Lets talk Veggie Gardening

The asparagus ferns usually persist pretty well and turn lovely golden tan. Well, unless they break where you have actual snowfall, in PA, LOL. Plus if you leave the ferns, it helps remind you not to walk or dig there. Mine hadn't done well, and I sort of gave up, but my one 'bush' that was hanging on, did much better this year after generous organic material piled up last fall. It even fought off the dreaded spotted asparagus beetles, unprecedented! Surely doc would have told me that if I had asked years ago.

Sally. Everything gets beat down with our wet snow falls. That is why I don't get excited about leaving perennial seed heads on for winter interest, by spring there is a real mess to clean up the beds. In stead of gently raking out the leaves I have to fight with broken down flower stalks. Not fun!
Holly, I took out my water hyacinths from the pond and scattered them around the Asparagus & rhubarb, thinking that that will put some goodies back in the soil.

I took two yard carts of debris out of the garden and have several more to come out. When I said that I had weeded the asparagus bed and cleaned it up, that was once in the spring 2yrs ago then last fall and last spring I haven't touched it for most of this summer so I'm doing another good weeding right now. Just those couple of weedings have made such a big difference I can't imagine how well they will grow once I get the veggie garden well cleaned. This is the first time in years that I can walk between the Asparagus bed and the fence. One of those completely ignored areas.

Hi, I just saw all the asparagus posts! It is funny because we have our first raised bed full of 3 varieties of asparagus and this is our first season too.

I happened to have just asked an asparagus grower what we should do and he said not to cut them back until they have died back, so we are just leaving them alone for now.

Wind, I remembered the picture you posted of your asparagus bed, you must remember to post a picture before you harvest next spring so we can all drool.
I wonder how many will be planning a new veggie garden next spring with the economy the way it is? My garden does not make a big dent in the grocery bill but does put a bit of verity on the table, and I know where and how it is grown and all organic.
Have you looked at canned mushrooms lately? I was very shocked to see they are a product of China or Indonesia ! And we were just in the top mushroom grower area this spring. Now whats up with that? Even the can that says Penna Dutch mushrooms!

Ric, Tried for years to get me to Veggie garden but with a job 4 kids and the animals there was never time. First he tried tilling and planting and tried to get me and the kids to weed. Then he tried tilling, planting and weeding and tried to get me to harvest. Then he tried tilling, planting, weeding, harvesting and tried to get me to can. Then he gave up. LOL
It's only been the last couple of years that I have taken an interest in the Veggie garden and we are both working on getting it cleaned up. In the past we would clean up a small area and grow a few pumpkins and gourds or make a nursery for a few plants. Last spring we had about 3/4 of it cleared out. We planted a few things but didn't do very well, with the ground hog eating the Sweet potatoes and the Squash bugs getting the pumpkins and gourds. We did get some tomatoes and peppers and a good bit of Asparagus but still didn't take the time to really care for the Veggie garden. But every year we are gaining on it and as we finish up the yard projects we should have more time for it. Here is a picture from last spring. You can see how bad it is around the edges.

I have decided that there is a point where a veggie crop is so small it isn't cost effective. Or maybe the veggie garden in total too small. It does take some specialized care. Or I am just veggie-capped. LOL
I do have hope for the asparagus now. Green beans are pretty good bet. Swiss chard--I can sometime get but other years it tanks on me??? I have a good row of baby spinach to overwinter. Potatos, easy and not much work. Onions, I have bad luck. Okra, can do.
Fresh raspberries, yes pays off if you like them. Blueberries, easy if you keep the birds off.

So yes, I am still trying to help out the budget with veg gardening, just not sure how much it helps. I earn about 50 cents an hour growing my own veg.

Lady, you ask if anyone is considering having a vegetable garden in order to help the pocketboook. Yes. I just asked John why he is going to plant one next year and he answered that he knows how I love fresh veggies and my past endeavors haven't produced very much at all. The main things that I am interested in are tomatoes and green peppers. Depending on how much of an area he is planning to work will determine how much and what we plant.

My parents always had a good size garden each year. One of my earliest recollections is working in the garden with my granddad. Nothing quite so tasty is something fresh out of the ground. I especially loved radishes.

I am sure that we will be here asking questions when the time to plant comes.

Ruby

Ruby, I can't get through the summer without planting tomatoes, even when I was so sick I planted tomatoes, but in containers so I could take care of them over the summer. I only plant about 4 plants, I love fresh tomatoes right off the plant and only process the leftover tomatoes for the winter.
Green pole beans always do good for me and are easier to pick standing up. I also find if I put down several layers of newspaper between the rows, or cut a hole and plant throught the newspaper and cover the paper with dry fall leaves or grass clippings, it cuts down on the weeding. I do put down a soaker hose before I put down the newspaper.

Ric built a bean pole tepee but a nasty wind storm took it down and we never did bother to pick the beans. LOL
Lady I use old carpet between my rows and also under my vines. Doesn't look very nice but makes working in the garden easier.

Holly, the Old Carpet sounds like a good idea for a large garden. I have a very small patch and Hubby tills the whole area up in the spring. So in the fall I pull out the soaker hose and the newspaper composts over the winter and gets all tilled in the spring.

Just want to share this post I found very interesting
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/p.php?pid=5734252
discussing root knot nematodes in veggies. I've seen bumps on bean roots and wondere d fi they were the microrhizzae or something else. This thread asks that question. This post describes RKN problems. It all seem to fit with my experience of not being able to grow good bell peppers, while the Banan type this year did great. and a few other anecdotal observation in my garden.

Hello, all.
Well, I had a very small veggie garden this year and it was okay. The "Pearl Hybrid" cukes did come up and they had lovely leaves and white fruit. They had the most interesting coils and tendrils, and I had fun helping them reach and grab the vertical support. They would twist around like rope!! However, the cukes were coarse and bitter in taste and texture, and the seeds were hard. I don't think these were meant for salds but perhaps for pickling? I didn't like them fresh. They didn't keep well in the fridge.

The Celebrity tomatoes were gorgeous and the bounty was plentiful from 3 plants only. We really enjoyed the tangy country flavor. I certainly will get those again next year!! The Romas were sickly and misshapened. I don't know what was wrong with them but they seemed to rot as soon as they ripened. Yuck. Probably a disease or some kind of bad seed?? I had problems with Gil's All purpose seeds, too. They were stunted and died.

The cabbage that my son brought home from science class....well, something happend to it and next I looked, it was gone. Then, my in-laws visited and when I looked again, lo, and behold, another cabbage was there!! I think they secretly replaced it, as I found a label in there and it looked different from the other one. It's still out there. I wonder if the bunnies are going to jump it or what. The head is about 6 inches in diameter as of this post, and a lovely green.

What I wanted to do but didn't, was to have more cool weather stock. I have a bunch of seeds for greens (Red Russian Kale, Southern Giant mustard, etc.), but with the appearance of the bunnies, I chickend out. I must get them out of the yeard first, or I will be wasting efforts. I'm resting for now.