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Old 05-01-20, 02:58 PM  
LAC
 
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Join Date: Apr 2006
Vegetable gardening anyone?

When I was growing up my mom and my grandfather each had huge vegetable gardens. My mom also did a ton of canning, kept a flock of chickens, and later on raised and milked goats.

I've never had a garden of my own. Actually, I've never even been able to keep a houseplant alive... But with all that is happening in the world, the idea of doing something self-sustaining has been floating in mind.

I'm kicking around the idea of trying something on a small scale. I don't want to get in over my head, planting something I don't have time to maintain. My mom was a stay at home mom, but I have a full time job. She's gone now, so I can't go to her for advice.

If you are a gardener, what tips would you share? How big is your garden, how much time and effort does it require, what do you plant?

Just so that this post is on topic, I noticed that my mom used to spend a lot of time squatting while she pulled weeds and picked beans. I think that counts as exercise
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Old 05-01-20, 03:25 PM  
sbh
 
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Oh yes, gardening counts as exercise!! We plant a veggie and flower garden every year. The one thing I would recommend is a drip system on a timer, if you are doing a large area. If you have a full time job, that can really save you a lot of time. Just make sure to check each plant on the drip occasionally to make sure it is getting enough water. We have a very small yard and pack everything we can into it. We do some planting directly into the ground and we have a few raised beds as well. I still have butternut squash from last year. We are growing tomatoes, bell peppers, parsley, cilantro, basil, thyme, rosemary, zucchini, hot peppers, canteloupe, aloe vera, kale, butternut squash, and a ton of different flowers. I would suggest starting with a few vegetable transplants instead of seed. Feel free to pm me if you have any questions. I'd be glad to help you out.
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Old 05-01-20, 05:59 PM  
bee
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The other thing about a drip system..... if you have a lot of minerals in your water, they clog. We learned that the hard way. We've had a fairly large garden in the past, but it was "engineered" and mostly maintained by our friends who know about gardening. We've gone a couple of years with no garden, because my husband and I are not very confident in our non-green thumbs, but this year we are trying. So far we have only planted tomato starts. I'm sorry I don't really have any better advice than this -- I'm learning as I go.
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Old 05-01-20, 07:42 PM  
YetAnotherDeb
 
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Location: Eastern Oklahoma
How about trying a few potted plants to see if gardening appeals to you? I don't have much space so I usually do a few herbs (oregano, thyme, rosemary, and basil), a tomato or two (usually grape tomatoes), and a bucketload of peppers such as jalapeņos and serrano. Peppers are fun because they produce like crazy. I freeze them and use them throughout the year.

Not exactly the sustaining garden you are looking for, but it's a start.

ETA: after planting I have to pull the random weed from my pots, but it's mostly watering and harvesting. Fresh herbs are yummy!
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Old 05-01-20, 08:35 PM  
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Location: New Jersey
YADeb, I was thinking about something like what you describe. I was thinking tomatoes, bell peppers, sweet potatoes, squash, and herbs. It's the veggies I eat the most. I have no idea what I'm doing. I would definitely have to plant in pots, as have NO idea what I'm doing and planting in pots seems safest. Or maybe I should just start with what's easiest? Big Bubble knows all about gardening vegetables, but won't help. He was raised on a farm and doesn't want anything to do with it lol!

LAC, thanks for asking the question.
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Old 05-01-20, 09:47 PM  
KarenJo
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Location: Central Valley, California
My main advice would be if you're just starting to do just a little bit, like 3 or 4 plants, and pick the easiest and most productive things. I currently have a small space so I planted 3 different cherry/grape tomatoes and a lemon cucumber. I'll add basil when I can get a couple of plants and some cutting flower sunflowers and zinnias from seed I already have. If I didn't have a weekly farm veggie box and a sister next door with a big vegetable garden, I'd do some kind of summer squash - zucchini, yellow crookneck or straight. I have a small trough of lettuce and arugula in the shade right now, but it won't last into the warm weather. I'll seed some cutting baby lettuce in that in late summer/early fall, depending on weather.

Be aware that vegetable plants are like dumbbells right now in many places. Everyone is home and thinking a Victory Garden is a good idea. For most of the country it's too late to start things from seed. Here in the foothills of California we're usually still cool at night so next week would be veggie planting time, but we had an early warm spell so there has been a run on the nurseries.

Also, when you're talking about pots, think REALLY big. A minimum of 5 gallon. A tomato, cucumber or summer squash would prefer something the size of a half wine barrel. Or a galvanized water trough with holes drilled in the bottom for a couple of plants. It will take a lot of potting soil to fill the container and you'll want to add some vegetable fertilizer for an early boost. Water daily. If you just have three big tubs, that's not too hard to do. If you have the space for planting in the ground, that's actually easier. Add compost from a bag and some veggie fertilizer and make sure you have a spot with enough elbow room and a half day or more of sun. Many tomatoes and cucumber will need to be staked.

Potatoes of any kind are not beginner. You buy starter potatoes to cut up and plant in hills, which will already be long gone and come in lots of too many for a small garden. And they're a bit finicky. Peppers are really sensitive to cool nights, so don't plant too early. Green bean - bush type - are fun and pretty productive but they'll look really ratty when it gets hot and stop producing so pull them out then.

Growing vegetables will probably cost you more than you think it will and be more work. They'll take longer to produce than you expect. But it's surprisingly exciting and rewarding to cook and serve food you grew yourself.
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Old 05-01-20, 11:59 PM  
LAC
 
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Some interesting and good ideas here, thank you!

With regard to the drip irrigation thing, we do have problem water - lots and lots of minerals. So that might be a no go.

I like the container gardening suggestion, that might be where I need to start this year and see how it goes. My brother owns a thrift store and accumulates all kinds of odd things, I might have to give him a call and see if he has anything that would work.

I'll also have to check and see what I can get for plants. I'm in upstate NY. It's a little too early I think to plant outside yet, so I maybe I can still find starter plants if if I'm lucky.

So much to think about!
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Old 05-02-20, 09:21 AM  
summer breeze
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We have a small vegetable garden, tomatoes, basil and parsley. DH does it though, I'm not that knowledgeable. It is a lot of work, I do know that, but there's nothing like those fresh Jersey tomatoes . He usually doesn't plant until the second half of May, the nights are still too cool here. I just reminded him to buy the plants soon after reading this thread .
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Old 05-02-20, 09:40 AM  
ardnas
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
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Growing up we had a huge garden and I always wanted a large organic garden. I felt too intimidated to ever really try, so I only had flower gardens the past 7yrs or so.

Last year I decided to just go for it & go big. I did not read anything, did not listen to anyone. I bought organic starter plants from a local grower and planted at the very end of May. Yes, I probably planted some things too close together, but most things worked out well. I did not fertilize or use compost, just filled the beds with organic vegetable garden soil. I started with 3 4x4 raised beds in my yard and a tall raised box for herbs & greens on the patio for a salad bar. I started with 2 trellis in the back bed, but ended up adding 2 more. I hand watered everything by feel.

In the back beds I planted: mariachi, bell, & poblano peppers, green beans, 3 types cucumbers, 5 zucchini plants (this alone fed much of my family & the neighborhood all Summer! - we had so much we also donated to shelters - I didn't know they produce so much so often), purple fingerling potatoes, yellow & red onions, chives, broccoli, cabbage, 6 types lettuce, collard greens, sweet mini watermelon, winter squash, butternut squash, spinach, eggplant, 2 types carrots, okra, marigolds.

In the salad bar: 6 types lettuce, arugula, swiss chard, spinach, 2 types kale, basil, dill, thyme.

The only thing that did not produce were the onions. And everything crowded & shaded the okra so we only had 2 flowers/pods. I ended up getting rid of the broccoli, cabbage, and collards after a few harvests since they brought huge cabbage worms that were faster than I could manage -and really just so disgusting. The first watermelon split after heavy rain, but eventually produced 3. The potatoes filled a big basket. I did not break up soil so my carrots were strangely shaped with one monster one. While I bought shades for the lettuce, I never used them since I picked leaves almost daily nothing ever burned in the sun. Things were growing so well they overflowed the garden, covered 4 4' trellis and grew into the walkways around and into the grass. I also had to add supports or cradles for the watermelon, peppers, squash, and eggplant.

This year I'm not going to plant onions, cabbage, broccoli, collards, okra, thyme (didn't know you had to dry it), less lettuce & zuchini, try corn, sunflowers, & other things, and add more peppers, beans, eggplant. In the future I'd like to add more beds and grow even more! I want to get a small greenhouse and grow from seeds.

My advice: just go for it and learn from your mistakes. The raised beds can be pricey, but I only spent $100 on plants and they fed us and others all Summer & Fall+. I made so many zoodle dishes, zucchini fritters, zucchini bread, salads, eggplant parm, soups, stews, casseroles, pickles, curries. I love getting up early and harvesting and then cooking fresh food!
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Old 05-02-20, 10:01 AM  
BunnyHop
 
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The other day I read an article about how to figure out what to grow when you don't really know much about the process. Not so much low commitment, but stuff that will produce food you want to eat. The author was giving their advice based on their personal experiences as a not-experienced gardener.

I've hunted in my browser but can't find the link.

Anybody else read something similar?
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