Anchorage Daily News

It continues to be really cool, especially during the evening hours. Fortunately, these are getting shorter and shorter, for a while at least. You take the weather cards as they are dealt.

Is it going to be warmer in the days ahead, or if this is what we are going to have all summer long? Who knows. I do know, however, that you really have to get stuff out of pots and cell paks and either into the ground or into larger permanent-for-the summer type quarters.

Yup, this is it: last call for planting up those vegetables and annuals, at least the ones already up and growing. If they spend too much time in confined growing quarters, they become stunted and never recover, even when transplanted. Plant yours now. Besides, in two weeks the days will start getting shorter and the plants will know the difference and that we are on the long downward slide to winter.

Plant what you have. Get the chore done. And, if you don't have starts to transplant, then you better hustle off to a nursery and get what is left. You will find some great sales, something to remember for those who need to fill in a few holes here and there in their already planted gardens. Remember, any indoor grown plant will have to be hardened off for a week, so you really don't have much time. Go today and get your plants.

Next, if you have been on the fence about putting in a vegetable garden because it might be more work than you want but you like the idea of some fresh vegetables and herbs, then plant vegetables, only plant them in containers. There is a vegetable that will fit in almost any you may have laying around. It is not too late for the right varieties. Best of all, container-grown plants usually do better than in-ground plants when the weather is cool.

One vegetable that does exceedingly well in containers is lettuce. Lettuce seed germinates quickly and grows fast. Most varieties are ready to fully harvest in 50 to 60 days, but you can start grazing off a crop much earlier. If harvested with a sharp knife or cut with scissors, a second set of lettuce leaves will develop so planting a crop now will fill quite a few salad bowls. And, planted individually per kind or in a mix, lettuces can be very decorative and will fit on the back or front porch quite nicely, landscape wise.

I checked and found lettuce packets all over town. If you can't find what you want, I would imagine a quick look at the Nichols Garden Nursery Web site (www.nicholsgardennursery.com) or Territorial Seeds' site (www.territorialseeds.com) will help you find what you want. Orders should only take a few days and you are ready to plant.

Territorial has a greens mix known as French Nicoise Blend which is harvestable in 28 days. Check out Nichlols Garden Nursery's Organic Mesclun and you will have a mix you can start to harvest in only 21 days. There are plenty of others to consider.

In addition to lettuces grown from seed, carrots do well in containers because they do best in very uniform soil which is exactly what you find in most containers. Just make sure to thin them out to at least one inch apart. Radishes, of course, can be grown in containers, again with some thinning or judicious seed placement. Plant several different kinds and have some fun with it.

It is not too late to plant snap peas, worth trying some pole and bush beans and may be even some zucchini from seed. You might even consider beets, again recognizing that they need to be thinned properly.

Strawberry plants are so often treated as annuals these days that these make great container plants as well.

Most gardeners have at least a few 12 inch pots and probably quite a few more of other sizes left over from some project or prior transplanting. Use containers that are as large as possible and have good drain holes. You want to plant in the best soil you can get. Good compost or humus with a bit of sand mixed in should be just fine.

Don't fill containers to the top with soil. Leave at least an inch for watering and an inch for mulch, which you should put on once seed germinate. Go organic here. No chemicals on these, as you are dealing with food you will be eating. A handful of soy bean meal, fish meal or Arctic Grow Natural or any other favorite microbe food is all you need.

Finally, Plant A Row For The Hungry, no matter how small. Remember that one of the containers you plant needs to be dedicated to feed the hungry, just like that row every one else has in their in ground garden, right?

Jeff Lowenfels is a member of the Garden Writers Hall of Fame. You can reach him at gardenerjeff.googlepages.com or by joining the "Garden Party" radio show from 10 a.m. to noon Saturdays on KBYR 700 AM.

Garden calendar

• MUST ATTEND: Alaska Botanical Garden Annual Garden Fair, June 21-22. Go to www.alaskabg.org for details. This is for the whole family.

• NURSERIES: Bareroot sales, sales on annuals, sales on perennials. Don't stop visiting just because you think you are done.

• WATER: When it is dry, you need to make sure all your garden plants have enough water. Check every day.

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