2014 Spring Garden

[Triple Creek Reaper]

Just cleaned out/tilled under the fall garden, getting ready for spring planting. Pulled everything but one cayenne plant I put in back in September.This thing is still going strong, pulled 30 peppers off yesterday. Had a pretty good fall, 1st time for cauliflower, broccoli and brussel sprouts making it to harvest. This spring should be the first for harvesting some asparagus I put in 2 years ago. All my herbs made it through the cold this time.

So whats everyone planning for the spring. I plan on dedicating 1/3 of my beds for a few different hot peppers. Probably bell peppers, tomatoes and okra for another 1/3...up in the air on the remaining space.

[treefarmer]

Reaper that sounds great, those cool weather crops, broccoli, cauliflower ans such! It's 80º out there right now, things are budding out, but it's supposed to be below freezing again on Thursday and you couldn't pull a disk across the garden spot without boggin' down. I'm ready but everything else is not cooperating. Going to down size the garden this year, getting too old to rodeo with a large one. But we do hope to plant 'maters and peppers in her raised beds, squash, beans and corn in the dirt. Another patch of red corn and of course zipper cream peas. Cookin' the last bag of zippers for supper tonight.
Treefarmer

[Iluv2hunt]

You must be my brotha from anotha motha...I did the same thing today. I picked about 50 tomatoes, a bucket of collards, a bucket of turnips and greens, a couple heads of cabbage, and the remaining broccoli. Still got one row of rutabaga's and 1 row of brussel sprouts, plus a little patch of kale left from winter. I planted squash seeds last week in my bed next to the wall and they are already up. I've spent the last couple weeks hauling in over a ton of compost and no telling how many oak leaves.

I ran the tiller, and on the last pass I picked up a vibration. Literally as soon as I was finishing my last pass, I realized it was the drive belt that broke. Been trying to find the replacement online with no luck
No idea what I am going to plant yet. Probably the usual

I took out my last pack of zipper peas and they are on the stove. Also took out my last meat chicken I raised. Bout to go get me about 25 more of them

[bodysnatcher]

Man, I miss being able to have a garden.

[Iluv2hunt]

I also planted seed potatoes in a tower a week or so back. I did them in bags last year and had dismal results

[sam03]

Same here abt to get the garden going. Fall plants failed with the crazy weather.

[9dawgs]

How's everyone gardens doing? Me and my youngest daughter got out yesterday and made a raised bed box. It's going to be sort of a test bed. She was wanting to do some gardening so we decided to make a 3'x5' box to start her out. We put it in direct sunlight If that works out we'll make some more. I've tried to grow stuff over the years on my patio in a bucket like tomatoes and such but they never make it. I think I've only "harvested" one usable tomato in all that I planted! Never can seem to keep the worms out of them before they're ripe. Anyhow, the plans are to put out some marigolds around the edge of the box and then about 3 tomato plants in the center. I'll be putting out starts and not seeds.

Any advice would be welcome.

[Iluv2hunt]

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[Kortsman]

How's everyone gardens doing? Me and my youngest daughter got out yesterday and made a raised bed box. It's going to be sort of a test bed. She was wanting to do some gardening so we decided to make a 3'x5' box to start her out. We put it in direct sunlight If that works out we'll make some more. I've tried to grow stuff over the years on my patio in a bucket like tomatoes and such but they never make it. I think I've only "harvested" one usable tomato in all that I planted! Never can seem to keep the worms out of them before they're ripe. Anyhow, the plans are to put out some marigolds around the edge of the box and then about 3 tomato plants in the center. I'll be putting out starts and not seeds.

Any advice would be welcome.

If you want to grow tomatoes, peppers, eggplants etc, without a lot of effort, google homemade earthboxes. I've done this for the past few years and had great results. I prefer the cherry or grape tomatoes and my plants will get 4-5 feet no problem. I can pick 30-50 tomatoes a day when they get going good. I couldn't give away the habeneros fast enough. All you have to do is water them.
I'm going to get my boxes going again within the next week or so. I'll post progress pics this year.

[9dawgs]

If you want to grow tomatoes, peppers, eggplants etc, without a lot of effort, google homemade earthboxes. I've done this for the past few years and had great results. I prefer the cherry or grape tomatoes and my plants will get 4-5 feet no problem. I can pick 30-50 tomatoes a day when they get going good. I couldn't give away the habeneros fast enough. All you have to do is water them.
I'm going to get my boxes going again within the next week or so. I'll post progress pics this year.

That looks interesting. Did you build your own or buy something already made? Looks easy enough.

[Iluv2hunt]

When you plant maters.....
Check to see if they are determinate, or indeterminate. Determinate will grow more like a bush, and will only produce a "determinate" amount of tomatoes per plant, kinda implanted into the plants genes.

Indeterminate plants will grow as a vine and will need to be trellised. Even cages aren't tall enough because they just grow out of the top of the cage and fall over. You can get creative on how to trellis them up. These will produce an indetermined amount of tomatoes throughout the season

I like the "early girls''. They grow and set fruit pretty quick in the season. I bought a 9-pack a few weeks back, planted them buried all the way to the top leaf. Now they are about a foot tall and need to start being trellised.

[Kortsman]

9,

I made my own. They sell Earthbox brand boxes, but they cost way too much. You can build one for a fraction of the cost and get results just as well. These are the steps I followed:
http://www.josho.com/gardening.htm

Al,
I've never heard of determinate or indeterminate. How do you even tell? Is it on the label?

[Iluv2hunt]

Yeah it should be on the tag or pack of seeds

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[Triple Creek Reaper]

Yeah it should be on the tag or pack of seeds

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If I remember correctly only the indeterminate plants need the suckers pulled off but only pull the suckers found below the existing blooms on the plant.

[9dawgs]

Well my daughter got her garden put in on Monday. We built the frame last week and picked up all the dirt and plants on Monday. I used a mix of 3 bags Black Kow, 2 bags Organic Potting soil, 2 bags 50/50 cow manure/potting soil, 2 bags Miracle Grow potting soil. I know it was probably a little redundant in the cow pie department but I believe cow poop is good for planting :>) We put in a "hedge" of marigolds, 2 pepper plants (mild & hot) and 4 Early Girl tomato plants. If this one works out ok then we're building more boxes and putting in some other stuff.