Food Safety

It’s so disappointing to reach mid-summer, having nurtured a vegetable for several months, only to find disease problems starting to appear!

The first step toward control should always be disease identification. Gardeners can submit pictures of plant problems to Nebraska Extension experts through our Digital Diagnostic Network, http://digitaldiagnostics.unl.edu/.  An expert panel of Extension professionals will promptly review and respond to your question.

We've had our first touch of cold weather, with night temps falling to the upper 30s on October 6^thand 7^th, but no hard freezes yet. Of course, we're at the end of the gardening season. But if you have tender plants, and you want to keep them growing a while longer, it's important to pay attention to weather forecasts and provide protection if freezing temperatures threaten.

Tomatoes and pumpkins are two vegetables we get calls on in the fall. We haven't reached the growing season's end yet, but it's only a few weeks away. If there are still tomatoes or pumpkins in the garden to harvest, follow these recommendations to ensure a successful end to your harvest season.

Late summer and fall are an exciting time in the garden. Harvest is in full swing, perennials can be divided, lawns can be overseeded, and so much more! It’s a shame to miss this window of opportunity to “upgrade” your landscape. There’s work to be done – that’s for sure – but focusing on the most important tasks first and tackling them in the right order will save work in the long run.

Even though this year’s flooding occurred in March before most garden crops were in the ground, there is still cause for concern when considering harvesting perennial crops and planning this year’s garden. Flood waters many be contaminated by any combination of sewage, river or creek water, farm run-off or industrial pollutants. Bacteria, parasites, viruses and chemical contaminants in the soil are concerns for this summer’s vegetable crops and food safety for your family

What vegetable crop can you grow all year round and harvest in as little as three days? Give up? It’s sprouts.

Seeds for Sprouts
Though people usually think of bean sprouts – grown from soy and mung beans – you can also use a number of other seeds to grow sprouts, including alfalfa, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, kale, lentils, pea, radish and buckwheat.