Official (ongoing) Gardening Thread

[Divia]

Its horrid in Central New York. Too much rain and a whole lot of cold. burr!

Last year I didnt have one, and I missed it so this year I'm gonna give it a go again. Tomatoes, Indian corn, beans, watermellons and I'm gonna give pumpkins a go again. Sometimes theyw ork sometimes they dont. Oh and cucumbers.

[Dave-Man]

Weather in KC is still rotten for gardening. Got nothing planted. Built a couple of raised beds but just when I think the cold weather and snow chances are over, more comes. And if it is not snow it seems it is rain. Not fun to think of planting in the rain.

[MrRoboto]

I'd planted Miniature Watermelons a little while back. The pic below is when one of them started to grow, i ended up getting three real nice sized (not as big as full size of course) miniature watermelons. Two didn't quite make it. Had strawberries as well but birds ended up eating them instead! Will try again when season is right. Looking for some new veggies to plant now!

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[MOTU_Maniac]

Here is another pic of my Asparagus. This is the 2nd picking.

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Don't let that stop you. I have successfully grown asparagus in five gallon buckets the past couple of years. You do need a few buckets to get a good crop, but it does work.

Very good idea Dave-Man

Thanks! They just grow so prolific with so little space, they help keep satiated and engaged in the garden as I wait the good 2-3 months before tomatoes appear.

I definitely need to start growing more leafy veggies.

That would rock, but for now I will support my local farmers market. Thanks. *hug*

And thank you for supporting local farmers markets. When I was growing up on our vegetable farm we sold at 2 different farmers markets and had a U-pick.

Hopefully we both have gardens brimming for those photos then.

I hope so. I love seeing what other people are growing

Good to know, perhaps next move. (I hope the next move will be far away enough that I can leave my current pots behind.
Come'on CA, no wammies, warm weather and longer growing season, no wammies!

Why California?

Its horrid in Central New York. Too much rain and a whole lot of cold. burr!


Last year I didnt have one, and I missed it so this year I'm gonna give it a go again. Tomatoes, Indian corn, beans, watermellons and I'm gonna give pumpkins a go again. Sometimes they work sometimes they dont. Oh and cucumbers.

Glad you are back. I told myself last year that I wasn't going to grow a garden this year, but here I am doing it all over again. I wish you much success. Keep us updated of the progress and we would love to see pictures.

Weather in KC is still rotten for gardening. Got nothing planted. Built a couple of raised beds but just when I think the cold weather and snow chances are over, more comes. And if it is not snow it seems it is rain. Not fun to think of planting in the rain.

I was luckily able to plant a week or so ago, but I was still 3 weeks behind normal due to weather. Thankfully, the weather has warmed up here. I hope KC weather gets straightened out for you so you can get some planting in. *Fingers Crossed*

I'd planted Miniature Watermelons a little while back. The pic below is when one of them started to grow, i ended up getting three real nice sized (not as big as full size of course) miniature watermelons. Two didn't quite make it. Had strawberries as well but birds ended up eating them instead! Will try again when season is right. Looking for some new veggies to plant now!


IMG_2136.jpg

Very nice. Thanks for the picture and welcome to the gardening thread. Last year we had about 20 watermelons that God grew. lol. We just threw our old watermelon rinds and seeds over the hill and then the next thing we knew we had tons of watermelons.

[Dave-Man]

Hopefully this year I will be able to grow some leaf lettuce without some rotten little critters eating it all before I get any. Last year I finally managed to get rid of our Groundhog, Mr. Cheney. I call him that because he has been moved to an undisclosed location. But by then the drought was in full swing and my lettuce was one of the first casualties.

[MOTU_Maniac]

Hopefully this year I will be able to grow some leaf lettuce without some rotten little critters eating it all before I get any. Last year I finally managed to get rid of our Groundhog, Mr. Cheney. I call him that because he has been moved to an undisclosed location. But by then the drought was in full swing and my lettuce was one of the first casualties.

I hear you about the leaf lettuce. Any time I grow any leafy vegetables insects eat it up . I hate to use to much pesticide, so its a no win situation. Either insects eat it up or you don't remain eco-friendly.

I had a problem with 3 groundhogs a few years ago, but they just up and left. THANK goodness as they were reaking havoc on my yard and garden. Now I am having lots of troubles with moles.

[Judith]

Gorgeous crop there MOTU_Maniac!

As for CA, I just want something warmer than here... Ocean is a plus.

[MOTU_Maniac]

I worked on my landscaping yesterday, so thought I would share some photos of my flower garden.

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Gorgeous crop there MOTU_Maniac!


As for CA, I just want something warmer than here... Ocean is a plus.

Thank you


And I totally understand about the warmer weather in CA. I just thought maybe you wanted to become an actress or a pro surfer. Just kidding.

[Judith]

Over the top!
How long did it take you?

[MOTU_Maniac]

Over the top!
How long did it take you?

Thank you.

That is my existing landscaping that I did a few years ago, but I worked on it for about 2 hours yesterday. I trimmed the rose tree, cleaned up dead leaves, added new black mulch, and planted an azalea bush.

In the back of my house (not pictured), I built a large rock wall last year. So, today I planted 8 Phlox plants (4 pink and 4 purple) and staggered them every other rock. I also bought a 5-foot Weeping Cherry tree that I planted in a small landscaped area in the back made up of rocks I have found on the hillside. Then I added mulch around my trees. In total I used 16 50-pound bags of mulch total...and I could use about 4 more bags.

Whew I am tired. lol.

[Heeeere's Olesker!]

This is the year that Kim and I are going all out. When I learned potato growers spray a chemical on potato crops to inhibit potatoes from sprouting eyes while bags lay in the grocery stores it was enough for me. Heaven knows what other kind of garbage is on the food I'm putting into my family's bodies. We like the idea of being able to control what goes into our foods and raising a moderate amount of our own foodstuffs seems to be the best way to do it. Plus I think it's going to be a fun, on-going family project and our children are really excited about it.

Now we're not going overboard. It's just too much for us to jump into it and go completely organic with all that entails. But what we do want to do is grow our basics and grow them in as healthy a manner as possible -- potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, asparagus, onions and three or four other crops -- crop suggestions are welcome. We've plenty of room to raise what we need for our family. But here's some advice a novice in this area would like to ask for:

1. Do we need different kinds of soils or fertilizers for the different crops? Are there fertilizers that aren't healthy? Do we have to worry about insect and, if so, what's the healthiest thing to do about them? (We know we need bags for the seed potatoes.)

2. We don't want to fall in the trap of doing one planting, then harvesting and finding out we only have enough for a month's worth of food. Do we make three or four plantings of each crop and how do we know how long to stagger them between plantings to do a harvest every month?

3. We've got a lot of squirrels and chipmunks. Last year they consumed our entire crop of strawberries. Is chicken wire around and over the crops enough to protect them?

4. What about irrigation? We've got a water line near where our plantings will be. Is a dripper enough, do we keep it going night and day or only once or twice a week? Is it the same amount of water for all the different crops? Is it better for us to get out there and just hose the areas two or three times a week?

5. Finally, if this works out well then we'll want to do it all year 'round. We like in northern Indiana, so it gets cold here in winter. I'm willing to put in a full greenhouse if that's what needs to be done. Any thoughts on that -- i.e., will we still be able to raise those basic crops all year 'round?

Sorry if this sounds basic, but it's our first time doing this and I know there are a number of orgers that are familiar with this so we'd really appreciate any and all input.

[Patreek]

I'd like to have some stuff on my porch this year. I've also be starting a succulant garden indoors. Having trouble with spider mites though

[MrRoboto]

Very nice. Thanks for the picture and welcome to the gardening thread. Last year we had about 20 watermelons that God grew. lol. We just threw our old watermelon rinds and seeds over the hill and then the next thing we knew we had tons of watermelons.

Thanks! Always enjoyed it as a leisurely past-time. Great to help clear the mind IMO.

20! Gee, i'd love to be able to have had that many. I just don't have the space for that at the moment. Also, kudos on the landscaping ~ looks great!

[MOTU_Maniac]

1. Do we need different kinds of soils or fertilizers for the different crops? Are there fertilizers that aren't healthy? Do we have to worry about insect and, if so, what's the healthiest thing to do about them? (We know we need bags for the seed potatoes.)

If you were going to try to have a 1,000+acre farm and want to maximize your produce output to sell to the general public then you would need to have the soils tested and enhanced in order to meet those objectives. BUT for a home garden it isn't as important since most crops grow well in any type of soil. At the end of each year you can add manure, straw, leaves, etc and till it into the ground and each year your graden area will become more fertile. As far as fertilizer, I would use Miracle Grow plant food each week after you plant. As far as insects, if you don't want to use pesticide then you can find an organic "pesticide" at most garden centers to help control insects.

Also, why do you need bags for seed potatoes?

2. We don't want to fall in the trap of doing one planting, then harvesting and finding out we only have enough for a month's worth of food. Do we make three or four plantings of each crop and how do we know how long to stagger them between plantings to do a harvest every month?

You can stagger many vegetables through the whole season. I would plant most things around 3-4 weeks apart. Potatoes and corn are a good example of vegetables to stagger. Tomatoes will produce fruit all year long until the first hard freeze )granted you cover them up each time we get a frost).

Asparagus has a long arduous process of growing, but can be very fulfilling. You need to make sure you plant it correctly and then for the next 4-5 years make sure you pick it correctly. First 2 years you usually don't pick asparagus to give its roots time to grow, but if you purchase 1-year old roots to plant then you have to wait only 1 more year after planting. Then in year 3 you can pick for about 3-4 weeks then stop picking. In year 4 you can pick for 4-6 weeks. Then in year 5, you can pick all season long which is about 6-8 weeks.

3. We've got a lot of squirrels and chipmunks. Last year they consumed our entire crop of strawberries. Is chicken wire around and over the crops enough to protect them?

I grew up on a very large fruit and vegetable farm and we had about 6 acres of strawberries that we sold as U-Pick and to Kroger stores. We never had any problem with animals. However, once I got my own house and tried to have a small strawberry patch the squirrels and rabbits came out of the woodwork. To answer you question, yes chicken wire will work (somewhat) but there can't be any openings between the ground and the wire. Also, they will still use their little paws to reach through the wire and grab the ripened fruit. Birds also seem to like strawberries and they will peck through the wire openings. You might want to try something like "Deer Off" or "Critter Ridder" to repel the animals, but make sure you read the bottle to confirm it is safe on vegetable gardens. Some versions are and some versions are not. There are also homemade remedies that you can google.

4. What about irrigation? We've got a water line near where our plantings will be. Is a dripper enough, do we keep it going night and day or only once or twice a week? Is it the same amount of water for all the different crops? Is it better for us to get out there and just hose the areas two or three times a week?

You can use a drip hose which can be very beneficial during dry months, but once it gets hot it is best to water at night because you will lose most of your water to evaporation if you water during the morning. Also if you water during the heat of the day then plants might get sun scald (sun burn).

Also, certain plants don't like to get too much water...like tomatoes. If you water tomatoes too much then the fruit will get black rot. I always mulch around my tomato plants with wet newspapers and then put straw on top of that. I do water them early on, but once they start to produce fruit you don't want to water to much.

I also water with miracle grow about once per week.

5. Finally, if this works out well then we'll want to do it all year 'round. We like in northern Indiana, so it gets cold here in winter. I'm willing to put in a full greenhouse if that's what needs to be done. Any thoughts on that -- i.e., will we still be able to raise those basic crops all year 'round?

Greenhouses are normally used to extend the growing season. They allow you to start your plants earlier and harvest even later into the year. If you are wanting to grow year round through winter then your greenhouse will need to be equipped with a natural gas or propane heater and possibly with supplemental lighting and some type of bubble insulation.

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I'd like to have some stuff on my porch this year. I've also be starting a succulant garden indoors. Having trouble with spider mites though

Good for you for having a garden. So, what have you planted already?

As far as pest insects, you can find natural pesticides at most stores.

Thanks! Always enjoyed it as a leisurely past-time. Great to help clear the mind IMO.

20! Gee, i'd love to be able to have had that many. I just don't have the space for that at the moment. Also, kudos on the landscaping ~ looks great!

I agree, gardening is a great outlet to think and ease the mind.

Also, thanks for the kind words

[Heeeere's Olesker!]

Wow! Thanks so very much for your detailed and invaluable information. You obviously know your stuff.

We'll apply your advice to our gardening efforts and will post pics later in the season. I have to confess, however, after your dissertation on asparagus I think I'll continue to purchase it at our farmers' market. There's a limit to what I can do.

If you were going to try to have a 1,000+acre farm and want to maximize your produce output to sell to the general public then you would need to have the soils tested and enhanced in order to meet those objectives. BUT for a home garden it isn't as important since most crops grow well in any type of soil. At the end of each year you can add manure, straw, leaves, etc and till it into the ground and each year your graden area will become more fertile. As far as fertilizer, I would use Miracle Grow plant food each week after you plant. As far as insects, if you don't want to use pesticide then you can find an organic "pesticide" at most garden centers to help control insects.

Also, why do you need bags for seed potatoes?

You can stagger many vegetables through the whole season. I would plant most things around 3-4 weeks apart. Potatoes and corn are a good example of vegetables to stagger. Tomatoes will produce fruit all year long until the first hard freeze )granted you cover them up each time we get a frost).

Asparagus has a long arduous process of growing, but can be very fulfilling. You need to make sure you plant it correctly and then for the next 4-5 years make sure you pick it correctly. First 2 years you usually don't pick asparagus to give its roots time to grow, but if you purchase 1-year old roots to plant then you have to wait only 1 more year after planting. Then in year 3 you can pick for about 3-4 weeks then stop picking. In year 4 you can pick for 4-6 weeks. Then in year 5, you can pick all season long which is about 6-8 weeks.



I grew up on a very large fruit and vegetable farm and we had about 6 acres of strawberries that we sold as U-Pick and to Kroger stores. We never had any problem with animals. However, once I got my own house and tried to have a small strawberry patch the squirrels and rabbits came out of the woodwork. To answer you question, yes chicken wire will work (somewhat) but there can't be any openings between the ground and the wire. Also, they will still use their little paws to reach through the wire and grab the ripened fruit. Birds also seem to like strawberries and they will peck through the wire openings. You might want to try something like "Deer Off" or "Critter Ridder" to repel the animals, but make sure you read the bottle to confirm it is safe on vegetable gardens. Some versions are and some versions are not. There are also homemade remedies that you can google.


You can use a drip hose which can be very beneficial during dry months, but once it gets hot it is best to water at night because you will lose most of your water to evaporation if you water during the morning. Also if you water during the heat of the day then plants might get sun scald (sun burn).

Also, certain plants don't like to get too much water...like tomatoes. If you water tomatoes too much then the fruit will get black rot. I always mulch around my tomato plants with wet newspapers and then put straw on top of that. I do water them early on, but once they start to produce fruit you don't want to water to much.

I also water with miracle grow about once per week.



Greenhouses are normally used to extend the growing season. They allow you to start your plants earlier and harvest even later into the year. If you are wanting to grow year round through winter then your greenhouse will need to be equipped with a natural gas or propane heater and possibly with supplemental lighting and some type of bubble insulation.

- - - Updated - - -


Good for you for having a garden. So, what have you planted already?

As far as pest insects, you can find natural pesticides at most stores.


I agree, gardening is a great outlet to think and ease the mind.

Also, thanks for the kind words

[MOTU_Maniac]

Planted my tomatoes, peppers, green beans, cucumbers, squash, and zucchini today. For my peppers and tomatoes, I use an old family recipe of mulching (to keep weeds out, moisture in, and disease prevention). It is a tradition that I have been using for almost 30 years myself. Directions and photos below.


(1) Plant tomatoes (and peppers)
Attachment 84477

(2) Place newspapers into water mixed with Miracle-Gro. Allow to soak about 10 minutes.
Attachment 84478

(3) Tear newspapers apart down the seam...keeping them 2-3 ply thick.


(4) Place the newspapers down flat between plants.
Attachment 84479

(5) Place straw on top of the wet newspapers.
Attachment 84480

(6) You are done. You will no longer have problems with weeds and this also helps to keep the roots moist. But most importantly it helps prevent disease on tomatoes caused my mud that splatters onto the leaves. With newspaper and straw down mud is unable to splash up
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Wow! Thanks so very much for your detailed and invaluable information. You obviously know your stuff.


We'll apply your advice to our gardening efforts and will post pics later in the season. I have to confess, however, after your dissertation on asparagus I think I'll continue to purchase it at our farmers' market. There's a limit to what I can do.

You're welcome. Gardening is one of the few things that I am knowledgeable about. I learned a great deal due to being raised on a very large vegetable and fruit farm


Also, I hope I didn't scare you away from growing Asparagus. It isn't difficult to grow. It just has an initial 4-year picking schedule that takes time and patience. I would definitely add it to your garden.

[Dave-Man]

Un-be-liev-able! It turned cold cold cold here and actually snowed about two inches yesterday. I am beginning to wonder if I am ever going to get my garden in.

[MOTU_Maniac]

Un-be-liev-able! It turned cold cold cold here and actually snowed about two inches yesterday. I am beginning to wonder if I am ever going to get my garden in.

That is terrible. Weather here and in many parts of the country has been wacky this spring so far, BUT not so wacky that we have snow in May!!

[Judith]

Planted my tomatoes, peppers, green beans, cucumbers, squash, and zucchini today. For my peppers and tomatoes, I use an old family recipe of mulching (to keep weeds out, moisture in, and disease prevention). It is a tradition that I have been using for almost 30 years myself. Directions and photos below...

Awesome! I plan to plant some hosta tomorrow and would like to keep it as low maintenance as possible. Big kudos!

Un-be-liev-able! It turned cold cold cold here and actually snowed about two inches yesterday. I am beginning to wonder if I am ever going to get my garden in.

I'm with you. It was gorgeous today and a lot of people were buying tomatoes and peppers but I decided against it. Not worth the gamble with this season...

[MOTU_Maniac]

Awesome! I plan to plant some hosta tomorrow and would like to keep it as low maintenance as possible. Big kudos!

Thanks If you were closer, I could have given you tons of Hostas (as I need to split mine).

[Judith]

You have to split it? I didn't know that. How long before you have to split it. I give mines a LOT of room and it's really shady so they don't grow too big.
How do you know when to split it?

[MOTU_Maniac]

You have to split it? I didn't know that. How long before you have to split it. I give mines a LOT of room and it's really shady so they don't grow too big.
How do you know when to split it?

Yes, Hostas need to be split every so often. Their is not an exact science as to when to split, but the best way to know is when they have outgrown their space and it becomes crowded and/ or the center of the clump starts to die out. Once they outgrow their space you will want to split them and transplant part of the clump to another area. My Hostas are on year 6 now and I will be splitting them this fall. I would say they need to be split every 4-5 years or so on average.

[Judith]

Interesting, I have a feeling I will be long gone before I will have to split it.

[Mer-Man's Minion]

Hey y'all, so I have these two big containers on my patio, about 14" deep and 14" diameter. I've tried a couple of things in 'em before but haven't had much luck; they seem to love to retain water (right now just have a couple of hens 'n chicks in 'em to just have something in them).

Anyway, I was wondering about putting something in them that could get between maybe 3 and 6 feet tall, for a little privacy. I've seen someone nearby has a couple of evergreens in pots about this size, and another seedling or two, but I don't know what sorts of "tall plants" you can put in such pots whose roots won't get too big for the pots.

So...are there any good tall plants that can reach up to a few/several feet but don't need a lot of root room?

[MOTU_Maniac]

I have my annual gardening thread that you can visit by going here: http://www.he-man.org/forums/boards/...rdening-Thread, but to answer your question, there are several different privacy plants than can be potted with Arborvitaes probably being the most common privacy potted plant. Below I have listed several other options that can be found at your local nursery.

~Arborvitaes
~Bay Trees (Laurus Nobilis)
~Loropetalum
~Cypress
~Viburnums
~Bamboo
~Ficus

If you need any other help or have any other questions just let me know