Re: What I learned this year

countrynaturals 1/15/2017, 11:32 am

Indoor gardening: New starts need a lot more light than established plants.

countrynaturals 2/9/2017, 12:13 pm

countrynaturals wrote:Indoor gardening: New starts need a lot more light than established plants.

And everything needs a lot more time. I'm still another week away from eating cucumbers I planted Nov. 1.

countrynaturals 2/9/2017, 12:17 pm

I learned to plant my vine crops somewhere else and save my precious sfg space for smaller plants and root crops. Peas and beans will still go in the sfg, since they climb up and don't take up much space, but cukes, zukes, melons, etc. are outta there. Evil or Very Mad

Cajun Cappy 2/10/2017, 4:56 pm

We do cucumbers on trellises on the end of our boxes they vine up and dont take hardly any room at all

countrynaturals 2/10/2017, 6:03 pm

Cajun Cappy wrote:We do cucumbers on trellises on the end of our boxes they vine up and dont take hardly any room at all

I thought mine would climb down from my tabletops, but they didn't want to do that, so they took over the tops. Shocked

This year will definitely be different. I'M THE BOSS THIS YEAR! Razz

yolos 2/10/2017, 10:05 pm

Cajun Cappy wrote:We do cucumbers on trellises on the end of our boxes they vine up and dont take hardly any room at all

Me too. Always plant them on a trellis. But this year I am thinking about planting some on the ground so I can cover them with Tulle when the pickle worms show up.

Cajun Cappy 2/11/2017, 4:53 am

Our springs are so wet and humid they dont do well on the ground here. even outa da box gardeners plant them growing up.

countrynaturals 2/11/2017, 10:07 am

Cajun Cappy wrote:Our springs are so wet and humid they dont do well on the ground here. even outa da box gardeners plant them growing up.

My problems are cats and chickens, so I'll be growing them up this year, too. It also makes more sense for maintenance and harvesting. The less time I have to spend bent over, the better I like it. Cool

Cajun Cappy 2/11/2017, 1:19 pm

We are down to 1 t jar of Peg's bread and butter pickles we use them almost daily in salads and such. The plan is to plant poinsett Cucs on 3- 4' trellises, one usually makes all the cucs we need for eating fresh and one usually yields several batches of pickles but we plan to step it up this spring since we are almost out. The extras amke good gifts too.

brianj555 9/10/2017, 8:10 pm

yolos wrote:This one is a lot less expensive:
http://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/feedlot-panel-cattle-16-ft-l-x-50-in-h?cm_vc=IOPDP1

This is the one I buy because I can curl it into a U shape and fit it in my SUV. it takes a little bit of work to get it to stay flat after it has been curled a little. It is 8 feet long and fits over my 8 foot long beds just perfect. I stack one on the top of the other and get an 8 foot long by about 8 feet high trellis that will last for ever and is very sturdy and has large enough holes to get your hands easily thru.
http://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/ok-brand-handy-panel-8-ft-l-x-50-in-h?cm_vc=IOPDP1

I use 3/4 inch EMT on the inside of the box. Works well except for one thing. If you try to use hoops in the fall/winter, you have to take the EMT/rebar down. If you put the rebar/EMT on the outside, then you only have to take the fence down and can leave the uprights in the ground and still use hoops over the bed.

Yolos, in your experience, will this wire mesh damage the stems of the plants when the wind blows and they rub against it?

ColleenW 9/11/2017, 11:21 am

You all rock. I have my gardening journal out and I'm taking notes as I read all of these comments. Thank you for sharing your hard-won wisdom.

One thing I've learned this year that took me by surprise is the concept of "volunteers." If something unexpected sprouts and thrives and works for you, let it be and enjoy. We can only control so much.

I've also taken this a step further and experimented with sowing seeds around my garden and yard just to see what takes where. I certainly have definite plans for my SFQ finite space but I'm up for seeing whatever works in the rest of the spaces. Adds a bit of mystery to the fun!

CapeCoddess 9/11/2017, 11:47 am

ColleenW wrote:

I've also taken this a step further and experimented with sowing seeds around my garden and yard just to see what takes where. I certainly have definite plans for my SFQ finite space but I'm up for seeing whatever works in the rest of the spaces. Adds a bit of mystery to the fun!

What a great idea! I've dumped seeds around but never really noted it or even remembered doing it later, so I don't know if the results are volunteers or planted seeds. Makes sense to pay attention.
okay

countrynaturals 9/11/2017, 8:42 pm

CapeCoddess wrote:
ColleenW wrote:

I've also taken this a step further and experimented with sowing seeds around my garden and yard just to see what takes where. I certainly have definite plans for my SFQ finite space but I'm up for seeing whatever works in the rest of the spaces. Adds a bit of mystery to the fun!

What a great idea! I've dumped seeds around but never really noted it or even remembered doing it later, so I don't know if the results are volunteers or planted seeds. Makes sense to pay attention.

I LOVE IT! I love you

countrynaturals 9/16/2017, 10:34 am

I've learned that labeling the base of vine crops means nothing when they're 10' long and intertwined. Rolling Eyes

Next year, I'm going to color code them all and tie a piece of yarn around their little necks every week, so I don't have to guess what that cute little fuzzy green ball will be when it grows up. Embarassed

Judy McConnell 9/16/2017, 11:21 am

Oh Goodness - I have learned so much this gardening year.
1) I can grow cucs and cantaloupes, but next year they will have already standing trellises to climb before the plants go into the bed. Hadn't tried cucs in 5 years because of earlier failures and they just took off this season.
2) the indeterminate tomatoes were planted too close together and didn't do much.
3) peppers in containers did well as long as I remembered to water them well.
4) table tops will be used more and the in-ground beds will be raised to a better working height for my aging back.

brianj555 9/16/2017, 11:22 am

Judy McConnell wrote:Oh Goodness - I have learned so much this gardening year.
1) I can grow cucs and cantaloupes, but next year they will have already standing trellises to climb before the plants go into the bed. Hadn't tried cucs in 5 years because of earlier failures and they just took off this season.
2) the indeterminate tomatoes were planted too close together and didn't do much.
3) peppers in containers did well as long as I remembered to water them well.
4) table tops will be used more and the in-ground beds will be raised to a better working height for my aging back.

How far apart did you plant the indeterminates?

Judy McConnell 9/16/2017, 11:36 am

Only a foot apart - too close! Should have been at least 2' apart for better air movement, etc.

brianj555 9/16/2017, 11:40 am

Judy McConnell wrote:Only a foot apart - too close! Should have been at least 2' apart for better air movement, etc.

Where the staked or on a trellis ? Did you pick he suckers? Good information to have regardless. Thanks!

Judy McConnell 9/16/2017, 11:42 am

They were staked and yes, suckers were pulled early on - but another mistake was not continuing to sucker them. After a while, every plant grew together - my bad!

brianj555 9/16/2017, 11:56 am

Judy McConnell wrote:They were staked and yes, suckers were pulled early on - but another mistake was not continuing to sucker them. After a while, every plant grew together - my bad!

This could be a discussion for another thread and if so, I apologize. But, I would like to know if your stakes worked well as a support for the indeterminates? If so, will you share what type of and size of stake you used? I'm am having a big debate with myself as to whether or not I will be investing the money to construct trellises. If I do, I will need at least two and could use up to five. That would be a considerable investment on top of filling my second new 40 cubic foot box with MM. I'm using stakes now, but I have determinate plants. 6' bamboo is working well for them but I know I indeterminates are a different animal.

**Scorpio Rising** 9/16/2017, 1:40 pm

These are expensive, but. Have a set of 5 and am going to buy another set. They are steel and work great for indeterminants.

http://www.gardeners.com/buy/spiral-plant-and-tomato-stakes/39-514.html

I love this store! My bigger maters break the wooden stakes. 2 broke this year, and I lost 2 last year.

Judy McConnell 9/16/2017, 2:00 pm

I dearly love metal fence stakes (t-shaped) like: What I learned this year - Page 2 MTMQNpFqAQ_Edhx_b0HHWwg

because they are relatively inexpensive and easily available - if you need more, they are available from farm supply stores, etc. Since I used panty hose to tie up the tomatoes, the hose is easily attached to the stakes AND one can use cross bracing to hold the stakes apart if needed.

Judy McConnell 9/16/2017, 2:03 pm

Remember - if you build a trellis, it needs to be movable from one bed to another. Tomatoes are not supposed to be planted in the same space each year because of diseases and insects - think it is supposed to be a 3 year rotation.

CapeCoddess 9/16/2017, 7:22 pm

brianj555 wrote:I'm am having a big debate with myself as to whether or not I will be investing the money to construct trellises. If I do, I will need at least two and could use up to five. That would be a considerable investment on top of filling my second new 40 cubic foot box with MM. .

Mel's trellises are not expensive. Probably about five bucks each if that.

**trolleydriver** 9/16/2017, 7:48 pm

CapeCoddess wrote:
brianj555 wrote:I'm am having a big debate with myself as to whether or not I will be investing the money to construct trellises. If I do, I will need at least two and could use up to five. That would be a considerable investment on top of filling my second new 40 cubic foot box with MM. .

Mel's trellises are not expensive. Probably about five bucks each if that.

No way here in Canada that I can build a trellis for five bucks ... it's more like over $30 Cdn. Up here at HD a 10 foot length of 1/2 inch conduit is $5.67. Each 90 degree elbow (need two) is $6.47. Then I still need the nylon netting. On top of that I pay 13% sales tax. You folks in the USA get all these things at much better prices.

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