It is seed ordering time and we already had a veggie growing question on another thread. So lets start chatting about what we plan to grow for our tables this year. Jump in even if you grow a single tomato in a pot.
Here is a cucumber I grew several years ago, Pearl, it had a mild flavor, thin skin, very tasty.
I was thinking the same thing my self. Time to start a Veggie Garden thread. Each year our Veggie Garden gets better. Something always seems to interrupt us but it has been mildly successful.
That looks like a nice harvest. Things always taste better when you grow it your self. And I always wait to pick just before cooking, for the freshest I can get.
I want to try Strawberry Spinach this year, and of course I'll be planting my Oregon Sugar snap peas. It got really hot fast last year and peas like it cool, so not a long harvest last year, and I was not up to picking them on a regular bases which didn't help.
Well--my "new" bed never got past the point of all the evergreens being cut down and stumps dug up.
I sure had hoped it would be all done by now with all the soils in there "cooking" all winter.
I know the neighbor in the house behind me will get back to it in better weather--
probably not til early spring. He has been trying to burn up all the piles of firewood
sitting behind the bed. He has a fire pit just behind my shed. It sits on top of the
concrete slab that covers the County sewer drain. Very convenient.....
This was to be--will be my new veggie bed. Don't know yet what, exactly, I will
be planting there besides tomatoes? Maybe some Green Peppers--Bush Beans....
would like to try Leeks (any of you done these??) .
Time will tell...This was taken in November....
Gita
Gita, I sure hope he gets it done for you in time to plant.
I am still using my 2 tomato boxes that I bought in 2006, I get more then enough tomatoes out of 4 plants.
Chris, Love those Earth Boxes. I think this is finally the year to get one.
Gita, That looks like enough room for plenty of veg. Leeks, I saw row upon row at Montecello, looking so architectural. My CSA farmer grows them and the taste is incredible. He let's them get bigger than I would, sometimes they look like small Louisville Sluggers. I'd try to plant enough to take some earlier and some later. Good luck. Oh, and if I ever get a garden like your's, I'd try artichokes, the one that fruits the first year, maybe purple. Ok, I'm done...
Gita, has he promised to construct the new sides for your bed? Bummer. If he can at least do that by April you can still get your topsoil in and plant it this year.
My seeds from Johnny's already came ! I sort of have my little garden planned but I have been growing potatos and don't know where they are going this year.
We need a corn grower to come help Cris pick a variety (the not ladygardener one)
Sally you could try growing your potatoes in barrels this year it's fun and pretty productive.
LOL Sally, It will be easy to get us 2 C's mixed up.
I don't grow corn, to small a garden and there is a farm not far from us that grows the best corn, always sweet and juicy. We make a whole meal out of just Corn on the cob.
Pam, I got my boxes from Gardeners Supply, before I ever heard of the "Earth Box". They are a good investment.
Sally--
I have gotten so many different suggestions on what to do with the base of this bed--
I am all confused.....Jill just chimed in on my original Post in the Soil and composting.
She thought that putting plywood at the bottom, slightly raised, (Yea? HOW?)
Thought I had it all figured out--but now people giving their opinions, which I appreciate,
BUT----it is getting a bit complicated.....
I plan to pay for all materials. I figured that I will need 25-- 4x4x8.PT for the edging. $6.97 each.
I like the ones from Lowes better. The edges are beveled. HD's are just cut straight.
The price is the same.
The Composting bin area can wait.....No hurry!
WOW Gita that is a lot of lumber.
Ric will have to figure out a new pattern to our Veggie Garden. We will be putting the new GH 10 X 12 in the lower middle of the Veggie Garden. We don't use the whole area as it is so we will still have plenty of space for Veggies. We will just have to figure out how to plant around the GH There will be a path down the middle to the GH separating the Veggie Garden into two sides. The only permanent Veggies I have are the Asparagus Bed and the Horseradish.
BTW would anyone like Horseradish starters?
Holly, No thanks on horseradish but the new garden layout sounds fun.The GH and path will give it some actual DESIGN which I think will make it attractive.
GITA- next time you work during the Ravens--wander out to the books and look thru for large planter boxes. What Jill described may be within your guy's abilities, just not what you had planned or can envision without seeing plans. It wouldn't have to be real tall.
I talked to Mike at work yesterday. He knows garden and also has a lawn and landscape business.
At HD--he is, currently, supervisor of the Flooring Dept.
I think I will let him do this job. The neighbor just did not take this too seriously.
I had hoped to have this all done and filled before winter came.....
Mike thinks I should use 4x6's standing on edge for the sides. I'll have to see which is less $$$.
He still needs to come over and take a look at the bed to see what can be done.
Right now,at this time, I am leaning towards building the bed --then filling it half way
with soil and then going (for now) with the containers partially buried into the soil in there
for stability and temp. control
All this may change...we will see......we will see....
Holly--The length of this bed will be 16'x 4'--which will include the sides.
That is two lengths of 4x4's-- 5 layers high.
First layer gets buried into the soil--so--4 other layers = 16" high. x two sides plus 2 ends=25 pcs.
25x $7.00 = $175.
I am leaving the remaining 5' at the end to build my compost bin. No hurry on that.
I will re-read Jill's post to see if I can understand it better...
Gita
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That will be a nice size Veggie Garden for you Gita.
Gorgeous Cherokee Purple tomato from last summer. Seeds from Gita
That looks so good. I found an envelope that still has about 6 Potato Top Tomato seeds in it. Hope they will grow for me the were such good tomatoes
Thanks Sally for opening the forum.
Drat Chris - I promised myself I would NOT look at new
additions. (Got a ton of seeds left over or garnished)
and you go talking about Strawberry Spinach & Pearl
Cukes and you just Know I had to check them out.
DH is going to throttle me. I already have to replace my
herbs - had this HUGE gallon sized bag stuffed with
all kinds of herbs & it has gone "poof" from the freezer.
Can't find it anywhere in the Sunroom or the potting area
either. I know some of my mints may come back but....
Have started bleaching out pots & containers and will
probably get sprouts, spinach & some lettuce started
in the sunroom.
Gita, are you sure you want to put the compost pile
right next to where you're planting? Compost can get pretty
smelly and buggy in the warmer months. We actually had to
move our compost set-up cause it was too close to our
screened in porch, it got downright unpleasant trying to relax
out there on a summer night.
Having said all that I would appreciate suggestions on corn.
What type have pthers had success growing in South Jersey
soil zone 7b.
Thanks Cris
Sorry Cris (without an h) LOL. I am such an enabler, little horns and a tail starting to sprout.
Hope you find your herb seeds. I need to take inventory soon, I like growing different basils to add to my salad greens. Nothing like getting that little zap of Lemon basil, yum yum.
Last year I started chopping up some basil, mixing it with balsamic vinager, a dash of olive oil and cropped tomato. I would just spoon it onto snack crackers or those flatbread crackers, some cheese on the side too. Now that is good eats !
Cris--
I have never had a problem with my compost smelling bad.....
It is NOT supposed to.
So far--I have been using the "Earth machine" composter. Because of the way it is
constructed, you cannot turn the compost--and have to disassemble the the whole thing
to get the finished compost out.
Because of all this--I call it the S.E.M.------Stupid Earth Machine.
It is getting brittle now and cracking. I am enamored with creating an open compost
pile--which many people consider the best.
It is pretty far from my house and patio. At least--far enough.
Here is my SEM by my shed.....Very dysfunctional!
Gita
I agree with Gita about the compost pile never having a bad oder. Just a real earthy smell when it is turned. No meat or dairy can go into the pile of home compost. That is what will cause an oder and draw animals to it. Maybe a rotting potato, but you would have to have a lot of those in there to keep you from getting close to the pile.
I have 2 compost piles going at the same time and never had an issue with a smell.
(Gita, you might save the lid of the SEM, unless it's cracking too, it could be handy just as a bit of cover for your new, nice compost, something to keep the sun off. I know it won't be the right size to really cover but it'll help in summer so it doesn't dry out as much)
Sally--
The lid is thicker--and still in one piece. the rim of the upper part is cracked in a couple of
places--as is the mid-line where the whole thing comes apart....
Perhaps a 4x4 square piece of thin plywood would do the same thing????
I can always get that at work.....
The Compost pile project is not so important to get done asap----time next summer for that.
If this SEM goes--I will have a nice, concrete pad to put some pots on to grow things...
Just dreaming........
g.
Yup a square of plywood a little smaller tha n your bin area would be nice. I did that once and it keep the top moist instead of having a foot of dry leaves refusing to decay.
Cris there is some sweet corn discussion here in Veg forum
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1148068/
No meat or dairy although tons of tomato skins once I started canning.
The compost was in Full sun 10+ hrs a day and since it was one of the
hottest summers in a long time I rarely went out to turn the soil over.
In other words, probably my fault it smelled & the reason it so attracted
flies. Oh well, I'll try to be better about it this year & the fact that its now
50+ feet away from the house is even better.
