Your 2024 Garden

[Nomadicus]

I need to start digging sweet potatoes tomorrow. I think it well get spread over 3 days. After the extreme drought we've had I'm not expecting much over 60-70 potatoes if that many but that is enough. 50 will be more than we can bake and freeze. Whatever we get will be nice. From what I've had a sneak peek at they are a perfect one serving size for us. The variety was bred up for taste and a uniform size. I hope they live up to their reputation.

 

[Smokerbill]

50 will be more than we can bake and freeze.

So do you bake and freeze them whole? Do they freeze well?

 

[fuzzi]

The weather cooled a little today, so I decided to go out in the gardens after work. Unfortunately the mosquitoes were vicious, and I didn't stay outside as long as I wanted to.

One of the two tomato suckers I planted didn't survive, so I planted the other four collard plants around the surviving tomato plant. Then I covered the entire bed with row cover.

I'm planning on planting lettuce in between the collards but I want to keep the feral cats from using the raised beds as personal litter boxes.

I will be planting turnips where the squash grew this year, but until I sow seeds I have added a mesh cloth to keep the cats out.

Carrot seeds will be planted in a third raised bed. My carrot seeds haven't been germinating well, so I ordered more but will sow what seeds I have left.

 

[Sally PB]

I planted some collards and chard a month or so ago. The collards and one of the chard were Baker Creek seeds, and the other chard was a Burpee packet that I picked up in the store.

The Burpee seed was the only thing to sprout.

I'm both sad and mad. Sad, obviously, because seeds didn't sprout. Mad because I've ordered seed from Baker Creek for years, and never had this issue.

I know it was talked about this spring, and this is just a rehash. But I'm crossing BC off my list of places to order seed for next year. Disappointed doesn't begin to cover it. They're an heirloom seed source, and to have such terrible results. I *might* try them again in the future. But I think I'll be ordering all my see from Sow True Seed and Seed Savers Exchange for the next year or two, at least.

 

[tripletfeb]

I planted some collards and chard a month or so ago. The collards and one of the chard were Baker Creek seeds, and the other chard was a Burpee packet that I picked up in the store.

The Burpee seed was the only thing to sprout.

I'm both sad and mad. Sad, obviously, because seeds didn't sprout. Mad because I've ordered seed from Baker Creek for years, and never had this issue.

I know it was talked about this spring, and this is just a rehash. But I'm crossing BC off my list of places to order seed for next year. Disappointed doesn't begin to cover it. They're an heirloom seed source, and to have such terrible results. I *might* try them again in the future. But I think I'll be ordering all my see from Sow True Seed and Seed Savers Exchange for the next year or two, at least.

I've never tried them but have heard good things about Sow Right Seeds. I looked at their site last night and have 8 things in the cart now

 

[Sally PB]

I'd never heard of them, but I think I'm going to order seeds from them this fall. They offer free shipping on orders over $25.

That was one reason I liked Baker Creek: free shipping on every order.

 

[tripletfeb]

Use code OFFGRID to save money. I believe it's 10%

 

[Nomadicus]

So do you bake and freeze them whole? Do they freeze well?

They freeze very well for us whole. They just need warming up with a little steak beside them hot off of the grill and a salad bowl and it's a meal.

 

[Nomadicus]

I did pull 2 plants last night. Bitterly disappointing to find that a mole has gone down the row eat the potatoes. You can't salvage what an animal has been eating off of like you can if it is just a bug of some kind. I've never lost anything to a mole before. I saw sign of one in another area 20' from them earlier but never saw any sign that they were near the potato ridge we built. Guess I will invest in a trap. Don't want to use poison in a food growing area.

 

[fuzzi]

I did pull 2 plants last night. Bitterly disappointing to find that a mole has gone down the row eat the potatoes. You can't salvage what an animal has been eating off of like you can if it is just a bug of some kind. I've never lost anything to a mole before. I saw sign of one in another area 20' from them earlier but never saw any sign that they were near the potato ridge we built. Guess I will invest in a trap. Don't want to use poison in a food growing area.

Mole or gopher? Moles generally just eat bugs.