2012 Gardening Thread (Read 1516 times)


Prince of Fatness

    Dug up a few spuds to have with dinner this evening,  Yummy.  Along with that, the local produce place had Jersey corn.  Not theirs yet but we are getting close.

     

    Put in some squash and beans that I started from seed today.  With the warm weather they should take off.

    Not at it at all. 

      Dug up a few spuds to have with dinner this evening,  Yummy.  Along with that, the local produce place had Jersey corn.  Not theirs yet but we are getting close.

       

      Put in some squash and beans that I started from seed today.  With the warm weather they should take off.

       

      We're in Playa del Carmen right now (this place is awesome, by the way, but too damn hot to run).  Returning home tomorrow afternoon.  I'm a little concerned about the garden given the weather that I read about the other night.  Hope a tree didn't fall on my garden or have it otherwise torn up by thunderstorms.  And also, hope the people watching the dog watered like we asked.  (yes, I'm sure the dog is OK).

      Jeff

        OK.  Had to laugh.

         

        Tried digging up just a few of my potatoes.

         

        The Yukon Gold (supposedly 60-some days).

         

        Well, I got tiny, 3/4 - 1 inch diameter potatoes.

         

        They tasted really good, but, they're, eh, kinda small.

         

        I'm not complaining, I mean, this is the first time I ever tried potatoes, so...maybe not long enough?  Too close?  Water/fertilizer issues.  Don't know.  There's plenty more summer for the potatoes.  Also, not one of my potatoe plants have flowered.  What's with that?

         

        As for the rest of the garden, we've gotten two stellar cukes so far, expecting lots more of them.  Lots of green tomatoes that will need a few weeks more time.  The brocolli...I've had it.  This is the third time I've tried it, and it went to seed before anything actually grew of substance.  I give up.

         

        Lettuce, while doing well, needs more time.  And I will plant more (it's a heat resistant variety) next week where the *#@(*& brocolli was.

         

        Basil is starting to go to seed, I need to trim that before it goes too far.

         

        Peppers, once again, like last year, not doing so well.

         

        In general, I think my garden is too compact.  Next year I'm expanding, more area, and a few more plants...no more overcrowding.

        Jeff

        stadjak


        Interval Junkie --Nobby

          Anybody else having Tomato fungus issues this year?  Seems VA is suffering a plague.

          2021 Goals: 50mpw 'cause there's nothing else to do


          Feeling the growl again

             

            I'm not complaining, I mean, this is the first time I ever tried potatoes, so...maybe not long enough?  Too close?  Water/fertilizer issues.  Don't know.  There's plenty more summer for the potatoes.  Also, not one of my potatoe plants have flowered.  What's with that?

             

             

            Did the plants die back?  I never dig mine until the plants brown up and shrivel up to the ground.  If it's been too dry, you'll just get small potatoes like that too.  Since you say they have not flowered, my guess is that you are trying way too early.  Let them go until they die, then dig them up.  I've never known potatoes to need fertilizer, unless you have terrible terrible soil.

             

            I should take a pic of my main garden, it is the cleanest it has ever been.  Given my big weed problems I decided that this year I will strive to eliminate ALL of them before they can seed.  So far, so good.  Except this led me to use generous Preen, and apparently corn and squash are overly sensitive to this.  Oops.  So my earlier sweet corn got a little twisted by it at the base of the stem.  Then we got that huge storm that started here then took out the east coast, and the wind from that blew 1/3 of it over.  But it's kind of coming back okay now, whew.

             

            Potatoes are going lights out.  Peas, it's just gotten too hot, I'll be surprised if I get much.  In my zest to eliminate weeds by planting late so I could Roundup the first generation of weeds (which worked spectacularly), those just got in too late.

             

            The grape vines seem to have come through the late frost pretty well, except for 3-4 that died to the root.  I have a HUGE crop of Cayuga White coming on.  I am disappointed with the Marachel Foch, but the Oberlin Noir I am excited about. 

             

            The major problem here is pretty much the worst drought on record, coming off 2 consecutive drought years.  I have been watering EVERYTHING.  25 young pine trees (4 days to do all those on dropper hoses), the grape vines (8 days to do the same) the gardens (another 2-3 days on sprinklers).  So I pretty much have been watering something 24/7 for the last 3 weeks....

            "If you want to be a bad a$s, then do what a bad a$s does.  There's your pep talk for today.  Go Run." -- Slo_Hand

             

            I am spaniel - Crusher of Treadmills

             

              My garden's been doing pretty great--started from seed, which is a first for me.  Sweet corn growing great in particular.

               

              Big storm we just had here in Ohio?  A couple trees smacked the garden.  Tore down most of the fence around it, crushed a TON of my plants. 

               

              *grumble*

              "When a person trains once, nothing happens. When a person forces himself to do a thing a hundred or a thousand times, then he certainly has developed in more ways than physical. Is it raining? That doesn't matter. Am I tired? That doesn't matter, either. Then willpower will be no problem." 
              Emil Zatopek


              Best Present Ever

                Anybody else having Tomato fungus issues this year?  Seems VA is suffering a plague.

                 

                Ooo, stay away from my house.  So far so good on our tomatoes.  Think i should spray them to prevent?? 

                stadjak


                Interval Junkie --Nobby

                  Ooo, stay away from my house.  So far so good on our tomatoes.  Think i should spray them to prevent?? 

                   

                  if you find a foot of soil missing from your beds this fall don't be surprised; I plan to have great tomatoes next year. Wink

                  2021 Goals: 50mpw 'cause there's nothing else to do


                  Best Present Ever

                    Panorama Paydirt is what we have in our raised beds -- no need to steal mine, you can buy your own!

                      Did the plants die back?  I never dig mine until the plants brown up and shrivel up to the ground.  If it's been too dry, you'll just get small potatoes like that too.  Since you say they have not flowered, my guess is that you are trying way too early.  Let them go until they die, then dig them up.  I've never known potatoes to need fertilizer, unless you have terrible terrible soil.

                       

                       

                       

                      The plants have NOT died back.  Water (until maybe this week) is not an issue.  The plants have been in the ground for almost two months, and are over a foot high...no flowers.  I'll just wait another few months. 

                      Jeff


                      Feeling the growl again

                        The plants have NOT died back.  Water (until maybe this week) is not an issue.  The plants have been in the ground for almost two months, and are over a foot high...no flowers.  I'll just wait another few months. 

                         

                        Yup, you're just too soon.  Wink

                        "If you want to be a bad a$s, then do what a bad a$s does.  There's your pep talk for today.  Go Run." -- Slo_Hand

                         

                        I am spaniel - Crusher of Treadmills

                         

                          Yup, you're just too soon.  Wink

                           

                          So, I'm guessing that "65 days" thing is just a load of crap.

                           

                          I can wait....

                          Jeff


                          Feeling the growl again

                            So, I'm guessing that "65 days" thing is just a load of crap.

                             

                            I can wait....

                             

                            Those are "growth days", calibrated to a certain heat level etc, so typically yes, the number on the package is optimistic.  They are not calendar days unless each and every calendar day is right on the heat average.

                            "If you want to be a bad a$s, then do what a bad a$s does.  There's your pep talk for today.  Go Run." -- Slo_Hand

                             

                            I am spaniel - Crusher of Treadmills

                             


                            Prince of Fatness

                              So, I'm guessing that "65 days" thing is just a load of crap.

                               

                              I can wait....

                               

                              That's a pretty optimistic number even for an early variety.  I usually plant around the first week of April and really don't dig up in earnest until early July.  My Yukon Golds are dying back but my late varieties are still going strong.

                               

                              The fact that you planted them late could also be a factor in your yields.  They really don't do well in hot temperatures. 

                              Not at it at all. 

                                That's a pretty optimistic number even for an early variety.  I usually plant around the first week of April and really don't dig up in earnest until early July.  My Yukon Golds are dying back but my late varieties are still going strong.

                                 

                                The fact that you planted them late could also be a factor in your yields.  They really don't do well in hot temperatures. 

                                 

                                Yep.  I was late.  Mostly because I just never got around to planting them.  Which is especially dumb, since I could have put them in really early this year.

                                 

                                In a way, I was lucky I was lazy, because it was so warm, I almost planted OTHER stuff, and it turns out we had a frost danger last week of April, which almost never happens.  Especially odd when you also figure it was so warm so early.

                                 

                                I ended up planting May 13, mid-May which is pretty much when I always plant.

                                Jeff