Blitz

Been busy lately, no shock there, but I have some catch up to do here, so I'll update as my memory allows.

First the tomatoes...oh the tomatoes. Here's a taste of one evenings take.



not sure what my final poundage was for the year as I still have a few out there, racing the weather to ripen. But there was enough to can about 4 quarts of the most delicious garlicy sauce courtesy of my brother from another mother's recipe. Next year there will be twice as many vines.

The last corner of the potato patch got dug up. Thar be monsters!
granted 1 lbs 1.25 oz may be pedestrian by onestraw's standards...but its a record for me. no final tally yet.

Even more significant. I have achieved a benchmark. I have made a succession plan work. Previously I was just shy a few weeks time to have a good crop of beans after potatoes. I am fairly confident I can repeat the results now. We've had a cool gray wet summer, so even with that taken into account, I can fit the two crops in the same spot and avoid the frost. Yeah! This year, the first major harvest day for the green beans planted after potatoes came in at a touch over a pound. This is enough to have a couple good meals at home and give away the rest before they go bad. Not enough to can though (nor do I have a pressure canner). Thankfully...I only planted about a third of what I could have, so next year we should have enough for fresh and putting aside. Here is about one half the take on saturday morning.



Speaking of beans, the vermont craberry shelling beans were sufficiently dry to pick and shell. It was so much fun that my wife insisted on finishing shelling the rest. Pretty productive, I got a good cup and a quarter of shelled dried beans from about a 10 foot row. Next year I'll buy more seed, since I'll likely use up all these beans in cooking, though I could technically save it.



And lastly, the sunflowers did not happen this year. I think my seed saving methods may be at fault. I only saved one head a year, so I'm betting the lack of diversity lead to an inbreeding depression. Spindly little things that couldn't stand on their own. Here's the real surprise. My wife remarked that she missed seeing them around the house. The same wife who in prior years remarked that their presence was a bit hippyish. I just smirked, she insisted that I not read to much into it...yeah right.

its been almost a month? really?

I spend all my winters in anticipation of summer and it disappears before my eyes.

Lets get this out of our system ahead of time. This will not be a spectacular year, it will be another year of lessons.

There is too much of a good thing. that being rain 5 of the last 7 days in july and 17 of 30 days in june. And even when it was only a few drops it has been overcast. Things are moving sllllloooowly. I should really consider adding another row of boards to the raised beds which only sit about 4-6 inches above ground height.

I am willing to try starting peas on st patrick's day again, but only if they are pre-sprouted. It took forever for them to germinate.

I should start my curcurbits in pots first. The soil just does not get warm enough early enough to get them going, I am going to end up with a lot of things just getting in under the wire if at all.

Slugs are a serious issue now. A duck is unfortunately out of the question.

Garlic spray is a great japanese beetle deterrant, I haven't seen them since.

I should have planted trees years ago.

fried beet chips are a reason to get out of bed in the morning!

My frontyard bed definitely needs more organic matter.

I need more grape vines.

The black tips on the kiwi is likely a water issue, too little I think, and with the rain I have not seen any since.

Putting Practice into Practice

In keeping with last year's Theory and Practice series of posts I took what Jeavons had written and tried it in my particular spot of land. Results varied but I think the overall principles I learned are sound. I decided to once again document my plan for all the world to see, and lay out the results.

I tried to follow the sample layout as closely as possible, this time I have taken my favorites, added a few newbies and come up with a list, arranging them by companion guidelines at a spacing density as recommended in "How to grow..." The entire list does not exist in any one place, but in planning I came upon a theory of my own...or at least a method. Rob over at Onestraw described a great rotation system based on keeping plant families together using a six bed rotation model. I don't have the kind of space he does, so my beds have to be more diverse, but that doesn't mean it can't follow the same kind of orderly system.

As discussed in the previous post, nutrient cycling based on plant rotation is not much of a concern. Like a lot of people by now I dump compost on the bed wherever and whenever possible. I'm a firm believer. Crop rotation will be to satisfy disease avoidance. That being said I get considerably more freedom to plan and plant what I choose (within reason).

Therefore I've divided my plans into "Bed Modules," groups of plants with known complimentary properties and seasonal requirements. As it stands I believe I have four beds planned. Currently I have been alloted two officially, and two unofficially. Were I to have six I could put comfrey and other compost crops in rotation. Back to the modules. Each one has its own specific single year succession and place in the overall rotation.

Since I've already written quite a bit I'll just introduce one bed module. This one is probably the simplest as it goes pretty much unchanged throughout the season, until the middle zone gets replaced in the fall by something else. The onions (leeks actually) and carrots go in the ground first to get a head start. As things warm up, the tomatoes and peppers go in before the petunias which will try to take of the place if not kept in check. Note that orientation matters with north being at the top of the diagram.

So thats bed module #1

Rotation Roundup

A question for those in the know. When planning crop rotations, which matters more, time or # of crops in the interval.

Say for instance I use the same spot of land for more than one crop in a year, does simply having "x" number of different crops on that spot count? Or should I wait the recommended number of years? Growing say cabbage crops in a spot in spring of this year, then in the fall of next year. Assuming two-three crops per spot per year, it technically means 3 crops have been grown between cabbage plantings.

I suspect that there may be two separate issues involved, one of soil recharge which would be satisfied by a required number and type of crop in between, and a whole other matter altogether of diseases which I am guessing probably need the time between crops.

Am I off base?

Tempting frost

According to Cornell's map (which is great if you live in NY like me) Our final expected frost date is somewhere between april 10 and 30th (we live on the boarder between two areas). Last year the spring crops went in the ground on the 21st. Though I had a bit of a frost scare, everything pulled through. One of the problems I found with the time table I used last year was that some seedlings were a bit small, and some which I know are cold tolerant tended to take a long time to mature and were holding up the succession plan.

Since I have a new bed I will be working with I am going to try an experiment. I am still determined to grow corn, but I know I have to get it in the ground long before july 7th which is when it went in last year. I figure between 70-80 days should be enough to get a decent yeild from a pea variety rated at 65 days. Cornell rates mid may as optimum planting time in accordance with IPM. This means the peas would have to go in mid march. On more than one occasion I have heard people suggest planting peas on st. patrick's day, which is of course mid march. The problem is, I don't remember a st. patty's day in syracuse where I have not sputtered some inappropriate metaphor about the cold. What the heck! lets do it! Its so crazy it might work, and I have seen fall planted pea vines shrug of frost and even a dusting of snow. My concern is germination. I'm thinking a floating row cover or makeshift cold frame to protect the seedlings, but will they germinate without outside help? do I put some peas in flats for a week, and then pop them in the ground once they sprout?

I'd like to do a similar think with the potatoes though not as radical. Last season I followed the potatoes with bush beans and I'd like to do so again, but the beans had just started producing when they were frost killed. A week or two sooner (say Aug 1) to get the potatoes out and the beans in would probably give me a full crop. Since last year I dug the first new potatoes on the 29th of July and the last full sized Aug 13, it seems feasible if memory serves that so long as they get to me in time, It should be warm enough and safe to plant by April 15th or so, roughly two weeks earlier.

Everything I know about: staggered planting

I got a question about planting to ensure continuous supplies of veggies, here is the lowdown on that topic.

First, to really be able to live off of your garden requires either lots of land (like the pioneers), lots of skill and sunshine (like PTF) or both. But for the rest of us I think a well planned garden might be able to produce good weekly yields from as little as about 100 square feet (what I'm working with).

There are two kinds of things that produce edibles and for the sake of clarity I'm going to use tomato terminology. Fruit and vegetable plants are either determinate or non-determinate.

Determinate plants give you all they've got at once, or you take all the plant has at once as in the case of head lettuce, cabbage etc. If you are going to be canning or doing any kind of preserving, these are your friend because most canning recipes call for using large quantities of fresh produce. Determinate varieties ensure that if you plant a large amount at one time you will harvest a very large amount at one time.

Non-determinate plants will stagger production, or allow you to harvest a few leaves, fruit or one plant at a time without worrying too much about the rest of the crop going bad, as I do with potatoes, onions, or leaf lettuce.

Then there is another type which doesn't quite fit what I would consider either, and the only one I can think of like that is broccoli, cut the main head and it will regrow more "side shoots" but they will not be as large as the initial offering.

The first thing that should be very evident is the planning required, a level of planning that keeps me awake at night. If you wanted to be absolutely scientific about it I'm sure there would be ways to ensure that even with small plots, you are taking in produce daily, but I have yet to achieve that. The other thing to consider is the days to maturity variable. I might be a cynic but I don't put much stock in those numbers except as a rough guideline to tell me roughly when they will be ready. Unless you have perfect soil, perfect sun exposure, and perfect weather I wouldn't bet the microfarm on those numbers.

What the numbers can help with is to provide a way to minimize wasted space in the garden, and by that I mean if you are trying to get a somewhat continuous harvest of green beans you could plant an early bush variety like "provider" at the same time as a slightly longer maturing bush variety. The alternative is to plant a second "provider" crop a week or two later. The disadvantage there is if you are planting closely, the later crop might not get the same sun access from the other group getting a head start, and second (perhaps the most irritating to me) there is a bare spot in the garden in the interim. Bare soil gets easily compacted by rainwater (a big problem for me lately) and it also is an invitation for weeds.

Non-determinate varieties deliver over a wider range of time and usually once they reach the days to maturity number they will produce until they die or have a serious disagreement with the weather. I've noticed non-determinate fruits and veggies usually grow on vines, which is nice because it means you can grow them upwards and save valuable horizontal space. The disadvantage of this is that with non-determinate varieties you usually only get a few fruits at a time, so if its something like green beans or peas, where you will be eating more than 2 or three per serving, plant a lot of vines.

There are of course charts and recommendations for time between plantings
of determinate varieties like corn, lettuce etc. but again, (and please don't think this is a cop out) I think its just better to pull out a calendar and a seed catalog, and mark your estimated planting times and harvest times based on the dtm#, take copious notes of when you planted and harvested, and then try again next year. And if you mark the estimated first frost date of the year on the calendar and count backwards to your harvest times, you might find you can squeeze in another crop of something else? Our ancestors did this their whole lives, they grew up doing it, so it came naturally. We just need to remember what is actually possible.

I referenced green beans a lot because so far I have had the most success with getting a large and somewhat steady supply of it. At least until now when 3 weeks of cold and wet has interrupted my plans. Live and learn.

Scratch that!

this weekend I was going to dig out the rest of the potatoes this weekend but it rained, hard, again.

the cherry tomato plant in the hanging basket has some yellowing leaves, too much water probably. I started some beets, turnips beans and leeks for the fall. They along with some others will be occupying the bed the potatoes vacate. The healthier better tilth soil of the two beds. No signs of ripening yet from either the cherry tomatoes or the brandywines. Anticipation is killer isn't it.

In other news, the grape vine (lakemont) which was growing strong appears to have weakened growth at the tip and there looks to be some very light brown streaking at the last inch of it. I topped it off right above a node, if its a disease, hopefully I got the infected part of it and it can continue to grow from the node. The Male Kiwi is being ridiculously sluggish. I know its position is not the greatest but it will have to do, I may give it some worm tea and see how it reacts. Hopefully I can give it another couple inches before fall and let it get established.

I've seen more than a few japanese beetles out and about, and managed to "get" all of them, I hope they aren't somehow involved in all this.

potatoes and timing

onestraw reminded me that I hadn't ordered potato seed yet either. The problem is actually 2fold. First, I calculated the actual number of days in the ground I need according to the 100 sq ft plan in How to Grow... based on frost dates and things are going to be tight. Jeavons says that the plan is for people with 6 months of growing season, which is just a touch more than we get here in zone 5. Not enough for me to say"Well, I just have to forgo one of the succession phases" But its just enough to make it ...tight. It means the zone devoted to early salad crops like peas, lettuce, carrots, radishes, broccoli etc get about 55 days, which thanks to the wonder of genetic diversity is doable if using some of the heirloom seed stocks available...like my favorite Alaska Peas. Back to the matter at hand if I am to follow them with the late crop of corn, then potatoes get a window of 65 days. (Which by the way is exactly what Jeavons suggests).

So bottom line is I need to find some good seed potatoes that grow to maturity in 65 days. Unfortunately most online sources do not list days to maturity, only "early" "late season" etc. Second, is finding a quantity that is cost effective. I need about 10 lbs and a lot of the sources offer 2.5 lbs which at 4 quantities costs the same as the 20 or 50 lbs quantities being offered. And not to be too picky but I need a potato that keeps well, with only two adults and 1 eight year old we will not go through them too quickly. Why not plant less? two reasons. First, having more on hand means we will eat more home grown produce, and I will get to cook more, and share more with friends and family. Second, ego. I haven't actually declared as such but I am going for a poundage goal. 100 lbs from 100 square feet. I think its a reasonable goal given my level of experience. For comparison, Path To Freedom averages @ 1.5 lbs per square foot of garden space based on their advertised statistics. They also have a ridiculously long growing season and waaaaaay more experience.

Any suggestions?


PS:

Jeeze, how could I forget this one, I got some vine cuttings from our soon to be adopted daughter's great aunt. Great productive vines, the ever popular northern staple Concord. My father the amatuer winemaker was less than enthused with the variety, but as a lover of grape juice and jam, I could not be happier. I took the cuttings based on the Cornell Extension guide, but I'm still nervous, I know grapes are pretty reliable rooters from cuttings, but this is my first time propagating in this manner, so there is always some apprehension I suppose. If these take off I might try a hardy table variety like Himrod or Niagra next year. I don't have the space to do any large scale production for wine grapes, which is no real big loss, we're not far from Western New York's wine country which spans from somewhere near Rochester all the way out to Fredonia, which is where my Dad goes for his big juice buckets every year. I'm so excited, even though I know It will not be of age to bear fruit for at least 3 years. Given the space and number of vines I have I should be able to get around 14 quarts of juice once the vines are in full swing per year. Not enough to sell or live off of, but nice for the occasional treat.