23,821 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

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digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

Normal young asparagus gone to fern as is normal Sure looks like it could use feeding however.

The ferns will continue to grow through out the summer feeding energy to the crown for the next couple of years and then you can harvest some. Assuming you water and feed it appropriately.

I agree with floral above - you need to do some basic research into how to grow asparagus, what its feeding and watering needs are and what to expect from growth.

Dave

    Bookmark     April 24, 2014 at 4:04PM
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nancyjane_gardener(Zone 8ish North of San Francisco in the "real" wine country)

Asparagus takes 2-3 years to get going! You also have to pretty much make that bed mostly gus, as they don't like a lot of competition. I'll plant things like basil and onions on the outside of the bed, cause the gus is finishing up here right now, and I'm planting my summer stuff.
6 is a bit iffy for more than one person. The gus is very random about when it comes up! I actually use those Debbie Meyer green bags that keep produce fresh for a very long time for my gus, so I can keep it fresh until I have enough for a meal for 2-4. Then I use them when it is all coming up at the same time! (I love gus so much, I don't freeze it! Soups is good if you have too much!)
I would say to plant a dozen more, maybe 2 YO crowns, make sure this is a dedicated bed for the gus, cut it back when it turns brown (Thanksgiving?), dump a bunch of compost on it and mulch for weeds during the winter. Repeat, then in a couple of years you will have the biggest, fattest, yummy gus! I eat it right out of the garden!
Good luck! Nancy

    Bookmark     April 24, 2014 at 9:13PM
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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

That's considered a normal genetic anomoly. Not to worry. :-)

    Bookmark     April 24, 2014 at 8:12PM
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digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

Yeah name of the variety when you post would be a big help. Silvering of the leaves along the leaf veins is normal in some varieties.

Dave

    Bookmark     April 24, 2014 at 8:14PM
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bdot_z9_ca

Loribee, what a beautiful garden, so tidy and lush at the same time. And what a happy gardener! Are you northern or southern CA?

    Bookmark     April 24, 2014 at 3:43PM
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loribee2(CA 9)

Thanks! I am north of the Golden Gate.

    Bookmark     April 24, 2014 at 3:56PM
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floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK

No, it's not pineapple weed, nor is it parsley. There are a stack of wild members of the carrot family and I think this is one. It's not one I know from here.

    Bookmark     April 24, 2014 at 11:34AM
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woohooman San Diego CA zone 10a

Leave it if it's a wild carrot. One of the beneficial insect attracting plants.

Kevin

    Bookmark     April 24, 2014 at 1:45PM
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terry_neoh(5b)

If your plants aren't showing any signs of being root-bound, I wouldn't bother to repot them (yet.)

The "bolting" on broccolli is the part you eat, but it will flower quicker and taste stronger when thing start to heat up. If you have an early variety, they might do okay.

Cauliflower depends on the variety as well, but you are probably too late to get mild tasting heads. And later varieties (e.g. self blanching) will probably just wait until fall to head.

Cabbage and its flavor probably won't be affected much. But the leaves will be tougher. Later varieties (e.g. flat dutch) may also wait until fall to head.

Hope this helps with your decisions. -Terry

    Bookmark     April 24, 2014 at 9:35AM
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lola8325 zone5KS(zone 5)

THANK YOU for all the replies and information!! Lola

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 9:17PM
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dhromeo

The potato spud itself sends up several eyes, and when the eye reaches soil emergence, the eye starts producing leaves, and the plant starts growing roots. Most potatoes will grow multiple eyes. Some gardeners like to have 2 or 3 good, growing eyes on each peiece of seed potato that they cut up. Some gardeners prefer to halve them, and smaller scale gardeners will plant the whole potato.

On the roots, under the newly growing potato plant is where the potatoes grow (literally next to the parent piece of seed potato), and if you hill around the plant, and cover up most of the growth (leaving half the plant still uncovered) the newly covered stem will send out new roots, and produce potatoes in the soil that you hilled.

You can also take a potato plant and add a tire around the base, then fill with dirt, and grow potatoes upwards as high as you stack tires filled with dirt. The problem is, the higher you go, the smaller all of the potatoes get because of the length of the growing season. But it's still interesting that a potato plant can grow 5 feet tall or more and produce spuds all along the 5 feet of buried growth.

My great grandfather was SUCH a tightwad, he would pick the eyes out of the potatoes before supper in the spring, and plant just the picked out eyes. Most of them didn't grow, but every time he got a potato plant to grow from just the eye he felt like he was being the thriftiest guy alive. Old skinflint.

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 10:28PM
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terry_neoh(5b)

Rodney: By that that reasoning, a lowland virgin forest would have infinite leaves on the forest floor. That doesn't happen. If anything, it turns into a muck pit (which, when drained, makes the best garden soil.

"Sphagnum and the peat formed from it do not decay readily because of the phenolic compounds embedded in the moss's cell walls."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphagnum

Here is a link that might be useful: Celeryville, OH

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 7:11PM
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terry_neoh(5b)

Sorry for the double post. Can't see how to delete it completely.

Here is a link that might be useful: Celeryville, OH

This post was edited by terry_neoh on Wed, Apr 23, 14 at 21:40

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 9:32PM
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digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

They are treated in the fields with various treatments - see link below. Supplemental treatment may be applied in storeage. But the inhibitors don't prevent sprouting, just slow it so yes, stored potatoes will usually sprout - eventually.

There are many discussions here about using store-bought poatoes as seed potatoes in the home garden. The forum search will pull them up for you. It is a fairly common practice.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: Potato sprout inhibitors

    Bookmark     April 19, 2014 at 5:50PM
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lola8325 zone5KS(zone 5)

Farmerdill and Digdirt - Dave,
THANK YOU for your information and links.
I have added "Sprout inhibitors" to my-words-of-wisdom-list.
Thank you again..... Lola

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 9:26PM
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ltilton

Probably. Potatoes sprouts often freeze back to the seed piece, but the seed piece sprouts new ones.

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 7:12PM
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jayokie

A big thank you to all who responded! I'll check out the FAQ (thanks, also, for that link). Your feedback is greatly appreciated!

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 3:54PM
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loribee2(CA 9)

Not to repeat what others have said, but I keep mine on a shelf in my office in a small box. When I get those silica packets in new purses or shoes, I toss those in my seed box. If you buy quality seeds, they will last many seasons.

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 4:08PM
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nuckphoto(6)

I put in a raised bed (12") over Bermuda without digging it up or killing it and that stuff has no problem coming up in the raised bed, especially along the inside edges. Next time I'll certainly kill it first and use the cardboard method described above.

Good luck.

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 2:52PM
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nuckphoto(6)

I put in a raised bed (12") over Bermuda without digging it up or killing it and that stuff has no problem coming up in the raised bed, especially along the inside edges. Next time I'll certainly kill it first and use the cardboard method described above.

Good luck.

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 2:57PM
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aloha10

Check out the Ohio State Bulletin online. It is quite complete and I have followed it successfully a few times. They recommend only a five to six inch depth.

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 8:16AM
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Mark(Oregon, Zone 8)

I plant mine about a foot deep but leave the trench open and only cover the crowns with a few inches of soil. Then I fill it in gradually keeping the growing tips always above the soil level so the young plants can keep photosynthesizing. The following year they'll come up right through that soil on their own.

-Mark

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 1:51PM
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gardenper(8)

The requirements are sounding like they are driving you to get one of those store-bought containers. At least the fencing or chicken wire would be a reasonable building material for some, but that seems to be disallowed.

Buy a trash can for about $20 or less. The 32-gallons are around this price range but are much smaller than 64 cf.

But for a really free option, use the free pallets. Many or most are already 4x4 so you don't even have to worry much about measurements. Make a lid of some sort to fill in that first requirement but I think such a large bin isn't really good to have a lid.

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 12:26PM
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digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

Why not go over to the Composting forum here as they have FAQS about all the various types of containers you can buy and build already posted. Plus unlimited discussions about the advantages and disadvantages of many of them.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: Soil & Composting Forum

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 1:06PM
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nancyjane_gardener(Zone 8ish North of San Francisco in the "real" wine country)

Non of our local organic nurseries (We have MANY in Sonoma Co!) have frost sensitive veges out more than a week or so before our last day of frost date (April 15th) and even then they usually have a sign that there is still a possibility of frost and to protect your plants and look at the weather reports for a few weeks.
The big box stores had them out mid March! Buy em, plant em, come back and buy em again when they freeze! Nancy

    Bookmark     April 19, 2014 at 9:01PM
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theforgottenone1013(MI zone 5b/6a)

I concur with the others about not using the big box stores as a timing for when to plant stuff. Lowe's already has tomato and pepper seedlings for sale here. In Michigan. We're still at least 3-4 weeks away from the time tomatoes can be planted (even then we have to look out for an occasional frost/low temp). And it's more like 6-8 weeks for peppers. It's still getting down to the 30's at night and it's only 40*F here as I'm writing this.

As for the original question about the Farmer's almanac, I never used it.

Rodney

This post was edited by theforgottenone1013 on Wed, Apr 23, 14 at 11:03

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 11:02AM
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tishtoshnm Zone 6/NM

Or maybe they are just full. I have not had mice trouble in the garden yet, but I certainly can empathize with your heartbreak, is there enough time for you to get more peppers going?

    Bookmark     April 22, 2014 at 2:14PM
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rober49(5 St Louis)

traps baited with peanut butter work pretty good for mice. for voles, find their tunnel entrance holes. set mouse traps at the entrance but tie them down with wire or drill a hole in them & anchor them with a large nail. with the squirrels I live trap them or get out my air rifle. last year I carefully harvested the buckeyes from my bottle brush buckeyes . every one that I planted the squirrels got. I just dispatched one ten minutes ago digging up bulbs.

    Bookmark     April 23, 2014 at 10:49AM
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