Garden Thread
- Thread starter IschKabibble
- Start date
Sorry to hear about the $100k claim. Really I am. Fucked up.
And honestly it's the least of my worries atm.
I doubt any of us can help, but let us know if we can.
Serious question from an idiot wanna be gardner.
How do you know when underground veggies are "ready"?. Carrots, radishes, potatoes, etc.
They have a set amount of days until they are mature...usually
Can just pull one and take a look at the progress
Or just pull back a little of the top soil and feel how the thick solid size is progressing
Radish are easy because they bulb up at the surface, so you can see them.
![20230418_184045[1].jpg](https://tmmacattach.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/data/attachments/85/85643-33983b0d36f245037535eb3d675d03ff.jpg "20230418_184045[1].jpg")
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Carrots are completely different. It is a guessing game, but if you grow the same types, you dial in when they are ready based on time of year, and how long they've been growing. You can stick your finger into the soil at the base of the greens and feel around with your finger to gauge the head size and that should give you an idea how whether they are ready. I can assure you not to trust the time stated on the labels of the packaging though.
I've never grown potatoes, but I've watch videos from people that do and I believe they wait until the greens are dying and then they are ready. Someone correct me if that is incorrect.
This is my favorite type of lettuce called prizehead. Unreal flavor. Bad example of the plant but the one that is regrowing in the bottom left kind of choked it out.
This is my second favorite, black seeded Simpson.
Third favorite is a romaine variety called freckles or speckled trout. More nutritious than normal romaine due to the anthocyanins.
I don't rank anything outside my top 3, but this is ruby leaf.
Grand rapids
Obviously gardening and growing your own food makes sense. Do you guys do the rest just for the look or is it some sort of relaxation for you? I'm not knocking it. Its just not something I personally wouldn't run to as a hobby or to relax. How did you get into it if that's what your doing it for? Just one day didn't like the back yard or needed a new hobby?
I don't do anything close to what these guys do...but I do like knowing where my food comes from.
If you know what your doing, nothing beats the quality, freshness, and taste of food you grew or harvested yourself.
I grew up with a big garden so when I got my own house or into a rental I started a small garden myself and now I have a huge garden. We can a ton of stuff so we have a pantry full of great food that is shelf stable for years.
Annually on a .25 acre lot we grow...
50+ lbs Figs
100+ lbs Asian Pears
80 lbs of peppers(15 varieties or so)
150lbs Blueberries
50lbs Marionberries(like blackberries but bigger)
50lbs Logan berries(blackberry/rasberry cross...no thorns)
Year round greens for salads and sandwiches
Lots of Peas
Lots of Green Beans
75lbs Potatoes
Carrots
Cabbage
100lbs + onions
Tomatoes
Garlic
Beets
Radish
Turnip
and much much more
It takes a time investment and some money for fertilizer but to me it is well worth it to keep and work a large garden. We have 7 chickens so we use their shit as fertilizer as well, and they produce 7 eggs per day(more than we can eat).
More of a part time job than a hobby for me and the lady.
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I used to grow marijuana illegally, so that is what got me into growing. After that I started mycology and eventually veggies and fruit. The pandemic made me step up my game and now I just continue to upgrade bit by bit. There is nothing like being able to step out the back door and harvest fresh produce for a meal. I can do this at midnight if I want. Convenience is a really big deal. On top of that I grow varieties that you would not find in a grocery store (most likely due to shelf life), and there is absolutely nothing like the taste. It can be hard work to maintain everything, but it's rewarding. I give plenty to family, friends, and clients, and in my opinion, it's a gift that is appreciated more than typical goods. I do also like to sit outside on a nice day and be surrounded by what I put work in to, so that you could chalk up as the relaxing part.
This whiskey barrel is filled in perfectly with the greens acting as a mulch to keep good moisture content in the soil as well as keep the roots cool.
This one is coming along nicely.
I reset this fabric bed today since the lettuce was bolting. I left the mizuna around the outside so I can collect the seeds. Bakers creek charges wayyyyy too much for them.
I germinated some auto flowering seeds and just picked up some kings mix and potted them up. This shod be interesting. Hopefully autos have come a long way since the last time I grew them out, otherwise it was a wasted $200.
Do you guys compost?
Yes, but on a very small scale. I also like to put clippings and kitchen green waste into beds that are resting. It gives the worms something to munch on and feeds the soil.
My tomatoes are growing really slowly. Don't know what's up with them. I'll probably hit them up with some garden tone today.
These are leggy.
I left them for 2 weeks with my kid who is near the top of the lazy totem pole.
Unfortunately this generation thinks food grows in the back of grocery stores, won't get injected with MRNA, and warnings are suggestions to solve boredom.
And mine believe I love gardening passionately all of a sudden.
Just as bad we spent an entire day prepping soil & seeds, categorizing them all, determinant/indeterminant, labeling heirlooms like black crim, Cherokee purple, chocolate Stripe etc., and she transferred all of them without labeling as she went.