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#1
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
hello!
we just moved to a house that has a small front and back yard. i have never grown anything before in my life and am now trying to grow some vegetables. i bought a pack of carrot seeds. some of the jargon really confuse me. at the back of the packet it states, "when seedlings have 3 leaves, thin to stand 2 inches apart". the term "thin"...does that mean that i have to slowly pull the seedlings from the earth and then transplant them to another part? then the instructions continued,"plant every 3 weeks until two months before the season's end." what does this mean? does it mean that i divide the seeds into three ways and grow each part every three weeks? or something else? can i grow them in containers? any advise is gratefully appreciated. layman terms please. -goosy |
#2
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
at the back of the packet it states, "when seedlings have 3 leaves,
thin to stand 2 inches apart". the term "thin"...does that mean that i have to slowly pull the seedlings from the earth and then transplant them to another part? This means that you should reduce the number of plants to maintain a minimum distance between the remaining plants. If you fail to maintain a minimum distance, then you will end up with stunted roots (carrots). then the instructions continued,"plant every 3 weeks until two months before the season's end." what does this mean? does it mean that i divide the seeds into three ways and grow each part every three weeks? or something else? All of the seeds that you plant at a given time will be ready for harvest at about the same time. If you want a continuous harvest throughout the season, plant a new set of seeds every few weeks. You stop two months before the season's end (usually the first frost), because seeds that you plant after that date won't have time to make it to maturity. can i grow them in containers? You could possibly grow a limited number of carrots in a deep enough container, but you'll probably get better results in the ground. Make sure your soil is well tilled as carrots don't do well in hard compacted soil. |
#4
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
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#5
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
Yes, thin them means to pluck them out of the earth to allow room for the
other carrots to grow to their normal size and straight. Once you pull them though, you can't transplant them back or you may end up with a twisted mess of carrots. You can grow them in pots or window boxes, especially the smaller/shorter varieties (in window boxes). You can grow any size in larger deeper pots. When they say to plant every 3 weeks, they mean that you CAN plant new seeds so you have a succession of carrots throughout the growing season. When the first ones planted are harvested or eaten, you'd have more growing from a second planting. I don't bother with this. I just scatter the seeds over an area in the garden and cover with a thin layer of potting mix - 1/4" (doesn't form a crust on top). Water them twice to three times a week (if you're in a hot region) and watch them grow. You can check on some of the larger carrot tops to see when they can be picked. I usually check with my finger around the top of the carrot to see how fat it is. If it feels small, cover the area back up with dirt so the top of the carrot is not exposed. I eat some carrots when they are small and just continue to pick the largest ones first throughout the season. Mine lasted all summer and into the fall. Make sure the soil that you plant them in is soft and not hard clay. You may have to dig out and replace with some good compost and top soil. In pots, there is no issue with the soil. I would mix potting soil, soil conditioner (finely ground bark) and compost. Use a well balanced fertilizer such as 10-10-10 and liquid fertilize once a month. My favorite is fish emulsion, but you can use whatever you like. Hope this helps. Penny Zone 7b - North Carolina "Goose" wrote in message m... hello! we just moved to a house that has a small front and back yard. i have never grown anything before in my life and am now trying to grow some vegetables. i bought a pack of carrot seeds. some of the jargon really confuse me. at the back of the packet it states, "when seedlings have 3 leaves, thin to stand 2 inches apart". the term "thin"...does that mean that i have to slowly pull the seedlings from the earth and then transplant them to another part? then the instructions continued,"plant every 3 weeks until two months before the season's end." what does this mean? does it mean that i divide the seeds into three ways and grow each part every three weeks? or something else? can i grow them in containers? any advise is gratefully appreciated. layman terms please. -goosy |
#6
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
beginning veg gardeners start out with a tomato plant or 2. Very
rewarding to taste the difference between home-grown and supermarket fruit. I never brought a carrot to maturity. The little 'uns are *so* tasty. I "thin" 'til they're all gone! Tomatoes, peppers, and beans are easy with plenty of web info. Herbs are very rewarding, particularly the perennials. Although fresh basil is a great treat. You're in for a good time, f'r sure. :-) I agree on the tomatos.. there is a huge differance... however.. a word of advice: plan your garden BEFORE getting the plants.... I didn't, and now I have too much stuff... "hey, this looks good! so does this!! wow! this would be fun to grow!!" didn't get some of the zuccini plants in because of space constraints... Never had any luck with carrots... maybe I'll try again next year... email: daveallyn at bwsys dot net please respond in this NG so others can share your wisdom as well! |
#7
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
"Dave Allyn" (Dave Allyn) writes:
plan your garden BEFORE getting the plants.... I didn't, and now I have too much stuff... "hey, this looks good! so does this!! wow! this would be fun to grow!!" didn't get some of the zuccini plants in because of space constraints... "Zucchini plants"??? Unless you've got a large family, enjoy the feeling of being up to your eyeballs in zucchini, or really, really, REALLY like zucchini, 1 or 2 is enough. I once planted four. Big mistake. After so many zucchini salads, zucchini breads, stir-fried zucchini, etc, I'm still recovering. -- Darryl Okahata DISCLAIMER: this message is the author's personal opinion and does not constitute the support, opinion, or policy of Agilent Technologies, or of the little green men that have been following him all day. |
#8
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
On Wed, 14 May 2003 18:28:11 GMT, "Dave Allyn"
(Dave Allyn) wrote: beginning veg gardeners start out with a tomato plant or 2. Very rewarding to taste the difference between home-grown and supermarket fruit. I never brought a carrot to maturity. The little 'uns are *so* tasty. I "thin" 'til they're all gone! Tomatoes, peppers, and beans are easy with plenty of web info. Herbs are very rewarding, particularly the perennials. Although fresh basil is a great treat. You're in for a good time, f'r sure. :-) I agree on the tomatos.. there is a huge differance... however.. a word of advice: plan your garden BEFORE getting the plants.... I didn't, and now I have too much stuff... "hey, this looks good! so does this!! wow! this would be fun to grow!!" didn't get some of the zuccini plants in because of space constraints... This is 2nd-year advice. :-) The first year is when you discover some of the limits of space, labor, and appetite. I always wonder about Q's asking "how much to plant for a family of 4?" Depends on how much they like tomatoes or zucchini with every meal, if there's an on-site person willing to can/preserve the overage, and whether the dog likes lima beans. |
#9
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
hi,
thank you for your posts. it is greatly appreciated. some websites state that my area is in zone 5 and some state that it is in zone 6a. my next question is when is the best time to plant the carrot seeds? thanks again! -goosy |
#10
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
Goose said:
hi, thank you for your posts. it is greatly appreciated. some websites state that my area is in zone 5 and some state that it is in zone 6a. my next question is when is the best time to plant the carrot seeds? Most likely, ASAP You can start planting carrots 3 weeks before your average last hard frost (freeze) date. You should be able to plant up to 2 months after that date , but as the weather warms up it can be difficult to keep the carrot seeds from drying out. -- Pat in Plymouth MI Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced. (attributed to Don Marti) |
#11
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
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#12
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
"Zucchini plants"??? Unless you've got a large family, enjoy the
feeling of being up to your eyeballs in zucchini, or really, really, REALLY like zucchini, 1 or 2 is enough. I once planted four. Big mistake. After so many zucchini salads, zucchini breads, stir-fried zucchini, etc, I'm still recovering. I was going to get two, but now I might be able to sqeeze in one.... Beginner mistake: A few years ago (before planting my own) I saw a guy on the way to a farm stand with lots of zucchini in the bed of his truck. I thought "I love Zuc!" I bought three of the biggest ones I could find at a quarter each.. I think they were just over 2 feet in length.. took them home to my wife and said look at the zucchini's I just got!" she was then nice enough to tell me the differance between the young, tender, small ones, and the large, tough, good for mostly making bread or stuffing kind...... live and learn... email: daveallyn at bwsys dot net please respond in this NG so others can share your wisdom as well! |
#13
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
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#14
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
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#15
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advice needed for a beginner gardener
Goose said:
arms up it can be difficult to keep the carrot seeds from drying out. hi, does the time of the day matter in planting the seeds? I don't believe so. Time of day makes more of a difference with transplants, which are best planted in the evening or on a very cloudy day so that they have a chance to 'settle in' without having to deal with the stress of bright sunlight. -- Pat in Plymouth MI Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced. (attributed to Don Marti) |
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