Members sleewell Posted May 15, 2012 Members Share Posted May 15, 2012 Planted some more last night. So far have 11 various tomato, 10 various peppers and basil. Pics to come when its all planted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fly135 Posted May 15, 2012 Members Share Posted May 15, 2012 I just in the last week got enough greens going to keep the juicer busy. Basically generating about $1.50 worth of greens every day now (my normal consumption rate). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members thefyn Posted May 15, 2012 Author Members Share Posted May 15, 2012 I set up 4 12'x5' beds in my backyard and got about 7 yards of compost delivered from a guy on CL. The pic is from last year when I started. Need to take a current picture. I juice a lot greens so I planted collards, spinach, mustard, and kale. Plus beets and bell peppers. And a bunch of okra. Haven't tried juicing the okra yet, but last year I sauteed it in olive oil all the time. The tomatoes reseeded themselves from last year, so I just transplanted them to organize next to the supports. Got peppermint going crazy and a buddy gave me 9 baby corn so they are in the bed. Some squash but the vines just take a lot of space and the yield is low. Also have an artichoke but no fruit yet. I have what looks like eggplant that apparently came from the compost like the squash. I have a compost pile and a compost tumbler. So a lot of seeds are ending up in the compost and a few are sprouting here and there. When I juice I take the pulp and put it back into the composter. I haven't put any fertilizer or pesticides on my plants. My wife bought a bunch of expensive heirloom seeds but complained when I used them (weird) so I just picked up seed packs from Lowes. I also ordered my own from Annies Heirloom. Nice. I've been in puerto rico for the past week. im in a bar waiting for my plane...so we will se e how they did with no babying. I think there were thunderstorms so they got watered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fly135 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 Here's some pics I shot this morning. No fertilizer or pesticides. Most everything grown from seeds. I didn't spend much on the garden this year. Last year I spent $150 on about 7 yards of compost. $30 on boards (x4 beds) for each bed. $100 for the tumbler. Plus wire and posts. And about $75 on potted veggies from Lowes. With all that money I got practically nothing. A lot because I didn't know what I was doing and because I started late in the season. This year just the opposite. A few bucks in seeds and tons of food. Okra on the far end. I ended up with tons of Mustard greens, but collards and spinach are hiding in there as well.... Didn't realize you could see the beets growing. I thought they would be under the soil and harvesting was a guessing game. But you can see them on top. Some stuff I didn't even plant. Must have come from the compost, since I compost all my veggie waste. Looks like eggplant in there but not sure. The tall collard my wife bought along with the artichoke in the back. Growing aloe as I eat it regularly to control GERD. No more acid reflux drugs for me after eating them daily for 20 years. Haven't touched on in over a year thanks to aloe. The tomatoes on the right have just about ended their life this season. They all popped up from seeds leftover from last year. Just transplanted them to the tomato spot. You can see my compost tumbler in the background. More shots of the greens. Got tons. I'm a juicing mofo. I'll post a pic if my skin turns green from drinking so much. Got 9 baby corn plants a friend gave me. The peppermint is spreading like crazy. I use it in my green tea everyday. And some squash that must have grown from the compost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ovid9 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 I think all mine are going to die. If I keep expecting that I won't be disappointed when they do right? Your garden looks good fly135! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fly135 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 Ovid, you just have to give it time. Like I said last year was expensive and mostly a bust, but with that experience I was able to do better this year. Definitely get the compost going. I have a spot in the yard where I pile clipping and stuff. I use the tumbler to compost to the final state. So I fill the tumbler from the pile, then put kitchen scraps in the tumbler until I'm ready to let it finish composting. Then fill the tumbler from the pile again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sleewell Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 imma get up in a tree and cut down some branches that are shading my garden tomorrow, i dont like heights so i hope i dont die Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ovid9 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 imma get up in a tree and cut down some branches that are shading my garden tomorrow, i dont like heights so i hope i dont die Get high first. I'm sure it will help. And thanks for the advice/encouragement fly135. If this year is a bust, it won't be a huge deal, maybe $25 worth of stuff. I hope to get at least a FEW peppers out of things. A compost pile is in order. Now to convince wifey of this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fly135 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 Last year I planted a bunch of Arugula. That stuff grew too fast for me to eat it, then it gets bitter. Much better luck with the greens this year. I didn't document where I put the seeds and now I'm confused as to why I have so much that looks like mustard greens everywhere. When you grow a garden you get bugs you never saw before. I have these weird looking beetle like bugs that much holes in the leaves. I just squish them with my fingers when I see them. Otherwise there's still plenty even with the holes. Just doesn't look as pretty as the supermarket stuff. But no pesticides on it either. I've got a Omega Masticating juicer and run greens though it every day or two. Still buying my carrots, apples, and lemons from the store. Might try a bed of carrots next. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members extollo Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 imma get up in a tree and cut down some branches that are shading my garden tomorrow, i dont like heights so i hope i dont die i just had 6 taken down. lots of wood. anyway.. here are some clips of my current status in western nj. these have been in for close to 3wks. not as far along as those with the FL growing season ... edit: some of these got hammered by a couple of late frosts, so we are going to have to replace some of the peppers. covering didnt get the job done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fly135 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 Looking good extollo. We've had a long season here because of the warm weather. I was a bit late getting started. Found a pic of the bugs on my greens. Not too many to worry about though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members thefyn Posted May 18, 2012 Author Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 Nice updates. My tomato plants were off the chain when I got home from vacation. I didn't know they needed a grow frame so they were leaning on the floor. I propped them up and they are fine. Also: I have about 50 tomatoes growing on those two little plants, haha. Spring is off the chain! I already know I have some issues with my initial placements (too close together). So some are being sun starved by the other plants, so I have some re-planting to do. But this is going much better than expected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ovid9 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 I have sticks next to my pepper plants but they still fall over. I'm hoping their stems thicken up here soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fly135 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 ^Well hung carrot... LOL I have the same problem with crowded placement. I did transplant some but left the rest. Seems like the seeds were all productive. I figured there would be more duds. You tomatoes are doing better than mine. My heritage tomatoes were mildly productive but quite a few rotted. I saved the seeds from them. My other tomatoes are small yellow ones that are growing a bunch but they are only about an 1-1.5" in diameter on average. Don't even know where they came from. Just popped up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fly135 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 I have sticks next to my pepper plants but they still fall over. I'm hoping their stems thicken up here soon.Just to let you know... Last year mine did not thicken up and kept flopping over. My peppers this year are still small and I will probably need to transplant some to give them space. I will definitely be giving them some type of support this time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members extollo Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 Looking good extollo. We've had a long season here because of the warm weather. I was a bit late getting started.Found a pic of the bugs on my greens. Not too many to worry about though. we usually do ok with bugs - japanese beetles are the most regularly annoying, but they can be managed. last year we got some small black bugs that went for the eggplant leaves - left them paper thin & perforated. sucked. For soil i'm mostly using composted manure mixed with some topsoil. I have yards & yards of it. Somehow i got some gravel in my pile & they found their way into the beds. sloppy tractor/bucket work i guess. i'm really hoping for a robust tomato crop this year. last year blew. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ovid9 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 Just to let you know... Last year mine did not thicken up and kept flopping over. My peppers this year are still small and I will probably need to transplant some to give them space. I will definitely be giving them some type of support this time. Sad drooping pepper plants are sad. Just prop them up with sticks? That's what I've been doing so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fly135 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 Sticks is probably what I will use too. I used mostly composted manure to fill my beds. I went down to the lake and got a few wheelbarrows of sand and mixed it in. But mostly manure 80-90%. Seems like so far I can refresh the nutrients with just my composting now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gtrplyr60 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 I did Roma's and green bells a few years ago with the upside-down tomato things.Much to my surprise they went totally ape {censored}! The neighbors got tired of me showing up to hand them out. I'm going to try with more peppers of different varieties this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rampage Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 The only near food thing I can grow is Rosemarry. Everything else dies. Who would have thought that brutal heat, ultra-dry weather and caliche wouldn't be the recipe for bountiful crops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sleewell Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 in the summer time nothing beats a fresh tomato, fresh basil, a slab of fresh mozz doused in balsamic vingrette outside on the patio with a few beers as you get ready to fire up the grill for a bbq. damn that sounds good right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fly135 Posted May 18, 2012 Members Share Posted May 18, 2012 I did Roma's and green bells a few years ago with the upside-down tomato things.Wow! those hanger things do the trick and keep the bugs away. Might have to give it a try. Wonder if a bucket with a hole in the bottom will work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sleewell Posted May 28, 2012 Members Share Posted May 28, 2012 All planted!!Pumkins, cabbage, cuccumbers, eggplants, yellow and green beans, butternut squash, mixed hot peppers, green peppers, banana peppers, various tomato, garlic. Herbs are in pots on the deck.Tomaters doing great alreadyLil pepper Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Chirpy_72 Posted May 28, 2012 Members Share Posted May 28, 2012 I did pretty good with tomatoes this year. 4 plants growing 3 different varieties ( Patio, German Queen & Bush Goliath ). Sadly it's too hot now to get more started ... oh well, this fall I'll plant more ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fly135 Posted May 29, 2012 Members Share Posted May 29, 2012 Nice look'n maters Chirpy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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