A REMINDER AS SPRING APPROACHES

[Etaoin]

IN CASE YOU HAVE FORGOTTEN, THERE IS A GARDENING CORNER. Here (http://freeconservatives.com/vb/forumdisplay.php?s=&f=43&page=1&pp=20&sort=lastpost&order=desc&daysprune=-1)
It is that time of the year again. Time to be starting the seedlings for those of you in the more Southern Climes while up North we have at least a month to wait.

As soon as the ground thaws, in go the Spinach, Snow Peas, Shallots, Green Onions, Garlic, & Lettuce (3 varieties, Leaf, Boston, escarole). I don't fool with cauliflower, broccoli & Brussel Sprouts, though I enjoy them. In Feb. & March, I start the tomato seedlings and any other warm wx crop.

What are you going to plant this year? If you are a seed saver, do you have anything interesting to exchange with fellow freecers?

[The_Sonarman]

My tomatoes went into the ground this morning. I also have carrots, cukes and okra to plant, and I have some heirloom corn seeds to plant as well.

It's been a long hiatus (ie. me not planting), but such is the nature of my current bid-ness venture.

www.burpee.com
www.parkseed.com
www.heirloomseeds.com
www.kitazawaseed.com

[Etaoin]

March 1 my tomato seed germinated, shortly thereafter I left for 9 days in Fla. when I came back they had been over-watered. I tried to save a few but the last one is gone due to root rot. Ah well, I'll start again, in Northern Illinois we cannot plant warm weather crops normally until late May or early June. If set out earlier they have to be protected against a late frost and they really don't take off until the ground temp reaches @ 65 degrees.

Up North here, we gladly and gratefully accept any garden care packages! :D

[Warlady]

Etaoin can you change that color of green? It's blinding me...and I can't make out what it says.

[Warlady]

Sonarman is our gardener this year. I can't wait to have some homegrown tomatoes and cucumbers. Etaoin is sending me cuke seeds!!!!!!!!

[Wyatt_Junker]

Okay, I want in on the action but need some pointers.

I live in Northern California: 110 degrees in July, 35 degrees in December.

My land is composed of pretty much all decomposed granite.

And I would like to harvest fruit trees, citrus mostly, and avocados.

Can this be done? And if so, what variety for the conidtions I described?

[Warlady]

I don't know jack about northern California. Does anyone here know what can be grown there?

[PrezLeefun]

what can grow in Conn? My uncle has a house up there, its the only place i can grow something.

[The_Sonarman]

Okay, I want in on the action but need some pointers.

I live in Northern California: 110 degrees in July, 35 degrees in December.

My land is composed of pretty much all decomposed granite.

And I would like to harvest fruit trees, citrus mostly, and avocados.

Can this be done? And if so, what variety for the conidtions I described?

The ground can always be ameliorated and modified, both in humus content, mineral content, soil condition, fertilizer content, and PH levels. It doesn't matter how "nasty" one's local soil is. Worst case, you can always bring in a couple square yards of "topsoil" from somewhere else, and put a "pocket" of that into your local ground..... where you will be planting a tree or garden. Just enough to give the roots somewhere "nice" to be. You dig a hole somewhat bigger than the tree root ball, put some "topsoil" under and around the root ball.... that sort of thing. Kind of like "planting" the tree in a "pocket" of nice topsoil. However, that is a worst case scenario. and probably isn't necessary in your case. It's more a case of which tree variety and the recommended fertilizer. Plus mulch..... always add some mulch.... never hurts, and usually helps.

I don't know about Northern California specifically, but there has been a ton of work done creating fruit trees and berry vines that live and thrive in all parts of the US. For instance, I never thought I'd see a blueberry variety that would live and thrive in Texas (ie. too hot), but there is one now.

Avocados
http://www.crfg.org/pubs/ff/avocado.html

California Rare Fruit Growers
http://www.crfg.org/

http://www.hortsource.com/rlPfruitsberry.htm
http://homeorchard.ucdavis.edu/backyard-climate.pdf
http://www.dogpile.com/info.dogpl/search/redir.htm?advanced=1&top=1&nde=1&qcat=web&q_all=fruit+tree+california+north&q_phrase=&q_any=&q_not=&Submit1=Go+Fetch%21&lang=&dpcollation=1&qk=20&qafterm=01&qafterd=01&qaftery=1990&qbeforem=03&qbefored=13&qbeforey=2005&domaint=&familyfilter=0

As with everything, there is a ton of information out there. The link above is just a quick search I did for the terms fruit trees california and north.

I always saw bags and bags and bags of grass clippings, raked leaves, etc., during the year. We'd see 10 or 20 at one house. We'd grab every single one and run those through our mulch pile (ie. compost pile). We might have looked like a bunch of redneck vagrants, "stealing" garbage bags, but we had primo veggies and fig trees. We didn't care.

Also, it occurs to me that fruit trees are heavy feeders, so I'd expect to have to buy fertilizer specifically tailored to growing fruit trees. I prefer JOBE fertilizer "sticks", but there are other brands of fertilizer specific to fruit trees. Don't sweat it, though. I've seen the stuff in Wal-Mart and elsewere..... it isn't tough to find.

[Warlady]

sonarman is correct. When I lived at the beach we had clay soil mixed with sand. I trucked in yards and yards of top soil and mulch to create my raised bed square foot garden. I could grow hair on a cueball in that garden. I miss it terribly.

[The_Sonarman]

what can grow in Conn? My uncle has a house up there, its the only place i can grow something.

I would think you can grow almost anything there, once the frost is gone. Tomatoes, Beans, Cukes, and on and on. You might even be able to grow things year round, like we do here, but I'm not certain of that. Certainly, you have at least one or two growing seasons.

The "easy" way to figure out what to plant is to just go down to your local nursery and see what young veggie plants they're selling for transplanting. It isn't as great a choice as starting your own seedlings (since there are hundreds upon hundreds of varieties), but a good deal of the work is already done for you.... plus you'll find out what works in that area.

You might consider contacting these local people. They're intrest is selling you seeds, supplies and stuff, but they could be a good resource to you.

http://www.ganimsgardencenter.com/summer.htm

Our consistent availability of knowledgeable staff to assist you with any problem you may encounter is a real bonus to the home gardener. At your friendly neighborhood garden center, we are always available to answer questions, in person, by phone or email. If you have a problem, we can help you resolve it. We can tell you how to plant anything, and how to get optimum results for your efforts!

CONTACT US

Ganims Garden Center and Florist, LLC
320 Kings Highway Cut Off
Fairfield, CT 06824
Phone 203-333-5662
FAX 203-333-2701
Email GanimsFlorist@ganimsgardencenter.com

Beyond that, there should be a state agricultural department, county agents, etcetera. You won't have to experiment..... it is already known what grows well there, what grows mediocre, and what just won't make it. I would check your state government website, see if there is a link to the ag department resources.

Below is some of the basics. Of course, one doesn't have to plant an enormous garden.... although those are especially fun, too.

http://www.almanac.com/garden/
http://guides.yourct.com/magazine/7/800
http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/hil/ag-06.html

When to plant in Connecticut (ie. no more frost)
http://www.victoryseeds.com/frost/ct.html

And some more stuff

http://www.amazinggardeningguide.com/grow-vegetable-gardens.html

[Melz]

I just bought a new house with a hugeass yard in August..didn't have much time to plan then, but along the way (if it ever ever ever ever stops raining), I plan on relying on any and everyone for pointers. If i get all ambitious I actually want to start a veggie garden..tomatoes at first, corn maybe, whatever else ones grows in a garden. See I don't even know what i can viably grow! I want asparagus (the most awesome vegetable in the world) but heard that it takes years to do that. Better start now!

All this spring talk lately is having a positive affect, that is for sure, keep it up forum ones :)

[The_Sonarman]

Melz, I'd check the local nurseries. They'll be selling "stuff" for gardening. Other than that, I'd suspect you have enormous amount of things you could choose to plant. You're up there about the same latitude with Iowa, which is some of the most primo growing soil and location in the US. You should be fine.

I would recommend a book "square foot gardening" as well. I don't do the classic 4 foot by 4 foot beds they recommend.... I do the "french raised beds", 4 foot wide by however long you want to go. Looks like it's going to be 4 foot x 50 foot beds next year for me.... once I get a rototiller up here. The 'squares" give you places to sit without trodding on the growing area. That is one thing to avoid.... don't trod on your growing area if you can avoid it. Sit or walk off to the side of the growing area.

[Melz]

Sonarman, you realize that your post was all "greek" to me, but I took it in and will continue to learn by osmosis here. I will need to "rotill" (is that a word) some things and get some advice, but you are right, this area is great for planting just about anything. I have about an acre of yard, but the "square foot gardening" may be just up my ally. Imagine me trying to do "acre gardening" when I don't even know what "rotillering" is!!

Thanks for your help though, shall look for that book now actually :)

[The_Sonarman]

Melz,

Sorry. I was going wacko, thinking about the Fall planting here actually, not the next year. I've got a bit of work to do, prepping the large area I'm thinking about tilling then.

A rototiller is a machine for churning up and digging the ground. This will be a requirement for me as I intend doing a very large area. Not necessary, but nice, for a smaller area. You can do that with a shovel and/or pitchfork.

Here's the book.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0878573410/qid=1110774264/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl14/104-8253274-1767109?v=glance&s=books&n=507846

It's pretty good. You basically have a 4 foot wide "bed", so that you can reach all parts of the growing area from the borders (where you can sit and dig, weeding the area, or harvesting veggies). Four foot is important because it means you only have to reach 2 feet from either side to get to any part of the growing area, an easy arm's length reach. That means you don't have to be stomping through the growing area, crushing and compacting the nicely tilled earth.

What I do is make my beds 4 foot wide, but I make them any length I want, versus the available land I have. The 4 foot by 4 foot squares waste a lot over very good growing area, as you sacrifice a lot of area. I like long garden beds. I make them at least 4 foot by 20 foot, and I have done them 4 foot by 50.

[Melz]

This is very good info actually, it simplifies it compared to the gardens of my fore-parents. I don't need overwhelming and need to be able to reach things which I need to reach (after rotillering of course..LOL). If you recommend the book , I shall buy it. I need one anyway, my yard will become a huge project for me this spring.

If it ever ever ever ever ever stops raining.

You do realize though, you are now my go-to on this project, glad to have you aboard the project!

Thank you :)

[The_Sonarman]

Gardening is simple, Melz. It can get complicated of course, if you're planting 25 items in 2 acres... one starts to call that a "farm". There is nothing tough or complicated about getting started doing a couple veggies in a backyard plot. If you like it, there is no problem adding quite a few veggies per year, as well as additional land.

A submarine buddy of mine started with just four of those "four x four foot squares" from the Square Foot Gardening book in his backyard. He had never put shovel to earth in his life before that. He expanded that as he went along and learned. Guess what. His only reference was the book Square Foot Gardening, and me coaching him a bit from 1500 miles away by email. I recall he did tomatoes first.

a. choose a spot to put the initial garden into (can be a small spot to start)
b. dig it up, turning the soil over, removing weeds, grass, etc.
c. plant some stuff
d. water it on the recommended timetable
e. pick it
f. do it again.

of course, once you have the beds set up, all you have to do is steps b through e again. You can even "cheat" and not fertilize, but you'll get more and better crop yields if you do, which means more veggies on the table, which is why we're doing this in the first place, of course.

Ready for "The Big Secret"? Vegetable Plants are nothing more than weeds, and grow fine all by themselves. That's it. Nothing earthshattering or exciting.

Somewhere along the line, someone figured out "wheat weeds", and "tomato weeds", and all the rest were edible. So, they started gathering those items from "wild" sources. Somewhere along the way, mankind figured out how to gather seeds and intentionally plant those "weeds" so they had beaucoups "weeds" close by, and were assured a massive amount of "vegetable weeds" rather than starving and hoping to find enough "wild" source vegetable weeds. Lots more fun when you aren't worried sick every day that you'll find enough "wild" sources. That's over 5000 years of agriculture reduced to a short paragraph, but that's how it happened... without the myriad details that accompanied that history such as territorial and resource wars, pestilence, famine, disease and chaos.

Vegetables (ie. "weeds") grow naturally and on their own. The only thing that differentiates them from "real" weeds is.... we intentionally plant and grow "vegetable weeds" for consumption. Other than that, "vegetable weeds" grow fine all by themselves. Where the "gardening" comes in is.... we try to improve the "weeds" yield (be it green beans, tomatoes, etcetera), by tinkering with fertilizing, planting the correct separation distance, watering, improving the soil, orienting the garden for the proper sunlight exposure, etcetera.

You've probably already seen numerous examples of farmers or gardeners already doing just that.

a. Weeding their fields (getting rid of the "weed" weeds so the "vegetable weeds" have no competition for space, water and mineral resources).
b. Watering
c. Fertilizing (replacing the nutrients being expended by the current crop of veggies.
d. Planting "stuff" spaced out so that when the plants grow to their expected size, they aren't fighting with each other for resources, as per item a above.

There is actually little that "I" do to improve upon what nature does for me. I just try and assist the seeds and / or baby plants to get a good head start on growing. The "Zen" of Gardening, so to speak.

If you really, really want to keep is simple, you don't even have to prepare garden beds at all. Just buy about 10 or 20 big pots and plant different things there. I've seen small gardens on apartment balconies done just this way. Just acquire some soil, either dig it out of your yard (or your neighbors..... always sure to make friends), or buy it at the same gardening store, nursery that you purchase the plants if you like, and plant your stuff in the pots.

[HomeschoolrsRUs]

I probably shouldn't post, but hey, I like being a part of a big happy crowd!


I grow really nice sized sticks. And rocks. And moss on my trees. And dirt. That's about it.

I lost my two sable palms, don't know what happened. My daughter's horse ate every single leaf off my new magnolia plants, don't know if they're going to survive or not. My one new dogwood went back to stick. I, like a complete and absolute idiot, planted one of the really nice fig plants my son brought back from his Great-Gramma's house . . . but only one problem. If you can believe it, I planted the stupid thing upside-down (plant in ground, tap root outside of ground), and of course, it died. The other fig MIGHT live . . . I THINK I saw one green leaf on it. The tangerine tree li'l Bubba got is lookin' awful dark around the leaves, and my poor, poor eucalyptus tree, http://www.freeconservatives.com/vb/images/icons/icon9.gif , was doing so well until one of the kid's friend's parents ran completely over it with their 15-passenger van, splitting it in two, vertically even!

Let's just suffice it to say, I have about as much of a green thumb as I do a mechanic's certificate. And don't EVEN get me started going about cars! http://www.freeconservatives.com/vb/images/icons/icon8.gif

[Etaoin]

Sonar- has done a superb job of explaining the fundamentals of gardening.

A weed in the garden is ANY plant that you do not want to be growing there.

I quit rototilling my garden years ago...though I do have a MANTIS ROTOTILLER as my wife wanted her flower beds tilled. I have had front tillers and back tillers, but this mantis is relatively inexpensive and does an excellent job.

I quit tilling as it killed the earthworms and there is nothing better in a garden than to turn over a spade full of dirt and have it loaded with worms which are busy fertilizing with their castings and aerating the soil as they tunnel through it.

Melz, if you plant 25 Asparagus plants you will have all the asparagus you want for the rest of your life....but, it will be about 3 years before you get your first edible crop. It is worth the wait! You shouldn't pick the stalks until they are at least pencil sized...let the roots develop and each plant will be good for @ 25 years...that doesn't count the new plants that are seeded by birds and from the seeds of your 25 plants. Your problem then is leaving the walkways through the patch. If you don't want to wait 3 years then when you are driving through rural areas in the fall make note of the wild asparagus growing along the fencerows. Then in the spring, you will not only have Asparagus, but the price is right! Euell Gibbons is the author's name, but you would enjoy "stalking the Wild Asparagus. An excellent book on foraging.

As you plant your garden, there are plants that are suitable as companion plants and there are those that interefere with each other. http://www.organicgardening.com (http://www.organicgardening.com/) is usually a pretty good source for such information. The founder and his son were great, but the daughter who now has inherited it is a lefty flake....while it does not invalidate the information, the views sometimes expressed can be irritating to a freecer.

I think Sonar must be an engineer (and a neatnik) who has an absolutely georgous garden. I, OTOH, am more than somewhat lazy and pretty much of a slob (so my wife maintained). I get all the spoiled hay I can scrounge, in the fall, I get two landscaping companies to give me several truckloads of clean leaves, and a neighbor who boards horses is kind enough to let me have some of his surplus horsemanure. These I let age for a year and cover the entire garden with it once the ground warms up. Then it is just a matter of pulling back the mulch to plant your seeds and you don't have to worry about muddy feet or compacting your soil or much weeding!

I also ROW compost all the organic garbage generated in our household. To Row Compost, all that is necessary is to dig a trench @ 1 1/2 foot deep and cover your kitchen waste. I also save egg shells and run them through an old blender (DO NOT INHALE THE DUST) and use it in the garden to discourage snails and slugs.

As I said I am a slob... so I never have to plant lettuce, dill, spinach, etc... as when they go to seed, I don't pull them out until the seeds have fallen throughout my garden. These deliver two crops a year, but they are kinda all over the place. I don't get to pick them out of a nice neat row, but I put no effort in planting them either! Of course, this only works if you have plenty of room! Another thing you must (should) consider is there are cool weather crops and warm weather crops...each has its season. some cool weather crops can give you a spring and a fall crop such as spinach and snow peas.

If you have enough space, you should put in a small herb garden for your wife. It should be near the kitchen so she can just step out of the door and cut her chive, Parsley Cilantro, Basil, etc...Once planted, you should never have to buy the seed again. Lacking the room, then you should have some clay pots near the kitchen with the herbs.

There is no better nor rewarding pastime than communing with nature through your garden. Some like gardening for food and some like the flowers for beauty....both make this a better world.

BTW New Jersey has just named the Tomato as the State vegetable. They must be a Blue state since the tomato is a fruit!

[The_Sonarman]

I think Sonar must be an engineer....
Yes

....(and a neatnik)....
Well.... a little.

....who has an absolutely georgous garden.
Working on it.

[Melz]

Wow this is awesome information, thank you all for the help! Is this rotilling thing necessary? I guess it would be a wise investment if I am going to be gardening over the years, because i WILL have that asparagus! What Etaoin was saying almost sounds like "aparagus hunting" in a sense...but that stuff is completely worth the effort! I would like to grow spinach too. Would also like an herb garden (for myself, I am too female to have a wife), is that were I could grow some eucaliptis (spelled it wrong I know).

Again, thank you all, this is wonderful info to get started with !!

[The_Sonarman]

A rototiller is not a requirement. They are also a significant investment. The most inexpensive "serious" rototiller I've seen was $500, and the one I'm looking at is well over a grand. That's serious money for an instrument you'd use maybe once or twice a year. I can get by just renting one for a weekend. The only reason I'm considering it is I have have an enormous plot in mind, close to 5000 square feet. I don't have the time (or the energy) to do anything like that manually. If you are starting small, backyard stuff, a shovel and/or pitchfork is a fine start. you will need at least one of those even if you eventually use machinery (ie rototiller).

I recall reading about planting asparagus.... digging something like 18 inches down and planting the roots really deep, then adding a couple inches of soil every couple months to that 18 inch deep hole as the thing grows, something like that. I also recall it takes a couple years to establish these veggies. I'm going to have to reread that stuff.

Shovel and/or Pitchfork work fine, and only set you back about 20 bucks.

[Warlady]

Homeschool you are such a riot.

[The_Sonarman]

Asparagus in the home garden.

http://35.8.128.5/msuewc/oceana/article.cfm?id=771

[Etaoin]

Wow this is awesome information, thank you all for the help! Is this rotilling thing necessary? I guess it would be a wise investment if I am going to be gardening over the years, because i WILL have that asparagus! What Etaoin was saying almost sounds like "aparagus hunting" in a sense...but that stuff is completely worth the effort! I would like to grow spinach too. Would also like an herb garden (for myself, I am too female to have a wife), is that were I could grow some eucaliptis (spelled it wrong I know).

Again, thank you all, this is wonderful info to get started with !!

Oooops, sorry I didn't know that you were a member of the stronger sex.

Google "Mantis Rototiller" For a small gardener, it is light and inexpensive and is easily maneuverable. It doesn't leave a nice smoothe seed bed as do the rear maounted tillers and you will have to rake it level. It is also the only tiller that never gave me a problem starting it.

In Cincinnati you should already have your seeds in the ground for Spinach. Snow peas (edible pods), onions, leeks, etc... The spinach will bolt very quickly once it gets really warm Plant in March and again in July for a fall crop. Can't beat those spinach salads with bits of bacon, vinegar and Olive Oil.

Dill Weed is truly a weed and is a must in your garden as is Chive. BTW, a border and an occasional small row of MARIGOLDS in the garden are good to control nematodes.

Sorry, I have never grown eucalyptus. Maybe someone in California can help.

[The_Sonarman]

http://www.tomatogrowers.com/

[Melz]

MMMM you all are helping me so much (and making me hungry)! I am ready to get started even, as it is suggested that I should have already done so. Weather permitting, I should have something started by the first week in April. I did order that book by the way Sonarman! And tomatoes would be awesome, anyone can have a tomato plant right? Without even a garden.

An herb garden would actually be nice but I woudn't know what to do with said herbs once they were all grown up. I have things I can composte, is that used for fertilizer?

So many questions from clueless me, I am ready for spring though, very motivated now!

[The_Sonarman]

And tomatoes would be awesome, anyone can have a tomato plant right? Without even a garden.
Yes, one can do the "window box" style of gardening, even with almost no space, and plant a couple tomato plants. There are even tomato varieties specifically tailored to "apartment balcony" or "patio" growing, with almost no space. You can grow those in big pots. I know you don't have the apartment balcony, but my point is you could plant 'maters with just a couple pots and some soil to fill the pots. "Instant Garden".....

I have twelve plants in the ground now, and the WL is prompting me to get some more tomatos planted. Simultaneous to that, our software engineer is prompting me to plant some cherry tomatos. It all comes down to "Not Enough 'Maters". If I don't act quickly, we may have a tomato crisis.... sounds like a sequel to the Doctor Strangelove movie. First a Missile Gap, now a widening Tomato Gap.....

I have things I can composte, is that used for fertilizer?
Yes, it is "nature's fertilizer". It is called "Mulch" and "Compost". The two words mean exactly the same thing. You will see both referred to time and time again. Basically, it is any organic discard material, such as grass clippings, old hay (even rotted hay), manure, banana peels, orange rinds, egg shells, etcetera. The organic matter you normally throw away from the kitchen. That will be described in the book as well as how to create a pile. It's very simple.

I believe Etaoin uses the other method which is to spade under rows and rows of organic matter, so it rots and composts in the ground. My grandfather did it that way in Iowa. Both methods work. It just depends which way you want to go with it. As I have multiple growing seasons (essentially year round), I prefer the external compost pile, as I will rarely have "fallow" time for any of my garden area. My grandfather couldn't do anything through winter, so it didn't matter than he buried his compost by spading it under for the 5-6 months or so until the next growing season. The downside of an external pile is, you have to turn it a couple times. Spading it under is once. So, doing an external compost pile takes more effort.

[PrezLeefun]

I would think you can grow almost anything there, once the frost is gone. Tomatoes, Beans, Cukes, and on and on. You might even be able to grow things year round, like we do here, but I'm not certain of that. Certainly, you have at least one or two growing seasons.

The "easy" way to figure out what to plant is to just go down to your local nursery and see what young veggie plants they're selling for transplanting. It isn't as great a choice as starting your own seedlings (since there are hundreds upon hundreds of varieties), but a good deal of the work is already done for you.... plus you'll find out what works in that area.

You might consider contacting these local people. They're intrest is selling you seeds, supplies and stuff, but they could be a good resource to you.

http://www.ganimsgardencenter.com/summer.htm

Our consistent availability of knowledgeable staff to assist you with any problem you may encounter is a real bonus to the home gardener. At your friendly neighborhood garden center, we are always available to answer questions, in person, by phone or email. If you have a problem, we can help you resolve it. We can tell you how to plant anything, and how to get optimum results for your efforts!

CONTACT US

Ganims Garden Center and Florist, LLC
320 Kings Highway Cut Off
Fairfield, CT 06824
Phone 203-333-5662
FAX 203-333-2701
Email GanimsFlorist@ganimsgardencenter.com

Beyond that, there should be a state agricultural department, county agents, etcetera. You won't have to experiment..... it is already known what grows well there, what grows mediocre, and what just won't make it. I would check your state government website, see if there is a link to the ag department resources.

Below is some of the basics. Of course, one doesn't have to plant an enormous garden.... although those are especially fun, too.

http://www.almanac.com/garden/
http://guides.yourct.com/magazine/7/800
http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/hil/ag-06.html

When to plant in Connecticut (ie. no more frost)
http://www.victoryseeds.com/frost/ct.html

And some more stuff

http://www.amazinggardeningguide.com/grow-vegetable-gardens.html

thanx :cool:

[Warlady]

Cherry tomatoes are a pain in the ass. If you have to have them just plant one or two plants because they will provide you with gallons of cherry tomatoes. One year I bought what I thought was Celebrity tomato plants. They were mislabeled. It turned out they were Sweet 100's. I had 20 plants. I had cherry tomatoes running out my ears. I will never grow cherry tomatoes again as long as I live. If you are limited on space and want tomatoes on your patio then buy patio tomatoes. That is a variety and they are hearty. Go to Home Depot and get the empty aging whiskey barrels cut in half. They make great planters. The thing to remember is that each tomato plant needs 36" of space between them. If you crowd them they won't produce well. Fertilize them with Miracle Gro and a time release tomato food. Keep them watered well but don't drown them. Keep the worms off of them and they will provide you with many wonderful fruits.

[The_Sonarman]

The tomato crisis is averted. Four more plants (cherry tomatoes) and six jalapeno plants.

[Etaoin]

WL, how can you so denigrate Cherry Tomatoes? I don't know where they came from, (well yes I do) When I first started gardening here in 1965, I had an arrangement with a small community to accept all their sludge (Milorganite) if they would deliver it. When I moved in, my soil was hardpan clay and I would disk the sludge into the ground and dump load after load around my new house.

Since tomato seeds are about the only thing that survives the digestive process of sewage treatment, I had literally all kinds of tomatoes growing every where I didn't mow them down.

For @ 20 years cherry tomatoes grew and were ignored...but then one day I picked about a gallon of them and took them to the golf course. They were an immediate hit and I have been growing and supplying the golfers with them for about 14 years. They are absolutely delicious!!! I'll go though my stock of seeds and send you some cherrys that you should really love if you like!

[The_Sonarman]

Cherry Tomatoes planted.

Perhaps we should move this thread to Gardening Forum......

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I once grew two roma tomatoes on my deck and had some very nice tomatoes from them.

My problem in my yard is multiple.

This yard of mine is a 'killer yard' it killed my roses my herbs and damaged temporarily my mom's transplanted rhododendrons, this yard of mine also has TOO much blackberries and bamboo (the dorks that lived in this house before we got it stupidly planted bamboo AN I HATE IT!!!)

The bamboo takes over EVERYTHING, tire planters in the yard, my roses my herbs you name it it swamps it.

Got some kind of nut trees surrounding this yard dunno what they are but the squirrels love em.

The other problem I have is animals, this yard at times gets 9+ deer in it, traipsing around, we have oppossums, raccoons, wild turkey, cats, dogs quail and possibly more.

How on earth am I to have a garden with a killer yard full of blackberries and bamboo replete with traipsing wildlife that eats everything up (including rhododendron leaves)

I would so love to have a garden, I already have a good back tined rototiller (its a good one bought it long ago when we moved to this place.

I love herbs veggies and other stuff, but the soil in this yard is deplorable.

The old place I used to live in was green all year round (due to having an unknown underground water source) and it also used to be an old orchard hence its rich soil.

I so miss that place cuz you could grow just bout anything.

O Home, if you plant corn, your horse will eat it up too, stalks and all, I had that happen once LOL.

A question what is cukes????

never heard of them.

So to the garden-geeks round here, how do I have a small garden in my yard without watching either the yard kill it or the wild critters eat it up?

(And one more thing, how tha Heck to I get rid of this gawdawful bamboo!!!! without going into debt to my eyballs payin someone to get rid of it for me?)

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O and another thing, about Eucalyptus trees, they LOVE Water, like willow trees their roots go deep for water.

Much of California used to be marshlands and in order to kill off the marshes and the mosquitos they planted eucalyptus trees.

be aware just like willow trees eucalyptus trees can cause havoc with your septic/sewer water system if it find it.