23,948 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening
Just looking at it as it is now, it seems fine. They always start completely yellow until exposed to light above ground. Sometimes you get a yellow portion of the leaf that may or many not green up. Are you saying that yellow spot on the right-hand leaf was green and then turned yellow? If so I don't know what that's about, but if it's a yellow spot then never turned green then I'd say it's no worry.
Thanks for the info, I have a test kit and did the test many times and every time it indicated depleted levels of nitrogen (what is weird is I kept a small amount of the dry compost in a bag in my home when I got it and when I tested that it had a surplus of nitrogen? but the same compost in my garden always indicates depleted)
Also last year I got my compost from the same place and used it somewhere else in my garden and I had a Surplus of nitrogen according to the test and all my plants where dark green but this year there was more wood chips in the compost and i'm assuming that is why it is depleted of nitrogen.
If you are using one of the common home test kits then they are notoriously inaccurate, especially when it comes to N and pH readings. A common recommendation is to never make any big corrections based on their results. Far too often it only makes things even worse, not better. For a few dollars more you can contact your local county ag extension office and get a professional test done.
Dave
Vacations and healthy gardens are difficult to juggle without extensive "planning ahead". So for many, the vacation moves to non-gardening times of the year. That way you get the best of both.
Planning ahead allows you to incorporate auto watering set-ups into your gardening; either someone to cover for you or auto water timers attached to in-place drip tape or soaker hose or even sprinklers. Even the most inexpensive auto-timer can take care of all but huge garden plots for you and when the garden is heavily mulched and deep watered from the beginning of the season, one week of no attention is no problem when it comes to water. Pests and disease issues can still run wild when there is no attention but the plants won't lack water. :)
Dave
Several years ago I visited an enthusiastic gardener whose gardens had spilled over into raised beds directly on a paved surface (cannot recall whether it was macadam or concrete). I was stunned by how well these plants were doing, despite the fact that there couldn't have been 12" of soil in those beds on pavement. Perhaps due to the enthusiasm and diligence of the gardener. She was probably very attentive to fertilization and irrigation needs.
We know almost any kind of vegetable plant can be grown in a container, and I've even seen tomatoes successfully grown in bags of container mix with just an "X" cut in the bag to plant the tomato plant.
It's probably late, even in MA, for peas, though you could try pre-sprouting them inside to give them a head start. The shorter varieties of carrots should be fine, and any kind of lettuce or mixed greens. Tomatoes and peppers you'd be best off with seedlings if you can manage that. I think these plants' roots may need a little more space to spread out, since they cannot go down. The lower soil levels have more stable moisture and temperature levels, so you'll need to compensate by monitoring moisture of the growing medium and watering as needed ... as if you were growing in a container, which, essentially, you are.
Something beneath the bed to insulate, as mentioned by someone above, might be a good idea. If there is any way you can shade the concrete surrounding the bed to keep it cooler, that might help as well.
You might want to consider a succession of quick-maturing crops, and perhaps some herbs, many of which actually appreciate a warmer, leaner, drier soil. Beans, cucumber, melons, and Swiss chard all have rather shallow root systems, so might work well for you. Forest gardening and sustainable gardening make the most use of space by combining deep-rooted plants with shallow-rooted ones. Checking into either of these methods might give you some additional shallow-rooted plants you could try.
A good layer of mulch on top of your growing medium (which should be light and full of organic matter like compost) will help to stabilize temperature and moisture levels, as well as keep down weeds.
Our gardening efforts are always experiments, and that's how you should look at this; a learning experience. I hope yours is a good one! Good luck!
I dug a bag of ramps last week, in West Virginia, to bring to a friend who has been transplanted from WV to NC and hasn't had them for many years. He told me about how people also use them as a spring health tonic, sort of a detoxifier. To freeze them I've heard the best way is to clean them up, put them in a bag of water, and freeze the whole bag.
laceyvail, nice to know your ramps have taken off. I know people who have tried to transplant them but without success -- good to know it will work in the right conditions.
Wait, a sprinkler nozzle watering for an hour and the bed is dry in two days? Is that what you're saying? That just doesn't sound right. Especially in NE Pennsylvania, where the temps can be that extreme yet. Yes, the soil might be dry on the top few millimeters, but it's got to be moist below. Dry as in the soil isn't dark and moist? Or dry as in it isn't sopping wet? Parched beets? What does that mean? You mean the leaves are drooping? Beets have pretty deep roots, so it's practically inconceivable to me that they are hurting for lack of water after intensive watering two days before.
Years ago, I used a spray to try to increase tomato plant brix (sugar), but not necessarily to sweeten the tomatoes. I read higher brix levels help the plant fend off insects and disease. The spray included, among other things, a little blackstrap molasses. I also tested using Epsom salt in the planting hole, but not sure if it really did much. My best tip for sweet tomatoes is to neglect the plants--dry soil makes the sweetest tomatoes (and the sweetest, hottest chili peppers).
It can be as simple or as complicated as folks want to make it.
I just snap them off the potato and bury them about half way down in the moist soil. If they are really long just snap them in half or thirds and plant. Water it as needed until they root and you see new leaf growth. Simple. Done it for 50 years and always get sweet potatoes. :)
No need to even cut the potatoes in half or put them in water. They grow sprouts all on their own without either. Many discussions here about this - some with pics. The search pulls up over a hundred discussions on growing sweet potatoes.
The shoots will grow in just about anything. Whether or not they will produce potatoes all depends on giving them good soil to grow in and room to spread.
If you want to root them first then moist potting mix works better than water as the feeder roots will develop in the soil (only water roots develop in water).
Dave
Thank you planterjeff, that was exactly the information I was looking for. I won't be able to plant the sweet potatoes in the raised bed until the Garden Peas finish. The peas just started setting pods. With this cool weather we are having, I just may get some peas this spring. So I will try rooting my sweet potato vines in small pots.
Saw a YT video once where the person lays some cutting flat on the ground (maybe it was about 6"). Using some kind of stick or tool with a notch in it, he pushes down into the ground at the middle section, with the notch connecting there at the middle of the cutting. The result is that the center of the cutting is the part that is buried, and the plant has two stems coming up out of the ground. His plants grew just fine that way also, without other additional time used to strip leaves or plant only one end, etc.
In his case, he was planting a lot, so that method worked for lots of plantings.
As for how the slips grow from the potatoe, if you want to do more experimentation, keep track of which slips are from which potatoes. When you get the produce yield, see if it has a better yield also. If it does, keep these as the seed potatoes for next year.
Really, though, the reason I want to know is because I want to have some in a story--not because I'm particularly planning to grow them. If they're not illegal in my state I might grow them in a large container or a field of morning glory if I ever have one. They are said to grow well in large containers.
I know the plant well and have seen it many times. But I have never heard of anyone eating it so I can't help you with that aspect. The fruits start green and ripen to orange and are encased in an orange lantern shaped case. The case later becomes beige and lacy. They are often used when still orange in dried arrangements.
The first thing to start with, organic or not, is a soil test. The fertilizers you mention are fine, but they may or may not be appropriate for your particular garden. You can put on all the N you want to grow leaves, but if the garden is deficient in K not many leaves will grow. All the nutrients need to be in the right proportion. Only a soil test can tell you where you are now, so you know what products you need.
Generally where are you Moonwillow? (zone and region or state) Last year I bought commercial slips, but this year I am just using sprouts from my current tubers. Last year was the first time I had planted sweet potatoes, and I didn't expect much since it was a relatively cool season. I planted them around Memorial Day or perhaps early June and harvested in early October, and was pleasantly surprised to get several pounds of potatoes from perhaps 5 or 6 vines. Each yielded 3 large to medium tubers, and two were a foot long and 4 inches wide, simply huge!
@NhBabs (4b-5aNH) Im in Ghana actually. no where near the States. so i dont have to worry about too cool a season even though its supposed to be the rainy season now. (thats the coolest its gonna get). They can get that large huh? thanks for letting me know.
thanks pitcom...guess i was worried for nothing!
@vgkg ouu....i shall do exactly that. can't wait for them to start giving sweet potatoes back. you make it sound simple that i have hope to cultivate a green thumb. such useful info ^-^
All i have to do know is look for a larger space in this house and ill keep you guys posted! :D
Heres an update. the rooted one's sprouts are ready i think to be planted. i think the one that didnt root well isnt growing any further. so i'll just take the sprouts ive gotten so far and plant them.