Thursday, August 6, 2015

Texas Garden Planting Guide

Texas has a wide array of crops planted each season.


Texas has a range of soils including grasslands, sand, clay and bedrock. During the growing season, gardens need at least 1 inch of water per week. The eastern area of Texas receives 16 to 32 inches of rainfall annually. Does this Spark an idea?


Crop Speeds


Organizing the garden by plant maturity rate saves time for gardeners when it's time to replant. Fast crops cultivate in 30 to 60 days, common quick-growing plants are beats, bush beans and turnips. Moderate crops like tomatoes, peppers and green onions grow in 60 to 80 days. Slow crops developing in 80 days or longer are pumpkins, garlic and eggplant.


Planting


Using transplants instead of planting seeds allows a crop to develop faster. In Texas planting regions 4 and 5, transplant cauliflower January 15 to February 15. Transplant carrots March 10 to April 15 in region 1. Sweet corn requires containers when transplanted, planting times are in late February and ending at May 1 in region 1.


Conditions


Texas has five gardening regions each with separate climate and soil conditions. The lowest average temperature is minus 10 F in the Texas panhandle. The average maximum temperature is 74 F in McAllen, Texas. Sandy soils require watering often, and heavier earth need less. Water plants in the morning so they dry before nightfall.

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