23,821 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
bwood1982

I started with bamboo but ended up getting 6' coated steel stakes then tied them up as well. The boxes are 18" tall but buried 6" and I dug another 2' down. I filled them with a garden mix soil I had trucked in. 7 - 4x12' boxes and used 20 yards of soil. I do need to mulch though. It also seems like the big beef are prone to splitting more than the pink cadillacs.

    Bookmark     last Wednesday at 8:17AM
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
daninthedirt(Cent TX; HZ10, Sunset z30, USDA z8a)

With regard to tomato pruning, I believe that there are some situations that make pruning healthy for the plant. Here in HZ10, life is rough in the summer. When my cherry tomato vines get eight feet long and longer, they have to suck water up a LONG way. The fruit way up at the top is seriously water-stressed. I have found that topping the vines encourages branches lower down on the vine that are closer to the soil. Now, that being said, once the lower vines are very mature, they aren't as likely to sprout new branches, but the new branches at least don't pop out way up at the top.

Not clear that this would be relevant to non-vining full-sized tomatoes. I've never pruned those.

    Bookmark     last Wednesday at 9:54AM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
weirdtrev

Yes, you often directly seed pumpkins. Squash in general don't transplant well, which doesn't mean you can't do it you just have to be really delicate with the plant and can't leave them in small pots past the first true leaf stage.

    Bookmark     last Wednesday at 8:57AM
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

The image sure looks like sun scald to me!

Suzi, I'll make a suggestion that can help you prove your neighbor wrong. 'Surround', a kaolin clay spray can be an enormous help in keeping borers, beetles, and sun/heat at bay.

It's used commercially, but is now available in sensible sizes for backyard growers. I've used it for years on my cucurbits, beans, and tomatoes without fail. It is approved for organic growers (and Certified Organic growers).

1 Like    Bookmark     last Wednesday at 9:49AM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
ZachS. z5 Littleton, CO

"Weed to others" is right. In the US burdock is an invasive and noxious species, then again so is mullein but that doesn't stop people from growing it.

    Bookmark     last Tuesday at 9:05PM
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
jbb3710web

Thanks everyone! Burdock has been dug up!

    Bookmark     last Wednesday at 5:29AM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
Nitsua(6b MO)

fadiver ... That's a UK expression, not an autocorrect issue - slang term for 'a very long time'.
Donkey's Years

    Bookmark     last Tuesday at 11:18PM
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
fadiver

Oh, haha! I assumed floral meant to type "dozens of" and it corrected to "donkeys".

    Bookmark     last Wednesday at 4:01AM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
jimmy56_gw (zone 6 PA)

I grow the same here also, Just like Dave said, Mine really started breaking ground the last few days with all this warm temps we been having, When they get about 6 inches high then cover with dirt then repeat.

    Bookmark     last Tuesday at 6:09PM
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
wayne_5 zone 6a Central Indiana

Some potato pieces sprout about 8 shoots...too many skinny ones in a crowd for best results unless you like small potatoes. I suggest leaving 4 stalks per piece. I try to plant them a little deeper to start with and don't need to hill so high. They like cooler soil than here in central Indiana and high hilling dries out faster.

    Bookmark     last Tuesday at 7:03PM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
LoneJack Zn 6a, KC

You are welcome. Good to know you won't be relying on these transplants to get your cucs! Good luck and stick around. There are some really knowledgeable gardeners on Gardenweb that have helped me a lot the last several years as my gardening went from a minor hobby to a MAJOR obsession.

1 Like    Bookmark     last Tuesday at 11:39AM
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
shoegaze99

I'll for sure be sticking around. I've been reading the forums for the last month or two and have found them very helpful so far. I look forward to being a more active part of the community now that I've officially started posting. Everyone here seems great.

    Bookmark     last Tuesday at 12:32PM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
PRO
Lydia Monroe: Landscape Design and Consulting

This is one of the planters in a large vegetable garden on a private estate in So Cal. The client has major wildlife issues: deer, coyote, squirrel, rabbits, birds, gophers.... Lots of things were tried until the solution pictured above was put into place. Although it is a bit cumbersome- it works and is fairly invisible at a short distance.

The planters are constructed of dry stacked round stones. Beds are lined with 1" wire mesh for gopher prevention that wraps up sides of planters and bends out between the top courses of rock. Above ground critters are are successfully kept out with a metal stakes in edges of beds that have hooks welded onto the outer top edges. 1/2 inch heavy gage bird mesh: ( https://www.birdbgone.com/products/bird-netting/garden-netting-products.html ) hooks onto the stakes via Garden Netting Clips attached to net.. Not all beds have mesh over top- only crops where birds are a problem. Caretakers can easily unhook mesh to care for plants.

    Bookmark     last Tuesday at 8:54AM
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
PRO
Lydia Monroe: Landscape Design and Consulting

also...where rabbits are getting in under the net...you can either use large ground staples or run the metal stakes on the outside of the beds into the ground and then net them.

    Bookmark     last Tuesday at 8:57AM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
lucillle

"Chemicals that are applied by label directions are safe"

So very VERY not true. DDT, Diazinon, all sorts of insecticides were taken off the market AFTER years of use. There is much we do not know about chemicals, some are safe when used correctly, some are not, some we won't realize the damage done for years to us and to our families.
I'm not by any means putting down the good that some chemicals can do. But to believe that they are all safe when used according to label directions is naive.

1 Like    Bookmark     March 10, 2014 at 7:08PM
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
Sarah Wadleigh

Living next to a cornfield is way different than having neighbors that use Roundup. On a farm, the herbicide is applied from above and will definitely drift onto your property. Especially because you want to grow organically, this location is not ideal. My husband and I are in the same boat. Looking for a place where we can keep bees and grow organically. Sad that we live in such a toxic world.

    Bookmark     last Tuesday at 8:48AM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK

A rhubarb crown is one plant putting out many stalks. If you have a vigorous type and rhubarb friendly conditions a 28 inch container would barely hold one plant. But in less rhubarb friendly places it might be big enough.

    Bookmark     last Tuesday at 6:33AM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

I agree with Dave.

    Bookmark     last Monday at 7:46PM
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
vp_78

Thank you! :)

    Bookmark     last Monday at 8:56PM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
Peter (6b SE NY)

Based on my experience, I disagree. I have (stupidly) put out small unhardened off seedlings out in the cold, only frost turned anything to goo.

    Bookmark     May 9, 2015 at 5:23AM
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
Miss_Moose (Winnipeg, Canda. Zone 2)

almost lost my plants last night, it was 39*F felt like freezing with the wind chill but they were covered with a plastic and wood greenhouse. Bright them in tonight, true temp without breeze is freezing. :S Tomatoes in my pots had one foot in the grave. They're doing much better now that they've warmed up inside.

    Bookmark     last Monday at 5:52PM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

Here you go, hundreds of pics of various bamboo trellis set-ups.

bamboo trellis for beans pics

    Bookmark     May 11, 2015 at 9:55AM
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
nancyjane_gardener(Zone 8ish North of San Francisco in the "real" wine country)

We do ours in more of a V shape rather than the typical ^ shape (I'll try to post a pic tomorrow). That way you don't have to crawl in the teepee with all the spiders (of course, if you have kids I'm sure they would love that!). They just hang down the outer sides of the bed for the picking. It also leaves room on the outer edges of the bed to plant something noninvasive. I usually do some extra basil. Nancy

    Bookmark     last Monday at 5:37PM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
daninthedirt(Cent TX; HZ10, Sunset z30, USDA z8a)

They do look pretty ratty, and I agree that direct seed is the way to go. But just out of curiosity, you might want to trim and transplant next to your seeds. See who wins.

    Bookmark     last Monday at 2:42PM    Thanked by purplehouse
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

Gardeners in colder climates can start seeds indoors and if you choose short-season varieties you can increase your chances of getting some production. What variety did you order? Days to maturity range from 70 to 90, even 120 days so by planting say Blacktail Mountain or Gold Midget (70 days) you can improve your odds substantially.

Dave

    Bookmark     last Monday at 4:19PM
Sign Up to comment
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
jean001a(Portland OR 7b)

Adding gypsum is the remedy for soil with excess sodium.

The gardener can determine if his/her soil has excess sodium by sending a sample of the soil to a professional lab. If excess sodium is present, the lab will tell you how much gypsum to add.

If you have the gypsum already, and the package is open, you can go ahead and add it. Fortunately, it won't damage anything if sodium levels are ok.

    Bookmark     last Monday at 1:50PM
Thank you for reporting this comment. Undo
digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

Tons of earthworms is a good sign. It means you can just layer a couple of inches of compost on top of the bed 2-3 times a year and let the worms work it in for you. They do all the work and you get all the benefits. :)

Dave

    Bookmark     last Monday at 3:20PM
Sign Up to comment
© 2015 Houzz Inc. Houzz® The new way to design your home™