A PowerPoint slide set of the basics for successful vegetable garden development in Louisiana. You must have a good start, then pest control is the next giant step to a successful harvest.

Canavalias are large, climbing, trifoliate vines producing thick and long (1 foot or longer) pods. I first heard them described as "Texas butterbeans," but don't try to eat them.

A short slide show from a garden lecture on cucumbers. Also see our VEGETABLE GARDENING TIPS series for Cucumbers under related articles in the right-hand column.

For more detailed information on composting, see these W.A. Callegari Environmental Center information articles.

Houma's LA Terre Louisiana Master Gardeners post some results of a spring vegetable demonstration.

Planting gets to be more critical with the fall garden because we start out hot and run into more of an end point with the frost.

"Fall is a good time to plant greens in your home garden," says LSU AgCenter horticulturist Dr. Tom Koske. Crops include mustard, turnips, spinach, collards, kale and Swiss chard. All are cool-season crops with similar cultural requirements.

Weeds compete with sweet potato plants for nutrients, water and sunlight and impair crop yield and quality, making effective weed management a critical aspect to successful production.

Finding new uses for sweet potato components, such as starch, would increasethe demand for sweet potatoes and save processors money by finding a use for the waste produced during cutting and canning.

Sweet potatoes are regarded as one of the most nutritious vegetable crops. They are known to be an excellent source of vitamin A (orange-flesh types) and dietary fiber and contain significant amounts of vitamin C, vitamin E, vitaminB9 (folate) and various minerals.