Gardening

[Itoero]

I have a vegetable garden and greenhouse.

 

In the vegetable garden I will plant/sow salad, courgette, pumpkin, rhubarb, corn, sunflower and herbs.

In my greenhouse I will plant tomatoes, peppers, a cucumber and salad.

I've sown my tomatoes and one pepper inside at 15 march, they are now a couple cm tall.

 

I fertilize with vinasse, fish emulsion and dry cow manure.

I've added horse dung and compost the last years.

 

Especially self grown tomatoes are a lot better then the ones you can buy in a store.

 

Are there more gardeners on this forum? What do you grow?

[DrP]

I used to grow tomatoes and beetroots. I ate the beetroot leaves as salad leaves like most would lettuce. We had strawberries in hanging baskets too. Potatoes in pots... which were probably more trouble than they were worth. Oh - and runner beans too!

 

I used to like wandering out into the garden on a sunny day and collecting a few things to make a salad with for lunch.

 

Haven't done this for a few years though. Tomatoes and runner beans were my favourite - not much effort for a tasty reward.

[Sensei]

What do you grow?

 

Wine grapes.

They covered entire tree up to 8-10 meters. I was even thinking about modifying drone, to fly and cut grapes..

They love wire fence.

 

Red pepper, yellow pepper, and chili pepper.

 

Lemon trees.

I recommend South Africa RPA and South America Argentina species, they are very good. Thin skin fruit. Very forgivable plant. And very fast growing.

I disrecommend spanish lemon. Thick skin fruit. Very thin branch (at least young plant), therefor it hates wind. Almost the all dead after year.

 

Aronia (black chokeberry). It's good for drink with vodka.

 

And various other fruit trees.

 

Garlic, onion.

 

The more info and photos of couple plants in the thread from last year:

http://www.scienceforums.net/topic/93636-fruits-and-vegetables-plantation/

Edited March 9, 2017 by Sensei

[Klaynos]

I've grown peas, runner beans and tomatoes the last few years. Slowly building up compost in new raised beds. With mint and rosemary in planters.

 

 

This year the mint has come inside (hopeing for near year around growing) and had some other herbs planted inside too. And I've got some raspberry and blackberry canes. I don't expect to crop much from them and will do the beans, peas and tomatoes untill the berries take over the beds.

 

In the future there might be another raised bed for the vegetables again but I need to think about that a bit more and maybe hack at some bushes for another couple of years.

[DrKrettin]

We have a small garden, with 1 lemon tree, 1 orange tree, 1 avocado tree, 1 apricot tree and 1 olive. The avocado is a mistake because we need 2 for fertilisation, so no avocados, otherwise they all give fruit.. As I type, the apricot is in full blossom with a fantastic scent, and the olive is full of tiny unimpressive flowers too. Oh, and 1 marihuana plant doing very nicely.

[studiot]

Itoero

 

Great subject +1

 

It is difficult to 'compete' with the supermarkets on price for most crops.

It can be economic for fruit, soft fruit in particular.

 

However supermarket produce is

 

a) not properly ripened

b) of a variety that is easy to grow and harvest rather than tasty or nutritious.

 

Home gardeners can remedy both these faults.

 

So our the main crop in our garden is the bramley apple. We are down to our last tray and a half from last autumn ( though there is some in the freezer).

Typically the fresh and stored apples last from sometime in August to the end of the following March.

 

We also grow rhubarb, runner beans and soft fruit (raspberries and strawberries).

[Klaynos]

Things always taste better picked and eaten a few minutes apart. I suspect it's at least a bit in my head but I'm ok with that.

[Itoero]

I used to like wandering out into the garden on a sunny day and collecting a few things to make a salad with for lunch.

When they are ripe, I often pick some sweet corn for my lunch

[NimrodTheGoat]

i have a decent sized back yard, i am growing, grow, or will grow, oranges, corn, lemons, guayaba, vispero, spearmint, coriander, persimmon, apples, cucumber, watermelon, peppers, rosemary ( i live in california thats why i have a variety )

 

i like growing things in back yards, thought about making a greenhouse but dont really like being in those things, so my plants have to grow al aire libre

 

p.s. the corn this year was a disaster, for they were planted to late and winter came along e.e. also, i also like grwoing them at home because of the no-pesticide-thing. i have nothing against them, but sometimes fresh feels better than fruits passed through chemicals

Edited March 9, 2017 by NimrodTheGoat

[hypervalent_iodine]

I've grown a lot of flowers and succulents. Flowers are tough here in the subtropics. Perennials end up being annuals the moment summer hits. I haven't had the time for it for a year or two. I used coffee grinds, which worked wonders.

 

 

 

My succulents have been somewhat decimated by persistent mealy bugs, which came to me by way of a clipping from a friend. I have about half of the ones in these pictures:

 

 

 

I haven tried crops. I don't own the house I live in, and the garden beds would need a bit of renovating to be usable. One day.

[iNow]

Anyone have issues with deer and wildlife eating their plants, and/or good ways to prevent that if you can't hunt them in your community? There's a high fence, but deer can really jump high.

[Itoero]

Anyone have issues with deer and wildlife eating their plants, and/or good ways to prevent that if you can't hunt them in your community? There's a high fence, but deer can really jump high.

I don't know if it will help but you can place a deer feeding bucket outside the fence and put some tasty deerfood in.

 

Or perhaps you can place a wire fence horizontally about 20 cm(or more) above the ground, in front of the fence.

Then I don't think they will still jump the fence.

[iNow]

Right on... very useful ideas. Thanks!

 

I've done basic gardening here in Texas, tomatoes, hot peppers, herbs and the like, but we're about to move and the house has an existing garden and tons of deer. My wife and kiddos and will have fun, just want to ensure they're efforts are decimated by a few "locals."

[Itoero]

I had a Dracaena Draco.(dragon tree)

My parents bought him for me on holiday in Tenerife.

He became to big so he had to winter outside in the greenhouse but he died.

We had a lot of frost this year and it's a tropical tree...

 

It's not a real tree but it grows like one.

"According to legend, the dragon tree is related to Ladon, an ancient dragon that had 100 heads and spoke in as many different voices.

 

When Juno the queen of the gods and mother of Mars was married, her mother Gaia gave her three golden apples as a gift and set the dragon Ladon to guard them in the Garden of the Hesperides.

 

Herakles, also known as Hercules, intending to steal the golden fruit in the garden, killed the dragon Ladon and from this creatures blood sprang forth the Dracaena or dragon tree. As a reward for giving his life in protection of the golden apples, Juno then placed Ladon amongst the stars in the constellation Draco that even now wraps itself around the north star magically boosting the power of defense, war and new works."

Edited March 14, 2017 by Itoero

[Velocity_Boy]

I have a vegetable garden and greenhouse.In the vegetable garden I will plant/sow salad, courgette, pumpkin, rhubarb, corn, sunflower and herbs.In my greenhouse I will plant tomatoes, peppers, a cucumber and salad.I've sown my tomatoes and one pepper inside at 15 march, they are now a couple cm tall.I fertilize with vinasse, fish emulsion and dry cow manure.I've added horse dung and compost the last years.Especially self grown tomatoes are a lot better then the ones you can buy in a store.Are there more gardeners on this forum? What do you grow?

Hello Itoero!

 

Always good to meet a fellow gardening enthusiast. I'm a horticulturist too, as I also grow and propogate indoor and outdoor plants. Orchids too. I'm a biology teacher student, going for my MS now. My thesis is going to be Botany related, having to do with how plants and trees communicate with chemical transmission.

 

But yeah, gardening! Good for the soul. The happiest folks I know are gardeners. My passion is chile peppers, as I'm a spicy food addict. I live in the Southwest United States, so our climate is conducive to this. Right now I'm growing, as far as peppers are concerned... Jalapenos, Serrano's, Red Thai, habanero, and Ghost Peppers. The latter has the highest Scoville Heat Index Rating in the world. Or did for years, but may have recently been surpassed. It's eating was 1,000,000. For perspective, a jalapeno is bout 50,000. Ouch.

 

I use very similar fertilization methods as do you. About a year ago I went all natural and organic. I use blackstrap mollasses extract, and Yucca and Aloe Extract in combo with fish emulsion and bat guano. You need to try the latter if you haven't.

 

Tomatoes. I just did a hybrid with Serrano grafting. Our county extension agent is interested and is talking with Texas A&M on my behalf re possible patenting licensure. You're right about the vast difference in taste and quality between store bought and homegrown tomatoes. No comparison. Night and day. You will be spoiled for life after eating good homegrown tomatoes. The difference is larger than for any other veggie or fruit. At least that I've tasted.

 

Thanks for your post, and I'm sure we'll talk again.

[Itoero]

Hello Itoero!

 

Always good to meet a fellow gardening enthusiast. I'm a horticulturist too, as I also grow and propogate indoor and outdoor plants. Orchids too. I'm a biology teacher student, going for my MS now. My thesis is going to be Botany related, having to do with how plants and trees communicate with chemical transmission.

 

But yeah, gardening! Good for the soul. The happiest folks I know are gardeners. My passion is chile peppers, as I'm a spicy food addict. I live in the Southwest United States, so our climate is conducive to this. Right now I'm growing, as far as peppers are concerned... Jalapenos, Serrano's, Red Thai, habanero, and Ghost Peppers. The latter has the highest Scoville Heat Index Rating in the world. Or did for years, but may have recently been surpassed. It's eating was 1,000,000. For perspective, a jalapeno is bout 50,000. Ouch.

 

I use very similar fertilization methods as do you. About a year ago I went all natural and organic. I use blackstrap mollasses extract, and Yucca and Aloe Extract in combo with fish emulsion and bat guano. You need to try the latter if you haven't.

 

Tomatoes. I just did a hybrid with Serrano grafting. Our county extension agent is interested and is talking with Texas A&M on my behalf re possible patenting licensure. You're right about the vast difference in taste and quality between store bought and homegrown tomatoes. No comparison. Night and day. You will be spoiled for life after eating good homegrown tomatoes. The difference is larger than for any other veggie or fruit. At least that I've tasted.

 

Thanks for your post, and I'm sure we'll talk again.

I used to grow a lot of peppers (hot and sweet). A couple years ago I joined (on dutch forum) a competition to grow the heaviest pepper...I won

Big Bertha and especially Goliath sweet peppers are very productive, big plants and give a lot of big peppers. (many above 400g)

My heaviest pepper was the 'super heavy weight' variety. A small unproductive plant but the peppers can grow huge...mine was 566g.

I'm mentioned on this website:http://www.giantgardening.com/rec_pepper-sweet.php

I'm the guy from Belgium, my first name is Sander. (there is a photo of my big pepper)

 

A mix of vinasse and fish emulsion is in my opinion the best/most complete fertilizer for big peppers or tomatoes.

What do you think about kelp fertilizing? It should contain a lot of growth hormones and help especially chinense peppers to grow faster when they are small but I did not notice any difference.

 

Big Zac and Giant Belgium give me tomatoes above 1kg.

 

And I was planning to graft a pepper on a tomato-root but it failed, I'm not handy enough.

I did grow a grafted red oxheart...the grafting should make them more productive but I haven't notice a difference in production.

Many people do graft tomatoes on potatoes...I think you can even buy a tomtato hybrid.

 

I used to grow many chinense peppers.

In the uk, someone grew a huge dorset naga and picked 2.407 peppers.

Edited April 4, 2017 by Itoero

[Itoero]

I am very angry.

I have planted several tomato plants in the greenhouse and it might freeze 2 nights in a row in a few days.

[imatfaal]

I am very angry.

I have planted several tomato plants in the greenhouse and it might freeze 2 nights in a row in a few days.

 

What's the weather forecast for next week - freezing? I am more concerned for Amstel Gold, Fleche-Wallonne, and L-B-L than for garden

[Itoero]

What's the weather forecast for next week - freezing? I am more concerned for Amstel Gold, Fleche-Wallonne, and L-B-L than for garden

That's probably more important then my tomatoes

On Wednesday and Thursday night it should be 0°C but during the day it's ok.

https://www.meteo.be/meteo/view/nl/65656-Weer.html?image=15daysmaxtemp&ext=.png

L-B-L was driven in the snow at 1980!

Hinault won and only 21 cyclists reached the finish.

[imatfaal]

That's probably more important then my tomatoes

On Wednesday and Thursday night it should be 0°C but during the day it's ok.

https://www.meteo.be/meteo/view/nl/65656-Weer.html?image=15daysmaxtemp&ext=.png

L-B-L was driven in the snow at 1980!

Hinault won and only 21 cyclists reached the finish.

 

When it was really tough Hinault was unstoppable - he was a bit of a brute was M. le Blaireau. I presume you guys are still in a state of national mourning for the retirement of Tommeke - I so wanted him to win PR; but fairy tales sometimes don't come true

[Itoero]

"Tommeke, Tommeke wat doe je nu?" is a frase that will be remembered

[imatfaal]

Cancellara gone and now Tommeke - Spring will never be the same again

[Itoero]

All my tomatoes are planted in my greenhouse

I can't wait for the first ripe tomatoes, they taste a lot better then the ones from a store.

I especially like the bigger beefsteak tomatoes.

I'm also growing a Jalapeno, I'm going to make my own poppers

 

This is my biggest tomato so far...a big zac.

[Itoero]

My peppers are germinating and I'm about to sow my tomatoes. In April I'll plant them in the greenhouse and garden....if the weather allows it.

The weather is odd. It used to be too warm, the growing season was starting. Now it's freezing like hell. According to the forecast, on 1 March it will be -2°C during the day and -8°C at night. That's uncommonly cold and I live in the most temperate region in Belgium.