What Are Some Tips for Successful Gardening?

In summary, we put in a huge garden and had a green thumb from the get-go. We still have a garden, although it's a little smaller now. We mainly grow vegetables, fruits, and flowers. I've been a pretty avid gardener at times but not for eating, just for looking.
  • #2,031
The Hungarians are fantastic for making stuffed peppers with spiced hamburg and rice, tomato sauce, and melted cheese. Mmm.
Or just as a side. One bit of this then one bite of a wax. Mmm.
 
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  • #2,032
I love stuffing jalapenos. They are small, so that there are few recipes that will work well. The Hungarian Wax chilies are larger (perhaps 8" or so long and 3-4" wide) and they are a bit milder than the jalapenos so they can be easily used as vessels for stuffed peppers when some people don't like really hot foods.
 
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  • #2,034
I helped a friend in high school tap and collect maple sap a few times for the family business just because it was one of those interesting things. The shed where they did the reducing was an olfactory delight. Riding through the forest and throwing the sap in the container didn't seem like work.

I think I'll look around for a local producer this year.


I still have to spray the peach and nectarine trees for peach leaf curl---its one of the two things that make them go bad if I don't--and it has to be done in the dormant (no growth) period.
 
  • #2,035
Evo said:
I got this shot accidently, I was going to take a picture of my dog falling into 3 foot deep snow, but he stopped for a "break". See the snowflake next to the bat? There are 4 more, but this one is the biggest.

snowflakefruitbat.jpg
At first I thought this was an orange skunk. But I soon realized it was Rico doing a 'high five'. :biggrin:

Interesting snowflake. It reminds me of Whoville for some reason.
 
  • #2,036
On the "baby, it's cold" thread, I posted that I can get 14 yards of well-rotted cow manure for $200, delivered. I just crunched a few numbers, and based on a weight of 2000#/yd, one load is 28,000#, which is equivalent to 700 40# bags. Depending on where you buy gardening supplies, you'd go broke trying to add that much organic material to your garden.
 
  • #2,037
I have to check the price, but I was told about $25 for 2 cu yds of manure.
 
  • #2,038
Astronuc said:
I have to check the price, but I was told about $25 for 2 cu yds of manure.
If it's clean and well-rotted, that's a great price. My next-door neighbor was buying directly from an old dairy farmer in the next town. He'd get loads that were contaminated with rope, baling twine, plastic, and even hypodermic needles. Plus, the manure was VERY weedy because it was badly contaminated with feed and bedding. He went back to chemical fertilizers until he saw how clean my load was last fall.

When my wife and I were first married, I agreed to plant and tend a large vegetable garden at her parents' place (her father had lost a leg to diabetes). Unfortunately, he ordered manure from a guy that kept horses. Horses don't chew their food as well as cows, and they don't have multiple stomachs, so weed-seeds pass right through them. I have never seen such a weedy garden in my life. The wild mustard alone would make you cry.
 
  • #2,039
turbo-1 said:
If it's clean and well-rotted, that's a great price. My next-door neighbor was buying directly from an old dairy farmer in the next town. He'd get loads that were contaminated with rope, baling twine, plastic, and even hypodermic needles. Plus, the manure was VERY weedy because it was badly contaminated with feed and bedding. He went back to chemical fertilizers until he saw how clean my load was last fall.
The stuff is clean.

When my wife and I were first married, I agreed to plant and tend a large vegetable garden at her parents' place (her father had lost a leg to diabetes). Unfortunately, he ordered manure from a guy that kept horses. Horses don't chew their food as well as cows, and they don't have multiple stomachs, so weed-seeds pass right through them. I have never seen such a weedy garden in my life. The wild mustard alone would make you cry.
We could get all the horse manure we need - for free - but it needs to be aged and keep under black plastic for 2 years to kill the weeds. Cow manure is much better.

The farmer with whom we talked recommended chickens. He moves his 'portable' yard/coop around the property, the chickens (hens only is an option) poop in a closed area, then once he moves them, he tills.
 
  • #2,040
Astronuc said:
The stuff is clean.

We could get all the horse manure we need - for free - but it needs to be aged and keep under black plastic for 2 years to kill the weeds. Cow manure is much better.
Yep. Well-rotted cow manure is nice and black, and it is relatively weed-free. It releases nutrients quite slowly and steadily, so it is way better for your vegetables than chemical fertilizers. I had to add 14 yards of coarse sand to match the 14 yards of rotted manure, because manure helps retain water, and if we get another wet summer this year, I'll need the extra drainage that the sand will provide, plus the sand will reduce the resistance of the soil to carrots and other root crops. Until I had worked on the soil a bit, it was really hard to dig carrots out of the garden. Too much clay!
 
  • #2,041
Unfortunately I do container gardening, there are a lot of issues with the soil in small containers.
 
  • #2,042
I promised drizzle that I would post a picture from the ice storm we had Sunday. I took this photo this morning from my bedroom window, looks like christmas lights.

021kbe.jpg
 
  • #2,043
I bought a patio tomato plant last year that just produced like crazy. I have seeds from some of the tomatoes. Do you think if I plant those that they will be as good as the original plant?
 
  • #2,044
probably not---

most tomatoes are hybrids, and the seeds aren't hybrid stock.

I leave a couple plants that are from the drops from the year before and they never produce as well
 
  • #2,045
rewebster said:
probably not---

most tomatoes are hybrids, and the seeds aren't hybrid stock.

I leave a couple plants that are from the drops from the year before and they never produce as well
Yeah, that's what I'm worried about. :(
 
  • #2,046
Evo said:
Yeah, that's what I'm worried about. :(
Most of the world's basic crops already cut off the farmers at the ankles. The crops don't propagate or seed. Monsanto is happy. Farmers (many of then 3rd world) starve or die.
 
  • #2,047
Evo said:
Yeah, that's what I'm worried about. :(

most of your last year cost was containers etc---plants aren't very expensive, if you go the same place as last year to get your plants, there's a good chance they will be similar to last year's plants
 
  • #2,048
you can still buy heirloom seed, tho. and even Bonnie has a few sprouted plants that are heirloom or heirloom hybrid. i planted some yellow tomatoes last year that were quite nice. i saved a few seed, even tho they may have crossed with the pink ones, or the red ones. who knows, they might sprout. won't hurt to try.
 
  • #2,049
I'm not crazy about heirloom tomatoes, there is a reason that better varieties gained favor. I'll try some of these patio tomatoes and see what happens.
 
  • #2,050
Evo said:
I bought a patio tomato plant last year that just produced like crazy. I have seeds from some of the tomatoes. Do you think if I plant those that they will be as good as the original plant?
I think it depends on the variety. We've had a few plants come back from drops, and they were pretty productive.

With container growing, especially with tomatoes and similar plants, it's best to empty the soil out and blend in new fresh soil and compost manure (and not composted mushroom stuff). Also, if one suspects blight or other deleterious organisms, it's best to empty soil in a black bag and let it cook over the summer in a black bag. Make sure there are no worms in the soil when placing it into the bag.
 
  • #2,051
there was snow in this spot two days ago

lilies.jpg
 
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Nice, I haven't even seen the snow crocus here yet, maybe in the next couple of weeks.
 
  • #2,053
Evo said:
I promised drizzle that I would post a picture from the ice storm we had Sunday. I took this photo this morning from my bedroom window, looks like christmas lights.
Ooooh! Sparkles. :cool: Reminds me of . . . .

Our place is still under a foot of snow.

Meanwhile down south, we're supposed to have snow tonight. Flying home tomorrow should be interesting. :rolleyes:
 
  • #2,054
Astronuc said:
Ooooh! Sparkles. :cool: Reminds me of . . . .

Our place is still under a foot of snow.

Meanwhile down south, we're supposed to have snow tonight. Flying home tomorrow should be interesting. :rolleyes:
Please not to JFK. Cross-winds have reduced the place to one usable runway. Delay!
 
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turbo-1 said:
Please not to JFK. Cross-winds have reduced the place to one usable runway. Delay!
I have to fly through Charlotte and Philadelphia - in little jets. :rolleyes:
 
  • #2,056
Astronuc said:
I have to fly through Charlotte and Philadelphia - in little jets. :rolleyes:
My last legs to Maine from most places like Newark were always on little turbo-props. Nice scenes of the ground, but we often had some rough rides. Often I could get out of Bangor or Portland on a jet because they were over-night holds for planes and crew, but the ride home was frequently loud and bumpy.
 
  • #2,057
The only time I was on a little 6 seater plane was my flight from Denver to Steamboat Springs for a ski trip.

My scariest flight was from Cozumel to Cancun in a vintage WWII prop plane with sparks flying out of the engines and we barely skimmed the water the entire way. Ropes for seat belts but we did get dixie cups of warm coke out of a bottle. We had to wake the pilot up because he forgot us and he showed up unshaven, barefoot, in a dirty torn undershirt, and shorts.
 
  • #2,058
Reminder: It might be a good idea to order your vegetable seeds early this year, and order some extras of things that might have germination problems. I made sure to get more pickling-cuke seeds than normal because last season, lots of folks had poor germination in the cool damp spring and had to re-plant. Seeds got scarce pretty fast. We managed to find some tucked away in a hardware store last year, but the garden shops were picked clean.
 
  • #2,059
I've been thinking about a cold box or a set of portable greenhouses in which to start seeds, or starting the gemination inside. Unfortunately, the cats try to get to the seedlings and chomp on them. The local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) project is starting up. I think the greenhouse opens this week, so I'll need to check into it. I might see if I can take some of their excess, in exchange for donating seeds.

Most of our ground is still covered in snow.

It's time to turn the soil, and add some compost and manure.

Hopefully this spring will be a tad warmer than last year.


http://www.localharvest.org/csa/

http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/csa.html

There should be some info at USDA, but their links seem to be bad.


Edit: Growing for Market provides useful information for the serious produce garnder or farmer.
http://www.growingformarket.com/
 
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  • #2,060
Ooh pink tomatoes, pretty. They're available from www.burpeeseeds.com.

http://www.burpee.com/images/en_US/local/products/viewlarger/b68145_lg.jpg
 
  • #2,061
IMO Early Girls are the best tasting. Around here (in Kansas) where there's lots of good sun, they produce clusters (3 or 6) all over the vines.

http://www.irisheyesgardenseeds.com/images/EarlyGirlWeb.jpg

The Early Girl Tomatoes were juicy, but not overly so. There was a good balance of sweetness with acid in the juice. They had a moist / meaty texture that was just right... not mushy, not hard or tough, but tender with body.

http://www.tandjenterprises.com/earlygirltomato.htm"
 
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  • #2,062
Marianas are firm and flavorful tomatoes. Bushy high-yielding plants are easy to take care of without training to trellises, pruning suckers, etc. You may have to order from Johnny's Selected Seeds to get this variety because it is a relatively new one, but if you like tomatoes you might want to give this variety a try. My wife and I usually plant Early Girls, Big Boys, Muscovy, etc, but we were quite pleasantly surprised by the Marianas last season. They are wonderful in sauces and soups.
 
  • #2,063
Glenn Beck is running ads from this scam outfit on his show. For "only" $149, you get about $20-30 worth of seeds. The site claims that what they will send you is enough seed to plant an entire acre, and will produce thousands of pounds of food. I've got a garden spot that is around 2000 ft2 or maybe a bit more. My garden spot is about 1/22 of an acre, and the seed packets that they show on the site could not possibly seed an area the size of my garden. I bought 'WAY more seed than that for the upcoming season for $34.40 plus shipping.

http://www.survivalseedbank.com/
 
  • #2,064
dlgoff said:
IMO Early Girls are the best tasting. Around here (in Kansas) where there's lots of good sun, they produce clusters (3 or 6) all over the vines.

http://www.irisheyesgardenseeds.com/images/EarlyGirlWeb.jpg



http://www.tandjenterprises.com/earlygirltomato.htm"
I grow early girls, they come in a bush type for containers.
 
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  • #2,065
My crocuses are starting to emerge and bud, in spite of the snow still on the ground! :eek: Now, I wonder if I will get to enjoy the flowers before the deer do? (I'm going to have to change my plans on where to put my vegetable garden...with all the snow, I was able to see the deer tracks, and the other day, watched the whole herd of 7 deer wander through my yard...seems the spot I was planning to put the garden is right along their path to the field across from me...DRAT!)
 

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