Avernus Posted June 6, 2010 Share Posted June 6, 2010 Have you ever noticed that if you grow tomatoes, you can't give enough of them away? How many tomatoes is too many? 3? 4? I'm not 100% sure, but I think you can dehydrate tomatoes and then when you want to use them, just drop them in water and they would spring back to regular size... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whomper Posted June 6, 2010 Share Posted June 6, 2010 (edited) Have you ever noticed that if you grow tomatoes, you can't give enough of them away? How many tomatoes is too many? 3? 4? Honestly, that is half the fun for me. I love eating my tomatoes , eggplant and cukes but for my little family of 4, 1 of which doesnt touch the stuff, I always have an abundance of left overs. I give them to my parents and my neighbors all the time. They all love when I ring the bell. Last year we had too much rain in NJ and everyones garden got the blight and very low , if any yield. I had enough for just us, if that. I felt bad not being able to hook everyone up . So far so good this year though. I added string beans. Plants are doing well so far. I went back to my old method as far as the soil. Last year the nursery I always go to didnt have the humus soild I always used. The guy talked me into the chicken and cow manure mixture. Not sure how well it would have done because of all the rain but I still like the other stuff better. This year I tried a new place and found my old stuff. Plants are boomin. I have to lay soil down because the natural soil in my yard is not terrible but not great. It is sort of reddish, and clayish. I love my garden man and my 6 year old is taking a liking to it as well. her and I do a 4 plant garden on the side of my house that is just hers. She has 2 tomatoe plants I eggplant and 1 pepper plant. When I pull in to my driveway and she is out there watering hers without me I get verklempt Edited June 6, 2010 by whomper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Footballjoe Posted June 6, 2010 Author Share Posted June 6, 2010 I'm not 100% sure, but I think you can dehydrate tomatoes and then when you want to use them, just drop them in water and they would spring back to regular size... We never have trouble giving them away but if you get to many you can freeze them and use them in soup and sauces. I have 5 plants of different kinds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whomper Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 (edited) Animals ate my string beans right down to them stem. Bastards. What surprised me is they also ate alot of my cuke plants. they never go after my cukes. They stripped the plant down pretty good but I should be ok as those plants grow large and will have more fruit. Not sure about the string beans though. I think they are goners. My friends Dad gave me seeds and I just threw them in for the hell of it so I am not that heartbroken but I will be bummed if they wipe out my cucumbers Edited June 14, 2010 by whomper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rovers Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 I have about 6 sdmall green tomats... can't wait to have some summer BLT's! Some wierd catepillar/worm is going after my parsley. Something is eating the basil too. Never had insect problems with either plant before. The damage isn't bad, but... Whomp, sounds like rabbits. You have a dog, don't you? I know youy lost one... let it out at dusk. The rabbits will go elsewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big John Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Whomp, sounds like rabbits. You have a dog, don't you? I know youy lost one... let it out at dusk. The rabbits will go elsewhere. 2 dogs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Footballjoe Posted June 15, 2010 Author Share Posted June 15, 2010 2 dogs And I actually thought Big John was going to give some gardening advice. Could be slugs. But down some slug bait. Just make sure your dogs can't get to it. You could use some beer, just put it in a bowl and they will get into in and then drown. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whomper Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 I have about 6 sdmall green tomats... can't wait to have some summer BLT's! Some wierd catepillar/worm is going after my parsley. Something is eating the basil too. Never had insect problems with either plant before. The damage isn't bad, but... Whomp, sounds like rabbits. You have a dog, don't you? I know youy lost one... let it out at dusk. The rabbits will go elsewhere. problem with that is I am trying to keep the dogs out of the garden too they sneak to that side of the yard when the kids leave the gate open and jump right in. I caught one stomping my eggplant 3 days after I planted them. I keep seeing a chipmunk in the garden and I am pretty sure that is what is getting my cukes. My wife has this stuff "animal be gone" that we bought when squirrels were chewing up my garbage cans. I am sure it will work just not sure how safe it is to be around the plants. Im gonna call the garden store tomorrow. Just sucks. I knew the stringbeans would be a long shot but animals never went for my cukes in all the years I have been growing them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clubfoothead Posted June 17, 2010 Share Posted June 17, 2010 I kill everything grown in the ground. A pot or hanging basket, I am good. Went with the topsy turvy this year to try it out. I did everything organic and bugs got to the strawberries so that was on me. The tomato worked amazingly well. I saw mixed reviews on their web site. I believe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Footballjoe Posted June 19, 2010 Author Share Posted June 19, 2010 Having trouble with the leaves on my tomatoes plants curling up. I was thinking the worst and that it may be a disease. Just got back from taking some leaves to the local Feed and Seed. I was told that I am over watering. That's great news. The combination of newspaper to block weeds, mulch, rain and me watering was overkill. I am going to pull the mulch back a little and not water unless we do not get some rain for a week or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Footballjoe Posted September 26, 2010 Author Share Posted September 26, 2010 Well, yesterday I official gave up on the summer crops when I pulled out the last of the pepper plants. I then prepared the soil in one of my planting boxes (6' x 12') by turning it over and then adding a 2 " layer of compost. This morning I planted my fall crops: 4 different types of lettuce. 3 different types of cabbage, 6 broccoli plants and 9 brussel sprout plants. I hope I have better success with this crop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cre8tiff Posted September 26, 2010 Share Posted September 26, 2010 My garden SUCKED this year. The perennials and flower did great though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Holy Roller Posted September 26, 2010 Share Posted September 26, 2010 Well, yesterday I official gave up on the summer crops when I pulled out the last of the pepper plants. I then prepared the soil in one of my planting boxes (6' x 12') by turning it over and then adding a 2 " layer of compost. This morning I planted my fall crops: 4 different types of lettuce. 3 different types of cabbage, 6 broccoli plants and 9 brussel sprout plants. I hope I have better success with this crop. I planted our fall lettuce, spinach, beets and a dozen cabbage plants two weekends ago. All are doing great. Depending where you live it's still not too late to put out some fall plants. This was the best garden I've had in a while and we're still getting okra, green pepppers, green beans (out the whazoo), and collards. I love me some collard greens. They really taste best in the fall after a light frost. The weather here in mid-MO is feeling like fall this morning and our high is only going to get to 59 so I'm looking forward to a great fall. I'm putting some of my plots to bed this week by tilling in a couple pickup loads of composted horse manure and then broadcasting some winter wheat seed over them. The wheat keeps its green color all winter and then I till it under next spring for the organic matter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebellab Posted September 26, 2010 Share Posted September 26, 2010 Didn't have a garden last year, so this year got one planted. I couldn't figure out why things weren't growing, then the leaves on my beans disappeared. I threw up an electric fence and my garden flourished. I have be paring back my tomato plants and the cucumbers. I round uped my beans and got them mowed off as well. The potato digging will occur this week. I have five tomato plants left, a warm forcast for this week will ripen what is left. Asparagus is looking good for next year. it was a good year even with a late start due to rabbits and deer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SheikYerbuti Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 This year I came to a sad conclusion: You have to start from plants, not seeds. It feels like cheating, but it's the only way to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimC Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 This year I came to a sad conclusion: You have to start from plants, not seeds. It feels like cheating, but it's the only way to go. See post 4 of this thread. Yeah, I tried seeds as well. I'm just not that good of a farmer, I guess. I'll always be doing them from plants from now on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Footballjoe Posted November 25, 2010 Author Share Posted November 25, 2010 I had planted different types of salad before my wife got sick. Since she could not eat salad I just let it grow. So, I go out there today a start cutting some to give to my brother and sister. Well, I got little black bugs all over it. They are hanging out around the bottom for the most part around the stem. They are not eating the leaves from what I can tell since the leafs appear to be healthy. Anyone have any ideas what I am dealing with and what I can use to get rid of them. I could dust the plants but don't want to without knowing what kind of bugs I got. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
detlef Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 Man, I wish I could help, Joe. Not sure the best tact to take. However, if they're not eating anything, you can just wash them off and not worry about it. On the home front, we're swimming in arugula right now and going to make a huge salad with that and some fuyu persimmons picked from our tree earlier this fall. Other things doing well right now are the mustard greens, chard, cabbage, and kale. Finally pulled the pepper plants earlier this week. The cayenne plants probably had about 100 peppers on them. The bananas about 20. Just took them down the restaurant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Holy Roller Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 Picked the last cabbages, romaine lettuce, spinach and beets yesterday. Collards are hanging in there but tonight's weather will probably do them in. I'll miss you garden. See ya in a couple months. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SheikYerbuti Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 I had about 4 cherry tomato plants grow in spots in the backyard nowhere near where I planted this year. They came in late, and I'm still getting a few tomatoes per day from them despite the sub-freezing nights we've had for the past few weeks. Strange, but delicious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polksalet Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 Man, I wish I could help, Joe. Not sure the best tact to take. However, if they're not eating anything, you can just wash them off and not worry about it. On the home front, we're swimming in arugula right now and going to make a huge salad with that and some fuyu persimmons picked from our tree earlier this fall. Other things doing well right now are the mustard greens, chard, cabbage, and kale. Finally pulled the pepper plants earlier this week. The cayenne plants probably had about 100 peppers on them. The bananas about 20. Just took them down the restaurant. I imagine having a garden is lucrative if one is in the restaurant business. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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