Peas and Potatoes

Adirondack Blue, Red Pontiac and Yukon Gold potatoes.

Winter isn’t gone yet but I can’t resist the urge to get out in the garden and plant.  Peas and potatoes are two of my favorite spring vegetables – for one reason because they are tasty but I think even more so because they are one of the first vegetables that I can plant as winter starts to fade in to spring. 

Garden peas, and their edible-podded relatives, snow peas and sugar snaps are easy and productive crops to grow.  In coastal areas, peas can be planted outside as early as mid-January.  As you move further inland, delay planting by a week or two but make sure to get in the ground by mid-February at the latest.  These cool season vegetables need to mature before hot weather sets in. 

Peas should be grown from seed in the garden.  Soaking your pea seeds before planting will speed germination.  Place them in a jar of water and soak them for 6-8 hours just before planting.  I often set mine to soak the night before and plant them the next morning. 

Sow seeds an inch deep and one to two inches apart. Water well after sowing and keep moist until seedlings begin to emerge, usually within seven to ten days. Peas are a vining crop and benefit from a low trellis or even just a row of branches to climb on.

Fresh peas will be ready to harvest 65 to 80 days after planting. Tasty raw or cooked, many of my sugar snap and snow peas never make it as far as the house.

Potatoes are great fun to grow and a neat way to get kids interested in the garden.  Potatoes can be planted in mid-February.  Purchase seed potatoes from a garden center.  These small potatoes have been grown under special conditions to ensure that they are free of diseases.  Seed potatoes usually give better results than potatoes purchased from the grocery store or those held over from the previous season. 

Kennebec and Red Pontiac are classic varieties that do well in coastal North Carolina but I have great results with Yukon Gold.  I love the moist texture and buttery taste of this gold-fleshed variety. 

Cut seed potatoes into pieces that are each about the size of an egg and container at least one eye.  You can plant your seed pieces right away or sprout them indoors for a few weeks by placing them in a warm, sunny location. 

Plant seed pieces six inches deep and ten inches apart in the row with three feet between rows. Keep in mind twelve pounds of seed potatoes can plant around one hundred feet of row and yield over two hundred pounds of spuds.  Potatoes can also be grown successfully in large containers – I grow mine in 25 gallon pots but people have also been successful with trashcans, large baskets and similar containers. 

As the shoots grow, “hill up” around the base of the plants with soil or mulch.  New tubers are set between the seed potato and the surface of the soil.  Depending on the variety, potatoes will take 85-110 days to grow to maturity.  When the tops of the plants start to die back, it is time to dig the potatoes.  Harvesting potatoes is a bit of a treasure hunt and fun for children of all ages!

Other cool season vegetables that you can plant in February include lettuce, spinach, radish, mustard, turnip greens, beets, turnips, kohlrabi, carrots, cabbage and broccoli. 

Camellia Festival and Sale

The 2015 Camellia Festival and Sale, sponsored by the Onslow County Master Gardener Volunteers, will be held Saturday, February 21, 2015, at the Onslow County Multi-Purpose Building. The Festival will run from 9:00 A.M.-3:00 P.M. The Festival will include an amateur camellia show, informational seminars, a camellia sale, camellia displays, artwork displays, a raffle, and a bake sale. The amateur camellia competition is open to the public.  So bring your blooms and let them shine!  The seminars will focus on camellias and related gardening topics.  All proceeds will be used to further the educational and outreach efforts of the Onslow County Master Gardener Volunteer Association. 

Camellias will be for sale at the Festival, as well as pre-ordered. To see a selection of the camellias available or to preorder your favorite variety – see the links below.  Numbers of each variety are limited so if you have your heart set on one, consider pre-ordering it to reserve yours.

http://onslow.ces.ncsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Camellia-Final-Preorder-Form.pdf

http://onslow.ces.ncsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Camellia-Final-Preorder-Photo-List-2015.pdf

Pre-order forms can be mailed to:

Onslow County Master Gardener Volunteers

4024 Richlands Highway, Jacksonville NC 28540

For more information, find us on Facebook at Gardening in Onslow County.

Onslow County Farmers Market Seeks Market Manager

The Onslow County Farmers Market is seeking a Market Manager for the 2015 market season.  This is a great opportunity for someone interested in local foods.  

Job Posting: Manager, Onslow County Farmers Market

Title: Market Manager, Onslow County Farmers Market

Program Overview:

The Onslow County Farmers Market (OCFM) is a community-based, farmers market with three established market locations.  Our mission is to provide our community with fresh, locally grown farm products and to educate the public about the importance of agriculture, nutrition, and our environment.  

The OCFM was incorporated in 1996 through the efforts of local farmers and community partners, including Onslow County Cooperative Extension and support from local government.  Today’s farmers market is the result of their vision and efforts to make local products readily available to the citizens of Onslow County.  The market prioritizes local produce, meat and eggs but also includes a wide variety of edible goods, wine, locally roasted coffee, handmade soaps and unique crafts.   

Since 2004, the OCFM has operated out of its building at 4024 Richlands Highway, adjacent to the Onslow County Multipurpose Building.  This location is the site of the main Saturday morning market with approximately 30 vendors during peak season.  The OCFM has since expanded to two additional tent locations – a Tuesday market aboard Camp Lejeune and a Thursday market located on Western Boulevard.  These satellite markets are smaller in scale than the Saturday market. 

Customers are drawn to the market by the mix of local agricultural products, vendors’ wares and a variety of special events including guest chef, live music, special theme days, and children’s activities at the market. 

The market prioritizes making healthy food easily accessible to its patron base, accepting SNAP-EBT, WIC, and WIC Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program vouchers.  The market is also environmentally conscious, with 30 solar panels installed on the roof, it is not only solar powered but feeds energy back in to the grid.

The OCFM is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization and the market manager reports to the board.

Required qualifications:

1.     Strong verbal and written communication skills; ability to represent the market in a variety of settings and work with a diverse range of people

2.     Good customer service and conflict resolution skills

3.     Ability to work in an ever-changing environment both independently and as part of a team

4.     Market site work will include lifting and transporting heavy equipment, so the candidate should feel comfortable lifting up to 50 pounds

5.     Strong organizational skills

6.     Belief in the importance community access to local foods, and supporting small-scale local producers

7.     Will have a valid driver’s license and reliable personal vehicle that can be used in the course of carrying out job duties, including hauling signage and trashcans as necessary

8.     Must have the ability to pass military background check to access Camp Lejeune market location

9.     Ability to develop and carry out an effective social media outreach campaign including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram

Desired qualifications:

1.     Experience with market management

2.     Financial management, fundraising, and marketing experience

3.     Familiarity with basic accounting software including Quickbooks and Microsoft

Educational Level: High School Degree or equivalent; higher education preferred

This is a part-time position; it is expected that the Market Manager will work an average of 20 hours per week with seasonal variation. The Manager will be present at all market locations including during set up and tear down.  The Manager will also be available to answer telephone calls from vendors and the public throughout the week.    

Salary: $1,160 per month for the term of the 2015 market season                           

Example of Job Duties:

1.     Coordinate all aspects of the daily operations of all three market locations including vendor and customer relations, collect vendor fees, set-up and teardown, and equipment maintenance

2.     Oversee Farmers Market Nutrition, Senior Farmer Market Nutrition programs

3.     Ensure efficient running of the market over the season

4.     Work with the board to organize, promote and support special events including but not limited to guest chef, live music, and special event days

5.     Promote the market using various strategies; primarily through creative, low-cost marketing techniques and effective local partnerships

4.     Collaborate with the OCFM board and Onslow County Cooperative Extension to provide vendor training at the beginning of each season

Send a cover letter and resume to: onslowcountyfarmersmarket@gmail.com

Hardcopy applications can be mailed to:   Onslow County Farmers Market

Attn: Hiring Committee

                                                                        4024 Richlands Highway    

                                                                        Jacksonville, NC 28540

Applications must be received no later than Feb. 6 at 5 pm.

Protecting Pollinators/ Onslow County Beekeepers Offer Beekeeping Short Course

Honeybee populations have declined worldwide in recent years and many gardeners are coming to understand that protecting pollinator insects – particularly honeybees but native bees as well – is increasingly important.  Three quarter of the earth’s flowering plants rely on insects or animals to mediate pollination including one third of the world’s crops.  Many fruit and vegetable crops rely on insect pollinators including apples, blueberries, peaches, strawberries, cucumbers, squash, and melons.

Several factors have been identified in bee population decline including parasites and diseases, poor nutrition, habitat loss, pesticides and environmental stress.  While we cannot address all of these issues, gardeners should recognize the importance of pollinator insects and can take steps to protect pollinators in and around the garden. 

Honeybees are the most well known pollinator.  They are native to Europe and are often managed for pollination in gardens and agricultural crops because they form colonies and are excellent pollinators – often flying 2 miles or more from the hive.  Native pollinators, while less well known, play an important role as well.  There are over 4000 species of native bees in the US.  Native bees are also valuable crop pollinators.  While they do not range as far as honeybees, native bees are very efficient and are more active in inclement weather than honeybees.  Native bees also play an important role pollinating wild plants and sustaining native ecosystems.  The greater the diversity of bees in an area, the better the pollination.  While research has focused more on protecting honeybees, the same steps that protect honeybees will also protect native bees. 

First, use pesticides sparingly and only as needed.  Pesticides include insecticides (chemicals used to kill insects), fungicides (chemicals used to control fungi), herbicides (chemicals used to kill plants) and miticides (chemicals used to kill mites).  While it seems apparent that insecticides are a threat to bees, other pesticides can also be toxic to bees. 

Make sure that you have plant problems accurately diagnosed prior to applying a pesticide.  Utilize integrated pest management practices prior to resorting to chemical pest control.  Building healthy soils, choosing the right plant for the right place, good sanitation and optimum watering can help reduce pest problems in the garden.  Handpicking, row covers and fostering beneficial insects can help reduce pest pressures. 

When insecticides must be used, consider the formulation.  Powdered formulations generally last until the next rainfall and can gather on the bee’s body and be carried back to the hive.  For this reason, use liquid formulations when possible.  Apply insecticides late in the day when most bee activity has diminished for the day.  Never apply insecticides to plants with open flowers that are being actively foraged by bees and be careful to avoid pesticide drift on to adjacent weeds or crops that are in flower.  Even following appropriate measures, many insecticides have residual toxicity that lingers for 24 hours or longer on the plant.  It is important to note that insecticides labeled natural or organically approved can still be toxic to bees, so make sure that you read and follow all label directions regardless of the pesticide being used. 

Provide a bee friendly landscape including diverse pollen and nectar sources for bees at various times of the year.  Include flowering plants such as tulip poplar, sourwood, magnolia, red maple, serviceberry, various fruit trees, asters, black-eyed susan, goldenrod, coneflowers, and monarda.  Choose single flowered forms over double flowered forms (which are harder if not impossible for pollinators to forage).  Allow some crop plants to go to bloom – bees love the flowers of broccoli, mustard, carrots, and herbs such as basil, cilantro, dill and mints.  Leave naturalized portions of the yard with blooming weeds such as clover, henbit and dandelion.  Include native plants to support native bee populations.  For a full list for pollinator plants visit http://growingsmallfarms.ces.ncsu.edu/growingsmallfarms-pollinatorconservation/. 

Preserve nesting habitat for native bees including ground-nesting bees.  70% of native bees nest in the ground.  They prefer well-drained sunny areas with sparse vegetation.  Most native bees are solitary with each female preparing her own nest.  While the bees may be communal (many nesting in the same area), their solitary nature means that they are not aggressive.  Preserve their nesting areas by not disturbing them.  Other natives nest in wood or hollow stems.  Where safe, leave dead trees standing.  Alternatively, create bee blocks by drilling holes in a wooden block or bundling hollow stems or straw together and place them in a location receiving morning sun about 4 feet above the ground.

Honeybees swarm in the spring and summer as a way to manage the hive.  If you find a honeybee swarm near your home, contact a local beekeeper.  Many beekeepers welcome a chance to collect a swarm to start a new colony.  If you are interested in learning more about beekeeping, join your local beekeeping association.  In Onslow County, the Onslow County Beekeepers meet on the second Tuesday of the month at 7 pm at the Onslow County Multipurpose Building at 4024 Richlands Highway.  Between meetings, call the Extension Office at 910.455.5873 for current contact information or to report a honeybee swarm.  

For more information about pollinators of all sorts:

http://pollinator.org/PDFs/Guides/OuterCoastalrx7FINAL.pdf

Are you interested in beekeeping?  Do you want to learn more?  If so, the Onslow County Beekeepers are offering a spring Beekeeping Short Course.  This three-day class includes comprehensive training and an end of course test.  The class will be held at the Onslow County Cooperative Extension Office on February 28, March 7 and March 14 from 8 am until noon each day. 

Contact the Onslow County Beekeepers for more information and to register:  Eric Talley, President, at 910.389.7709 or via email at erictalley@ec.rr.com.  Cost is $30 per person or $40 for a couple that shares a book.