((Serious Gardening))

[1MrsMagoo]

I love gardening. Every year my garden gets bigger and bigger and is to the point where my mom teases me about going to the farmers market...lol. It started out as a 40x60 raised bed garden by the house and in three years I have added a 100 foot by 80 foot area and another 10x65 at the end of my original garden, plus the rows of pots we use too. the biggest problem I had this year was keeping the chickens in their pasture: They loved to get out and scratch that newly plowed dirt in the fields. They are now contained with the exception of one little golden campine that has a Houdini gene, but I figure she can't do to much damage by herself

I planted ten 75' rows and six 60' rows of corn, beans, squash (summer and winter), pumpkins, melons, southern peas, grain sorghum, and sunflowers over the past two days: Our last frost date is in 10 days and the long range forecast is 80 during the day and 60 at night....so I went for it a few days early. I started 148 tomato plants (mostly Italian culinary and paste types for canning), 24 sweet pepper plants, and a dozen eggplants in February under lights on the seed racks we built and have started planting those out too. Here is a photo of one of my starting stands last year....I added Mylar curtains to the sides this year to capture more light on the sides and edges...so no pics.

My raised bed garden by the house is currently full of lettuce, carrots, cabbage, onions, spinach, broccoli, beets, sweet peas, asparagus (permanent bed), and Irish potatoes. I have two unoccupied garden boxes that I am putting peppers in and dozens of large sized (18+ gallon) nursery pots for excess bush type tomatoes and more peppers. A retail nursery in our area went out of business during the winter and the owner gave us over 1000' of irrigation pipe, shade cloth, weed screen, pots of all sizes, and garden planting mix. I threw a bunch of the garden mix in my compost bin with my chicken and goat litter, leaves, and horse manure: It is some really rich stuff.

All my fruit trees broke bud and the peaches and plums are finished blooming....the apples and pears are blooming now, and my citrus is about to bloom....along with all the various other fruit trees/bushes I have planted everywhere! A cold snap would have really messed things up since it warmed up early here this year. I just love spring

 

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

I am soooo jealous! We're expecting more snow this week! And we haven't gotten the garden beds built or the composters going so again, I'll be doing most of our gardening this year in pots. ARGH!

At least I've started many of my seedlings: 3 kinds of tomatoes (waiting for seed packet for my 4th), sweet and hot peppers, okra, cucumbers, summer squashes. Still lots to start. Repotting some of my bigger seedlings today.

I love Spring. Wish it would have Sprung around here!

 

[1MrsMagoo]

Quote:
At least you showed some restraint with your tomatoes....I found two sites: mariannas heirlooms and tomato growers supply and went nuts. I think I have at least 15 kinds of tomatoes outside and seeds for around 30 different ones. The peppers are just as bad: I have 8 or 9 started and seeds for 15 of more.

It is amazing how time just gets away or funds slip away: they never seem to hang around in the same place at the same time. I would have never gotten my garden boxes had we not been hired to tear out an old deck and build a new one for some people. Their was enough lumber that was still good on that deck to build all 12 of my raised beds. I like growing some things in pots. The cherry, grape, and Celebrity bush tomatoes as well as all peppers seem to like it too....as long as they are bigger than 5 gallons.

As to planting early...we have to hurry and get everything growing and producing before the horrible heat sets in and kills everything the end of July or early August. A mild winter and earlier spring cost us weeks of unrelenting 95+ degree weather with 80% plus humidity. I was born and raised in NE Ohio and moved here only 5 years ago: I have had to completely re-educate myself about everything gardening related. The humidity here ican get downright oppressive and causes all sorts of foliar issues like powdery mildew on my melons and apple trees. So, I do a lot of spraying. Luckily, I found an organic way to kill the mildew and fertilize at the same time: Milk. I was reading that one part milk to eight or nine parts water is being used with good results in vineyards in Europe and South America....seemed to do the trick.

Good luck with your garden this year and I hope it stops snowing and starts warming very soon.

 

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

My comments in bold.

Quote:
At least you showed some restraint with your tomatoes....I found two sites: mariannas heirlooms and tomato growers supply and went nuts. I think I have at least 15 kinds of tomatoes outside and seeds for around 30 different ones. Believe me ... I had about 10-15 different varieties of tomatoes last year ... I just HAD to pear down this year! Of the 3 I've started, I already have 15 seedlings! But my favorite, Kellogg's Breakfast, will hopefully be here soon so I can get 3 or 4 of them going. The peppers are just as bad: I have 8 or 9 started and seeds for 15 of more. I bought a variety pack of colored sweet peppers so I've got 9 of them going ... can hardly wait to see colors. And just yesterday bought a variety pack of hot peppers so I'll probably have a nice variety of them going soon.

It is amazing how time just gets away or funds slip away: they never seem to hang around in the same place at the same time. I would have never gotten my garden boxes had we not been hired to tear out an old deck and build a new one for some people. Their was enough lumber that was still good on that deck to build all 12 of my raised beds. I like growing some things in pots. The cherry, grape, and Celebrity bush tomatoes as well as all peppers seem to like it too....as long as they are bigger than 5 gallons. I do most of my stuff in pots (from small trash cans to huge plastic pots. I have LOTS. But I've been thinking and there's no reason I can't get started. I can't grip a drill (hand problems) but I can put the board in place and keep them there with cinderblocks. Next time I go to town, I'm getting more cinderblocks so I can get started. I need to get the muck from goat pens in to start (or do more) decomposing in time for Memorial Day weekend. Don't know why I didn't think of that weeks ago!

As to planting early...we have to hurry and get everything growing and producing before the horrible heat sets in and kills everything the end of July or early August. A mild winter and earlier spring cost us weeks of unrelenting 95+ degree weather with 80% plus humidity. I was born and raised in NE Ohio and moved here only 5 years ago: I have had to completely re-educate myself about everything gardening related. The humidity here ican get downright oppressive and causes all sorts of foliar issues like powdery mildew on my melons and apple trees. So, I do a lot of spraying. Luckily, I found an organic way to kill the mildew and fertilize at the same time: Milk. I was reading that one part milk to eight or nine parts water is being used with good results in vineyards in Europe and South America....seemed to do the trick. When my apple trees start bearing, I'll have to keep that in mind. Just hope they didn't die in this harsh winter we just had.

Good luck with your garden this year and I hope it stops snowing and starts warming very soon.

THANKS!

Just went through my seeds, and I have a LOT to give away. Anyone in Colorado near Denver is welcome to e-mail me (my pm is almost full) to make arrangements. LOTS of seeds, but yes, mostly expired. Still, the only thing I have problems germinating is corn.

 

[1MrsMagoo]

Quote:
As to the seeds being expired...I always keep my seeds in the refridgerator or even freezer and they last a lot longer (as long as you keep humidity as low as possible...under 10% if possible). I have a second fridge in my laundry room that is half full of my seed storage (a pound of melon seeds for instance is A LOT more than I figured it would be lol...did I mention I get excessive buying seeds....).

All the English peas, lettuce, and half of everything else I planted this year is from seeds that are up to 5 years old. The germination rates drop a little every year, but I am still getting over 85% germination on everything planted from the older seeds. When I was growing up, my grandpa kept some seeds of his favorite, but seldom used things (like salsify), in his freezer: Some of them were nearly 20 years old...they still had nearly a 50% germination rate. From what I understand, it is heat and moisture that negatively affect viability. Oh, and corn is the worst thing to germinate for me too....and those seeds are fresh every year.

BTW....good idea about using the concrete blocks to support boards for your raised beds and bypass the need for a drill!

 

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

Aw shucks! Thanks.

 

[cybercat]

I have planted 3 year old purple beans in the garden and they grew like crazy. Tomatoes are so easy to get carried away with since there is so many varieties. Good thing is chickens love them as much as we do and they eat the plants at end of the year too.

 

[happyhensny]

Quote:
As soon as our chickens see me in the garden they pace next to the fence waiting for veggies, weeds & worms (I only give them a few, too VALUABLE!) to come over to their side.

 

[Smittenroade]

Glad to see this thread still alive and well!

I finally finished my composting bin and tilled the garden, woot woot. Almost that time! Ill be planting probably after this small cold spell. Maybe sometime around Tues-Wed.

@1MrsMagoo I like your inside starting rack, did you make that yourself? I really need to hop on the band wagon and make one of those. I need to get all my junk out of my closet

@Junkmanme Still working on that greenhouse. Actually just waiting on enough money to buy the greenhouse tarp. Wish there was a way to make it, but I doubt it. I got the rebar and PVC ready to go tho.

 

[Jenlyn9483]

Gardener too. I started my seeds and small plants about a month and half ago. I now have tiny tomatoes and 3" long Fresno chilli peppers and a couple red strawberries. In bloom Orange Bells, Hot Banana, green bell, Jalepeno, cucumber, and green beans. I also planted a rasberry and a blackberry plants, watermelon and zuchini along with TONS of Zinnias, petunia, Dahlias. Marigolds, Celosia, snap dragons, morning glories and various other flowers. I have currently have 3 square foot gardens Im working in. At least one more on the way. As soon as they come out of the cups and into the ground i fill the cups with new seeds. Today I planted Datil pepper seeds that i dried out from some peppers a friend had. They are chilli peppers native to St. Augustine FL. I'm currently working on trying to germinate some honey tangerine seeds that i got. No experience doing that before whatso ever so we will see how that turns out. For soil help im using fish gut compost, cow manure, Miracle grow vegetable and flower soil and thats about it. composting some quail poo to use for my fall garden. Yesterday I got a new soaker hose on a timer set up in my front two gardens, boy that's going to help me out!