OT - Garden Report

I think winter has finally departed central VA. All the Irish potatoes, spring onions, broccoli, cabbage & lettuce are in the ground. Started laying up the tomato rows today but ran out of mulching plastic. Got the plastic down in the raised beds. And, Bambi has been visiting, so I put the "deer guards" over the lettuce.

Anyone else got a garden going yet?Colin, I know you have yours going in the green house! Hobo, dried out enough to plant?

Looks really good, Bruce! My soil is a bit heavy, but I finally got it broken up last week; nothing planted; seeds ready. More rain tonight thru Tuesday will set me back at least a week. It's OK, the soil will be much warmer in late April.

Taters are popping through the slight crust on the ground. Rain tonight and tomorrow should make them jump.
Richard in NW SC

Snow is off the fields.
Still a bit wet for tractors though!

Joe in maine

Grounds too wet here in St. Louis area after 6" of rain Friday. Supposed to get more here tonight. Spent most of yesterday putting my drive back together.

That is very purty. I need to send my 8N up to you for some "gardening training". Mine seems to wander quite a bit and the rows are never straight, as yours are...lol I can't even draw a straight line much less plow one! :shock:

Looks great, Bruce! I'm looking forward to seeing some green growing.

What is in the beds with the wooden 4x4 timbers around the perimeter?

Snow is melted in the field and I was actually able to drive down there yesterday. Warm weather all week might bring the frost out of the ground.

We have lots of plants seeded in trays and most are up. We'll seed melons in a couple of weeks.

We're maple sugaring now. It's been a strange season with very little sap run to-date.

Colin

Colin, nothing in the beds yet, but I'll have squash in one & cukes in the other. I trellis the cukes to keep them off the ground. And, all the litter out of the chicken coop goes in those beds! No, the veggies don't taste like chicken....

This was the potatoes 8 days ago. Once it stops raining (again) I will go and mound the dirt on them since they are now about 10" tall.... Looking forward to seeing how the 'hiller' that I built works in real life conditions!!



It worked good during practice back in the fall.....

My potatoes are up, about 4 inches. Peas were mostly breaking through this morning before the rain. But I think (hope) that I hit it right yesterday, I planted 14 rows of Silver Queen and it rained about 1.5 inches today. That should be just right. I don't have any power or irrigation at that field, so I have to rely on the Man above to bless me. I haven't had a good stand of corn in 3 years down here in South GA. Either too wet or too dry at the wrong times. I do wish that I had a camera yesterday to record me using my poor-man's tiller with my 8N in 3rd gear! Nice soil lay, just right for the Covington planter.

I had hoped to get the cucumbers, yellow crook-necks and zucchini seeded today, but my kids did not want to go outside today in the rain!

Jimps in GA.

Bruce, When you have it trellised, I would really like to see a photo of your set-up, if you don't mind.

Do you sell your eggs, or are they for home use only?

Colin

I did not plow up my taters last year maybe they will come up on there own... No tater pickers came to the tater pick'n so I left them in the ground... It would be a week before I can plant anything if it stays dry... I just put this on external_link..

OK all you fresh vegetable nutz I have the corn field plowed corn will go in the ground in the next week are two... I need a bag of Kandy corn seed, 2 bags of 10-10-10 fertilizer A bottle of animal insect spray are liquid seven dust5 gal. of gas... You can pick all you want I will tend to it... That is after miss Gunter (Bert) get hers she never picks that much... BTW way pray for rain when it tassels so I can get the ammonia nitrate to it are all we will have is nub's There's no irrigation in thios field.

Whoops for got the other pix... BTW for those that do there pic'n at the grocery store you miss out on hearing the corn grow... Yep it talks to ya... No BS... I like to grow corn why cuzz I am the tractor driver you get to cultivate the ell out of it...

I have had all the tractor driving I can handle for awhile... I had a few acres cut this fall and been drag'n out the tree tops and limbs all week end my neck is sore...

I did make a run with a bud I sold my prized 8N to to buy some equipment this morn... I left this behind dunno why but I mite go back and get it... Other than a plow point broke its in new condition... A collectors dream... I should have got it for the parts... Yep $150 and no wear no were not even the furrow wheel... I am sorta sick rite now thinking about it...

Planted potatoes about a week ago. the ground was a tad wet but I did it anyway. Be Platin cabbage peas and carrots this week if things go right.

Spokane, where I live, got some peculiar cold last winter. Been nice for a month, dried out almost. Supposed to hit 60 Tuesday.

I would not have thought you would have left that plow behind.

Bruce,
Plowing in central Minnesota has been a constant since November-snow! Checked with my brother in NE Minnesota and they had "four feet" of snow this winter. He said there is still about 2 feet on the ground.
I have too many trees around my home so I will check to see what stage the farmers market people are in, more than likely green houses Good to see someone has green around the yard!
Mr. T. Minnesota

Here you go Colin.

When I set the plants, (usually 4/15 ) I cover the "trellis" w/ Remax. Keeps them warm. I take it off after a few weeks.

The "trellis" is left over ends of cattle fencing.

We just keep the chickens for us; way too many vendors at our market selling eggs. And besides, backyard chickens are pretty popular around here.

Nifty! I would imagine this keeps the cukes cleaner. Do you have to train the vines to keep them on the trellis?

Chickens are really nice to have around the place, but I agree with you...eggs are overly plentiful and under-valued. They're easy for the hobbyist to raise and the hobbyist isn't concerned about covering expenses & labor.

Colin

Most of the snow is gone here.
About the only place I have any left is the garden. :shock:
Still about 6" of it setting there. It will be gone by this weekend.
No way I'll get a tractor out there though. Too muddy.
Maybe by end of April?

" Do you have to train the vines to keep them on the trellis? "

Yes, I pull the vine up on top of the trellis.