SV's 2010 Garden List

SV1000

SV1000

Howdy!

2009

I have grown some Orange Habanero’s and Jalapeno's in flowerbeds or buckets over the last ten years but I started my first garden last year. Three 4x8x8 raised beds with horse manure and a garden mix from the local dirt place. I ordered a variety of seedlings from CC Nursery but was not pleased with the plants, a 180 degree experience from previous orders.

The garden was pretty successful with a great crop of tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce (bitter) spinach (spotted), radishes, carrots (stunted) onions (stunted) and peppers. The first few batches of Jalapenos were good but the rest of the peppers had neglible if any heat.

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Mistakes abound but all easily correctable: too many plants, too crowded, cucumbers took over an entire bed, tomatoes were huge and overwhelmed the little cone shaped cages, squirrels, poor growth from my online peppers and NO HEAT!

2010

This year I raised my beds 8” to 16” high and relocated them to be 24” apart. They were originally spaced 48” apart for my 42” lawn tractor and then I replaced it with a 54” tractor :crazy: It was pain to use the string trimmer between the beds and that also blew Bermuda seed everywhere making it a huge pain. I plan to spray Roundup around and between the beds and then mulch so the Bermuda will be less of a problem.

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I ordered seeds from HippieSeed this past Saturday:

Bhut Jolokia
Yellow 7 Pot
Red Savina

^^^ makes my mouth water thinking about these bad boy’s.

I need to order/buy:

Jalapeno
Tabasco
Cherry
New Mexican

The chilies will get a bed of their own, my plan was to build three more beds, all for peppers but I don’t think I can get it done in time so I may grow some plants in containers. I have been collecting five gallon buckets all year and I think this will be an advantage when it get really hot.

I germinated my seeds in the peat balls last year and then transplanted them to Dixie cups. I think it will be easier and cheaper to germinate them in Dixie cups from the beginning and then transplant them to the garden. I didn’t have enough light last year so I will get two 48” shop lights and mount them over my plotter table this year. I germinated way to many plants last year but I gave them to people at the office. I will germinate more than I need and give them away but 25 Jalapeno’s is far more than I need.

I know this is a Pepper site but…

I love tomatoes so I will probably have three plants again, two plus a cherry. I will get three sheets of welded wire mesh and roll my own cages this year, they should be 30” in diameter and 48” tall.

I need to build a trellis for the cucumbers, those suckers just flat took over and they may share space with a Butternut Squash plant or two. I hate squash, one of those veggies my Momma forced me to eat...well, like my Momma I bought a Butternut last week and roasted it, made my daughter's eat and tried some myself and it tasted great :shocked: Amazing what 40 years will do to the ole taste buds.

Apparently I waited too late to harvest the lettuce and spinach so I can correct that.

And, I planted the onions and carrots too late.

So that’s my intro for 2010, I will add some pictures pretty soon.

SV
 
The rabbit wire in the first photo was temporary, I installed it with treated posts leaving me about 4' surrounding the beds but was a huge pain in the butt and the string trimmer constantly snagged the wire. It kept the rabbits out but the dang squirrels were a bigger problem, I was constantly catching them running off with beautiful Big Boy tomatoes. I removed the fence and don't think I will have a problem with rabbits now, unfortunately for the squirrels, I think they taste great fried with a pico de gallo.

I need to week the beds and go ahead and fill them with compost. I have heard that horse manure is not ideal so I am looking for alternatives.
 
Looking real good SV. For the cukes, bend some of that cage and make a big arc across the bed and train them up it. Then the cukes hang down for easy picking and you can plant things underneath them.
 
I need to order/buy:

Jalapeno
Tabasco
Cherry

dont buy any thing i will send you those seeds free just PM your address and seeds will be on the way
 
Judy, another generous member offered some Jalapeno's, Cherry and New Mexican seeds, but I would love to try your Tabasco's!

TIA........SV
 
I like those raised beds. I can see a new patio sitting area at my house with a raised bed garden. What are you gonna do about the squirells?
 
I can lose a few tomatoes a week, but if they start calling their friends over for supper every afternoon they are going to find a home in my crock pot, frying pan or the bbq pit.

They have been fattening up on black sunflower I put out for the birds all winter long, they outta be to fat to climb the raised bed walls now.
 
Make sure they dont live in a pine tree before you shoot and eat it. You ever ate a squirell that lived in a pine tree? GaNasty
 
How well do those things drain? Do you have drainage holes or do you just let the ground below your raised beds just soak the water up?

After seeing your raised beds I have started to formulate a plan for a patio in the back yard with raised beds for scenery and a small green house off to one side.
 
I don't recall them holding water for very long at all, it either soaks in the ground below, runs out at the bottom or a combination of the two. I believe I need to add a strip of wood on the inside to cover the joint between the 2X10's.

I believe drip irriation would be preferable to the garden hose I used last year and I have a hose bib about 20' away. I may run a pvc pipe to the beds if I have time, plus I am lazy ;)
 
SV1000 said:
I don't recall them holding water for very long at all, it either soaks in the ground below, runs out at the bottom or a combination of the two. I believe I need to add a strip of wood on the inside to cover the joint between the 2X10's.

I believe drip irriation would be preferable to the garden hose I used last year and I have a hose bib about 20' away. I may run a pvc pipe to the beds if I have time, plus I am lazy ;)
Click to expand...

Having the water right there where your plants are is a big plus. I am going to run water right on out to the pepper area and to my chicken pen this spring. I am going to use my pond to water as much of my vegetable garden as I can this year. It was real dry last spring and summer here. I hope it aint that dry again but I dont want it to be sloppy wet either. Funny how when you are growing stuff how bad the weather can mistreat us.
 
Lookin" real good SV.

Horse manure, like most manures, is a "hot" manure and needs to be composted before using it on your plants. Some folks simply spread it on the garden in the Fall, after production is done and just let it overwinter right there. Then they till it in in the Spring. The only manure I know of that can be used fresh safely is rabbit manure. Folks rake it in and/or use it as a side-dressing around the plants.

My question is "Where's the beans" lol. I'd pop me a trellis on the end of one of your beds and run some beans up 'em. You can do that with your cukes as well.

Just a thought.
 
DownRiver said:
Lookin" real good SV.

Horse manure, like most manures, is a "hot" manure and needs to be composted before using it on your plants. Some folks simply spread it on the garden in the Fall, after production is done and just let it overwinter right there. Then they till it in in the Spring. The only manure I know of that can be used fresh safely is rabbit manure. Folks rake it in and/or use it as a side-dressing around the plants.

My question is "Where's the beans" lol. I'd pop me a trellis on the end of one of your beds and run some beans up 'em. You can do that with your cukes as well.

Just a thought.
Click to expand...

The gentleman that gave me the manure raises, trains and boards horses and had a pile the size of a Suburban that he turned over with a small Kubota. He said it was over a year old and I have no reason to believe otherwise. He pulled mine from the bottom of the pile and it appeared composted to me.

I am sure he has more, I saw him this morning in our office but did not have time to ask him about it.

I am not a green bean fan but I do like Blackeye Peas. I considered it last year but the yield per bush seemed small and my wants were way beyond my three beds so I passed. I may try it this year since I have a better idea of what the space requirements are.

My mind is in overdrive but I am waiting for a tax refund check to get moving. I like millworkman's idea of using the welded wire mesh for a cage but I am not sure I want it over the bed, seems like it would cut down my growing room.
 
I use horse manure piles but I compost them for two years. The trick with horse manure composting is to add a lot of brown matter, like dead leaves and such. I turn that over a few times a year making sure I water it during the heat of summer and tha stuff just cooks. After a couple of years of maintance I sift it trough some hardware cloth and it looks just like store bought stuff. I throw coffe grounds in it, egg shells, kitchen scraps that are not milk or dairy product, no processed foods (pasta and the like) and no meat. I have folks trying to buy that stuff off of me but I keeps it all for my veggie garden. This years pile is going to be huge.
 
There is nothing wrong with milk or dairy products or even meat. Most "authorities" claim these, along with meats, will attract vermin and hungry pets. Yeah, if one throws an uneaten steak on top of the pile, some creature is gonna grab it! But if the meat and even things like sandwiches with salad dressing or Mac N Cheese are cut up and mixed with other food scraps (coffee grounds, banana peels, potato skins, onion skins, pizza crust, etc.) added to the pile and then a layer of brown material such as leaves applied, you won't have to worry about providing a picnic for scavengers. About the only thing I do not add to mine is vegetable oils, though I do urinate in the one in the GH.

Do they smell? Not at all. The compost tea does, but a good compost pile actually smells fairly aromatic. Even the tea, if aerated, smells earthy.

I don't want to waste any possible fertilizer. I even cut leaves from the bottom of my tomato plants off (they do not need them once they have another 15-18 growing) and add them to the bucket.

Mike
 
I did not get much work done this weekend but I did pick up materials:

Seed starter mix.
2 - 48" T-8 FL's
3/4" PVC to make a rack for the lights.
Various seeds.

I forgot the welded wire mesh for the tomatoes and cucumbers but I can go back next weekend. I also forgot the dixie cups or I would have started some seeds.

I am still thinking of how I want to heat the germination table, I keep my house pretty dang cool year around which makes for unhappy seeds and teenage daughters. The first thing that comes to mind is a simple heating blanket.
 
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