What are your garden plans for 2021?

[expatgirl]

We"ve used the same contractor, Charlie D!

 

[bethzaring]

That is a lot of work. I remember one year I planted like 600 flower bulbs. I couldn't walk upright for a week. I basically reenacted that evolution of man diagram.

The beauty of raised beds is you don't bend over to plant. That's why old people love raised beds. You sit on the frame and reach into the bed to plant and weed. Typically the beds are 4 feet wide so you are never reaching over two feet into the bed.

The planting medium I use is pure compost, so the soil is soft and friable. To plant the onions, I poke a hole one inch deep in the soil, push in the onion plant and firm the soil around each plant. It was not hard on the back. The worst part was being in the sun and wind for so long.

In 2014 when I had my house built, I also had a landscaper build me a turn key garden. She ordered eight tons of compost to fill the beds. I still add home made and bagged compost and earthworms to my beds.

 

[bethzaring]

We"ve used the same contractor, Charlie D!

Great to see you!!!!!

 

[pepperhead212]

I got a lot done outside today, mostly related to getting the SIPs set up, finishing up and filling a new one. Also cut the shelf for another one on my bandsaw - something I didn't want to be doing late at night.

Here's that finished SIP, slightly smaller (14 gal) than the 18 gal ones I have a lot of, and have another of in the making. Usually, the ones I have of the Rubbermaid tubs (like this one) have lasted a long time, with very few cracks in 7 or 8 years, but another like this got brittle. However, the insides were fine, so I just cleaned those, and used them in a relatively new tub, which hopefully will last.
Finished SIP, using shelf from an old one, and a new tup. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Shelf from the SIP - the 2 pvc with the caps are the wicking chambers. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Filled SIP, mounded about 2 inches above the rims. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Finished SIP, ready for plants, after the slits in the plastic. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

I also re-potted my bay laurel plant - another one showing signs of getting rootbound, as it would dry out very fast, and not absorb water as quickly. It was also dropping a few leaves, though not as badly as the curry tree. Amazingly, that re-potted curry tree has not dropped a single leaf, since re-potting!
Re-potted bay laurel, in 5 gal fabric pot. 4-10 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

I still have to re-pot my kaffir limes, but they are going to be the worst because of the thorns - the reason I've been procrastinating!

More tomatoes up this morning (haven't looked since I came back in) - only a few not up yet. A few more peppers up too, along with a few Mexican marigolds, in just 3 days.

 

[larry_stewart]

The beauty of raised beds is you don't bend over to plant. That's why old people love raised beds. You sit on the frame and reach into the bed to plant and weed. Typically the beds are 4 feet wide so you are never reaching over two feet into the bed.

The planting medium I use is pure compost, so the soil is soft and friable. To plant the onions, I poke a hole one inch deep in the soil, push in the onion plant and firm the soil around each plant. It was not hard on the back. The worst part was being in the sun and wind for so long.

In 2014 when I had my house built, I also had a landscaper build me a turn key garden. She ordered eight tons of compost to fill the beds. I still add home made and bagged compost and earthworms to my beds.

The raised beds definitely make a difference. I got a small version for my dad who is elderly and has physical issues. Took a lot of the physical strain out of gardening.

I have slightly raised beds, ( not enough that I dont have to bend over, more for cosmetics).

I planted about 150 onions this year ( my wife helped). No back issues this year , but the gardening year is still young, time for me to ultimately do something stupid

 

[pepperhead212]

It rained much of the day today (1.62" last time I looked), and even when it finally got sunny, it was too wet to do anything outside. We did need the rain! I did make 2 more SIPs in my workshop this afternoon.

I wasn't sure with the first one if I could make the shelf out of this 3 dimensional lid, but it worked! Made a cardboard pattern (I always do this, in case I make another of the same brand), and traced it on the raised portions, and just cut straight to the next raised portion. Only took a few tweaks on the bandsaw to shave some sections, to get it to drop on those pvc "racks". The pvc racks I also cut on the bandsaw, cutting the two for the wicking chambers about 3/32" shorter, as the cap sticks out about that far. I trace the spots for the racks, and number them, so the holes for the zip ties are in the right spots, and those holes I mark in red, so I also drill a hole opposite, and just above them, on the pvc. Once all was marked, it only took about 1 1/2 hours to drill all of the holes, including the pvc. The pvc was better drilled with regular drill bits, but the lid was better drilled with a brad point - the regular bit grabbed the soft plastic once through, but the brad point didn't. And a forstner bit drilled the large hole for the chimney well - just shaved it away, until a disk dropped through.
SIP shelf marked for drilling, red spots are where the zip ties will connect the pvc to the shelf. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

All of the holes drilled in the shelf. Only two in the very center were out of reach of the drill press, so it went fairly quickly - about 75 minutes. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

PVC racks zip tied to the bottom of the shelf, and the hole drilled for the chimney. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Finished SIP, with screen on the bottom. This one has just over 14 gal capacity above the shelf. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

The larger, 18 gal size, was somewhat easier, since I had made two with this brandbefore, and had the pattern. It is considerably larger, with almost a 4" water chamber below, the size I use for a lot of tomatoes and eggplants.

Lid ready for cutting, to make the shelf for the 18 gal SIP. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Cut shelf for SIP, with marks for the pvc racks, plus all the holes to drill. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

All holes drilled on the shelf, and the racks, with the racks attached with zip ties. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Finished 18 gal SIP, with screen in place. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

 

[pepperhead212]

All but one of my tomato varieties (the Amish Gold Slicer) has come up, and yesterday I filled up the few empty pots of those, and a few others, with some of the extra seedlings, trying to fill them with similar varieties. I made sure that I re-labeled them to avoid any future confusion! If I do eventually get a seed or two of the Amish Gold sprouted, I'll make up a couple of new pots.


All but one of my peppers - Portugal Fire - has had at least one sprout, though a couple had just one or two, so far. Most of the pots have a seedling, but I filled most of the empty pots with some extra seedlings - if those original peppers finally sprout, I'll pull these, and put the original ones in.

The early peppers are doing great (a few stragglers, as always), and will definitely have to be re-potted, since it's just over a month, when they usually go out.
Early peppers, next to a few planted on 4-1 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Garlic is doing great! But still only one shallot up (the bare area at the end of the garlic), even after all that rain, so I assume they are dead. Maybe I'll plant a few now, just to see what happens, when planted now, instead of the fall. First I'll carefully dig up a few, to see if they rotted, or are still alive.
Garlic, 4-10 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

 

[larry_stewart]

My garlic is looking nice too. I just got to remember not to over water like I did last year. In addition I added some sand to the soil last year for better drainage.

Leeks have grown about 2 -3 inches since I planted them last week.

Removed the covers of my lettuce, arugula, radishes, mustard greens to let them face the elements.

Planted chard in the garden ( which I started indoors).

Uncovered the fig trees. All survived that were outsides, and the potted ones did great in the garage too. Hopefully they will produce this year with enough time to ripen.

Been hand pollinating peaches and pears. Got Mason bees bu only 1 out of the 20 hatched so far ( been kinda cold). Ordered another 40 since all the fruit trees are about to pop.

 

[pepperhead212]

After taking a brief nap today, after that dental work I had, I went outside (gorgeous day today!) and made up a bunch of the mix, for filling the SIPs, and filled and covered the two new ones. I put black plastic on the smaller one, which will have peppers in it, and silver coated film in the larger one, for tomatoes.
The smaller SIP, filled and covered. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

The larger SIP, filled and covered with silver film. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Tomatoes and peppers are doing great (though still no Amish gold, or Portugal Fire) and I finally got two sprouts on Ichiban seeds - the other eggplants up already have their true leaves, so this is way behind, but I still put them in pots, to see if I can get them up finally.

 

[pepperhead212]

I went to the Korean market yesterday, since that is right down the street from the orthodontist I went to. I didn't get much - really not short on anything in the condiment section, and I don't want to get anything that goes in the freezer! But I always go to the produce section - Asian stores have things I just don't see anywhere else! One thing I saw that I didn't really need, but I got some, anyway - lemongrass. I got it for rooting - 6 stalks, which is double what I need to grow about 5 years worth! I still have a bunch from 2017 Foodsavered in the freezer, many in small batches, and two large batches. I'll do that again, in the fall, and put the old stuff in a bag and label it as such - maybe I'll make a bug spray with all of it!

I cut the bottoms of the stalks off, then peel the brownish layers from them, then put them to soak, for rooting, which takes about 3 weeks, which will be just about right, for putting them out. I change the solution every 3 or 4 days. Since I only need 3 of them, I tried something known as scarification with 3 of these, that I also do with basil stems - just take a sharp paring knife and cut slightly into the stems in several places. These I just cut them a few times lengthwise in the woody section. I'll see if the roots come out those scratched areas better than the other areas.
Trimmed lemongrass stalks, ready to be soaked, for rooting. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Lemongrass stalks, soaking in water, with a few drops of Dyna-Gro KLN, to help the rooting. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

With the trimmings, I made a glass of what I calllemongrassaide. It wasn't quite as good as that I've made with the dark greens of the large plants, but I didn't want to waste it!
Lemongrass trimmings, in VM to make some lemongrasaide. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Lemongrass trimmings, blended 30 seconds, with some water, a small bit of sugar, and a packet of stevia. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Lemongrass fiber, strained out of the blended liquid. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Finished lemongrasaide. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

 

[pepperhead212]

I re-potted my 6 largest pepper plants today, and they were definitely getting rootbound. These plants were all started on 3-7, just over 5 weeks ago! And chinense varieties are usually the slowest - the reason that I started them a little over 3 weeks early. And that Death Spiral was one of the slowest seeds to sprout, yet look at the size!
Larger Death Spiral, the most rootbound of the 6 plants. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Gold Bullet - tallest plant, but the least rootbound. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

New chocolate hab - earliest seeds to germinate, and some of the most rootbound plants. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

The six re-potted peppers, 4-15 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Here are the 2 trays of the tomatoes, eggplants, and a few peppers.

Most of the tomatoes, most with at least one set of true leaves. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

The rest of the tomatoes, the eggplants, plus some of the peppers. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Tomorrow, some of the day is supposed to be nice out, but every day in the forecast has some rain - the proverbial April showers finally! It had been dry here for a while, before this last week.

 

[larry_stewart]

Pepper, How much artificial light do you give your seedlings a day ?

Ill be thinning and repotting my tomatoes this weekend .
Most are saved seeds, and Im always afraid none will germinate, nd therefore wind up with much more plants than I need.

My peppers aree chugging along, butt look nice and healthy.

Sunflowers also doing well

Im hoping this year my pineapple will produced, is over 2 years old, so is due.

Also hoping my dwarf banana will produce.

Curry leaf has lost a lot of leaves and does have some kind of insect on its the it got over the winter ( probably from the soil). This thing always survives , but needs to produce new, healthier leaves .

 

[pepperhead212]

Pepper, How much artificial light do you give your seedlings a day ?

I use an LED light I got a deal on last fall (almost 50% off its current price), and I use it for 16 hours a day.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08FSLC9Z...Format=grid&impressionTimestamp=1618606012186

It is only 125 watts, not 1200, as stated in the early description of the item! They say to use it 24-30" away, which is what I do. Weird thing though - when I started some tomatoes several weeks ago, for a grafting experiment, they seemed to get leggy under the light, but I got none of this with the peppers, as you can see. So most of my tomatoes are under the T8 bulbs I've used for years - four 5,000k bulbs, for two trays under them, around 2" away from the seedlings, and when they get very close, I reduce the spacing under the trays, or drop the shelf some.

Curry leaf has lost a lot of leaves and does have some kind of insect on its the it got over the winter ( probably from the soil). This thing always survives , but needs to produce new, healthier leaves .

Was that insect the scale insects, on the undersides of the leaves? I got that on mine before my last re-potting - something about the stressing of the plant, I think. It didn't happen this time, though the leaf drop did occur, but what I did to prevent it, on these, and the other plants, which got sort of a "spillover", from the curry tree, was to mix some diatomaceous earth in with the soil mix, when I made it up, and mixed some more in the surface of each pot. Plus, I brushed the lower 2" or so of the trunks with tanglefoot, since, like you said, they probably came up from the soil, having been outside. Seems to have worked for the last 3 years.

What I did to get rid of the scale, once outside, was to spray the plants leaves, mainly the undersides, with the scale, with a pyrethrin solution, making sure to do it when bees were not out. Removing the scale is a p.i.t.a., but a weak isopropyl alcohol solution worked well, w/o harming the leaves.

 

[Vinylhanger]

We are having an early summer here. Only April and we have high fire danger.

Since I can't do any power equipment this weekend, I am going to get 2 yards of garden soil, top off my raised beds and get the garden started.

2 weeks early.

May build a couple more raised beds as well.

Shorter ones. Or on stilts. 2 foot beds take way too much dirt.

 

[caseydog]

My oregano survived the Texas Big Freeze, and is exploding with growth. The other herbs did not. So, new basil (as usual), plus new rosemary and thyme. This year's peppers are cayenne and jalapeño.

I only lost one shrub for sure. Another one is a maybe. All my trees came back fine. My live oak scared me, because it is an evergreen, and all the leaves turned brown and fell off after the Big Freeze. But, it has recovered, and has new leaves all over it.

CD

 

[pepperhead212]

I did a bunch today! I mowed and weed-wacked my lawn, then started working with those SIPs again, first pulling off the covers that I wouldn't be using again, then cutting some plastic to replace them. Funny thing - as I was gathering all that trash together, I realized that I could use those heavy plastic covers for the bales of peat moss! None of them had holes in them, like many of the lighter bags for other things, and the white is probably better for the tomatoes. The plastic did not allow much light through, when I held it up to the sun, unlike thinner white plastics I've seen.
Cheap cover for Earthboxes - peat moss bag! I got 2 out of the plastic cover for each bale. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

I got 2 covers off each cover. I mixed a bunch of peat mix, for "refreshing" the SIPs, and got 7 of them done, so far. Still a lot to go, and I'm sure I'll have to get another bale of PM, but not tomorrow.

Nothing new in the seedlings, though one pepper is up enough that it can be transferred in the morning. All of my zinnias are up - I planted only one in half the pots, and two in the other half, and the two came up in each pot! Not sure if I'll pull them, or split them, and put them in more pots.

When I went out on my deck this morning, I noticed that my chives looked "dirty". Turns out, they were covered with what I believed to be black aphids - something I have never seen on chives! I sprayed them with pyrethrin spray, then an hour or so, after it had dried off, and it looked like none of the aphids were moving any longer, I hosed it off. Then, after drying, I sprayed it again, including the area these things could have dropped onto the ground under the container. Hopefully, this was a one time thing.
Black aphid infestation on chives. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

 

[larry_stewart]

When I went out on my deck this morning, I noticed that my chives looked "dirty". Turns out, they were covered with what I believed to be black aphids - something I have never seen on chives! I sprayed them with pyrethrin spray, then an hour or so, after it had dried off, and it looked like none of the aphids were moving any longer, I hosed it off. Then, after drying, I sprayed it again, including the area these things could have dropped onto the ground under the container. Hopefully, this was a one time thing.

That is kinda strange, of all my plants, I dont think my chives have ever had any kind of insect issue, especially like that. Hope you got it under control. Speaking of insects, did you have any luck with the Mason Bees taking residence in that great House you made for them ? I only did Leaf Cutters last year. Its just about time for me to check and see if I have any cocoons ( the instructions for leaf cutters says to check in spring when the dandelions start popping up). I've taken a peek in those deep dark holes, but haven't seen any obvious evidence ,although during the season I saw plenty fly in and out .

this spring Im doing a few rounds of Mason Bees for the fruit trees, then I'll do a few more rounds of the leaf cutters for the overall garden. We get a kick out of watching them do their stuff. Just seeing them navigate the garden sure puts the term " Busy Bee" into perspective .

 

[Vinylhanger]

Topping off the raised beds today. Bummer it is suddenly 80 degrees today.

Should get things planted in the next couple of evenings. Frost should be behind us.

 

[blissful]

Oh MAN Vinylhanger, Frost behind you!?! We just had a frost, and expect another on Tuesday night, Wisconsin. Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa, sorrow, anticipation. I'm glad for you.

 

[larry_stewart]

I cant safely plant certain things until mid May. I always try to sneak a few extra weeks in, but always wind up paying the price by having to either rebuy or replant. Hopefully I finally learned my lesson.