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Old 24-06-2010, 10:16 PM posted to triangle.gardens
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Default The garden this year

It's been an odd year so far.

It's my second year of container gardening on my deck. I reduced my
plantings by half after last year. No cabbages or brussel sprouts
because the cabbage worms ate them to the bone. Fewer tomato and
pepper plants just because they got out of hand last year.

I plant carrots and onions in mortar tubs. Last year I planted the
seeds in rows and found it a pain in the ass to thin them so this year
I scattered the seeds across the tub. I must've sowed more seeds than
I realized, because the tubs are wall to wall seedlings and thinning
is even worse than last year.

Onion sets simply died, no reason. Likewise Swiss chard. I don't use
insecticides and I fertilize with Miracle-Gro every two weeks. No idea
why things died. I'm beginning to suspect the city water.

Tried some Bak Choi and found out the cabbage bugs love that too, so
that went on the compost pile.

I have a wren nesting in one of the tomato containers, so I have to be
careful to not flood the nest when I water.

I had a couple of nice sunflowers, about five feet tall, staked and
held with wire ties. One of the ties cut into a growing stalk until
the stalk just broke. No more wire ties.

I'm doing cucumbers in whiskey barrels. So far, so good. Saw my first
cucumber today.

Once again, I planted lettuce too late and it went to seed when the
heat hit it. Gotta get it in earlier next year.

I have one egg plant. Not that I like egg plant, but it was something
different. Lots of foliage and flowers, but so far no egg plants. I'm
curious as to how the plant will support the fruit when they appear.

My one artichoke that made it through the winter is again putting out
lush foliage, but still no sign of artichokes.

I have strawberries in a 4' plastic wading pool. They didn't amount to
much last year, so I pulled up all the plants and composted them. I
was ready to plant something else there this year, when all the plants
came back from the roots. We got a half dozen strawberries before the
squirrels discovered them.
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Old 25-06-2010, 08:31 PM posted to triangle.gardens
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Default The garden this year

On Thu, 24 Jun 2010 16:16:46 -0400 in wrote:

I plant carrots and onions in mortar tubs. Last year I planted the
seeds in rows and found it a pain in the ass to thin them so this year
I scattered the seeds across the tub. I must've sowed more seeds than
I realized, because the tubs are wall to wall seedlings and thinning
is even worse than last year.


You could try thinning with scissors.

Onion sets simply died, no reason. Likewise Swiss chard. I don't use
insecticides and I fertilize with Miracle-Gro every two weeks. No idea
why things died. I'm beginning to suspect the city water.


I suspect you're over fertilizing.
Every inexpensive moisture control potting mix I've found has a fair amount
of slow release fertilizer mixed in.
The other problem might be pH. The really cheap stuff from walmart looked
to be mostly the dregs from production of pine bark mulch, which would
make the mix a tad too sour for chard or onion.

Tried some Bak Choi and found out the cabbage bugs love that too, so
that went on the compost pile.


Territorial Seed and Johnny's Selected Seed are pretty good about
providing genus and species information on the vegetables.
The cabbage loopers will like any Brassica other than the black mustard
that's trying to invade my lawn.

I'm doing cucumbers in whiskey barrels. So far, so good. Saw my first
cucumber today.


Ugggh, I've been picking about 10lbs of cucumbers every other day
for the past month. Remind me in the spring and I'll give you
a couple Diamante seedlings. They are a pickling cucumber that
have produced very early, been very tasty, and remain tasty when
they get way too big.

Once again, I planted lettuce too late and it went to seed when the
heat hit it. Gotta get it in earlier next year.


Plant in August or September for a fall crop.
(But soil temperature needs to be under 70F for it to germinate).
Remind me and I can provide seed for 3 romaine varieties.
They looked really promising until a cloven hooved rat ate them.

Anyhoo for my garden this year.

I finally planted green beans the first weekend of June.
This has led to an immediate battle of wits with the local woodchuck.
A bag of hair from the barbershop appears to have discouraged a return
for now.

I was going to plant sweet corn, but have decided that it isn't worth
dealing with a wife, inlaws, and co-workers that will just throw out
an ear with any earworm damage.

I overplanted on peppers. I have 24 pepper plants consuming about
40 row feet of space. The first picking from them was today.

Tomatoes, I planted 4 brandywines and 4 mortgage lifters. One of the
mortgage lifters looks like it's going to croak, but the rest
seem to be doing pretty well. Fruit has set, but has not ripened
yet.

I have a 25' row of okra that I started picking yesterday.
I have a 25' row of zucchini which actually isn't very productive
right now, but seems to be perking up after I sprayed with bifenthrin
to kill the squash bugs. The Zuchs are 3 different varieties,
Raven, Cavilli, and Parthenon. The Cavilli is almost a white
zuch, but has proven to attract squash bugs like crazy and go
into decline very quickly once the squash bugs set in.
Raven has been insanely productive when the bees can get out.
The Parthenon has been consistently productive when it's raining
too much for the bees (Parthenon and Cavilli are parthenocarpic
varieties).

I have about 30 row feet of cucumbers. I have 4 vines of slicing
cucumbers which are pretty prolific right now, but the flavor has
been underwhelming. I have about 12 plants of a parthenocarpic
variety called 'Rocky'. They are cute little cucumbers and prolific,
but a tad bitter. I have about 12 plants of a parthenocarpic variety
called 'Diamante'. They are very prolific, very tasty, and the
most painful to pick cucumbers I've ever had.

And I have a 25' row of Naples Long squash and Rumbo Squash,
along with a couple volunteer Rumbo squash where the pumpking patch
was last year. The volunteer Rumbos are doing well. The ones with
seed purchased this year aren't doing so well. The Naples Long are
being insanely prolific and I have a bad feeling that I'm going to
have a LOT of 40lb "long pumpkins" this fall.

Other things of interest...
3 varieties of greenbeans and one variety of wax bean. Of note, woodchucks do
not seem to like the plants of Festina bush green beans.
For giggles I planted chickpeas and lentils on two beds that needed a legume.
And I have a bed of melons.
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Old 25-06-2010, 10:47 PM posted to triangle.gardens
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Default The garden this year

Woodchucks in the triangle?

"kddaniel" wrote in message
...

I finally planted green beans the first weekend of June.
This has led to an immediate battle of wits with the local woodchuck.
A bag of hair from the barbershop appears to have discouraged a return
for now.


Other things of interest...
3 varieties of greenbeans and one variety of wax bean. Of note,
woodchucks do
not seem to like the plants of Festina bush green beans.



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Old 26-06-2010, 04:05 AM posted to triangle.gardens
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Default The garden this year

We are harvesting the first tomatoes, eggplants, and squash of the
season. Last year our garden was hit hard by Late Blight, so we are
keeping our fingers crossed for this year.

Cucumber vines look healthy but no cukes are large enough to pick.

Basil looks lovely. Heard an item on NPR about downy mildew, a
fast-spreading blight which kills basil. Frightening.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/s...ryId=128061773

Sweet peppers coming along but no harvest yet.

The weeds are doing especially well this year.

Daniel B. Martin


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Old 26-06-2010, 02:42 PM posted to triangle.gardens
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Default The garden this year

On Fri, 25 Jun 2010 16:47:09 -0400 in Sandie Hudson wrote:
Woodchucks in the triangle?


I've seen them in Hillsborough and Wake Forest.
A co-worker is having a hell of a time with one around
Falls Lake.




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Old 26-06-2010, 05:13 PM posted to triangle.gardens
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Default The garden this year

On Fri, 25 Jun 2010 16:47:09 -0400, "Sandie Hudson"
wrote:

Woodchucks in the triangle?


I used to see one in the woods around my house. Haven't seen him in
years, though.
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