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Reno Gazette-Journal
http://news.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070426/NEWS18/70426001&oaso=news.rgj.com
Tips for successful Nevada gardening
CORY FARLEY
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
Posted: 4/26/2007
Predicting the weather beyond a few days is notoriously chancy, but count on this: Northern Nevada, this gardening season, will not be monsoon country. The forecasts are firm. For the semi-foreseeable future, expect heat, little rain and the usual drying winds. Without an appropriate approach, your tomatoes may shrivel like raisins and your lettuce blow around the yard like confetti. Fortunately, the art and science of keeping plants happy in a hot zone the size of a home garden have been well worked out. Here’s a guide to things you can do, starting this weekend:
o Dig in amendments now.
Truckee Meadows soil tends to be low in organic matter. Amendments—compost, peat, aged manure—increase the soil’s ability to hold water and reduce the need for irrigation. In most of the region you won’t be planting annuals or vegetables for another month, but getting amendments in early lets them start to break down. Just spread a few inches on the soil and dig or till it in.
o Plan — and plant — for dry weather.
Group plants with similar requirements together. Tomatoes, peppers and eggplant can be treated similarly. Squash and pumpkins are notoriously thirsty — you can plant them in hills, three or so to a mound of well-amended soil surrounded by a berm to contain water. Where you have a choice, as in decorative plants, pick less-thirsty or native varieties. Remember, though: In their first year or two, even the most drought-resistant plants need regular water. A 5-year-old mountain mahogany will take anything Northern Nevada can dish out, but a baby needs babying.
o Mulch. Really, this year.
Generally, “mulch” means organic material spread over the soil to discourage weeds and reduce evaporation, but allow water and air to pass. Lately, it’s expanded to include “landscape fabric” and plastic. Plastic keeps in water and kills weeds, but it can have negative effects on the soil and looks tacky unless it’s covered with something (the red plastic made for use around tomatoes should be left exposed).
Organic mulches can be almost anything that grows: straw, leaves, bark, grass, pulled weeds or newspaper. Most should be applied two inches to four inches deep over the roots of the plant, but pulled back from the stem a couple of inches.
o Water for conservation.
The basic rule is “Water just enough, then quit.” Conserving doesn’t mean scrimping. When you irrigate, water deeply. Soak the root zone, which may go down a couple of feet. Dampening just the top inch or so encourages roots to stay in that fast-drying area. This also applies to lawns. Northern Nevada isn’t a friendly environment for lawn grasses, but when the roots are down where they belong, proper watering twice a week will keep them healthy.
When you sprinkle, do it in the cool part of the day when there’s little wind. Check the depth of penetration with a screwdriver or trowel.
Drip irrigation can cut water use by 20 percent to 50 percent, and you can assemble your own custom system easily from stock components. It can be left in place or moved as your needs change, and new systems are much more reliable than previous ones. They work well if you have a number of pots on a deck, giving each just the water it needs; a timer makes watering a no-brainer.
Gardening in Northern Nevada will be a challenge this year, particularly for those accustomed to damper climes (note to transplanted Southerners: Expect no rain in summer). You can’t let down your guard. But eternal vigilance, as they say, is the price of tomatoes.
