What Are Some Tips for Successful Gardening?

[rewebster]

thanks---the central midwest has a longer growing season (you have to wait until the tundra melts off the top)--the stuff went in about a month later this year due to the cold and chance of frost.

that's concrete re-inforcing 'fence' --I've seen some people make cylinders out of it too

 

[Astronuc]

Does anybody have any advice for keeping the soil loose and arable in a very dry region that has experienced a bad drought this year? I'm visiting my parents right now and the plants they keep in their backyard are doing terribly because the dirt back there is so packed and dry that roots can't get established and water just runs right off the ground without being absorbed.

Dig in composted cow manure - but not composted mushroom manure, then mulch the surface.

My soil is compacted clay, so I have broken it up with a pick and pitchfork. I've mixed in composted cow manure - about 50/50. Peat moss is good for porosity and water retention, but it makes the soil more acidic, which is fine for plants like berries.

turbo - I cut the scapes off the garlic. They are really good. I probably should have cut them days ago, but I had other priorities.

 

[turbo]

turbo - I cut the scapes off the garlic. They are really good. I probably should have cut them days ago, but I had other priorities.

Understood - we'll talk soon.

Scapes are great in stir-fries, salads, etc. I had never grown garlic until this year, and last June my neighbor brought us a big handful of scapes and told us what the good part is. We used them in a stir-fry that first night and we were hooked! Now that we have made scape pesto and scape butter, we need to greatly expand the volume of the garlic bed next year and thereafter.

 

[Astronuc]

I'm trying to decide if I want to propagate the garlic or harvest the bulbs. The two that came back from last year didn't have the flower ball. I'll probably buy more garlic.

My pepper plants are doing very well!


But I need to find some habaneros.

 

[turbo]

I'm trying to decide if I want to propagate the garlic or harvest the bulbs. The two that came back from last year didn't have the flower ball. I'll probably buy more garlic.

My pepper plants are doing very well!


But I need to find some habaneros.

If you like the garlic that you're growing, you should wait until the leaves are dying back, and dig the bulbs, clean off the dirt, and dry them. Then you can hold them until December or so, break up the bulbs, and re-plant the cloves. If you'd like to start a larger crop, it would be better to find a co-op or farm-supply place that can sell you starter-stock. I love the large German garlic, but it has only 4 cloves/bulb, so it propagates much more slowly than varieties that have lots more cloves/bulb.

 

[Astronuc]

I think I have German garlic with slightly bigger bulbs.

I'm looking for a variety - and I need to expand the garden.

Here's a good site on garlic - http://www.floridata.com/ref/a/alli_sat.cfm

And another - http://www.seedsofchange.com/enewsletter/issue_37/garlic.asp

http://www.ars.usda.gov/Research/docs.htm?docid=5232


I'm going to have to give away raspberry and blackberry plants since they are propagating quite well. Actually I need more acreage.

 

[Evo]

My baby grape tomatoes.

http://img380.imageshack.us/img380/4903/grapetomatoesfq7.jpg

 

[Evo]

Cucumber trellis.

 

[turbo]

We haven't had any rain for 3 days (finally!) and the sun and heat have turned a few of the crops around. I'm hoping for a decent garden again this year. (Fingers crossed!) With food prices soaring, we need this to keep expenses under control.

 

[Ms Music]

Evo, I am envious of your tomatoes. I have had flowers for well over a month, but no bees. I don't have a single tomato. <cry>

I think I am going to try a paintbrush.

But we are eating raspberries!

 

[Evo]

Evo, I am envious of your tomatoes. I have had flowers for well over a month, but no bees. I don't have a single tomato. <cry>

I think I am going to try a paintbrush.

But we are eating raspberries!

I'll trade you some tomatoes for some raspberries!

Is it very humid where you are? High humidity can cause the pollen to gum up and prevent pollination.

I also do not have bees and the two tiny flying things I had have been eaten, I'm afraid. I did find one being eaten day before yesterday, and that was the last I've seen. I got so frustrated at my squash not pollinating that I cut off a male bloom and shoved it into a female bloom a few days ago, and it appears to have worked! Do try the paintbrush, I have had luck before with that.

I was also getting very upset at the amount of blossom drop on my bell peppers, but from reading the conversations at gardenweb, this seems to have been happening to everyone this year. The jalepenos are faring much better.

 

[Moonbear]

I have tomatoes galore right now. No problem with pollination here (more wasps than bees I think, but they're doing the job...I just have to keep relocating their paper nests OFF the patio umbrella; I've spotted a hummingbird too, but s/he seems happier with the ornamental flowers than the veggies). One of the neighbors was asking about the tomatoes today (after we finished discussing the water and cable being off) and was HORRIFIED when I told her they're Rutgers tomatoes. They're growing WAY better than any of the other varieties I've tried growing here, and I'm going to have so much fun taunting coworkers with them. They are covered in blossoms too, and I'm glad to see the fruiting is staggered somewhat, so I won't get all the tomatoes at once. Nonetheless, I'm ready if I do get a bumper crop. I have a pressure cooker now, quite a few jars already (and can always pick up more if I need them), and just need to get some more lids. I wouldn't mind putting up some tomatoes for the winter, or if it's not too many, just homemade tomato sauce for pasta.

The zucchini plants have started to blossom this weekend too...FINALLY! I've been waiting for those to start blooming. Not too many blossoms all at once, so that's good. I don't need 10,000 zucchini, just a few will make me happy. Heck, just one would pay off the cost of seeds the way produce prices are this year.

 

[Evo]

Say hello to my new baby bunny. I took this picture through my bedroom window.

He's going to eat my garden, isn't he?

Sure, he looks so innocent and harmless...

 

[rewebster]

Sure, he looks so innocent and harmless...

he looks like dinner




(if he was in season)

 

[turbo]

he looks like dinner




(if he was in season)

If you have a powerful pellet-gun, he's in season (close enough).

 

[rewebster]

do you mean like a Benjamin?

 

[turbo]

do you mean like a Benjamin?

I have a Daisy one-pump rifle that requires a LOT of effort to cock. The pellets just blow through tin cans without even disturbing them - 1000 fps.

 

[rewebster]

what's the model #?

 

[turbo]

It's a Powerline Model 1000. Wal-Mart carries them with a specially-built scope (to take the odd back-to front recoil) for less than $100. The barrel is rifled and it can only shoot lead pellets, but is very accurate. Since you are compressing a very powerful spring, and not air, you can cock it and let it sit for days or weeks until you need it.

 

[rewebster]

It's a Powerline Model 1000. Wal-Mart carries them with a specially-built scope (to take the odd back-to front recoil) for less than $100. The barrel is rifled and it can only shoot lead pellets, but is very accurate. Since you are compressing a very powerful spring, and not air, you can cock it and let it sit for days or weeks until you need it.

nice--


The spring 'thing' sounds good. I've got a little collection of about 8 non-working 'old Benjamins (antiques -couple from 1917 or so) and the seals go out. A 177 and 22 cal, and pistol, still work good--they're nice because you can pump to different pressures.


I'll have to look into that Powerline. It's surprizing how much fps they can get.

 

[turbo]

I'll have to look into that Powerline. It's surprizing how much fps they can get.

This gun is a kick. It's like having a pretty quiet single-shot .22 rifle. I have shot a lot of mild .22LR target loads in my old SS Stevens M47 (now sold) and this pellet gun seems to have all the punch of those loads, though certainly not the tack-sharp accuracy of that beautiful old Stevens. If you like pellet guns, you'll like the M1000. If you want to let kids practice their marksmanship with it, you're going to get arm-weary cocking it, because unless they are fit teens, they won't be able to cock it.

 

[turbo]

Thanks to the oppressive heat and the long days, the plants in my swamp of a garden are starting to come around pretty well. If the weather continues to cooperate for a bit so the pollinators can do their work, we should have an OK yield this season.

Here are the string beans and a row of beets. We are thinning the beets and eating the tender baby beets and greens. The beans are flowering, as are the tomato plants to the left.

We have LOTS of carrots planted because they keep so well in our cold cellar. Time to start thinning them and eating baby carrots to give the others a chance to fatten up.

We planted a small patch of black-seeded Simpson leaf lettuce at the end of on row of chili peppers. We're giving it away to relatives - too much for us to eat.

The parsley is doing very well, and we have been using it in dishes for a couple of weeks now. The basil (to the left) is not doing as well in the garden probably due to the excess rain we've been getting, but we have some planted in a container on the deck and in the herb garden under the eaves and it's doing very well in both locations. We have been using basil for a couple of weeks, too.

With the hot weather of this week, the buttercup squash has picked up and is starting to climb the fence.

The tomato plants are blossoming heavily now, and the early blossoms have already set on fruit. We planted the tomatoes even deeper than normal this year, and the main stems are very large and sturdy.

I'm not a big fan of zucchini, but my wife wanted some, so here it is. It's blossoming, and judging from the number of buds emerging, we're going to be giving away a lot of squash.

 

[Evo]

turbo, looks like you're going to have a great garden this year! I guess all of that rain wasn't too bad after all.

 

[turbo]

turbo, looks like you're going to have a great garden this year! I guess all of that rain wasn't too bad after all.

I have tilled in truckloads of organic materials over the past couple of years so the soil is a lot more porous that it was when I started. Also, I have been planting in raised rows to give the water a chance to drain off between the rows. It's a lot of extra work, but it's worth it. Two of my wife's sisters usually have very nice gardens, but they make their rows at ground level with no hoeing, and lots of their crops were ruined by the water this year. One of them gets her lettuce from us - she planted 3 different times with no luck. She's probably going to have to rely on us for cucumbers, as well. I had to re-plant, too, but eventually got an OK row going.

 

[Borek]

I have tilled in truckloads of organic materials over the past couple of years

I would say truckloads of sweat. But you have every reason to be proud

 

[lisab]

I have tilled in truckloads of organic materials over the past couple of years so the soil is a lot more porous that it was when I started. Also, I have been planting in raised rows to give the water a chance to drain off between the rows. It's a lot of extra work, but it's worth it. Two of my wife's sisters usually have very nice gardens, but they make their rows at ground level with no hoeing, and lots of their crops were ruined by the water this year. One of them gets her lettuce from us - she planted 3 different times with no luck. She's probably going to have to rely on us for cucumbers, as well. I had to re-plant, too, but eventually got an OK row going.

How do you keep the deer away, turbo? Seems they would look at your beautiful garden and think: mmmm, smorgasbord!

 

[Evo]

I have had lettuce rot from too much rain back when I lived in Houston, there are only about 5 days during the winter that it's cool enough to grow lettuce there anyway, and the slugs are a nightmare.

I"ve had my plants all huddled together on the patio since yesterday morning when a strong storm knocked my squash over again. (I keep everything up high on metal plant stands to keep the bunnies and squirrels out). So for now, all plants are sitting on the ground, but of course the promised storms aren't developing and only getting an occasional sprinkle. The stroms are just waiting for me to put everything back up before they hit.

I am appeasing the bunny gods by throwing carrot sticks and cabbage into the ravine in hopes that they will become too fat to climb up the rocks.

 

[turbo]

How do you keep the deer away, turbo? Seems they would look at your beautiful garden and think: mmmm, smorgasbord!

I have two battery-operated sprinklers at the corners of my garden. They have IR motion sensors, and when a large enough animal crosses their beams, they trigger, and make a pretty good racket for a few seconds. They are the reciprocating-type sprinkler heads and they are made out of plastic so they are pretty loud. They don't help with cutworms and beetles, but they discourage deer.

 

[turbo]

I would say truckloads of sweat. But you have every reason to be proud

Thanks, Borek. When we first moved here, the garden spot was rocky clay that turned into slime in the rain and got as hard as concrete in the sun. Another problem was that the previous owner put lime in the soil every year and the pH was too high to allow proper uptake of nutrients. I had to till in bags of sulfur to get the pH down below 7, then till in truckloads of composted manure, peat, and garden-waste compost to get the soil light enough to work. I have also hauled out a TON of rocks (probably literally). Yeah, it's hard work, but it saves us a lot of money in groceries. I grow way more than we can eat so we can freeze or can the excess for food until the next harvest. We're still eating frozen string beans, Swiss chard, peppers, etc, and canned pickles, chili relishes, salsas, etc from last year. When my wife shops for food, she brings home meat, bread, pasta, dried beans, etc with maybe a tomato or two when they're not in season. Most of our meals are based around foods that we grew and processed.

 

[turbo]

I am appeasing the bunny gods by throwing carrot sticks and cabbage into the ravine in hopes that they will become too fat to climb up the rocks.

Oh, DON'T do that! Well-fed rabbits can breed prolifically and your patio garden won't stand a chance.

 

[rewebster]

I am appeasing the bunny gods by throwing carrot sticks and cabbage into the ravine in hopes that they will become too fat to climb up the rocks.

well, I don't think that you have to wait as long as what turbo may be saying---once you start feeding them---it becomes like feeding pigeons--

(the rabbits tell other rabbits that there's free 'good food' there and they invite all their friends--and if you don't feed them for a couple days, they start knocking at your door)

 

[turbo]

I have killed hundreds and hundreds of Japanese beetles in the past week, and they just keep on coming. They are eating the heck out of the leaves on my little plum trees and I constantly have to patrol the garden to keep them in control.

Where are the assassin bugs during this invasion? They could be getting as fat as cocker spaniels eating all these beetles.

 

[rewebster]

I have killed hundreds and hundreds of Japanese beetles in the past week, and they just keep on coming. They are eating the heck out of the leaves on my little plum trees and I constantly have to patrol the garden to keep them in control.

With that bb gun?--my, you ARE a good shot!

 

[turbo]

With that bb gun?--my, you ARE a good shot!

Yep.

 

[baywax]

I have killed hundreds and hundreds of Japanese beetles in the past week, and they just keep on coming. They are eating the heck out of the leaves on my little plum trees and I constantly have to patrol the garden to keep them in control.


Where are the assassin bugs during this invasion? They could be getting as fat as cocker spaniels eating all these beetles.

You could try spraying the chrysanthemum oil mixture. I've heard its very effective on aphids and other pests. Won't stop bunnies.

I'm not going to post pics of my flowerless Fuchsias or Irises (victims of a sunless spring). But I can say there has been a large, hot white/yellow ball of fire in the sky lately and the sky has become an unfamiliar blue. The rivers and creeks went turbulently full of melt water with the onset of these strange conditions and they have actually taken a few unsuspecting bather's lives.