Gardeners in the Asylum

[Mr B]

Video Update on Tomato Garden

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsjQkIXEgsk

[jjirons69]

Originally Posted by shilala

My poor garden remains the most pathetic example I've ever raised.

DIT freakin' TO! I can't even grown crabgrass in the damn thing.

[SvilleKid]

I gave up on mine. Weeds are out of control. So much rain early that ground wouldn't support me trying to pull weeds. And after my mom got sick, I just ran out of time and will power. I know there's some watermelon hiding in the weeds somewhere. Maybe some will mature without rotting from all the darn rain we keep having. I did get more beans, peas, tomatoes and corn than I'll eat in the next year, so overall was a success. And I didn't turn the sprinklers on a single time, and only the soaker hoses a couple or three times.

[jjirons69]

So true, Cliff - I didn't water the garden the first time this year. Living in the South all my life, that's unheard of.

[Mr B]

Wow, we've only had about 2" of rain in the past 2+ months.

[Chainsaw13]

Originally Posted by Mr B

Wow, we've only had about 2" of rain in the past 2+ months.

We got hit pretty good the other night. Enough to completely refill my empty rain barrel.

[jjirons69]

We had 2.3" yesterday/Wed. Rained today, too. Should've planted rice and indigo in the spring.

[Chainsaw13]

This is at least my fourth tomatoe haul of the season. And there's more to come. A lot more. That lone mater, second one if had do that. Kinda cool.

[Chainsaw13]

This is the funky tomato.

[SvilleKid]

Originally Posted by jjirons69

We had 2.3" yesterday/Wed. Rained today, too. Should've planted rice and indigo in the spring.

Damn if I don't feel your pain, Jamie! Rice...... That' a possible plan, for sure.

[Mr B]

Nice haul Bob.

[jjirons69]

Pulled the few weeds I had in the garden yesterday. Still have 2 jalapenos and 3 bells growing. They're doing fair, but nothing to cheer about.

[Mr B]

Pepper Harvest over the weekend.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEyMGI40pXI

[jjirons69]

Cleaned the garden out and lightly tilled the rows I was going to use. I planted 9 savoy cabbages, 6 Georgia Giant collards, 9 Brussels spouts, 9 red sails lettuce, and 9 butter crunch lettuce sets. I also planted 1.5 rows of curly mustard and 1.5 rows of broadleaf mustard. Ready for fall and winter!

[Mr B]

Very nice Jamie. I planted 4 wire barrels with Snap Peas, Snow Peas, Blue Lake Bush Beans and Roma Beans. This is my first shot at beans and peas. We usually have a pretty sunny and mild fall up here so I hope it works out.

[shilala]

I have nice carrots by the house here. The lettuce bolted, I guess we're done with that.
We just go pick tomatoes off the ground when we need them, they're awful.
I got one cantaloupe. Zero corn. Not enough peppers to bother.

Anyone who got anything at all here was from raised beds or hills. Even that wasn't a whole lot, and their gardens were done early.
Next year...

[Mr B]

Was that because of all the rain Scott?

[shilala]

Yeah, the rain and cold. June was awful. The rest of the summer wasn't much better.

[357]

Anyone into apple or other fruit trees? I have three on my property. Each is different. This spring I trimmed up two of them. This year they all went nuts production wise, but I have apple scab, sooty blotch, and flyspeck on all three. Two moreso than the one. All three are fungal issues. I know more trimming will help with airflow/sunlight which is a good preventative but I don't think that will be enough. I also know I can go buy commercial antifungal sprays that will get the job done. However, I have well water, well head is about 60 ft from two apple trees, and I'm not crazy about the idea of using chemicals that are hazardous to people or animals. If anyone here keeps apple trees, what do you use? Also, do you have well water, and is that a concern? I've read that a vinegar solution is effective against apple scab when used at the right time. It makes sense given it's acidity and fungi's aversion to low pH. Anyone tried it with blotch/flyspeck?

[shilala]

Mikey, all that other stuff stems from stress. You're on the right track.
I used to have around 20-30 trees. Never counted them because I was always adding and removing, and it never even crossed my mind, really. They were just work.

You talked about pruning. That's a biggie. Read hard and understand how to prune properly. Prune back hard if the trees haven't been used for years. That's around 1/3 of the top the first year and at least a third of what's left the next year.
That way the root system will do wonders with the tree. Very little stress.
Then use dormant oil. Use it in March when you prune, then at petal fall on each tree individually. That keeps all the critters out of the fruit cause the eggs are laid on the petal. The oil snuffs the eggs as the fruit grows. Super safe stuff.

Aside from that, I only ever used Sevin at 1/3 strength to hold back any kind of infestations. It was more for making me happy than doing anything. It kept the Japanese beetles from ruining my cherry trees. Also super safe.

Be okay with skin goofiness. It means nothing. Many old breeds were "netted" and that looks like scab or something wrong. It's not. So long as the fruit is coming to full maturity, and you don't experience a sudden drop of the fruit, the looks of the fruit means nothing. You just want it clean inside.
If you want it clean on the outside, you need different trees and lots of nasty chemicals.