Let's see those '11 gardens!

I'm thinking about asparagus myself.
I plant six corn plants at a time, 10 days apart. I did this four times. I hope to harvest them that way. We had a long cold spring and a late summer here.

[jsnake]

Our garden is a disaster this year. Seems like it has been 100 degrees for a solid six weeks. We water and water but the heat and humidity is brutal. Except for my Asian Peppers. Those suckers have been picked 3 times and keep growing back.

[shilala]

We're getting tomatoes and cukes pretty regular. Had one big tomato, and there's three more great big ones just about ready to pick.
I've been killing tomato hornworms and grasshoppers regularly. The only other pests were some cabbage moth worms which I'm used to. These plant eating grasshoppers and hornworms are all new to me. The white mold fungus on the cucumbers and zuchini is all new, too.
It's been amazing how moving 150 miles west changes everything. The soil is totally different, the amendment process is all different, the bugs are all different, the diseases are different, and the complte lack of presence of plain old worms freaks me out.
It's made things a lot of fun, and I'm all smiles every time I look at the garden because I was able to make it all work so well in a real short amount of time, and the garden is doing great. I've already let it teach me lots of stuff that I'll keep in mind when I plant the big garden next year.

[jjirons69]

Originally Posted by SvilleKid

My garden is winding down quickly. Have sweet potatoes to dig when I feel like it. Okra just hitting stride, greenbeans still producing every other day. Cucumbers still putting out new fruit. I planted 2 weeks before Good Friday, and pretty much everything made it and I was a good 4-6 weeks ahead of the curve. Have all the peas, butter peas, squash, greenbeans, corn, tomatoes, pickles (cucumbers), onions, red potatoes and peppers I need for the next 12 months already canned or frozen or otherwise stored/processed. Only thing I will be putting up now is okra, and won't need much more to reach the needed level of okra. Veggies that are still producing are being used fresh and/or given away to family and friends. My corn was harvested 6 weeks ago. Thought about planting a second crop, but no where to put end product, and already have more than I will use! Actually plan on plowing all but okra under this weekend. And then, getting efforts underway to take part of the garden area into a herb garden, and another section into an asparagus bed. Will definitely go for a raised bed for these projects. Plan on planting some greens and other cool weather crops in coming weeks.

Cliff, reading your post reminds me of my dad and most of my immediate kin. All are rural or semi-rural and have big gardens with freezers and cabinets full of veggies. My mom keeps me in constant supply of field peas, corn on the cob, corn off the cob, butterbeans, pickled beets, canned tomatoes, and canned string beans. Our stand up freezer in the garage is full of garden goodies. Nothing like butterbeans and okra in January!

[jjirons69]

Wait until 4 p.m.! It miserable feeling outside already! I'll water the garden about sunset.

Clear
91°F
Feels Like: 111°
Wind Chill: 91°
Heat Index: 111°
Dew Point: 81°
Humidity: 71%
Pressure: 29.95"

[SvilleKid]

Originally Posted by jjirons69

Cliff, reading your post reminds me of my dad and most of my immediate kin. All are rural or semi-rural and have big gardens with freezers and cabinets full of veggies. My mom keeps me in constant supply of field peas, corn on the cob, corn off the cob, butterbeans, pickled beets, canned tomatoes, and canned string beans. Our stand up freezer in the garage is full of garden goodies. Nothing like butterbeans and okra in January!

A big advantage I got this year from planting early, and harvesting early was (except for tomatoes) an amazing lack of pests on the plants. I had probably less that 5% of my corn with worm damage, almost no pea or butterpea damage from bee/wasp stings, and had zero tomato worms. The only problem I had in large scale was a heavy aphids covering on my tomato plants about half way in. A couple applications of home-made "soap insecticide" took care of that! It used to be that you could buy soap insecticide from stores. Now, aphid control comes in a multi-pest spray that isn't really that veggie friendly, unless you have two weeks to wait to harvest!! So I fall back to an age old remedy told to my mother in the early 1970's. Wash a sink full of greasy pots and pans in a sink full of water. (The way things were done before built-in dishwashers) Take the resulting soapy, greasy water and apply it to the affected plants. If one application doesn't do it, try a second.

[wayner123]

Originally Posted by SvilleKid

A big advantage I got this year from planting early, and harvesting early was (except for tomatoes) an amazing lack of pests on the plants. I had probably less that 5% of my corn with worm damage, almost no pea or butterpea damage from bee/wasp stings, and had zero tomato worms. The only problem I had in large scale was a heavy aphids covering on my tomato plants about half way in. A couple applications of home-made "soap insecticide" took care of that! It used to be that you could buy soap insecticide from stores. Now, aphid control comes in a multi-pest spray that isn't really that veggie friendly, unless you have two weeks to wait to harvest!! So I fall back to an age old remedy told to my mother in the early 1970's. Wash a sink full of greasy pots and pans in a sink full of water. (The way things were done before built-in dishwashers) Take the resulting soapy, greasy water and apply it to the affected plants. If one application doesn't do it, try a second.

That sounds great! And your tomato's have a hint of BACON!

Late summer garden. Still few tomatoes. Been harvesting carrots and potatoes. Lots of greenbeans and zukes. Cukes here and there. The first corn should be ready soon.

[shilala]

Our cukes have just about finished dying back. Tomatoes are hot and heavy. The broccoli will be ready very soon. We've been eating stuffed banana peppers like crazy. Had a great big pile of stuffed Jalapenos yesterday. I have never, ever, ever had nice, sweet jalapenos. They are totally delicious, although my suffering hasn't stopped since, and I'm afraid of the end.

[hotreds]

Guess the deer can get a bit.

[OLS]

Originally Posted by shilala

and I'm afraid of the end.

The END IS where the jalapenos git ya.

[OLS]

Originally Posted by shilala

I've been killing tomato hornworms and grasshoppers regularly. The only other pests were some cabbage moth worms which I'm used to.

I had a friend that had a pair of Jackson's Chameleons that he would turn loose in his garden for a few days a week.
NO WORMS, and they always had very healthy babies which he sold. I always thought they would immediately bolt
for the treeline, but apparently a steady source of food and the few days a week treatment was enough to keep em local.

I've also been pulling the occasional beets and onions out of the ground as needed. Even with the colder summer, this year has been a LOT better than last. I can hardly wait to add another truckload of manure compost and other stuff for next year.

[wayner123]

Hey Guys,

I have looked and looked over at gardenweb and I can't seem to find an answer. Some say that you can some say that you can't. Here is my problem.

I just went and got 2 yards of compost on Saturday. This is my first time getting compost and I am not sure how it's supposed to smell or look really. However, I do know that while I was unloading it, it seemed to radiate heat. Now it could have been the scorcher we had Sat. but it stunk pretty bad and I could swear it was hotter near the pile. Should I go ahead and fill my raised beds (4' x 8' x 10") with it and go ahead and plant. Or should I fill my beds and wait till Spring, when it no longer smells to plant?

If it's in a pile now it should be finished with whatever activity it has in a month. I think it will always smell when it is moist and stirred up. I took fresh, right from the stall, manure and overwintered it in a heap and added it this spring and planted right in it.
It should look like potting soil. It could be two years old but never turned and it wouldnt compost correctly as it is an aerobic process.

[jjirons69]

Still cranking tomatoes and peppers. I've grown the biggest Jalapenos I've ever seen this year. I made bacon poppers with 3 dozen this past weekend. Been seriously thinking about my winter garden, which I plan to put in the ground near the end of Sept.

I've been thinking about an autumn crop. What are good things to plant?

[jjirons69]

I've planted Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli, collards, mustard, and various lettuces for my fall garden. I'll probably just stick to collards and mustard this year. I love fresh greens in December and January.

[jjirons69]

Originally Posted by wayner123

Hey Guys,

I have looked and looked over at gardenweb and I can't seem to find an answer. Some say that you can some say that you can't. Here is my problem.

I just went and got 2 yards of compost on Saturday. This is my first time getting compost and I am not sure how it's supposed to smell or look really. However, I do know that while I was unloading it, it seemed to radiate heat. Now it could have been the scorcher we had Sat. but it stunk pretty bad and I could swear it was hotter near the pile. Should I go ahead and fill my raised beds (4' x 8' x 10") with it and go ahead and plant. Or should I fill my beds and wait till Spring, when it no longer smells to plant?

Wayne, I've seen the same thing. Often compost is mixed with horse or cow manure that may still be a little green and breaking down. If it's still generating heat, I'd give it time to finish working. Get a thermometer and insert down in the pile to check, especially at night once the sun is down. Compare temp to surrounding beds. The smell verifies it's still working, too. It may be a little too strong for plants right now. You can always get a 6 pack of marigolds pretty cheap to test it out. Search the net to see opinions.

[shilala]

Originally Posted by OLS

I had a friend that had a pair of Jackson's Chameleons that he would turn loose in his garden for a few days a week.
NO WORMS, and they always had very healthy babies which he sold. I always thought they would immediately bolt
for the treeline, but apparently a steady source of food and the few days a week treatment was enough to keep em local.

Now that's cool.