Master gardeners sponsor 7 seminars in January

January has arrived, and that means there will a bit more daylight with each passing day. From a gardening perspective, it’s pleasant to have more daylight in the evening to enjoy the home landscape and garden.

In preparing for the late winter and spring growing season, don’t forget to review our list of upcoming educational programs. The Galveston County Master Gardeners will be sponsoring seven educational seminars this month. Be sure to visit my Web site given at the end of the column for the latest announcements and take advantage of these opportunities to enhance your horticultural skills.

Kitchen Gardens Seminar

The history of kitchen garden designs goes back to medieval times. They were the cloister or courtyard gardens of monasteries or castles. During colonial times, European settlers brought the kitchen garden concept to the United States.

In earlier times, the kitchen garden was located by the back door, as it would be handy for everyday use and care in addition to providing some protection from two- and four-legged entities. In colonial times, these gardens would have contained plants for medicinal properties as well as culinary herbs, fruit trees and berried shrubs.

Modern-day kitchen gardens contain a variety of plants that serve the needs of the palate (i.e., provides food for the dinner table or raw consumption) and the needs of the psyche (i.e., provides beauty in the home landscape and cut flowers for the interiorscape).

Taking the concept of a kitchen garden from fantasy to reality can be a daunting task for the beginner. Help is at hand: A seminar on “Kitchen Gardening ... From Conception to Realty” will be conducted from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday at the Galveston County Extension Office, 5115 state Highway 3, in Dickinson. Preregistration is required due to limited seating. Call 281-534-3413, Ext. 1-2 or email galv3(at)wt.net.

Mary Demeny, a Galveston County Master Gardener, will discuss vegetable gardening as an integral component of the home landscape. Gardening on a smaller scale and making use of vegetables interplanted in your flower beds and in pots will be emphasized.

Mary has grown a kitchen garden for many years. Vegetables for discussion include onions, carrots, tomatoes, lettuce, peppers, okra, beets, broccoli, cabbage, kohlrabi, kale, leeks and more. This is a great time to start planing a kitchen garden, and this seminar can help you get started in the right direction.

Square Foot Gardening Seminar

For many gardeners, intensive gardening is the best way to utilize limited garden space. Square foot gardening is probably the best known type of intensive gardening. Square gardening also allows us to create aesthetically pleasing and even artful gardens.

Even if space is a not a limitation, a small-sized garden is often preferable to a larger one. Smaller gardens require less labor and expense than larger gardens. Decreasing garden size provides more yard space for other activities.

The gardener can concentrate soil improvement efforts in a smaller area, and, with careful management, small gardens can produce sufficient vegetables for fresh eating during the growing season and perhaps extra produce for preserving.

For most of us, square foot gardening is the best way to use our limited garden space. Your vegetable garden should be fun and attractive. This will entice you to stay there to weed, water and enjoy yourself. So, start dreaming, make some plans and be ready for spring planting.

To provide assistance toward that effort, Master Gardener John Jons will provide a PowerPoint-based program titled “The Home Gardener’s Guide for Square Foot Gardening.” The presentation will be conducted from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Saturday at the Galveston County Extension Office.

Jons has practiced square footing gardening for several years and will provide guidelines based on his many years of experience. He will discuss basic designs, soil preparation, plant selection and establishment, insect pest and disease control and general care. There is no fee, but reservations are required. Call 281-534-3413, Ext. 1-2, or e-mail galv3(at)wt.net.

Gardening Q&A

Q: What is the best way to determine the ripeness of citrus?

A: Keep in mind all citrus fruits only ripen on the tree. A change in rind color can signal the beginning of the ripening process for many citrus. On oranges, watch for the rind color to change to orange, then check for a slight softening of the fruit. Sometimes an opaque sheen will develop on the skin. Lemons are ready when yellow and generally hold on the tree for several weeks. Limes are smaller and ready when green; again, watch for a slight softening. Clip ripe fruit off with pruning shears instead of pulling it to avoid damage to twigs.

You usually cannot tell if citrus is at its prime harvesting stage merely by appearance. When some of the fruit reach full size, taste them to see if they’re ripe. Tasting them over time is the only way to know with certainty as to whether or not they are at the prime stage of ripening.

Dr. William Johnson is a horticulturist with the Galveston County Office of Texas AgriLife Extension Service, The Texas A&M System. Visit his Web site at http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/galveston.