It’s transition time for South Texas backyard farmers. It’s good to remove your tired plants that have finished their growing cycles, yet bare ground in the Summer can turn into a weedy mess… and fast! Help your garden and your muscles by planting a cover crop. These are plants that grow quickly, provide weed control, and help reduce soil compaction, which will make prepping for planting veggies this Fall a lot easier.
One of the best for Summer are Cowpeas aka Black-eyed peas. They are considered one of the most heat-adapted legumes in the US. They have dense growth to suppress weeds, provide nitrogen to the soil, and will help improve the soil once they are turned under. Extra benefit – you just might get to harvest fresh black-eyed peas from your own garden! They’re easily grown from seed.
If you love flowers, Zinnias are one of our favorites and you can enjoy their bouquets all Summer, while keeping weeds from taking over! Sunflowers are also fun to plant. Both of these also grow easily from seed.
How to plant….
Once you’ve cleared your area, do a quick turn of the soil, sprinkle an organic plant food… we love Espoma Bio-Tone or Medina Growin Green, follow the seed planting guide on package, and water. Give them a daily watering and soon you’ll have a new garden that looks great & helps keep your soil ready for planting Fall veggies!
Happy Summer Gardening,
-Debbie
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