Garden 2022

[tactical_2012]

Already starting to think of my Garden this year. Has anyone ever planted mustard to harvest for mustard seed? Seems like it would be a good shtf crop as greens are edible and you can harvest the seed. Doing a bit of research seems like it is a fast growing plant. Just curious about harvesting for seed.

[DFBrews]

Yes accidentally. 2 seasons ago I made a bunch of German and French mustard and in process spilled a mason jar full of raw seeds on the kitchen floor one day.

I swept and tossed it in the back yard it?s a weed I still have more mustard plants than I can Deal with. They are delicious I harvest dry then winnow the seeds with a box fan and pillow case

[TheGrey]

I'm going to chime in and continue this thread of the 2022 gardens.

My yard is not really conducive to a traditional garden- it's in a suburb, and the back yard has a slope that seems to get worse with every passing year. The backyard is crisscrossed with electrical wires, gas, cable, and who knows what else. There's no HOA, so this year I'm going to be planting in everything from 5-gallon buckets to grow bags. Considering the likelihood of this drought continuing, everything will be self-wicking. I've been researching and watching a ton of Youtube videos on various techniques, and I've picked up fertilizers, coconut coir, grow lights and so on. I've got seeds for all sorts of plants, and I've got sweet potatoes and russets growing slips. To say I'm going balls to the wall this year is a bit of an understatement.

Who else has ramped up their gardening plans this year?

[tactical_2012]

Glad to hear your expanding and trying new things. The last 2 years I have used a woven fabric like they use in commercial greenhouses which really help the ground retain moisture. I have gotten 2 years out of the material and planned to use it for a 3rd year. Last year i ran soak hoses under it along each row and hooked them up to hose bib timer. I didn't have to do anything but tie up the tomatoes and pick the several hundred pounds of vegetables we harvested. The garden is roughly 24ft x 40ft and I planned on doubling it and adding a Strawberry patch. But to due a major injury to my leg in the fall which I'm still recovering from I don't think I will even be able to do a garden

[hollohas]

My yard is not really conducive to a traditional garden- it's in a suburb,

I'm glad you're not letting that stop you. You can get a TON of food in the suburbs with above ground beds and containers. I have a tiny yard and grow hundreds of pounds of food each year. I've spent the time over the years to identify the varieties that thrive in the microclimate of my yard, the type of gardening I can do in my yard and the growing season we have here. I even grow CORN in whiskey barrels! And not tiny suburban corn you see in a typical backyard. Look at how tall the corn is!

Here are some pictures taken of the last many years. Pictures you see of piles of veggies are typical harvests every few days or so during the height of the season. Like the picture of the cucumbers is what I picked DAILY last year, for weeks. That was without a trellis. I ended up with around 130lbs of cucumbers last year.

I move things around each year like a mini crop rotation but grow where I have good sun.

Right seeds, good sun, right water, right nutrients, you can grow anywhere.


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[hollohas]

Here's an example of tomatoes in a 4x6 raised bed. With the proper varieties, this small area produces enough tomatoes to eat everyday, can dozens and dozens of jars of tomatoes and salsa AND give away grocery bags full to neighbors and friends. These plants are about 6ft tall. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20220305/b4e103b9f7a8457fbf2db02ff211ec14.jpg

[DFBrews]

Here's an example of tomatoes in a 4x6 raised bed. With the proper varieties, this small area produces enough tomatoes to eat everyday, can dozens and dozens of jars of tomatoes and salsa AND give away grocery bags full to neighbors and friends. These plants are about 6ft tall. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20220305/b4e103b9f7a8457fbf2db02ff211ec14.jpg

Well done. How many hours a week on average do you spend in the garden during peak time?

[hollohas]

Well done. How many hours a week on average do you spend in the garden during peak time?Once established, 30mins/day. Maybe a couple hours on the weekend to get some pruning done. That's with automatic watering via soaker hose for the beds and micro sprayers in the buckets.

Doesn't even take that much more before it's established. Just have to spend a few weekend days getting soil turned, hoses down, hoops setup and it all planted. Then wait.

One of the most important things I do is keep it all covered with clear plastic. I open the plastic when the late afternoons start to get hot, but cover again at night until the plants physically can't fit anymore. Early summers can be cool which slows growth and the hail can ruin an entire growing season. Keep everything covered, keep it safe and warm and you'll boost growth.

PS - I don't particularly enjoy gardening, I just enjoy homegrown food. So anything I can do to reduce work, I do. Like last year I didn't even trellis my cucumbers, just let them go wild all over the ground. They loved it and less work for me.

Here's a leaf from last year's ground cuke's. Healthy beasts. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20220306/e3009a3ba3b1d39a8356beede6eb8bf5.jpg

[TheGrey]

tactical_2012: Do you think that worked better for you than mulch? I was initially planning on just mulching the daylights out of the beds with chopped up leaves, so they would break down slowly. I'm sorry that you might not get to garden this year! What if you were to just stick with a few containers that wouldn't force you to bend or strain your leg? I've got strawberries coming the middle of the month. I'm also planting a distraction garden/bunny garden so I actually have a chance against Mother Nature this year.

Hollohas: Those photos are positively inspiring. How many tomato plants did you end up growing? I tried growing tomatoes in Walmart bags, set in a kiddie pool that I kept about two inches of water. I learned a lot that year- namely yellow jackets are attracted to still water and I needed to add much more nutrients to the soil than I did. I need to grow cukes and squash, but well away from each other or I'll get all sorts of weird fruits.

I desperately want to plant some fruit trees and bushes: Northstar Cherry, plum, and a pear tree (all dwarf size), but until I can actually pay attention to the lighting and successful placement of the rest of the garden so I can plot out the ideal place for them, I'll have to wait until next year.

What are your thoughts on compost tea? Does anyone have a worm bin? We've got a compost bin started (the word 'bin' meaning a fenced-in area of ground) and a leaf mold area started, but that's going to take a while to break down. I have many varieties of carrots that I'm anxious to try, and a zillion varieties of beans. I am polishing my canners. And I keep checking on my potatoes. My stupid Russets rotted and the slips turned pale and keeled over, so I'm left with sweet potatoes under the grow lights.

[hollohas]

I typically grow 6-8 tomato plants.

One of my absolute favorites for canning is called Amish Paste. WAY better than standard Roma. Bigger, more productive, thicker flesh. If you want to can tomatoes, that's one you want to try. It's not uncommon to get Amish Paste tomatoes that are 12+ oz each, and tons of them. Only need a half dozen of them or so to make an entire batch of salsa. (My batches are 6-7 pints). That's how big they run, basically one tomato makes a pint jar of salsa.

[TheGrey]

I typically grow 6-8 tomato plants.

One of my absolute favorites for canning is called Amish Paste. WAY better than standard Roma. Bigger, more productive, thicker flesh. If you want to can tomatoes, that's one you want to try. It's not uncommon to get Amish Paste tomatoes that are 12+ oz each, and tons of them. Only need a half dozen of them or so to make an entire batch of salsa. (My batches are 6-7 pints). That's how big they run, basically one tomato makes a pint jar of salsa.

I've seen seeds for Amish Paste! And yes, I DO can tomatoes. Usually I just purchase some cases from Sprouts and do it that way. I'll see if I can't get some of those seed packets from Baker's Creek- I need to fill out my herb beds and have one more order to make from them. Thanks for the heads-up.

[def90]

So,.as far as planting stuff in the Denver/Boulder metro area goes when do you guys usually start your seeds and then plant in the ground? 2 years ago I bought some potted pepper and tomato plants in July and had a ton of tomatoes and a decent number of peppers by mid August. Last year I decided to plant a bunch of seeds indoors and then plant them outside at what I thought was an appropriate time. We had a ton of late snow and cold weather last year with my seedlings getting hit by snow/slush at least twice and things didn't turn out so well. What's the best game plan around here?

[hollohas]

Start seeds in late Feb if you have room for some bigger plants inside and have enough light. Start your peppers before everything else. They take a while to germinate.

I was late this year and only started mine this weekend. They'll be a lot smaller than I like come May, but they'll do. However, I use heat mats and LOTS of artificial light. That's like starting seeds on steroids.




About ten years ago I started growing some small yellow cherry tomatoes. They were a heirloom and VERY, VERY prolific. Buckets of tomatoes. I don't even know what they are, they came in a mixed pack. But I saved the seeds of the earliest producing and most productive plants and replanted over a few years.

With tomatoes and peppers, I always pinch off all the flowers until the plants get big and established so they don't waste energy on producing fruit until I'm ready. I give up light, early harvests in favor of later extremely productive harvests. When I decide it's time to allow fruit to set, I mark the first fruits on the plant with yarn and let them ripen and save those exact fruits for seed. I don't know if it matters, but I figured our growing season is short so saving seeds from the earliest fruits over years may eventually produce early producing plants. Who knows.

Anyway, Sunday I dug out my seed collection and started my tomatoes and peppers. A few weeks late, but what the heck. I found a package marked "Hollohas Garden yellow tomato 2014" and planted some. I put a bunch of seeds in each spot because I figured 8 year old seeds would likely be a bit dead and the germination rate would be low. I was wrong.

Heat mat, humidity dome and 3 days later, here they are, germinated and strong. Kicking the ass of brand new seeds from the commercial suppliers. (Typical tomatoes take 6-8 days)

Look at those little Yellow 14's. Whoa. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20220324/76e5119b50a7a93b733970f403429487.jpg

[TheGrey]

Starting seeds indoors is a must, but I've also been bitten by the unexpected Spring Snow to the point that I wait until a week after Mother's Day to plant outdoors.

[hollohas]

Year-round hydroponic tomatoes don't just come from the grocery aisle ;)

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20220601/891e847a4d32f832e73265143abddf62.jpg

[tactical_2012]

Ok so my pops tilled and set up my Garden this year as I'm unable too. I wasn't able to start from seed this year and like to grow heirloom varieties of plants. I have most covered already but am still looking for Good Heirloom tomatoes does anyone know of someone selling any beside a nursery?

[TheGrey]

Ok so my pops tilled and set up my Garden this year as I'm unable too. I wasn't able to start from seed this year and like to grow heirloom varieties of plants. I have most covered already but am still looking for Good Heirloom tomatoes does anyone know of someone selling any beside a nursery?

Are you looking for local sources, or reputable seed places online?