If you haven't tilled your garden and added compost or manure yet, it's time to get it done. And, if you haven't tested your soil in awhile, it would be a good idea to get a soil test done through the Smith County Extension office (535-0885). Soil in East Texas tends to be acid, so lime is often needed. Other nutrients sometimes in short supply include nitrogen, potassium, calcium and magnesium - but only a soil test will show exactly what's needed in yours. Once your soil is ready, here's what to plant when:
February - broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, asparagus, beets, carrots, Swiss chard, collards, kale, English peas, potatoes, turnips, spinach and garlic.
March - bush beans, pole beans, lima beans, beets, Swiss chard, corn, cucumber, cantaloupe, radish, squash, tomatoes and watermelon.
April - beans, eggplant, okra, southern peas, peppers, sweet potatoes,
pumpkins, squash, and watermelon.
To have the most success with your garden, be sure to select varieties that do well in
East Texas, and buy quality seeds. Some varieties recommended for our area
include:
Asparagus- Jersey Giant
Snap Beans - Blue Lake 274, Top Crop
Snap Pole Beans - Blue Lake, Kentucky Wonder
Pinto Beans - Improved Pinto
Beets Pacemaker III
Broccoli - Emperor, Green Comet
Cabbage - Rapid Ball, Ruby Ball
Cantaloupe- Magnum 45
Carrot- Burpee's Toudo, Park's Nandor
Cauliflower- Snow Crown
Swiss Chard-Fordhook
Sweet Corn-How Sweet It Is
Cucumber, Slicing- Sweet Success
Eggplant- Tycoon, Florida Market
Garlic- Texas White
Kale- Blue Knight
Irish Potato- Northland, Red LaSoda
English Peas- Little Marvel or Sugar Snap
Sweet Bell Pepper- Big Bertha, Jupiter
Tomatoes (determinate-good for canning)-Merced, Celebrity, Carnival,
Surefire, President
Tomatoes (indeterminate- good slicers)- Champion, QuickPick, Simba, First
Lady, Superfantastic
Small Fruited Tomatoes- Small Fry, Porter, Cherry Grande, Sweet 100
Watermelon- Crimson Sweet, Sugar Baby
A more complete list of varieties is available on the web. Go to http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/ and click "East Texas Gardening." The East Texas Piney Woods site will direct you to vegetable gardening. For Smith County and Northeast Texas you will find four pages of vegetable varieties listed.
Carol Runnels, Smith County Master Gardener
Vegetables & Herb Index
Gardening Tips For Northeast Texas Index
East Texas Piney Woods Gardening Home Page