The Garden Thread

[peejman]

Yep, good time for an update. The zucchini is going gangbusters. The tomatoes will be too in another week or so. Everything else is fine except for the okra. I've no idea what the deal is, but out of 10-12 seedlings, I think 1 is still alive. None of the rest grew at all. 

[Raoul]

I'm game. Harvested the garlic today. Green beans should be coming in about 2 weeks. First tomatoes are 2 weeks out. Everything else is a ways off.

[gregintenn]

I have small squash, zucchinis, and green tomatoes. Most everything else is blooming. Cabbages are making heads nicely.

 

Due to a lot of rain earlier, and other obligations, my garden turned bright green with weeds. I've hoed in it every chance I've had for over a week now to reclaim it. I may go back to buying vegetables. I'm sick of a hoe!

[Dirtshooter]

Picked all the broccoli and cabbage. Have harvested yellow squash, zuchinnis, pulled up all my onions, picked 2 messes of green beans and have gobs of green maters waiting on them to ripen. It has been very dry here with only 2" rain last month and only 1 so far this month.

[gregintenn]

Other than a rogue turkey that met it's demise in the garden a few weeks ago, we ate the first produce from ours tonight. Chicken stir fry with zucchini, yellow squash, jalapeno pepper, and a handful of tiny green beans. I've been waiting on that for a while now. It was really good.

 

We've had plenty of rain here. Garden looks good. I set it out late, so it's just about to start producing for the most part.

[Wingshooter]

Is it too late to plant corn? 

I would leave a lot of it standing though the deer season.

[gregintenn]

9 hours ago, Wingshooter said:

Is it too late to plant corn? 

I would leave a lot of it standing though the deer season.

No. Corn would have plenty of time to mature before the first frost. I'd be getting on with it though.

[peejman]

Keep in mind that corn is a major nutrient hog. If you intend to continue to plant it in the same area, you'll have to amend the soil regularly. 

[Wingshooter]

3 hours ago, peejman said:

Keep in mind that corn is a major nutrient hog. If you intend to continue to plant it in the same area, you'll have to amend the soil regularly. 

Really it's 99% for the deer, turkeys and wildlife. I've got about a 400yd stretch of powerline with a small, single overhead line. I've already talked the the power co, and they said they won't disturb crops unless it's an emergency repair (said they would "tread lightly" even in that scenario). I thought about planting it with an attractant crop. I already planted a patch of clover, and I see deer out there all the time. I liked corn because it would also provide some cover, and it would be obvious to thepower co that's it's planted with a crop

[MacGyver]

Pulled some cabbage yesterday.  Peppers are starting to produce well.  Tomatoes went in late, but looking good.  My yellow pear tomatoes are already prolific - which is good because my kids have been looking forward to them.  

 

[peejman]

6 hours ago, Wingshooter said:

Really it's 99% for the deer, turkeys and wildlife. I've got about a 400yd stretch of powerline with a small, single overhead line. I've already talked the the power co, and they said they won't disturb crops unless it's an emergency repair (said they would "tread lightly" even in that scenario). I thought about planting it with an attractant crop. I already planted a patch of clover, and I see deer out there all the time. I liked corn because it would also provide some cover, and it would be obvious to thepower co that's it's planted with a crop

I figured that's what you had in mind, but you're still gonna have to deal with how corn depletes the soil. Think about rotating the corn with soy beans. 

[Wingshooter]

35 minutes ago, peejman said:

I figured that's what you had in mind, but you're still gonna have to deal with how corn depletes the soil. Think about rotating the corn with soy beans. 

Good plan. Would alternating them yearly be enough rotation, or does the soil need a longer break? 

[Omega]

1 hour ago, Wingshooter said:

Good plan. Would alternating them yearly be enough rotation, or does the soil need a longer break? 

That and a little lime now and then.

[peejman]

Yep. Depends on how good the soil is now, how much yield you want, how much work/money you're willing to spend on it. 

The UT Ag college does free soil analysis. You send in a sample, tell them what you want to grow, and they'll tell you what to do. 

https://ag.tennessee.edu/spp/Pages/soiltesting.aspx

ok, it used to be free...

 

Edited June 27, 2016 by peejman

[Wingshooter]

Sounds good. I took a sample to the coop recently to get tested. I haven't got the results yet. I have a feeling this power line needs some help. It seems like dry clay and a little rocky. would it be better to plant something else first like soy beans?

[Omega]

1 hour ago, Wingshooter said:

Sounds good. I took a sample to the coop recently to get tested. I haven't got the results yet. I have a feeling this power line needs some help. It seems like dry clay and a little rocky. would it be better to plant something else first like soy beans?

Maybe, but I had good luck planting corn in such dirt in my area.  I too have right-of-ways in my hunting land, a TVA and a gas line.  The dirt on the top looked good, not too compacted and rich looking, the one at the bottom about the same.  The one at the bottom took corn real well with nothing done on my part except spreading the seed,  the one at the top, nada. Did not reach maturity though as it was grazed before stalks produced ears of corn. 

What I did afterward was to spread some ladino clover, red clover, chicory, essex rape and some wheat.  Was great for one season, then the weeds started to take over.  So re-tilled, and spread cheap grass seed from rural king ($3 bags not the bulk) and not have huge clover field.  I figured since every time I tried to plant grass at home I ended up with a bunch of clover it would do the same there, and it did. 

To date I haven't had much luck with soy beans even though I tried a couple of times, but either turkeys or some other critter keeps eating the seed.  I have a 55gl barrel full of soybean seed though, so will keep trying, a couple of weeks ago I spread some out so we will see what happens. 

[gregintenn]

1 hour ago, Omega said:

Maybe, but I had good luck planting corn in such dirt in my area.  I too have right-of-ways in my hunting land, a TVA and a gas line.  The dirt on the top looked good, not too compacted and rich looking, the one at the bottom about the same.  The one at the bottom took corn real well with nothing done on my part except spreading the seed,  the one at the top, nada. Did not reach maturity though as it was grazed before stalks produced ears of corn. 

What I did afterward was to spread some ladino clover, red clover, chicory, essex rape and some wheat.  Was great for one season, then the weeds started to take over.  So re-tilled, and spread cheap grass seed from rural king ($3 bags not the bulk) and not have huge clover field.  I figured since every time I tried to plant grass at home I ended up with a bunch of clover it would do the same there, and it did. 

To date I haven't had much luck with soy beans even though I tried a couple of times, but either turkeys or some other critter keeps eating the seed.  I have a 55gl barrel full of soybean seed though, so will keep trying, a couple of weeks ago I spread some out so we will see what happens. 

Pinto bears are a good crop to plant for deer food. Now probably wouldn't be a bad time to plant them. Just go to the grocery and buy them off them off the shelf, as they are an heirloom seed.

[Omega]

1 hour ago, gregintenn said:

Pinto bears are a good crop to plant for deer food. Now probably wouldn't be a bad time to plant them. Just go to the grocery and buy them off them off the shelf, as they are an heirloom seed.

Never considered those, since they are a legume they will probably be a good crop to rotate with corn as well as they give back to the soil.

[Wingshooter]

5 hours ago, Omega said:

Maybe, but I had good luck planting corn in such dirt in my area.  I too have right-of-ways in my hunting land, a TVA and a gas line.  The dirt on the top looked good, not too compacted and rich looking, the one at the bottom about the same.  The one at the bottom took corn real well with nothing done on my part except spreading the seed,  the one at the top, nada. Did not reach maturity though as it was grazed before stalks produced ears of corn. 

What I did afterward was to spread some ladino clover, red clover, chicory, essex rape and some wheat.  Was great for one season, then the weeds started to take over.  So re-tilled, and spread cheap grass seed from rural king ($3 bags not the bulk) and not have huge clover field.  I figured since every time I tried to plant grass at home I ended up with a bunch of clover it would do the same there, and it did. 

To date I haven't had much luck with soy beans even though I tried a couple of times, but either turkeys or some other critter keeps eating the seed.  I have a 55gl barrel full of soybean seed though, so will keep trying, a couple of weeks ago I spread some out so we will see what happens. 

Great idea to plant grass to get clover, lol. Same happens to me in my yard.

[Wingshooter]

4 hours ago, gregintenn said:

Pinto bears are a good crop to plant for deer food. Now probably wouldn't be a bad time to plant them. Just go to the grocery and buy them off them off the shelf, as they are an heirloom seed.

Mmmm... Pinto beans I never thought of them. So all pintos are heirloom and will grow from the bag? Just broadcast spread or are rows needed? 

 

 

 

[peejman]

Do I recall someone here having thornless blackberries?  If so, what's the skinny?  

I've got a jasmine on a short fence row that died and I was thinking of replacing it with a thornless blackberry. 

[Mark A]

I have a Doyle thornless BlackBerry that I put in terrible dirt a couple of years ago. It refuses to die but hasn't fruited yet. I bought a second one at the same time for a friend who knows how to grow stuff and it has produced gallons of good tasting berries.

 

Not sure if there are cheaper options but they seem to produce well with a little TLC

 

Mark

Edited July 3, 2016 by Mark A

[Omega]

I planted black berries and some raspberries,  only one didn't make it.  But they don't produce a bunch, just a few here and there.  Of course the critters may be getting these before I do.

[gregintenn]

We just canned 5 quarts of green beans. Not many, but the first of them. I think there'll be a bunch before they stop producing.

[peejman]

Here's our first attempt at canning.  In the past, we've just frozen what extras we had but we recently got a hand-me-down pressure canner to we decided to give it a shot.

3 jars of Roma tomatoes, 6 jars of salsa, 7 jars of sweet pickles, and 4 jars of chow chow.  I think we're gonna have a ton more maters before they're done, but we're gonna have to get more jars.  We've only got a few left.