A 10 x 10 question

My FIL and MIL have moved on into an "independent living facility". They've got an allotted 10 x 10 gardening patch :) Me and Michael (DH) have offered to help them plant and do a weekly weeding for them. We're happy to build any vertical structures needed. Hoping the gardening will help them both get out in the garden a bit and hopefully produce some nice stuff to share in their new complex.

We are thinking 3 tomato plants and just what else? What else can we help them plant vertically to give them a nice veggie patch? No squash - they don't like it. They're zone 6 maybe 7 due to all the high rises around them :(

Yes, it might be nice if anyone has any "showy" type ideas - we'd like to help them to make a "hit" in their new community. Thanks for any ideas!

Dea

What about small melons that can be trellised....the Tigger melon from Baker Creek is under 1 pound and should lend itself to trellising.

You can also rotate crops with cool season stuff (peas, lettuce, green onions, radishes) being pulled up and composted..(will there be a community compost bin?) summer stuff like tomatoes, peppers, cukes, pole beans, can go in next, with things like carrots and summer lettuce underneath.

Broccoli and turnips do well as fall plantings after the tomatoes and beans have run their course and can stand frost.

Go to the Watchdog and order them some seed catalogs...(some places ship transplants too) Seed Savers Exchange and Baker Creek Heirlooms will have some really off the wall stuff. Johnny's has great varieties...Pinetree Seeds sells small quantities.

When my tomato transplants get ready, I'll send you a few...maybe a bi-color, a nice salad size and a big old fashioned tasting red.

Oh thanks Mel :) Great ideas and melons would surely be a hit !!!

Trotting off to Baker Seed right now :)

Dea

Hi Dea - I have TONS of seeds both veggie and flower, before you order I can check my stash since I am just down the road a bit. I am also going to have tomato transplants- around 20 varieties- if you or the in-law's would like any just holler! Between Jill (critterologist) and I we could help you start whatever you come up with!

Bell Pepper would be a good one to share. What about herbs? Dill is nice an showy:) A nasturtium plant is showy and yummy!

Sounds like a fun project and I am sure they will appreciate all your help and input!

-Kim

Thanks Kim :) It's going to be a fun project and I appreciate the offer! We're going to visit with them tomorrow to plot it out and see what they want to do.

What fun!!

Dea

Oh, and how about one tall and beautiful Okra plant for the Center. The flowers are related to the Hibiscus and simply gorgeous! I had people stopping by all summer long asking me if it eas a rare tropical plant! (Eating the okra and greens is such a bonus, too!)

Maybe some colorful ornamental peppers would like nice in the front corners? If they are not into HOT peppers, the Sweet Pickles and Ornamental Sweet Cherry Peppers are adorable!

While I second okra - but ONLY if they enjoy eating it - my vote would be for Scarlet Runner Beans. They grow quickly to cover any trellis or tepee, attract hummingbirds, & both the flowers & the beans are delicious eating.

I'd start with some nice early peas to get things moving along; you can pull them out as the warm weather crops come in. And don't forget herbs! You can bury the more invasive ones in pots to keep them from taking over the garden. Basil's great if you've got tomatoes, and parsley, cilantro, sage, thyme, chives & rosemary.

What about a teepee tower in the middle with beans and maybe cukes on it? I guess we have to wait and hear what they actually want - LOL.

We're so used to a big garden, so this will be a really fun vertical project. Can't wait to see them tomorrow and share all your ideas.

Thanks so much everyone!

Dea

How about green beans up a trellis in the back--someone there is bound to like them. A cherry tomato variety could always be thrown into a salad.

.. 'Howdy' Dea (& Michael) ..

Remember .. veggies can indeed be grown 'down' also!!! And .. they don't necessarily have to take up valuable space in the 10 X 10 garden patch these folks are allotted, either!

Such as: some d-lishus strawberries, 'cherry' tomatoes, and the 'bush/compact' type cucumbers just to name a few. There's also some new 'compact type' runner beans & early peas! Implementing well-lined hanging baskets or better still: some of the new hanging 'pouches' ...

If there is a small deck or patio available to them: maybe these folks can put such, to very good use also .. and still not 'take up' any of that wonderful 'sit & visit' space either!

I'll be trying out some of the hanging pouches this spring on our front porch. I can imagine that these grandyunkins here .. will have a ball .. going to fetch themselves a strawberry or t'mater within a lil hands reaching distance. .. hee

- Magpye

I'll post a drawing of the plans this weekend - great fun for them! So happy to see the excitement on their faces :)

Dea

.. Howdy Dea ..

How's the plans for your in-laws 'garden patch' .. coming along -?-

Been anxious to see what's brewing ...

- Magpye

I was thinking a tall sunflower in the middle might be fun. I can just see the neighborhood...

What do you suppose that is in the middle?

A beanstalk?

Naw, It's a sunflower!

Wonder what kind of sunflower...

We'll know when it blooms.

Suppose it's the kind birds like to eat?

Dunno, we'll see I bet.

Wonder how tall that sunflower is gonna get!

I'll bet ya a cup of coffee it gets taller than that 5 year old tree over there.

What fun that would be for them. If, of course, they all visit together.

Dea thanks for this post. I've been watching it. My garden space grows less and less each year. I really want to make the most of it.

I'll post pics when I get home tonight of the seeds we've decided on - thanks for the nudge :) We've been without a pump this weekend so being rural - no water, no toilet flushing, no washing dishes or clothes - yuk !!!

Dea