24,795 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

Thank you Dave, I agree with your compromise. I'm just trying to avoid the presumption that supplements are a "must". Not to get too semantic here, but I think one consideration here is the word "required". What a market gardener "requires" is not necessarily what an average home gardener "requires". The market gardener can't be satisfied with 80% performance. That's 20% loss of profit. I myself am not going to get worried about 80% performance, and am unlikely to spend real money and running out to the garden center to try to achieve that 100%. It's just not important to me.
I actually think a home gardener might aspire to a garden that doesn't require bottles of this and bags of that. That goes for pesticides and herbicides as well as supplements. I'm especially proud of a crop that MY topsoil and MY compost and MY mulch produced. I'm less proud of a crop that has a shelf of bottles and bags or store-bought stuff that I've convinced myself that my crop relied on. I think a market gardener probably wouldn't care about that. So it kinda depends where you're coming from.
Again, I think supplements ought to be used to treat recognized deficiencies, and if you don't recognize any, don't bend over backwards trying to find them.


@billy3p I'm also from Folsom and trying to grow some tomatoes in containers. My tomatoes are not doing great, have recently posted on the forum.
http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/3122821/tomato-leaves-yellowing-and-curling
Can you please share your experience? Would be happy to show them to you if you like.



New baby potatoes have a much stronger flavor. I've had them in restaurants a lot, little potatoes taste like that potato flavor from potato chips... on steroids. Large potatoes lose flavor and gain starchiness but are also more filling. Smaller potatoes seem also less "grainy", more waxy or creamy? Not sure how to explain it. They're good, but they're not essential unless you really need or want little baby potatoes on your plate. If it hurts that much, just go to the store and buy some, I've rarely come across a circumstance where I absolutely needed tiny baby potatoes, though waiting for the full sized ones can leave a lot of dinners in between where you need a potato and don't have one! For us, one potato harvest doesn't last from season to season, or the potatoes don't last long enough (winter isn't a possible growing time since it's -50* outside and we don't have the room indoors for a pot).

<and toss (or do you eat?) the itsy bitsy ones? >
ilodato - please understand that there are always going to be some "itsy bitsy" ones no matter when you harvest. It isn't as if every single start on the roots grows to full size - ever - even if left until the tops dry and die and you have to dig them before the ground freezes. So you aren't somehow depriving them of life or something.
But yes you can eat them - just wash, boil, and eat.
Dave


<Is that a product I should start using now and all throughout the summer? Or once the plants start to flower, should I switch to something that has a higher middle number? >
Now, in a well diluted form as I said. But there is no need to switch to anything different later on. It is a quick fix remember? But contains everything plants could need in this particular situation.
At the same time begin working on your soil with the additions of more high quality compost and hopefully by late summer your plants will show you that they don't need nearly as much.
The long term goal is for you to learn in the meantime. To come to recognize the needs of your soil and your plants, and to decide if you wish to garden organically or not. With that decision, if you choose to stick with synthetics then it is all you need, all thousands of gardeners ever use. If you choose organics (my personal choice), comes a whole new learning curve.
Dave

If I was you, I would get a bag of 10-10-10 and fertilize your plant this growing season. This fall take soil samples to be tested and come up with a plan for what is best for you in the future whether it is organic or conventional fertilizers. There is lots of choices. As a market gardener, my fertility choices are made on basic economics. I have seen too many times where people will try lots of different thing and wound up with tomatoes that cost them $20/ lbs to grow.

Ahh that's better that the beds are not planted yet so you can mix everything up well in it before planting. As I said above you already have ample fertilizers on hand to use - the Jobe's, the worm castings, the chicken manure, and even the bone meal are all fertilizers, all sources of any needed nutrients. Plus what is naturally in your soil. Why do you think you would need additional?
Fish emulsion is a good basic 5-1-1 fertilizer if you feel you need additional for some reason but it is only applied with every watering when it is diluted. Normally it is used in its normal dilution only as needed on certain crops.
Dave

No No No on the chicken wire! It will break down in a few years, and the little buggers can easily get through something the size of a quarter!
Do you really want to dig those beds out again in 3-4 years and replace the wire?
Hardware cloth is more expensive, but well worth the cost! Some of my beds are going on 14 years without a gopher breach!
Also, about getting overwhelmed, take your time! Build one bed per year! Decide what is worth growing yourself as opposed to buying at the local farmers market or organic grocery. A few things I've given up on are Brussels sprouts (aphids), artichokes (ants and earwigs) and potatoes (just haven't got it down for some reason!)
What I usually do when starting a new bed is to fork down as deep as I can, break up the clay, add composted Horse manure, water it in, water in again, build the frames with hardware cloth, place those over the area, add some soil (we get ours from the landfill, it's a vege mix, so has compost in it) water it in, repeat til everything is filled in.
People scoff at me, but I also use those gopher "chatterers" and have had very little gopher activity in my vege area for the last 5 years or so (except when the batteries went dead). My other field is LOADED with gophers!
Anyway, gardening shouldn't be overwhelming! It should be enjoyable! Relax and enjoy! Nancy


What do you mean by garden box and what is the "dirt"? Is it a pot or a like a raised bed? Many people use a soil-less potting mix in pots. That or if it is raining like it has been in MD for the last week, all plants are waiting for the sun before they grow. Lastly, if the box is one of those 4' x 4' raised beds that are becoming popular spacing could be a problem as well.

With just that info the problem could be many things. All those crops in a "little garden box"? Size of this box please - H - W -D and does it have a bottom in it or is it sitting on dirt and how many of these plants are in it. Could you post some pictures?
The box is filled with the "same dirt used to start seeds"? Seed are normally started with a seed starting mix but that is never used for growing on plants. Specific name of what is hopefully a soil-less potting mix and NOT dirt please?
What nutrients have you provided for your plants? What and how often have you been watering? What color are the plants?
Dave

Where the OP is (Zone 6b, northeast PA) it is a sign the soil has warmed enuff for planting (50* F). Beans should have no trouble then.

I'm going to replant the beans and possibly cucumbers this weekend now that's it warmer. I dug up a few bean seeds lastnight as they were very brittle and fell apart in my hand into a few pieces. I dug up a cucumber seed and it was starting to sprout so I will wait a day or two for them and see if they appear.


If a plant is blooming to early, well it depends on the plant. And it is more about preventing that from happening than doing anything about it. If it is a squash/pumpkin/gourd blooming in a small pot to be transplanted (< 3"), then the plant likely is too far gone. You want to try to prevent that from happening by timing your transplanting. There are many various descriptions of when to do just that, however a good general rule for all plants is that if the plant slows or stops increasing in size it is time to transplant. As mentioned with those vining crops it is often best to direct seed, and you certainly don't want to transplant more than once. Now stuff like tomatoes are more forgiving. If you forget about them and they start flowing in a little pot, then you can just pinch of the flowers, stick them in the ground and they will likely recover just fine.


I am growing my tomatoes in containers because I do not have a garden I am growing them on my balcony. I am using wood as mulch but the plastic seems intriguing. what type of plastic you think is best? Can I use heavy duty garbage bags? Or is there a specific plastic?
Thanks!!



Good call.
I bought the exact seed mix and have sowed them in a small area in my yard and in containers. There are many sprout but no blooms. How did yours turn out?