Thursday 31 May 2012

Garden wisdom earned, and shared


Jerry Apps, author of several books on gardening, at The Morton Arboretum… (Nuccio DiNuzzo, Tribune…)

A well-seasoned gardener spills the beans on growing vegetables and, OK, even a few flowers
By Nina Koziol, Special to Tribune Newspapers
When you've been gardening for six decades, you're apt to discover a few things in between all the planting, weeding and watering — like the enchanting sound of bird song on a cool summer morning, a hawk gliding overhead in search of a midday meal, or the scent of freshly turned soil, which Jerry Apps describes as a pungent, powerful smell full of history and promise.
A professor emeritus in the department of agriculture and life sciences at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, storyteller, rural historian and author of dozens of books, his newest book is "Garden Wisdom: Lessons Learned From 60 Years of Gardening" (Wisconsin Historical Society Press), and it covers the joys of growing vegetables.
The book contains hard-earned advice along with insights on how tending a garden can lead to a deeper understanding of nature. The project was a family affair, with recipes supplied by Ruth, his wife of 51 years, and photos taken by son Steve Apps at Roshara, the family farm and garden in northwest Waushara County, Wis., 100 miles north of Madison.
We met up with Apps at a recent lecture and book signing at The Morton Arboretum, to unearth his secrets to successful gardening.
Q: You began gardening during the Depression. How do you keep the fourth generation of Apps interested?
A: Gardening is the easiest way to introduce children to nature and to the soil and to help them understand where food comes from. Kids have a terrible time understanding that carrots come out of the ground. And carrots don't grow all the same size — you don't know what you're going to find when you harvest them. That's the mystery and mystique of gardening.
Q: You grow your vegetables in rows. Have you tried other methods?
A: I have a lot of room so I plant in rows, but there are all kinds of ways to do a garden. Square foot gardening (planting in blocks) is a wonderful idea, as is gardening in raised beds.
Q: Do you have a favorite tool?
A: My hoe. I have three hoes and my favorite is one with a 2-inch wide rectangular blade. Hoeing is an integral part of gardening. (He devotes an entire chapter to the art of hoeing.)
Q: Are you surprised at the resurgence in vegetable gardening?
A: In the '60s, the students on the Madison campus decided to grow gardens as part of the back-to-the-land movement. They had no idea of what a hoe was or how to use it. What they didn't understand was that the vegetables grow but so do the weeds, so it wasn't such a romantic idea, but it's come back as a roaring movement.
Q: What's your favorite vegetable?
A: Potatoes, followed by tomatoes. That's because I grew up eating potatoes three times a day during the Depression: fried, baked and in soup. They're nutritious. I went to a one-room country school and in October we had a two-week potato vacation because all the kids picked potatoes. I also grow a Three Sisters Garden: corn in the center, pole beans in a circle around the corn and squash around the outside of the beans. The Indians believed that corn, squash and beans were inseparable sisters that grew and thrived together.
Q: How do you deal with bugs?
A: I avoid all pesticide use. When potato bugs come out, I pick them off and throw them in a bucket of water. Keep an eye out for insects; you'll take care of 70 percent like that.
Q: Your growing season is just 100 days. What's key to harvesting the most vegetables?
A: I plant in stages. To keep track of everything, I use a planting list on a pad of legal paper. I start tomatoes in March indoors for planting outdoors in May. One of the earliest things we do is plant potatoes outdoors. Each potato is cut into sections so it has an "eye" (bud). Buy them from a garden center — don't use supermarket potatoes because they've been treated and the eyes won't grow. Next, radishes and carrots are planted together (outdoors). The radishes come up first and I harvest them, which makes room for the carrots. We love onions and we grow them from sets (dried bulbs). Peppers, eggplant, tomatoes, squash and pumpkins go in next.
Q: What's new in your garden this year?
A: Every year we plant something a little exotic. I like broom corn because the seed heads make great bird seeds. One of the reasons for gardening is the aesthetics of just doing it. Sometimes you plant something just so you can look at it. For example, gourds are really fun. There are little bitty ones and big ones that can be used as birdhouses.
Q: And flowers?
A: I'm really a vegetable gardener, but sunflowers — oh, my gosh — what is more beautiful than to go out in your garden on a sunny day and be welcomed by a sunflower?
Q: What's the most important lesson you've learned?
A: Gardening is a way to connect to nature and the land in one of the most meaningful ways. We're not making any more soil. Through gardening, we learn to be a part of — not apart from — nature. It's also taught me patience. Be surprised and enjoy it. You have to realize that there's more to gardening than putting seeds in the ground and pulling weeds.
Original Article Here

No comments:

Post a Comment

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...