Spring is in full swing and it’s a great time to get your garden in shape. Our friends from Urban Harvest, celebrating their 30th year, are stopping by with 5 steps for starting your own edible garden and why this time is the best time to plant fruit trees in Houston.
>> Welcome back to Houston >> Welcome back to Houston life. The Houston climate is perfect for creating a thriving edible garden. And for more than 30 years, urban harvest has been helping Houstonians create their own gardens to eat healthier. Carol Burton, director of permaculture at Urban Harvest.
>> Is joining us now with 5 steps for creating our own edible gardens. And why March is really the best time to plant fruit trees. Welcome to welcome back to Houston Life. Yes, my pleasure. Thanks for having me back. And before we get into the steps because I
Really need to take notes on that. Let’s talk about urban harvest, celebrating their 30 years and what that means, what impact they’ve had. >> Yes, we started in 1994 to address food security and that was through starting a network of community gardens. They were truly started out as a community, gardening
Organization. And you can find one. They’re now 180 in Houston area. We manage that local farmer’s market and also classes and youth education programming. In addition to our mobile market who goes into communities of needs with local Texas produce. So that rate and the education classes, Carol, these are so critical because
>> a lot of folks in our city do not have access to fresh fruits and vegetables or maybe they’re not aware of the community garden programming. But essentially urban harvest is trying to lay the groundwork for all of us to eat healthier and live better lives. >> Yes, you’re absolutely
Right. I was in the teaching garden this morning and I just I harvested the cool season. Vegetables. So those are planted early in the fall. Local carrots, beets and that’s eating seasonally. So now it’s time to plan for spring are all of our warm weather vegetables?
>> All I have to see is the picture of these beads and these beautiful carrots and I my ears are listening because these are some of my favorite foods and to try to get them. I mean, I think everyone wants to go back to just pressure, right and pressure, knowing
What goes in your garden. So let’s talk about this now. This is on you to write a 5 step guide you guys have. But what it? What does it start with? Yes. So it starts with finding a place like if you want to garden in a container,
It could be as big as this on your patio. >> And testing, you could have a larger for by 20 garden bed. And the key is really healthy. Sandy Loam soil to see how rich this is. This is this is already mix with compost. So it’s nice, dark, rich and
Lives. How do you find this, Carol? I mean, if if someone is wondering where to buy it or where they can access it because soils coming a lot of different types. I mean, it I go to a garden center and I’m kind of overwhelmed because there are a ton of options.
>> So you’re absolutely right. So if you go to a local mom and pop nursery. pop nursery. >> And I’m like the cannons are favor. If you’re in the high side, quality feed. >> They carry the soils which are created by local companies surrounding Houston. So we have farmed or natures way
Resources. Those are just some of the local companies that are creating organic full spectrum. Really rich soil. >> And you have the rich soil. But what’s us nexus mulch and why is this important and to what we’re creating? Yes, yes. So this is native hardwood mulch and this is from another
Local company because the this is mulch from local trees from tree trimmings. And this mall is when you tap dress your trees in your plants to retain moisture. This will break down into compost for your plants to protect the plants. Suppresses weeds and hold in moisture. Okay. So that I’m
Kind of play local building blocks of of your guard and then this is critical. The Soyuz is important and because it’s organic, what you’re putting in your body that is not filled with chemicals. >> I love that you brought this small container. So let’s start planting it. And how do we
Select what is right for this time of year, Carol. Yes, yes. Said this time of year on our website. We have a local planting guide. >> Because we started it in terms of education and growing in Houston and finding your micro climate because if you’re inside the loop, you can start
Going tomatoes sooner to know if you’re Norton Spring and you’re cool season is going to last a little bit longer and then your tomatoes ago in just a little later. >> Even that close to a brain versus the loop would have a different planting season. Okay. So let’s go for that.
Made us that they were talking about a micro client. Let microclimates and even in your yard or your patio, you can find the micro-climate that’s going to get 4 to 6 hours of sunlight. >> Because you want to produce a lot of flowers and fruit, right? So really nice rich soil
And plant your tomato. Give it some support because it is a vine and that will continually produce up until June. >> Interesting because Houston is an hour from Houston so that way you can hear in the live. Yeah, one, nothing. Okay. So how do you know what to
Plant like as opposed to maybe start with the seedling? But then, okay, this one’s kind of already started as a tomato plant. And how do you make that choice? That’s a very good question. And that’s one of the secrets to gardening in the Houston area because our our planting calendar, which we
Have on our website has tips and tricks of what to select. So either a plant right now, if you can find the biggest tomato plant possible, you’ll get more fruit. >> And flowers, more fruit production peppers is another one to start by transplant. So we have like a
Plant in calendar and tips and tricks and then by seed green Beans is a great companion plant for any vegetable, which is going to fix nitrogen. And its best supplanted by scene. What what makes it a good companion plant and so beans. They games that the roots fix nitrogen in the okay.
So nitrogen is what produces all of the green leafy growth for a plan. >> Okay. So what you plan together does actually matter, right, Carol, like let’s say, I want to plan a tomato plant. That’s already this tall. Could I also put sunflower seeds in the same container or
You would recommend a separate container for that? >> I would recommend a separate container because you want to look at the full height of the plant. So this one is going to get as tall as we are the full size. If I planted in a smaller container, then it will
Be a little bit more stunted because there it does correlate to that. >> The roots, but I know some flowers get big. Hey, we’re tight on time. Let’s chat about the fruit trees. I’ve been to the urban harvest, a tree sale. I love this event. Why is now a
Great time to start planting like citrus? And I can see that plan already has citrus on it. >> Yes, yeah. So this is an orange tree. And March is the best time to plant trees an the garden and we’re at the tail end of March. So it’s not too late. The beginning of
April because we have spring rains. All of this cool weather will help it to establish its root system. And as we go into summer and that heat, it will be a lot more happier. So this is the best time to plant trees in the fruit trees, your spring garden plant. Time now because
We are weather is so unpredictable here. What is the watering situation? Okay. So for watering right after new plant, you want to plant at least at water at least daily. Okay for trees, you’ll want to water. We first plant in the first 2 years. One water once a week. Okay. Unless it rains,
You don’t have to water, but your bet your seat. You want to water more frequently until they get established a crisis, stylish root systems and micro like this is a local organic fertilizer company. We use this at our house. We love it. >> Super. And so if you can’t find this brand, any
Full-spectrum slow release organic plant food to keep, especially for fruits, vegetables, flowers that are heavy feeders. You want to apply that every 2 weeks. We love that. I know it won’t