Homegrown Food: A Guide to Setting Up Your Garden
Spring in Upstate New York is a time of many emotions; your heart will thaw at the first signs of green grass and then it will freeze again when it’s covered with snow the next morning. But no matter how hard winter tries, spring is coming again! So, it’s time to get out your wheelbarrow and overalls, we’re setting up the garden.
What to Grow:
Deciding what you’d like in your garden is completely up to you! But certain plants thrive in our Upstate NY climate, and other plants are great for home gardening.
The Three Sisters – This is a combination of plants who work together with great synergy, called The Three Sisters by the Iroquois. Corn, beans, and squash are the three sisters. The corn grows tall, so that the beans can grow up them and so that the squash gets the shade it needs. The beans provide nitrogen in the soil that helps the corn and squash. The squash acts as ground cover, which provides shade on the soil and protects it from pests. It’s best to plant these plants in late May or early June, when the soil is consistently above 60 degrees.
Fruits – The northeast is known for many of our great fruits, Apples thrive in upstate NY, but their trees require special love and care. Some easier fruits that do well in our climate are melons and berries! Strawberries thrive in Upstate NY, and they’ll grow year after year. If you like tropical fruits that are harder to grow in NY, you might like the pawpaw! A fruit that’s native to the Midwest and tastes like a blend of banana, pineapple, and mango. Plus, they’re delicate and have a short grow window, so they are hard to find for purchase anywhere.
Flowers – If you want hearty flowers that will come back each year, consider flowers like daffodils & daylilies. For blooms that you’ll have to replant; zinnia, cosmos, and sunflowers grow well in NY. It’s nice to choose flowers that will bloom across the seasons, so you always have some flowers to look forward too.
When To Plant:
Knowing when to plant your crops is extremely important in gardening. Each plant will have it’s own season, like how squash are harvested in the fall but strawberries are ready as soon as June! The most important thing is to wait until the final frost before planting any seeds or seedings. For Upstate NY, that’s normally around late April or early May.
Upkeeping Your Garden:
Weeding – The more often you weed your garden, the better! Every day or every few days is ideal because you want to pull them when they’re small. The goal is to find weeds as early as possible and to pull them out from their root. If you’re having trouble distinguishing what is a weed and what isn’t, try an online plant identifier like identify.plantnet.com!
Pests- Everything from your neighborhood deer to tiny bugs can pose a threat to your garden. There are a lot of options for mitigating pests! The best thing you can do for animals is to try to keep them out. For some that may mean raised beds, fences, or even a greenhouse. When it comes to the tiny bugs, you can treat your plants with natural products that repel them or even have birds like chickens around to keep them under control. The Farmer’s Almanac has a great guide for reducing pests, check it out here.
Pruning/Trimming – Every plant will have unique trimming and pruning needs, but the general rule of thumb is when you see a leaf or branch that is turning brown or dry, it’s probably best to gently remove it or trim it with garden shears. Shedding these drying parts of the plant will allow the plant to use more energy towards the healthier parts.
Good luck with your garden! It’s a great way to provide food and to add some nice curb appeal to your home.
About the Author
By: Ericka Wadleigh
Exclusive for JulieCoRealty.com