

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