Garden 2012 thread.....BARGAIN ALERT

[coastie]

Hey Gang - this is our first year gardening - started late but things are doing well - first tomato picked this week - beans, cukes, peppers a few weeks off.

Had a guick question, the one plant that is struggling is the peppers - the bottom leaves are yellowing out and dropping off, leaving just the top sets of leaves and a long empty stalk.
Any thoughts as to what is going on?

Everything else is growing like crazy.

Try adding some epsom salt. It sounds like a magnesium deficiency. My tomatoes got it 2 years ago and the epsom salt helped a lot.

 

[NHAtHeart]

Anybody else have AMAZING tomato plants this year? I have a ton of green tomatoes they are taking forever to ripen but the plants are huge!

 

[Billsail]

Mine are doing better than usual.

 

[MisterHappy]

I have 4 types of tomatos - the Roma are huge, bushy things, the others more spindly. I'm not sure of the variety, but I like to have more than one, for genetic diversity.

 

[runner]

My tomatoes are looking good, but I went light on them this year, only eight plant plus some cherry tomatoes. Got 40 pounds of early potatoes so far though!
Beans are going good, and the squash as well.

 

[drumenigma]

Our tomatoes are coming in pretty good. We had a few zuchinni grow that are the size of my hand and forearm. For the first time we have some corn coming in which seems to be doing well. We had a few critters get to a pumpkin plant unfortunately so we're going to have to look in to some sort of fencing or other measures to keep them out.

 

[coastie]

Rain!!!!! Finally. NOw I will be able to get my fall stuff in!!! I hate disturbing the soil when it is dry as it will just blow away.

 

[Cabinetman]

Hi all.

We doubled our garden size over last year but, rather than plant more types of veggies, we allowed the proper space between last years garden veggies and have been sumpuously rewarded for it.

BTW, I FINALLY was able to figure out the difference between "determinate" and 'indeterminate" vegetables plants were. Did you know there was such a thing? A "Determinate" vegetable variety gets ripe at all the same time so the farmers can pick one time for the markets. An "indeterminate" variety ripens willy-nilly at their own pace. So you'll have green and red tomatoes on the same vine and have them all seaon long. Golly that was a hard thing to finally figure out. So, our green bush beans all matured in one week and my wife and I had quite a time keeping up with them. We blanched and froze a lot for the winter and we ate what we could in the meantime.

Tomatoes are finally coming in. One thing I'm really pissed about is that the garden center where we purchased our tomato plants misslabled four of them. So, instead of six large tomato varieties and six early girl varietes, we got seven early girls and five low-acid cherry tomato plants. We're going to be deluged with the little buggers this week and have already been picking them by the handful. The early girls are coming into their own, however, too.

We planted pickling cukes this year and boy are we pleased. I've already put up and eaten through two crocks of countertop-dills. My old Babcie (grandmother) used to pickle everything on the counter and I have her recipe. Let me tell you that I could win awards with these beauties. If anyone's interested I'll gladly share the recipe here. You will NOT be disappointed.

Green and yellow squash are coming in great, too, and we're freezing them too. Blanch just enough and freeze. Thawing them will be easy during the winter and they won't go to too much mush.

Lost my cauliflower at the last week, however. Stopped spraying "eight" too early, I guess. Cabbage butterfly visited once too often.

Rome

 

[OPM]

I FINALLY was able to figure out the difference between "determinate" and 'indeterminate" vegetables plants were. Did you know there was such a thing? A "Determinate" vegetable variety gets ripe at all the same time so the farmers can pick one time for the markets. An "indeterminate" variety ripens willy-nilly at their own pace. So you'll have green and red tomatoes on the same vine and have them all seaon long. Golly that was a hard thing to finally figure out.

Also, indeterminate usually grows as a vine, whereas determinate usually grows as a bush. When space is limited, indeterminate is preferred. Furthermore, determinate plants usually designed to produce smaller fruit. Yesterday I harvested 3 beefsteaks. They weighed in at 3.2lb total and 8’ plant is loaded with future tomatoes – maybe 30-40 more. There is no way the root system could support the demand of all that fruit and neither could the vine support all of the weight if the plant was a determinate type.

 

[MisterHappy]

Newest Critter Defense:

Bambi and his relatives think that my cukes are tasty, and a critter fence, monofillament invisible fence, yappy War Pomerainian, and my ire and wrath are not sufficient.

Newest schene: Deer panels. I had some 50' x 4' all-purpose black mesh, with about 1" square holes that was not protecting the peas and beans very well, so I picked up some 1 x 2 PT stock and made four 4 x 8 frames, and filled in the frame with the mesh. I placed two panels on each side of my most productive, (and deer-cropped row, and left the next row undefended.

If these work ,I'll make more, and make the rows the "right length" next year.

I'm all for wildlife conservation....but NIMBY.

 

[Stryker]

Newest Critter Defense:

Bambi and his relatives think that my cukes are tasty, and a critter fence, monofillament invisible fence, yappy War Pomerainian, and my ire and wrath are not sufficient.

Newest schene: Deer panels. I had some 50' x 4' all-purpose black mesh, with about 1" square holes that was not protecting the peas and beans very well, so I picked up some 1 x 2 PT stock and made four 4 x 8 frames, and filled in the frame with the mesh. I placed two panels on each side of my most productive, (and deer-cropped row, and left the next row undefended.

If these work ,I'll make more, and make the rows the "right length" next year.

I'm all for wildlife conservation....but NIMBY.

Have you tried the motion activated sprinkler heads? - curious if those work against deer...

 

[MisterHappy]

I'm a cheap bastid, and motion-activated = bucks (this type: $)

I was toying with a fan and streamers ( or a waky waving advertising guy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtespeLin2c ) on a timer that would turn on the fan at random, but failry short intervals.

Wish I could use the '03.....

 

[coastie]

Have you tried the motion activated sprinkler heads? - curious if those work against deer...

My folks tried these and the deer eventually figured them out and ignored them.

 

[Cabinetman]

Thanks for that clarification, OPM. Ya know, the producers of those nice vegetable catalogs we get during the Winter should include a short table of abbreviations for us newbie gardeners. I looked long and hard without finding the difference until now.

Rome

 

[runner]

Well the zuccs and squash are about done. Squash Vine Borers got me. I will try planting later to miss the whole life cycle next year. But the second crop of beans and some Swiss chard are in. Anyone else doing a second planting for fall here in New England?

 

[MisterHappy]

Dug my first crop of taters; if I can get some sprouted ones at the store's bargain bin, I'll go again.

Ocean State Job Lot had seeds @ 60% off, and I picked up some radish seed tape to try for a fall planting. I'm too cheap to pay reatil for the tape, this way I can see how it goes.

I'll probably go again with the beans, and use a different anti-animal system.

Death to Bambi, and his kin.

 

[runner]

Is there enough time for more taters?

 

[Cabinetman]

2nd beans are up about 5". WE should have a nice crop by late September. Butternut squash are doing extremely well. I'm going to let them sit as long as possible to really mature. Any suggestions as to when they are ready? I know the 'trick' about using your thumbnail to see if they are tough enough but I'd like to see them a bit bigger, maybe 10-20% more. Will letting them sit on the vine do that? Tomatoes are coming in....finally.

Rome

 

[MisterHappy]

Is there enough time for more taters?

I like the small suckers, boiled whole, and eaten with butter, salt and pepper.

I was late getting started (beginning of May) and that was 3 months...unless we get a hard freeze early....it should work. if not....no biggie....I spent $1.88 for my "seed" potato stock.

 

[OPM]

RE runner
I’ve replanted lettuce, peas and cucumbers.

There is not enough time for tubers to fully mature, but should be enough time to harvest young potatoes. However, you are likely to get a decreased harvest.


RE Rome
I eat everything young. It tastes delicious and one of the benefits of growing your own. So why would you want to wait?

 

[WBspectrum]

Tomatoes and herbs are going gangbusters. Scotch Bonnet and Ghost Chilis are just about ready. Anyone who I gave seeds to have any luck?

 

[runner]

OPM,

Good idea on the peas. My beans are looking good after the rains, some bush and some pole beans. I'll get the peas in soon. I just started canning so I love the beans, easy prep and who doesn't like green beans on a cold fall night.

Every year the garden gets better and becomes more important.

Runner

 

[pernox]

I'm drowning in Roma tomatoes!

Going to be a biiig batch of sauce tomorrow. Going to smell pretty good in the kitchen after the sweat stops and she's simmering away.

What a contrast from last year's anemic tomato harvest.

 

[runner]

Canned 7 pints of green beans today. The second crop of beans is coming in nice!