It was a lovely Portland day at Fred Meyer in Hollywood. Joe (garden center manager) and I enjoyed the morning with a seemingly endless number of plants. I hope every mother in Portland got one.
One Saturday caller was starting a new vegetable garden and wanted suggestions on what to plant. Some easy ones for first time gardeners came to mind.
Here are a few that grow easily from seed – a fun process to take part in:
Beans – there are so many types from yellow to green to purple, thin and fat, string beans and snap beans.
Summer squash – zucchini, yellow squash, or patty pan. Almost too easy to grow.
Carrots - long and thin, short and stubby, finger-sized, ping-pong ball-shaped, or even purple.
Cucumbers - for refreshing summer salads.
Beets – these come in lots of colors, too.
Spinach – Use the New Zealand type for warm summer weather.
Wisterias look so gorgeous on a porch or arbor – when they bloom. Another caller hasn’t been having luck getting his to bloom. Here are the main things to look at, if you have that problem, too.
Pruning – there’s lots of somewhat differing advice on this. It all boils down to keeping the overly-vigorous, leafy tendrils from grabbing all the plant’s energy. Cut that super-long, side growth back by about 1/3 in summer (July/August), to encourage flower buds for next year.
Watering – water sparingly, once the plants are established. These are pretty drought-resistant.
Sun – at least 6 hours. Watch out that neighboring trees aren’t growing up and to shade your spot.
Fertilizer – low in nitrogen; the first of the three numbers on the package.
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