23,948 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

Thanks for the link, Alfie. I always enjoy reading about how other folks do their gardening. Usually learn something new.

I'm always learning from other experienced growers and Bunty is one of the best I know, this video blog format means it is easy to follow here grow many crops from seed to harvest . . .

These gardening networks are all about sharing information and Bunty's blog is a wealth of great information.

Here is a link that might be useful: Bunty's Blog

seedlings die in dark

Uhhh, you need to explain this comment, at least in the context of this question.

There is no need to leave grow lights on 24 hours a day as plants do benefit from a few hours of darkness daily to complete the photosynthesis cycle. But a few days of 24 hour light isn't going to damage them.

So seedlings do NOT die in the dark. If they did millions of nurseries and growers would be out of business. Not to mention Mother Nature.

Dave

Hey all,

I just returned lights were on for 36 hours just about and they seem fine. Here is the photo I just took, thanks for the comments and great advice.

Now I am gona shut them off at the usual time so I don't break the routine until I get that timer this week.

-Thanks agian,

- Mr Beno

I think you'll be ok, as others have said in different posts, you may need to add some Nitrogen. I would not just go adding lime or dolomite though. You should probably get a soil test done first to see what if anything you need to add to the soil. Check with your local university's agriculture dept, they often will do soil tests for low cost.

I would also not worry about the fungus from the decaying wood, that will most likely help rather than harm anything.

I think I would put more than 6 inches of top soil over the area.
Although you ground down the stumps and surface roots, there are far many more subsurface roots that you're going to have to contend with. I've done the very same thing that you're doing, and I found out the hard way. I'd also till the area as deeply as possible.

yukkuri_kame,

Crimson clover is an annual, if I mow it, it won't come back until fall if there are any seeds still there. If I wait until it seeds in June and then mow it will reseed and give me a nice layer of mulch, and add N when the corn needs the extra boost. The seeds lay dormant until fall so it won't compete with the corn.

Yes sunnibel7, it was completely weed free last summer. I mowed it after it seeded and I just left it in place to keep weeds from sprouting. If I had tilled it under or moved it then I probably would have had the weeds come back.

planatus, My plan is to just lay off rows with my tractor which will only clear about 10" of clover out per row. Enough to keep the clover at bay until the corn is up and going. I may loose some from crushing with the tractor tires. Then I'm thinking the clover will shade the soil around the corn helping to keep moisture in.

You are right about the bees when it blooms, there are probably at least 1,000 + bees come to feed on it!

yukkuri_kame, I think you may be right. And I don't think this will work as planned.

I decided to mow it first. Because it was growing like crazy! I used my leaf vac so that I could compost it and I cut it down really low several weeks ago.

I laid off the rows and planted the corn a little over a week ago. The clover was growing back fast. The corn is up but the clover is a foot high and blooming again!

Even though it is an annual, it springs back! I thought that mowing it would kill it!

Its shading the corn and has actually grown over the top of it.

I left enough space between rows so that I can mow between them. We had heavy rain this weekend and I will mow it again as soon as it is dry enough.

But from the looks of things, I probably will have to plow it all under and plant again.

Thank goodness I used old corn seed instead of the $12 a pound stuff!

I like it. How about posting on the thread linked below. I'm sure readers of that thread would be interested.

Jim

Here is a link that might be useful: Show Me Your Trellis

Looks great. Pole beans should always grow on a trellis that you can walk under, makes things a lot more fun. I volunteer at a children's garden and we have a similar structure made out of bamboo that the kids love crawling through.

Dave:

Thanks for the clarification clearly expressed. You've raised a whole new issue for me; disinfection. Can you point me to some info?

Also, do you know of any cross-border security techniques - x-rays or ?? - that might affect traded seeds?

Can't help with the cross-border issues. AFAIK most just mail them in a standard envelope through the regular mail.

As for disinfection, there are several methods. The FAQ here on How to Save tomato seeds covers one and "disinfect seeds" search on the Tomato forum will pull up discussions about others.

Personally I use the 1:10 chlorine bleach misting method after the seeds have been fermented and just before they are spread out to air dry.

Dave

Hopefully you didn't leave the dome cover on them all this time. The plugs in biodomes are not intended to be used until garden planting time unless you don't start your seeds until just a couple of weeks before then. They are intended to be transplanted to containers of potting mix once germinated.

You can learn much more about this and the issues of the bio domes over on the Growing from Seed forum here.

Dave

If the plants are large enough and the weather suitable, I likely would plant them out where they will grow...to save the roots...if you can extract the roots without breaking them off. If you can't get the roots out, you could cut up the starter cells.

I side dressed it last Tuesday with 1 cup in the middle of each row of Blood meal that was 12-0-0. Do you think that was enough or should I add some more?

1 cup blood meal should be ok depending on row lengths, one tablespoon per plant is about my average dosage. Some folks side dress twice, when plants near 6-10" high and again at tassel peek stage.

I was having this issue as well. It was like someone was take clippers and cutting off each leaf and also cutting the starter plant right at the middle of the stalk.

First i thought it was birds so I covered my plants with netting. Didn't work. Then I thought it was squirrels. So I covered it very good with a cage. Nothing was going to get in for sure. Still my plants were losing leaves over night. Right down to the stalk,

One night while enjoying a beer I decided to try the slug trap and walked over to my plants to catch the dark grub in the act. There he was chewing away at the stalk and sawing down my brand new jalapeño plant :( I was upset but happy I know knew who I had to target.

Although I want to go all natural. I feel I'm left with no choice but to use some type of pesticide. Any ideas? BTW THERE WERE SLUGS AND NIGHT CRAWLERS ON MY PLANTS TOO.

darryl:

Diatomaceous earth is all natural. And like others have mentioned, beer traps. I've also read that a ring of sand around the plants help. Some people will take a board and lay it in the garden -- in the morning, lift it up and dispose of them. Copper strips is another deterrent.

Kevin

hmmmmmmmmm I won't be planting my toms until at least mothers day here in 6a.

While we are talking Physalis, I have two flats just begun, one P. pruinosa (Strawberry Groundcherry) and the other P. peruviana (Cape Gooseberry), neither of which I've grown before. Any thoughts on whether these will be perennials or annuals in So Cal before I stick them in a bed? How are they vs powdery mildew (the main reason I'm diversifying from tomatoes)? How much sun? Best way to prepare them, other than roasting for salsa (my main plan for them)?

Professional testing, available from your local county extension office for about the same price as a home test kit.

I prepared my pots some 8-10 weeks ago with a mixture of garden soil from HD, steer manure, some sand for porosity, compost, lil all purpose dr. Earth fertilizer

There is your problem. The Garden Soil says on the bag "Not for use in containers". Only soil-less potting mixes should be used in containers because soil mixes compact, suffocate roots and retard development, drain poorly leading to root rot.

You might be able to get away with using it IF you mixed at least equal parts of good compost in with it but even then you will have drainage problems. It simply stays too wet and that is what is causing your yellow roots

You can learn all about the various mixes available for use in containers over on the Container Gardening forum here.

Manure, while not recommended for container use can be used in small amounts but you will still have to feed the plants weekly as the nutrients wash out every time you water.

As young as your plants are I would dig them up, replace the mix and replant them.

Dave

Another part of the problem is the rock in the bottom. In spite of widely held belief, it doesn't improve drainage.

I have a "strictly greenhouse tomatoe" that I keep in a 10" pot. I keep it bonsaied. And it does well and gave me several tomatoes this winter. I have a pepper plant as well. Still, they would much prefer to stretch out their legs. Beans I would think would do well, as will your lettuce, and probably basil. (Beans don't like fertilizer and tho their roots are very stringy in the ground, they don't have a huge overall root system.) The squash tho....hmmm....I don't know. Squashes like to grow shallow and wide. They like lots of fertilizer and water, and besides that their favorite pasttime is cell-division. They love to grow big! I'm curious if a squash would do well.

This year I will Bonsai some of my Tomatoes too! All of my Tomatoes (Cherry and Pear) are Volunteers every year. I must have well over 100 Volunteer Tomato plants this year.

I will start planting my Bean seeds, hopefully, within the next week or so, and continue planting several varieties of Bean seeds until the middle of June. That will give them a good four to five months of growing.

I experimented with planting Bean seeds too early this year, in February. Was still too cold at night. Now the nights are in the 50s-60s, and days are in the 90s.