Time to plan this year’s garden

by Michelle L. Dauberman

The time for planning this year’s garden is upon you yet during these cold days you may be finding it hard to get back into the swing of things so here’s an inspired plant list to get you started!  Happy Gardening!

Arugula, 'Roquette' (Eruca vesicaria subsp sativa)

Beans, 'Maxibel' (Phaseolus vulgaris ‘Maxibel’)

Beans, 'Serengeti' (Phaseolus vulgaris ‘Serengeti’)

Beans, ‘Black Turtle’ (Phaseolus vulgaris 'Black Turtle’)

Beans, 'Soleil' (Phaseolus vulgaris 'Soleil Filet')

Beets, 'Golden Orange' (Beta vulgaris 'Golden')

Cardoon (Cynara cardunculus)

Cucumber, 'Mouse Melons' (Melothria scabra) 

Endive, 'Tres FIne' (Cichorium endiva ‘Tres Fine’)

Kale, 'Dwarf Blue Curled Scotch' (Brassica oleracea 'Dwarf Blue Curled Scotch')

Lettuce, 'Kweik' (Lactuca sativa)

Lima Bean, 'Big Mama' (Phaseolus lunatus)

Okra, 'Burgundy' (Abelmoschus esculentus)

Spinach, red stemmed Malabar (Basella alba 'Rubra')

Tomatoes, 'Black Cherry' (Lycopersicon lycopersicum ‘Black Cherry’)

Tomatoes, 'Black Vernissage' (Solanum lycopersicum 'Black Vernissage')

Tomatoes, 'Amish Paste' (Solanum lycopersicum ‘Amish Paste’)

Tomatoes, 'Sungold Select 11' (Solanum lycopersicum ‘Sungold Select’)

Basil, 'Holy' (Ocimum tenuiflorum)

Basil, 'Napoletano' (Ocimum basilicum ‘Napoletano’)

Rosemary, 'Barbecue' (Rosmarinus officinalis 'Barbeque')

Tarragon, 'Siberian' (Artemisia dracunculoides)

Looking for more inspiration?

Come join our Master Gardeners across the state to get ready for the new growing season at the “Master Gardener Spring Gardening Seminar.”  https://extension.psu.edu/spring-gardening-seminar?

Where trade names appear, no discrimination is intended and no endorsement by Penn State Extension is implied.

Harlequin Bug

By Stephanie Rukowicz

The harlequin bug is a type of stink bug, much more colorful than the brown ones you might find around your house. An invasive species, it is a common insect pest of crucifers in the southern part of the U.S. but in recent years has been reported in PA as well.

2016 brought my first encounter with harlequin bugs. First eggs were sighted on kale around the same time I was noticing leaf miner damage to spinach and beet leaves (early May). At the time, I wasn’t sure what had laid the eggs, but noted their distinguished geometrical grouping and pattern.

 Uncapped (already hatched) eggs.

Side view of eggs, note black striping along side.

As the season progressed,the harlequin bugs made themselves known. Mostly laying on and inhabiting my kale plants, I attempted hand control by picking eggs and both adult and baby bugs, which helped but did not eliminate the population. I noticed as I pulled and destroyed severely infested plants that bugs and eggs could also be found on closely neighboring tomato plants. The warmer winter of 2015/2016 may have played a role in my new familiarity with this insect pest. Also, two plots in our garden use a radish cover crop, possibly providing a nice winter home for adult bugs.

Harlequin bugs on the underside of a collard leaf. Adult top left, youth middle right.

Later this season, I also spotted Harlequin bugs in the Parks and Rec vegetable garden at Columbus Square Park. Is this a new issue for South Philly? I wonder what next year’s gardening season will be like and if we need a more concentrated effort to control this pest population.

Collard leaf with damage from harlequin bugs,
browning and spotting. Also showing
concurrent damage from cabbage lopers
(holes and munching around leaf margins).

2014 Penn State Extension update:

“Early in the season populations and damage are often low and you may be tempted to ignore them. But, with two to three generations in a season, by the time fall crops begin to mature their numbers may be one hundred times as high, causing serious damage. Harlequin bugs reproduce quickly, developing from an egg to an adult in about 48 days. Adult males may live up to 25 days and females up to 41 days. During their adulthood they can mate repeatedly laying multiple egg masses of 12 eggs every 3 days. That means a single female can produce 164 eggs. My advice – don’t ignore harlequins bugs; put together a plan to keep their numbers low.”

Recommended cultural controls:

“Host-free periods without brassicas can help limit the population. Remember brassica cover crops, like forage radish, are known hosts. Harlequin can also feed and reproduce on wild weedy mustards (Shepherd’s purse, wild mustard, pepperweed), pigweed (Amaranthus spp.), lambsquarter (Chenopodium spp.). Keeping these weeds under control in fields and on field edges will limit habitat. Leftover crop residue in the field provides a protected host area for over-wintering adult harlequins. Remove or disk in residue to destroy overwintering sites. Trap crops have been recommended, but I would suggest that you need to rapidly kill the bugs in the trap crop, or destroy the trap crop and follow it with a host-free period, for this to work well. Plant an early crop of horseradish, mustard or kale and try to kill the harlequin bugs concentrated on this favorite host. One grower has successfully controlled harlequin by frequent vacuuming.”

Is kale still the new “it” vegetable? You bet it is!

By Michelle L. Dauberman

Kale has been a regular in our PSU MG Edible Demo Garden for years now but what’s keeping it around?

First off, kale is a member of the cabbage family, Brassica oleracea, and it is related to other cruciferous vegetables like cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, collard greens and brussels sprouts.  Not surprisingly then Kale shares their health benefits and it contains antioxidant (disease fighting), high fiber (digestion aid), high iron (great for the liver), calcium, and vitamin A (immune system aid).

As we all become more and more health conscious foods that have this kind of an impact on our overall systems are bound to stick around.

Secondly, kale is a beautiful addition to any vegetable or ornamental garden.  It is easy to grow and it comes in so many striking red, green, blue and purple hues that it’s sure to make a visual impact wherever it is planted.

Thirdly, kale makes a great chip!  Cut the main vein out of the leaf and then dice or tear what is left of the leaf into smaller pieces.  Drizzle these kale pieces/chips with olive oil, sprinkle with a little salt and bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes and voila, a healthy snack!

News from the Edible Landscape Demonstration Garden

The sweltering heat of the last ten days has made work in the garden a challenge. Luckily, the staff at the Horticulture Center arrive at the crack of dawn and the gates are open shortly after 6am. July can be a cruel month for plants and humans alike. One can count on certain visitors to the garden, however... Japanese and harlequin beetles. Despite the fact that we saw zero grubs in the soil of the beds this spring, the Japanese beetles have swooped down on the grapes climbing the arbor and are feasting on their leaves. Bag traps are encircling the garden, fifty feet or more away from the beds. They are filled with bead bugs. But still they come to have breakfast, lunch and dinner. This week, we soaked the grapes with garlic spray, a potential deterrent to beetle activity. The scent was incredible, so strong that one's eyes would water. We'll see if that helps to solve the problem.
The harlequin beetles, so colorful but so nasty, have found the kale to their liking, but, interestingly, not all of the kale. They seem to like two cultivars -- Red Russian and Lanciniato. They ignore the curly kale. Go figure! The two favorites have been relegated to the compost pile.  Good looking white eggplant starts will be taking their place tomorrow.

The City Gardens Contest judging date has been set -- Friday, August 2nd. We're busy staking errant plants, deadheading blooming herbs and generally tweaking an already well manicured and beautiful garden. Please stop by for a visit and be sure to sign in at the visitors' box. If you're there at 6:30 am, we'll treat you to coffee!