OT -- Any gardeners out there?

theyolksonyou

That's really cool. @HDmstng

Chubbs

Raised beds are the way to go. Several benefits--- they soil is warmer so plants in ground earlier, higher up so easier to harvest, less weeds, ability to have perfect soil versus relying on native soil which has been depleted of nutrients, can install drip irrigation to water root zones versus spraying a plot and watering weeds too. The latter also wastes water. The list goes on and on. An example of soil-- my native soil has a pH of 5.2. This is pretty acidic. Great for blueberries, but not so much veggie patches. The ideal pH for home garden is 6-7.5 so I would need to amend a considerable amount annually for an in ground plot. Remember your garden is only as good as your soil. Follow all the rules with fertilizing, pruning, proper spacing, watering, etc and you can still fail if soil is not good. The key to a successful garden begins with the soil. Go raised bed and you can control extremely easily. Invest in the soil and the rest will fall into place.

tz666

great restore

MaskedMarvel

Topping peppers - am I simply cutting the main stem above the third leaf?

Chubbs

MaskedMarvel said:

Topping peppers - am I simply cutting the main stem above the third leaf?

Sending you a PM

tarheelmatt

Picked up more plants today. Got okra, cherry tomatoes,  basil, and dill. 

Legume

Chubbs said:

DoubleEgger said:

Cedar mulch is a natural bug repellant. 

Yes it is. It also pulls nitrogen from the garden though. Not sure which benefit outweighs the downfall. 

I can fix that.

Chubbs

Legume said:

Chubbs said:

DoubleEgger said:

Cedar mulch is a natural bug repellant. 

Yes it is. It also pulls nitrogen from the garden though. Not sure which benefit outweighs the downfall. 

I can fix that.

Yep

Chubbs

tarheelmatt said:

Picked up more plants today. Got okra, cherry tomatoes,  basil, and dill. 

Nice! I did 4 okra plants last year and had 3 gallon freezer bags full after what we ate. If you have good soil they go crazy. Mine measured in at 14 feet last year which made harvesting a chore!! Might as well sow some loose leaf lettuce so you can enjoy a salad! Easiest thing to grow!

DoubleEgger

Mark your calendars for May 2nd. 
http://www.wngd.org

Legume

that's too funny @DoubleEgger I love how they have park clean-up and community gardening listed on there, yeah, please leave your backyard and venture out where there are kids and people with gardening tools, see how that works out.

theyolksonyou

@doubleegger I'm not running the weed eater! 

DoubleEgger

HDmstng

Drip irrigation...I recall seeing a post about it somewhere in the 9 pages, but was hoping to get a little help.

Found these two systems, both are a bit big for my garden, but figured it was a good way to start.  Feedback or suggestions?

https://www.grainger.com/search?nls=1&searchQuery=drip+irrigation

https://www.dripdepot.com/product/478d490075eb512997a60000

Legume

Putting together drip is like working with legos or tinker-toys.  you have a mess of different parts that do different things and the trick is to have the right amount of the right pieces to do what you want.  I would shy away from buying a kit and instead going to HD or Lowes and piecing together what you need from there.  You have to know what is available, how it fits together to get started, but then it's just simple planning for the area you have.

I've been doing this for years, so I have one of those hardware carry things with a handle on top with lots of little plastic drawers for screws, nails, etc.  I keep my drip fittings in there, I keep a supply of several types of hose and I just cut and piece it together each year to adjust to what I have planted.  Heavier flow tips for water hungry plants, lower flow for those that don't tolerate much water.  When you're using drip, the time is the same for all plants, so you have to vary the flow at each plant to ensure they get the right amount of water. 

It may sound complicated, but it's really not - you have a supply hose, you run smaller feeder hose off of that which terminate in a tip - some drip, some spray, some are adjustable flow, etc.  In my raised beds, it looks like a fishbone - the supply line down the middle and each feeder line coming off of that to each plant.

Chubbs

HDmstng said:

Drip irrigation...I recall seeing a post about it somewhere in the 9 pages, but was hoping to get a little help.

Found these two systems, both are a bit big for my garden, but figured it was a good way to start.  Feedback or suggestions?

https://www.grainger.com/search?nls=1&searchQuery=drip+irrigation

https://www.dripdepot.com/product/478d490075eb512997a60000

Please email me at 1.matt.collins@gmail.com and I am happy to help. It is easy to do and I can tell you exactly what you need and the best online resource to get it from. 

Chubbs

Legume said:

Putting together drip is like working with legos or tinker-toys.  you have a mess of different parts that do different things and the trick is to have the right amount of the right pieces to do what you want.  I would shy away from buying a kit and instead going to HD or Lowes and piecing together what you need from there.  You have to know what is available, how it fits together to get started, but then it's just simple planning for the area you have.

I've been doing this for years, so I have one of those hardware carry things with a handle on top with lots of little plastic drawers for screws, nails, etc.  I keep my drip fittings in there, I keep a supply of several types of hose and I just cut and piece it together each year to adjust to what I have planted.  Heavier flow tips for water hungry plants, lower flow for those that don't tolerate much water.  When you're using drip, the time is the same for all plants, so you have to vary the flow at each plant to ensure they get the right amount of water. 

It may sound complicated, but it's really not - you have a supply hose, you run smaller feeder hose off of that which terminate in a tip - some drip, some spray, some are adjustable flow, etc.  In my raised beds, it looks like a fishbone - the supply line down the middle and each feeder line coming off of that to each plant.

You can also install ball valves in each bed to control how much flow you want. See my previous comment if anyone has questions. 

DoubleEgger

HDmstng said:

Drip irrigation...I recall seeing a post about it somewhere in the 9 pages, but was hoping to get a little help.

Found these two systems, both are a bit big for my garden, but figured it was a good way to start.  Feedback or suggestions?

https://www.grainger.com/search?nls=1&searchQuery=drip+irrigation

https://www.dripdepot.com/product/478d490075eb512997a60000

Home Depot sells a rainbird kit for 30 bucks. Worked well for me. 

theyolksonyou

Rainbows also sells directly on their website. Sometimes some very good prices. 

Legume

Yep @Chubbs each of my beds has a ball valve so I can shut it down if it's not planted yet or adjust flow.

theyolksonyou

Ha!  Rainbows, rainbird stupid autocorrect

Chubbs

Legume said:

Yep @Chubbs each of my beds has a ball valve so I can shut it down if it's not planted yet or adjust flow.

Www.sprinklerwarehouse.com is by far the best place to buy drip supplies. Most products are DIG and far superior to that at Home Depot or lowes and way cheaper. The poly tubing is much better, Ts and Elbows are not even in the same ballpark in terms of quality, and the emitters are much more uniform. Take a look and thank me later!

bboulier

@chubbs Wish I could start tomatoes that early.  Home grown tomatoes are the first best reason for a garden.  Fresh peas are second.  Then comes lettuce, radishes, and a wide variety of beans.

NDG

Picking up Tomato plants on the way home from work tonight.  Can someone suggest 2 or 3 kinds (romas, beefsteak, etc) of tomatoes ??

We want to use them for: Sandwiches / Salads / Salsa.

Internet search is overwhelming . . you guys always bail me out!

tarheelmatt

NDG said:

Picking up Tomato plants on the way home from work tonight.  Can someone suggest 2 or 3 kinds (romas, beefsteak, etc) of tomatoes ??

We want to use them for: Sandwiches / Salads / Salsa.

Internet search is overwhelming . . you guys always bail me out!

You may want to research OSU's website or the local Ag extension.  They'll let you know the best types of tomatoes for your area.  

In our area, there is a master gardener that you can ask.  I bet it's the same where you are. 

tarheelmatt

@NDG check out this link/PDF

http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/1000/pdf/1624.pdf

MaskedMarvel

There was an open plot in my community garden. I just got another one. Sweet. 

Gonna do this one square foot style. Tack down some cheap oak trim with finishing nails. 

Firemanyz

I had fresh kale from the garden tonight. It was great. 

Chubbs

Firemanyz said:

I had fresh kale from the garden tonight. It was great. 

Nice. I make kale chips regularly. Chop them into "Doritos" and throw in bowl. Toss with barely enough EVOO to moisten, salt, pepper, and red
pepper flakes. Baking sheet at 350 for 12 minutes. Plenty of variations and great treat 

NDG

My setup . . still a work in progress.  Raised bed for herbs & lettuce and side pot for tomatoes.  I have wood rods & velco for support, but not needed yet.

QUESTION: think my pot of cherry tomatoes (sweet millions) will be too close together?  I read only one tomato plant per pot . . but I went ahead and planted all three of these together thining cherrys are smaller.  Also, all three came together in one pot from the store).  Appreciate all the help.