Garden!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[LBrandt]

Digging carrots this week. Watered them down real good today so they should dig easy I hope. LB

 

[splesuk]

Digging carrots this week. Watered them down real good today so they should dig easy I hope. LB

any body growing brussel sprouts. what is taking them so long. never raised them before.

 

[Davey Crockett]

[MENTION=3511]splesuk[/MENTION] did the brussels ever produce for you ? I don't think I'll be trying them again.


If you guys have zucchini that you don't know what to do with take note. I experimented with one yesterday and cubed it and made a few small batches coated with a few different things and cooked in the air fryer. Most were just OK but the best batch was olive oil and buffalo wild wing coating and sprinkled with garlic powder so I made more of that and left it in fridge overnight then cooked it up for dinner. Darn they are good, I think they are way better than French fries.

Also did the same with carrots but without the wild wing coating , I used garlic and pepper . Nothing to brag about but going to try more with the Buffalo coating.


Shocked how well they keep in a cool area , I squeezed all of them and they were still nice and firm.

 

[LBrandt]

Just like boobs? asking for a friend.

 

[LBrandt]

Got all seeds ordered. Will start indoor April 1 to 15 for tomatoes and peppers.

 

[BotnoJoe]

hoping to start my first garden this year, any of you experienced gardeners have any tips you are willing to share? there is an old overgrown garden area existing at my home now, that I am hoping to start clearing out this weekend

 

[Grumps]

How big is the old garden space?

If not real big I would suggest starting with two or three 4' wide raised beds (but stay away from treated wood).

If a big spot and you want a lot of space for things like corn/squash/berries, I would cut all the vegetation now and cover the area with black plastic landscape fabric. This will help kill whatever is in there now.

About a month from now (when a handful of dirt doesn't stay in a clump when you drop it) I would rent/borrow a tiller, till it as deep as you can (18-24") rake it and cover back up for a couple of weeks. You do this to knock down some of the huge bank of weed seeds.

Don't think I have enough posts to allow PMs but I would be happy to answer any questions you may have. Been gardening for 50+ years and one of my greatest pleasures is providing my grandchildren chemical free veggies and fruit.

Biggest mistake I see most folks make when just starting out is being too ambitious.

 

[Rowdie]

I think there will be A LOT more people with gardens in the near future. A lot will be indoors, just a hunch!

 

[BotnoJoe]

How big is the old garden space?

If not real big I would suggest starting with two or three 4' wide raised beds (but stay away from treated wood).

If a big spot and you want a lot of space for things like corn/squash/berries, I would cut all the vegetation now and cover the area with black plastic landscape fabric. This will help kill whatever is in there now.

About a month from now (when a handful of dirt doesn't stay in a clump when you drop it) I would rent/borrow a tiller, till it as deep as you can (18-24") rake it and cover back up for a couple of weeks. You do this to knock down some of the huge bank of weed seeds.

Don't think I have enough posts to allow PMs but I would be happy to answer any questions you may have. Been gardening for 50+ years and one of my greatest pleasures is providing my grandchildren chemical free veggies and fruit.

Biggest mistake I see most folks make when just starting out is being too ambitious.

existing space is about 25'X10'. I appreciate all of those tips Grumps. I wasn't sure how to go about killing the existing weeds - wanted to stay away from chemicals. I will follow your advice and cut/cover the existing area. I will probably pester you with more questions as they come. Have been reading through this thread and learning a lot too. Thanks!

 

[LBrandt]

If you have a lot of overgrowth and can burn it do so, it will kill a lot of weed seeds and the ash helps the soil

 

[Grumps]

25 X 10 is a great size for a starter garden. If it were me, I would go with 4' X 10' raised beds especially if you can run the long side oriented north/south.

Depending on what you want to plant, you could put perennials like raspberries/asparagus/rhubarb on the far end/back of the garden with beds for the stuff that needs more tending/picking in the front.

Advantage of beds is that the soil stays really loose (never gets walked on), are really productive, and weeding is very easy.

All kinds of things you can use to make the beds. Can get by with only 5" sides but taller is better. I'd start looking now for low cost materials. Folks use all kinds of things including galvanized steel panels, mill ends from lumber yards, and silo staves.

If you want strawberries I would order the plants now as many varieties sold out very early last year.

 

[BDub]

Grumps has lots of good ideas. I also believe in raised beds. About 90 feet total of raised beds. I managed to find cedar decking to build them. The only problem I have is that they dry out quickly. But on the other hand I only water the beds. Water makes the weeds grow really fast.
I also do not till the entire garden. Long ago I established designated rows and that is all I till. I put landscaping fabric between them. Kinda overkill but it cuts down the weeding. Every year I add ten gallons of compost to each 25 foot row. Then run soaker hoses in the rows. Another good idea is to map and label plantings every year. Keep moving varieties around reduces disease. Especially tomatoes.

 

[CatDaddy]

With the weird warm weather, when should I plant onions? I haven't had good luck with results so hoping to start early. I'm in the Casselton area, not out west.

Anything else I should consider planting early?

 

[LBrandt]

You dont get a lot more from onions by planting real early. it takes a lot of sunshine hours to get them going. When sunshine hits 13 to 14 hrs per day is when onions take off. They set pretty dormant until then. I dont plant anything until soil hits 60* LB

 

[CatDaddy]

You dont get a lot more from onions by planting real early. it takes a lot of sunshine hours to get them going. When sunshine hits 13 to 14 hrs per day is when onions take off. They set pretty dormant until then. I dont plant anything until soil hits 60* LB

Thank you. I need to move where they are then - they aren't getting nearly the sun you say they should.

I'll add a temp probe to the mix this year too!

 

[Grumps]

Getting onions to grow to a decent size can be tough.

I'd check to make sure you are planting long day varieties, have lots of peat/organic matter, and consider adding a drip irrigation system. (I like 3/4" pvc with 1/16" holes.)

Snow peas can go in really early. I usually double crop over the top of them as they will add a bit of nitrogen.

 

[LBrandt]

Starting my tomato plants today. Seeds going into starter trays, about 300 this year. I start quite a few and sort out the best for transplanting. LB

 

[WormWiggler]

Starting my tomato plants today. Seeds going into starter trays, about 300 this year. I start quite a few and sort out the best for transplanting. LB

curious your method, paper towel to sprouting, then egg carton? I thought it was too late for this...

 

[LBrandt]

I use Starter trays from Gurneys, 55 cell with moisture domes. Once the seedlings are about an inch high I will put grow lights on for 16 hours a day. Grow fertilizer in water and their ready to put in garden last week of May or first week to June. This is just for plants that I cannot get at Fleet Farm. I take domes off when I start the grow lights. LB

 

[LBrandt]

Taters are poking through and onions are perking up. 24 tomato plants in. Big push the next 2 weeks to get everything planted and it looks like rain in the future.