Gardening 2021

[bwframe]

What all are you dehydrating there?

That's Super Chili and Red Caribbean hot peppers. Along with it, cantaloupe.

The bottom tray has poor try at candied cantalope. Results were poor and it took forever to dry. IMHO, no need to candy coat cantaloupe. Cantaloupe dehydrates just fine on its own, without any coating, and tastes pleasantly sweet by itself.

 

[bwframe]

Think this will work?


7-8 weeks until first frost. Maybe more, if the global warming comes through?

 

[NKBJ]

Dang it I need to get the green house done!

 

[d.kaufman]

Think this will work?

View attachment 154534
7-8 weeks until first frost. Maybe more, if the global warming comes through?

May want to build a quick lean to. Wood frame with clear plastic will do. Inexpensive but will be effective when them temps, especially overnight, drop

 

[d.kaufman]

Dang it I need to get the green house done!

Think the wife finally has hers the way she wants it

 

[NKBJ]

Nice!

 

[bwframe]

 

[bwframe]

And some critter damage.

 

[tim87tr]

Built some raised garden beds and trying our best to have a productive garden on a sloped terrain. Several things turned out well, learning a lot.

 

[2in1evtime]

My wife's freeze dryer is suppose to be here wednesday, she is getting excited, me i am just curious

 

[bwframe]

Thank God! First decent rain in a month...

 

[bwframe]

Found out the long beans laying on the ground are harder to process than the ones higher up the plant. Gravity keeps the higher beans straight. A lot more wrestling with the curly ones that made it to the ground.

I should have listened to the nice Asian lady in the video. She said to prune leaves and bean sprouts from the bottom of the plants.

I pruned the lower leaves, but was skeert to take off the bean blossoms. At the time, lower blossoms were all the plants had.

 

[Gunmetalgray]

Those with the sizable gardens must have help from family or spouse with soil prep, watering, weeding, harvest & canning I presume. Finding it difficult to maintain a small plot while still working. Seems the soil (clay) needs constant amending & attention.

 

[Jaybird1980]

Those with the sizable gardens must have help from family or spouse with soil prep, watering, weeding, harvest & canning I presume. Finding it difficult to maintain a small plot while still working. Seems the soil (clay) needs constant amending & attention.

The wife and kids definitely have to help. We don't can, but the weeding we just try to stay on top of it and using mulch also helps a lot. We also don't try to keep it completely weed free. Our soil isn't clay but we add leaves in the fall, plant a cover crop through the winter then add any compost we have and till in the spring. Topdress any compost we have throughout the summer also helps with the weeds

 

[bwframe]

Those with the sizable gardens must have help from family or spouse with soil prep, watering, weeding, harvest & canning I presume. Finding it difficult to maintain a small plot while still working. Seems the soil (clay) needs constant amending & attention.

No help here. It is a tough balance, especially with mother nature fighting you all the way.

Gotta find ways to spend time in the garden every day, chores so to speak. Otherwise, the time consuming stuff like weeding and all at once huge harvests have you giving up or giving away your hard work.

Also, failure is part of gardening. I have been at this a while, yet still was just out watering a pumpkin patch that is very likely not gonna produce.
Insult to injury, water bill was 4X normal last month.

 

[Jaybird1980]

No help here. It is a tough balance, especially with mother nature fighting you all the way.

Gotta find ways to spend time in the garden every day, chores so to speak. Otherwise, the time consuming stuff like weeding and all at once huge harvests have you giving up or giving away your hard work.

Also, failure is part of gardening. I have been at this a while, yet still was just out watering a pumpkin patch that is very likely not gonna produce.
Insult to injury, water bill was 4X normal last month.

For sure there will be failures. You're absolutely correct.
And for what it's worth i have a pumpkin patch i have been pampering this year, i mean pruning, hand pollinating, water a lot and it only has like 6-8 pumpkins.

 

[bwframe]

For sure there will be failures. You're absolutely correct.
And for what it's worth i have a pumpkin patch i have been pampering this year, i mean pruning, hand pollinating, water a lot and it only has like 6-8 pumpkins.

I ate 3 or 4 pie pumpkins early in the season. I still have 5 left from the early batch, but have lost a couple while curing. I chopped one into the compost just today.

 

[Jaybird1980]

I ate 3 or 4 pie pumpkins early in the season. I still have 5 left from the early batch, but have lost a couple while curing. I chopped one into the compost just today.


View attachment 157241 View attachment 157242

I lost half a dozen or so that were doing great and then just rotted on the vine. Middle of the vine pumpkins on each side of them still doing good.

 

[spencer rifle]

Brought in the last of the tomatoes for sauce and pulled the plants. Harvested the last of the sweet corn and cantaloupe.
We still have cabbage, sweet potatoes, carrots, brussels sprouts, long beans and, unfortunately, okra and peppers out in the garden.
We amend our soil with llama poop whenever our source has some extra. Doesn't require composting.

 

[Gunmetalgray]

No help here. It is a tough balance, especially with mother nature fighting you all the way.

Gotta find ways to spend time in the garden every day, chores so to speak. Otherwise, the time consuming stuff like weeding and all at once huge harvests have you giving up or giving away your hard work.

Also, failure is part of gardening. I have been at this a while, yet still was just out watering a pumpkin patch that is very likely not gonna produce.
Insult to injury, water bill was 4X normal last month.

Yep, tough working M-F while solo gardening, solo mowing, solo watering, etc... too many hobbies to have a job Like you said, miss getting out there a few days in a row and it goes to hell in a hurry. This year sucked but I'll never give up. Dad gardened into his 80s.