Garden update (May 2, 2014)

It has been two weeks since I updated things, so (unfortunately?) I have a lot to report on.  In general I have been lucky with the weather.  It has been too wet and too cool to do much work in the garden the past week, so I have been busy moving starts from the flats to peat pots and larger containers.  It looks like my timing on starting things was pretty good this year (luck, not skill).  I have the chicken wire "anti-rabbit" fence installed around the entire garden now,  and the electric fence is keeping the deer at bay.  The tiller (actually a cultivator) is working well, and by first using a garden fork to break up the soil to a depth of about 10" it does a fantastic job.  So far I have about 75% of the tilling done.  I have been moving perennials and taking out some of the ones that did not make it through the winter.

I started transplanting from my seed starter last week, and have actually transplanted some of the veggies (and flowers) I started in flats.  I only transplant about 1/3 to 1/2 of the plants that are ready in case Jack Frost decides to reappear!   The following is a summary of where things stand:

1)  We have potatoes!  I was almost ready to give up and start digging through the straw to see if there was any sign of life in my potato patch, but when I checked this morning I see one glimmer of hope.  I suppose this could be the only one to survive, but I bet not!

2)  Not much remains of my garage greenhouse!  I wheel the rack out each day the sun is out.  As I said above, I have transplanted some of the starts, and all appear to be doing well.  The photo here is my pepper collection for this years garden: California Wonder; Pimiento Cubane; New Mexico #6; miniature ornamental; yellow banana; Poblano; Red Mercury.

Probably 75% of what remains on the rack are annual flowers.  I have actually put out quite a few nasturtiums and marigolds (with plenty more in reserve).

3)  The peas are slowly making progress!

4)  The herb patch in the garden has basil (left image) and cilantro (right image) germinated from seed directly planted about two weeks ago.  Some "specialty" basil plants (Thai, spice bush) are still in the garage awaiting warmer weather.

5)  Quite a few of my container plants are getting a good start (two types of eggplant, Swiss chard).  I am also trying to revive some of the herbs that did not fare too well this past winter.

6)  The rhubarb has really taken off (see April 5 entry) and it may be pie time this next week!  The plants by the lattices in the background are acorn squash and yard long beans.  I have my poles set for the Kentucky wonder pole beans






There is still a lot to do, but it looks like warm weather is returning this weekend.   I will probably go ahead and start putting out tomatoes and peppers unless the long term weather forecast looks bad for next week.

Rainy day update

April 13, 2014

After several beautiful days of spring (temperatures about 70 F!) the rain  and cold have returned.  I did get a fair amount of work done over the weekend getting most of the fence "rabbit proofed" and some preliminary tilling done.

Unfortunately, my tiller died*, so I spent the morning taking it to the repair shop (ouch!).  The kale and spinach shown in the photo are actually doing nicely and we have been eating both regularly.  The arugula is actually starting to flower, so I put out another row, as well as a row of Bok Choi since both can certainly take the cold weather.  I also cleaned up and started my "fountain" and put in a bunch of watercress that we picked up at the Bloomington Farmer's Market this last weekend.

The weather certainly looks bad for the coming week, and hard frosts are predicted for tonight and tomorrow night*.  To be safe I brought my seed starter indoors.  As you can see most of the beans and squashes have germinated and are doing nicely--all we lack is warm enough weather to transplant them!

*UPDATE  (04/15/2014)

Woke up this AM with about 1/2 inch of snow on everything in the back yard :-(.   The forecast for tonight is a low of 24, so I may lose most of my leaf veggies.  That is the bad news--the good news is that J & S called and said they were able to get the tiller working!

When spring explodes!

Today was a perfect day!  The temperature hit 70 in the afternoon and it looks like every spring flower decided it was time to bloom.  While some of the crocus have been out for over a week, and the daffodils slightly longer, today everyone joined in.

The back yard suddenly became purple this afternoon.

The ftlowering cherry will probably be in full bloom by tomorrow.

 

Daffodiles are everywhere.

Trillium and bloodroot are up.

Even these little guys decided today was the day.

On the gardening side, most of the seeds have germinated and the rabbit fence has been started (more later).

More signs of spring!

April 5, 2014

It was actually sunny today for the first time this week  so I went out to check the mud and empty the rain gauge (4.1" since March 29).  It has been a little over two weeks since I first saw the rhubarb starting to emerge from the ground.  I decided to see how it was coming this morning and it certainly looks healthy!

I also checked to see if there was any other activity worth noting and, lo and behold!

This is the first sign of the new asparagus bed I put in last spring.  I have about eight plants of several different varieties, and I can see at least for or five spears coming through the mud.

Peas!

Each year I manage to plant peas (sugar snap) earlier than I should.  My grandmother Huffman always said she planted them on Valentines day.  Since we are 100 miles north, I assume this translates to about two weeks.  This year the peas were the first thing to actually be planted in the garden--March 22nd.  The ground was just barely dry enough to use my cultivator/tiller on, but it worked up OK.  Below is the result as seen on April 04!

There are probably 6 - 10 that have sprouted in the last two days.  I had to walk through the mud to get this photo.  We have had 4.1" of rain so far this month (notice--that is only four days), so they may wash away!

Growing potatoes the modern way

For the past two years I have tried growing potatoes in my back yard garden with moderate degrees of success.  I decided this year to approach the potato growing in a scientific way.  What I am describing is actually not terribly scientific--for example I did not apply for external funding--but I am going to keep track of what I did and whether of not it worked.
Naturally, I started with a comprehensive literature search which allowed me to come to the following two conclusions:

1. There are hundreds of ways to grow potatoes.
2. There are hundreds of ways not to grow potatoes.

The one thing which really stands out is that if you can successfully grow potatoes, it is necessary to write it up for a blog--either your own or someone else's.  The blog entries also fall into two categories:

1. The successful ways to grow potatoes, which means you write up how you did it at the end of the season after you forget what all that you did; and 
2. The unsuccessful ways, which means you carefully describe what you did at the first of the planting season then never mention potatoes again.

Being cheap I did not buy seed potatoes, so I may be introducing all kinds of blights etc. into the garden.  My wife saved a half dozen bakers that had started to sprout and I had a basket of small potatoes from last year that had also started sprouting:

Following everyone's suggestion I cut the larger potatoes into segments and let them dry for two days on the picnic table.

The next step was to prepare an area in the garden.  I picked a spot by the back fence which was about 5' x 5' and tilled it (using my cultivator) to a depth of about 8" (as deep as it will go).   A layer of relatively recent compost was then added, as well as some well composted leaves.  After tilling this mixture I installed fence posts in each corner and used chicken wire to enclose the area.

  

I then split the remainder of the bale of hay into sections about 6" thick and placed them on the prepared surface.

Slots were then created in each of the sections and the potato started placed on a small amount of leaf compost in the slots and the crevices between the six sections.  Following this the potato starts were all loosely covered with a layer of straw, and the bed thoroughly watered.

Now, if you find this is the last entry on potatoes on this blog you will know that none of this worked!  I am actually confident that I will have at least some success, so I will keep you informed.

Secrets to an early garden!

Needless to say some plants will only grow and thrive when the temperature, moisture, and length of day are right.  One of the problems I had for years was the frustration of finally getting the ground dry enough to work, getting my seeds out only to see birds and other varmints pull up the newly sprouted plant.  I have never been able to figure out what they are after--they don't seem to eat any part of the seedling, they just pull them out of the ground!

The solution to this was suggested by my sister-in-law's husband (thank you Mike!).  He starts his bush beans in plastic cups and transfers them to the garden after they are well established and the soil has warmed.  After three years of experimenting I have come up with what I consider the best way to do this.

I start with a sheet of 2' x 8' "lattice" obtainable from the lumber store, cut into two 2' x 4' sections for ease of handling.  I nail the lattice to a rectangle made of 1" x 4" boards as shown below.

I then take plastic yogurt cups (46 total) and drill one or two 1/4" drain holes in the bottom of each.  I line the cups with newspaper to insure that I can easily remove the plants.  I have found the easiest way to do this is to cut the newspaper into ~ 3" x 8" strips and then use one strip to hold the second strip as shown in the first figure below.  Using a misting bottle I wet the inside of the yogurt cut I am inserting the paper in and push the two together as shown in the second image below.

  While the paper is still damp I place a mixture of potting soil, soil from my garden, and some of my leaf compost into each cup as shown below.

I discovered last year that birds (and presumably other varmints) will still get to the seeds if the planter is left outside.  To stop this I make a cover which is a rectangular frame the same size as the cup holder and, using 1/4" hardware cloth, form a dome to keep undesirables out.  I found a staple gun to be the best tool for attaching the hardware cloth to the cover.

Once the seeds are planted you can decide if it is warm enough to leave the seed starter outside, or bring it in on cold evenings.  I usually place a sheet of clear plastic (visqueen, available from paint and/or hardware stores) over the top of the hardware cloth.  While this means you have to water the starts (often frequently), you have created a small greenhouse which can speed up germination.   Use caution however, since on a sunny day the temperature can  easily raise to 100+ degrees in the miniature "hothouse".

It's time!

After a terrible winter I was delighted to find my rhubarb sticking up in the middle of my back yard garden.  I can always count on it to let me know that it is time to start in earnest.

Growing the winter garden

For the past five or six years I have been extending the growing season of several leafy vegetables.  When I first started doing this the plan was to keep the kale (which actually likes lite frosts) for as long as I could in the fall.  What I found was that several vegetables will not only survive the winter but will thrive in a simple cold-frame!  Considering the number of days of below zero weather and the snow this past winter I was amazed when I realized that my three favorites (kale, spinach, and arugula) were still healthy this spring.  Looking at the images below (all taken in early March), you can see why I consider cold frames an essential part of my garden.  Not only do the hardy vegetable thrive, there are nearly NO bugs in the cold weather!

The cold frame shown here contains "Olympia" spinach, my favorite.  I find that it will not only do well from a September- October sowing, but will yield large tender leaves well into late spring/early summer.  It tends not to bolt and has done well all three years I have grown it.

Two 3"x 3"x 8' landscaping timbers are place on the ground about 18" apart.   Notice the 1/8" steel "clothesline" wire that I use to keep the clear corrugated covers from collapsing under the snow.  A Styrofoam sheet at each end keeps the cold out.  Two or three eye hooks are screwed into the landscaping timber and a length of wire attached to opposing eye hooks reduce the chance of wind blowing the cover off.

 Above are four of this years cold frames (I had six total).  While they will not supply all the leaf veggies I want for the winter, they are a wonderful addition on those days when it is warm and dry enough to harvest them.

This is what the cold frames looked like in January!

Or, if you have 3D (red/green) glasses you can check out this picture.