The icy winds of winter have begun to blow and gardening hardly seems to be a hot topic. Still, growing your own food can be a great way to stretch your budget while eating healthier, fresher foods. It can also mean a step toward self-sustainability, a concept that is growing in popularity along with the homesteading movement.
Master gardener and Associate Agent Steve Gouker at the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension Office in Holbrook offered some advice on what a novice gardener should be doing now.
Fall leaves are a good indication that its time to address the needs of your trees. “When the leaves come off is when you want to prune,” said Gouker. Pruning your trees and berries will allow them to winter better by keeping more of the plants nutrients and energy focused in the roots. It will also reward you the next growing season with larger fruit, more densely packed on the limbs and in easy reach for harvesting.
The same principle applies to the process of thinning. Thinning carrots would result in a smaller number of larger carrots instead of a whole lot of little ones.
Gouker says residents shouldn’t be discouraged by the cold. This time of year some easy and cold hardy plants he recommends are kale and root vegetables, like radishes and carrots. He prefers to grow in hoop houses. He teaches how to make these in his master gardening courses, because they are cheap to construct and can increase the growing season to almost year round, depending on your location.
Just getting a garden bed ready for planting is a lot of work and requires thoughtful planning or, if you’re lucky, a little expertise when you can find it. Gouker recommends using the time now to plan and research what you want for next spring’s garden. He suggests reading up on your area’s specific growing seasons, garden design and plants that will thrive. He also suggests asking neighbors what has worked for them and when they begin planting.
There is a lot of pride and satisfaction in eating the fruits of your labor, but not everyone has the time or resources to have a garden of their own. That’s why Gouker really promotes community gardening and is currently breaking ground on one in the backyard of the extension’s office at 748 N. Third St., where he can teach master gardening and produce food that will make its way back into the community, providing healthier food for a healthier lifestyle
