Soiled
Good morning all.
Still harvesting tomatoes, corn, and zucchini. But the green beans are done. Out of a 30 ft. patch ( 15 ft. bush and 15 ft. pole) we have a stuffed freezer and happy neighbors.
Waiting for the corn to finish so I can shred/chip the stalks and work them into the new compost pile.
I have three piles going right now, one is from 2 years ago which I have not finished spreading around the garden. the second is due for use next spring, and the new one I'm just starting, due for use in spring 2026.
Each pile starts out as a collection of leaves, wood chips, garden debris, a couple of bags of powerful chicken manure, a bag of bonemeal, and wood ash from the firepit, and we feed it table scraps for the entire time it cooks.
I "cook" them for 18 months, turning regularly. All my garden soil is manmade in place (by me).
The biochar is already in the ground under the rows.
It's becoming quite a productive garden. I really enjoy growing a garden even if I give most of it away. And as long as I replenish the soil and rotate the crops, it should stay healthy in perpetuity.
But after reading the headlines it may become much more than a hobby. I currently have about 10,000 sq. ft. under cultivation. I may have to expand if things continue to go south with the economy.
I'm thinking of buying a small rabbit hutch and chicken coop just to have on hand.
The thread is open.
Comments
I pulled our tomatoes
out last weekend- first frost will be here very shortly. Truth be told, we should have had it already, in a "normal" year.
We got about 10 usable tomatoes this year, in total, from 3 plants. Great, huge, beautiful plants, but very little fruit. And from what fruit did actually set, the raccoons ate about half while they were still relatively small and green. I'll have to figure out a new approach for securing our little container garden for next year.
Our most successful plant was a bush Early Girl. The other two were regular non-bush Early Girls, and put all their energy into growing huge and being pretty. With a growing season that is about 15 minutes long, we need all the help we can get. The Big Beef I planted a couple seasons ago was still saying "Wait, what?" when I consigned it to the trash bag...
Twice bitten, permanently shy.
Lol
At least your sense of humor flourished.
Maybe next year start them indoors in late winter and move them outside when weather permits.
Or you can buy 12 - 18 in starts in spring.
Can be spendy though.
Thanks for stopping by.
Neither Russia nor China is our enemy.
Neither Iran nor Venezuela are threatening America.
Cuba is a dead horse, stop beating it.
tomato season is bleak this year
.
mostly still green, ripe ones split
eggplant and onions did well
bell peppers trying, not as much as
in previous seasons, beans poor production
adding protein to the mix sounds good!
thanks for the OT
question everything
I can't get bell peppers
to grow. Don't know what I'm doing wrong.
I stop watering tomatoes in July to keep them from splitting and prevent blossom end rot.
When we had that hot spell (100+) I watered 3-4 ft. away from each plant and added more mulch.
That heavy mulching (Ruth Stout method) is working real good.
Neither Russia nor China is our enemy.
Neither Iran nor Venezuela are threatening America.
Cuba is a dead horse, stop beating it.
Here's a little dirt to add to the mix:
Zelenskye is with Harris as she campaigns. I think he makes speeches on her behalf.
But that is absolutely not foreign interference in our election.
Nothing here to see...
e1, sounds like you have a helluva plan if shit hits the fan. I wish your tomatoes behaved as planned, and as soon as you figure out how to keep raccoons from feasting on them, be sure to let us know.
A few nights ago, I saw 4 raccoons munching on some bird seed. There was a 5th one headed to join them, but he didn't want to walk by me. Too damn bad, Rocky!
I enjoyed the OT, friend. Your efforts are just amazing!
"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981
I've got a deer fence
around my garden that apparently keeps most critters out.
However, I made the mistake of leaving a box of freshly picked tomatoes out on the picnic table overnight. They were all eaten and there was a real mess left over.
Won't do that again.
Neither Russia nor China is our enemy.
Neither Iran nor Venezuela are threatening America.
Cuba is a dead horse, stop beating it.
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/snark
question everything
Blue pill?
Or red?
Neither Russia nor China is our enemy.
Neither Iran nor Venezuela are threatening America.
Cuba is a dead horse, stop beating it.
umm
green sounds better
red and blue or sooo passé
question everything
I just got yet another call from
some guy in India wanting to deliver my knee and back braces. My new response to "How are you today?" is, "Well, I was raised in a middle class family, mother fucker." He yells at me while I am hanging up the phone.
"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981
earthling2
now answers the spam calls with "FBI field office, how can I direct your call?
Click.
Neither Russia nor China is our enemy.
Neither Iran nor Venezuela are threatening America.
Cuba is a dead horse, stop beating it.
Obviously he deserves to be on trial at the Hauge!