thinking of throwing in the towel next yr or doing a no brainer crop

[milo1108]

Now that I think of it, it probably came back because it was one that I had cut the tops off of before it flowered. I dunno, I have a really bad memory.

 

[erinszoo]

Actually broccoli can be a biennial producing seed in its second year but I've never heard of one that grows for three years and never dies. I want one of those, even if it just came back from the roots.

 

[DianaMallory]

I have a garden that is on the side of a hill. A friend made 2 flats spots for me. The first year was ok but the soil was awful I had to do lots of feeding! Then a friend of mine who has a tree farm, had a pile of rotten mulch, we brought it in by the dump truck full! Garden did wonderful, except for the bugs! This year was better but the heat and drought took its toll I had to water all the time, and the deer, rabbits and chipmunks were a problem. I think the water attracted them. I am about to throw in the towel myself. But probably won't. Saved a lot of my seeds this year so I don't have to buy as many next year. Did you ever think about box gardening? A little on the expensive side but you can put good soil in them.

 

[Mtn Laurel]

I feel your pain. Been working a solid clay garden for the past 25 years. The good news is that it doesn't take that long to improve it!

YES, raise those beds. We initially used large logs then installed lumber. Make sure the wood hasn't been treated. We worked the ground as much as it would allow then added sand and compost. Our county has a composting center and we can get compost cheap from them. We also used any bagged topsoil, peat humus, ANY soil amendment we could find cheap. One place would let us get the busted bags for a huge discount. Another good thing to use is leaves in the fall. Grind them up with your lawnmower and pile them in, then cover with whatever amendment you have on hand.

You can "layer compost" your planting area during the fall/winter and cover with plastic to keep the heat in to help it decompose faster. Till it into the soil in the spring. Here's some info on doing that: http://organicgardening.about.com/od/startinganorganicgarden/a/lasagnagarden.htm

Don't give up! You'll certainly be rewarded for your efforts when you harvest your first tomato. Or beans. Or broccoli. Good Luck!

EDIT: After using such an assortment of amendments, you'll want to test your soil PH before planting. Many of those amendments can make your soil acidic and veggies usually prefer a more neutral PH.

 

[cmcanallen]

I know I'm a little late to be responding but figured there's always the pre-spring til. I have clay/sandy soil (don't ask me how that happened, I inherited it). I had a horticulturist out to look at some trees and he told me a great way to enrich any type of soil. Spread out 50lbs per 1000 sq ft of soil/lawn of cotton seed and alfalfa pellets and 10lbs per 1000 sq ft of soil/lawn every year, preferably in the fall but will work in the spring to. Then every 3-5 years, add 50 lbs of lime to every 1000 sq ft of soil/lawn. You don't have to do anything else to it. We til it under in the garden in the spring during our prep but the stuff on the lawn gets left alone. We lost all the grass in the front and back yards plus several trees two years ago from a bad drought and this made a difference the first year.