24,795 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

Since I'm an avid seed-tape-fan I just have to add my two cents worth. I like them for carrots and onions mostly because I'm a little older and the whole bending over and holding my hand inches from my nose to pick up one or two seeds to put in holes kills me after about 3 minutes. During the winter I like to sit at the kitchen table and "garden" with my seeds and tp. Here's what I learned:
-two seeds to every dot. It tried to skimp once, and had bare spots because the one seed didn't sprout.
- last year I tried to mix things up, companion-garden style. Onion, then carrot, then radish, parsnip, and so on. I didn't like the results because everything grows on a different time scale. I'm going back to making tapes of just one item per tape.
-2 ply tp didn't work as well as one-ply because it seemed to sap the moisture away from the seed too much instead of disintegrating.
- wind will snatch the tapes right out of your hand and send all the little seeds flying. I make my tapes only the length of my two outstretched arms so they are more manageable (and easier to unfold without flicking seeds off).
- I watered down glue by adding 1/4 water per bottle. Also, the no-name, cheapo brands work better for this purpose because it lets go of the seed better once it's wet. Elmer's likes to hold on for dear life.
-permanent marker goes right thru the paper, so if you're working on a counter or kitchen table, get ready to scrub dots...and do it quick or else they will be there forever.
Gel pens work best for me.
- the soil covering the tapes can only be a light, light covering or the seed can't get out. If a tiny part of paper is exposed, it just dries out and sucks away the moisture from the seed too. I combat this by sprinkling a very light layer of straw down the rows. It doesn't have to be a complete mat, I've found, just a very light sprinkling is all it takes.

Great doing .How long the Quick fix glue holds.
Here is a link that might be useful: Quick fix glue

There is a school of medical thought that states that being in contact with bacteria is actually good for you (google, for example, the coolinginflammation blog), lots of peer reviewed paper showing that it is so. However, the bacteria of CAFO (grain fed) animals can be nasty indeed, although from your description these may be pastured cows, which do not have any E. Coli of the wrong type. Bacteria will also travel easily inside cucurbits plants.
If you wish to use all that manure without running risks, and like me prefer bacteria from dog kisses and sauerkrauts, you could a) plant winter squash instead, which will be cooked or b) plant fruit trees, since bacteria do not travel through wood or cambium. Make sure the cows and the plants have a fence between them.

The insects on the surface of the leaf are aphids. A strong spray of water and/or squishing can usually control them if tended to on a regular basis. Aphids are very common garden pests.
The gnats flitting around the containers are probably fungus gnat adult which lay their eggs in damp soil. The tiny maggot like larvae feed on the organic matter in the pot, as well as tender plant roots.
In the future, make sure that your potting medium is very porous, coarse textured and fast draining. Avoid watering too frequently.
Your plants are perfectly safe to eat. Just give them a good rinse in the sink. It's part of having a garden.....better get used to it. :-)

vinnnya....some years aphids just seem to be on everything, and they love fast-growing greens. I personally would never spray anything on leafy greens except maybe insecticidal soap. If you submerge your harvested leaves in a large bowl of water and stir it up a bit, all the aphids will float to the top. Then you can skim them off or run the water until they flow over the edge of the bowl into the sink.

Well, we've got some variation of advice. I never plant thickly. I plant and then thin to no closer usually than a foot apart in the row and about 27 or 28 inches between rows. This works well for me as I have plenty of room and plant 7 successive plantings.

Fencing is the standard recommendation and the only thing that seems to consistently work effectively.
There have been many discussions here about keeping various varmints - rabbits, gophers, woodchucks, deer, armadillos, squirrels, etc. - out of the garden that the search will pull up for you. They have reports on other efforts like repellants, motion detectors, sprinklers, various types of lights, etc. but it always comes back to a fence for the best results.
Dave

Fence , I second.
For rabbits a couple feet high wire chicken net will do. Make sue it is galvanized and buried at least 6" deep, so the rabbits cannot tunnel under it. They will chew plastic material.
The next option is a gun.
Yet another option is TRAP.
You may also try yelling, chasing and throwing stones. hahaha


Gretchen, collard greens should be a great crop for fall and winter harvest in your area. I cook them as a rule. I have tried Georgia, Vates, Champion, and Morris Heading. Georgia is our favorite, but we liked Morris Heading too. Vates was okay. We didn't like the toughness or the strongness of Champion at all. But taste is subjective. Even as cold as this winter has been, the collards have stood under row cover and produced all winter. kale too.

I don't think that the height is the over riding factor except for maybe the fact that your in a very hot climate. On the other hand, total volume is important and you said you had about 7 gallons per container. That's plenty of dirt to grow cucumbers. Your roots will grow out instead of down. I did some last year in five gallon buckets and that worked well.

I have A & L Lab and never was very happy with them, never give me how much and what is need.
Never told me if there was anything tied up.if anything was tied up.
What you are telling me is don'y worry?
Why are there Labs out there that well give you more for your money?
Why don't you think that you should know everything about your soil?

What you are telling me is don'y worry?
Not at all. A professional soil test is a great thing to have. But your expectations of what a soil test is and isn't have to be realistic too. A soil test isn't a cure-all in any way. And it isn't a static thing anyway. It changes constantly depending on weather and what you do to it. That is one reason why many labs no longer test for N levels - they change weekly or even daily.
Why don't you think that you should know everything about your soil?
First, because it isn't possible. Like I said soil isn't a static thing. It is alive and it changes. Second, because minute testing for non-relevant things don't exist or are cost-prohibitive. Soil testing is done for the purposes of fertility. So you only need to be concerned with what is relative to plants growing in the soil - the items I listed above - and how those test results relate to the norms. That is what most any soil test will provide.
Sure if someone wanted to fork out several hundred dollars they can have it tested for all sorts of extra things like mercury and other toxic metals, specific types of bacteria, dissolved N vs. free N, the number of specific soil dwellers per sq. foot, and so on and so on unlimited. And yes, there are labs out there that will give you anything you want whether you need it or not as long as you are willing to pay for it.
For example, when you say "Never told me if there was anything tied up.if anything was tied up.". I'm not sure what you mean but no soil test is going to tell you that. You can't test for "bound up nutrients" if that is what you mean. But they will tell you your soil pH and that is what will determine if the nutrients are available tot he plants.
And most reputable labs aren't going to tell you specifically what to add since the choice is yours of the many things available - both organic and synthetic. All they make is general recommendations such as "x amount of nitrogen in some form" and "pH needs to be reduced to optimal levels by the addition of one of the following.
Interpretation of the test results is up to the gardener.
so I know that the soil well give my plants the minerals best and that nothing will be tied up as fare as minerals so the plants well be able use use everything and they well give the best yield.
Please don't fall into the trap of believing that you can somehow create perfect garden soil. You can't. If that were possible then we would all have the perfect gardens. Instead it is always changing, it is always in need of something.
Nor can having what some test tells you is perfect soil today can guarantee the perfect plants with the perfect yield. It just doesn't work that way and never has for any of us. While good soil is important of course, many gardeners are very successful with a WIDE variety of different soils all with a wide variety of different shortcomings. Soil is only one of the many variables of gardening.
I hope this helps clarify things.
Dave


Hi,
Just wondering what sort of luck others have had with this as well. Would like to plant some edible pumpkins (not Halloween ones). Not sure of the variety that's best, or time of year to plant. Also, we grow organically. Was thinking of using a 15x15 area in a raised bed for the pumpkin; have the rest of the plot (equal size) that I was going to put an asparagus bed in. Thanks!

Last year the wood chuck ate 28 of my broc. plants one day. Crowns were about half size on about a third of the 80 or so plants I had growing. Oddly, he preferred the leaves to the crowns. The 2nd day he ate about 12 more. The third day he must have been getting full he only ate about half of the leaves on another four plants. The next day his luck at avoiding my traps ran out. I was able to harvest several meals in spite of his best efforts to defeat me.(It was close!) I was also able to freeze up a few meals for winter. I share with 3 other households so there was certainly no surplus.

Seysonn asked about Silvery Fir Tree tomatoes. I've grown them a couple of times and I love them. I've grown them in a 10-gallon Smart Pot and in the ground, and they did well both ways. I was surprised at how big the tomatoes were with such a little plant. The tomatoes are very tasty and the plants themselves are really beautiful, with their unusual leaves.
-Anne

There is a detailed FAQ here on how to do hand pollination. Just click on the blue FAQ button near the top of any forum page.
But which to remove? Really makes no difference as your plant will very likely not be productive anyway. You might get 1 small cuke with good hand pollination.
Your container is far too small for even one plant and so it will be very stressed. Even if planted outside in a container it would need to be a much bigger container.
Bottom line - you are trying a grow this plant indoors under very artificial conditions and it simply isn't an indoor plant. Very few vegetables are. So just enjoy it as a plant for as long as it lives but don't expect to get actual cukes. Sorry.
Dave

To get the true benefit of warming the soil to transplants you need to plant thru the plastic. If you just put a shhet of plastic down and then remove it a few days prior to planting you'll lose the heat in just a few days.
Although there are sweet corn growers who plant under a perforated clear plastic, this is probably nor for you since weeds germinate in abundance as well as the corn.
Larger sheets of black plastic, available as mentioned, will not allow enough water to wick under and so if you do plan to plant thru the plastic you'll need to first lay rows of driptape. The 4' rolls of plastic don't necessarily need the driptape (I don't use it in the field). What I find is that the soil actually stays more wet under the plastic; however with a prolonged drought followed by I don't agree with the suggestions above as for injuring plant roots from the excessive heat in our zones. In fact I have planted broccoli, cabbage,and other cole crops as well as lettuce,peppers,tomatoes, melons, eggplant and onions thru black plastic for many years now with repeated success. The direction specified for growing "PA Simply Sweet (Candy) Onions is to plant thru plastic with drip irrigation.
The normal recommendation given for warming the soil is to lay the plastic a few days prior to transplanting thru it in order to adequately warm the soil prior to planting. Once you have the black plastic installed and see the added benefits of weed control and plant growth you won't want to remove it. Some even try to get 2 or more seasons out of a single sheet.

I've used rolls of black plastic ordered though a commercial agriculture suppy company. Before rolling it out, I drilled small holes (maybe used one quarter inch drill bit...don't remember it was so long ago) into the roll every 4 inches or so....takes awhile but the roll is large and has been used for several years. Some of the plastic has lasted two seasons. You could probably lay it out and punch holes with a pitchfork if your area isn't large and you start with a large sheet instead of a roll of plastic. Large size sheets are available at big box stores such as Menards and Home Depot. They can be overlapped to cover a larger area if you can't find a wide enough sheet. Put some rocks or landscape fabric pins/staples over the seam and cover the outside edges with soil. I use a pitchfork to add holes to any low spots that collect water.
I've only planted warm weather transplants through it such as peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, squash, cucumbers, and melons. Cut an X where you want the plant, and set the transplant in place. Much of the plastic was covered by foliage by time our days became hot rather than warm....and my idea of hot is over 80-85 F unlike many areas that see 90 and 100 on many summer days. I wouldn't recommend it for those areas unless it is torn out or mulched over before the heat hits. I'm using it over extremely well drained soil with lots of sand. I do not use it on the garden I have in an area with clay/clay loam since I think that soil needs all the exposure to air it can get. However, my daughter has used it on heavy soil and it worked fairly well while she worked to get her weeds under control.
It has been a real help in my far from home garden where it keeps weeds under control and maintains soil moisture when I'm away for a week or more. I usually hand water around each plant which takes time, but during rainy periods the small holes let the water into the soil below and hand watering isn't needed. Automated drip would be wonderful, but that isn't going to happen at that location.
In my area where really warm summer temps can be unusual, the added warmth with the plastic lets me grow the heat lovers and get a much earlier and longer harvest. Perhaps that is what your zone 5 is like, too, and then the plastic might be great for you.

I am growing parsley for the first time too on my youtube channel TheItalian Garden. If you would like to tune in and see how big i can get them i would love to test that question. Because now i am curious lol. love to hear any of your other questions on my channel.
Here is a link that might be useful: TheItalian Garden

Here is what I do to make parsley germinate faster in 7 days or less. Soak the seeds in soapy water. Fill a cup with warm water (not hot) . Add a drop or two of dish soap, and stir the mixture to help it dissolve. Place your parsley seeds into the warm water soap mixture and allow them to soak for one to two hour. The heat of the water and the dish soap will help to break down the tough outer casing of the parsley seeds. This will make them germinate and grow faster than they would without soaking.


I can grow Favas in the summer in my climate you just need some shade cloth to keep some heat off or an area where they get just morning sun and maybe a little bit of the mid day. but NO evening sun its too hot for them yes. I don't like favas very much so i am not growing them again but i have just sown my Bush beans just a few days ago. i will be showing them when they sprout on my youtube channel TheItalian Garden. i will be doing losts of general info videos on there if you would like to tune in would love to answer some question from people who need help.
Here is a link that might be useful: TheItalian Garden


I am just starting a veg garden in new place with a few firsts. 1.winter sowing many of my vegetables... 2.also am using vertical pallet gardens. So far onions, chives, radish', tomatoes, peppers, parsley crossing fingers..
It looks more like a milk jug garden at the moment. lol
Nothing!
I will drop about 70 something tomato seeds come St. Patty's day, although if this frigid weather doesn't break I may even wait until end of March. I don't want leggy plants. Probably drop 20-30 peppers and eggplants.
As far as other things, no. I want to direct sow most of everything. I don't notice much of a change in end product when I sow these inside and transplant, vs direct sow. Ie: lettuce, peas, radishes, herbs, etc. As far as broccoli and such, I'm only going to do a fall planting this year, as we will be in a new place this spring.
I normally would have started onions and leeks, but once again...new place, not sure how much ground we will be able to work.