June 2010: Garden Update

After a few tedious weeks, my garden has finally taken off in the direction I wanted it to go: up and out!

BEFORE: Although my expectations were big, my garden was growing at a slow rate with stunted or no growth from the many seedlings I planted.  All due to too much acid in the soil, making for "hot soil".

NOW:  My garden is flourishing.  With lots of watering and yes, even fertilizer, my garden is becoming green and lush and bearing yummy, edible vegetables.  Or fruit.  Whatever!

I HAVE CORN!!

Snow Peas.  They were great right off the vine.

WHAT WAS I THINKING OF?  I planted at least 10 cucumber plants, of three different types of cucumbers.  WHY!?

This is an Armenian Cucumber, aka. Yard Long Cucumber.  It has thin, edible skin, little to no seeds and sweet flesh.  Remove the furry hairs first.  It is a table/slicing cuke, not suitable for pickeling.  Although it can grow up to 36 inches, it tastes best when picked at 15 inches.

We've been invaded by numerous insects.  Our squash in particular has been under siege by the Squash Vine Borer.  It's a nasty larva that bores into the stems of squash and makes itself at home until it's next stage in life.  This photo is of a squash plant that has been taken over.  I noticed frass on the stem of the plant, (excrement), made a slit into the stem, located the larva and unmercifully, killed it.  Then I mounded dirt around the wound and hope that plant will grow new roots and recover.

The fruits of our labor.  All are from the three gardens.  From top to bottom: Kentucky Wonder, Red Okra, Snow Pea, Ichiban Eggplant, Lemon Cucumber, Midori Cucumber, Wax Bean.

This beautiful red tomato is a German Johnson from Judy's garden.  One of many trio's of GJ's, this one tomato is perhaps 3/4 of a pound.  The larger tomato is probably 1 pound.  Talk about a whopper!

Phil and Terry's Red Okra.  I haven't had any cooked yet but Terry tells me that the okra turn green when cooked.

Funny how this week, both of my gardening partners headed out of town, leaving me with their wonderful veggies to look after and harvest as well.  So I'm up to my ears in summer squash, Cocozel and Magda squash.  Let's not forget all the beans, peas and okra and of course the tomatoes.  I have bags of fresh picked produce in my refrigerator, freezing those that I can't eat that day.  I think it's time to visit my neighbors and pass along all this summertime goodness.

May Update

Has it really been almost two months since my last post?  Most gardeners will know that two months in the garden is a complete life cycle for some plants.  Radishes are ready to harvest in 21-30 days, some squash can be harvested in 50 days.  So have I harvested a bounty of ripe vegetables?  No.  No I haven't.  Why?  Good question.

This is Phil's garden.  The vegetables have flourished including the bionic squash in the back.  His white radishes, (funny, he thought they were broccoli rabe), almost overtook the lower left corner!

This is my garden plot.  The four beds have been seeing some action but nothing as exhilarating as Phil's.  I have been staggering my plantings and some seedlings didn't grow so I've replanted as well.

This is Judy's bed.  Her tomatoes started out as larger seedlings and they are doing quite well.  Her husband installed an irrigation system in the vegetable bed but insisted that she grow asparagus for his labors.  Like mine, with the exception of her tomatoes, all are moving a little slow.










We've all three worked on putting the beds together and helped with loading the compost and mulch on a very long, tiring day almost two months ago.   The only difference amongst the three beds is that Judy and I amended our beds with commercial compost and garden soil whereas Phil used a fine, black composted soil taken from  Judy's back yard.  It all evens out in the end.  We all will enjoy some of Phil and Terry's bounty early and they can enjoy ours when we harvest several weeks from now!

I will grow corn this summer!

I WILL grow corn this summer!

I will GROW corn this summer!

I will grow CORN this summer!

I will grow corn THIS summer!

I will grow corn this SUMMER!

I WILL GROW CORN THIS SUMMER!

I just cannot bear to throw out the extra seedlings that have sprouted when I sow seeds.  Why should it matter that they get thrown into the compost to make rich, black soil?  Because to me, they are my ambition.  They are the promise that something wonderful will grow and develop from my efforts.  It's my ego-garden, my conscience appeased.

Phil read that red plastic mulch increases plant growth for tomatoes and eggplants.  

Of course I'd love to take credit for this chicken mushroom I found in my backyard.  It's a little to old and big to be tasty but it is edible.  And guess what?  It tastes like chicken!  Or so I've been told.

Please feel free to leave comments with your suggestions or thoughts on the garden.  Although this is my blog, I'd still love to hear from you and know what's on your mind.

The Things I Do Now to Make it Easier Next Year!

Yesterday, I had Doug go to the Home Depot and buy 12 more bags of the top soil that was on sale this weekend and 5 more bags of the mushroom compost, each bag to fill one cubid foot.  Each bed received 6 bags of the top soil and two bags of the compost.  It had been raining again and the clay soil was still moist so I didn't want to go too aggressive on the beds and disturb all the clay.  I just opened up each bag and spread the mix over the clumps of clay that were my beds.  I then just lightly tilled the amendments in but not much. 

I am anticipating a delivery of wood mulch tomorrow, Tuesday.  The Ashley's are getting it for us and of course they have first dibs on it.  Whatever is left over I'll just use as a top dressing to what I have now.  It'll be interesting to see how we can get it into the backyard.  We might be able to go through our next door neighbor's yard as that would be easier to pull into and out of. 

So after I laid out the bagged soil I then measured out segments along the timbers.  Theoretically, if I had squared beds and they were each, 8' x 4' INTERIOR, then I would be able to easily mark off one foot segments along each timber and mark those segments with a nail.  But unfortunately, the world is not flat and my beds are not squared, so I just marked 11 inches off from center and tapped in a roofing nail at each segment.  The plan is to tie string from each opposing nail, making a grid within the beds.  It is within those grids that I will plant my seeds or seedlings.  I could probably plant 9-12 radish and beet seeds, but kohlrabi can only take 4 within a square.   Cauliflower is low yield so only one plant per square.  I plan on doing a lot of vertical planting so I need to investigate trellises to install now. 

This is all very hard work.  I might be doing more than need be but my goal is to be prepared and to actually make gardening simpler.  All the hard work is for now but the following years, we won't be messing with timbers and having to fill in the beds from the bottom up.  We'll just amend at the beginning and end of each season, maybe plant rye grass and cover with leaf mulch over winter.  Easy!  And in the early spring, we'll pull out our ready made trellises and just pop in our seeds.  I'm looking forward to those years!

Last weekend was "it".  I had recently posted that it was all or nothing for us Millers and Laniers to finally catch up with the Ashleys.  The timber frames were bolted into place and the toil was "tilled" as best as it could be.  So here are a few photos of the gardeners getting it done.

Almost near the end but not quite.

                                                                Doug and Joe are hard at work while Terry looks on.  She had been up all night long but she joined us later in the day and helped get the garden ready.

   Our other neighbor, Cindy, just came around to see how we were doing.

 

Where's Phil?

We've Made our Beds, Now What?

So today was the day we all hauled ass.  The Ashley's had a two week head start on us, the Lanier's and Miller's, so today was the day us slow pokes got caught up and made our garden beds.  It was a beautiful day this first day of spring, and since the threat of rain is at 70% for Sunday, we knew this was our last shot.  All three gardeners had the tender plant seeds started in pellets, a few had even sprouted.  We are also getting anxious since we need to direct sow seeds usually a minimum of 6 weeks before the first frost which means NOW.   So this morning at 10am Phil comes over and starts laying out his bed.  Then Doug and I joined in, soon followed by Judy Ashley and later in the day, her husband, Joe, and then Phil's wife, Terry. 

 

 This is how our beds are laid out.  I wanted smaller beds while Phil and Judy wanted larger beds for their plots.

It's a community effort, getting all of our beds made.  It started several weeks ago, when Judy and I laid out the initial plots then Judy borrowed her neighbors large tiller and fluffed up the soil.  Doug and Joe will cut and measure and Phil contributes to the construction of the beds.  Phil's wife, Terry, joined the "chain gang" this afternoon and helped to till our beds.  Unfortunately, we didn't have access to the large tiller and the Ashley's small tiller died halfway in to fluffing up the Lanier's bed.  I had two forks and a hoe so with old fashioned reserve, we worked up the soil.  Boy!  There sure is a lot of clay in this soil and our backs ache! 

 Phil working on my beds while Doug and Joe are getting more timber

It was an all day effort so I thought I'd clean out my refrigerator and freezer and invite my gardening friends and next door neighbors to a nosh and drink.  It was a community effort getting the food and drink on the table.  We even had help cleaning up afterward!  The food tasted great maybe better after a hard day of labor.  The kids were playing in the front and back yards, usually tacklling someone.  There were dogs running underfoot and in the case of Skipper, over our feet too! 

All I wanted to do was use up the space we had in the back.  But in the end, I'm getting the best of friends!

Sow the seeds

Two days ago, I soaked my Jiffy peat pellets and dropped in the first seeds.  In a few days, I'll drop a few more as back-up then in a few weeks, maybe two, I'll do more.  My thought is to have a progressive garden, one that gives continually as opposed to the "all at once garden".  We have long, hot summers in Georgia and I'm pretty sure I can drag out the growing season until November.

I'm starting these seeds now:

• Tomatoes: San Marzano, Beefmaster, Brandywine, Sweetie and Beefsteak.  All are indeterminate, (What was I thinking?!)
• Eggplant
• Leeks
• Parsley
• Basil
• Kohlrabi
• Peppers: Poblanos and Sweet Banana

The rest of the seeds that I have to sow can go directly into the soil.  That means I had better get the raised beds going if I want to get them in before the first frost, (mid-April).  I have 16 landscape timbers to lay down in roughly 2, 8x4 beds, about 6 inches high.  I would also like to have a smaller raised bed, maybe made from an old sandbox, to use as a strawberry patch.  I've grown strawberries before and I know what to expect from them.  If not checked, they can take over a garden.  But they do need their own space so why not use what space I have.

Oh, I've shared that large open lot with my backyard neighbors and another family.  Both don't have the yards that get full sun or any sun for that matter.  So I thought I'd share what we have with them.  We each have a plot about 8x24 feet although I've told my friends that they can use more space if need be.  My backyard neighbor and our other friends have good gardening backgrounds so perhaps we can pull off a successful garden this year!

I eagerly await the first cotyledons to push up out of the pellets.  I might celebrate with just a large sigh of relief.   

Oh, and it's raining.  AGAIN!  That means the loose soil that I have in the backyard is too soft to work.  Actually, the backyard neighbor was gracious to lend us use of his tiller and my friend tilled the garden plots several weeks ago.  One bed is already laid out with the timbers and is ready to go.  That means I need to hustle, or rather, Doug needs to hustle getting the timbers up.  We'll get there.

A Box of Ambition

In this shoe box is my garden for the next 9 months.  I have vegetables, a few flowers and some herbs.  I'm going to make raised beds, using kits which include stakes and corner components to make building the beds easier.  I'm not going to invest a lot of time and backache tilling the soil.  It's rather rocky and there are way too many dead weeds and leaves sprawling along the top of it, hence the raised bed idea.  I have to think about irrigation.

I have a plot of soil and rocks sitting at the rear of the backyard.  It's really large so I've invited a few friends to parts of the lot for their own gardening ambitions.  I hope that we can all work together putting up a fence to keep the dogs and deers out as well as set up the irrigation.  We may even seed swap as I have a boxful and so does one of the other community gardeners.  I found a few Asian vegetables such as daikon and cucumber.  I'm excited that I found a hollyhock that will bloom this season.  I'm not sure if I want to grow sunflowers but I do want to grow amaranth this season to help feed the birds and keep them out of the vegetables. 

The weather is warming up.  I've been told that I can expect a frost as late as early April but I'm sure the ground won't freeze again.  That's good news for the peas and beans.  I just need to start the more tender plants indoors such as the tomatoes, all four varieties.  I've got a few table/slicers such as brandywine and beefmaster, then a san marzano and of course a sweet grape tomato variety too.  I'm going to have a lot of tomatoes this year.

Should I grow strawberries this year?  I've got 4 raspberry plants to dig in and I'm entertaining the thought of blackberries.  Why not!  But no blueberries.  Penny likes to eat the wood from the plant.  I don't know why but she did when I tried several years ago in Tulsa.  I think I need to plant the berry plants after I've installed the fence.  That way I can tie the plant limbs to the fence so it can grow as in an espalier.

Like I said, I have a box of ambition.