How Does Your Garden Grow??????

We got down to 34F on Tuesday morning. There was a pretty heavy frost. I turned on the sprinklers to wash the frost off, but apparently the broccoli was so tall, it blocked the water from reaching the plants in the trench and the kiddie pool. All of the young pepper plants that I had just put in the pool were toast. Yesterday I replaced them and squeezed in a few more besides. Starting on the north side and going clockwise, I transplanted 4 Grand Bell Mix, a California Wonder Bell, Serrano Chili, Cayenne and Jalapeno Early.




Then today I filled the other kiddie pool with 12 pepper and one tomato. My picture of the cups didn't turn out, but they are still stacked in order in the back of my truck. I know Habanero is at 12:00 and clockwise from there I think it goes 2 Hungarian Wax Yellow, 2 Jalapeno Early, 2 Grand Bell Mix, 2 California Wonder, 1 Serrano Chili and 2 Cayenne with a Yellow Pear tomato in the middle. {but I could be wrong}




And if you eat any of my pepper and your head begins to spin, here might be the reason.


I also did half a row of zucchini and half a row of early summer crook neck squash. I still have about a dozen more of the crook neck, but I had to get to work.



The bigger cups of the zucchini had better roots than the small ones the crook neck was in.

Blooms on the Beef Steak tomatoes in the RNRGGS.

Lots of rain the last few days. I transplanted Armenian cucumbers yesterday in the drizzle. I added a little of the good soil mix.

Lots going on in the garden this week. We waited on the thunderstorms all day Thursday, and they were a full day late arriving. Luckily I transplanted onions and carrots while I was waiting. Used the toilet paper rolls for carrots this year. You sink the roll to ground level, fill in around it, then place the plant inside and fill with potting soil. I used half Metro Mix {the good potting soil} and half Jungle Growth, which is 55% tree bark, but has some time release plant food mixed in.

I took down the rest of the greenhouse yesterday. Now it looks like this.



Where the greenhouse was. The broccoli has gone to seed, and I'm slowly taking it out. Not sure what will go in it's place. I do have a couple of trays of strawberry plants to set out. But they might end up in an other pool.

The garden itself is starting to look like a garden now.

Today was a good planting day for viney things. I did a row each of three kinds of pumpkins, planted the Philippine pole beans in the field corn, and planted the skips in banana cantaloupe, acorn squash, Armenian cucumbers, Charleston Gray and Crimson Sweet melons. Also did my best to save the onions and carrots. We had 3 3/4" of rain on Friday and everything was sanded. The little stuff more so. Ran out of time before I got any cukes, zukes or squash replanted. Also want to put some of everything in trays too. The plants I had inside under the lights for a couple of weeks are looking better than the ones planted in the field the same day.

Larry {the} Gardener said:

I had to move the Acorn squash outside. I put them in a kiddie pool, along with 4 pepper plants and 12 Cilantro. We have had a couple of light frost, but they seemed to shrug it off. I'll add a few tomato plants on Monday or Tuesday.

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I've been seeing a lot of the kiddie pool grows on this site...are you guys putting holes in the bottoms of the pools?

Mr Stanky said:

I've been seeing a lot of the kiddie pool grows on this site...are you guys putting holes in the bottoms of the pools?

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Yes. I use them to mix my soil in, and they get holes pretty easy from that, so I just use the ones with holes first.

thumper60 said:

cleaned out seed draw.apr 1start for meView attachment 3627314

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Want to earn some cash?

On Tuesday I planted viney things. I figured the field corn had enough of a head start, so I planted the Philippine pole beans between the corn plants. Also planted the skips in the acorn squash, Armenian cucumbers, banana cantaloupe and melons. Plus a little of all of that in trays.

This morning I planted about 10-12 kinds of peppers in trays. Also 2 kinds of tomatoes. Plus soybeans and okra. I planted the skips in the sweet corn and blue lake bush beans.

There are peppers just about ready on the two plants I over-wintered. They are Jalapeno and Anaheim Chili. There are lots of blooms on the tomatoes and a few on the young peppers.

So what do you guys use to amend the veggie gardens? Then same stuff used for growing organic weed? I jus put 3 each watermelons and cateloupe inn soil this morning. Cantaloupe in a 5 gal bucket and watermelon in a old shoe cabinet. Will put some broccoli in the shoe cab too and trellis the melon. First time for broccoli. Have more stuff sprouting inside, still too cold at night in Cali high desert. But I think the worst is over now.

Jimmyjonestoo said:

What's the best way to start them indoors? Wouldn't that take up a good amount of space?

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I started all my seeds in an old plastic parts bin I had. It's divided so you can keep many different seeds separated. They don't need much of anything to start, just soil,water and a little heat. When you transplant you can feed them then.

shaft09 said:

So what do you guys use to amend the veggie gardens? Then same stuff used for growing organic weed? I jus put 3 each watermelons and cateloupe inn soil this morning. Cantaloupe in a 5 gal bucket and watermelon in a old shoe cabinet. Will put some broccoli in the shoe cab too and trellis the melon. First time for broccoli. Have more stuff sprouting inside, still too cold at night in Cali high desert. But I think the worst is over now.

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I use mushroom compost, cow manure compost and turkey manure compost, along with peat moss, potting soil, blood and bone meal, Epson salts, lime and coffee grounds.

I got out and planted the skips in the Pink-eyed Purple Hulls this morning. I picked up more melon seeds this morning in town. Also some egg plant and a couple of kinds of cantaloupe. I put some of them in trays tomorrow.

I got about 15-18 pepper plants transplanted into the ground today and about half that many into gallon pots. Some my BIL sent me, and he didn't label them. I know the three kinds, just not which is which. Of mine, I did New Mexico Chili, Serrano Chili, Habbanaro, Hungarian Yellow Wax, Jalapeno Early, California Wonder Bell and Mini Sweet peppers.

Also got a few Cherub tomato plants into gallon cups. They are growing fast.

I saw the first sprouts in the pole beans this morning. Also a couple in the trays. I didn't look to see what it was coming up.

In prior years I had been only using cow and chicken manure compost from Home Depot and my native soil. That worked out great for me. Trying to up my game now, lol.

Had some left over organic soil from canna grows and thought I would see how that does for veggies. Should be ok. If it does well, I will save it for next year and amend again.

shaft09 said:

In prior years I had been only using cow and chicken manure compost from Home Depot and my native soil. That worked out great for me. Trying to up my game now, lol.

Had some left over organic soil from canna grows and thought I would see how that does for veggies. Should be ok. If it does well, I will save it for next year and amend again.

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The weed, tomates and pepper get the good stuff. Everything else has to fight for the scraps. My garden is about 2 acres, so I can't amend all of it. I'm digging holes for the peppers and putting about a shovel full of what I call "adult tomato" mix in the bottom. I have another weaker mix that I put around the plant when I transplant. I did 15 or 18 of these this morning. This year's peas are planted where I had my peppers last year, and you can tell the difference in the soil and the peas. It will just take a few years for me to get it all done at this rate.

Wish I had 1 acre

Lots of sprouts from the viney things replanting. I took pictures and told myself that I would remember what was what. Well, I don't remember, but melons, cantaloupes, cucumbers, Acorn squash and Armenian cucumbers all kind of look alike when they first come up anyway.

I hope the field corn has enough of a head start on the Philippine pole beans. They are very viney.