No pictures because I'm terribly lazy, but I had the first "harvest" this morning. The radishes are still a little small but that's fine by me- I picked them anyway (carrots are getting bigger as it is). Still don't have bed 2 completely finished, but it's getting there- one of my bags of soil was full of MOLD! It was terrible- it was much lighter than the rest of the bags so I just figured it had gotten dried out (fine by me) but when I opened it there was mold inside. Ugh!
Anyhow, I harvested about 7 radishes- a couple had not sprouted well so they didn't end up growing. C'est la vie! I really enjoy growing radishes but I'm not sure if I'll enjoy eating them- we shall see when I try these.
The greens are really starting to take off now, and my peas are trying to grip onto anything around them (note to self: Next year, don't plant in a square adjacent to onions!), so it's rather exciting :D
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Weeds from Bronwyn's Perspective
Weeds: Every gardener's worst nightmare (aside from animal pests and insects, of course).
Seriously. Who actually likes weeding? I know I don't. I hate it, actually. I hate it with a burning passion. Thankfully the regularity of the square foot garden makes it SUPER easy to tell when there are plants there shouldn't be, and once the seedlings come up you know to pull anything that doesn't look like those seedlings.
As I was weeding the TINY plantlets (nothing is going to get huge on my watch!) yesterday, I got one that had leaves which were no bigger than a dime, mostly smaller- but it brought a HUGE clump of roots when I tugged it out. This reminded me of the things I learned when I took Weed Science at Cornell- officially one of the most difficult and most rewarding classes I'd ever taken. I loved it. Weeds are INCREDIBLY interesting.
Thinking back, I've always kind of had a "thing" for weeds. Lets go back to elementary school- one of my favorite people and my go-to person for those cheesy Black History Month reports we'd always have to write was George Washington Carver. Yeah, the peanut guy- if you know anything about him, you also know that he wasn't all about peanuts, but he was also one of the original proponents of continuing to use natural means of keeping the soil productive rather than just pouring on chemicals or leaving the land fallow. Amazing man- I love him. But he had this wonderful quote that I quite enjoyed: "A weed is a flower growing in the wrong place." This was something that always struck me- especially considering that I was a big fan of dandelions- one of the green-lawn lover's worst nightmares.
We had a pseudo compost pile in my childhood home- it started out well but as often happened my father flubbed it a bit and then it became a place to dump the cat litter. It was fenced in and really was just a pile of.. stuff. On the chicken wire fence, what I always called "morning glories" would grow, along with a pretty little Solanaceaous (nightshade) weed that had adorable little purple flowers that were exactly like a tomato flower in every way except purple. It had green little fruits that I of course never ate even though I had no idea that they were poisonous- my mum told us never to eat anything (except for the black-caps) like that, so I didn't.
Now, anywhere else- those would be weeds. The "morning glory?" That was bindweed. Bindweed is a particularly awful weed that farmer and gardeners alike DESPISE, but when it's just growing up alongside a little fence it's lovely. And in crop rotations for farmers, you'll run into a situation where they're growing potatoes this year but there's a corn "volunteer" from previous years- that's considered a weed as well (this is also one reason why "round-up ready" crops have so much potential to be a problem, but that's for another post).
So with such a fuzzy definition of what a weed is, you can really only judge by characteristics a plant might have that would make them "weedy" in the average garden situation.
Are you fascinated yet? I just love this kind of thing. Weeds really are fascinating.. but since this post is getting kind of long I'll have to post more about it later. Just remember- if you see a weed that's a baby, pull it. It's just going to get harder later.
Seriously. Who actually likes weeding? I know I don't. I hate it, actually. I hate it with a burning passion. Thankfully the regularity of the square foot garden makes it SUPER easy to tell when there are plants there shouldn't be, and once the seedlings come up you know to pull anything that doesn't look like those seedlings.
As I was weeding the TINY plantlets (nothing is going to get huge on my watch!) yesterday, I got one that had leaves which were no bigger than a dime, mostly smaller- but it brought a HUGE clump of roots when I tugged it out. This reminded me of the things I learned when I took Weed Science at Cornell- officially one of the most difficult and most rewarding classes I'd ever taken. I loved it. Weeds are INCREDIBLY interesting.
Thinking back, I've always kind of had a "thing" for weeds. Lets go back to elementary school- one of my favorite people and my go-to person for those cheesy Black History Month reports we'd always have to write was George Washington Carver. Yeah, the peanut guy- if you know anything about him, you also know that he wasn't all about peanuts, but he was also one of the original proponents of continuing to use natural means of keeping the soil productive rather than just pouring on chemicals or leaving the land fallow. Amazing man- I love him. But he had this wonderful quote that I quite enjoyed: "A weed is a flower growing in the wrong place." This was something that always struck me- especially considering that I was a big fan of dandelions- one of the green-lawn lover's worst nightmares.
We had a pseudo compost pile in my childhood home- it started out well but as often happened my father flubbed it a bit and then it became a place to dump the cat litter. It was fenced in and really was just a pile of.. stuff. On the chicken wire fence, what I always called "morning glories" would grow, along with a pretty little Solanaceaous (nightshade) weed that had adorable little purple flowers that were exactly like a tomato flower in every way except purple. It had green little fruits that I of course never ate even though I had no idea that they were poisonous- my mum told us never to eat anything (except for the black-caps) like that, so I didn't.
Now, anywhere else- those would be weeds. The "morning glory?" That was bindweed. Bindweed is a particularly awful weed that farmer and gardeners alike DESPISE, but when it's just growing up alongside a little fence it's lovely. And in crop rotations for farmers, you'll run into a situation where they're growing potatoes this year but there's a corn "volunteer" from previous years- that's considered a weed as well (this is also one reason why "round-up ready" crops have so much potential to be a problem, but that's for another post).
So with such a fuzzy definition of what a weed is, you can really only judge by characteristics a plant might have that would make them "weedy" in the average garden situation.
- Fast Growth- "weedy species" will tend to grow VERY quickly when provided with good conditions (like those in a garden). The whole idea is to grow fast so the weeds will be able to drown out the actual crop by blocking sun, sucking up water and nutrients, and in some cases just taking up space.
- Long Seed Life- These species have seeds that can sit in the soil for YEARS (some weeds will last 10+ years in the soil!) until just the right conditions present themselves- at which point they'll grow quickly and try to knock out the other weeds.
- Adaptations for efficiency- Like the tiny plant with the large root system I pulled- weedy species will tend to have something to increase efficiency, whether it be an extensive root system or adapted leaf structure. You'll see this in any plant, but especially weeds- their roots can change depending on where the water is. Shallow roots= water near the surface, but a good weed will also automatically grow deeper roots if the water is further down.
- Inhibiting compounds- this is something that's just now starting to come into light and is extremely difficult to study, but some plants will secrete compounds to inhibit the growth of other plants- indeed, it was originally thought that this number was smaller, but now there's speculation that MOST plants have some sort of behavior like this- wow! But if a species has a marked inhibitive effect on other plants in the vicinity.. that's a species with high weed potential.
- Hard To Kill- these are the plants with underground stems, clonal propagation, runners, prolific seed numbers, deep taproots... Stuff that'll come back in force if you chop it up with a hoe instead of pulling it in one piece, or anything that spreads out underground too quickly to stem. If it does this, there's potential for it to be a weed (Mint is one of these plants- that's why many places will suggest you sink a five gallon bucket into the ground and plant it in there.)
Are you fascinated yet? I just love this kind of thing. Weeds really are fascinating.. but since this post is getting kind of long I'll have to post more about it later. Just remember- if you see a weed that's a baby, pull it. It's just going to get harder later.
Review: Sta-Green Garden Soil
Sta-Green Garden Soil purchased from Lowes in Henrietta, NY
Grade (as of May 26, 2009): B+
I figured I would go ahead and write a review- I can always come back and edit if the soil turns out to not be a good growing medium, but my seedlings seem to be doing well so far so that's great.
The first of my 4'x4' square foot gardens is filled completely with the Sta-Green soil. It's fairly cheap- sold in 1 and 2 cubic foot bags. It took 3 2cf bags and 1 1cf bag to fill up the 6" tall bed. Components seem to be compost, peat moss, and vermiculite. I do not believe that there is much if any manure in this garden soil, but if there is it is well-rotted and has lost its smell, which is of course a PLUS in a garden. One downside to this soil is that there ARE chunks of un-rotted twigs and wood in it- not terribly huge, but enough to annoy me. It does look pretty in the bed, though some may prefer a darker soil with no vermiculite.
There are also little pellets of time-release nitrogen fertilizer in the soil (they claim it will feed plants for up to 3 months)- this was not a feature I was particularly interested in, but it seems to be par for the course with garden soils so I was pretty much stuck with it. The pellets are green, but not noticeable until you look up close. Nitrogen tends to promote a lot of quick foliage growth, so we'll see how this benefits the garden.
The texture of the soil straight from the bag is pretty good- It is not too heavy, or clumped together (which I found to be a bit of a problem with the Miracle Grow garden soil I picked up for the other bed because I had under-purchased the Sta-Green and Lowe's is rather far away, so we went to Home Depot instead), and seems to have excellent drainage. Water retention is not great, but this is to be expected in a raised bed and thus I don't count this point against it.
My only real complaint (other than the minor issue of the fertilizer) is that there seem to be quite a few weed seeds in the soil. Now, this is NOT unusual for things like this that you purchase- grass seed, non-sterile soils, etc. will always have at least SOME weeds, even if they say "weed free" on the package. Unless it has been sterilized to kill seeds, there's really no way for a company to guarantee that there won't be seeds. That's something you should learn to expect when purchasing large quantities of anything. Now some potting mixes and such are actually sterile, and they will not have weed seeds to worry about- but this is not the norm, and especially for garden soil, you have to be careful.
However, there were some weeds actually sprouting inside the Sta-Green bags and when I poured the soil out, there was green there. This is not my idea of cool, but at least I can catch them right away and toss 'em. Your mileage may vary, but overall, I'm happy with the soil and unless something changes I'm giving it a B+.
Grade (as of May 26, 2009): B+
I figured I would go ahead and write a review- I can always come back and edit if the soil turns out to not be a good growing medium, but my seedlings seem to be doing well so far so that's great.
The first of my 4'x4' square foot gardens is filled completely with the Sta-Green soil. It's fairly cheap- sold in 1 and 2 cubic foot bags. It took 3 2cf bags and 1 1cf bag to fill up the 6" tall bed. Components seem to be compost, peat moss, and vermiculite. I do not believe that there is much if any manure in this garden soil, but if there is it is well-rotted and has lost its smell, which is of course a PLUS in a garden. One downside to this soil is that there ARE chunks of un-rotted twigs and wood in it- not terribly huge, but enough to annoy me. It does look pretty in the bed, though some may prefer a darker soil with no vermiculite.
There are also little pellets of time-release nitrogen fertilizer in the soil (they claim it will feed plants for up to 3 months)- this was not a feature I was particularly interested in, but it seems to be par for the course with garden soils so I was pretty much stuck with it. The pellets are green, but not noticeable until you look up close. Nitrogen tends to promote a lot of quick foliage growth, so we'll see how this benefits the garden.
The texture of the soil straight from the bag is pretty good- It is not too heavy, or clumped together (which I found to be a bit of a problem with the Miracle Grow garden soil I picked up for the other bed because I had under-purchased the Sta-Green and Lowe's is rather far away, so we went to Home Depot instead), and seems to have excellent drainage. Water retention is not great, but this is to be expected in a raised bed and thus I don't count this point against it.
My only real complaint (other than the minor issue of the fertilizer) is that there seem to be quite a few weed seeds in the soil. Now, this is NOT unusual for things like this that you purchase- grass seed, non-sterile soils, etc. will always have at least SOME weeds, even if they say "weed free" on the package. Unless it has been sterilized to kill seeds, there's really no way for a company to guarantee that there won't be seeds. That's something you should learn to expect when purchasing large quantities of anything. Now some potting mixes and such are actually sterile, and they will not have weed seeds to worry about- but this is not the norm, and especially for garden soil, you have to be careful.
However, there were some weeds actually sprouting inside the Sta-Green bags and when I poured the soil out, there was green there. This is not my idea of cool, but at least I can catch them right away and toss 'em. Your mileage may vary, but overall, I'm happy with the soil and unless something changes I'm giving it a B+.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Big Week
Well, I'm going to get 4'x4' bed in and mostly planted by this weekend for sure. Well, if I get the soil. I need to send my aunt to Lowe's for that.
Today I thinned the lettuce while I was out watering, and tomorrow I'm going to thin the mustard greens and plant the two empty spots. I might put the cauliflower in- I'm not for sure on that one yet. Everything's coming really well, though. I think I can get away with not buying the brackets for the corners, but I'm definitely going to want to do that at some point this season so that the wood doesn't degrade too much.
By the end of the month I should have pretty much everything in the ground- this weekend or next we'll go shopping for plants. I need eggplant and tomatoes for sure, and I will probably pick up a pepper plant just to guarantee I have some peppers for my aunt- mine aren't growing fast enough. That means I need to spend a little extra time with my layout so I can make sure that everything that I want gets put in. I also need to devise some way to keep the grass from growing up around the edges of the beds, because it's near impossible to mow close enough and it makes for extra work if I have to spend time pulling or hand-cutting that grass, y'know?
I PROMISE I'll take photos tomorrow.
Today I thinned the lettuce while I was out watering, and tomorrow I'm going to thin the mustard greens and plant the two empty spots. I might put the cauliflower in- I'm not for sure on that one yet. Everything's coming really well, though. I think I can get away with not buying the brackets for the corners, but I'm definitely going to want to do that at some point this season so that the wood doesn't degrade too much.
By the end of the month I should have pretty much everything in the ground- this weekend or next we'll go shopping for plants. I need eggplant and tomatoes for sure, and I will probably pick up a pepper plant just to guarantee I have some peppers for my aunt- mine aren't growing fast enough. That means I need to spend a little extra time with my layout so I can make sure that everything that I want gets put in. I also need to devise some way to keep the grass from growing up around the edges of the beds, because it's near impossible to mow close enough and it makes for extra work if I have to spend time pulling or hand-cutting that grass, y'know?
I PROMISE I'll take photos tomorrow.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Sprouting
Well, it's been a couple weeks and almost everything is sprouted (at this point it's just the carrots- and they're starting to juuuust peek a tiny bit). The lawn is getting mowed tomorrow, so I'll be laying down bed #2 in preparation for this weekend, when I plan to put almost everything else in the ground. Average frost-free date was yesterday- though I think it got pretty darned chilly this past evening. I'll be monitoring weather forecasts, but hopefully things will go as planned. This'll mean that the corn is going in the ground, a few of the things I've started indoors... Memorial Day Weekend is when everything will be planted, so I still have a couple weeks to plan for that.
I haven't gotten to the store again to purchase things... It is just too stressful, so I am making a list for my aunt so she can go. I'm so happy she's willing.
Today I thinned out the root vegetables- namely the beets and the rutabegas. I really need to thin the salad greens but I'm kind of overwhelmed by the thought- I will put it on my to-do list for tomorrow. I just scattered the seeds in there because they're so small, but I think when I plant the second patch of each sometime this week I'll have to be a little more deliberate with my placement. I can't wait till the leaves are big enough to start having fresh-from-the-garden salads. Yum!
In non-gardening news, I've been rather depressed the last few days- probably in part because it is graduation season and as usual tons of my friends are graduating from various graduate programs, or from undergrad... Moving on, getting jobs- heck, some of them are even buying houses! Can you believe it!? And here I am just trying to be successful in the garden... Well, here's hoping I can do that, at least.
I haven't gotten to the store again to purchase things... It is just too stressful, so I am making a list for my aunt so she can go. I'm so happy she's willing.
Today I thinned out the root vegetables- namely the beets and the rutabegas. I really need to thin the salad greens but I'm kind of overwhelmed by the thought- I will put it on my to-do list for tomorrow. I just scattered the seeds in there because they're so small, but I think when I plant the second patch of each sometime this week I'll have to be a little more deliberate with my placement. I can't wait till the leaves are big enough to start having fresh-from-the-garden salads. Yum!
In non-gardening news, I've been rather depressed the last few days- probably in part because it is graduation season and as usual tons of my friends are graduating from various graduate programs, or from undergrad... Moving on, getting jobs- heck, some of them are even buying houses! Can you believe it!? And here I am just trying to be successful in the garden... Well, here's hoping I can do that, at least.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
All is not Well in the garden...
Ugh. The nails that I picked are rusting like a mofo. This is going to be a problem- I need to get to a hardware store, stat! I think I'm going to get those metal corner things? Know what I mean? And then just get screws and screw them in. I hope it doesn't fall apart before then, though.
*sigh* So far it looks like it's holding together *OK* and it's just one side that's not sticking, but it still stinks a whole lot. I don't look forward to having to fix it.
*sigh* So far it looks like it's holding together *OK* and it's just one side that's not sticking, but it still stinks a whole lot. I don't look forward to having to fix it.
Salad Box Week 2- What got planted?
Starting at the top, from left to right:
Row 1
Red Onions- I planted these for my aunt pretty much exclusively- I'm not an onion fan. Though I suppose they'll work well if I need to season anything.
Serge Peas- Again for my aunt- I prefer snow peas (I like to eat the pod) and she prefers shelled, so I planted this variety for her
Seeds of Change Snow Pea- For me! Yum!
Cheddar Hybrid Cauliflower- not in the ground yet.
Row 2
French Breakfast Radish and Red Core Chantenay Carrot- interplanted because I like the instant gratification of radishes though I don't think I like the taste- I'll be trying them AGAIN since you should try things every few years as your tastes change.
Mixed Mustard Greens (not seeded yet)
Lettuce Blend- Salads!
Detroit Dark Red Beet- For the aunt. I don't like beets- they taste like soil.
Row 3
Rainbow Carrot Blend- We'll see what kind of deformed carrots we end up with due to the shallowness of the box.. but I'm excited at the prospect of colorful carrots.
Mixed Mustard Greens- For my aunt- I don't know if I like them yet! We'll see when they get big.
Lettuce Mix (not seeded yet)
Laurentian Rutabega (or swede for you Europeans)- I haven't tried Rutabega in a long time but I remember liking it once when I was little, so we'll see. Experimental, but hopefully will be yummy.
Row 4
Red Onions- I planted these for my aunt pretty much exclusively- I'm not an onion fan. Though I suppose they'll work well if I need to season anything.
Serge Peas- Again for my aunt- I prefer snow peas (I like to eat the pod) and she prefers shelled, so I planted this variety for her
Seeds of Change Snow Pea- For me! Yum!
Laurentian Rutabega (or swede for you Europeans)- I haven't tried Rutabega in a long time but I remember liking it once when I was little, so we'll see. Experimental, but hopefully will be yummy.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Review: Garden Essentials Watering Can
I'm going to start this off by saying that I don't have a whole lot of experience with watering cans- when I was younger and gardening, we always used the hose, or in the case of my grandfather he would just use an old coffee can and dip it into the 5 gallon bucket of water. For my mom, watering cans were pretty much decorative.
That said, I knew I needed a watering can- my aunt has one, but it's metal and it only has a single stream nozzle and I *knew* that with the "loose" soil in my SFG box, I would need a "shower" type head, which diffuses the stream into a lot of tiny ones- like a big shower head. This is a lot gentler on the soil, and exactly what I wanted.
I found the above watering can, which is labeled as "Garden Essentials" brand, at the local Target near the now-defunct Marketplace Mall. A quick Google search found a garden supply place selling the brand but I could not find the specific one I purchased.
It cost me around $8- I've already tossed my receipt so I don't know the exact price. It's made from fairly sturdy plastic and holds 2 gallons. There are lines on one side marking volumes- if you're worried about that sort of thing. I'm not. I just fill it up, take it out, and if there's any left over (which there generally won't be since I'll keep watering until the water is gone- the excess will drain) I would just leave it in the can or dump it on the grass depending on when I think I'll need it.
As for impressions? I *love* this watering can. The handle is nice and big, easy to hold. The 2 gallons of water doesn't feel terribly heavy when you carry the handle- it doesn't have edges that cut into you. The nozzle easily turns to adjust- the only complaint I would have is that it isn't super watertight around the edges- it does let a little extra leak out. As a bonus, you can tilt the watering can pretty far forward and it'll still have a nice gentle stream - again, this is great for preserving the soil.
I'm a little concerned that the "concentrated" stream might be a bit harsh given how big the can is, but I haven't tried it yet.
I think with proper care this watering can could last pretty much forever- it's plastic so it will not rust- the only thing I see breaking would be the adjustable nozzle on the end, but I'm optimistic that it won't be a problem.
Grade: A
The "Salad Bed" is well underway
Wow, it's been a while since I posted. I should really fill everyone in on what's going on :D
I got the "grid" down last week the day after I built the bed- I opted to use nylon string and nails driven into the edges at 1 ft intervals. I then hammered the nails sideways so they would hold the string on- I will likely do more to shape them to the sides of the beds so they don't cause problems for people walking around/mowing the lawn/etc, but for now they're fine. I waited a couple days to actually get stuff planted, hoping against hope that there would be some rain so I wouldn't have to rig something up for soaking the soil, but nada, so I went down into the basement, located a too-short crappy garden hose my aunt had, and hooked it to the terribly leaky faucet in the garage, then dragged it as far as I could go and used the leaky nozzle to send the water sailing over the fence and onto the garden bed. I then had to make several trips with the small watering can my aunt had stashed around to get everything soaked once I planted it, but I planted everything that you can before the last frost date- which should be in a week or so, which gives me a bit of time to get the other bed down, but not much. The Corn and Sunflowers are coming in the mail probably today- which means it took FOREVAH for Gurney's to get my full order to me, but oh well.
My seedlings in the little greenhouses are coming along great, except for one thing- they're really TALL. I'm just going to let them bush out/fall over as needed in the confines of the space they have until I'm ready to pop them in the garden, but it's annoying- should have been expected, though. If there's no air movement around plants, they will tend to grow tall and spindly. Makes it extra good in commercial and experimental greenhouses that they have fans for air ventilation, because it keeps everything from getting spindly.
We went to Target yesterday, and though I forgot to buy toilet paper, I DID find an AMAZING watering can for only $7-8 or so. I found this one which was more obviously what I wanted- the kind with the "shower" type nozzle- but it was fancy recycled plastic and cost $25- more than I was willing to spend. There was a nice-looking 2 gallon can with a sort of spin nozzle so you could do a stream or shower, and I picked that up. I just used it this morning and I'm INCREDIBLY pleased. Just... WOW! Nice, gentle "shower" that doesn't disturb the soil, and because it's 2 gallons I didn't have to go back to get more water. Too bad it's not online at Target.com because I would really highly recommend it to everyone- it comes in different colors too, and there are smaller versions. I might go back for more.
Currently there are tentative plans for a third SFG bed- 8'x1', but I'm not sure if that'll happen. I need to get 4 more 2cu.ft. bags of soil if that comes to fruition, and the thought of going to Lowes again makes me ill. I don't know- that was a really stressful trip, I guess. And I still need materials for the chicken wire cages. Ugh. I wish that there weren't any deer to worry about so I just wouldn't have to mess with the cages.
Anyway, I'll try to get pictures of the "finished" bed as well as the great watering can and the blooming lilacs (Lilac Festival is going on right now!) for the next post. Tata!
I got the "grid" down last week the day after I built the bed- I opted to use nylon string and nails driven into the edges at 1 ft intervals. I then hammered the nails sideways so they would hold the string on- I will likely do more to shape them to the sides of the beds so they don't cause problems for people walking around/mowing the lawn/etc, but for now they're fine. I waited a couple days to actually get stuff planted, hoping against hope that there would be some rain so I wouldn't have to rig something up for soaking the soil, but nada, so I went down into the basement, located a too-short crappy garden hose my aunt had, and hooked it to the terribly leaky faucet in the garage, then dragged it as far as I could go and used the leaky nozzle to send the water sailing over the fence and onto the garden bed. I then had to make several trips with the small watering can my aunt had stashed around to get everything soaked once I planted it, but I planted everything that you can before the last frost date- which should be in a week or so, which gives me a bit of time to get the other bed down, but not much. The Corn and Sunflowers are coming in the mail probably today- which means it took FOREVAH for Gurney's to get my full order to me, but oh well.
My seedlings in the little greenhouses are coming along great, except for one thing- they're really TALL. I'm just going to let them bush out/fall over as needed in the confines of the space they have until I'm ready to pop them in the garden, but it's annoying- should have been expected, though. If there's no air movement around plants, they will tend to grow tall and spindly. Makes it extra good in commercial and experimental greenhouses that they have fans for air ventilation, because it keeps everything from getting spindly.
We went to Target yesterday, and though I forgot to buy toilet paper, I DID find an AMAZING watering can for only $7-8 or so. I found this one which was more obviously what I wanted- the kind with the "shower" type nozzle- but it was fancy recycled plastic and cost $25- more than I was willing to spend. There was a nice-looking 2 gallon can with a sort of spin nozzle so you could do a stream or shower, and I picked that up. I just used it this morning and I'm INCREDIBLY pleased. Just... WOW! Nice, gentle "shower" that doesn't disturb the soil, and because it's 2 gallons I didn't have to go back to get more water. Too bad it's not online at Target.com because I would really highly recommend it to everyone- it comes in different colors too, and there are smaller versions. I might go back for more.
Currently there are tentative plans for a third SFG bed- 8'x1', but I'm not sure if that'll happen. I need to get 4 more 2cu.ft. bags of soil if that comes to fruition, and the thought of going to Lowes again makes me ill. I don't know- that was a really stressful trip, I guess. And I still need materials for the chicken wire cages. Ugh. I wish that there weren't any deer to worry about so I just wouldn't have to mess with the cages.
Anyway, I'll try to get pictures of the "finished" bed as well as the great watering can and the blooming lilacs (Lilac Festival is going on right now!) for the next post. Tata!
Monday, May 4, 2009
A bed has been built.. mostly
The man who mows the lawn came today, so I was able to get one of the beds down. I ended up under-buying soil, so I am going to need 2 more 2cu ft bags, and 1 more 1cu ft bag to do the second bed, but I don't need that one ready for a couple weeks yet. I still need to lay down the grid before I can plant, and head down into the basement to find the watering can- there's no hose, so I'm going to be doing a lot of water lugging. Once I get the intial planting water out of the way it shouldn't be too bad. One watering can per day should probably do the trick.
It's filled in with Sta-Green Garden Soil from Lowe's. It has fertilizer built in which I'm not really crazy about, but it was the cheapest garden soil they had, and I suppose it'll give a nice boost to the plants.
I also need to get a chicken wire protection cage built pretty quick.. oh the hard labor. That bed is going to be my greens, root veggies, and peas- want to make sure nothing gets to them! Also want to make sure that Paisley says out. There are instructions on how to build a chicken wire cage to go over the bed in the book I have, so that's probably what I'm going to end up building. This is all stuff that once it's done will be, well, done- and I won't have to worry about it again. But still, it's a bit daunting.
I took Paisley (the dog) outside to enjoy the weather with me. She seemed pretty pleased.
It's filled in with Sta-Green Garden Soil from Lowe's. It has fertilizer built in which I'm not really crazy about, but it was the cheapest garden soil they had, and I suppose it'll give a nice boost to the plants.
I also need to get a chicken wire protection cage built pretty quick.. oh the hard labor. That bed is going to be my greens, root veggies, and peas- want to make sure nothing gets to them! Also want to make sure that Paisley says out. There are instructions on how to build a chicken wire cage to go over the bed in the book I have, so that's probably what I'm going to end up building. This is all stuff that once it's done will be, well, done- and I won't have to worry about it again. But still, it's a bit daunting.
I took Paisley (the dog) outside to enjoy the weather with me. She seemed pretty pleased.
Friday, May 1, 2009
4 Started; Cauliflower, Broccoli, Cantaloupe, Cucumber
You'll notice that a couple of these are things that aren't normally started indoors- the reasoning for this is that they need to be at a fairy warm temperature to sprout and you want to get as much out of your growing season as possible. Since I have the nifty kit, I can get rid of transplant shock on the cantaloupe and cucumbers and have them even further along when it gets warm enough to plant them outdoors in a few weeks.
Green Magic Hybrid Brocolli- Broccoli really should have been seeded weeks ago, but I'm going to try it this way because it's a fairly short season crop. If it gets too hot and gets away from me in the summer, I'll just plant another crop to have this fall. Oddly there were only 2 varieties to choose from at Gurneys, so I chose the heat tolerant one. I seeded a full 6-plug "greenhouse" with these.
Cheddar Hybrid Cauliflower- I've never grown cauliflower, and I understand it's a bit of a fussy crop to grow, but if there's one thing in my life I'm okay with making mistakes on, it's plants. So I decided to have fun and try out a novelty item- orange cauliflower. I've got 2 plugs sown with this, I'll likely get at least 2 plants out of that (thinned) and I'll either have 1 or 2 squares of cauliflower in the garden. This one's a learning experience.
Gurney's Burpless II Cucumber- technically a pickler (I might pick some to make my own pickles partway through the summer- yum!) but will also be good for slicing when I let it mature. No real reason I picked this over another; Gurney's has a large selection of cucumbers to choose from. Seeded 2 plugs worth of this, may start another 2 in the ground if I decide I want more cucumbers. The 2 empty spots in my garden might currently end up being used for more carrots or something, though.
Sweet 'n' Early Hybrid Cantaloupe- I picked this one because, well it's EARLY. The thing about melons is they tend to be a long season crop, and while the Rochester growing season is a good 2 weeks+ longer than the Northern New York growing season, I'm also impatient. So I picked this one. Hopefully it will taste yummy and I'll be successful in growing it. The plan right now is to grow it against my aunt's backyard fence and train it onto the fence to get it up off the ground, along with the winter squash (spaghetti and buternut, both to be seeded in the ground) and tomatoes. We'll see.
The cat has chewed a bit on the containers so I'm going to have to start moving them during the night so he won't be quite so mischievous.
Green Magic Hybrid Brocolli- Broccoli really should have been seeded weeks ago, but I'm going to try it this way because it's a fairly short season crop. If it gets too hot and gets away from me in the summer, I'll just plant another crop to have this fall. Oddly there were only 2 varieties to choose from at Gurneys, so I chose the heat tolerant one. I seeded a full 6-plug "greenhouse" with these.
Cheddar Hybrid Cauliflower- I've never grown cauliflower, and I understand it's a bit of a fussy crop to grow, but if there's one thing in my life I'm okay with making mistakes on, it's plants. So I decided to have fun and try out a novelty item- orange cauliflower. I've got 2 plugs sown with this, I'll likely get at least 2 plants out of that (thinned) and I'll either have 1 or 2 squares of cauliflower in the garden. This one's a learning experience.
Gurney's Burpless II Cucumber- technically a pickler (I might pick some to make my own pickles partway through the summer- yum!) but will also be good for slicing when I let it mature. No real reason I picked this over another; Gurney's has a large selection of cucumbers to choose from. Seeded 2 plugs worth of this, may start another 2 in the ground if I decide I want more cucumbers. The 2 empty spots in my garden might currently end up being used for more carrots or something, though.
Sweet 'n' Early Hybrid Cantaloupe- I picked this one because, well it's EARLY. The thing about melons is they tend to be a long season crop, and while the Rochester growing season is a good 2 weeks+ longer than the Northern New York growing season, I'm also impatient. So I picked this one. Hopefully it will taste yummy and I'll be successful in growing it. The plan right now is to grow it against my aunt's backyard fence and train it onto the fence to get it up off the ground, along with the winter squash (spaghetti and buternut, both to be seeded in the ground) and tomatoes. We'll see.
The cat has chewed a bit on the containers so I'm going to have to start moving them during the night so he won't be quite so mischievous.
Seeds incoming!
My order from Gurney's arrived today, finally (well, most of it. The sunflowers and the corn haven't shipped yet but I don't need to plant those for a few weeks still). I've gotten some of the things I need to start indoors started- Broccoli may end up being a problem, but I can always plant that in the tail-end of the season if I run into problems with the heat. Tomorrow I'm going to try to get one bed down- with everything I need to plant right away. Also we're planning a trip to Victor to go to the Eastview Mall, so I'm not sure how much I'm going to get done. But I do need to do it.
I got these nifty little Seed Starting Kits that I'm actually quite pleased with, if still a bit miffed about the fact that my order took so long to get here. It takes all the mess and guesswork and ickiness out of starting seeds, and I'm hoping it'll also reduce seed shock when I transplant, which will be nice. They also sent me an extra packet of cantaloupe seeds- not sure yet what I want to do with them, if anything. I'm sure I'll figure something out.
I'll post later about what all I've got seeded, and take pics. In other news, my peppers have finally sprouted, which makes me feel better because I was getting MAJORLY worried that they never would.
I got these nifty little Seed Starting Kits that I'm actually quite pleased with, if still a bit miffed about the fact that my order took so long to get here. It takes all the mess and guesswork and ickiness out of starting seeds, and I'm hoping it'll also reduce seed shock when I transplant, which will be nice. They also sent me an extra packet of cantaloupe seeds- not sure yet what I want to do with them, if anything. I'm sure I'll figure something out.
I'll post later about what all I've got seeded, and take pics. In other news, my peppers have finally sprouted, which makes me feel better because I was getting MAJORLY worried that they never would.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Growing Organic: What's the big deal?
Thought since nothing really new is happening in the garden department today (other than perhaps my aunt having talked me into doing 2 more boxes- 8'x1' to grow along the fences), I thought I'd share some thoughts/tips/experiences in regards to the whole Organic movement when it comes to growing things.
First, I'm going to preface this with my "credentials" so to speak. My degree is in Plant Science, which means I have a pretty integrated look at everything from basic plant propagation to orchard management to plant biology to pest control to soil science. My practical experience in the field is of course limited, but the great thing about Cornell is that we got to talk to experts in the field ALL the time. Wonderful stuff.
So, now that I've got that out of the way, I'm going to write today a little bit about Organic pest control. Now, I have some problems with the Organic movement. I think some of the standards are misguided and there's a sort of "all or nothing" thinking when it comes to organic vs. conventional means of pest/weed control and fertilization. A lot of people don't realize that there IS a need in agriculture for chemical means of pest control and fertilization. You can't just throw some compost on a commercial corn-grower's field and choose a variety you hope is resistant to disease, while also hand weeding to avoid using herbicides. To understand why this is, you need to know a few things. On top of this, you need to know that even organic farmers are using pesticides/herbicides/etc. Here's what you need to know to understand:
At this point you're probably wondering why I've spent so much time talking about farming. It's because I feel very strongly about it. I am not in favor of the fully organic movement, nor do I believe that organic produce is necessarily more nutritious for you- and I don't see the point in spending more money on something like an organic banana when you're going to be peeling the skin (which might have residue on it) off anyway. Anything you're not going to peel should be washed thoroughly before eating anyway- residue should NOT be a problem.
There is one time, though, when I think a fully Organic method should be embraced and attempted, and that is in your home garden. Why? Becuase in your home garden it is easy, and unless you're licensed, I don't think any homeowner should be messing with pesticides or herbicides. Gardeners have a greater variety of choices when it comes to which vegetables to grow, and pest problems are far less likely to be really bad when you are growing 10 different kinds of vegetables as opposed to just one. Composting is a great way to use up kitchen scraps and does in fact enrich your soil. Gardening is a great learning experience, too, and it's a good way to test out which "homegrown" remedies for various problems work. (Does Human Hair realy keep the deer away? Are slugs really fond of beer?) So if you want your home garden to be organic, I say GO FOR IT. Mine will be! And there's one thing that I DO believe; Homegrown produce tastes better than anything you can buy in the store, organic or not.
I should note that there's one exception where Organic is better, if still something I don't spend my money on, and that's in animal products. Growth hormones, antibiotics (you know they feed chickens antibiotics because it makes them gain weight?), poor feed practices.. It's all horrible in my opinion and I don't like it.
First, I'm going to preface this with my "credentials" so to speak. My degree is in Plant Science, which means I have a pretty integrated look at everything from basic plant propagation to orchard management to plant biology to pest control to soil science. My practical experience in the field is of course limited, but the great thing about Cornell is that we got to talk to experts in the field ALL the time. Wonderful stuff.
So, now that I've got that out of the way, I'm going to write today a little bit about Organic pest control. Now, I have some problems with the Organic movement. I think some of the standards are misguided and there's a sort of "all or nothing" thinking when it comes to organic vs. conventional means of pest/weed control and fertilization. A lot of people don't realize that there IS a need in agriculture for chemical means of pest control and fertilization. You can't just throw some compost on a commercial corn-grower's field and choose a variety you hope is resistant to disease, while also hand weeding to avoid using herbicides. To understand why this is, you need to know a few things. On top of this, you need to know that even organic farmers are using pesticides/herbicides/etc. Here's what you need to know to understand:
- Pesticides/Herbicides =/= chemicals. They are two separate terms, which sometimes include one another, but if you make a Venn diagram, you'll see a chunk of each that are not together (maybe I'll draw one for you. But maybe not)
- Weeds are a problem, and tilling/mechanical means of weed control are bad for the soil. Hand-weeding takes WAY too long for agricultural production
- Compost is not a complete soil fertilizer. It helps, but a lot of work has to be put in to ensure you're getting different kinds of organic matter for different kinds of nutrients, i.e. putting rotted manure on isn't going to provide everything a plant needs.
- Farming on a large scale is WAY different than your home garden. Think of all the work you do- then multiply that by a hundred, or even a thousand. Then take into account that the varieties farmers grow have to be able to handle being shipped across the world, may need to be harvested specially, etc. It's a lot to think about.
- Insects- again this has to do with scale. A farmer is planting hundreds of acres of one crop (because we have yet to find an economically feasible method of inter-cropping that is convenient when it comes to harvest); all those japanese beetles you've got? Multiply that. Farmer's field full of juicy plants just waiting to be eaten... You can set a trap to drown them, but that farmer can't do the same.
At this point you're probably wondering why I've spent so much time talking about farming. It's because I feel very strongly about it. I am not in favor of the fully organic movement, nor do I believe that organic produce is necessarily more nutritious for you- and I don't see the point in spending more money on something like an organic banana when you're going to be peeling the skin (which might have residue on it) off anyway. Anything you're not going to peel should be washed thoroughly before eating anyway- residue should NOT be a problem.
There is one time, though, when I think a fully Organic method should be embraced and attempted, and that is in your home garden. Why? Becuase in your home garden it is easy, and unless you're licensed, I don't think any homeowner should be messing with pesticides or herbicides. Gardeners have a greater variety of choices when it comes to which vegetables to grow, and pest problems are far less likely to be really bad when you are growing 10 different kinds of vegetables as opposed to just one. Composting is a great way to use up kitchen scraps and does in fact enrich your soil. Gardening is a great learning experience, too, and it's a good way to test out which "homegrown" remedies for various problems work. (Does Human Hair realy keep the deer away? Are slugs really fond of beer?) So if you want your home garden to be organic, I say GO FOR IT. Mine will be! And there's one thing that I DO believe; Homegrown produce tastes better than anything you can buy in the store, organic or not.
I should note that there's one exception where Organic is better, if still something I don't spend my money on, and that's in animal products. Growth hormones, antibiotics (you know they feed chickens antibiotics because it makes them gain weight?), poor feed practices.. It's all horrible in my opinion and I don't like it.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Progress!
I don't have pictures- I'll take some when I go outside for my "second round" but I got one of the beds put together. I'm now contemplating placing it up against the chain-link fence to avoid having to build a trellis, but I suppose I should talk to the neighbors first and find out if that's OK. I could alternatively place it against the OTHER fence side but the sun comes from that side so everything else in the bed would end up shaded... We'll see.
Gurney's just FINALLY shipped out the rest of my order (I think.. there may still be a few things missing >_<), which is leading me to not be terribly impressed with their service, especially given that the "arrival" date got pushed back several times on me. I need to get onions, peas, and probably some greens in the ground as soon as that all gets here, so... yeah.
I had some issues with the beds, but I didn't want to have to go back out and buy screws or anything so I ended up using the finishing nails my aunt had stashed in her tool drawer. I drilled holes in the ends of the slightly longer 4' boards and sandwiched the slightly shorter 4' boards between those- some of my holes weren't in the greatest place, either. It's all good in the end, though, because any nails that went through were on the INSIDE where no one will get hurt/see them once the dirt is in the beds. The bed I made isn't terribly exact or fancy looking (the lumber we got was slightly warped, also), but that is OK because if there's one thing I learned while studying at Cornell, it's that plants don't really care about that sort of thing and it's only people who do.
I'm not one of those people.
I think after I get pictures and stuff posted I might make a post about my thoughts on growing organic, on home garden pest/weed control, and maybe some other things... I'm not a Master Gardener or anything and this'll be the first garden I'm growing on my own, but I've got a lot of knowledge to share, I think.
Now to try and think of something to do about the deer....
Gurney's just FINALLY shipped out the rest of my order (I think.. there may still be a few things missing >_<), which is leading me to not be terribly impressed with their service, especially given that the "arrival" date got pushed back several times on me. I need to get onions, peas, and probably some greens in the ground as soon as that all gets here, so... yeah.
I had some issues with the beds, but I didn't want to have to go back out and buy screws or anything so I ended up using the finishing nails my aunt had stashed in her tool drawer. I drilled holes in the ends of the slightly longer 4' boards and sandwiched the slightly shorter 4' boards between those- some of my holes weren't in the greatest place, either. It's all good in the end, though, because any nails that went through were on the INSIDE where no one will get hurt/see them once the dirt is in the beds. The bed I made isn't terribly exact or fancy looking (the lumber we got was slightly warped, also), but that is OK because if there's one thing I learned while studying at Cornell, it's that plants don't really care about that sort of thing and it's only people who do.
I'm not one of those people.
I think after I get pictures and stuff posted I might make a post about my thoughts on growing organic, on home garden pest/weed control, and maybe some other things... I'm not a Master Gardener or anything and this'll be the first garden I'm growing on my own, but I've got a lot of knowledge to share, I think.
Now to try and think of something to do about the deer....
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Lowes Trip
My aunt had a doctor's appointment, so we went to Olive Garden for lunch and then headed to Lowes to buy stuff for the garden. I got the boards (cheap pine), some flat molding to use as a grid, and then bags of garden soil (because they didn't have the raw materials- kind of annoying). I think I may not have bought enough garden soil- I ended up doing the calculations for cubic feet but only ended up calculating enough for one 4x4 box. Ooops. We'll see how it actually comes together once I get the boxes built.
My onion sets arrived today from Gurney's, so tomorrow I will probably have to get the garden boxes put together to get those into the ground as soon as possible. The rest of my order still hasn't shipped- I don't know if they're waiting until I'm supposed to plant things according to their schedule or if they're just swamped because it's "that time of year." It Is a little frustrating, though.
Anyway even thou-gh I got lots of stuff done, Lowes really took it out of me! I was just so uncomfortable in there- thank heaven my aunt was there or I might have just gotten nothing at all done. Fingers crossed that I have enough soil! I don't want to have to buy more- what a pain!
My onion sets arrived today from Gurney's, so tomorrow I will probably have to get the garden boxes put together to get those into the ground as soon as possible. The rest of my order still hasn't shipped- I don't know if they're waiting until I'm supposed to plant things according to their schedule or if they're just swamped because it's "that time of year." It Is a little frustrating, though.
Anyway even thou-gh I got lots of stuff done, Lowes really took it out of me! I was just so uncomfortable in there- thank heaven my aunt was there or I might have just gotten nothing at all done. Fingers crossed that I have enough soil! I don't want to have to buy more- what a pain!
Monday, April 20, 2009
Garden Schedule Coming On-line
I got my copy of All New Square Foot Gardening today from Amazon, and it is an even better resource than I expected- they really break it down and everything's relative to the last frost date, which makes it EXTRA nice for people like me who don't know the planting schedule for Rochester because I grew up in Northern New York and there's a 2-zone difference. The average last frost date for Rochester is around May 18, so that provides a really good jumping point for things.
I should probably try to mark everything on a calendar so I know which weekends I need to get things in the ground. Most of the stuff I'm growing is cooler weather so I have to start getting that in soon- as soon as we have the beds built and filled.
Lets see.. nothing much else. I'll have a detailed review of the book to add later, but for now I'm going to just hunker down and try to brave this gloomy, rainy day.
I should probably try to mark everything on a calendar so I know which weekends I need to get things in the ground. Most of the stuff I'm growing is cooler weather so I have to start getting that in soon- as soon as we have the beds built and filled.
Lets see.. nothing much else. I'll have a detailed review of the book to add later, but for now I'm going to just hunker down and try to brave this gloomy, rainy day.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Next week is Garden Week
Well, for us anyway! Aunt Gwen is on Spring Recess, so we'll be really getting things done. For some reason we always get so lazy on the weekends- I wake up and at that point she's already been downstairs for breakfast and is usually upstairs again either napping or puttering around. Then we both don't feel like doing diddly squat. Weekdays are better for some reason.
Anyhow, tomorrow or possibly next week sometime we'll be going out to get the lumber. She wants the sides of the beds to be higher than I had originally anticipated; I was thinking anywhere from 8-12 inches high would be good, but it looks like she'd like 18" better. Apparently grass blows in from mowing the lawn if they're any shorter.
We'll see what they have at the store, though. I figure if they won't cut the wood into 4' lengths, we can buy it longer (depending on what'll fit in the car, I suppose) and I can cut it myself. I think my aunt has a saw- I guess I'll double check.
Then we just need to fill the boxes with garden soil (still not sure on this point) and mark out the 1 foot squares, and then start organizing what's going into the ground when!
Anyhow, tomorrow or possibly next week sometime we'll be going out to get the lumber. She wants the sides of the beds to be higher than I had originally anticipated; I was thinking anywhere from 8-12 inches high would be good, but it looks like she'd like 18" better. Apparently grass blows in from mowing the lawn if they're any shorter.
We'll see what they have at the store, though. I figure if they won't cut the wood into 4' lengths, we can buy it longer (depending on what'll fit in the car, I suppose) and I can cut it myself. I think my aunt has a saw- I guess I'll double check.
Then we just need to fill the boxes with garden soil (still not sure on this point) and mark out the 1 foot squares, and then start organizing what's going into the ground when!
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Seeds Purchased, Beds this weekend?
Yesterday I purchased the seeds from Gurney's, along with a mini seed-starter for anything other than peppers that I might need to start inside. I spent about $40 all told- shipping and handling was kind of a bitch, but I had a coupon for $25 off a $50 order, so I did good in terms of price.
I'm *hoping* we can FINALLY get to the hardware store this weekend to buy planks and nails (or screws, haven't decided yet) to get the beds done. So simple to do, I just need the materials. I can build them in under an hour I'm sure. I still need to investigate fencing ideas to keep the dog/deer out. I may see about getting some of those hook posts and some chicken wire and just do it really simple, and just make it so I have to unroll it to get in. Kind of ghetto, but whatever.
And with luck, we might get more adorable tree seedlings in the gutters this year!
(Yes, they did get cleaned out. Can't just LEAVE something like that in the gutters)
I'm *hoping* we can FINALLY get to the hardware store this weekend to buy planks and nails (or screws, haven't decided yet) to get the beds done. So simple to do, I just need the materials. I can build them in under an hour I'm sure. I still need to investigate fencing ideas to keep the dog/deer out. I may see about getting some of those hook posts and some chicken wire and just do it really simple, and just make it so I have to unroll it to get in. Kind of ghetto, but whatever.
And with luck, we might get more adorable tree seedlings in the gutters this year!
(Yes, they did get cleaned out. Can't just LEAVE something like that in the gutters)
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
What's going into the garden?
Since there's not really much getting done today in terms of gardening- and my favorite video game server is down so I can't play, I thought I'd make a post about what I'll be planting. I got the layout of the garden set last night on graph paper, and it might still get some adjusting but overall I'm pretty happy with it. I won't be buying the garden kits from online because they don't take credit card and I'm just not comfortable doing a direct bank transfer, so I'll have to get to a hardware store this week sometime.
I'm ordering all the seeds I don't already have from Gurneys. Now, I can't say that I'd buy anything but vegetable seeds (and maybe some flower seed) from them (more on why later), but I have a real soft spot in my heart for them. I know for a fact my grandfather used to buy vegetable seeds from them as well, and I have fond memories of looking through the old catalog and trying to decide which "giant" I would buy- there are always customer pictures and testimonials inserted into the copy, usually marveling at how big the yield was, or at how big the tomato/pumpkin/turnip/squash/zuchinni/etc was. Or how tall something grew, or something to that effect. Wonderful stuff.
Here's the list:
I'm ordering all the seeds I don't already have from Gurneys. Now, I can't say that I'd buy anything but vegetable seeds (and maybe some flower seed) from them (more on why later), but I have a real soft spot in my heart for them. I know for a fact my grandfather used to buy vegetable seeds from them as well, and I have fond memories of looking through the old catalog and trying to decide which "giant" I would buy- there are always customer pictures and testimonials inserted into the copy, usually marveling at how big the yield was, or at how big the tomato/pumpkin/turnip/squash/zuchinni/etc was. Or how tall something grew, or something to that effect. Wonderful stuff.
Here's the list:
- Rutabega
- Spaghetti Squash
- Butternut Squash
- Cucumber
- Cantaloupe
- Red Onion
- Carrots- the heirloom carrots from Seeds of Change and the Colorful Carrot Blend from Gurneys
- Beet
- Lettuce Blend
- Mustard Green Blend
- Broccoli
- Orange Cauliflower (!!)
- Pumpkin (Might get switched out for something else, not entirely sure yet)
- Regular Peas (My aunt doesn't care for pod-eating)
- Eggplant
- Tomato
- Corn
- French Breakfast Radish (Seeds of Change)
- Orange Bell Pepper (Seeds of Change)
- Snow Peas (Seeds of Change)
Monday, April 13, 2009
Seeded: Cal Wonder Orange Bell Pepper
Our local Wegmans has a large selection of seeds from Seeds of Change, which is a very environmentally conscious seller of certified organic heirloom seeds. Where many seed catalogs are selling fancy hybrids and new varieties, Seeds of Change is one of those that tries to keep the old varieties alive. While I'm not one who subscribes to the "hybrid=bad" philosophy, or someone who thinks everything has to be strictly organic, I do really admire Seeds of Change, especially since they make an effort to have sustainable packaging (resealable seed packets! And I can put seeds I save in there, too!)
Anyway, I picked up 4 selections about a week ago. Cal Wonder orange bell pepper, Red Core Chantenay Carrot, French Breakfast Radish, and Sugar Pod Snow Pea, which does not seem to be available on their website.
As I said in a previous post, I'm getting a little bit of a late start on the peppers, but I got them seeded today (pictures to come later) in newspaper containers (folded newspaper filled with soil), so I'm on the way. That's the official start of Bronwyn's Garden!
Anyway, I picked up 4 selections about a week ago. Cal Wonder orange bell pepper, Red Core Chantenay Carrot, French Breakfast Radish, and Sugar Pod Snow Pea, which does not seem to be available on their website.
As I said in a previous post, I'm getting a little bit of a late start on the peppers, but I got them seeded today (pictures to come later) in newspaper containers (folded newspaper filled with soil), so I'm on the way. That's the official start of Bronwyn's Garden!
Late Start
I got a bit of a late start on things for the garden; I planted the pepper seeds today (finally). I won't be starting my own tomatoes this year. Although perhaps my peppers aren't getting started *too* late, according to this, our last frost will be around May 18, so I'm not getting as late a start as I originally thought. That's good.
That being said, I'm really gearing up right now for "hardcore planning" so I can get this garden going. I'm doing a Square Foot Garden this year, which I think will make it much easier on me. Because I'm having some issues getting to a hardware store, I'm thinking I may buy a couple ground box kits from that site as well- shipping isn't as bad as I expected, about $26 for 2 full kits, which run $42 each in pine- not horrible. All told it'll be around $75, which is a bit more than I wanted to spend just on the garden setup but then again, the convenience.. well, it's hard to get out, is all.
The next thing I'll need is soil; To be perfectly blunt, I've no clue what to do about that. I suppose I'll need to try to shop around. We're going to do two 4'x4' boxes, so I imagine I'll need enough to fill that- not sure how much, though. I suppose I'll have to figure that out as I go, then!
Went outside today to scope out places for the garden.. I'm going to be setting it just behind the house, where we get the most sun. There are some bushes I need to prune back there as well and then I think we'll be set for everything. It's just such a beautiful day today.
That being said, I'm really gearing up right now for "hardcore planning" so I can get this garden going. I'm doing a Square Foot Garden this year, which I think will make it much easier on me. Because I'm having some issues getting to a hardware store, I'm thinking I may buy a couple ground box kits from that site as well- shipping isn't as bad as I expected, about $26 for 2 full kits, which run $42 each in pine- not horrible. All told it'll be around $75, which is a bit more than I wanted to spend just on the garden setup but then again, the convenience.. well, it's hard to get out, is all.
The next thing I'll need is soil; To be perfectly blunt, I've no clue what to do about that. I suppose I'll need to try to shop around. We're going to do two 4'x4' boxes, so I imagine I'll need enough to fill that- not sure how much, though. I suppose I'll have to figure that out as I go, then!
Went outside today to scope out places for the garden.. I'm going to be setting it just behind the house, where we get the most sun. There are some bushes I need to prune back there as well and then I think we'll be set for everything. It's just such a beautiful day today.
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