Gardening 101

reply to post by Dennislp3


I will continue,,but people have to understand what it takes to do this.
This is not 'Painting your nails", or "waxing your car" ,or "how to remove
an Alien Implant" this is hard work, struggle, and a glimpse of what it will
take to survive. As I said " ALL OUT WAR". Be Ready or be Gone.

reply to post by Justaposter


Well fire up some Habaneros, Jalapenos, Anchos,Searranos,Piquantes,
Cayennes,Hungarian Wax, And Sweet Bananas peppers. Because if you
can grow an Bad AXX Bell, Then you can surely do the rest on the list.
Start your own Peter Piper Picked a Bad Azz Pepper Company.

Cheers ,,Wildmanimal

reply to post by silo13


I will keep it going with gardening 101.2 next. Don't know if it will help much,
but at least I can say I tried! Thanks for the post,,,Wildmanimal

I have gardened since I wa a Child... I grew up if we didn't grow, hunt or fish it.. we didn't eat it for the most part...

My mom canned the veggies and made jam to get us through the winter..

I carry that on today.

Love the thread, thank you for starting it.
I would suggest that when buying your seeds you purchase ONLY heirloom seeds. This way when you seed save they will be true unless you get cross pollination of say squash family from planting different varieties to close.
(there are several great heirloom seed companies out there, just type in heirloom seeds. Plus they taste much better than Hybreds and GM's. IMO

I save seeds every year! and I also participate in seed exchanges and round robins.. (If anyone wants to do a seed exchange round robin let me know!!!

Pssstttt. Don't forget to compost!!!

reply to post by Robbi


Well you certainly understand. Thanks for you post. I have not even ventured
into Seed or layout yet. I will continue where I left off on soil. No Less, a Full book on its own as you most certainly know.


Wishing you Happy Hunting Grounds...Wildmanimal

reply to Wildmanimal and 'Meathead'


The original seeds I used for the tomatoes (last year) were heirloom (supposedly) but it's tough to know here in this area to if not third world area. I saved them and dried them to use this year as I said...

But what a mess! Sooooo much work in those tomatoes!
Only thing they're good for now is weed posts for MY GEESE (*pokes Meathead*) to nibble around. I don't even think they'd make a decent sauce or ketchup.

Unreal 'WAR'...

Here I have to plant, then hoe, raise dirt, hoe again, strip the lower leaves (prone to 'mal di nera' if you don't), use magnesium sulfate in the soil and as a foliar spray, dust with topical sulfa, spray with washing detergent for aphids and all while trying to tow buckets of water for them every day if possible (and tomatoes are really touchy about consistent watering)...

And now they taste like underwear. (Not that I know what underwear tastes like).

ugh.

So I'll be ordering seeds for next year, at least on my tomatoes!

peace and thanks


[edit on 27-6-2010 by silo13]

I have heard one of the best ways to save seeds is to take some off each plant, seeded or that has seed, and to get together with some other people and trade similar seeds to diversify the gene pool.

I am in Zone 2, although I have discovered a couple of perrenial things that came back are zone 3ish so I have a couple of warmer spots. Zones can be raised by shelters around, warm rocks or a brick/stone wall for some climbing plants. I have about 3 months maximum for growing, usually ok cause of lots of sun, but too much rain this year.

People with vegies already, are in good zones for growing. All out war is an understatement when living in Northern Canada. I didn't even put anything in a garden this year, it hasn't stopped raining. Tomatoes, spicy peppers, and herbs are on my back porch.

Cold zones are good for raspberries, blueberries, sea buckthorn berries, some apple trees, certain grapes. Bring herbs indoors in the winter. This winter I might even try an LED grow light.

reply to post by Wildmanimal


Thanks for the reply and no doubt you are correct in saying this is a war of survival - and your other post about growing pepppers was much closer to the answer I was looking for

Thanks again for posting and I look forward to reading your follow up threads.

OH! I was thinking... One thing you might want to ask about here is how to get rid of those HORRIBLE MOLES FROM HELL?

I've got a problem with them...

Any ideas anyone?

Please leave out anything I have to buy, that isn't gonna happen...
And no, I'm not against killing the wretched little buggers.

THIS IS WAR!

Originally posted by Illusionsaregrander
And if you are an experienced gardener, when want to save seeds for next year instead of buying them, do you just dry them in the sun? Or is there some special way to do it?

It depends on the seeds. Do some web searches on the type you;re interested in if in doubt. But getting your hands on them might have you find your own way. With 'slimy' seeds, such as tomatoes you'll unusually want to squish out the liquidy seedy parts, into jar, and let the slop stew for a few days in warmth. When they're ready you'll be able to faucet water into the slop, and have everything but the seeds rise up and wash out.

reply to post by silo13


I had moles in my lawn once, and I put moth balls down the holes. They all went to my neighbours yard. Unfortunately, I don't think you can do this in a garden, because they contain some type of gas. A cat helps, but then your garden will have the vegies all coming up all over the place as the cat throws the seeds into different rows.

reply to post by silo13


Moles are difficult and take a while to deal with. There are sonic devices
that you can use. These will drive the moles away from the area. But not eradicate them. Then there are "smoke bombs" that you can use which work
fairly well. Another method is to use mole traps which spear them. And lastly,
You can use liquid repellents which you spray on the area. I have found that
a combination of the above methods work well.

reply to post by IgnoranceIsntBlisss


A good way to save tomato seeds is to put them in a jar with a tablespoon of water right after you have pulled them from the tomato itself. These seedy/pulp mixture will turn in to a slimy rotten mess after a few days. This IS what you want. The fermentation process kills off off disease causing organisms. So , stir 1 or 2x per day. After 3 or 4 days nasty white mold will develope on top of your mixture. It wont smell very good either. Then you pour
off all the nastiness at the top(Scum Always Rises to The Top). Any seeds that floated to the top are no good so pour them off too, as they are most likely sterile. Now strain through(kitchen strainer) and rinse well. put them all on some sheets of newspaper and spread them out a bit. Write down on the paper what kind of tomatoe seeds they are, and let them dry. In 2 weeks they are ready to be stored in an Airtight container.

Loving the idea to have others to talk to about gardening. This was my first year at having a garden in Alabama where there is alot of clay in the ground. IT was a huge challenege to get the dirt turned over and broke up. We do have a tiller and I am very very thankful to have this.

I have had gardens up north and I did not have a tiller with those. This year I left room in between all of my rows so we could till through out the season to keep the hard ground broke up and keep the weeds/grass down. This has helped so much.

My trouble right now is insects. People keep telling me to use 7 dust on the plants but I am not wanting to. Can anyone here verify that 7 dust is good or bad to use? Is there not something natural that I can put on the plants? I really have not researched it yet...but isnt 7 dust full of chemicals, unnatural things?

We have a spectacular garden this year, I believe that raised beds are the way to go but don't let that be an excuse for not ploughing and tilling. Ploughing does wonders to soil, most of the nutrients in the soil soak in deep over the years and grasses and other weeds leech these out of the top soil. Turn that stuff over and presto, you've got fresh nutrients right there on top and the dirt will be soft enough to support root growth. Manure makes a huge difference as well, make sure it's composted or it is too rich and will cause a bacteria problem that can kill the plants. Manure is the best thing in the world for gardening.

Also pay attention to the sun and how it moves across the area you're gardening in, most vegetables like as much sun as they can get, but things like lettuce do pretty well in partial shade so plan your garden accordingly. Your tomatoes aren't going to prosper if they are shaded out by your corn etc.

Water the crap out of it, if you can't use your own water because of it being flouridated or in times of shortages, try to catch rain off your roof in mosquito proof rain barrels. Water is critical to any life and the more of it you can get on your garden the better your plants are going to do.

Eliminate competition, i.e. weeding. This will not only help your plants by giving them leg room but will also help to control insects. Delcare war on anything that isn't a vegetable. We've been using single layer sheets of newspaper and that really works well to keep the weeds at bay, but be careful about mulching as some things just aren't healthy to put around your plants and can change the soil or chemistry and kill your plants.

Pay attention to the trees around your garden as well, a walnut is your worst enemy along with pines and a couple other species of tress can really ruin soil around them. Walnuts in particular cause permanent damage to soil and the only way to deal with that is to get rid of the tree and then dilute the soil with compost and soil from another location.

We also try not to plant the same things in the same places the next year, crop rotation keeps things balanced. If you keep planting the same type of crop in the same spot eventually they will take out what they need and won't be able to support the same kind of plants there.

I may get flamed for this one, but don't be scared to kill bugs either. Insects can completely destroy a garden in a matter of a couple days. At the first signs of insect damage, go postal on them and spray them with insectisides or repellants. The actual method is a matter of preference, but do not let the bugs eat your garden. There's plenty of ways to deal with them, but do something! Nothing is more heartbreaking than watching huge broccoli plants getting reduced to stubs in a days time. Watch out for Ground Hogs and Rabbits as well, those two are the most insidious garden munching machines in the known universe. We shoot them and I've eaten both critters which make a stew you wouldn't believe, but if you just can't bring yourself to kill them you will need to find a way of getting rid of them. Ground Hogs can be evicted with dirty cat litter, and Rabbits can be got rid of with predator urine (yeah it's gross but it works).

Learn to can and preserve. The one thing alot of beginner gardners don't take into account is the actual yields at harvest time. Ask yourself what you would do if you all of a sudden had forty pounds of cucumbers, and if the answer to that is "I don't know" then you need to look into it. Squash, Cukes, tomatoes, green beans, when these things come in they really come in and you need to be ready to deal with the quantities involved.

Avoid Hybrid seeds, like the plague. Always look for heirloom seeds so you can keep the seeds from your plants to grow next year. Your plants will geneticly adapt to the soil you're growing them in so each year you can keep your seeds, the better the plants will do in future generations.

That's about all I can come up with off the top of my head, be prepared for alot of work and alot of dirt and sweat. It's not easy and it's not something they teach you in school anymore, but it's ancient and accepted, and not hard to learn. You can live off the land, mankind did it for thousands and thousands of years long before the supermarkets and industrial agriculture. Nothing is more rewarding than eating something you and mother nature made together and wait until you taste an honest to god home grown tomato.

reply to post by twitchy


About the crop rotation...can we say though that strawberries are one of the plants that rotation is about impossible. For Strawberries, I have learned to do those in their own separate spot, block it off with pieces of wood...and create your own little strawberry patch. The plants grow back every year, reaching out more and more, multiplying. Since they grow back every year...its a hrd plant to rotate.

Originally posted by LeoVirgo
My trouble right now is insects. People keep telling me to use 7 dust on the plants but I am not wanting to. Can anyone here verify that 7 dust is good or bad to use? Is there not something natural that I can put on the plants? I really have not researched it yet...but isnt 7 dust full of chemicals, unnatural things?

Sevin Dust is pretty effective, it's water soluable though and has to be reapplied after heavy rains. It kills all the bugs though including bees and other pollenators so it's a tough decision and there are natural alternatives like biodegradable detergents that are less toxic. I've used sevin dust before and it didn't seem to hurt anything as far as I could tell but obviously you will want to wash things before you eat them.

Originally posted by LeoVirgo
reply to post by twitchy

 

About the crop rotation...can we say though that strawberries are one of the plants that rotation is about impossible. For Strawberries, I have learned to do those in their own separate spot, block it off with pieces of wood...and create your own little strawberry patch. The plants grow back every year, reaching out more and more, multiplying. Since they grow back every year...its a hrd plant to rotate.

We cheat a little when it comes to our strawberries, when they send out runners, we wait until they root in then dig them up and move them to a prepared area. They do well in the same area for several years but eventually they will need to be moved, at least in my experience. I guess if you keep improving the soil around them though that time frame can be greatly increased.
We had a MASSIVE patch of wild strawberries show up this year, my son came back up from the garden last year and told me he had found some strawberries and I told him not to eat them assuming he was talking about those little wild poisonous look alikes. Then he held one up and within about an hour we were both down there mealing. Had about two gallons of them this year!

reply to post by twitchy


Good advice about having a way to move them every so often. I remember growing up we had a patch in our yard and it was always in the same place for years and years. Mabey adding some good nutrients and topping the patch with some good soil every year might help?

And thanks for the reply about the 7 dust. Im not sure why I have this 'feeling' against using it....but I have to do something, 2 corn stalks have been destroyed in the last few days. What ever is eating the plants seems to just love the corn. All the other plants seem fine.

reply to post by LeoVirgo


Another Warrior! These are some methods I use to deal with insects.
Spray them with a nozzle sprayer frequently. Just not so powerful that you
damage the plants. The insects will get your point real quick, and many will
move on. Dust your plants with good old Fine SIFTED kitchen flour. This suffocates the insects. There are sticky traps that you can place around your garden. Good for Japanese beetle,etc. Then you can also mix good old Tide
laundry detergent with water in a pump sprayer and hit them with that. They
really don't like that either, and it doesn't hurt your veggies. 1 capful of tide
in say 2 gallons of water in a handpump sprayer. There are other ways.
But try these for now. I think you will be happy with the results.
The battle continues! Wildmanimal

[edit on 28-6-2010 by Wildmanimal]