[Daisy Mae]

Hello TPT!

I just thought we could veer from the water world for a bit. Let me start by showing you half of this year's garlic harvest! Mom already got the other half before I took this photo.

Anyways, what do you like to grow? What do you grow particularly well in your area? What plant frustrates the heck out of you and still, you keep planting it in hopes that maybe, just maybe, this year it will do well?

Or, other garden stories if you have them. Photos too please!

 

[somewhatshocked]

Woah, that's huge! I have garlic envy just thinking about all the roasting that could take place...

I love to grow crazy hot peppers, tomatoes, "Kentucky Wonder" green beans, cantaloupe and just about every variety of basil I can get my hands on.

For some reason I struggle with currants but keep trying every year. Not sure how I can manage to grow crazy-delicate plants in artificial environments but struggle with a simple fruit.

But back to that garlic = impressive!

 

[Daisy Mae]

Thanks! I am lucky in that the climate here is pretty good for growing it. Plant in October, leaf mulch, ignore until April-May which is when I start watering a bit, stop watering in June, harvest June-July.

Funny thing is I don't cook with it much, no one at home enjoys it a lot. A little bit yes. So I give a lot to my mother, and to friends.

But because it just does well for me, I keep growing way more than I can consume!

Hot peppers - that only grows somewhat well for me, mainly because I can't be bothered to put it under cover. So I'm satisfied with one plant, maybe a few peppers at season's end.

Cantaloupes - hah, another fail for me. Just not hot enough here. I tried Minnesota Midget, got one baseball sized piece of fruit. So cute but not worth it.

 

[somewhatshocked]

Bet you can probably grow currants like crazy, though.

Grow any large gourds? Pumpkins?

 

[Daisy Mae]

Bet you can probably grow currants like crazy, though.

Grow any large gourds? Pumpkins?

Never tried currants. No one here will eat them

No pumpkins or gourds. Tried 'Uchiri Red Kuri' squash two years ago. One softball sized fruit. He he.

Funny though, another cucurbit, the kids' favorite (cucumber) grew very well this year. Here's a sample, one of the first fruit. No name variety seedling from the grocery store.

The measuring tape shows inches. I just had to take this photo when I harvested it!
We have had a warm summer so far, though. About two months of hot and dry. Forest fires and all. But now back to cooler weather and had a good week of rain.

 

[GraphicGr8s]

Our second season is upon us here. Monday I got the garden tilled. Dug some of the rows since the wife will plant the cukes and maybe the maters tomorrow. About 50 tomato plants ready for transplant. Cherries, Roma and a couple of others. Also put the row in for some pole beans. Next month I start the lettuce, broccoli, radish, and whatever else for a winter crop.

 

[Daisy Mae]

Oh, wow, a second season! Of warm weather crops!
I guess I just noticed your location, ding, the fluorescent light bulb went on, it took a couple of seconds, you know?

For us, it's getting down to the last month or so of cool weather vegetables. And some overwintering ones. The only things I overwinter are garlic and carrots (well, more like the ground acts like my cold cellar for the carrots), and three years ago there was a lot of corn salad (mache).

 

[oldpunk78]

I grow tomatoes, jalapeños, zucchini, Japanese eggplant, cucumbers, watermelon, squash, and various herbs.

Due to a couple mishaps during vacations this year, we lost the squash and got a bug infestation. The tomatoes are still doing well.

 

[Fish Em]

Great looking crops! I am bad at gardening. I only learned how to grow low light plants in my tank. It was too much work, and I stayed determined not to let my plants die. I did emergency replanting all the time and still struggling with vallis.
Gardening is a whole different story. My husband plants really good peppers, and all his plants grow well. I literally plant anything and it turns yellow and dies and I buy another plant and same thing. I planted some pansies, but you can't go wrong with those. They come in soil and everything.

 

[LinaS]

our strawberry )

this year we plant some trees - apple, pear and peach... now waiting for next spring to see if they will have some fruits )

 

[Daisy Mae]

It's so nice to see all sorts of different gardening styles, and I love pansies! Who doesn't?

And look at those yummy looking strawberries! Vanilla ice cream, anyone?

 

[somewhatshocked]

GraphicGr8s: Pole beans are the best ever! How do you grow them? Tobacco stick pyramids? Just string them up? What?

Probably my favorite bean to grow, tons of great childhood memories. Now I need to dedicate space for them next year. Or move west.

LinaS: Those look delicious. You're just a couple hours north, so I'm guessing you're about to experience the cold front we're receiving. No more growing fun here.

 

[BruceF]

Mostly I just grow perennials.

 

[GraphicGr8s]

GraphicGr8s: Pole beans are the best ever! How do you grow them? Tobacco stick pyramids? Just string them up? What?

Probably my favorite bean to grow, tons of great childhood memories. Now I need to dedicate space for them next year. Or move west.

Truth is it depends on my mood and energy level that day. I've gone and grown them together with corn using the stalks as the support. They did well but hard to pick. I've done the string. Not a big fan. Too much work. Last two times I've made posts out of bamboo and used wire fencing between them. I like that one the best so far. And I am growing bamboo so I don't have to buy any. Stalks are in the 60' range so a little goes a long way.
I'm waiting for the Old Hamii to get nice and big (4" around) so I can get indoor plumbing.

Bump:

Oh, wow, a second season! Of warm weather crops!
I guess I just noticed your location, ding, the fluorescent light bulb went on, it took a couple of seconds, you know?

For us, it's getting down to the last month or so of cool weather vegetables. And some overwintering ones. The only things I overwinter are garlic and carrots (well, more like the ground acts like my cold cellar for the carrots), and three years ago there was a lot of corn salad (mache).

Yes but the entire summer my ground lies fallow. That is our dormant season here.
Way too hot for anything. And the hot season has surprised me with early starts the last couple of years. Not good. And now of course I hope this winter is like last. Not very cold and no freezes.

 

[Bushkill]

I live in the middle of what is now a mature oak forest. To the west I'm a very short walk away from the Delaware State Forest, and to the east I'm 3 miles from the Delaware River (and the National Park that straddles it).

Growing ANYTHING is a challenge, but for the last 25 years, I've persevered!

In the setting my home was built on, the one thing that you watch happen over the course of 25 years is how trees grow and reach for available sun light. Trees that were once simple spires, now literally now have a second tree growing from the midsection trying to reach for the sun.

Last year, I had 4 trees "strategically" removed. They had developed some serious tilt toward the sun.......and house. But that also opened up the gardens immensely. Things that had been slowly deteriorating were now rejuvenated.

The Redbud trees have thrown seedlings everywhere, the Mountain Olive bushes produce loads of berries for the birds as well as nesting cover. The Catalpa trees have really exploded as well. These were things we brought to the house as seedlings years ago and were simply out competed for sunlight by the native oaks.

But the bonus has been the vegetable garden! We just started bringing in the best tomatoes we've grown in at least 10 years. The potatoes went absolutely NUTS. I've planted blue potatoes for the past 5 years and they've never gotten bigger than a jumbo egg. This year they were the size of a store-bought russet, and plenty of them.

Sadly we didn't harvest any garlic this year. The weather turned extremey cold and the ground froze before I could get this years crop in the ground last fall. But new seed garlic is on the way and I'll be planting 6 varieties. Yes, even Transylvanian!

Currants make a really good jam. My wife made some year before last and it's awesome. But we didn't get more than a handful this year...........the birds got them all!
Putting out bird feeders all winter had a drawback......They stuck around and devoured the currants and raspberry crops. Small price to pay. Bird netting next spring for sure.

One of the pear trees we planted last year actually set fruit. The Bosc is my favorite. Organic fruit isn't as pretty as store-bought but I'm darn proud of them. Peaches were a bust though. Lots of leaves and no fruit (scratches head). Gotta read up I guess.

Squash is race against time. If I can get a couple of decent squash before the nights cool off too much, that's pretty much it. The cool nights produce enough morning dew that bring powdery mildew without fail. Dusting with sulfur may be in the cards someday.

And removing those few trees also gave the magnolia tree and native maples a new lease on life as well.

I gotta get back to work!

 

[GraphicGr8s]

Angelo, one thing you guys have up north is actual soil. We have, well, sand. I've added literally tons of horse manure to my gardens and still I have.....sand. Can't even tell I've added anything. Yet I too persevere. No chems for me if I can help it.

 

[Bushkill]

Angelo, one thing you guys have up north is actual soil. We have, well, sand. I've added literally tons of horse manure to my gardens and still I have.....sand. Can't even tell I've added anything. Yet I too persevere. No chems for me if I can help it.

Ahhhhh, not in my neck of the woods!

You have sand and we have............... rocks.....we grow 'em!

I've smashed up boulders the size of a VW Beetle (I was gonna type Microbus, but that would age me). I've built more stone walks and walls with what I've pulled out of the ground than my aching back would care to remember. It started with two 40 ton loads of "topsoil", and There's been several since. I'm just about done with the last one.

There's still two massive stones in the vegetable garden that I never could find the bottom of, and since they had perfectly flat tops, they simply define where my rows are.

With what I've invested in the gardens and home renovations, I've told my wife many times that the only way anybody will get me to move is when I'm in a pine box, lol!

For the most part you have to live in the river valleys to have anything worth working with. I've had the thought of starting a Community Garden type of thing in the Delaware Water Gap National Park. It's largely rich farmland that was seized in the 60's, and just a handful of farmers still lease the plots. But the Park Service is just not fun to work with at any level.

There are some really interesting areas like Pine Island in NY and Great Meadows in NJ. Amazing deposits of jet black farm soil measured in square miles. If the quality of soil and geology gets your attention, these places will astound.

But all this garden talk reminds me I have to check on the status of my seed garlic order!

Bump:

Angelo, one thing you guys have up north is actual soil. We have, well, sand. I've added literally tons of horse manure to my gardens and still I have.....sand. Can't even tell I've added anything. Yet I too persevere. No chems for me if I can help it.

And no chems here either. Kids, cats, and my water supply under my feet dictate that. But I have to research sulfur to some degree. I'm the only person I know that gardens and has trouble with squash and it's only because of powdery mildew. If the weather dictates, it will also get to cucumbers and just about anything with "hairy leaves".

 

[Daisy Mae]

He he, powdery mildew is a given around here too.
I've learned not to fight it now, and to just trim back if necessary. Towards the end of the season I just sometimes get rid of the entire plant, not much point to hanging on to it. It helps with the neighboring plants at least, a bit more circulation.

 

[somewhatshocked]

Horrible flashbacks: growing pole beans in corn = all kinds of cuts on your hands! No fun. The bamboo + fencing idea sounds perfect.

Currants doing well in PA gives me hope for this region. I am gonna grow those suckers if it's the last thing I do.

 

[Bushkill]

Horrible flashbacks: growing pole beans in corn = all kinds of cuts on your hands! No fun. The bamboo + fencing idea sounds perfect.

Currants doing well in PA gives me hope for this region. I am gonna grow those suckers if it's the last thing I do.

I have to admit it took a while for the currants to take off. Being surrounded by oak trees, I would bet they do better in acidic soil, but research can confirm that thought. Wildlife has made berries a real challenge for me. The cat turns 16 this month and the chipmunk population has rebounded nicely. If you hang a bird feeder in winter, they'll probably stick around for the currants to ripen. We've seen our first cardinal pair this past winter. So soil PH and bird netting may be the solution in the long run. I can confirm the critter theory as I'm now seeing stray currant plants in the general area.

Powdery mildew........It's on my list to conquer........some day, lol!

The pumpkin plants have about 6 feet of dead leaves followed by 3 feet of affected leaves and 3 feet of healthy leaves. Didn't set a single pumpkin and I got precisely 1 green squash. Why the yellow squash held up MUCH better is a real mystery. They should've done just as poorly.

If you garden extensively and for long enough, you gain a profound appreciation for what the small farm (largely extinct) endured to survive and grow our food.