June in the Vegetable Garden

Molbak’s sales associate, Cherylyn Anderson, radiates personality and positive energy. This year, she’s focusing her endless enthusiasm on vegetable gardening. 

“My grandfather and my father were both big into vegetable gardening,” Anderson recalls. “As a child, I spent hours outside in the garden, breathing in the fresh air and helping harvest the crops.” These fond memories—along with simply wanting better, healthier food for her family—inspired Anderson to go full-tilt with vegetable gardening this year.

Anderson has been elbow-deep in the dirt since February, planting starts, transplanting, and tending to her cool-season crops. Her son built her a salad table, so she now has a fresh supply of garden greens popping up regularly. (As she adds new crops to her garden, she plants a little extra so that she can share part of her homegrown harvest with area food banks through Molbak’s Share Your Harvest program.)

Now that nighttime temperatures are consistently above 50°F, it’s finally time to direct her energy toward her favorite warm-season crop: Tomatoes. “A ripe, juicy homegrown tomato that doesn’t taste like water – there’s simply nothing better.” 
  
Growing the perfect tomato.
The growers at Molbak’s recommend starting with 4” or gallon-size tomato plants. There are two basic types of tomatoes: determinate varieties and indeterminate varieties. Determinate varieties are shorter and bushier, grow well in containers and produce a large single crop. Indeterminate varieties grow taller, need extra support, and produce continually throughout the growing season.

Molbak’s carries dozens of different varieties. For Anderson, “Sun Gold” is a staple. Once you’ve chosen your favorites, find a good, sunny spot in your garden for planting. Tomatoes love sun and heat, so make sure to plant them where they’ll receive at least six to eight hours a day of direct sun.

If you’re planting in a bed, Molbak’s recommends amending the soil with Gardner & Bloome Harvest Supreme. If you’re planting in a container, fill the container with Molbak’s Professional Potting Soil mixed with a small amount of Harvest Supreme. For best results, use a 10-gallon container or larger. Add a couple handfuls of lime to the soil, too, to help prevent blossom end rot.

Last step: Plant your tomatoes! Plant them deeply so the lower sets of leaves are actually covered by the soil. This will allow the roots to develop along the stem underground resulting in a stronger plant.

As for care, there are a few things to keep in mind:

1. If temperatures dip below 50°F, cover your plants.
2. Staking is necessary for indeterminate varieties and helpful for others. Support your plants with an A-frame trellis or tomato cage from the get-go.
3. Feed your tomatoes regularly. (Anderson prefers Dr. Earth Tomato and Vegetable organic fertilizer.) 4.) Water deeply and consistently in the mornings. Water at the soil level, being careful not to get the leaves wet.

Share the goodness.
Once you bite into your first homegrown, sun-ripened tomato, you’ll get a taste of why Anderson and so many others are hooked on vegetable gardening. Growing your own food reaps so many rewards. It’s interesting and invigorating. It encourages healthier living. Best of all, it brings people together—whether it’s a young girl digging in the garden with her grandfather, neighbors passing growing tips back and forth across the fence, or a family sharing their harvest with those in need.

So go ahead. Follow in Anderson’s muddy footsteps. Dig into vegetable gardening and enjoy a delicious new hobby that’s good for you, your family, and your community.

About the Share Your Harvest program.
The need for fresh food at our local foods banks is now greater than ever, and you can help make a difference by participating in Molbak’s Share Your Harvest program.

Simply harvest your fruits, veggies and herbs and drop them off at Molbak’s during store hours on any Saturday in August and September. No need to pre-wash the food, just place in bags for delivery and drop off at the Garden Store, just inside the sliding doors. The donated food will be picked up by Hopelink and delivered to local food banks.

“Fresh fruits and vegetables are an incredibly important part of what we offer at Hopelink,” said Adam Fleischer, food bank coordinator. “Without the donations of fresh produce, we are only able to offer the very basic staples like potatoes, onions and oranges. It is ideal when we are able to offer a variety, and that’s what we can do with donated produce.” 

To learn more about the program, please call 425.483.5000 or click here.