Newspaper Page Text
The True Citizen, Wednesday, September 29, 2010 — Page 21
Farm & ome
Home & Garden Tips
Plant Winter Cover Crops to Improve Next Year’s Garden
Irrigated grazing
Until this weekend most of the pastures in Burke County were too dry and the
armyworms had attacked them. Recently pasture grass has declined rapidly except
on irrigated pastures. Above, Angus cows graze under a center pivot on irrigated
grazing on a farm near Girard.
Recipes from Louise
By Roosevelt McWilliams
County Extension Agent
Fall is here and many garden
ers just let the plants die out and
leave the soil exposed. You
should consider planting a win
ter cover crop. Cover crops are
an economical way to both pro
tect and build the soil.
Cover crops are usually a grass
or legume such as clover, planted
on the garden site to help hold
and build the soil. You can use
both summer and winter cover
crops for either season. For now,
let’s focus on the winter type.
Growing cover crops offers
many benefits:
• Reduced erosion
• Improved soil structure and
reduced surface crusting
• Increased water holding ca
pacity of the soil
• Reduced winter weed growth
• Reduced herbicide injury
• Winter hardpan penetration,
improving the soil for the crop
that follows
• Added nitrogen if the cover
crop is a legume
There are two general types of
cover crops, leguminous and
non-leguminous. Leguminous
cover crops, such as vetch and
clover, add nitrogen to the soil.
Non-leguminous ones, such as
wheat and rye, don’t fix nitrogen
but are preferred on erosive soils.
Crimson clover is probably the
most commonly used and most
desirable of the clovers grown for
a cover crop. It matures earlier
and produces more nitrogen and
dry matter earlier than most other
clovers. And excellent crop of
crimson clover can produce up
to 120 pounds of nitrogen per
acre and 30 to 50 pounds is com
mon.
Nonleguminous cover crops
(rye, ryegrass and wheat) have
several advantages. For one
thing, they cost less to get estab
lished than a leguminous crop.
They provide longer and better
erosion control because they
grow more in the winter and have
fibrous root systems. Their ma
jor disadvantage is that they don’t
fix nitrogen and usually require
some nitrogen fertilizer when
you plant them.
It is important to plant cover
crops early to establish early root
growth before cold weather
comes. This helps the crop bet
ter survive a hard winter. Plant
legumes in mid-September to
mid-October and grass in early
October to mid-November.
A soil test will tell you how
much lime, phosphate and pot
ash your cover crop needs. If
your soil needs lime, phosphate
or potash, apply them in the fall
just before preparing the seed
bed.
Prepare the seedbed the same
way you did for your spring gar
den. Either remove or till in old
crops, working the soil while it
is slightly moist but not wet. Rake
or drag in the seeds of grass-type
cover crops to a depth of one-half
inch. Clover-type seeds are tiny.
Only lightly rake them in to pro
vide good soil contact (don’t bury
the seed).
Improving the crop with a
cover crop is a long term venture.
Over time, these crops can and
will add organic content to the
soil. When spring arrives next
year, you should till them in to
help feed the next year’s veg
etable garden.
By Louise McClain
Special to The True Citizen
With the arrival of fall comes the
bounty of fresh autumn produce
— apples, pears, squash and
pumpkin to name a few. Try these
delicious recipes featuring the vi
brant flavors of the fall season.
Double Layer Pumpkin Cheese
cake
2 pkgs. (8 oz. each) fat-free Cream
cheese, softened
14 cup sugar
14 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
1 /2 cup pumpkin, mashed
14 tsp. ground cinnamon
Dash ground nutmeg
1/3 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 /2 cup Cool Whip Free Whipped Topping
Mix cream cheese, sugar and
vanilla with electric mixer or me
dium speed until well blended.
Add eggs, mix until blended. Do
not overbeat after adding eggs.
Remove 1 cup batter; stir in pump
kin and spices. Spray 9-inch pie
plate with no stick cooking spray;
sprinkle bottom with crumbs. Pour
remaining plain batter into crust.
Top with pumpkin batter. Bake at
325° for 40 minutes or until center
is almost set. Cool. Refrigerate 3
hours or overnight. Top each serv
ing with 1 tablespoon of the
whipped topping. Serves 8.
Winter Squash Cheese
Casserole
2 lbs. winter squash, peeled, seeded and
cut into Finch cubes
1TBSP butter or margarine
1 /2 cup chopped onion
2 cups (8 oz.) shredded Cheddar cheese,
divided
2 eggs
% cup milk
Salt and pepper to taste
1 /2 cup soft bread crumbs
Ground nutmeg to taste (optional)
In a saucepan, cook squash in
enough water to cover until ten
der. Drain. In a skillet, melt butter
over medium-high heat. Saute
onion until tender. Place squash in
a greased 2-quart casserole. Top
with the onion ad half the cheese.
Beat the eggs, milk, salt and pep
per. Pour over the squash. Top with
remaining cheese, sprinkle with
bread crumbs and nutmeg. Bake
at 325° for 30 minutes or until set
and tightly browned. Serve imme
diately. Yield: 8 servings
Autumn Apple Salad
1 can (20 oz.) crushed pineapple,
undrained
1/3 cup sugar
1 pkg. (3 oz.) lemon-flavored gelatin
1 pkg. (8 ounces) cream cheese,
softened
1 cup diced unpeeled apples
1 /2 to 1 cup chopped nuts
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup whipped topping
Lettuce leaves
In a saucepan, combine pine
apple and sugar; bring to a boil and
boil for 3 minutes. Add gelatin; stir
until dissolved. Add cream cheese;
stir until mixture is thoroughly
combined. Cool. Fold in apples,
nuts, celery and whipped topping.
Pour into a 9-inch square baking
pan. Chill until firm. Cut into
squares and serve on lettuce
leaves. Yield: 9-12 servings.
Burke County Agricultural and Family & Consumer Science Calendar of Events
Sept. 30 - Forestry Half Day Workshop - 12:30 to 4:15 p.m. - Longleaf Pine -
Establishment Phase, Growth & Yields and Economics - Bulloch County Ag Center,
151 Langston Chapel Rd., Statesboro - Registration Forms available at the Burke
County Extension Office - Workshop for professional foresters, land managers, forest
landowners and other interested folks.
Oct. 4 - Clarks Hill Beekeeper Meeting - Walden Pond, 6343 Yelton Rd., Appling - 7
p.m. - Meeting is free and open to the public. For directions to Walden Pond please
call the Extension office at 706-554-2119.
Oct. 5-7 - Ag in the Classroom Program for 4 th Graders - Southeast Research &
Education Center - Midville
Oct. 26 - Cattlemen’s Association Meeting - Burke Co. Office Park - 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 28 - Master Gardener Meeting - Senior Citizens Center - 6 p.m.
6Tv"!i£i¥l
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