Now is the time to Plan Your Garden!

Saturday, January 21, 2006 03:40 AM

It may be January but the garden season for 2006 is already beginning. Seeds are already in the garden centers and it will not be long before begonia bulbs, dahlias, and perennial roots follow. This is a good time of year to plan your garden as well as check into new plants and varieties, and see whether they are good for our area.

To know whether plants will do well in our area you first have to have some knowledge on the area in which you are planting. The Prince George area has an average of 75 frost free days so if you are planting a vegetable garden or growing annual flowers you want to choose varieties that do not need a long growing time.

Vegetables such as carrots, potatoes, peas, lettuce, parsnips, beets, radish, spinach etc. all do very well in our climate and can be sown directly outside in May. Vegetables such as leeks, onions started from seed, and all flowers need a longer time and so these are best started early in the home or greenhouse and then transplanted outdoors in late May which gives them a longer growing season. Many gardeners like to start broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and lettuce indoors and transplant them out later as this will give you fresh produce earlier in the season. Starting frost tender plants such as corn, beans, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers indoors first and then transplanting them outside after risk of frost has passed will help produce a crop. Also giving the plants extra protection in late summer when frost can occur by placing Reemay a protective frost blanket over the plants at night gives the plants a longer time to mature. Reemay can also be used in spring when plants are being started or transplanted outside as it keeps plants a few degrees warmer.

A point worth mentioning is that our days during the summer are longer because of our northern latitude so vegetables have a longer day to grow and catch up quickly to their southern counterparts. One other thing to look for when choosing varieties for the vegetable garden is if the plant is able to withstand temperature changes such as cold nights and hot days. Prince George nights cool down to 10 Celsius or lower and daytime temperatures can be in the low/mid 20’s Celsius which can have an effect on some varieties of tomatoes so check the growing instructions before choosing a variety.

If you looking at buying shrubs or perennials you want to choose varieties that are zone 3, 2, or 1 as Prince George is zone 3. Cold temperatures, elevation, and length of days, mountain ranges, and terrain determine zones. Over the past few years, our winter temperatures have become warmer and many gardeners are getting away with planting zone 4. In order for trees and shrubs to survive winter, they have to be able to harden their tissues off before the cold temperatures set in. Plants are cued by the surrounding environment and in our area the shortening days and cooling temperatures tell the plant to stop growing and mature. Plants that do this grow successfully here. If planting perennials or strawberries that are zone 4, providing extra mulch can help and snow cover is a thermal blanket. Wrapping them with burlap can protect trees and shrubs and roses can be covered with Styrofoam huts.

Planting bulbs and tubers such as dahlias, begonias, and gladiolus done in a way to give them a long growing season. Therefore, planting them first in peat pots in the house and then later transplanting them outside in late May gives them a long season in which they are able to bloom. These bulbs are not winter hardy and need to be dug up and stored indoors over the winter months so it does not matter what zone they are in.

This is the time of year when you have time to plan and ask questions from your local garden center as they to have extra time to spend on giving you the right answers.

-Jos

Jos Van Hage owns three Art Knapp's Garden Centres in the Prince George area
-Highway 97 North
-Highway 97 SOuth at the Old Cariboo Highway
-Highway 16 West