I’m Gwen Outen with the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.
Farmers often feel they need a lot of sunshine to produce a goodcrop. The Rodale Institute in Pennsylvania, however, says lots ofvegetables grow well without much sun.
The research center published a report about this subject someyears ago in its magazine Organic Gardening. The report said manydifferent kinds of foods from blueberries to beans can be grown inthe shade.
Some vegetables do need a lot of sun. A vegetable crop expert atthe University of Maine advised putting these vegetables where theycan get from eight to ten hours of sunlight a day. Tomatoes, melons,squash and peppers are among those that need the most sun.
Plants that produce root crops, such as carrots and beets, needfrom six to eight hours of sunlight every day. But leafy vegetables,such as lettuce and spinach, need only six hours of sunlight a day.
The Rodale Institute says a garden should be planned carefullyespecially if you grow different kinds of foods. For example, rowsof vegetables should be planted in an east-west direction. That way,as the sun passes overhead, all the plants will receive an equalamount of light. This is especially important when the plants growto different heights.
Nut trees such as filbert, hazelnut and yellowhorn produce wellwith only sun in the morning.
Some fruits also do well without a lot of sunlight. In the UnitedStates, blueberries, raspberries, and several kinds of pears needonly a little sun each day. In Asia, the hardy kiwi grows well inthe shade.
Many herbs grow well without much sun. Mint plants, for example,grow well in the shade. So do sage, dill, oregano, borage, chamomileand several kinds of thyme.
The owner of a garden seed company warned against removing shadetrees. He cut down all his shade trees to provide more sun for hiscrops. But then he had to protect his summer lettuce from the heatof the sun by hanging a piece of cloth to provide shade.
Instead of cutting trees, he suggested putting plants that need alot of sunlight, such as tomatoes, in containers. That way they canbe moved as the sun moves.
Internet users can learn more about the Rodale Institute atrodaleinstitute.org.
This VOA Special English Agriculture Report was written by BobBowen. I’m Gwen Outen.