lakngulf
Veteran Member
Corn looks great, Dennis. I am couple of weeks out yet.
How does your garden grow?
- Thread starter Larro Darro
- Start date
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Bolero (F1) (Pelleted) - Johnny's Selected SeedsI have not tried pelleted carrot seed, didn't even think about it being available. I am guilty of not thinning carrots too, which is really pathetic given how small our growing is.The raised bed soil/medium is pretty fluffy. The carrots do suffer a bit if not thinned but it's not a disaster.
The coating makes them about the size of a radish seed, making it a lot easier to plant. I've never had much luck thinning them without destroying the row; except with a pair of scissors which is a royal PITA.
Last fall I harvested the biggest, and threw all of the smaller roots to my dog. It took an hour and a half to fill a five gallon pail... and Ruger chomped carrots non-stop for that same time period.
Nice looking corn. The only way I'll enjoy that for a while will be from the local grocery store.
OP
Larro Darro
Super Member
We had some pretty good storms this afternoon. My younger tomato plants hadn't been staked and secured with string, and they were all leaning over. But since my jury duty for tomorrow got cancelled, I will be able to deal with it in the morning.
Larro
PS: had the corn and some of my green beans for supper.
Larro
PS: had the corn and some of my green beans for supper.
OP
Larro Darro
Super Member
After I staked and wove the tomatoes I plowed the newest peas{brown crowders}. This store bought plow has me spoiled. It pretty much goes where you point it.
Larro
TomSeller
Super Member
Yeah, I have seen those but thought they were intended to be antique replicas, never really thought about using one in my garden. Looks like it works well.
OP
Larro Darro
Super Member
A lot of the old timers around here are still using the antique ones. I have most of the parts of the old one we had when I was a boy, but just replacing the handles cost about what a new one does. With my sandy soil, it is easy to push. I'm guessing rocky ground or hard packed clay would be a different matter.
Larro
dave1949
Super Star Member
I think I over did the nitrogen fertilizer on my rhubarb. I side dressed it just as the new growth was emerging this spring with what I thought was a reasonable amount of some 31-0-0 fertilizer.
Those are chives with the violet-colored tops. Grows like a weed here. To the far left in front is sedum, and behind that a hybrid miniature flowering thing we have forgotten the name of. Asparagus in the background. The bare area in the middle has some cukes and beans planted that are barely out of the ground.
Those are chives with the violet-colored tops. Grows like a weed here. To the far left in front is sedum, and behind that a hybrid miniature flowering thing we have forgotten the name of. Asparagus in the background. The bare area in the middle has some cukes and beans planted that are barely out of the ground.
Western
Super Member
Dave, only time I us str8 N, is on my grass, or hay when I was doing that, for the top growth. I have found a good triple 13 works all-a-round for me.
BTW, I got a soil sample for my garden this year, since the spot is only 2 years old. I was OK on N, low on P and HIGH in potash ( I had a burn pile there before the garden). I ended up having to buy 2 different bags and blending them myself to get like a 3-12-1.
Soil sample save me several k when I was cutting hay and help me keep the need in the garden in prospective.
Your place sure looks serene and relaxing too:thumbsup:
BTW, I got a soil sample for my garden this year, since the spot is only 2 years old. I was OK on N, low on P and HIGH in potash ( I had a burn pile there before the garden). I ended up having to buy 2 different bags and blending them myself to get like a 3-12-1.
Soil sample save me several k when I was cutting hay and help me keep the need in the garden in prospective.
Your place sure looks serene and relaxing too:thumbsup:
OP
Larro Darro
Super Member
Dave, I love your underground house. If I ever build again, I would like something like that. We have plenty of hot and cold weather here in NW Florida, and I'm sure it would safe lots of energy over the lifetime of the house. I don't wish anything bad to happen to my house, but if it did, I would either go underground or with the Styrofoam blocks filled with concrete. And other than a small basement, it would be one story. I can go a month at a time without going upstairs here.
Larro
Larro
OP
Larro Darro
Super Member
I noticed some of my corn silks starting to turn. When I waded in for a picture, a rain frog hitched a ride. I also discovered I had bush beans mixed in with the corn and pole beans, and they were in bad need of being picked. I {thought I} had planted two kinds of pole beans with the corn. Either one of them were mislabeled, or I just messed up. Anyway, I got a good mess of beans.
Larro
lakngulf
Veteran Member
Well, last year I fought the raccoons for the corn, and we split 50/50. This year they are not even waiting for the ears to get ripe. They are wiping me out.
OP
Larro Darro
Super Member
If you have a live trap, bait it with a can of sardines, or some other smelly meat. You will catch at least one a night. Then shoot them with a .22. And there is no need to throw the dead carcass away. Coon makes fine eating. Especially corn fed ones
Larro
Western
Super Member
I use Dukes dog proof coon traps, they will thin them out in a hurry.
dave1949
Super Star Member
We like our house. It's really like a walk-out basement with no house above it. I have no idea how well that would work in your climate. My guess is you would want less glass and less thermal mass, plus a lot more attention to forced air exchange, AC and humidity control. They make some pricey but nice ERV units for air exchange with heat recovery based on a ducted system.
Our previous house was 2-1/2 stories, about 3000 sq ft. It needed a riding vacuum cleaner. :laughing: Seriously, keeping a house that size clean is a lot of hours. We decided to downsize and go for energy efficiency to stretch retirement budgets.
Our house is optimized more for long, cold winters than summer warmth. We may have over done that a bit. Winter heat is no issue, but hot and humid weather was a bit outside it's best performance. Today I posted pics of our new mini-split units in the Good Morning thread. I think those units are what we needed for summer.
OP
Larro Darro
Super Member
I have a piece of land planted in slash pines that has a big bowl shaped depression on it. I always dreamed of having a long, narrow, curved underground house set back into the hill. I used to draw up plans for the house. What I had in mind was the front {facing south} having about three feet exposed with windows up high for light to get in the rooms, and the top of the house to be completely underground. But the land is harder to get electric to, as well as lacking a good right of way, so when we built, we built here in an old pasture near the crossroads. Both roads were dirt when we built eleven years ago, now both are paved.
Our house is 1 1/2 stories, and was 1800 square feet before we added on. Now it's 2440, and while not too big, I wish it was one story. And as I get older, I will just wish that all the more
We had to have a second heat pump when we added on. If I ever did go underground, {or Styrofoam} I would have the same setup I have now, just with one unit instead of the two. Our heating and cooling is electric, and our bill is around $200-250 a month. That is not too bad for around here. But we keep the AC set on 78F. When it's 90F outside, that is pretty cool.Larro
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Larro Darro
Super Member
I have about half a dozen pink eyed purple hulls ready to pick. In a few days there will be enough for a mess. The Crimson Sweets are growing well. {as are the other little green melons that I forgot to look at the seed packets when I was in town so I could find out what they are} The gourds have blooms and little gourds on them.
Larro
There's probably a dozen sites in Maine where you can dig deep enough to do that without either hitting ledge or building below the water table... Dave scoffed up one of them.
:thumbsup:Western
Super Member
Made pickles last Sunday, gave out 2 jars to see if they liked them and lived:laughing: Getting orders now :shocked: I'll be honest, best textured pickles I have had next to Valasik (sp) fact you wouldnt know the difference!! My wife found a "pre-mix" at the local grocer and WOW.
brin
Super Member
Every year the Deer eat my peppers....and my Mrs. Hostas.....Last year the deer ate the Jalapeno peppers...this year they are eating the cherry peppers...I was really looking forward to those....Now I'm looking at my hunting license....
dave1949
Super Star Member
There's probably a dozen sites in Maine where you can dig deep enough to do that without either hitting ledge or building below the water table... Dave scoffed up one of them.
Ha Ha. We're actually just dug into the side of a small rising area of land. No ledge but lots of boulders came out of that digging. When our well was drilled they hit ledge at 15'. It's down there for sure. :laughing:
The basement of our old house in Wells sat on ledge in one corner. We got really lucky on that one. The house sat between two granite ridges that came out of the ground. Everything, the foundation drain to daylight, septic & leach field, fit in there with no blasting. It was all yellow-red sand between the ledge too.
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