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Post by tbird on Jul 15, 2015 8:18:15 GMT -5
I usual focus on what I've done wrong as a learning tool. But lets compare 'good' to learn from each other The fertility of the soil seems to be quite improved, I did comfrey and fall leaves at the end of the season last year - using all the comfrey I had, and the having been using comfrey as it is available this year, along with the usual kitchen scraping and coffee grounds. Did fill in volume with some fairly pricey soil - the happy frog potting soil, but that didn't go everywhere, and usually - only a few inches. Maybe 6-8" as a max in a few spots. Still have a lot of comfrey to use this year. I also use the occasional borage discard in the same manner. My recalcitrant peppers are over the hump with their abortions, and I'm wondering how many peppers the plant thinks it can hold? My eggplant that is only about 18" high has about 15 flowers on it, and the buds on the squash while not yet anything, are extremely numerous. The tomato bed is a riot of tomatoes. I seem to have finally spaced things out appropriately! Nothing so far has suddenly found itself in near complete shade as it's neighbors take over it's space! I'm sure that helps with sufficient nutrients as well as sunshine. And - as you all knew - mulching is extremely helpful! I used some small pine mulch this year, and hope that it degrade sufficiently over the season to not be a deterrent in the spring to planting - hoping that the laying down of the comfrey and fall leaves helps it along. The bind weed is just incredible and next year I am going to do brown paper AND the wood mulch. Just the wood mulch is not really doing much in regards to the bindweed. I also did better with my paths. I lined with brown paper several layers and then put a larger wood mulch onto it. Still some weeds peeking through but not too bad. So - soil mgmt, spacing, mulching, weed control are improvements this year. Next year - will do the same and add in earlier starts and early season protection to get things going sooner. What successes this year? What will you improve next year?
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Post by lilolpeapicker on Jul 15, 2015 9:37:21 GMT -5
I'll bet most people here can tell you what I need to improve on...1) I have to secure my veggie rack so it doesn't tip over next year! and 2) got to keep the rabbits out of my garden so I am working on things now to hopefully get a better start to the next season. In that effort I just got the wood for making a raised bed which will be protected with a fence around it maybe at the top of the bed or around it like DW has for her beans. And I got some chicken wire fencing which I need to attach to the chain link because the smaller rabbits can fit through the openings and bury some of it at the same time.
And some of the same of what you are planning is starting SOME things sooner....I usually plant too early but now I have to find a good balance. I am sure there will be other things that will pop up before the season is out and will need to do more re-assessing.
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Post by brownrexx on Jul 15, 2015 11:33:52 GMT -5
I am very happy with my artichoke project this year. It is my first time growing them and they were a challenge but I succeeded in harvesting some artichokes and they are really tasty! My next project is to get them through the winter.
I am doing that potato experiment with burying them in straw mulch instead of soil but I don't know the results yet. I hope the potatoes are not all green but I must say that I have noticed that I hardly have any CPB larvae. I had quite a few to start out but I got rid of them and now I look at the plants every day and I may only squish 5 - 10 of them.
Next year I will eliminate bush type dry beans and only grow the pole type. The bush ones take up too much room.
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Post by restless on Jul 15, 2015 13:15:26 GMT -5
This year, since I wanted more shishito peppers, I put some greens (chard, orach) in pots and peppers in the ground. I'm not sure why I thought that would be a good idea. It wasn't. My greens production is extremely low. Peppers do so well in pots, I should have put the peppers in the pots and kept the greens in the ground.
Also, my biggest garden pest is my neighbor's cats who are let to roam outdoors. They dig in my gardens and it is very hard for me to direct sow anything as a result. This year, I thought I would be super duper smart and sow my carrots between bean and cuke trellises so they would be protected on the left and right and I would put up chicken wire in the front and back. The problem is that carrots are slow to grow and cukes and beans are not. Carrots are shaded and are doing ok, but are developing much more slowly than they normally do. And the cats still figured out a way to dig in 1/4 of the carrot patch. I am now the proud owner of a Yard Enforcer motion and heat activated sprinkler.
Varieties:
New to me this year: Peron Tomatoes, Summer Savory, Cutting Celery, Fish Peppers, Amethyst Basil, Chamomile, Diamant Pickling Cukes, Yellow Fin Summer Squash, Red Gem Marigold, Fino Verde Basil, Benary's Giant Zinnia, Muir Lettuce, Tropicana Lettuce, Fortex Pole Beans, Alaska Mix Nasturtium, Early Wonder Beets, Golden Beets. I can't report on the success of all of these varieties as of yet, because I haven't harvested all of the veggies yet.
I can tell you that Summer Savory, Cutting Celery, Amethyst Basil, Fino Verde Basil are hits. I really like them. Would plant all of them again.
I also really like the Fish Peppers. It's a delicate, pretty plant. Good pepper production. The right heat level for use in my kitchen. Would plant again.
I also really like the Diamant Pickling Cuke. Advertised to be resistent to CMV, and it is so far. It's also parthenocarpic. Good, sweet taste when eaten raw. Thin skin. Good for pickles. Good production. Would plant again.
Tropicana lettuce had extremely good production for me, was supposed to be heat tolerant. Bolted at the same time as my Black Seeded Simpson lettuce. So, average rating there. Liked the flavor just fine, would have liked more heat tolerance.
Muir lettuce is outstanding! Extremely heat tolerant. It was very slow to get started, but it is still going strong and cranking out lettuce for me. Will plant again.
Fortex pole beans are great. A longer green bean. Remains tender even when the beans get fat. Great production. Vigorous vines. Would grow again.
Chamomile and Red Gem Marigold will not have a space in my gardens next year. The marigolds have woody stems and they all broke under high wind. Had slug problems with them early in the season. Chamomile I planted for the looks, not the herbal usage. Mine don't look as pretty as the photos online. Won't grow again. Also, the stems broke under high wind. Alaska Mix Nasturtium, I love the variegated leaves. Pretty, pretty. The flowers are nice when they are "fresh" but after the rain they get all melty and unattractive. Jury is still out. Very happy with Benary's Giant Zinnia, although the stems did break under high wind. I think if I used a better method of staking, they would have been ok, so I'll give them another try.
I harvested my first Peron Tomato a few days ago short of ripe, due to squirrel hassles, so I haven't tried one yet. I just sowed the Yellow Fin Squash where my beets used to be. So I can't report on that yet. Early Wonder Beet was fantastic. Just about the prettiest, roundest, beet you have ever seen. Great taste. Golden beets were great, too. Would plant both of those again. The greens on both of these plants were also delicious.
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Post by ecsoehng on Jul 15, 2015 13:32:45 GMT -5
Trellising the lemon squash turned out well. The vine grew up and then it was easy to spot the squash bug eggs under the leaves. The squash are small enough that they are OK without support. Potatoes grew well in the bag. I need to reposition the bags so they are easier to water, though this year it hasn't been as much of a problem as it would have been. I was a little bit better about keeping track of varieties this year. I will never plant that Costoluto tomato again. Downtown I need to remember that we can plant much earlier and that broccoli can be seeded in the ground April 1st. The garden there is like a jungle. Compost was great and the raised beds prevented trouble from all the rain. Also now that I know my way to the urban community garden I will have an easier time sharing plants with them.
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Post by lilolpeapicker on Jul 15, 2015 14:12:37 GMT -5
my biggest garden pest is my neighbor's cats who are let to roam outdoors. They dig in my gardens and it is very hard for me to direct sow anything as a result. I had that problem with squirrels last year so What I did I had so plastic netting that I cut into strips and placed it over the row of seeds and that kept them off the seeded rows. I tried that with rutabaga seeds and it worked very well.
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Post by restless on Jul 15, 2015 14:18:16 GMT -5
Thanks for the tip. I have been using chicken wire as fencing and as a ground cover over the area that has been seeded. It is somewhat effective. The problem is that I eventually have to move the chicken wire that is ground cover when the seedlings start to grow. That's the "danger time"...while the seedlings are still small and the soil is still loose and the cats are looking for a nice litter box. Once the seedlings get bigger and the soil has been hardened up a little from rain/watering they leave the garden alone. The Yard Enforcer has been great so far. I haven't seen any of the three problem cats in my yard since I set it up.
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Post by lilolpeapicker on Jul 15, 2015 14:28:51 GMT -5
Another tip would be to take garden wires and stand the wire up close to the plants while they are growing leaning in toward the plant creating like a elongated tent of them. I guess it would depend on how long your row goes... or how about like brownrexx does with the netting over the plants once they start to grow?
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Post by restless on Jul 15, 2015 14:43:17 GMT -5
My tiny garden doesn't have any rows. A variation on the wire idea may work. I'll have to keep it in mind for next season. I might be able to build a lean to of sorts out of chicken wire, supported by a tee pee like structure. I am hoping that the Yard Enforcer will continue to keep the cats out of my yard. I'm hoping they don't become used to the sound/getting wet.
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Post by kimmsrđź•Š on Jul 17, 2015 6:20:45 GMT -5
Keep in mind that for an organic grower the soil is the most important part of the garden/farm, so a soil test for soil pH and major nutrient levels is important. Nutrient imbalances can create as many problems as nutrient deficiencies and too much of some nutrients can interfere with a plants ability to use other nutrients. For example, high soil Nitrogen levels may help grow lush green plants but that excess N will keep the plants from using many other nutrients essential for plant growth. Fall is a good time to have a soil test done. In addition these simple soil test can help as well.
1) Soil test for organic material. From that soil sample put enough of the rest to make a 4 inch level in a clear 1 quart jar, with a tight fitting lid. Fill that jar with water and replace the lid, tightly. Shake the jar vigorously and then let it stand for 24 hours. Your soil will settle out according to soil particle size and weight. For example, a good loam will have about 1-3/4 inch (about 45%) of sand on the bottom. about 1 inch (about 25%) of silt next, about 1 inch (25%) of clay above that, and about 1/4 inch (about 5%) of organic matter on the top. 2) Drainage. Dig a hole 1 foot square and 1 foot deep and fill that with water. After that water drains away refill the hole with more water and time how long it takes that to drain away. Anything less than 2 hours and your soil drains’ too quickly and needs more organic matter to slow that drainage down. Anything over 6 hours and the soil drains too slowly and needs lots of organic matter to speed it up. 3) Tilth. Take a handful of your slightly damp soil and squeeze it tightly. When the pressure is released the soil should hold together in that clump, but when poked with a finger that clump should fall apart. 4) Smell. What does your soil smell like? A pleasant, rich earthy odor? Putrid, offensive, repugnant odor? The more organic matter in your soil the more active the soil bacteria will be and the nicer your soil will smell, to a point. Too much organic matter can be bad as well. 5) Life. How many earthworms per shovel full were there? 5 or more indicates a pretty healthy soil. Fewer than 5, according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, indicates a soil that is not healthy.
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Post by oliverman on Jul 17, 2015 23:04:42 GMT -5
Not much doing exceptionally well here in the mud. Mulching made the problem worse, but the weeds are under control.
Next year I will be plowing ridges fo planting melons so that I can get some melons even if it is wet. I have zero melons this year due to the saturated soils.
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Post by gulfcoastguy on Jul 17, 2015 23:11:04 GMT -5
I'll do my usual job of sorting out this years winners and losers while trying to make allowance for this years record rain fall. I would like to say that I'm going to cover the garden 2 foot deep in oak leaves over the winter but as soon as it cools enough to work I'll be incredibly busy at my real job.
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Post by octave on Jul 18, 2015 5:58:06 GMT -5
I must grow fewer plants. The overabundant rain turned a normally tidy garden into a jungle. I will soon need a machete to make my way in. Also: no more kale, both Lancinato and Russian. It grows well but nobody likes it. Cucumbers: one variety, Muncher, is more than enough. Oriental cukes are nice but can do without.
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Post by lilolpeapicker on Jul 18, 2015 5:58:33 GMT -5
I have zero melons this year due to the saturated soils. Last year I successfully planted ambrosia melon in a potato bag. I am doing again this year. So far no melon but I see flowers on the vine. I am using a potato bag for a banana squash plant this year and there is 1 squash and plenty more flowers coming.
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Post by datgirl on Jul 18, 2015 7:13:57 GMT -5
I didn't plant as many tomatoes this year and I'm good with that. They are not crowded so weeding is easier. I didn't bother with broccoli or brussel sprouts. I'm actually pretty happy with the garden this year. We'll see what the harvest brings.
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