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I am losing my garden
- Thread starter jmjkd
- Start date
Raised beds here, so I'm good so far.. I feel for you, though. I drowned some perfectly good tomato plants last year. Got about three viable fruits per plant.. Lesson learned in container gardening; when you think your drainage is good enough, add more. ![[thinking]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/010.gif "Thinking [thinking]")
raised beds also here....actually, what I do is dig a trench and mound the dirt each year, so the "beds" are raised long mounds....I line the bottom of the trench and sides of the long hills with straw ( not Hay)....the Straw helps to retain moisture ( not a problem this year), and the raised mounds help it to drain...
now all we need is some sunlight......someday....
At the end of the season, I fill in the trenches with leaves, the mulch straw, etc, and the turn over the mounds of soil and cover it all....leave it that way for the winter and next year, dig the trenches again...
***
Also, this year, first time, I set up a compost pile - took three packing skids, on and, nailed together to make a 3 sided Bin. put in a bunch os soli, leaves, sod, etc.,...now all the household vegetable scrap goes into a daliy dump container, and each day I go out to the compost bin, dig a hole and dump the container......So far I am seeing a huge amount of Worms in this soil.. I also sprinkle gadern Lime and also fertilizer ( read that the nitrogen in the fertilizer helps the bacteria that decomposes the compost work faster)..
now all we need is some sunlight......someday....
At the end of the season, I fill in the trenches with leaves, the mulch straw, etc, and the turn over the mounds of soil and cover it all....leave it that way for the winter and next year, dig the trenches again...
***
Also, this year, first time, I set up a compost pile - took three packing skids, on and, nailed together to make a 3 sided Bin. put in a bunch os soli, leaves, sod, etc.,...now all the household vegetable scrap goes into a daliy dump container, and each day I go out to the compost bin, dig a hole and dump the container......So far I am seeing a huge amount of Worms in this soil.. I also sprinkle gadern Lime and also fertilizer ( read that the nitrogen in the fertilizer helps the bacteria that decomposes the compost work faster)..
Coffee grounds have nitrogen in them. After you've brewed a pot you can use the grounds in your compost.
Novice gardener here (1st time), but what are the symptoms of drowning/too much water?
Right now I have 10 tomato plants that are holding up pretty well... same for the herb garden. My green pepper plants look a bit beat though.
Right now I have 10 tomato plants that are holding up pretty well... same for the herb garden. My green pepper plants look a bit beat though.
I don't use coffee grounds because they make the soil more acidic. I already have soil that is on the acidic side because of the pine trees. Might want to consider that when adding coffee grounds, but I'm sure any serious gardener has had their soil tested at some point anyways.
I can't have a garden because of the 50-ft trees surrounding everything, too hard & too expensive to cut them down. Makes it nice and cool in the summer but I'd rather have the sun sometimes
I've got four raised beds next to the house, they get the most sun that's gonna happen. I figure it might be a losing proposition but I have three semi-dwarf "compspur" apple trees (one in each) and the fourth has strawberries- they were free (long story) so I stuck 'em in anyways. They aren't doing well I think but the apple trees seem to be o.k. They won't flower or bear for a year or three yet so time will tell.
I've got an impressive moss garden on a little hillside though, it's doing just fine![[smile]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/001.gif "Smile [smile]")
I can't have a garden because of the 50-ft trees surrounding everything, too hard & too expensive to cut them down. Makes it nice and cool in the summer but I'd rather have the sun sometimes
I've got four raised beds next to the house, they get the most sun that's gonna happen. I figure it might be a losing proposition but I have three semi-dwarf "compspur" apple trees (one in each) and the fourth has strawberries- they were free (long story) so I stuck 'em in anyways. They aren't doing well I think but the apple trees seem to be o.k. They won't flower or bear for a year or three yet so time will tell.
I've got an impressive moss garden on a little hillside though, it's doing just fine
Mass-diver
NES Member
Worst season in a long time, not really much you can do when there's no sun and it's in the 50s at night. The commercial guys are getting killed 
Mine was doing great, right up untill the deer ate everything. String beans, tomatoes and cucumbers are gone. Surprisingly, they left the turnips. They probably figured I could find them with all the farting they'd be doing.
My wife, who couldn't care less about hunting, asked what was the quietest gun I had. "I had it with those effing deer!" she said.
Knob Creek
NES Member
Tomatoes and peppers are just sitting there in the ground doing nothing. This was my first attempt at a good size garden in 15 years. I haven't got to get anything else in the ground. Probably just as well. Took me weeks between the rain to plow up the sod and get the plot ready.
I did plant 5 blueberry bushes, three raspberry bushes, three apple and two pear trees which seem to be doing OK.
I did plant 5 blueberry bushes, three raspberry bushes, three apple and two pear trees which seem to be doing OK.
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First attempt in years.
Radishes and store bought broccoli are doing well. Zuccini flowered and looks good. Corn is small, but OK, I guess.
I bought a variety seed pack of the lettuce and won't do that again. Some is flowering, most seems pale and overwatered - no surprise.
Beans seem ok. Tomatoes aren't so hot. Spinach is at about 30%.
Prepping a compost pile for next year.
Radishes and store bought broccoli are doing well. Zuccini flowered and looks good. Corn is small, but OK, I guess.
I bought a variety seed pack of the lettuce and won't do that again. Some is flowering, most seems pale and overwatered - no surprise.
Beans seem ok. Tomatoes aren't so hot. Spinach is at about 30%.
Prepping a compost pile for next year.
Update: August 1st...
Is anyone else having a bumper crop of squash this year? I have four yellow squash plants and two zucchini plants in this year (cool zucchini - 10" long and as big around as my forearm - striped and almost no seeds! Wow!) and between my three voracious family members, we're drowning in the stuff. At this rate, I'll be able to blanch and freeze probably 20lbs before the end of the season.
Worth noting, the plants were given to me by a former co-worker; she started them from regular run-of-the-mill Gurney's seed.
Is anyone else having a bumper crop of squash this year? I have four yellow squash plants and two zucchini plants in this year (cool zucchini - 10" long and as big around as my forearm - striped and almost no seeds! Wow!) and between my three voracious family members, we're drowning in the stuff. At this rate, I'll be able to blanch and freeze probably 20lbs before the end of the season.
Worth noting, the plants were given to me by a former co-worker; she started them from regular run-of-the-mill Gurney's seed.
Ditto on the hostas and moss, though my moss is not voluntary.
I'm quite sure that I'd have just grown a mess of mush if it weren't for the raised beds. The best weather week we had this spring was spent in Niagara Falls on my honeymoon, else I'd have been able to get a couple more beds in with more plantings... As it stands, the squash and zucchini are all I have to keep the onions company. Sad year for home grown groceries.
![[sad]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/004.gif "Sad [sad]")
Neither is mine. That part used to be lawn. [sad2]
Summer Squash also came out in strong numbers. Lettuce did ok. We put up 4ft wire fence all around the garden and thinned out the rabbit population last season. Tomatoes are still green. Peppers are non-existant. A whole lot of green, not a whole lot of veggies outside of squash here also.
Peppers are starving for sun!! I have some interesting pepper seed that I'm pretty glad I didn't plant, in retrospect.
I can sympathize. At least it's green, though, so I can't bitch too much. I had a pretty serious grub thing going last year; lots of brown, dead patches. "GrubEX" though expensive and not organic, took care of it this year with one application.
Well, the tomatoes are loaded this year. We have a couple peppers o nthe jalapeno plants, well see what happens. We planted them in the tomato bed.
We have squash's coming, beans are doing okay, beets are getting there and we will see how the carrots will be doing.
Cabbage is doing excellent, so we are getting there.If we can get enough days of sunshine instead of rain well...... we should be in good shape.
The tomatoes is the best we have had so far.
Although after this summer we did decide we are doing raised beds next year.![[laugh]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/012.gif "Laugh [laugh]")
Of course the chickens are liking all the weeds we are pulling out of the garden.
We have squash's coming, beans are doing okay, beets are getting there and we will see how the carrots will be doing.
Cabbage is doing excellent, so we are getting there.If we can get enough days of sunshine instead of rain well...... we should be in good shape.
The tomatoes is the best we have had so far.
Although after this summer we did decide we are doing raised beds next year.
Of course the chickens are liking all the weeds we are pulling out of the garden.
Twigg
NES Member
Got my first tomatoes of the season, six the size of my thumbnail.
On the plus side my onions are really growing and I've transplanted half of them because they were crowding each other out. Broccoli has the second set of florets getting nice & big and the cauliflower heads are starting to peak out from their leafy centers.
On the plus side my onions are really growing and I've transplanted half of them because they were crowding each other out. Broccoli has the second set of florets getting nice & big and the cauliflower heads are starting to peak out from their leafy centers.
Gardens
I tried two new things this year. One, I bought two six packs of "deer cups" at Lowes and placed them around the garden. Deer wiped it out last year without them... this year... deer are in the yard but haven't touched the garden so far. Two, had a friend dump a load of seaweed which I placed all around the plants and in the rows. Lettuce and spinach did nothing because of all the rain but everything else is coming out real well.
commandcaddy
I tried two new things this year. One, I bought two six packs of "deer cups" at Lowes and placed them around the garden. Deer wiped it out last year without them... this year... deer are in the yard but haven't touched the garden so far. Two, had a friend dump a load of seaweed which I placed all around the plants and in the rows. Lettuce and spinach did nothing because of all the rain but everything else is coming out real well.
commandcaddy
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