Past, Present, and Future Gardens

[FortCluck]

Hi Guys and Gals,
We have grown a little bit of everything for years. We concentrate mostly on tomatoes, peppers, winter squash, root crops, and garlic. We can them or store for the cold months.

Anything that vines goes up on a trellis. Cucumbers, squash, beans, melons, even pumpkins. Most do not need to be supported.

Compost is made and added yearly. Leaves, bedding, even junk mail goes in. Cardboard is used and held down with compost for weed control. Punch a hole and put in transplants. Seeded vegetables are kept weeded by hand.

This is the time to look for seed swaps. You don't even need seeds to trade. Look on line for upcoming events near you. Our first one is in three weeks.

Local libraries may have seeds available for free as well. They get seeds donated from various companies (including organic) which are repackaged in smaller quantities. Every year we help repackage in February.

Your county soil and water conservation district might have a spring tree/shrub sale. Besides evergreen and deciduous trees they carry homestead plants. This year ours has raspberry, blueberry, paw paw, hazelnut,and much more. Bare root plants cheap. (red raspberry 5 for $18) Sign up for emails about upcoming events such as beginning beekeeping.

I have so many seeds right now!

 

[Meg-in-MT]

What kind of grapes are they?

He isn't sure. Going to ask his wife, so I will let you know!

 

[FortCluck]

He isn't sure. Going to ask his wife, so I will let you know!

My friend makes amazing grape jelly so I'll give her all my grapes.

 

[Dinogrrl]

I seem to have the best luck with perennials that don't care what's going on around them . Out of everything I've tried in my garden, only my rosemary, oregano, thyme, and lemon balm have stuck around (my catnip might have survived this year but I haven't been out to check in a bit). Rather than spend money on stuff I know I'm terrible at growing, I think I'm just going to stock up on more of what's worked. Maybe I'll make myself a whole forest of rosemary, who knows. I'll have to see what the local co-op's big plant sale has to offer this spring.

In my front flowerbeds I've got a couple of the scraggliest roses you've ever seen, but by golly they bloom for me twice a year so whatever. They can look like sticks in the mud the rest of the time if that's what they want. Also, this being the South, I've got daylilies out the yin-yang, and irises from my grandma's garden. They took two years to decide to bloom but it was worth it! I also have a small collection of hostas that I like to add to every year. I have no idea what variety each one is. I just like hostas. I want a giant one but I have no place to put it...though I did just rip up everything by the mailbox last year, so maybe I could put one there...hmm...

Last year I adopted my mom's dwarf pomegranate tree. It didn't give me any little pomegranates but the flowers are certainly pretty. I would love to get a bigger fruit tree or two in the front yard once the Bradford pear finally kicks the bucket, but I can't decide between cherries or some variety of heirloom apple. There's a guy within driving distance of me who's made it his life's work to save old heirloom apple varieties and I would love to get some trees from him.

 

[FortCluck]

I seem to have the best luck with perennials that don't care what's going on around them . Out of everything I've tried in my garden, only my rosemary, oregano, thyme, and lemon balm have stuck around (my catnip might have survived this year but I haven't been out to check in a bit). Rather than spend money on stuff I know I'm terrible at growing, I think I'm just going to stock up on more of what's worked. Maybe I'll make myself a whole forest of rosemary, who knows. I'll have to see what the local co-op's big plant sale has to offer this spring.

In my front flowerbeds I've got a couple of the scraggliest roses you've ever seen, but by golly they bloom for me twice a year so whatever. They can look like sticks in the mud the rest of the time if that's what they want. Also, this being the South, I've got daylilies out the yin-yang, and irises from my grandma's garden. They took two years to decide to bloom but it was worth it! I also have a small collection of hostas that I like to add to every year. I have no idea what variety each one is. I just like hostas. I want a giant one but I have no place to put it...though I did just rip up everything by the mailbox last year, so maybe I could put one there...hmm...

Last year I adopted my mom's dwarf pomegranate tree. It didn't give me any little pomegranates but the flowers are certainly pretty. I would love to get a bigger fruit tree or two in the front yard once the Bradford pear finally kicks the bucket, but I can't decide between cherries or some variety of heirloom apple. There's a guy within driving distance of me who's made it his life's work to save old heirloom apple varieties and I would love to get some trees from him.

I have a dwarf peach tree. It was growing peaches too

 

[Dinogrrl]

@FortCluck I do love peaches! Are the fruits small too, or just the tree?

 

[FortCluck]

@FortCluck I do love peaches! Are the fruits small too, or just the tree?

They were half of a large peach. My husband said they taste better too

 

[Dinogrrl]

@FortCluck Oh that's really neat! I'll have to look into that.

 

[Chelsa'sChicks]

I may do cucumbers too if there's a way to do them in pots and put them on my porch. I'd love some pickles

I did cucumbers in pots last year and it was very successful. They need full sunlight and water. I planted my seeds in the soil as cucumbers do not tolerate being moved well and just covered my top of my plant pot with saran wrap with 6 -8 little holes poked in it. The only trouble I had was at one point my cucumbers leaves started to turn yellow from lack of nutrients so I bought nitrogen sticks for the soil and no more yellow leaves

 

[Chelsa'sChicks]

My bf and I had great luck in our raised garden growing corn, peppers (bell & hot), lettuce, tomatoes (beef & cherry), beans, peas, cucumbers, zucchini, and we had a few potted veggies as well. Can't wait to do it again this spring!!