UC Marin Master Gardeners

Maintenance

What Edible Gardens Need | Best Choices for Marin | Preparing | Planting & Spacing | Edibles in Containers | Planting Calendar | Grow & Care Sheets | Tips & Techniques | Maintenance | Top 20 Problems in Edible Gardens | Fruit Trees | Cover Crops & Soil Enhancements | Conserving Water

How to Maintain an Edible Garden

Monitor the garden for pests and diseases as you maintain it. Photo: Courtesy UC Regents

Once the fruit trees, berries, herbs and vegetables are planted, the magic begins. Even seasoned gardeners marvel at how the seed becomes the plant that produces a vegetable that appears on a plate. But abundant growth and harvest don’t "just happen." To have a successful edible garden, a gardener must be a midwife, a caregiver, and a coaxer. Here's how to care for your edible garden.

Ongoing maintenance

• Spend time in the vegetable garden. Become an astute observer. Look for signs of trouble, such as wilting or eaten leaves or stunted growth.
• Monitor for pests.
• Monitor for disease.
• Check soil for moisture.
• Keep vertical plants supported.
• Taste for ripeness and harvest when just right.
• Pull weeds.
• Replenish mulch.
• Check irrigation and adjust as the season progresses.
• Add plant waste to the compost pile.
• Prune fruit trees.

Recommended: keep a garden journal to chronicle your successes and learning moments.

Monthly reminders

Use this Edible Garden Monthly Planting and Maintenance Schedule to keep your garden in tip top shape all year.

> MONTHLY PLANTING & MAINTENANCE

BACK TO EDIBLES
> What Edible Gardens Need
> Best Choices for Marin
> How to Prepare
> How to Plant
> Edibles in Containers
> Planting Calendar
> Grow & Care Sheets for Vegetables, Herbs & Fruits
> Tips & Techniques
> How to Maintain
> Fruit Trees
> Top 20 Edible Garden Problems
> Cover Crops & Soil Enhancements in the Off-season
> Conserving Water

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Visit our EDIBLE DEMO GARDEN at IVC Organic Farm & Garden

When a horseradish root grows to the size of a large carrot, it is ready for harvest Photo: Marty Nelson

UC Marin Master Gardeners: Article

December 2022: Horseradish Harvest

November 30, 2022

Several years ago, raised beds were built to provide garden space for growing spice plants. These were plants such as ginger, turmeric, and horseradish, plants not commonly found in backyard gardens...

Sugar snap peas are not only delicious cool season crops, but they also fix nitrogen in the soil. Marty Nelson

UC Marin Master Gardeners: Article

November 2022: Fall Garden Activity

November 30, 2022

Fall is an active time in the Edible Demo Garden. Volunteers have been busy harvesting summer produce and, simultaneously, planning and preparing for winter crops.

Herbs integrate easily into an edible garden. Photo: Marty Nelson

UC Marin Master Gardeners: Article

October 2022: The Many Benefits of Growing Herbs

September 29, 2022

Herbs are among the most reliable plants in the Edible Demonstration Garden. Some garden spaces are dedicated to growing perennial herbs and other established beds accommodate annual herbs on a rotation schedule. Culinary herbs belong in an edible garden for many reasons...

UC Marin Master Gardeners: Article

September 2022: Introducing the Honeyberry

August 21, 2022

A small bush grew unnoticed at the edge of the Edible Garden for several years until a new garden pathway was needed and the bush was in the way. Only then did a garden volunteer find a tag identifying the bush as a honeyberry.

The aphids and ants on this artichoke plant can be washed off with a strong spray of water. Photo: Marty Nelson

UC Marin Master Gardeners: Article

August 2022: Managing Pests in the Organic Garden

July 29, 2022

The plants are lush and green, and the harvest has been plentiful in the Edible Garden in July. Contributions to the IVC farm stand and Community Supported Agriculture included summer squash, cucumbers, beets, onions, carrots, fennel, rhubarb, and basil...

Marigolds partner with cabbage to reduce damage by aphids. Photo: pixnio

UC Marin Master Gardeners: Article

July 2022: Plant Partners

June 29, 2022

In June, new Big Moose pumpkin seedlings were planted in the area of the garden known as the back forty. However, volunteer sunflowers had already taken over this garden area, which had been left fallow during the winter...

As bees move from flower to flower gathering pollen, they are also distributing pollen to fertilize the plants. Photo: Pixabay

UC Marin Master Gardeners: Article

June 2022: Welcome Pollinators!

June 29, 2022

Flowers are abloom in the Edible Demo Garden raising expectations of a bountiful harvest to come. Now the bees just need to help by doing their pollinating job and the fruits and veggies should appear. Pollinating, though, can get complicated.

Seed potatoes are nestled into the straw at planting time. Photo: Marty Nelson

UC Marin Master Gardeners: Article

May 2022: No Digging Needed to Grow Potatoes

May 24, 2022

Growing potatoes in straw may seem like a crazy idea but the success of this method in the Edible Demonstration Garden suggests that this no-dig approach could be an option for home gardeners. It can be especially appealing when working with rocky clay soil...

Chicken wire is wrapped around the straw bales to hold them together and keep out gophers. Raoul Stepakoff

UC Marin Master Gardeners: Article

April 2022: Ready, Set, Spring Forward!

March 24, 2022

With the onset of spring, the pace of activity in the Edible Demonstration Garden has picked up. Its time for planning the edibles to grow this spring and summer, preparing the garden beds, and sowing the seeds...

Choose low chill hour varieties for Marin. Brenda Dawson

UC Marin Master Gardeners: Article

March 2022: Growing Blueberries

March 1, 2022

Blueberries are the focus of the newest demo garden project. Blueberries grow on long-lived and attractive shrubs and are both delicious and nutritious. They can be an ideal addition to an edible garden or to a home landscape if their growing conditions are met.