# Started a Garden who has one?



## Urbanprepper666

So my son seen a commercial on TV to grow your own food and asked if we could to, I told him we could put a veggie garden in the backyard and he was very excited. trying our hand at growing produce was always something the wife and I discussed but just never got around to doing. I built a 8x4 box and dug about 5 inches deep (way to deep) and got some compost/soil mix to mix with the native soil in the yard (Which was a light cream color very sandy and filled with rocks. when I added this soil to the native soil to mix it, it stared to look really good but after I planted the box and watered it the next day you could see the native soil just sucked the life out of the mix I put in which made me concerned for the plants and such. I decided to build another 8x4 box this time not do any digging just place it on top of the ground and just use potting mix and plant almost the same things and monitor each boxes progress which ever one does better this year I will convert the other box next year.

if anyone has any suggestions tips or wants to share their gardening experience I would love the help. so far we have 3 different types of tomatoes, 4 types of sweet peppers, a hand full of herbs, strawberries, and stevia. anything else someone could recommend? what's in your gardens?


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## Salt-N-Pepper

Good job, congrats! I will let the wife (Spice) answer this one (she will be home later, she's off working out. We have raised box and traditional gardens.


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## RNprepper

I use raised beds that are 4 feet wide and as long as space permits. Double dig the ground (take off the top layer of soil and set aside. Dig and turn the next layer. Put the top layer back on, with compost dug in.) NEVER ever step again on that bed. You will compact the soil and make it harder for roots to grow. A four foot wide bed allows you to totally work the bed from either side without ever stepping on it. Each year I add a layer of compost and dig it in. I mulch around plants when the soil starts getting hot (we live in AZ), and I use a light mulch after seeding to hold moisture so there can be a good germination.


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## CWOLDOJAX

Excellent!

I am doing container gardening. Still growing in small steps. Last year 4 buckets, this year 8 buckets plus blueberry bushes.

Every time the grand-kids come over they want to visit the garden and see how its doing. 

I love their anticipation... it is an excited patience... some of us grown-ups could re-learn from them.


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## Medic33

everyone do the flop. seriously it's cool if your kids are involved my youngest heathen (he's6) woke up one day and asked if we could make a garden that we can eat( he's like his mom and almost a vegetarian) I said sure, and we did so fun, so cool, doing and watching the youngster learn. priceless.


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## dwight55

My garden is about 40 by 50 or thereabouts.

My rows are wide enough for me to cultivate it with a John Deere 850 tractor, . . . I also use it to hill the taters.

If I have to take a hoe to my garden, . . . it just ain't no fun for me any more. 

Perhaps when the stuff is dripping off the fan blades, . . . till then, . . . I'm a tractor gardener, . . . 

Tomatoes, peppers, taters, beans, corn, squash, punkins, beets, sunflowers, garlic, . . . and some other stuff I ain't found a name for yet.

May God bless,
Dwight


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## Urbanprepper666

yeah it turned out to be a great project my 17 year old and I had a blast building the box and absolutely hated the digging lol. my 5 year old and 2 year old jumped into the mess and pulled out roots and large rocks and debris that was turned up in the soil they got absolutely filthy and their mom hated it. my 5 year old went with me to home depot and lowes and picked out all the veggies he wanted to grow and the wife picked some herbs she likes to cook with and we were on our way. slightly concerned about the quality of this NJ native soil it just looks lifeless. on a funny note my neighbor looks over the fence every day and asks when will I have something for him lol I told him I can build him a 4x4 box with the left over wood he just laughs and walks away lol LAZY!


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## TacticalCanuck

If you don't garden your not prepping the way prepping was intended. Good on you keep it growing!


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## csi-tech

Corn, taters, squarsh, maters, cucumbers and a mess of weeds here. My tomatoes are going to rule this year. There will be an early meal of Yukon Gold mashed potatoes, green beans, ambrosia corn, venison roast in brown gravy and fried green tomatoes at the CSI household this year. All from the Lord to my table.


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## Medic33

that's cool Urbanprepper, about the only thing want to really get into is BEEs just not sure what t do with all the honey my neighbor has one hive and said he would teach me if I wanted but he gets like 9 gallons of honey a year and gives me half so I keep putting it off and procrastinating.


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## Farmboyc

Medic33 said:


> that's cool Urbanprepper, about the only thing want to really get into is BEEs just not sure what t do with all the honey my neighbor has one hive and said he would teach me if I wanted but he gets like 9 gallons of honey a year and gives me half so I keep putting it off and procrastinating.


Make mead. It takes awhile but it is the best use of honey IMO


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## Sasquatch

Good job on the garden. Just planted my first one this year. A lot of work but very rewarding.


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## redhawk

Congrats on starting to garden...I have been gardening for almost 50 years and I still enjoy it and am still learning...I have been composting for 30 years and it really makes a huge difference in my veggies and herbs...this year I have 2 raised beds, a traditional garden approx. 25 x 40 feet...I also have a few containers growing herbs and such. I have garlic, 2 types of potatoes, carrots, 5 types of tomatoes, 2 types of peppers, cabbage, sweet potatoes, and lima beans. I make my own compost and the soil is so "fluffy" and I use little to no fertilizer on my garden, if I do need to add fertilizer, I use blood mean and bone meal (trying to be organic).
Best of luck with your gardens and keep us updated on its progress,


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## Urbanprepper666

Didn't realize how many people had gardens so far. I am hoping for good results my kids are looking forward to some reward for their hard work. For those of you that have raised beds do you use native soul at all or use potting mix?


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## hardcore

I have 2 raised gardens. in one I have 8 tomatoes plants, 4 different strains. the other ..8 pepper plants, 4 different strains. the beds are 4x8. and some onion tops in containers. I throw in my rabbit droppings into the beds and around my fruit trees. 

I use a soil we have around here called pooyie. it"s made from stall waste from a old horse barn that's been decompose for many years...holds moisture well.


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## tinkerhell

congratulations and best of wishes to you.

I, too, am getting into gardening. I have alot to do to build the garden beds and various structures, so I plan to work through the summer. I'm not going to worry about a late planting this year, i'll be on time next year.


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## Mule13

theres a product called black cow, its a cow manure compost mix, i mix it into my regular soil(sand basically).that got me going. afterwards i piled leaves and horse manure i got free from a horse farm near me.im 50 years old and have gardened all my life that i can remember.i still have problems, but i love to garden lol. i live in the ocala national forest. the bugs here are outrageous.i have my whole 1 acre yard made into garden beds. if i want a plant, i plant about 10 plants. the bugs eat at least half usually more of them. my goats eat the other half lol.anyway i get a few things my green beans are going crazy. id suggest you plant them they really grow good(easy to grow) my corn is being eaten alive by worms and grass hoppers.i have several types of tomatoes.the smaller cherry tomatoes are already making ripe fruit?  once you get going look into permaculture,very interesting.also look into heirloom seeds. with heirloom seeds you can save your own seeds to plant the next year from what you grew the year before. i usually grow a mix of some heirloom and some hybrids. there a tomatoe callled celebrity, its a hybrid, but it grows here in Florida super fast and makes pretty good sized fruit. by the time its burnt out my cherokee purple and other heirloom maters are starting to produce. another good easy to grow is the romas,very prolific.starting out id say try some green beans and romas they do pretty good .that way you see results and the young ones dont get bored and give up on it. also fresh green beans are delicious.as a prepper i think the heirloom seeds are very important.
sorry i wrote a book lol i get excited about gardens. also youtube has tons of stuff on gardens especially permaculture gardens


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## Mad Trapper

Have had the same garden > 50 years, got it from my parents. Topsoil is > 4 ft deep, we put a water line through it and never hit subsoil. 

I till it with a 2-bottom plow and springer harrow, using a 9N ford. Put cow/horse poop and stove ashes on it every year. Coop extension says nothing needed for the soil or pH. It is bigger than some house lots.

We had a very late spring and now in a drought. I collect rain water and as soon as the snow left the rain did to.

We grow: 4 types potato, 3 types carrots, 2 types beets, turnips, acorn squash, butternut squash, yellow squash, pumpkins, blue hubbard, zhuchinni, 3 types of cucumbers, string beans, kentucky wonder and scarlet runner pole beans, 4 type of sweet corn, 5 types of tomato, 5 types of pepper, spinach, 2 types broccoli, 3 types lettuce, 4 types cabbage, brussel sprouts, garlic, leeks, onions, basil, oregano, thyme, sage, rosemary, asparagus, horseradish, rhubarb.

Also a few orchards with many cultivars, 3 grape arbors, mullberry trees, elderberries, blue (7 types) black rasp-berries.

In the woods we also have acorns, hickory, butternut, walnut, hazelnut. Hen of the woods, chicken mushroom, boletes, and morel mushrooms as well as ginseng grow wild too.


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## Spice

Great start!

My raised beds are 1/3 compost, 1/3 vermiculite (a very light form of mineral, doesn't break down but lightens the soil), 1/3 a cellulose material (I started with peat but now use the output of the paper shredder). You wouldn't need the vermiculite with a sandy soil, we're all clay. It sounds like you've made a good beginning; I'd suggest adding compost as time goes on. Straw would be a good start right now; you put it around the plants you've put in and it discourages weeds and holds moisture, and keeps the soil cooler when the summer sun gets vicious. Over time the straw disintegrates and improves the soil.

If you have rabbits you may need a fence. I'd have zero garden left without fences.

Check the plants often - it takes little time. If you see damage, try and see what's doing it so Professor Google can help you out.

If you keep herbs in their own space, either in a separate bed or at one end of the garden, you can let them go to seed and not take them out when they dry up in the fall. I've had most types come back the next year on their own. You can also freeze the herbs when they're abundant and have fresh herbs for winter cooking, which is pretty lovely.

Happy growing!


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## Slippy

We love to garden and we have added new beds almost every year. Its one activity that I can do safely while consuming massive amounts of alcohol. As I've posted before, Mrs Slippy discourages me from using the chainsaw while drinking. 

I'm a raised bed gardener and Mrs S likes to tend a larger plot in the cold cold ground. She uses very little fertilizer, weed or bug control. I think the term is orgasmic or some such nonsense. I think that means going natural and not adding fertilizer and stuff. Her larger garden has no soil additives and she relies on a creek or rainfall for moisture. 

Me, I prefer raised beds because I don't have to bend over as much and can rest a tall glass of bourbon on the shelf and not risk it spilling. I don't mind fillin' up the bed of my truck at the local landscape/garden supply with rich composted garden soil and add it to my raised beds as needed. Same with fertilizers, weed control and pest control, Chemical Man, that's my nickname. But I do catch some rainwater and water my beds with it regularly so I guess that counts as being "green" or some such nonsense. 

Some of the stuff in our gardens are from seed that we save or buy...and some veggies we buy as plants. In addition to wood built raised beds, we also use 6' long stock tanks as raised beds. I get to shoot holes in them, (safety first, no drinking during this process) then fill them up with my own soil concoction. Usually a base of gravel and sand, then some hay or straw, then grass clippings then some rich composted garden soil. Sometimes I'll pick up some wood shavings and gypsum dust and sprinkle into the beds...whatever I think may work. Then each winter I'll grow some clover or some type of winter flower or grass that will die off in the spring and I just turn back into the soil. Every now and then that backfires on me so be careful.

Gardening Slippy Style!


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## paraquack

Congrats. Try to keep the enthusiasm in your boy. He's off to a good start.


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## kevincali

No garden this year. House could sell at any time. But I plan on having an acre garden where I'm going!


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## Urbanprepper666

I thank everyone for their advice trust me I am going to follow. Next step is to monitor the bed one with native soil and finish constructing bed two with purely potting mix since it's later in the season I'll be planting it with well started plants. Next year I hope to start everything from seeds. A neighbor of mine says he never starts with seeds has no luck so always starts with very young plants cheapest you can buy ( according to him ) and he does very well he mostly does tomatoes


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## Spice

I tried tomatoes from seed for the first time and found it surprisingly easy. When I ate heirloom varieties last season, I rubbed the gel off a few seeds, let them air dry, and put them in a ziplock in the dark. This spring I put them in starter mix. When they were up I and it was past frost I put in Way Too Many tiny plants. Many died, leaving me now growing up some very respectable looking growers. They started out far more puny than the ones I bought as plants, but they grew better once in the ground and it's about a tie now. We'll see what happens; can't hope for tomatoes here until fourth of July at best.


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## paraquack

My mom would take the pulp with the seeds and spread it out on
some newspaper to dry and then stored by folding it up.

My garden is done for the year already. Ripped out the last of the 
tomato plants yesterday. Will replant in Sept/Oct depending on temp.


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## PaulS

When we moved from Seattle three years ago we were way too busy to plant a garden the first year but we did try a few plants that we bought starts for.. Our second year we planted a small garden to see what would grow and what we wanted to expand. This year we started early with planting seeds from the crop two years ago and seeds from the store and some potato starts. We have strawberries that are already being harvested, three rows of potatoes (5 plants per row) of three different types - to find out which will be the producers, Yams and sweet potatoes (8 per row), Onions, garlic, cantaloupe, tomatoes ( Roma and beef steak), a grain crop which replaces rice without the need for all that water, and built and installed the first raised bed. (the first of 24) 
As we find what produces the best results we will be installing new raised beds and plant "permanent" crops in them. (remembering that the crops will have to be rotated to keep the soil good and the bugs and other hazards to a minimum)
I need to finish my shop and garage and then start building compost/worm farms to make the fertilizer for the garden and the worms can be used to get fish and as additional protein for emergency diet. (ground worms make a lean ground beef substitute)


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## Slippy

PaulS brings up a very good point about Crop Rotation. Attached is a link to the Oldest Known Crop Rotation Experiment at Auburn University. The experiment began in 1896 and continues today. Below is the first paragraph from the link. Not only have I seen this experiment, as a starving student, I helped harvest and eat some of the food grown on site way back when students paid their own way for an education...and it meant something.

"Old Rotation"
c. 1896

The "Old Rotation"(c. 1896) is the oldest continuous cotton experiment in the world and the third oldest field crop experiment on the same site in the United States. This rotation also includes rotations with corn, soybean, and small grains. It was placed on the National Register of Historical Places in 1988.

The "Old Rotation"was one of the first experiments to demonstrate and document the value of rotating cotton with other crops and including nitrogen-restoring legumes in the system. Information from this test provided evidence that rotation with legumes could sustain and actually improve yields of cotton and corn in Alabama soils. Data from this experiment have been the source of numerous scientific, popular, and educational publications on cotton production and soil fertility. Because only minor changes have been made in the cropping systems, it continues to document the effect of these systems on productivity, soil and environmental quality, and sustainable agriculture. The "Old Rotation" consists of 6 cropping systems in 13 plots on 1 acre of a Pacolet fine sandy loam on the campus of Auburn University.

Old Rotation


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## PaulS

Yes! but you also need to put your crops in different places to confuse the bugs and germs that attack specific plants. Slippy, the idea of using legumes to enrich the soil is a valid one and legumes make great soups - full of flavor and protein! I personally don't care for soy beans and peanuts wouldn't survive in this area with all the crows but the smaller legumes are great in most growing climates. I'll have to put that on the list!


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## Urbanprepper666

Hey everyone! just wanted to give the board a update on my first garden since we put in the first 8x4 raised bed mixed with native soil and miracle grow we planted 3 times of tomato's 4 kinds of bell peppers stevia basil cilantro oregano parsley and a jalapeno plants. over the last few weeks and the tons of rain we had here in jersey the garden took off faster then I ever thought it would and a few things I have learned for next time. A) do not plant tomato's and herbs together the Tomato's over run everything. the strawberries we planted are constantly attacked by birds but they started producing a lot so the kids were able to pick them. I have tons of green tomato's and peppers are starting to come in. I truly am in complete shock at how much is producing off just 8x4 veggie box. I been slacking on getting the second 8x4 box in and thinking of a 4x4 box for herbs alone. for anyone who hasn't started a garden and always wanted to I say hey just do it. it took some work ( yard was a real mess ) but to see the kids how excited they are to go harvest its very rewarding plus the few cherry tomato's we gotten were delicious! oh and I have a critter that ripped up one of our pepper plants and ate some herbs but other then that not to shabby! ill try to get a few pictures up soon.


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## Stick

Green stuff typically dies in my presence. Live in the desert and can't grow cactus. Last year my aloe vera died. Two years running I've tried tomatoes in five gallon buckets, for a total of five of the smallest beefsteaks I ever saw. This year I bought some commercial garden soil, stuck that in the buckets, and added three little tomato plants, along with some tomato plant food (Miracle Gro). Something ate one of them. The other two are looking pretty good, no fruit yet, but real bushy with trunks as thick as my thumb, growing over the top of the tomato cages. A couple onions that were sprouting that I threw in another bucket are looking OK as well. And something, I don't know what but I suspect potatoes, is going great guns out of a compost pile. Next year I'm going to plan a little better, as this success so far has me a little revved up for more.


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## James m

I have a dozen green tomatoes of varying sizes. Some big some small. Waiting on them to turn red.


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## Urbanprepper666

I have about 15-20 cherry tomatos waiting to turn red and a few beef steak and big boys waiting n boy can't I wait lol. Does everyone keep the same veggies going spring to fall or do they switch them up?


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## OctopusPrime

I mainly grow herbs since only have a porch...apartment living ESH


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## Slippy

We have multiple "raised beds" and stagger the planting of many of our plants. For example when one tomato plant stops producing, the others are beginning. 

One thing that we noticed this year vs last, our tomato and pepper yield is way up and our cucumber and squash yield is way down. We planted the same number of plants of each as we did last year in about the same areas of the garden. Same fertilizer and probably same amount of water. I have no idea why? Anybody?


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## Auntie

Lack of pollinators?


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## Slippy

Auntie said:


> Lack of pollinators?


We've seen plenty of bees so I don't think thats the problem. The soil is the same, the locations are pretty close. The only thing that is different is the cucumbers and squash get watered via a drip system that I've "Slippy-Rigged" from the condensation pipe of my HVAC system. I wonder if there is some mineral or pollutant in the condensation water that I collect from the A/C?


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## OctopusPrime

Slippy said:


> We have multiple "raised beds" and stagger the planting of many of our plants. For example when one tomato plant stops producing, the others are beginning.
> 
> One thing that we noticed this year vs last, our tomato and pepper yield is way up and our cucumber and squash yield is way down. We planted the same number of plants of each as we did last year in about the same areas of the garden. Same fertilizer and probably same amount of water. I have no idea why? Anybody?


My guess first guess is temperature. I grew habaneros, jalapenos, and serrano in Houston when I lived there and they all loved the heat. But it could also be the seeds themselves. What type of seed do you use? Were all the seeds the same age?


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## PaulS

Temperature, humidity, soil contaminants left by last years crops - all of it comes into play. Remember that temperature is real important in buckets - High temps will cook the roots! You can bury the buckets to keep the roots cooler.


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## Slippy

OctopusPrime said:


> My guess first guess is temperature. I grew habaneros, jalapenos, and serrano in Houston when I lived there and they all loved the heat. But it could also be the seeds themselves. What type of seed do you use? Were all the seeds the same age?


Good questions,
Some of the plants were from last years seeds and some were store bought seedlings. We have to do a better job of labeling what we plant and from what seed stores we have. We do like to supplement with store bought plants and that may come into play. Like PaulS mentions, soil temps are critical too and the cucumbers that are not producing catch the western sun directly which may be the reason.

If there is one "prep" we have to work on, its ORGANIZATION, DAMNIT!

Thanks all


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## Leeroy Jenkins

Here's a link to my garden. Its primarily a bucket garden. I built a wooden structure that resembles bleachers and placed the buckets on it. This was so each plant would get full sun and not get blocked out. I have a drip irrigation system installed with an Add It Fertilizer injector from dripworks. The garden and buckets don't use much water. I'd say in 2 months I have only used about 200 gallons for 48 buckets and a 5x5 raised bed of 3 Sisters.

I have growing 6 beefsteaks,8 cherry tomato,2 romas,6 ground cherries, 6 broccoli,6 Brussel sprouts, lettuces and spinach, a bunch of squash,6 snow pe as, 6 bush beans,29 stalks of corn,60 pole beans,pumpkins and spaghetti squash. A bunch of different pepper's and carrots too.. There's more that I'm forgetting.

Its kind of an experiment to see what grows well and what doesnt. Some plants will be culled out.

http://s427.photobucket.com/user/The_Donovans/slideshow/Garden?sort=3


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## Auntie

Slippy, I was perusing the web this morning and ran across this article and thought about your question. I hope this helps http://midatlanticgardening.com/reader-question-squash-plants-not-producing-fruit/


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## Leeroy Jenkins

Auntie said:


> Slippy, I was perusing the web this morning and ran across this article and thought about your question. I hope this helps http://midatlanticgardening.com/reader-question-squash-plants-not-producing-fruit/


Good article....I'm very cautious as to how much fertilizer I use. Typically I only use Tomato Tone, Dr Earth and Fish emulsion at 1/2 the recommendation ended dosage.. If my nitrogen is low I take Blood meal and boil it down to dissolve. Then I side dress the roots with a weak mix of the blood meal, compost tea and water.


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## Slippy

Auntie said:


> Slippy, I was perusing the web this morning and ran across this article and thought about your question. I hope this helps http://midatlanticgardening.com/reader-question-squash-plants-not-producing-fruit/


That was an excellent article Auntie and I think that is what our problem was. Thank you much!


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## Auntie

Starbucks is good for something and that is free coffee grounds. You just walk in and ask them for some and they will give you a bag full.

Fertilizing Plants With Coffee Grounds and Eggshells | Home Guides | SF Gate



> Coffee grounds are an excellent free source of nitrogen, an element all plants need. A common misconception about coffee grounds as a fertilizer is that it may cause problems because of high acidity. But coffee grounds are close to neutral, with a pH between 6.5 and 6.8, making them a good choice for all plants. Each type of plant will prefer a different amount of coffee, so start small by adding 1 tablespoon of coffee grounds around each plant, lightly working it into the soil once a week. Observe how your plants react and add more each week until they stop showing signs of improvement.


I have used them for years in my gardens. Acid loving plants like azaleas and pine trees flourish with a few doses of coffee grounds.


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## James m

Now I have flowers on the green pepper plants.


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## TacticalCanuck

I have a small garden where i grow tomatoes onions squash carrots kale cucumbers and sunflowers. 

Its a family activity my daughter loves to participate.


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## Urbanprepper666

My 2 year old came out with me to water the garden and decided he wanted cherry tomatos and strawberries for a snack, I let him pick a handful and he was ecstatic! The excitement and seeing how proud he was made the garden worth it in it's self.y 5 year old often goes searching for strawberries too they try to get the ripe ones before the birds do lol.


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## PCH5150

It seems like by the time our tomatoes are ripening, they have already begun to "split". However green beans and various peppers we will be stocked up with for months!


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## Slippy

PCH5150 said:


> It seems like by the time our tomatoes are ripening, they have already begun to "split". However green beans and various peppers we will be stocked up with for months!


One theory on "Splitting Tomatoes" is inconsistent watering. We try and water daily and provide a nice bed of mulch around the tomato plants. My local landscape supply has something called Conditioned Garden Soil that still has some larger chunks of bark mulch in it. I buy that by the pickup truckload. You can also mulch with pine straw since you're in TN.


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## Urbanprepper666

Iv noticed some of the cherry tomatos split on occasion what's that a cause from? Waiting on beef steak and big boy tomatos still


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## Slippy

Urbanprepper666 said:


> Iv noticed some of the cherry tomatos split on occasion what's that a cause from? Waiting on beef steak and big boy tomatos still


If you let the soil dry out then a huge rainstorm hits, most tomatoes will split. Try putting bark mulch around the plants and water daily a good amount but not over saturate. Also, sprinkle Epson Salts around tomato plants, it really gives them a boost and strengthens the stalks.


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## PCH5150

Slippy said:


> One theory on "Splitting Tomatoes" is inconsistent watering. We try and water daily and provide a nice bed of mulch around the tomato plants. My local landscape supply has something called Conditioned Garden Soil that still has some larger chunks of bark mulch in it. I buy that by the pickup truckload. You can also mulch with pine straw since you're in TN.


Thanks for the input. It has rained here almost every day for two weeks, so much so that we have standing water in the back yard during the storms. Today is clear skies thankfully. Perhaps too much water?


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## Urbanprepper666

Great info we water daily unless it rains we don't have mulch in the garden but I been wanting to put some in. Does anyone add worms to their garden beds?


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## PCH5150

Slippy said:


> If you let the soil dry out then a huge rainstorm hits, most tomatoes will split. Try putting bark mulch around the plants and water daily a good amount but not over saturate. Also, sprinkle Epson Salts around tomato plants, it really gives them a boost and strengthens the stalks.


Thanks, that sounds like exactly our problem. It was hot as blazes for two weeks here, then torrential storms for a week straight. No wonder all the tomatoes split open. I will give the Epson salt a try!


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## Slippy

PCH5150 said:


> Thanks, that sounds like exactly our problem. It was hot as blazes for two weeks here, then torrential storms for a week straight. No wonder all the tomatoes split open. I will give the Epson salt a try!


One more thing; To increase tomato yield, prune the leaves and branches on the low part of the stalk. All they do is take up valuable nutrients and if tomatoes grow on the branch, they tend to droop and rest in the soil making them susceptible to rot and insects. (The Low Hanging Fruit concept). So next year if you plant from seeds, wait until you get some substantial branches then start pruning the lower branches and leaves.

If you buy tomatoe seedling plants, prune the lower branches prior to planting or shortly there after. Same concept for peppers and others. You want to Grow Fruit and Veggies, not leaves!


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## slewfoot

Down here our gardening time is the winter months. To hot, to many bugs, and way to much humidity in the summer months for gardening. we have cleared an area in the woods behind us and put a fence high enough to keep the rabbits out. Will plant veggies starting in November.
The only thing I am harvesting right now is pineapples. Have picked 10 this week,cut up and into the freezer.


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## Slippy

slewfoot said:


> Down here our gardening time is the winter months. To hot, to many bugs, and way to much humidity in the summer months for gardening. we have cleared an area in the woods behind us and put a fence high enough to keep the rabbits out. Will plant veggies starting in November.
> The only thing I am harvesting right now is pineapples. Have picked 10 this week,cut up and into the freezer.


I've never grown pineapples, that would be interesting but I suppose you need to be in S Florida, S Texas or Hawaii of course. I've got two lemon trees but the darn things need to come indoors in the winter and don't produce lemons but every other year.


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## James m

Slippy if you want to grow Pineapple get a few from the grocery store and put the top in a pot, make it a potted plant, take is in when there is bad weather or cold. They make good houseplants and even better conversation pieces. I think it will take 2 years till it gives fruit. I have one but it needs a new pot.


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## slewfoot

James m said:


> Slippy if you want to grow Pineapple get a few from the grocery store and put the top in a pot, make it a potted plant, take is in when there is bad weather or cold. They make good houseplants and even better conversation pieces. I think it will take 2 years till it gives fruit. I have one but it needs a new pot.


Yep about two years. That's how I started now I have 20 plants growing. Replant the top after harvest. most pineapples will grow slips out the side, some people refer to them as suckers but you break them off and stick them in the ground and keep moist for a couple weeks and you have a new plant. Some times I get 3-4 slips off one plant.
Slippy we have 1 orange tree, 1 lemon tree, 1 lime tree, and one peach tree. Give a lot of fruit away.


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