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Originally Posted By jb1001: Canned my first 6 pints of jalapenos this season. Mid-Late July is very early for this many peppers, in my experience. Anyone else in the colder states already having success with pepper yields? I put up 30 pints early on then some sort of wilt disease started killing my plants and I pulled them all up. 
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“Once, men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.”
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So here is the progress on my first garden in a few years. I quit gardening when I had to take care of my mom. For a few years since she died (2018) I haven't been able to manage it. This year I knew it was now or never, and my soul needed it. It was late. (This garden went in WAY too late). But here it is. I'm starting from scratch in a new spot on the property, with new methods. I've got materials to fence around it asap. It's overcrowded cuz I started with just the two beds and one arch, and couldn't resist. I probably should pull that squash out for air flow.  But anyhow...y'all encouraged me, so here it is.   |
Nobody ever wakes me at 2 in the morning telling me that my grass is out on the highway.~~Radiopat
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
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Here are a few random photos of my garden and things that I have harvested Attached File Attached File Attached File Attached File |
“Once, men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.”
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A few more Attached File Attached File Attached File Attached File Attached File |
“Once, men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.”
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Originally Posted By TN-MadDog: A few more https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4425_JPG-3279613.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4356_JPG-3279614.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_E4175_JPG-3279615.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4442_JPG-3279618.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4330_JPG-3279619.JPG What is that with the beautiful bloom, and will you talk about your technique for yellow squash? I mean it looks like you have pruned it, which means maybe you are doing that to manage SVB. I am interested. ETA: This year is the first time I have seen gardeners pruning and "training" yellow squash. I quit trying with yellow squash because of SVB, in probably 2010. I'm trying again with only two plants, scouring it for eggs, but I know I will fail with it. Very interested in what you are doing, and how/why you have chosen this method. |
Nobody ever wakes me at 2 in the morning telling me that my grass is out on the highway.~~Radiopat
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
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Originally Posted By Kitties-with-Sigs: What is that with the beautiful bloom, and will you talk about your technique for yellow squash? I mean it looks like you have pruned it, which means maybe you are doing that to manage SVB. I am interested. The bloom is okra. The squash is trained, more like forced, to grow on the trellis. It was sort of a pain to get started but once it was going good and I pruned off the lower branches it has worked good. I got the idea from a youtube video. I used string to keep pulling new growth upwards. It is supposed to help prevent disease and insect infestations. Also makes it much easier to find the squash. I did the same for zucchini but didn't do as good of a job staying after it. |
“Once, men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.”
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Originally Posted By kallnojoy: Great to hear you're getting your hands back in your own dirt for a change! Anybody trying anything new/unique this year? I've got some Bolivian Cucumbers started - will see how they do (and if we actually enjoy them).  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vq-uzC3QW44@kallnojoy How has this done for you? I admit that when I saw the video, I worried that they might be invasive (even in colder climates) because they are so aggressive. Sounds like we would need to dedicate an entire area (and maybe a significant vertical structure) to these. Aside from the interesting new thing, are you getting enough produce from the large area these appear to take up, to make it worth it? |
Nobody ever wakes me at 2 in the morning telling me that my grass is out on the highway.~~Radiopat
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
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Originally Posted By TN-MadDog: The bloom is okra. The squash is trained, more like forced, to grow on the trellis. It was sort of a pain to get started but once it was going good and I pruned off the lower branches it has worked good. I got the idea from a youtube video. I used string to keep pulling new growth upwards. It is supposed to help prevent disease and insect infestations. Also makes it much easier to find the squash. I did the same for zucchini but didn't do as good of a job staying after it. Really interesting. If you know which video, I would love a link. I've been cutting off the lower leaves on my one squash vine, as I scour it looking for SVB eggs. I have seen a few videos of folks trimming the lower leaves and wrapping with foil and such (Old Alabama Gardener...RIP ) but I have not seen them grown on a trellis like this.
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Nobody ever wakes me at 2 in the morning telling me that my grass is out on the highway.~~Radiopat
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
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I don't understand you guys' bountiful harvests, this year! Despite adding horse manure and chicken shit from a year ago, our garden ain't doin' shit! No cucumbers and no melons, and, strangely, our cabbage and cauliflower was just harvested! Beans are weak, too, as are the peppers. WTF?!? |
"A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity" --- Sigmond Freud, General Introduction to Psychoanalysis
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Originally Posted By Kitties-with-Sigs: Really interesting. If you know which video, I would love a link. I've been cutting off the lower leaves on my one squash vine, as I scour it looking for SVB eggs. I have seen a few videos of folks trimming the lower leaves and wrapping with foil and such (Old Alabama Gardener...RIP ) but I have not seen them grown on a trellis like this.Originally Posted By Kitties-with-Sigs: Originally Posted By TN-MadDog: The bloom is okra. The squash is trained, more like forced, to grow on the trellis. It was sort of a pain to get started but once it was going good and I pruned off the lower branches it has worked good. I got the idea from a youtube video. I used string to keep pulling new growth upwards. It is supposed to help prevent disease and insect infestations. Also makes it much easier to find the squash. I did the same for zucchini but didn't do as good of a job staying after it. Really interesting. If you know which video, I would love a link. I've been cutting off the lower leaves on my one squash vine, as I scour it looking for SVB eggs. I have seen a few videos of folks trimming the lower leaves and wrapping with foil and such (Old Alabama Gardener...RIP ) but I have not seen them grown on a trellis like this.I’ll try to find it again. The one I’m thinking of, the person used a wooden tomato stake to tie it to. |
“Once, men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.”
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Originally Posted By Kitties-with-Sigs: Really interesting. If you know which video, I would love a link. I've been cutting off the lower leaves on my one squash vine, as I scour it looking for SVB eggs. I have seen a few videos of folks trimming the lower leaves and wrapping with foil and such (Old Alabama Gardener...RIP ) but I have not seen them grown on a trellis like this.Originally Posted By Kitties-with-Sigs: Originally Posted By TN-MadDog: The bloom is okra. The squash is trained, more like forced, to grow on the trellis. It was sort of a pain to get started but once it was going good and I pruned off the lower branches it has worked good. I got the idea from a youtube video. I used string to keep pulling new growth upwards. It is supposed to help prevent disease and insect infestations. Also makes it much easier to find the squash. I did the same for zucchini but didn't do as good of a job staying after it. Really interesting. If you know which video, I would love a link. I've been cutting off the lower leaves on my one squash vine, as I scour it looking for SVB eggs. I have seen a few videos of folks trimming the lower leaves and wrapping with foil and such (Old Alabama Gardener...RIP ) but I have not seen them grown on a trellis like this.I can’t find the particular video that I was thinking of but if you search growing squash vertically on YouTube there are a bunch of videos. This one was pretty good  How I Grow Squash Vertically To Combat Squash Borers! |
“Once, men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.”
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Originally Posted By TribunusSanGeorgii: Finished making two rain barrels today. I have three now. These ones feed in from the "bottom" of the barrel and use pvc fittings into the threaded bungs for the output. In addition to catching rain off the roof I also use a sump pump to empty out the kiddie pool and save it for garden water. Going to try and pump laundry water up too. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/408270/1000006832_jpg-3278539.JPG I'm super excited that my plan is working and my pump is getting laundry water into the other barrel setup I finished yesterday. I was a little afraid it wouldn't be able to handle the 10-12' elevation change. |
I am not an AFT agent.
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Originally Posted By Former11BRAVO: I don't understand you guys' bountiful harvests, this year! Despite adding horse manure and chicken shit from a year ago, our garden ain't doin' shit! No cucumbers and no melons, and, strangely, our cabbage and cauliflower was just harvested! Beans are weak, too, as are the peppers. WTF?!? Been our worst production season yet this. Used a bunch of leftover seeds from last year though, probably most of our problem. |
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Originally Posted By TN-MadDog: I can’t find the particular video that I was thinking of but if you search growing squash vertically on YouTube there are a bunch of videos. This one was pretty good https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4c2m3oiSTmoThanks! That's a great video! |
Nobody ever wakes me at 2 in the morning telling me that my grass is out on the highway.~~Radiopat
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
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Originally Posted By Former11BRAVO: I don't understand you guys' bountiful harvests, this year! Despite adding horse manure and chicken shit from a year ago, our garden ain't doin' shit! No cucumbers and no melons, and, strangely, our cabbage and cauliflower was just harvested! Beans are weak, too, as are the peppers. WTF?!? Try sending in some soil samples to your local testing place. I think my bounty this year is due to newer raised beds. Topsoil, mushroom compost, fertilizer. I also get apple bounties every other year, and this is one of them. Unfortunately I waited too long to bag them, 3 trees in particular are dropping almost all their apples. Cucumbers are doing great this year, actually have enough to can instead of the fruit maturity being all strung out. |
"You know how butt ugly people are said to have hit every branch on the way down the ugly tree.
Well, the dumbass tree done drilled you in the butt and laid eggs in ya." -RJinks
Well, the dumbass tree done drilled you in the butt and laid eggs in ya." -RJinks
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Originally Posted By Former11BRAVO: I don't understand you guys' bountiful harvests, this year! Despite adding horse manure and chicken shit from a year ago, our garden ain't doin' shit! No cucumbers and no melons, and, strangely, our cabbage and cauliflower was just harvested! Beans are weak, too, as are the peppers. WTF?!? Do you know for certain the horse manure is clean? A LOT of people are having issues like you describe...stunted growth, no production, etc, from contaminated manure/compost because the hay the animals ate was sprayed with Grazon. It has an asininely long residual and persists even through the guts of horses or cattle, and persists even after their manure is composted. People are having to either remove the soil, or do some kind of remediation. Jess at Roots & Refuge successfully remediated her soil with worm casting tea among other things, but I think she credits the tea for healing the soil. |
Nobody ever wakes me at 2 in the morning telling me that my grass is out on the highway.~~Radiopat
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
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Originally Posted By TN-MadDog: The bloom is okra. The squash is trained, more like forced, to grow on the trellis. It was sort of a pain to get started but once it was going good and I pruned off the lower branches it has worked good. I got the idea from a youtube video. I used string to keep pulling new growth upwards. It is supposed to help prevent disease and insect infestations. Also makes it much easier to find the squash. I did the same for zucchini but didn't do as good of a job staying after it. Reading this again and looking at your photos, I prob need to pull out the two okra plants I have in the back side of the first arch. that's really big.  We never grew okra when I was a kid, so I never saw it grow. |
Nobody ever wakes me at 2 in the morning telling me that my grass is out on the highway.~~Radiopat
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
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Originally Posted By Kitties-with-Sigs: @kallnojoy How has this done for you? I admit that when I saw the video, I worried that they might be invasive (even in colder climates) because they are so aggressive. Sounds like we would need to dedicate an entire area (and maybe a significant vertical structure) to these. Aside from the interesting new thing, are you getting enough produce from the large area these appear to take up, to make it worth it? Originally Posted By Kitties-with-Sigs: Originally Posted By kallnojoy: Great to hear you're getting your hands back in your own dirt for a change! Anybody trying anything new/unique this year? I've got some Bolivian Cucumbers started - will see how they do (and if we actually enjoy them). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vq-uzC3QW44@kallnojoy How has this done for you? I admit that when I saw the video, I worried that they might be invasive (even in colder climates) because they are so aggressive. Sounds like we would need to dedicate an entire area (and maybe a significant vertical structure) to these. Aside from the interesting new thing, are you getting enough produce from the large area these appear to take up, to make it worth it? @Kitties-with-Sigs So... without devolving into a complete rant and whine post... let's just say my cucumber (all varieties) efforts this year were a complete failure. I didn't have an established location for the necessary trellis, so I ordered 6 20 gallon grow pots/bags and put 3 on each end of an arched cattle panel. I filled each with a mix of miracle (no) grow raised bed mix, black cow manure and some promix I had left over and planted in the healthy seedlings I had started indoors (bolivian and standard varieties like straight-8, etc). Within a few weeks, all were yellowed and failing... and despite my various (admittedly half-hearted) efforts, it was total loss.. I don't know if there was herbicide in one of the bags, imbalanced nutrients, missing nutrients, etc - but for what should have been an easy grow ended up just a complete waste of money. The take-away is that I'm going to get serious about building out a larger composting system - I'm done with buying bags of supposedly decent garden soil/amendments only to be disappointed (or worse). So now I have about 120 gallons of supposedly great raised bed mix that I don't trust to reuse anywhere! |
Fetchez la vache!
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Originally Posted By kallnojoy: @Kitties-with-Sigs So... without devolving into a complete rant and whine post... let's just say my cucumber (all varieties) efforts this year were a complete failure. I didn't have an established location for the necessary trellis, so I ordered 6 20 gallon grow pots/bags and put 3 on each end of an arched cattle panel. I filled each with a mix of miracle (no) grow raised bed mix, black cow manure and some promix I had left over and planted in the healthy seedlings I had started indoors (bolivian and standard varieties like straight-8, etc). Within a few weeks, all were yellowed and failing... and despite my various (admittedly half-hearted) efforts, it was total loss.. I don't know if there was herbicide in one of the bags, imbalanced nutrients, missing nutrients, etc - but for what should have been an easy grow ended up just a complete waste of money. The take-away is that I'm going to get serious about building out a larger composting system - I'm done with buying bags of supposedly decent garden soil/amendments only to be disappointed (or worse). So now I have about 120 gallons of supposedly great raised bed mix that I don't trust to reuse anywhere! I am wanting to do my own compost as well. I have not started because of some questions and some concerns. With a few months I can produce my own fertilizer via worm tea (although I very much like the liquid fert I'm using this year, I can't always guarantee it will be available). But I cannot produce enough compost easily to either fill a raised bed or significantly amend a raised bed in its first year, to get soil I might dig and use, to where I want it to be for my growing media. To be honest, cucumbers and tomatoes are why I quit gardening. Specifically straight 8 cucumbers (and whatever tomatoes I last grew). My in-ground square foot gardens...the ones I used to be all-in on, did not work for me the last few years I tried. (they had worked before). Something changed. The cucs all fell to Downy. The tomatoes all fell to blight and it felt like I couldn't win, so why try?... Thus...I'm trying raised beds this time. It's going better. But the tainted soil and compost are wreaking havoc on so many, I'm scared. The soil I bought in May that is working fine...will that same brand be okay if I buy more in July? I dunno. ETA: It might be worth an experiment. Put that mix you have in a tub or box and grow some beans in it. See what they do. If they don't do well, use some worm tea on it and see what happens. What I'm hearing/seeing is that depending on the level of contamination, worm tea and growing mushrooms in the soil are the best remediations. |
Nobody ever wakes me at 2 in the morning telling me that my grass is out on the highway.~~Radiopat
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
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Harvest time! Attached File Attached File |
I am not an AFT agent.
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Originally Posted By TN-MadDog: Here are a few random photos of my garden and things that I have harvested https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4309_JPG-3279603.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4317_JPG-3279604.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4443_JPG-3279605.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_E4161_JPG-3279608.JPG What type of landscape fabric is that? |
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Originally Posted By 1775: What type of landscape fabric is that? Originally Posted By 1775: Originally Posted By TN-MadDog: Here are a few random photos of my garden and things that I have harvested https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4309_JPG-3279603.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4317_JPG-3279604.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4443_JPG-3279605.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_E4161_JPG-3279608.JPG What type of landscape fabric is that? @1775 I just saw your post. This is the fabric I used Landscape fabric |
“Once, men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.”
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So whatcha planning for next year? No cukes next year, have plenty of pickles canned this year. Was a good year for the apples too, but between the heat and rain this spring, I only bagged a relative handful, and the rest just went bad. 2026 should be the next bumper crop. Probably concentrate on more tomatoes next year. Only got 2.5 pints of tomato sauce this year, and that includes last year's frozen tomatoes. Still have potatoes and carrots to harvest, decent crop of both. May try to dry can them. Maybe. No onions worth crap. The potatoes overshadowed them. Will try planting garlic this month We had some rogue tomato plants in the compost pile, so we transplanted them to a new bed. They have tiny fruit, and several have blossom end rot. Probably won't ripen before frost. |
"You know how butt ugly people are said to have hit every branch on the way down the ugly tree.
Well, the dumbass tree done drilled you in the butt and laid eggs in ya." -RJinks
Well, the dumbass tree done drilled you in the butt and laid eggs in ya." -RJinks
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Originally Posted By TN-MadDog: @1775 I just saw your post. This is the fabric I used Landscape fabric Originally Posted By TN-MadDog: Originally Posted By 1775: Originally Posted By TN-MadDog: Here are a few random photos of my garden and things that I have harvested https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4309_JPG-3279603.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4317_JPG-3279604.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_4443_JPG-3279605.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/35314/IMG_E4161_JPG-3279608.JPG What type of landscape fabric is that? @1775 I just saw your post. This is the fabric I used Landscape fabric Appreciate it. I've been looking for something similar. This is then1st year we've done a small garden and the weeds are a pain in the ass |
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Originally Posted By 1775: Appreciate it. I've been looking for something similar. This is then1st year we've done a small garden and the weeds are a pain in the ass The fabric worked really well. I didn’t use enough staples at first and the wind pulled some up. I used a propane torch to cut it and to make holes so that it wouldn’t fray. It seemed like no water was going through it at first, just beaded up and ran off. It almost seemed like it had some sort of coating on it so I scrubbed it some using a push broom and soapy water. I don’t know if that really helped but the soil stayed plenty wet and everything grew fine. |
“Once, men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.”
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Pretty much wrapped up this season this weekend. - Left the tomatoes in for maybe another week. They were great this season, constant stream of cherry and sun sugar all summer/fall. - A bit of a down year with the jalapenos, right at three dozen per plant on average, almost 450 which is a lot of peppers but down over a hundred peppers from last season. - Habaneros did well, as did the scotch bonnets. - Several of the larger varieties were absolute duds. I'm thinking the bed is just too small/cramped to grow the bigger peppers. - Biggest head scratcher was the Orange scorpions. Absolutely massive plants, crowded out the chilis, serranos, some of the jalapenos, biggest pepper plant I'ver ever grown in 10 years of growing. Produced 1 single pepper  . Not sure what happened but it did have black/purple coloring throughout the stems all season. Fucking thing cost $40 bucks, too
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And so I say goodbye to my 2024 garden. With mid-20s inbound tonight, my wife and I stripped the remaining plants last night. The apples are all about canned. Carrots are in buckets and boxes patiently waiting their turn; onions are in the unheated garage and getting used already. Tomatoes frozen, blended, and in the freezer waiting for their turn. The raspberries are frozen and waiting for jamification. The green tomatoes and peppers that came in last night have to get dealt with. Some leaves are already turned into the beds that have been done for a while. Today I have to winterize the irrigation system. And mulch the garlic. |
It's all part of life's rich pageant.
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We ate the last of the garden tomatoes last week. Have about 120lbs of potatoes hanging in burlap bags in the garage and we canned some tomato sauce. First time I see a good buy on 10-10-10 fertilizer I’m getting it. Prices on this seem to go up every year. |
Montani Semper Liberi
Deuteronomy 31:6 ~ Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”
Deuteronomy 31:6 ~ Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”
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Originally Posted By kentucky_smith: Here you go. https://media0.giphy.com/media/OCBe3PE9pFfdiRIyym/giphy.gif?cid=5e2148866d5cc4b08bd834605f7db91b7379e7c8e7ceef29&rid=giphy.gif I still come back and stare at this gif, it is so hypnotic. It helps inspire me. I'll be back in the garden this spring. |
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We try to buy local, but sometimes ordering plants/seeds/bulbs, etc is the way to go. Getting ready to plan the garden and we like to order a few catalogs to go through in the dark cold days of winter. What places does everyone here like that still do print catalogs? |
"The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there."
L.P. Hartley
L.P. Hartley
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Originally Posted By FZJ80: We try to buy local, but sometimes ordering plants/seeds/bulbs, etc is the way to go. Getting ready to plan the garden and we like to order a few catalogs to go through in the dark cold days of winter. What places does everyone here like that still do print catalogs? Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds: Offers a free printed catalog with popular varieties, plus a more detailed "Whole Seed Catalog" available for purchase. The free version is widely requested and mailed to U.S. addresses, while international customers may need to pay shipping. Burpee Seed Company: Provides a free printed catalog filled with vegetables, flowers, and herbs. It's a staple for many gardeners and available to U.S. residents upon request. Johnny's Selected Seeds: Sends out a free printed catalog to U.S. and Canadian customers. They also offer digital versions, but the print option remains popular for its detailed growing info. Fedco Seeds: As a cooperative, they mail a free printed catalog specializing in cold-hardy seeds, particularly appealing to Northeast gardeners. They operate seasonally, so request early. Territorial Seed Company: Offers a free printed catalog with a wide range of seeds and gardening supplies, available to U.S. customers. Seed Savers Exchange: Provides a free printed catalog to U.S. residents, focusing on heirloom and rare varieties. Canadians can purchase it, and a digital version is also available. Pinetree Garden Seeds: Known for smaller seed packets, they still send a free printed catalog upon request, loved by home gardeners for its practicality. Seeds from Italy: The U.S. distributor for Franchi Sementi mails a free catalog to U.S. and Canadian addresses, featuring Italian vegetable and herb seeds. Gurney's Seed & Nursery Co.: Offers a free full-color printed catalog with seeds, plants, and exclusive varieties, mailed to U.S. residents. Harris Seeds: Provides free printed catalogs tailored to different growers home gardeners, vegetable/cut flower growers, and ornamental growers available upon request. Rohrer Seeds: Mails a free printed catalog with over 1,100 seed selections, including heirlooms and organics, and has a long history of catalog distribution. Jung Seed Company: Sends a free printed catalog to U.S. residents, featuring seeds, plants, and bulbs. High Mowing Organic Seeds: Offers a free printed catalog for U.S. and Canadian customers, focusing on certified organic seeds. Botanical Interests: Mails a free printed catalog to U.S. customers, known for beautifully illustrated packets and detailed growing tips. Sow True Seed: An employee-owned cooperative that sends a free printed catalog with open-pollinated, GMO-free seeds. Southern Exposure Seed Exchange: Provides a free printed catalog with a focus on Southern heirlooms, mailed to those who request it. R.H. Shumway's: Known for its charming, vintage-style catalog, it's free and mailed to U.S. customers. Sandia Seed Company: Offers a printed catalog for $3 (including U.S. shipping), though a free digital version is also available. |
For a people who are free, and who mean to remain so, a well-organized and armed militia is their best security.
Thomas Jefferson
"He didnt punch anybody. He punched an idea." DrFrige
Thomas Jefferson
"He didnt punch anybody. He punched an idea." DrFrige
Joined:
Dec 2022
Posts:
591
EE: 0% (0)
VA, USA
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Here in Virginia, I got my veggie garden all built, bags and bags and bags of garden soil, peat moss, Miracle Grow, etc... all raked in as well. My wife wanted a flower bed in front and along the side, so I tilled that in, and used those snap-together plastic edgers for a boundary. Ain't nothing big... Just a simple suburban, 6 ft x 12 ft rectangle garden in the backyard with chicken wire fencing. Can't do anything just yet, as it's *Virginia*  and 70°, 42°, 60°, and yet 28° overnight...
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The snow's melted off, and the beds thawing out at different rates based on sun. Pulling some mulch off the garlic bed, I see some scapes peeking up. Still, it's not time for anything but cleanup and prep. I have a pine tree that needs to come down and its stump dug out, as it is smack in the middle of where a new bed needs to go, as I move things around trying to escape the growing shadow of a neighbor's maple. Stumps are not my favorite job. |
It's all part of life's rich pageant.
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We've started rejuvenating the raised beds and Earth boxes for the season and have lettuce,cabbage,onions and broccoli already growing in a couple and it's all doing well. We have several varieties of tomato seedlings,peppers and cucumbers ready to go into the Earth boxes so I've been concentrating on rehabbing the EB's first so we can get the 'maters planted. That basically amounts to removing the old potting mix and adding some fresh peat to it along with dolomite lime and fertilizer. That's a bit of a pain in the butt but they're really nice the rest of the year when all I have to do is add water to them and not have to screw around with weeding them or anything. I've got 6 more to rehab and then the other raised beds get my full attention. Good luck to everyone this year. 
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No more geriatric politicians.
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We have been harvesting black berries for weeks now and we haven't even eaten all the stuff we made with them last year. The photo is from before they started ripening. Attached File |
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I planted the tomatoes I started from seed last weekend but they all died. I think it was a combination of too small and weak for transplanting but also we had weird cold weather the past week. Anyway, I bought new starts at Menards today and replanted the 'maters. Peppers are looking good. Had a first crop of radishes last week. Weeding is going to be a constant chore for a while. |
I am not an AFT agent.
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Originally Posted By jb1001: Finally planted yesterday. I usually get everything in mid-May but just been too busy this month. Jalapenos, serranos, scoth bonnets, habaneros, and more. Hoping for a bumper crop! Down the home stretch now, but holding out hope for a warm October. Hot hots have done amazing thus far, might get 100+ habaneros off of one plant, best year ever for those. Scotch bonnets all producing 4-5 dozen per plant. Jalapenos have done ok, but serranos continue to disappoint. Something has been going on with them the last 2 or 3 seasons, as they all tend to get very leggy with weak root systems and less and less peppers. Cucumber/tomato production was amazing with fresh veggies all summer long, my wife was very happy with that! Biggest disappointments were the larger pepper varieties like poblanos and anaheims. Not much yields from either. Still continues to flummox me when one plant can spit out fruit all season long while one right next to it ends up being a dud. |
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Every one of my onions grew and we're harvested a few weeks ago. I ordered some net bags so I can just let them hang and hopefully last several months in my basement. Sweet corn was a bust, again. I bought 5 dozen from the local farm stand, vac bagged them, and put into freezer. The popcorn I grew for shits and giggles I learned I should have waited longer to harvest. I'm hoping the ones I did pick will are mature enough to use, just waiting to dry. Spaghetti squash is small this year, but some aren't ready to pick this yet. Carrots didn't get very long, but usable. Not too many though. The small watermelons, I had 3 get some kind of rot on the outside before maturity. A couple still growing. Tomatoes. Ah, the tomatoes! Still going gangbusters! I lost quite a few to blossom end rot, OR lack of watering. Then we had lots of rain, and many split. I saved many of them, but I completely forgot about 2 bowls with and they rotted. Damn shame. The good thing is, I >still< have them growing! In fact I need to go pick some more. What really kicks it though, I started a whole nother bed from the trimmed pieces from the first bed, 10 out of 12 cuttings made it, and are my main source of late season tomatoes. |
"You know how butt ugly people are said to have hit every branch on the way down the ugly tree.
Well, the dumbass tree done drilled you in the butt and laid eggs in ya." -RJinks
Well, the dumbass tree done drilled you in the butt and laid eggs in ya." -RJinks
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Picked 2 bowls of tomatoes last weekend, and sliced and will freeze for vacuum bagging. Then went and picked 2 more bowls! Plus a watermelon just now. This is one of my best years for tomatoes, and still more coming! I just can't decide what to make from them yet, but whatever I decide, we're gonna have to plan for a long weekend of canning! The 5 trays of Roma's I vac dried, average 23oz per tray, I was able to fit each tray in a quart mylar bag, after crushing them. I didn't weight them after freeze dry though. |
"You know how butt ugly people are said to have hit every branch on the way down the ugly tree.
Well, the dumbass tree done drilled you in the butt and laid eggs in ya." -RJinks
Well, the dumbass tree done drilled you in the butt and laid eggs in ya." -RJinks
| Cleaned out the garden today. My lone Habanero plant finished with 110 peppers. That haul will last me at least 2 years and I won't need to grow them next season. Same for Scotch Bonnets. I'll probably go a little more jalapeno heavy next summer. One thing I learned is that more square footage for a plant does not guarantee more peppers. |
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Attached File Attached File Attached File I've lived here less than a year now, so forgive my unkept garden. This year was incredibly dry and the only thing I could grow was potatos. Next year will be different. I am very excited to give an update come late spring. There's a lot of plans in the works here It may not look like much. But this garden was once an RC track with a giant microwave buried under one of the "hills". |
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Originally Posted By jb1001: Cleaned out the garden today. My lone Habanero plant finished with 110 peppers. That haul will last me at least 2 years and I won't need to grow them next season. Same for Scotch Bonnets. I'll probably go a little more jalapeno heavy next summer. One thing I learned is that more square footage for a plant does not guarantee more peppers. I plant my peppers close together, definitely closer than recommended. I've been putting 18 plants in a 4x8' bed in a 3x6 grid and getting good yields |
I am not an AFT agent.
Born with a low tolerance for bullshit
Joined:
Feb 2007
Posts:
53342
EE: 0% (0)
KY, USA
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Originally Posted By BIgDAM: We have been harvesting black berries for weeks now and we haven't even eaten all the stuff we made with them last year. The photo is from before they started ripening. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/251964/1000006912_jpg-3553159.JPG @BlgDAM What variety blackberry are you growing? I think I want to try that on a cattle panel. I like what you've got going there. ~Kitties |
Nobody ever wakes me at 2 in the morning telling me that my grass is out on the highway.~~Radiopat
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Born with a low tolerance for bullshit
Joined:
Feb 2007
Posts:
53343
EE: 0% (0)
KY, USA
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I got zero peppers this year. Want to try again next year and figure out what I did wrong. Also got zero cucumbers but that's likely my fault. I will say that squash bugs overtook everything in the garden. It looked almost like mold, there were so many. I let a volunteer pie pumpkin grow because it's so beautiful, and I'll never do that again. Going to see if there are any resistant varieties. I think the pumpkin brought the squash bugs to the garden. Never had any trouble with them before.  |
Nobody ever wakes me at 2 in the morning telling me that my grass is out on the highway.~~Radiopat
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe
Wine is sunlight held together by water~~Galileo Galilei
Well-behaved women rarely make history~~Marilyn Monroe