What do you grow to feed the chickens??

[Arielle]

Excepts from http://www.harvesttotable.com/2013/05/vegetable-crops-for-vertical-gardening/

Reasons to Grow Vertically
• Save space. Vertical vegetable gardening saves space. Cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, and squash require a large amount of ground space. One untrained cantaloupe will crawl over an area of 16 square feet. The same melon trained vertically will take only one or two square feet of ground.
Types of Vertical Supports

• Trellis, netting, or fence
• Wire or wooden cages
• Teepees and tripods
• A-frames
• Poles and posts

Set vertical supports to the north side of your planting area so that they do not shade shorter, smaller crops.
Crops for Vertical Growing
Beans: pole beans produce throughout the season (bush beans mature all at once, and then stop).
Cucumbers: All varieties of cucumbers can be grown vertically. You can prune cucumbers to a single stem or prune them to the branches growing toward the vertical support. Cucumber grown vertically will grow longer and straighter.
Melons: All melons can be grown vertically (except watermelons) without support for the fruit. Be sure to pick ripe melons before they slip from the stem. Melons also can be attached to the support with a net or sling.
Peas: Peas are a spring crop. Space them just 2 inches apart and train them up chicken wire or a fence. When the vines dry up, replace them with beans or squash or any other vine crop.
Summer squash: Summer squash will form fruit along the length of the vine when grown vertically. Tie summer squash in at about 1 foot lengths.
Tomatoes: Indeterminate or vining tomatoes that keep growing long from the tip of the vine (unlike determinate or bush tomatoes) will grow on any vertical structure including strings. Tomatoes are commonly grown vertically in cages or on poles.
Winter squash: All winter squash can be grown vertically without support for the fruit, except the large and heavy Hubbard and Banana squash.

Many vining crops will climb vertically by themselves using twisting tendrils to grasp the support. Others may require twist ties or string to help them grow up.

More info on materials to make vertical supports: http://www.harvesttotable.com/2013/05/vertical-supports-in-the-vegetable-garden/Use cages 4 to 6 feet tall for indeterminate tomatoes; use shorter cages 3 to 4 feet tall for cucumbers and bush varieties of melon, pumpkin, and winter squash. You can set six cucumber plants around a 3- to 4-foot-high, 19- to 24-inch-diameter wire cage—plant in a horseshoe shape to allow easy access to fruits on the inside of the cage.


http://www.harvesttotable.com/2013/05/vertical-supports-in-the-vegetable-garden/. Make the legs from 8-foot length of 1-by-2 lumber. You can hinge the tripods at the top.

 

[Arielle]

http://www.harvesttotable.com/2011/05/bean_growing_tips/



Bean Growing Tips

By Steve Albert On May 12, 2011 In Best Bet Varieties, Gardening Tips, Legumes, Plant, Tips
“Snap” beans are eaten as a green pod. “Pole” beans climb, but can also be snap beans. “Shelly” beans are beans that have begun tomature–the green maturing seeds are cooked like fresh peas. “Dry” beans have matured and dried in the pod and are soaked before cooking. “Wax” beans are any bean pods that ripen yellow. “String” beans are eaten in the pod–beans in pods once commonly had strong stringy tissue where the two halves of the pod came together. (Today most string beans are actually stringless.)
Lima beans are flat and oblong and are also called “butter beans”; they grow best in warm regions. Fava beans–also called “broad” or “horse” beans–look like fuzzy lima beans but grow best in cool regions.
“Runner” beans are not common garden beans or lima beans; runner beans are not pole beans–but they are climbers. Runner beans are their own species and to prove it they wrap themselves counter-clockwise around poles or stakes.
Beans are second only to tomatoes in popularity among home vegetable gardeners.
Here are a few tips common to all beans to take into the bean growing season:
• Soil. Beans grow best in loose, well-worked, well-drained soil rich in organic matter. (But beans will grow in soil that is sandy, rocky, and even clayey.) Turn your soil to a depth of 6 to 8 inches and add aged compost in advance of planting. Bean diseases proliferate in wet soil that is slow to drain so adding organic matter to the bean patch is important.
• Temperature. Don’t plant beans too early. Bean seeds will rot in cold, wet soil, and bean plants will die if touched by frost. Wait to sow beans until the soil temperature reaches 60°F–about two weeks after the last frost. Wait to set out bean starts until nighttime temperatures average 55°F or greater. Most beans, except fava beans, prefer air temperatures of 70° to 80°F; favas like it cooler.
• Pre-Planting. If you are planting where beans have not grown before, dusting seeds with a Rhizobia bacteria inoculant can boost production. Rhizobia bacteria powder is available from seed companies and is sold specific to beans, peas, lentils and soybeans; tell the seller what you are growing. Also: soaking or pre-sprouting bean seeds in water may cause them to rot.
• Planting. Sow bean seeds 1 inch deep in spring. In summer after the soil has warmed, you can sow beans seeds a bit deeper, but no deeper than 2 inches. Sow seeds with the “eye” down. Sprouting beans push folded leaves up through the soil and spread them before they emerge. Heavy, wet soil or crusted soil will impede bean sprouts and can break shoots while sprouting. Light, sandy and compost-rich, well-drained soil is ideal for growing beans. Work compost into the top 6 inches of the planting bed. If your garden has heavy clay soil, sow beans in raised beds.
• Bush Bean Sowing. Bush beans can be planted in: single rows–create a shallow furrow and sow a seed every 3 to 4 inches; double rows–create two shallow furrows 4 inches apart and set seed every 3 to 4 inches in each row (set your soaker hose between the two rows); wide rows–create a row or planting bed 15 to 18 inches wide and sow seed 3 to 4 inches apart in all directions across the wide row setting each seed one inch deep. Raised beds can be planted in wide rows or double rows.
• Pole Bean Sowing. Pole beans grow easily on 1- or 2-inch diameter poles with rough surfaces–for easy climbing. Use poles no higher than 6 to 7 feet for ease at harvest time–you can use taller poles but then you’ll need a ladder at harvest time. Pole beans will climb to the top of the pole and then head back down, so a 4 or 5 foot pole works best for most people. Sow 5 or 6 beans around each pole one inch deep; later thin to the strongest 3 or 4 plants per pole. To get started the beans started, train the vine tendrils up the pole.
• Succession Cropping. Make three or four bean plantings at two- or three-week intervals for an uninterrupted supply of fresh beans. For a late crop, sow seed five or six weeks before the first fall frost date.
• Water. Keep beans evenly watered during germination and flowering. Water beans gently to a depth of 4 to 6 inches (stick your finger in the soil to check). Even watering is very important during pod development. Conversely, overwatering can cause beans to drop their pods. Water at the base of plants; overhead watering can spread diseases. Avoid touching plants when the leaves are wet. Water early in the day to reduce evaporation. A bit of wilting in the afternoon does not mean plants are under-watered; if plants are wilted in the morning, water immediately.
• Feeding. Beans are light feeders. A well-composted planting bed will provide all the nutrients bush beans need. Additional fertilizers are not necessary for bush beans. However, pole beans will appreciate an extra boost when pods form. Give pole beans a side dressing of compost tea when pods form. If you are unable to compost the planting bed, mix a nitrogen light fertilizer such as 5-10-10 into the top 2 to 3 inches of soil just before planting. Follow the fertilizer directions or spread about 3 pounds of fertilizer per 100 square feet Phosphorus will promote strong roots and potassium will help beans bear frui and resist disease.
• Weeding. Beans are shallow rooted so just keep the soil lightly cultivated to stop weed germination and growth. Bean leaves will soon shade the garden bed and slow or stop weed growth. Mulch with straw, dry leaves, or compost if weeds persist.
• Diseases. Prevention is the best solution to bean diseases–fungal diseases (such as rust), bacterial blights, and viral diseases (such as bean mosaic). Plant in well-drained soil; don’t overwater; rotate crops, and plant disease-resistantvarieties
• Harvest. Pick snap beans when pencil-size or smaller and tender. Pick snap beans before pods become lumpy. Harvest bush beans daily to encourage production; the more you pick the more the plant will blossom and produce more pods. When seeds are allowed to develop in the pod, plants will slow production. Pinch off bush beans with your thumbnail and fingers; don’t pull or jerk beans from the plant. Use scissors to harvest tougher pole and runner beans. Shell beans are harvested after the beans have begun to swell in the pod. Dry beans are picked when seeds rattle in the brown pods.
• Yield. Beans yield about 50 quarts per 100 feet of row. (Eight ounces of bean seed will cover a 100-foot row.) Grow 10 to 15 bush beans per person. Grow three to five pole beans per person.

 

[lazy gardener]

Arielle, Bee's newest garden plan is the Back to Eden approach. One thing I might warn you about if you plan to use clover between the beds: It's invasive. Also, it attracts bees like crazy. Good for the plants, not so good for you when you're working the area. I have to watch every step when I walk across my lawn because of the heavy growth of white clover. It's not uncommon for my to get nailed by an angry honey bee. See my post to you in an other thread regarding bed development. I recommend a good mulch between those beds. Also, I think you'll be happier with beds that are 4' wide. That gives you 2' of growing space, easy to reach across, on each side of the bed. 3' is not as good for utilizing space.

 

[Arielle]

http://www.harvesttotable.com/2011/05/squash_and_pumpkin_growing_tip/



Squash and Pumpkin Growing Tips

By Steve Albert On May 8, 2011 In Fruit Vegetables, Gardening Tips, Plant, Tips
Squashes and pumpkins are members of the gourd family. Summer squashes and pumpkins originated in Mexico and Central America. Most winter squashes originated in or near the Andes in northern Argentina.
Summer squashes–zucchini, patty pans and cocozelles (Italian for vegetable marrows)–have whitish or yellow flesh. They are the quickest to harvest–picked in summer while immature and as soon they are big enough to use.
Winter squashes have orange flesh. They take longer to mature than summer squashes. Harvest winter squashes when their skins are extremely hard and their stems have started to dry out.
Pumpkins–which are simply very large hard-skinned squashes that are usually orange–are the longest to harvest mostly because they are commonly carved at Halloween and pureed for Thanksgiving pie. Like other winter squashes they are picked when their skins are extremely hard and their stems are dry.
The technique for planting summer squashes, winter squashes and pumpkins is the same. Grow all squashes on hills spaced 3 to 8 feet apart depending upon the leaf size–the larger the leaf the farther apart. Set seedlings started indoors into the garden as soon as the weather has warmed. Make sure squashes are large and strong before the end of June when squash beetles hit the garden. The larger and stronger the plant the better it will resist attack.
Plant summer squashes, winter squashes, and pumpkins all at the same time and the harvests will be staggered from midsummer to the first frost–summer squash in about 50 days, winter squash in about 85 to 100 days, and pumpkins after 100 or more days.
Here are some tips for growing squashes:

• Planting. Plant squashes and pumpkins when night temperatures no longer fall below 55°F and the soil is at least 60°F (seeds will not germinate in cold soil–the optimal soil temperature is 70°F). Prepare the planting site by digging a hole 18 inches wide and deep. Place 3 to 4 inches of aged-compost or manure into the bottom of the hole and refill the whole with 3 parts soil and 1 part compost or manure. Create a planting hill about 4 inches high. Space the hills about 3 to 4 feet apart for bush squash and 8 feet or more apart for vining plants. Set 6 to 8 seeds evenly spaced on each mound. They will germinate in 7 to 14 days depending upon the variety. When plants are 3 inches tall thin to the two strongest seedlings (use a scissors to thin rather than pulling plants up by the roots which can upend neighboring plants). Use cloches to protect cold-sensitive seedlings if frost threatens.
• Protection. Floating row covers will protect squashes from dipping temperatures. If night temperatures fall below 65°F put the row covers in place. Row covers will also protect plants from early pests. When plants begin to flower (about three weeks after they have sprouted), remove the row covers to allow for pollination by bees and insects.
• Water. Water seedlings well, and keep soil moist throughout the season; the roots need regular moisture. If plants look wilted before eleven o’clock in the morning, they need water. (Dig down in the soil; if the soil is dry at four inches down–water. If the soil is moist at three inches down, watering is good.) To avoid transmitting diseases, water at the base of each plant and keep the foliage dry. Leaf and fruit diseases are easily transmitted via wet foliage. Avoid handling plants when they are wet. It is not unusual for squash to wilt slightly on hot days.
• Feeding. Squashes are heavy feeders. Add plenty of aged compost or manure to the planting bed in advance of sowing. Before you plant, place aged compost or manure at the bottom of each planting hole and throw in a buffer inch or two of native soil. This will get plants off to a strong start. Apply compost tea or manure tea at transplanting or two weeks after seedlings emerge. Feed again with compost tea in three weeks or when the first flowers appear. When the first fruits set, water each plant with compost tea or side-dress each plant with a shovel full of compost. If leaves are pale, give plants a dose of fish emulsion. But be careful not to give squashes too much nitrogen; nitrogen will increase leafy growth but cut fruit yield.
• Pollination. Squash plants easily cross-pollinate. If you grow more than one type of squash in your garden, hand-pollination may be the best way to prevent cross breeding. You can transfer pollen from the male stamen to the female pistil using a small brush or pick off the male flower and run the stamen against the female flower. Female flowers often blossom before male flowers appear. (Female flowers have a tiny fruit at their base.) If female flowers are not pollinated, they will dry up and fall off. Because squash plants are prolific bloomers, soon male flowers will appear to pollinate later female blossoms. As well, squash plants will sometimes abort small fruits when there is a heavy fruit set. This is self-pruning process.
• Prune. When vines grow to 5 feet, pinch off the growing tips to encourage fruit-bearing side-shoots. By midsummer, pinch off remaining flowers and small fruits on vining and winter squash. This will allow the plant to focus its energy on the ripening crop.
• Mulch. To avoid rot, put 6 inches of straw, hay, or dry leaves under fruit. Mulch when vines begin to lengthen. This will slow weed growth. Weeds compete with crops for water and nutrients. If the mulch gets wet, set a board or shingle under each fruit. Early in the season, black plastic can be used to mulch squashes. Black plastic helps warm the soil earlier and keeps it warm; this, in turn, can speed up the growth of squashes.

Delicata squash
• Harvest. Harvest squashes when the weather is dry. Use a sharp knife to cut fruit off the vine, leaving 3 to 4 inches of stem on the fruit. Harvest summer squash when the fruit is small to moderate size. Pick each fruit before the blossoms drops off the tip otherwise the plant will quit producing. Pick winter squash and pumpkins when the rind is thick and hard and can not be penetrated by a thumbnail. Pick winter squashes and pumpkins before the first frost. Dry winter squashes (except acorn squash) in the sun until stems shrivel and turn gray; this will take about a week. Store winter squash in a cool, dry place with temperatures of 45° to 50°F and with 65 to 70 percent humidity.

 

[Lacy Blues]

Wow, Arielle, you've been busy. Thanks for all the links and growing information. I will be taking a good look at them.

I have grown pumpkins vertically in the past. Of course you need a strong frame for them and/or small pumpkins. I usually grow sugar pumpkins as I mostly use them to make bread. I haven't learned yet, to eat pumpkin as a vegetable... anyway... a strong section of fence. I twine the branches in and out of the fence and create hammocks for each little pumpkin that begins to grow, tying to the fence.

As far as something being too bushy and creating solid shade on the north side of your green wall, perhaps some leaves could be trimmed so that the shade is more dappled? I think it depends too on how hot it gets where you live. Where I live, the sun is blistering from the time it gets above the horizon til the time it hits the other one in the summer months.

 

[LindaB220]

Quote:
I did read in some of my gardening books that the compost will only give lush greens and not much fruit. They said to plant in potting soil or dirt with a little fertilizer and when the fruits come then start doing the compost teas about once or twice a week. All supposition on my part yet. lol But I do like Bee's ideas on the clover. She said it stopped her from gardening barefooted. lol I like the idea of separate raised beds. Some people get their start with just laying down topsoil bags and cutting out the top and fertilizing and planting. It may get to that for me yet I do want to try some straw bales to get a good start on the composting.

 

[OnlyOrps]

Awesome thread! I'm planting a big garden this year and wanted ideas for planting things for my birds! Thanks everyone!

 

[LindaB220]

Quote:
Welcome to BYC. Glad to have you. Good luck.

 

[lazy gardener]

Awesome thread! I'm planting a big garden this year and wanted ideas for planting things for my birds! Thanks everyone!

Just plant what ever YOU'D like to eat. The chickens will share a bit with you, if you insist.

 

[Arielle]

Wow, Arielle, you've been busy. Thanks for all the links and growing information. I will be taking a good look at them.

I have grown pumpkins vertically in the past. Of course you need a strong frame for them and/or small pumpkins. I usually grow sugar pumpkins as I mostly use them to make bread. I haven't learned yet, to eat pumpkin as a vegetable... anyway... a strong section of fence. I twine the branches in and out of the fence and create hammocks for each little pumpkin that begins to grow, tying to the fence.

As far as something being too bushy and creating solid shade on the north side of your green wall, perhaps some leaves could be trimmed so that the shade is more dappled? I think it depends too on how hot it gets where you live. Where I live, the sun is blistering from the time it gets above the horizon til the time it hits the other one in the summer months.

How do you sling the fruits??? I have thought of this for perhaps the larger fruits of summer squash . . . .

I think your summer is hotter than ours AND I am on the west side of a hill, and need that sun asap. Though as you know some plants dont like the summer sun-- just thought some of the cool weather crops might like the cooler shade. Yup, would need to let some light thru!!